Pokemon Variants

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Pokemon X Solo Volbeat Part 4: In Which Team Flare is a Legitimate Threat


Now that Volbeat had defeated Grant, Team Flare Grunts had appeared north of Cyllage City to confront me. The first had a level 23 Golbat with the lethal combination of Confuse Ray and Wing Attack. In retrospect, this fight reminded me of some of PETRA PAN the Roserade's confrontations with Team Galactic.


Death Count: 3


On the second try, the AI ordered Golbat to use the weak Ghost move Astonish instead of the super effective Wing Attack. That's what puzzles me about the Pokemon AI in this game. It didn't make sense in the solo Vespiquen playthrough, and it still doesn't make sense. What is the algorithm for enemy trainers selecting attacks? In Final Fantasy 5, for example, boss AI goes through a pattern over multiple turns, and each turn has, say, a 1/3 chance of using any particular move.


Korrina's 2 Lucarios in Geosenge Town emphasized how bad an attacking type Bug was, but Volbeat managed to pull through with Confuse Ray trickery.


But Brains and Brawn Frank and Sly's duo of Machoke and Mr. Mime proved more dangerous. Since I needed to use Strength in Reflection Cave to create the shortcut, I had to carry my HM Mules, and those two were blocking the entrance. A combination of Low Sweeps from Machoke and Psybeams from Mr. Mime put too much pressure on Volbeat and caused him to trip into his grave.


Death Count: 4


Volbeat won on the second try with the help of Confuse Ray and multiple Moonlights. However, the trainers in Reflection Cave were as fierce to Volbeat as they were to HUBRIS the Dunsparce. Battle Girl Hedvig had a level 26 Hawlucha that outsped me due to being only level 32 from the Erratic curve. Its attacks (Aerial Ace?) killed Volbeat after he had already taken damage from Hedvig's Throh.


Death Count: 5


Calem in Shalour City was a relief after having to fight various Poison and Fighting types that resisted Bug. In fact, 2/3 of his team was weak to Signal Beam, and his Water starter will be susceptible when fully evolved. The level 28 male Meowstic was good setup bait after the initial Fake Out flinch. It set up Light Screen, so I briefly stalled for time with Tail Glow, Confuse Ray, and a Moonlight. Once a Signal Beam shone on Meowstic, the Light Screen expired just in time for the level 28 Absol. Calem's level 30 Frogadier was still pure Water, but +6 Special Attack meant type neutrality didn't matter.


Korrina's Gym was Fighting type, which was a mutual disadvantage. Bug types resisted Fighting, but Fighting also resisted Bug. Fortunately, Volbeat gained a level from the first trainer and replaced Confuse Ray with the physical Psychic attack Zen Headbutt. Even with type advantage, it didn't always knock out the Fighting Pokemon in one blow, but it was still better than Signal Beam.


Korrina's team featured a level 29 Mienfoo, a level 28 Machoke, and a level 32 Hawlucha. A bad damage roll from Zen Headbutt on the Machoke allowed it to survive and lower Volbeat's Speed with Rock Tomb. A second Zen Headbutt after Korrina's Hyper Potion clobbered Machoke, but -1 Speed meant Hawlucha was faster. Two neutral Flying Presses flattened Volbeat.


Death Count: 6


On take 2, a lucky roll on Zen Headbutt pummeled Machoke in one move, and Hawlucha wasted its only turn on a Hone Claws Attack + Accuracy buff. This is yet another case of puzzling AI. Volbeat gained his 3rd badge and the Power Up Punch TM with 100/110 HP at level 39. This physical Fighting move carries an Attack buff, which Volbeat might take advantage of in the Clemont Electric Gym battle. Both Magneton and Heliolisk are weak to Fighting.


On a small island off the coast of Route 8, BUG MANIAC picked up a Roost TM. This was a better recovery move for Volbeat than Moonlight because it had twice the PP and couldn't be weakened by weather like Rain. Roost is an odd move for Volbeat because he's not part of a Flying type line, and thus its temporary removal of the Flying type is pointless.


