Pokemon Variants

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Pokemon Sword Solo Sinistea Part 5


CHIP the Sinistea trounced the trainers on the ice floes and beaches of Route 9, only to find a surprisingly difficult opponent in Gentleman Caden.  This Route 7 enemy caused problems for EWE the Wooloo, but then again, who didn't?  Shadow Ball exorcised Doublade because only Aegislash had good Special Defense in that evolution line.  Polteageist outsped and cast Giga Drain, and Passimian Flung its item at CHIP to knock it out.


DEATH COUNT:  14


Polteageist had another trick that it didn't use during the first battle:  Sucker Punch.  This hated move couldn't be stalled out like in earlier Sudowoodo fights because Polteageist's AI used Nasty Plot beforehand.


DEATH COUNT:  15


CHIP finally beat Gentleman Caden by surviving a low Sucker Punch damage roll with single digit HP, and rose to Level 52 for its trouble.  Marnie was as fearsome at the Spikemuth gate as she was in the Motostoke hotel.  Her Liepard also knew Nasty Plot, and its Torment prevented CHIP from using the same move on consecutive turns.  CHIP cast Shadow Ball on the turns when Giga Drain was banned. 


Scrafty's Scary Face decreased CHIP's Speed to the point where not even Weak Armor could save it.  Giga Drain and Shadow Ball wiped out Scrafty, and Toxicroak after it scored a critical Sucker Punch, but CHIP was too slow for Morpeko and a Bite broke the teacup.


DEATH COUNT:  16


More leveling with candies was required, so CHIP rose to Level 59 before trying again.  Liepard didn't use Torment this time and instead preferred Nasty Plot and Sucker Punch.  Scrafty endured a +2 Giga Drain and confused CHIP with Swagger, though CHIP never hit itself.  Toxicroak Sucker Punched as well, though it was vulnerable to Psyshock unlike Marnie's Dark types.  CHIP outran Morpeko and Giga Drained it to death.  CHIP triumphed with 105/125 HP and leveled to 60, replacing Nasty Plot with Shell Smash.


Shell Smash almost cost CHIP a battle against one of the Team Yell Grunts inside the Dark Gym.  Sinistea was already faster than its opponent, meaning it had to take the Scrafty Payback with -1 Defense. 


A Double Battle against Drapion and Liepard was much easier than it should have been.  Poison/Dark was probably the worst type combination CHIP could encounter because it resisted all of Sinistea's attacks.  But Drapion kept casting Venoshock, a half damage special Poison move, instead of taking an easy win with physical Dark attacks.  All Liepard did was to kill the ceremonial Magikarp partner before dying to a +2 Giga Drain on the 2nd turn.


Piers the Gym Leader was CHIP's fiercest foe yet.  Scrafty had such good HP and Special Defense that it could survive a +2 Giga Drain. . .when Sinistea was at Level 70.  CHIP's level increased between each attempt, yet it couldn't get past Scrafty and its Payback until Level 75.  Nasty Plot replaced Shell Smash because Weak Armor would cover Speed anyway.


DEATH COUNT:  21


When CHIP was at 75, a Nasty Plot powered Giga Drain finally slew Scrafty.  Malamar the squid fainted without taking an action.  Obstagoon defended itself with Obstruct when it first appeared, but it would have failed after consecutive uses, leaving an opening for a Giga Drain KO. 


Piers's Skuntank had Sucker Punch, so CHIP tried to bait it with Nasty Plot.  Skuntank called the bluff with a Screech debuff to Defense.  Protect was another attempt to lure Skuntank, who missed with Toxic instead.  Although Shadow Ball would have been better here, I clicked Giga Drain like an idiot and won the battle anyway at Level 75 with full HP.


CHIP's difficulty with Piers made Sinistea 30 levels higher than most of the final Gym.  All 3 underlings' weather teams of Pelipper/Sliggoo, Ninetales/Turtonator, and Hakamo-o/Abomasnow were simple to kill with Nasty Plot.  Magikarp made for a good distraction on Turn 1, since it seemed the AI always targeted the weakest monster first.


Raihan himself was "sewing and singing", as they say in Spanish.  Breaking Swipe from Flygon reduced CHIP's irrelevant Attack and murdered Magikarp.  CHIP grew to Dynamax size and sent Max Overgrowth plants at Gigalith before it could Rock Blast its Defense down by 5 stages with Rock Blast.  Max Phantasm eliminated Flygon on Turn 2. 


Sandaconda was probably Raihan's most useful monster when it Glared at CHIP, Paralyzing the teacup in fear.  Gigantamax Duraludon attacked with G-Max Depletion for minor damage just before a Max Phantasm with no Nasty Plot buffs toppled the Prism Tower lookalike.  Silicobra's last attack was a Fire Fang, just before a Giga Drain restored CHIP's HP to 148/155 HP at Level 75.  The ceremonial Level 23 Magikarp was left to rot in the PC for the rest of the game.


Kelpsy Berries erased CHIP's Attack "effort values" in Wyndon to make room for Calcium and Carbos boosts.  That's why Special Attack and Speed have improved so much in the stats section. 


Marnie in the Champion's Cup was her worst performance in this playthrough.  Her Liepard remembered to use Torment during the Nasty Plot turn.  Liepard was so frail that a half damage Shadow Ball was enough to kill it, in case CHIP needed other moves.  Scrafty fell to 1 Giga Drain, and Toxicroak fainted after CHIP revealed its Psychic powers.  CHIP haunted Morpeko with Max Phantasm, and Max Overgrowth weeds choked Gigantamax Grimmsnarl.  Having to level so much for Piers made the final Dark specialist battle so easy that Sinistea never took damage.


Hop's Dubwool was bait for 2 Nasty Plots, though it at least dealt some token damage with Zen Headbutt before a Giga Drain made it pass out.  High Special Defense or not, Snorlax collapsed after Psychic telekinesis slammed it to the floor.  Shadow Balls passed through Corviknight and Pincurchin, and one Max Phantasm hunted Dynamax Cinderace.  Thanks to the Giga Drain at the beginning, CHIP won at full HP at Level 77.  I wonder if CHIP will beat Champion Leon at a lower level than SHELOB the Galvantula. . .



CHIP the Sinistea Stats
 

Level 77 @ Eviolite

Nature:  Quiet (+10% Special Attack, -10% Speed)
Characteristic:  It’s somewhat vain (Special Defense is highest IV)
Ability:  Weak Armor (-1 Defense, +2 Speed  when hit with physical attack)
 

HP:  159
Attack:  82
Defense:  94
Special Attack:  178
Special Defense:  122
Speed:  124
 

Moves
 
Giga Drain
Shadow Ball
Psychic
Nasty Plot

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

okemon Sword Solo Sinistea Victory


Steel types mourned the loss of their Ghost resistance in Generation 6 as CHIP spooked all of Macro Cosmos's monsters with Shadow Ball. Even Stunfisk failed to Bounce before dying. Oleana had better type diversity and put up more of a fight. Her Froslass was faster than CHIP and Burned it with Will o Wisp before Shadow Ball put the Ice/Ghost to rest. Milotic was Nasty Plot bait because all it did was try to heal itself with Aqua Ring. +2 Special Attack was enough for a Giga Drain to steal its HP.


Oleana's Salazzle was another fast special attacker who cast Incinerate just before a Psychic made it faint. CHIP grew to Dynamax size to cast Max Mindstorm on Tsareena to set up Psychic Terrain, then to kill Gigantamax Garbodor in one hit with the 50% boost. Sinistea sipped its own tea as a victory dance and won at Level 77 with about 2/3 of its HP.


Shell Smash replaced Nasty Plot once again. Bede's Mawile took advantage of the -1 Defense penalty and Crunched with its hair jaw for super effective damage. One Shadow Ball critical sent Mawile into the outer darkness. Another critical Shadow Ball likely killed Gardevoir instead of making it faint. Max Phantasm was more powerful magic than the Fairy types Rapidash and Hatterene could overcome, so CHIP won the unofficial Champion's Cup battle at Level 78.


Nessa never dealt damage to CHIP at all with her Water team. Golisopod squandered its opportunity for even a First Impression as it buffed its Attack with Swords Dance instead. One Shell Smash later, and a combination of Shadow Ball, Giga Drain, and Max Overgrowth fished up Golisopod, Barraskewda, Seaking, Pelipper, and Gigantamax Drednaw.


Bea at least had a Bouncing Hawlucha that took the initiative. Giga Drain healed some of the HP back just before a Psychic pinned the Mexican wrestler bird. Psychic's "mind over matter" approach was correct in the cases of Sirfetch'd and Falinks, and Grapploct and Machamp fell to the superior Max Mindstorm. CHIP left the arena with about 288/322 Dynamax HP at Level 78.


(Why are there so many pure Fighting types in Galar, anyway? The established Hitmon, Machamp, Throh, and Sawk lines return, and Sirfetch'd, Falinks, and Grapploct are new. Hawlucha and Toxicroak are the only dual types in this region from what I remember. . .)


Raihan's Torkoal cast Solar Beam instead of a Fire move, providing an opportunity for a safe Shell Smash. Shadow Ball cooled down the Fire tortoise, but Giga Drain barely failed to KO Flygon on a low damage roll. It set up a Sandstorm on the first turn and drank a Full Restore on the 2nd, but the next Giga Drain scored the KO. Turtonator was another Shadow Ball victim. Goodra died to one Max Phantasm in spite of its high Special Defense, and Duraludon's Gigantamax HP helped it no more than in the 8th Gym. At Level 79, CHIP conquered the finals at 276/326 HP.


The de facto Steel Gym Leader Rose was another free victory. Escavalier set up with Swords Dance instead of attacking, much like Nessa's Golisopod did. Shadow Balls and Max Phantasms cleanly killed the Steel/Bug snail, Perrserker, Ferrothorn, Klinklang, and Copperajah at Level 79.


Eternatus's 1st form was anticlimactic compared to previous solos. It was initially faster and launched a Dragon Breath, allowing CHIP to survive the 1st round without a Shell Smash defensive penalty. One boosted Psychic forced Eternatus to assume its 2nd form. Although I had the "skip cutscene" option active, GameFreak still played Zacian and Zamazenta's dramatic entrance.


Psychic dealt noticeable damage, though Zacian and Zamazenta's Behemoth Blade and Behemoth Bash still did most of the work. Max Wyrmwinds decreased CHIP's HP to 29/163, though capturing the legendary was guaranteed after one last Behemoth Blade wore Eternatus down.


Now that there were no more Poison or Fighting types left to defeat, Psychic was replaced by Protect. Those who remember the Galvantula solo know exactly what it was for.


Leon's Aegislash used King's Shield and Shadow Ball in a predictable pattern for once, though it took me a while to figure out that Leon would never act any other way. Shield form Aegislash could survive one Shadow Ball with its Special Defense stat, and the sword form killed in one hit outright with Shell Smash, or at least softened CHIP for an inevitable Dragapult demise.


FINAL DEATH COUNT: 23


On Take 3, CHIP predicted Aegislash's actions and Shell Smashed on Turn 2 when the rival Ghost hid behind its King's Shield. Defensive form or not, a +2 Shadow Ball obliterated Aegislash. Shell Smash's +2 Speed increase made CHIP 's Shadow Ball too fast for the speed demon Dragapult. CHIP gained a level when one more Shadow Ball made Rillaboom stop playing its Grass type drums. Haxorus was another easy Shadow Ball KO, and Giga Drain came in handy when the Rock/Ground Rhyperior appeared.


Just to humiliate Leon further, I wanted to see if CHIP the Sinistea could beat Leon's overhyped Gigantamax Charizard without Dynamax. Charizard was as overconfident as Goliath and used Max Overgrowth (?) instead of a Fire move that would have gotten same type attack bonus. Two Shadow Balls ripped the Champion's belt off of Charizard and gave it to Sinistea instead.


Can you beat Pokemon Sword using only a Sinistea, with no Battle Items or Affection bonuses from camping? Yes! With 20 levels to spare, and 2 lower than the fully evolved Galvantula. Nasty Plot and Shell Smash can make even a mediocre Special Attack useful.


Sinistea doesn't learn many special moves, though it has just enough. Shadow Ball is good coverage in a game with no Normal specialists, especially after Steel types lost their resistance to it. Giga Drain can provide some healing and kills Water, Rock, and Ground monsters, though Grass is a subpar attack type otherwise.


Psychic and Psyshock are great in Sword in particular because of the increased Fighting type presence, and allows Sinistea to fight Eternatus's 1st form without much difficulty. The smaller amount of enemy Ghosts in Sword relative to Shield also makes things easier for the teacup. Poison/Dark types like Skuntank and Drapion live in Sinistea's nightmares, as do Team Yell Grunts on Route 6.


Weak Armor can be both beneficial and harmful as an ability. Its +2 Speed boost gives Sinistea the ability to go first in many instances where it otherwise wouldn't. However, -1 Defense is a significant drawback when dealing with Dark types, which usually tend to be physical attackers. Sucker Punch becomes the most dangerous move in the game when it ignores your Speed, deals super effective damage, and also decreases your Defense. Weak Armor is also useless in the Champion battle where Leon's first two Pokemon are special attackers, forcing Sinistea to predict Aegislash and set up Shell Smash Speed boosts instead.


Eviolite is of course the go-to item for any unevolved Pokemon starting with the 5th Gym. Sinistea needs those extra defenses to survive certain attacks. The Shell Bell can come in handy before then, as well as status curing berries. Players who want to evolve Sinistea are restricted by its "unique" evolution mechanic based on an item that appears right before the 4th Gym in Stow-on-Side, so they still have to struggle through Route 6 as a teacup instead of a teapot.


CHIP the Sinistea Stats


Level 80 @ Eviolite

Nature: Quiet (+10% Special Attack, -10% Speed)
Characteristic: It’s somewhat vain (Special Defense is highest IV)
Ability: Weak Armor (-1 Defense, +2 Speed when hit with physical attack)


HP: 165
Attack: 85
Defense: 97
Special Attack: 185
Special Defense: 127
Speed: 128


Moves

Giga Drain
Shadow Ball
Protect
Shell Smash

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Pokemon Sword Solo Sinistea BONUS


The novelty of using a Sinistea made me want to take CHIP through the postgame.  This side story began in Slumbering Weald where Hop challenged CHIP to another battle, this time with his team in the 58-60 level range.  Dubwool was helpless to stop a Shell Smash boosted Psychic.  Snorlax was still tough enough to take a +2 Psychic, however, and Crunched CHIP down to "red" HP.  A 2nd Psychic put Snorlax to bed, and Shadow Balls wiped out Cramorant, Corviknight, Cinderace, and Pincurchin.  CHIP won with only 9/165 HP at Level 80.


Sordward and Shielbert, two blonde men dressed in colorful suits and wearing hairdos shaped like a sword and shield, stole Zamazenta's shield.  They claimed to be the true kings of Galar since they were descended from ancient royalty.  This raises the question of whether Galar is currently a republic.  If so, that's a surprising choice by the developers considering the "cartoon Britain" theme, down to basing Yamper on Queen Elizabeth II's corgis.  If not, are Sordward and Shielbert the equivalent of Jacobites?  Or is Galar's monarchy based on the "amateur American genealogy" model where anyone who has papers saying one ancestor hundreds of years ago entitles them to land?