Playing with an Erratic Pokemon is interesting because the level curve is almost like an Alola solo, at least in the early game. In Moon, you won't be more than about 11 levels above your opponents or so. Volbeat was only 7 levels above Korrina's Hawlucha, for example, and that was with Affection experience bonuses combined with the more generous Kalos formula.


Volbeat Stats

Level 39 @ Soothe Bell (in case I need to increase Friendship for Return or something?)

HP: 110
Attack: 79
Defense: 58
Special Attack: 56
Special Defense: 69
Speed: 88


Moves

Signal Beam
Tail Glow
Zen Headbutt
Roost

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Pokemon X Solo Volbeat Part 5: Runaway Level Advantage


Volbeat took out the trainers in the seas around Coumarine City with a combination of Zen Headbutt and his recent upgrade to Bug Buzz. Psychic and Bug made a decent pair in some circumstances: Zen Headbutt wiped out the Fighting and Poison types, while Bug could target the Dark types. Some Leftovers lay behind a Cut tree to the east of Shalour City, and Volbeat took advantage of them like BEETRICE the Vespiquen did.


Calem rolled 1s on all his dice rolls in his Coumarine City battle. Maxed out Affection made Volbeat dodge the level 31 Meowstic's Fake Out flinch and let him get a free Tail Glow. One Bug Buzz deafened Meowstic, a level 31 Absol, and a level 33 Frogadier in one hit each. In Mortal Kombat, a screen saying Flawless Victory would have appeared after this match.


Coumarine City's Gym had Grass specialists, which were easy prey for Volbeat. By the time he reached Ramos after swinging on vines, Volbeat was at level 45, 11 levels higher than the Gym Leader's star Pokemon. Erratic's slow period had likely ended by then. Ramos's level 30 Jumpluff was the sole danger here, because it was a Flying type with no item Acrobatics. After buffing himself to +3 Special Attack with Tail Glow, Volbeat's Bug Buzzes tortured Jumpluff, a level 34 Gogoat, and a level 31 Weepinbell. Volbeat won his 4th badge with 89/129 HP.



Volbeat Stats

Level 46 @ Leftovers

HP: 129
Attack: 93
Defense: 68
Special Attack: 67
Special Defense: 82
Speed: 105


Moves

Bug Buzz
Tail Glow
Zen Headbutt
Roost

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Pokemon X Solo Volbeat Part 6: An Emolga That Doesn't Volt Switch?!


Remember when I said that Bug Buzz and Zen Headbutt made for surprisingly good coverage? Well, that applied in the Team Flare battles at the Power Plant. Zen Headbutt smashed Golbats and Swalots, while Bug Buzz took out Dark types like Mightyena.


This was not to last beyond Clemont's underlings in Lumiose City's Electric Gym, however. Two of Clemont's Pokemon were weak to Fighting, so I replaced Zen Headbutt with Power Up Punch. Unlike every other trainer Emolga in a Pokemon game, Clemont's level 35 flying squirrel stayed in and slashed with Aerial Ace instead of Volt Switching to a stronger Pokemon. This probably happened because Volbeat was pure Bug instead of Bug/Flying like BEETRICE the Vespiquen, or pure Normal like HUBRIS the Dunsparce. Aerial Ace dealt rather high damage, but not enough to overcome Roost and Leftovers. Trying out Power Up Punch while predicting a switch ended up paralyzing Volbeat on Emolga's passive Static. Two Tail Glows and Bug Buzz finished off the rodent.


Clemont's level 35 Magneton wasted its first turn setting up Electric Terrain, giving the opportunity for Volbeat to exploit its Steel type with Power Up Punch. Each one put Magneton in critical health and made Clemont use up a turn healing it with Hyper Potions. The +1 Attack after every Power Up Punch made Volbeat's offensive stat so high that a single jab sent the level 37 Heliolisk crashing to the ground. Volbeat won a Thunderbolt TM with 97/145 HP at level 52.