Despite Sordwards's delusional attitude, he was a competent trainer with monsters at Level 60.  He led with a Sirfetch'd that hit with Leaf Blade while CHIP set up Shell Smash.  Psychic defeated the Farfetch'd evolution, and then Golisopod appeared packing Sinistea's favorite move Sucker Punch.


BONUS DEATH COUNT:  1


CHIP avenged its loss without taking any damage.  Sirfetch'd was weak enough to lose to 1 Psychic without setup, and Nasty Plot stalled out Sucker Punch's PP during the Golisopod phase.  Shadow Balls took out Golisopod, Doublade, and Bisharp in one hit.


Sordward and Shielbert ran around Galar, performing experiments on Pokemon to force them to Dynamax in various Gyms.  Most of these battles aren't worth writing about, since they were essentially the same as Raids in the Wild Area.  Hop's Cinderace, Piers's Obstagoon, and the local Gym Leader would sometimes be partners.  For these battles, CHIP didn't Dynamax.  Later Gyms had no partners, so CHIP grew to Dynamax size and fought on its own.  Tsareena, Gyarados, Torkoal, Haxorus, Gigalith, and Conkeldurr were Sordward and Shielbert's victims.


Between the Gym Raids, Sordward and Shielbert raided Professor Sonia's laboratory and challenged CHIP and Hop to a Double Battle.  This was the hardest fight of the postgame since Sordward invariably lead with his Sucker Punching Golisopod.  It was hard to PP stall and predict, and Shielbert's Bronzong could make things worse by increasing the team's Special Defense with Light Screen.  Other notable enemies included a Wild Charge Klinklang and a Night Slashing Bisharp.


If CHIP fell, Hop was allowed to continue the battle on his own.  Unfortunately, he had terrible AI that sometimes made his Cinderace use Agility or Corviknight use Scary Face.  Speed modifiers were really going to help with 2 Pokemon vs. 1.  


BONUS DEATH COUNT:  4


At Level 85, Shadow Ball was guaranteed to kill Bronzong without Light Screen.  But on the successful attempt, CHIP instead Nasty Plotted and Protected to try bait Golisopod's Sucker Punch.  Bronzong set up its Light Screen.  Dubwool's Double Edge attacked Sordward and Shielbert's monsters, and forced Golisopod to Emergency Exit to Doublade.  Doublade's Sacred Sword slashed Dubwool and replaced it with the more useful Cinderace.


Once Golisopod was gone, CHIP was free to start casting Shadow Balls and Psychics at Shielbert's creatures.  Klinklang was the first to fall, followed by Falinks.  Cinderace kicked a Pyro Ball to melt Doublade.  Shadow Ball captured Bisharp in spite of its resistance to Ghost.  When Golisopod returned, Protect and Nasty Plot were used to stall out Sucker Punch.  Golisopod had other plans and crushed Cinderace with a Liquidation.  Hop's Corviknight had the honor of the final KO with Brave Bird.  CHIP won the battle at 85, though Hop deserved the honors more.


You may have noticed that there weren't 8 Dynamax Pokemon at the Gyms.  This wasn't just because it was impossible at Spikemuth.  Bede had already eliminated 3 Dynamax Pokemon at his Gym in Ballonlea, and instead held his final rematch here.  Level 61 Mawile reduced CHIP's Special Defense with Fake Tears as CHIP Nasty Plotted.  I was hoping for a physical move to trigger Weak Armor.  Shadow Ball exorcised Mawile, Level 61 Gardevoir, and Level 63 Hatterene, but Galar Rapidash lived up to its name and was the first to act.  It cast Dazzling Gleam just before dying, leaving CHIP at Level 85 with 119/174 HP.


Sordward and Shielbert's true purpose was to experiment with Zamazenta, therefore proving that they were the true kings somehow.  Sordward's team was now at Level 64, but functioned the same as before.  Sirfetch'd was the only one who dealt damage, by means of Leaf Blade.  Stalling out Golisopod's Sucker Punch PP was as effective as always, and Giga Drain restored CHIP to full HP.  Doublade and Bisharp were dispatched with Shadow Ball, and CHIP won at Level 86.


Zamazenta had gone mad due to the "Galar particles" and forced CHIP into a battle.  This was the pure Fighting form, not the enhanced Fighting/Steel version in the Eternatus battle.  Zamazenta was fast and Crunched CHIP's HP down to 26/176.  Weak Armor came in handy when combined with Nasty Plot, and a single Psychic on the next turn calmed the legendary Pokemon down.  Zacian in its Fairy/Steel form was caught with the Master Ball as a formality.  Sordward and Shielbert agreed to turn themselves in to the proper authorities.


The postgame ended with one last battle with Hop in the Slumbering Weald.  His team had been upgraded to the 68-70 level range, but he still made the mistake of leading with a Dubwool which could literally do nothing against a Ghost type.  3 Shell Smashes later, and alternating Psychics and Shadow Balls murdered Dubwool, Snorlax, Cinderace, Pincurchin, Corviknight, and even Zamazenta in its Fighting/Steel form.  CHIP's final victory was flawless at Level 87.  Hop then decided to become a Pokemon Professor rather than the Champion.


 
Not an exciting epilogue apart from the Sordward and Shielbert Double Battle, but it was worth experiencing once.



CHIP the Sinistea Stats


Level 87 @ Eviolite

Nature: Quiet (+10% Special Attack, -10% Speed)
Characteristic: It’s somewhat vain (Special Defense is highest IV)
Ability: Weak Armor (-1 Defense, +2 Speed when hit with physical attack)


HP:  178
Attack:  92
Defense:  105
Special Attack:  201
Special Defense:  138
Speed:  139


Moves

Giga Drain
Shadow Ball
Psychic
Shell Smash

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Okay, I didn't take quite as much of a break from Pokemon as I thought, and another solo was completed during the Trials of Mana Kevin playthrough.  This was originally posted on Smogon.



Pokemon Shield Solo Morgrem Prologue



Solo Morgrem does have some similarities to Solo Sinistea. Both of the base forms are available through 1 star Raids in the Wild Area before reaching Motostoke, if you're lucky. Both Pokemon depend on Special Attack boosts like Nasty Plot, and rely on a main attacking type that is strong against Ghost and Psychic, and was not very effective against Steel before Generation 6. Both also have offensive type coverage limitations which are annoying against particular Gym Leader Pokemon.


There are significant differences between Sinistea and Morgrem too. Sinistea is pure Ghost, a trait it shares with other Galar Pokedex monsters like Dusknoir and Cursola. Morgrem's line has the unique Dark/Fairy combination. Sinistea comes with Weak Armor, a ability that increases Speed at the expense of Defense when hit by a physical move. Morgrem can come with Prankster, which provides priority to non-attacking moves like buffs, status ailments, and Substitute.



Those who play multiplayer Pokemon may wonder why I didn't choose Grimmsnarl, the highest form of the Impidimp line. The reason for that is that the Impidimp I caught was disappointing! It had Frisk, an item-identifying ability only useful for competitive battles to catch surprise Choice Scarves or something. But worst of all was the Bold nature that decreased its Attack by 10%. Grimmsnarl is a physical attacker with several gimmick moves that's meant to set up with Bulk Up, and it wouldn't have felt right to play with a nature handicap.


Despite Grimmsnarl having a base 95 Special Attack, it's better to try Morgrem if you must use a special attacking Dark/Fairy. Morgrem can equip the Eviolite and actually has 10 more base Speed than its evolution. The higher Speed came in handy at certain parts of the game.