Calem on Route 14 was as pathetic as ever. 3 Bug Buzzes destroyed the level 35 male Meowstic, the level 35 Absol, and the level 37 Water/Dark Greninja in one hit without buffs. Greninja at least made an effort and hit with a weak Water Shuriken before croaking.



BUG MANIAC had to endure some cutscenes with her clingy "friends", and then it was off to Laverre City and its Fairy Gym. With Tail Glow, Volbeat had such an easy time that he fought through all the Fairy specialists without going back to the Pokemon Center to heal before the boss. Valerie's level 38 Mawile insisted on buffing its irrelevant Defense with Iron Defense, then using Crunch. That meant two free Tail Glows for Volbeat! Thunderbolt shocked Mawile and a level 39 Mr. Mime. But Valerie's level 42 Syvleon had base 95 HP and 130 Special Defense, and there was no way a base 47 Special Attack Pokemon was going to knock it out in one hit even at +6. Sylveon flashed a Dazzling Gleam, which failed to due much damage. Sylveon fell into the Hyper Potion loop after the first Thunderbolt, so it was only a short time before Volbeat won his 6th badge at level 57 with 141/159 HP.


Wow, I probably should have given my solo a nickname by now, but I was out of ideas for a while.

EDIT: I don't know how it suddenly entered my head, but Volbeat has an official name: JITTERBUG.


JITTERBUG the Volbeat Stats

Level 57 @ Leftovers

HP: 159
Attack: 118
Defense: 84
Special Attack: 84
Special Defense: 101
Speed: 134


Moves

Bug Buzz
Tail Glow
Thunderbolt
Roost

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Pokemon X Solo Volbeat Part 7: Where's the Challenge?


Volbeat's journey through the Poke Ball Factory, Routes 15 and 16, and the Frost Cavern was so dull that the only fight worth mentioning was with Hiker Alain's 2 Gravelers and a Carbink, and that was because I used my last Bug Buzz PP on the second Graveler. JITTERBUG's base Special Attack may have been underwhelming, but his Tail Glow, Thunderbolt, and Bug Buzz combo could slaughter all the lower leveled enemies.


Calem was as much of a pushover in Anistar City as he was elsewhere. Leftovers healed all the damage Fake Out and Disarming Voice that the level 44 Meowstic inflicted. Bug Buzz with a Tail Glow boost injured Meowtic, a level 46 Greninja and a level 44 Absol. Calem's only answer to Bug types was a level 44 Flareon that JITTERBUG outsped and zapped with Thunderbolt.


Anistar's Gym was Psychic, which was weak to JITTERBUG's typing. At least Olympia had a level 44 Sigilyph with Air Slash! Tail Glow followed by Thunderbolt sent the Nazca line bird crashing to the ground. The level 45 Slowking and level 48 female Meowstic fell to Bug Buzz, but Meowstic used the obligatory Fake Out flinch. JITTERBUG won the battle with 179/201 HP at level 72.



JITTERBUG the Volbeat Stats

Level 72 @ Leftovers

HP: 201
Attack: 154
Defense: 109
Special Attack: 109
Special Defense: 128
Speed: 175


Moves

Bug Buzz
Tail Glow
Thunderbolt
Roost

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Pokemon X Solo Volbeat Part 8: Mandatory Late Game Team Flare Gauntlet


Lysandre showed up on the Holo Caster right after the 7th Gym to give his villain speech, so JITTERBUG gained experience by plowing through his unfashionable minions.


Most battles were easy, and many enemies either had Dark types like Mightyena and Liepard that were weak to Bug Buzz, or Golbats that were vulnerable to Thunderbolt. The rest, such as Manectrics, were neutral to Volbeat's attacks, and that was nothing Tail Glow couldn't overcome.


Lysandre fought against JITTERBUG 3 times in this part. What usually tended to happen was that Volbeat set up on Mienfoo/Mienshao with Tail Glow, and then killed Pyroar, Murkrow/Honchkrow, and Gyarados in one hit with Thunderbolt. One exception occurred when when Xerneas forced itself into my party and I had to switch to JITTERBUG on turn 1. Mienshao High Jump Kicked and crashed into recoil damage due to an Affection dodge. (NEVER use this move in solo runs by the way, unless you want to post a High Jump Kick Suicide Count.) For Mega Gyarados at the end, JITTERBUG cast Bug Buzz instead of Thunderbolt because the enemy changed from Water/Flying to Water/Dark.


JITTERBUG won Lysandre's final battle and saved Kalos at level 82 with 182/228 HP. This playthrough has certainly been smoother than the solo Vespiquen challenge, and I'll compare the two in the postscript after JITTERBUG defeats Diantha.


After looking at the BEETRICE the Vespiquen posts, I found out that JITTERBUG the Volbeat is 9 levels ahead of her as of the end of the Team Flare arc. The Erratic experience curve is starting to look good now!


JITTERBUG the Volbeat Stats

Level 82 @ Leftovers

HP: 228
Attack: 174
Defense: 123
Special Attack: 123
Special Defense: 146
Speed: 199


Moves

Bug Buzz
Tail Glow
Thunderbolt
Roost

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Pokemon X Solo Volbeat Part 9: The True High King of Kalos

Battles in and around Terminus Cave were as simple as always. JITTERBUG picked up a Shadow Ball TM in the cave. There was also Brick Break if I wanted it. As an aside, Brick Break comes unusually early in Moon, before the Totem Alolan Raticate battle even.


The "rival gauntlet" on the long bridge wasn't too hard either. Shauna's level 49 Delcatty, level 49 Goodra, and level 51 Chesnaught were all passive and opted for the Attack debuff Charm or Spiky Shield instead of striking JITTERBUG. One Tail Glow followed by Thunderbolt and Bug Buzzes destroyed her team. Tierno at least had a level 48 Talonflame that gashed JITTERBUG with Acrobatics while he set up with Tail Glow. Thunderbolt shocked Talonflame and a level 52 Crawdaunt, and Bug Buzz stung the level 49 Roserade.


Trevor was a little smarter, and led with a level 49 Raichu with the weak but 100% paralysis chance attack Nuzzle. The level 49 Aerodactyl attacked with Sky Drop, a move similar to Fly, but prevents the opponent from moving until after the attack lands. One Thunderbolt later, and JITTERBUG cured himself of paralysis with Affection. Trevor's level 51 Florges had the high Special Defense typical of Fairy types, and thus took 2 Thunderbolts to kill.


Wulfric in Snowbelle City's Ice Gym began with a level 56 Abomasnow that automatically summoned Hail. Tail Glow followed by a super effective Bug Buzz uprooted the Christmas tree after it shot an Ice Beam. The level 55 Cryogonal had unusually high Special Defense and survived a Thunderbolt. (Don't know why I didn't pick Bug Buzz. . .) It dazzled JITTERBUG with Confuse Ray, and Wulfric healed it with a Hyper Potion. A second Tail Glow ensured a Thunderbolt KO. Bug Buzz penetrated the level 59 Avalugg's weaker defensive stat and shattered it in one blow. Volbeat won at level 95 with 232/262 HP.



The last legitimate threat in the game was Black Belt Markus and his level 60 Machamp with Stone Edge. Erratic's experience formula was so lopsided in favor of solo Pokemon that JITTERBUG was at level 100 midway through Victory Road without any Rare Candies.


Calem's level 57 Meowstic whiffed with Fake Out thanks to maxed out Affection. It was the only attack he used in the whole fight. Bug Buzz and Thunderbolt trounced Meowstic, Flareon, Greninja, Altaria, and Absol.



JITTERBUG the Volbeat Final Stats

Level 100 @ Leftovers

HP: 276
Attack: 212
Defense: 150
Special Attack: 150
Special Defense: 177
Speed: 242


Moves

Bug Buzz
Tail Glow
Thunderbolt
Roost

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Pokemon X Solo Volbeat Finale: Supreme Victory


Bug Buzz had run its course by the Elite 4. Many of the Pokemon from here on out would resist Bug, as I learned in the BEETRICE the Vespiquen playthrough. So JITTERBUG replaced his primary attack with Shadow Ball.