Special attacking Morgrem was not only viable, but actually the lowest level solo I've done for a Galar game so far without Battle Items or Affection bonuses. Galvantula and Sinistea needed to be in the 80s to defeat Leon, and Wooloo faltered at Level 100 at the final boss and was forced to use X Attack, X Speed, and Affection to win.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Pokemon Shield Solo Morgrem Part 1


The disappointing Impidimp was found at Level 15 after the starter Scorbunny fought him in a Raid. I gave the little gremlin the name PITCH, which Mystery Science Theater 3000 fans should recognize. PITCH's Raid also happened to drop Play Rough, the standard physical Fairy move with 90 power, 90% accuracy, and a chance to decrease enemy Attack.


Even with the hindering Bold nature, PITCH defeated Hop in Motostoke at his starting level. Play Rough and Bites turned Wooloo into mutton, though not before Hop healed it with a Potion. Grookey the Grass starter laughed at Impidimp's pitiful base 50 Speed and Branch Poked him. Play Rough scored an Attack drop, though Grookey used his own Growl Attack debuff. Bites finished off the Grookey, and 2 Play Roughs shot down Rookidee. PITCH won with 21/41 HP.


Bede in Galar Mine 1 should have been a flawless victory since he was a Psychic specialist fighting against a type created to counter them. Solosis was slow and fell to a single Bite, and the final Gothita decreased PITCH's Attack and Defense with Tickle instead of attacking. But Hatenna survived one Bite and responded with the Fairy type Disarming Voice. PITCH was a Fairy that was weak to other fey because of its Dark typing. Mega Altaria from the Hoenn remakes was the only other Pokemon that can face a situation like this if I'm not mistaken. PITCH defeated the Venerable Beet at Level 18 with 32/48 HP.


(Yes, Bede's Japanese name is Beet. Japanese game developers must think the best form of comedy is to name characters after food.)


Milo's Grass Gym was difficult for PITCH, in a scenario not seen since the Wooloo solo. Leah's Bounsweet and Oddish nearly finished off the gremlin due to the use of Poison Powder and Acid. To balance out the chart in Generation 6, Fairies were created and given Poison and Steel weaknesses, which were previously the worst attacking types. So PITCH limped out of that fight with only 4/52 HP at Level 20.


To see if PITCH stood a chance without any additional Wild Area TRs, I sent him into the stadium with Milo. His Gossifleur liked to use Fake Out and Rapid Spin instead of Grass moves, though it still took 2 Play Roughs and a Bite to cut through the leaves. PITCH grew to Level 21 and tried to take out Level 20 Eldegoss with Max Starfalls powered by Play Rough. Unfortunately, Max Starfall's Fairy type terrain was the most useless kind as it didn't provide any damage bonuses like the Electric, Grass, and Psychic versions. Eldegoss's Dynamax HP was too much for PITCH to overcome even with 3 Max Starfalls, and 3 Max Overgrowths smashed through his HP and Sitrus Berry autohealing.


The DEATH COUNT will be posted at the end of the playthrough this time.


PITCH didn't find all the TRs he needed in the next few Raids, but he did get the base 80 special Fairy move Dazzling Gleam, and the base 80 physical Bug move Leech Life. 2 Leech Life fangs were super effective against Gossifleur and restored some HP with its vampiric side effect. Leech Life could power up into Max Flutterby against Eldegoss. Even 3 Max Flutterbys couldn't do the job, but Eldegoss must have gotten low damage rolls on the Max Overgrowths. PITCH outlasted Dynamax, using one last Leech Life to win his 1st badge at Level 21 and 22/54 HP.


To proceed without making the DEATH COUNT higher than it needed to be, I had to wait for a couple of days for the Nasty Plot and Dark Pulse TRs to be available for purchase in the Wild Area. With his new moves, PITCH confronted Hop on Route 5. He had evolved 2 of his Pokemon, and it was clear Impidimp's stats were not up to the task. One Nasty Plot increased PITCH's Special Attack to +2, and Wooloo dealt some damage with Double Kick. A boosted base 90 power special Dark Pulse sheared the sheep. Corvisquires Unnerve ability prevented the Sitrus Berry from healing Impidimp. Not that it would have mattered, since Corvisquire Plucked it anyway. Dark Pulse killed Corvisquire, only to make Thwackey appear and beat down PITCH with its higher Speed and Double Hit.


PITCH won on the 2nd try by setting up 2 Nasty Plots against the Wooloo. But the true reason for victory was luck. Corvisquire only tried Peck instead of Pluck, and Thwackey whiffed Double Hit. Impidimp rubbed his hands together in glee with 32/61 HP at Level 24.


Impidimp found his Shell Bell to get a minor heal with each attack just before Nessa's Water Gym. But all of Nessa's monsters were faster. Goldeen cast Water Pulse, Arrokuda had Aqua Jet, and Drednaw pounded PITCH with Max Strike. At Level 27, PITCH set up Nasty Plot against the Goldeen, who wasted a turn increasing its superior Speed with Agility. Dark Pulse counterattacked Goldeen's Water Pulse. Impidimp Dynamaxed against the Arrokuda and struck with Max Darkness after taking an Aqua Jet. PITCH endured 2 Max Strikes from Drednaw and cracked its shell with 2 Max Darkness attacks. It was a close victory at Level 27.


The Venerable Beet in Galar Mine 2 had a Solosis and Hattena that both died to Dark Pulse without acting. Galar Ponyta was swifter and sent out a Fairy Wind, while Gothita had high Special Defense, ate a Super Potion, and threw Rock Tombs at PITCH. Impidimp walked out of the fight with 58/67 HP while holding the Shell Bell.


Team Yell Grunts in Galar Mine 2 were a joke. CHIP the Sinistea had to cower with Protect, but PITCH could murder both Thievul and Linoone at a time with Dazzling Gleam, which became a spread move. CHIP had a critical weakness to Dark, while PITCH only took 1/4 normal damage from such moves. Hop's Corvisquire assisted PITCH by finishing off Liepard.


Marnie in Motostoke was partially a Dark specialist, but came prepared with a Poison/Fighting Croagunk specifically for Fairies. A critical Venoshock only made things worse. PITCH lived long enough to reach Morpeko, but the Pikachu derivative was faster and jolted him with a Thundershock.


On Take 2 of the Marnie battle, Croagunk's Venoshock failed to get a critical hit. This allowed PITCH to survive a Thundershock, and Croagunk, Scraggy, and Morpeko had to close their eyes when a Dazzling Gleam was too bright for them. Impidimp rose to Level 30 after winning with about 27/71 HP.


I knew Impidimp had no chance against Kabu, the first Gym Leader with a fully-evolved team. But I thought I'd see how far PITCH could go. The answer was that he couldn't even hunt the lead Ninetales. Its high Special Defense forced PITCH to Nasty Plot twice as the fox surrounded him with Fire Spin and inflicted Burn with Will o Wisp.


PITCH grew to Level 32 with candies and evolved into Morgrem. This was similar to the SHELOB the Galvantula playthrough: both failed to defeat Kabu in their base forms. Morgrem set up 2 Nasty Plots and cured its Will o Wisp Burn with a Rawst Berry before cutting off Ninetales with Dark Pulse. Arcanine wasted its turn using Agility, and a Dynamax size Max Darkness slew a favorite Pokemon of speedrunners. Gigantamax Centiskorch required 2 Max Darkness casts to kill, though Morgrem could take a G-Max Centiferno and get his 3rd badge with 80/180 Dynamax HP at Level 32.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Pokemon Shield Solo Morgrem Part 2


Hop returned at Stow-on-Side to waste his time by flapping his lips Speed Racer style during battle. Environmental graphics can look excellent, but some other effects in Sword/Shield are so cheap that it seems the Nintendo 64 could have done them better.