Malva the Fire master started with a level 63 Pyroar that tried to debuff Volbeat's Attack and Special Attack with its signature move Noble Roar. But that couldn't keep up with Tail Glow's +3 boost. A second Tail Glow was free because JITTERBUG used his Affection to dodge a Flamethrower. Thunderbolt and Shadow Ball made Pyroar, Talonflame, Torkoal, and Chandelure faint without any fuss.


Siebold the Water master suffered a similar fate. His level 63 Clawitzer must have cursed my time spent with Pokemon Amie as its Water Pulse missed. +3 Thunderbolts electrocuted Clawitzer, Barbaracle, Starmie, and Gyarados and prevented JITTERBUG from taking any damage.


Wikstrom the Steel master was a little trickier because his level 63 Probopass was one of the dreaded Sturdy Rock types. Sometimes it could cast Power Gem for some super effective damage too. This was the time to set up a second Tail Glow. Thunderbolt and Shadow Ball struck down Klefki, Scizor, and Aegislash, though I had to play around Torment's "no consecutive uses of the same move" restriction. JITTERBUG survived with 239/276 HP.


Drasna the Dragon master started with her best Pokemon, a level 63 Dragalge. I had replaced Thunderbolt with the Fairy attack Dazzling Gleam specifically for this fight. But it would only deal neutral damage because of Dragalge's secondary Poison type, and the seahorse was an outlier in terms of Special Defense. Dragalge's Sludge Bombs poisoned JITTERBUG, though fortunately not with the Toxic variety. A second Tail Glow and an Affection critical Dazzling Gleam ensured a one hit KO after Drasna stuffed Dragalge with Full Restores. Noivern, Altaria, and Druddigon were too slow to deal with their new 6th generation elemental weakness. JITTERBUG slew the Dragons with 231/276 HP.


Half of Champion Diantha's lineup happened to be weak to Fairy, and two were vulnerable to Ghost. That meant Shadow Ball and Dazzling Gleam made the perfect combination needed to take the throne. Her level 64 Hawlucha gave me a free turn to set up Tail Glow when it buffed with Swords Dance, and JITTERBUG thanked it for its patience with Dazzling Gleam. Out of Hawlucha, Tyrantrum, Goodra, Aurorus, Gourgeist, and Mega Gardevoir, only Aurorus the Ice/Rock type survived the first attack. Aurorus was smart enough to set up Light Screen, but that was just an excuse for a second Tail Glow. The already-inaccurate Blizzard had an even lower chance to hit with JITTERBUG's Affection. JITTERBUG became the Champion with full health.


The ending battle with the AZ Trainer featured another enemy Affection miss on the first turn, making me wonder if I had glitched the game somehow by rolling all these 6s. A single Tail Glow powered up Shadow Ball and killed Torkoal, Sigilyph, and Golurk.


Final Moveset


Shadow Ball
Dazzling Gleam
Tail Glow
Roost

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Pokemon X Solo Volbeat Postscript


You'd think an early game Bug type that can never evolve and has base 47 in its primary offensive stat would make for a challenging no Battle Item solo run. But you might be surprised when you try it for yourself.


As soon as you get Volbeat, you have reasonable defenses, the recovery move Moonlight, and Confuse Ray to take out unfavorable matchups. Confuse Ray is somewhat unreliable, though, and can result in deaths if enemies can pass their 50% roll to attack. You'll also have the Thief and Return TMs to take advantage of Volbeat's passable Attack stat. These advantages make up for the Erratic experience group's slow leveling in the early game.


You'll need to learn Tail Glow at level 21, though it'll waste a spot in your moveset until you get Signal Beam at 25. This is around the time of the 2nd Gym if you fight the trainers near Geosenge Town. Tail Glow is one of the best buffs in Pokemon history, and boosting your Special Attack by +3 stages in a single turn can make even lousy stats look good. No wonder so few monsters learn it!


Volbeat doesn't learn non-Bug special moves until after the 5th Gym when you start getting compatible TMs. Before then, you'll want Zen Headbutt to deal with Poison and Fighting types that resist your primary move, and Power Up Punch for Clemont's Magneton and Heliolisk.


The late game is easy as long as you aren't unlucky with critical enemy Stone Edges. Erratic's experience curve will take you to the level cap before the final rival battle, let alone the Elite 4. Unlike some other Bug types, Volbeat can use Ghost, Electric, and Fairy coverage with TMs.


I sometimes thought about how easy a time JITTERBUG the Volbeat had to BEETRICE the Vespiquen, to the point of clearing some of the final battles without taking any damage. There are several reasons for this. Any form of attack buff combined with decent Speed will give you an easy time in most situations. Vespiquen makes the mistake of trying to be a slow defensive Pokemon, forgetting that Bug/Flying gives you some critical weaknesses. Vespiquen also lacks type coverage other than Bug and Flying for the most part. To beat the Elite 4, BEETRICE had to use Hidden Power Water and Flash of all things.


It's doubtful that I'll use another Erratic Pokemon in the future because it eliminates most challenge in the late game. (Although Moon might be an exception due to how stingy that game is with experience points. . .)

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Yet another solo run, this time with a treat for adventure game fans:


Pokemon Crystal Solo Noctowl Part 1: Thank You For Playing King's Quest 5!


You may have noticed that I haven't done a Normal/Flying solo yet, and it's time to correct that. Johto's signature bird is the Hoothoot/Noctowl line. Its final form's base stats are uninspiring:

HP: 100
Attack: 50
Defense: 50
Special Attack: 76
Special Defense: 96
Speed: 70


Noctowl's movepool is also questionable. It gets no Attack or Special Attack boosting moves like JITTERBUG the Volbeat did. For a Normal/Flying type, it gets few attacks of either type by leveling. On the Normal side, it has Tackle and the recoil move Take Down. For Flying, there's. . .Peck. Noctowl is reliant on the Return TM from Goldenrod and the Fly HM from Cianwood if it wants to use its main typing. Steel Wing would be nice to counter Rock and Ice types, but that isn't until Rock Tunnel in Kanto!


What differentiates Noctowl from other Normal/Flying birds is that you can get the occasional Psychic move. Hoothoot learns the sleep move Hypnosis at level 16, which will probably be useful if the 60% accuracy doesn't fail me. Confusion is gained at 41, and Dream Eater is available at level 57 or by a late Kanto TM. Dream Eater has base 100 power, but only works on sleeping enemies.


To start the playthrough, I picked the male trainer and named him GRAHAM after the main character of several King's Quest games. Totodile leveled up enough at the beginning to learn Rage, which enabled me to easily win the first battle with the rival and his Chikorita. Our red-haired antagonist was named MORDACK after the evil wizard from King's Quest 5.


Once I caught a male Hoothoot, there was only one name to give him: CEDRIC. Anyone who's played or watched King's Quest 5 will consider Cedric the falsetto owl one of the most annoying characters in video games. He warns King Graham of danger, but only does so when it's too late. "Watch out for the hole in the boat!", he says after you're already far out at sea. Then the boat capsizes immediately, and all Graham can do is watch as Cedric flies away and abandons him to drown. The only use the original Cedric has in the game is to accidentally take a hit from Mordack's curse in your place. Let's hope he can redeem himself in Pokemon Crystal!


It wasn't easy for him to do so. He often whiffed his Tackles and had to run away from enemy Hoothoots. GRAHAM didn't feel comfortable fighting Youngster Joey until his owl companion reached level 6. The trainer battles after that were mostly easy despite CEDRIC's bad stats, because the enemy level curve in Crystal was worse. CEDRIC didn't get Peck until well into Sprout Tower after fighting various monks with Bellsprouts.