Instead of Diving, Cramorant tried to Pluck a nonexistent berry. One Nasty Plot clearly wasn't enough, as Cramorant's mediocre base stats were still good relative to this part of the game. Three Dark Pulses broke through Cramorant's HP and whatever healing item Hop fed it. Toxel and Silicobra had both low Speed and Special Defense: a lethal combination. Thwackey was at Level 33 and could take one Dark Pulse and Knock Off PITCH's Shell Bell. That may have been the only time I've seen Knock Off from an AI trainer in Galar. Surprising considering it's a popular physical Dark attack in multiplayer. PITCH ripped another page out of Hop's legend at Level 35.


Although PITCH's Dark type was great for Allister's Ghost Gym, his Fairy type was a liability. His Galar Yamask was set up bait for Nasty Plot, as its Hex dealt minimal damage. Mimikyu could take the first Dark Pulse no matter what while only losing 1/8 HP from its Disguise ability, and Slashed a few times for considerable damage. Two Dark Pulses after the Disguise broke killed Pikachu's imitator. Cursola was slow and an easy target for Max Darkness. Gigantamax Gengar with its Atomos mouth could have easily murdered Morgrem at this, had it chosen Max Ooze. But Allister's AI rolled MAX DARKNESS?! An attack that only dealt 1/4 normal damage? Anyway, PITCH got an unearned victory at Level 37 with about 88/208 Dynamax HP with the Shell Bell.


The Venerable Beet came back to smash the mural in Stow-on-Side. Duosion never attacked and only increased the team's defenses with Reflect and Light Screen. It was the perfect time for 2 Nasty Plots. Dark Pulse obliterated Duosion, Hattrem, Ponyta, and Gothorita, earning PITCH a flawless victory at Level 38.


CHIP the Sinistea had its struggle in the 7th Gym. Fortunately, PITCH the Morgrem's worst battle was in Opal's Gym. He fell once on the last battle of the Fairy type audition because a Level 35 Gardevoir happened to have Dazzling Gleam too. PITCH returned when I remembered to actually equip the Eviolite, and didn't have to fight all the previous audition battles.


If PITCH could hold out for long enough while fighting Opal, the Fairy type Gym Leader would happily boost his stats with quizzes. Assuming he could even manage to beat Galar Weezing, that is! The smokestack top hat resisted both Dark and Fairy due to its unique typing, forcing PITCH to Nasty Plot twice to have a chance. Galar Weezing came with Sludge, normally too weak for a 5th Gym but deadly here with super effective damage and a Poison chance. Protect stall for extra rounds as Morgrem got +2 Speed and +2 to both defenses.


A Dark Pulse critical cleaned up Galar Weezing. Morgrem Protected on Mawile's 1st turn, then finished off another Pokemon that resisted Dark/Fairy with Dark Pulse. Protecting against Togekiss got Morgrem +2 Special Attack when I told Opal that she was 16. Fairy was neutral to itself, making Max Starfall a good option. Alcremie the wedding cake collapsed under a Max Starfall, and PITCH won at an embarrassingly high Level 46 with 62/254 Dynamax HP.


Hop put up a better fight on Route 7. His Trevenant was an easy kill with Nasty Plot and Dark Pulse, but Snorlax required another Nasty Plot when it shrugged off a Dark Pulse. Snorlax also knew the Steel type Heavy Slam which exploited Morgrem's cold iron weakness. Heatmor and Rillaboom were too slow to guard against Dark Pulse, but Boltund got a full paralysis turn with a lucky Spark. Morgrem cast Dark Pulse to win the battle with only single digit HP at Level 47.


"Togedemaru Guy" on Route 8 was not as bad as for other solos, since it didn't resist Dark Pulse. It did at least get a critical Zing Zap.


Gym Leader Melony's Frosmoth was useful to its team with a Speed decreasing Icy Wind. Its Bug Buzz was strong, softening up PITCH for a Galar Darmanitan's Icicle Crash.


On the 2nd attempt, Frosmoth seemed to miss with an Icy Wind. Opal's Draining Kiss TM was used over Dazzling Gleam for its HP stealing quality, although it was weaker. Darmanitan's Taunt was futile as a +6 Draining Kiss sucked its blood. Draining Kiss also ignored Eiscue's Ice Face because that only worked on physical attacks. Max Darkness's Special Defense reduction side effect was good for a change when Lapras survived the 1st hit thanks to outspeeding an Icy Winded Morgrem and setting up Aurora Veil with its G-Max Resonance. PITCH warmed up with about 140/270 HP in Dynamax form at Level 49.


Hop in Circhester led with his Dubwool, which was always a mistake because it meant free setup turns. 3 Nasty Plots powered up Draining Kiss to the point where PITCH could steal all its remaining HP after Take Down recoil and Hail. Dark Pulse ripped through Snorlax, Corviknight, Rillaboom, and Pincurchin to win with 106/139 HP at Level 50.


PITCH had some difficulty with a Route 9 trainer who had a Wishiwashi that slapped him with Aqua Tail. A +2 Dark Pulse failed to kill it, but Hail finished the job. Gentleman Caden's Doublade, Passimian, and Polteageist were a peril to many solos, but not to PITCH the Morgrem. His Dark/Fairy coverage eliminated all of them before they could scratch him.


Marnie at Spikemuth didn't bother to make her Liepard cast Torment. Being able to cast Dazzling Gleam every turn made the fight much easier. At +4, Dazzling Gleam made Liepard, Toxicroak, Scrafty, and Morpeko come out of the shadows. Liepard's Fake Out and Morpeko's fast Spark dealt negligible damage.


Piers in Spikemuth's Dark Gym was easy experience for PITCH. Scrafty could only get a token Fake Out flinch just before Dazzling Gleam exploited both its Fighting and Dark type. Obstagoon was merely a good opportunity to Nasty Plot twice. I mispredicted on the 1st turn, expecting an Obstruct and getting a half damage Shadow Claw instead. Obstagoon did Obstruct on the next round. Dazzling Gleam blinded Obstagoon, then Malamar and Skuntank before they could move. At Level 55, PITCH conquered the 7th Gym with about 133/155 HP. Did you know Piers's Skuntank doesn't have a direct damage Poison move? I didn't realize that until I looked up its moveset.


Raihan's Double Battle Hail and Rain subordinates were simple with Dazzling Gleam spread shots. As for the Sun trainer, PITCH defeated Ninetales with a +2 Dark Pulse, then killed Turtonator with another. Turtonator liked to imprison PITCH with Rock Tomb sometimes instead of wasting all its turns with Shell Trap counterattacks.


PITCH didn't have to gain levels with candies to win a Double Battle against the last Gym Leader. Probably not something that happens often! Sure, PITCH lost the first attempt to Duraludon's Max Steelspike. But I had a plan.


Flygon must have Thunder Punched the ceremonial Magikarp on the 1st turn while Morgrem set up Nasty Plot. Gigalith preferred Body Press, an 80 power Fighting move that increases with Defense. Protect was used to waste one turn of Sandstorm, since Gigalith would have 50% more Special Defense with that weather active. Draining Kiss stole all of Flygon's HP. It had to be killed soon because it knew Steel Wing, and was also weak to Fairy. Protect blocked Sandaconda's paralyzing Glare and stalled for another round.


Dark Pulse made Raihan's Sandaconda slither to its Poke Ball. Max Darkness demolished the Gigantamax Duraludon skyscraper when it appeared and decreased Gigalith's Special Defense too. One last Max Darkness mined Gigalith, and won the battle with about 122/316 Dynamax HP at Level 57.


Doctor Graham on Route 10 almost defeated Morgrem, but its AI decided to set up Calm Mind on the 2nd round rather than go for the Dazzling Gleam kill. Shield may be on the Nintendo Switch, but it still resembles a Game Boy installment at times.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Pokemon Shield Solo Morgrem Part 3


One defeat came from Cabbie Geoffrey, whose Corviknight confused PITCH with Swagger and made him hit himself multiple times. By the time he reached Geoffrey's Flygon, PITCH didn't stand a chance. On the successful attempt, Corviknight only used Steel Wing rather than its more successful ailment move.


Why do random route trainer Pokemon like Bellossom and Noctowl get Moonblast, but not an actual Fairy type like Morgrem? That move would have improved his damage output! In Wyndon, Morgrem performed the usual vitamin ritual to max out its "effort values".


Marnie in the Champion's Cup was a surprising threat. Even a +1 Dazzling Gleam wasn't enough for Toxicroak, who survived and cast Venoshock. PITCH wasn't at +2 because Liepard knew Snarl, a Dark special move that decreased Special Attack. Setting up against Scrafty wasn't viable because it debuffed PITCH's Speed with Scary Face, leaving it an easy target for Grimmsnarl's Max Starfall.


Instead of trying Snarl, Liepard used its own Nasty Plot on Take 2. At +4 Special Attack, Dazzling Gleam and Max Starfall magic exhausted Liepard, Toxicroak, Scrafty, Morpeko, and Grimmsnarl with almost full HP at Level 61.


Hop opened with Dubwool again. This was another free Nasty Plot, which let Dark Pulse and Max Darkness crash onto Dubwool, Pincurchin, Corviknight, Snorlax, and Rillaboom. PITCH beat his main rival for the last time with about 276/338 Dynamax HP at Level 61.


Macro Cosmos's Steel types in the elevator were not as dangerous as I expected. Only Mawile tried a Steel move at all, while the rest were happy to lose to Dark Pulse. Oleana, however, had a deadly and diverse lineup. Her Froslass burned PITCH with Will o Wisp, and the speedy Salazzle startled him with Venoshock. It was burn damage that cost me the 1st attempt, though. That, and trying to set up against Salazzle. Must have forgotten about Fairy weaknesses for a moment.


On the next try against Oleana, I took fewer chances. Froslass's Will o Wisp missed, and its Double Team didn't dodge a +2 Dark Pulse. Salazzle shot a Venoshock before Dark Pulse ripped through its thin Special Defense. Oleana's Milotic was almost as sturdy as Cynthia's in Sinnoh, though it wasted its turn with Aqua Ring. Max Darkness turned off both the lights and Tsareena and Garbodor's life bars. PITCH had about 200/348 Dynamax HP at Level 63.


The Venerable Beet's final team was much harder than before. Guess Opal's "Fairy type boot camp" did him some good. If PITCH could handle Mawile Playing Rough, then Gardevoir was sure to make him spend the rest of his short life with the Fairies.


Since Morgrem's attacks barely failed to KO the Fairies, I knew it was time to level up. PITCH rose to 67 with candies and tried again. Mawile whiffed its Play Rough, allowing for a free +2 Dark Pulse. With the extra experience, Morgrem managed to break Rapidash's land Speed record and kill it with Dark Pulse. More Dark attacks finished off Gardevoir and Hatterene for a flawless victory. It was amazing how drastic the difference was from the 1st attempt.


Nessa's Golisopod increased its Attack with Swords Dance on the 1st round instead of, well, attacking. +2 Dark Pulse and Max Darkness destroyed Golisopod, Seaking, Barraskewda, Pelipper, and Drednaw with one move. The only damage PITCH took in this battle was from Barraskewda's Liquidation, but then again it's hard to outrun base 136 Speed.


Using Nasty Plot on the 1st turn against Allister tricked his Dusknoir into Disabling that move. +2 Special Attack was still enough to cast instant death Dark Pulse and Max Darkness, and not even Gengar was fast enough to prevent a Level 68 flawless victory.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Pokemon Shield Solo Morgrem Victory


Morgrem didn't care much about Raihan's new multi-weather team, since this was a Single Battle. Torkoal preferred Solar Beam to a Sun boosted Fire move, and a +2 Dark Pulse cracked it open. Turtonator became another turtle soup ingredient after Dark Pulse. Goodra, Flygon, and Duraludon fell to Max Starfall or Max Darkness. PITCH won the last match of the finals at Level 69 with high HP.


Rose's Steel type specialty made him harder than some opponents in the tournament. Escavalier the snail's armor wasn't just for show, as its Iron Head proved. Perrserker, Ferrothorn, and Klinklang were vulnerable to +2 Dark Pulse neutral damage, but Copperajah the Gigantamax elephant had just enough HP to take 1. A G-Max Steelspike put an end to the 1st attempt. Before the next try, PITCH grew to Level 72 with more candies, which paid off when Copperajah crashed to the ground when hit by a post-Dynamax Dark Pulse. Morgrem the gremlin only held on with about 4 HP.


Both of Eternatus's phases defeated PITCH, yet Morgrem didn't have to level between attempts. This was because of how the random wild Pokemon "AI" worked. On Take 1, Eternatus loved to bite with Cross Poison, while on Take 2, it cast moves PITCH was immune to like Dynamax Cannon and Dragon Pulse.


The Gigantamax Eternatus loss was partially my fault because I tried Nasty Plot, forgetting that it could instantly nullify buffs. Max Flare and Max Ooze were too much to handle. On Take 2, I used the good old Protect tactic, occasionally trying Dark Pulse. Eternatus's Max Wyrmwind gave some breather turns for this Fairy type. When Eternatus killed Hop's Dubwool and replaced it with Snorlax, the fight became easier. Snorlax's High Horsepower struck Eternatus's weakness to Ground and dealt the final blow. Max Flare defeated Zacian, but Zamazenta was still there to help.


Morgrem was less than 10 levels higher than Leon's strongest Pokemon, but this was the easiest Champion battle yet. Since PITCH was weak to Steel, Aegislash fell into a predictable pattern of shooting Flash Cannon, then retreating to King's Shield. Two Nasty Plots were sufficient to kill even the shield Aegislash with one Dark Pulse. PITCH was slower than Haxorus, but he had Draining Kiss to slay the Dragon and heal all the damage taken from Iron Tail. Dragapult suffered the same fate, but this Ghost/Dragon cast Thunderbolt instead of swiping with Iron Tail.


Leon's Mr. Rime was too slow to avoid Dark Pulse. I expected Draining Kiss to injure Inteleon more because it was the classic fast but frail Pokemon. Instead, it tried Tearful Look to decrease Attack, then a Snipe Shot for damage. Leon healed his Water starter with a Full Restore, but Morgrem healed with more Draining Kisses.


Gigantamax Charizard was concerning when PITCH was at less than half HP, but it stupidly used Max Rockfall! Max Darkness failed to KO at +4, but it did place Charizard at critical health. This gave me an idea. PITCH blocked a Max Overgrowth with Max Guard, and so Champion Leon defeated himself with his own Max Rockfall Sandstorm. Leon must have been as frustrated as Hop at this point for losing in such a way!


Morgrem was a strong solo, and superior to the fully evolved Galvantula. That was because Galvantula had no buffs other than +30% Electric/Grassy Terrain from Dynamax, and Morgrem benefited from Nasty Plot. Eviolite combined with Draining Kiss enabled Morgrem to survive certain threats that he couldn't outrun with base 70 Speed. Galar wasn't like Johto where most of the trainers were slower than a Slowbro. Fairy/Dark made good type coverage for most opponents, with the exception of Mawile and Galar Weezing. Both of those were on Opal's team, so it's no wonder Morgrem had trouble with her. Galvantula, however, relied on Electric, a type that did poorly against the late game Dragons.