CEDRIC was at level 12 by the time he reached the Flying specialist Gym Leader Falkner, so GRAHAM forced him to train a little bit more to reach 13. Falkner led with a level 7 Pidgey, the diurnal bird of Kanto/Johto. CEDRIC Pecked it to death in 3 turns, while his rival rushed at him with Tackle. The level 9 Pidgeotto couldn't use the accuracy reducing move Mud Slap due to CEDRIC's Flying type, so it instead used the more powerful Gust. 4 Pecks and an auto-healing Berry were needed for CEDRIC to claim his 1st badge with 20/40 HP and prove himself the true Flying champion.


CEDRIC the Hoothoot Stats

Level 13 @ Nothing


HP: 40
Attack: 18
Defense: 17
Special Attack: 16
Special Defense: 22
Speed: 22


Moves

Tackle
Peck
Mud Slap
Foresight

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Pokemon Crystal Solo Noctowl Part 2: A POIsonous Snake!


CEDRIC the Hoothoot's journey through the routes south of Violet City and Union Cave were easier than a Normal/Flying type should have expected. Several enemy trainers had Geodudes and Onixes that resisted both Tackle and Peck. But Mud Slap could get past them. A weak Ground move is an odd choice for a TM for a Flying Gym, but perhaps countering the type's Rock weakness was the developer's intention.


The Slowpoke Well featured one of the funniest (to me) moments of any solo run. One Team Rocket Grunt had a level 9 Zubat that confused CEDRIC with Supersonic and made him hit himself multiple times. So far, this seemed like a normal if difficult battle. Then, the Team Rocket Grunt sent out a level 11 Ekans that poked CEDRIC with Poison Sting.


Death Count: 1


The first Game Over fit Cedric's dialogue in King's Quest 5 perfectly. For those who aren't familiar with that game, Cedric warns Graham about a "POIsonous snake", with emphasis on the first syllable. Walking towards the snake is the first possible death in King's Quest 5 if I'm not mistaken. It was the ultimate irony to see CEDRIC the Hoothoot lose to the Pokemon equivalent.


Azalea Town's Bug type Gym was free food for CEDRIC, and he evolved into Noctowl by defeating the subordinate trainers. Bugsy the Gym Leader was a pushover. He began with a level 14 Metapod that was cracked open with a single Peck. The level 14 Kakuna was either slightly tougher, or CEDRIC had a bad damage roll with the first Peck. Bugsy had Kakuna buff its Defense with Harden instead of using Poison Sting, so a second Peck defeated it. CEDRIC must have had a Speed tie with Bugsy's level 16 Scyther. Peck went before the first Fury Cutter, but the final blow happened after the second Fury Cutter. CEDRIC won his 2nd badge with 66/73 HP.


MORDACK the rival must have learned his battling techniques from Calem in the JITTERBUG the Volbeat solo. His level 12 Gastly failed to mesmerize CEDRIC with Hypnosis, and two Pecks exorcised it. A critical Peck pierced the level 14 Zubat. Another Peck critical hit dealt major damage to MORDACK's level 16 Bayleef. MORDACK's Grass starter tried to save itself with a Reflect Defense buff instead of attacking, so CEDRIC won a flawless victory with a second Peck.


Ilex Forest, the route south of Goldenrod, and Goldenrod City's Underground weren't particularly notable, with one exception. Officer Keith's level 17 Growlithe forced me to violate the solo rules for a turn. Cut was needed to get through Ilex Forest's trees, and that meant lugging around HM MULE the Totodile. Growlithe Roared every turn I switched in CEDRIC after the first Peck failed to KO. The only way to get around it was to have Totodile waste a turn using Leer in hopes that Growlithe would switch in CEDRIC again. It worked.


The next update probably won't happen tomorrow. This is because an NPC in Goldenrod's department store hands out the Return TM, but only on Sunday. CEDRIC has such limited options that he needs this 102 maximum base power attack. You can't go wrong with the same type attack bonus from CEDRIC's Normal element either.


CEDRIC the Noctowl Stats

Level 23 @ Berry


HP: 83
Attack: 38
Defense: 38
Special Attack: 45
Special Defense: 54
Speed: 47


Moves

Tackle
Peck
Mud Slap
Hypnosis