Dark/Fairy as a defensive typing has mixed results. There aren't many high level Psychics in Galar for Dark types to kill, and those that do exist have a chance to be part Fairy. Dark types feel the pain when fighting Fairy specialists Opal and Champion's Cup Bede. Dark is better in Shield where you have to fight Allister's Ghosts twice. Enough opponents know Poison and Steel moves to make Morgrem regret being a Fairy type occasionally, such as Oleana, Marnie, Rose, and Allister's Gengar. Even Dragons like Eternatus or Raihan's Gym team can pose a threat to the type that's supposed to counter them. Fairy types annihilate Piers's Gym, however, and have an extra advantage in Sword where Bea the Fighting specialist appears.



PITCH the Morgrem Final Stats and Moves



Level 73 @ Eviolite (+50% Defense and Special Defense if not fully evolved)
Nature: Bold (+10% Defense, -10% Attack)
Characteristic: It’s Capable of Taking Hits (Defense highest innate stat bonus)
Ability: Frisk (Identify enemy held item on 1st turn)


HP: 200
Attack: 99
Defense: 116
Special Attack: 152
Special Defense: 100
Speed: 149



Nasty Plot
Protect
Dark Pulse
Draining Kiss


DEATH COUNT: 20


Beginning to 4th badge


-Milo's Gossifleur
-Route 5 Hop's Thwackey
-Nessa's Drednaw
-Marnie in Motostoke's Morpeko
-Kabu's Ninetales


5th badge to 8th badge

-Ballonlea Gym Trainer's Gardevoir
-Opal's Galar Weezing
-Opal's Mawile
-Opal's Galar Weezing
-Opal's Mawile
-Opal's Galar Weezing
-Melony's Galar Darmanitan
-Raihan's Duraludon


Route 10 until Champion

-Cabbie Geoffrey's Flygon
-Marnie's Grimmsnarl
-Oleana's Salazzle (burn damage)
-Bede's Gardevoir
-Rose's Copperajah
-Eternatus Form 1
-Eternatus Form 2


EDIT:  Terrain bonuses for Electric, Grass, and Psychic are indeed 30%.  I didn't know this until recently.  No wonder solo Galvantula had so much trouble killing Dragapult!  GameFreak quietly weakened Terrains since Generation 6 and 7's 50% boost.  I wonder if this was done in an attempt to prevent Dynamaxing from being overpowered, or to balance the Tapu legendaries for multiplayer once they return.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Pokemon Crystal Solo Poliwag


This solo run took place in January, but I never bothered to post about it until now for some reason.  Consider it an apology for cancelling the Romancing SaGa 2 thread.  (If anyone cares about THAT, I may post about it the "What are you currently playing" topic.  That game is a slog.)


Unevolved Pokemon falter in no Battle Item Crystal solo playthroughs.  This is due to the sparse move selection of the older games, but also because the enemy levels are so low that if you do have to grind, only the most patient players will see it through.


But there was one Water type who accepted the challenge:  Poliwag!  I named him MALLOW after another tadpole who would never become a frog, and sent him off to battle Hoothoots and Rattatas west of New Bark Town until he grew to Level 7 and learned the 60% accuracy sleep move Hypnosis.  Now he was ready to blow Bubbles at enemy trainers until they surrendered their cash.


Except at Sprout Tower, that is.  As pathetic as Grass types were in Johto, there was no way MALLOW was going to fight Bellsprouts with a base 20 move at half power. 


So Poliwag hunted birds in Falkner's Gym in Violet City instead.  When he reached the boss, MALLOW equipped a Berry for a one-time heal.  The 1st Hypnosis failed against Falkner's Pidgey, and the Gym Leader retaliated with Tackle.  When Pidgey started snoozing, Poliwag cast Bubble until it died.  Pidgeotto woke up after 2 Bubbles, flapped its wings to send a Gust at Poliwag, then fell asleep again and took a Bubble bath.  MALLOW won the battle with 20/32 HP at Level 11, then grew to Level 12 after beating Pidgeotto.


Youngster Albert was an annoying opponent because of self-inflicted confusion damage from his Zubat's Supersonic, but learning Water Gun by growing to Level 14 was worth the trouble.


Union Cave through the Team Rocket Slowpoke Well gauntlet was barely worth mentioning, though a Koffing once poisoned MALLOW with Smog.  Amy and May in the Azalea Gym had a Supersonic Ledyba that nearly started the DEATH COUNT.  Bugsy's Metapod decreased MALLOW's Speed with String Shot before being drenched by the final Water Gun.  Hypnosis was used against Kakuna to avoid potential poisoning.  After MALLOW was slowed down, Scyther was fast enough to outspeed him and start building up Fury Cutter power.  Many Water Guns were needed to take down what was effectively a fully-evolved Pokemon, though Hypnosis helped near the end.  Poliwag won at Level 20 with 32/52 HP and grew to 21.



Hypnosis proved its worth again during the Azalea Town rival fight.  Gastly and Zubat couldn't try any status ailments while they were asleep, though Quilava was more annoying than it should have been when Smokescreen caused Poliwag to whiff a Water Gun.  MALLOW triumphed at Level 21 and 48/54 HP, and rose to 22.


Headbutt from a TM replaced the unreliable Doubleslap in Ilex Forest.  At 70 base power with Normal typing, Headbutt was the strongest move Poliwag had, and its 30% flinch chance could stun enemies it couldn't kill outright.  MALLOW mugged the Goldenrod Underground trainers and rose to Level 25, replacing Bubble with the Water-themed weather Rain Dance. 


Whitney's Clefairy dodged the 1st Hypnosis and Doubleslapped Poliwag, though the 2nd Hypnosis connected.  Poliwag Headbutted Clefairy back into its Poke Ball, and out came Miltank.  Fortunately, Hypnosis succeeded on the 1st try, rendering the cow harmless except for one critical Rollout late in the battle when it woke up.  MALLOW collected his 3rd badge at 44/65 HP at Level 26.  Sudowoodo had a fatal allergy to a critical Water Gun.


MALLOW gained the Surf HM by defeating all the Eevee evolutions the Kimono Girls had, and would use the base 95 power Water attack for the rest of the game.  Water/Normal is perhaps the best attack type combination in the original Johto versions, since nothing resists both, and the strongest attacks like Return and Surf are available early in the game.


Burned Tower's rival battle was easy at Level 30 after setting up Rain Dance against Haunter.  Its gradual Curse damage had no effect when +50% Surfs flooded the arena and killed everything in one hit, preventing the end-turn effect from occurring.  (Poison has the same leniency towards the player in Crystal.)  The same tactic applied to Morty, though his Gengar could take a Surf.  Morty's own Hypnosis was foiled with a Mint Berry.  The Ecruteak Gym Leader's final Haunter needed 2 Surfs to kill when the skies cleared.  MALLOW won at Level 34 with 58/81 HP.


Once the 4th badge was available, MALLOW plundered Sprout Tower for the Flash HM and got the Water attack boost item Mystic Water in Cherrygrove.  Older Pokemon games are noticeably less linear than the newer ones, which can be nice sometimes.


MALLOW had an accidental encounter with Raikou while I was looking for a Hoothoot to teach Fly to.  Poliwag grew to Level 37 in the Olivine lighthouse and replaced Rain Dance with Belly Drum.  Belly Drum combined with Hypnosis was the reason I chose Poliwag for an unevolved solo in the first place.  50 base Attack becomes much more impressive when you can multiply your stat by 4, and can risk the half max HP penalty when the opponents are slumbering.


Chuck in Cianwood Gym was easier than Yoshi's Story at Level 41 when MALLOW put Primeape to sleep, Belly Drummed, then returned both it and Poliwrath to death without taking a hit.  Pryce didn't even require Hypnosis when MALLOW Belly Drummed in front of Seel and Return obliterated Dewgong and Piloswine too.  Icy Wind's Speed drop was no match for a base 90 Speed stat, equivalent to Sonic the Hedgehog's in a game where most enemies were slow.  Jasmine couldn't be killed with Return thanks to her high Defense Steel types, but Surf was more than Magnemites and Steelix could handle.  



The rival struck again in the Goldenrod Underground during the Team Rocket Radio Tower sequence.  His Golbat drifted off, and Return killed the rest of the team except for the Steel type Magnemite and the Ghost type Haunter.  Surf dealt with those.


My first loss in this challenge came when I wasn't playing carefully.  The Team Rocket members are pushovers much of the time, and the segment between the 7th and 8th badges is the most boring in the game.  So the "Team Rocket Fortress" Executive and the Golbat companion caused a freak defeat when confusion damage took its toll.  Didn't bother with Hypnosis because of its low accuracy, and thought Return would be enough to one-shot the enemy.  I didn't make that mistake on Take 2!


DEATH COUNT:  1


Hypnosis + Belly Drum + Return = Team Rocket Disbands.  As a reward for saving the Goldenrod Radio Tower, Mary gave MALLOW a Pink Bow to increase his Normal type attack power to +10%.  Most hold items are underwhelming in Crystal compared to later games, but you take what's offered.


Unboosted Return was insufficient starting in the Radio Tower, and even random Seadra's in Clair's Gym in Blackthorn City could survive one occasionally.  But MALLOW humiliated Clair herself at Level 55-56 by Belly Drumming against a sleeping Dragonair, then Returning everyone including Kingdra to their Poke Balls.


One odd note about the mechanics is that Calcium in Crystal increases "Special", instead of "Special Attack" or "Special Defense".  This is a holdover from the original Kanto games before the Special stat was split.  Later installments would add the Zinc vitamin for Special Defense.


The rival in Victory Road led with the most type-mismatched Pokemon before the physical/special split, Sneasel.  Who thought it would be a good idea to make a Dark/Ice type, then give it base 95 Attack and base 35 Special Attack?  You can see why no Hypnosis setup was necessary for Belly Drum.  Surf swamped the Haunter, and Typlosion had enough dignity to strike with a Quick Attack before dying.  Poliwag triumphed at Level 59 with 54/148 HP.


Will of the Elite 4 was a good example of the binary outcomes of any boss battle that Poliwag participated in.  Either he boosted to +6 Attack and pulverized his enemies, or he whiffed the Hypnosis and was punished with Psychic mental torture from Exeggutor.


DEATH COUNT:  2


Poliwag succeeded on Will Take 2 after forgoing Hypnosis and going straight for the Belly Drum.  The gamble worked when the first Xatu's Psychic failed to KO even at half HP.  Poliwag destroyed the rest of the Psychic team at Level 60 with only 28/151 HP.


Rolling the dice against Koga failed.  His Ariados Double Teamed to dodge Returns, then cast super effective Giga Drains.  Forretress survived a Return and shot Swift stars for the final blow.


DEATH COUNT:  3


Hypnosis returned and put the spider to sleep on Take 2.  Those who were wondering "Why did you click Return instead of Surf against Forretress?" will learn that the question is pointless anyway.  Forretress needed 2 Surfs to kill, since Belly Drum had no effect on a base 40 Special Attack.  No Hypnosis for Bruno when the weak Hitmontop Dug underground.  All the Fighting types dropped dead when hit by Return, and Surf eroded the odd choice of the Rock/Ground Onix.  MALLOW won at Level 61 with 59/153 HP.


Karen's dreaded Umbreon didn't live long enough to decrease MALLOW's accuracy with Sand Attack.  A Hypnosis and critical Belly Drum powered Return was too much for even a defensive Eevee evolution.  Gengar was the true threat since it couldn't be Returned to sender, but the stupid AI made it kill itself with Curse after one Surf.  (No, the AI hasn't improved as of Sword/Shield. . .)  Champion Lance's Dragonites and Flying types dropped out of the sky with the usual Hypnosis + Belly Drum + Return combo, except for Surf against Aerodactyl.  MALLOW won Lance's belt at Level 63.


Being the Johto Champion alone wasn't enough.  I don't consider a Crystal playthrough to be complete until Red is dead, and it always surprises me when people stop after Lance. 


Hypnosis missed against Lt. Surge's Raichu.  It's said that the Thunder used against MALLOW powered Vermilion City for an entire day.


DEATH COUNT:  4


Hypnosis failed again on Take 2, but somehow Raichu's Thunder Wave failed.  Could someone please explain how Thunder Wave keeps missing in Crystal, when all sources say it has 100% accuracy?  This is Generation 2, so the "Gen 1 miss" coding can't apply.  A 2nd Hypnosis worked, and all the Electric types succumbed to Return at Level 65.


No Hypnosis needed for Sabrina when her Espeon failed to KO with Psychic.  It was similar to the successful Will battle, except the Saffron City Gym Leader only had 3 Pokemon.  MALLOW won at Level 66 with 19/167 HP.  I was cautious against Erika and her Grass team, the last type disadvantage battle in the game.  Hypnosis and Return weeded the garden.  One random Gym trainer's Exeggutor was much more interesting when it put Poliwag to sleep for about 6 turns, then used Confusion, Stomp, or Egg Bomb instead of Giga Drain or any other Grass attacks.  Enemy move lists in Crystal are weird.


Janine's Poison team had lower levels than Clair back in Johto, so I must have decided to punish her by killing her whole team with only Mystic Water powered Surfs.  It worked, and the only action the Fuchsia City Gym Leader took in the whole battle was to increase Venomoth's critical hit rate with a Dire Hit item.


I was so bored by the time I got to Misty that I didn't Belly Drum.  She and her Lapras in particular were better than most of Kanto at least.  You can't say that many players will lose to a Perish Song countdown from an AI!  The usual Hypnosis trick won the battle at Level 73.


DEATH COUNT:  5


Brock's Rock team was a flawless victory at Level 74 with Surf and Mystic Water, as was Blaine's Fire squad.  Blue in Viridian City had the strangest incident in the playthrough when BOTH Hypnosis attacks missed on the 1st turn when Pidgeot copied it with Mirror Move.  The 2nd Hypnosis stuck, and Belly Drum + Return meant the battle was effectively over.  Except for the Rock/Ground Rhydon, which drowned in Surf, and a token priority Extremespeed from Arcanine.  MALLOW acquired his final badge at Level 75 with 58/193 HP.


The final battle against Red began about as well as the Lt. Surge Gym Leader match did.  Pikachu electrocuted Poliwag with the same move too when Hypnosis missed.


DEATH COUNT:  6


On Take 2, MALLOW got the free turn to set up Belly Drum, but not because Pikachu stayed asleep. No, Red fed his mascot Pokemon a Full Restore, which still wasted a round.  The sheer power of +6 Return made Pikachu, Venusaur, Espeon, Snorlax, Blastoise, and Charizard faint like Gothic novel characters.



MALLOW the Poliwag Final Stats and Moves
 
Level 76 @ Pink Bow
 
HP:  196
Attack:  144
Defense:  122
Special Attack:  116
Special Defense:  116
Speed:  192
 
Surf
Return
Hypnosis
Belly Drum


As you can see here, MALLOW the Poliwag didn't have to go on a Rare Candy hunt or battle all the random Kanto trainers to watch the credits twice.  Level 76 is below Red's Kanto starter trio, let alone the Pikachu.  Poliwag doesn't need to rely on the usual Double Team evasion or Rest + Sleep Talk silliness that other solos may need for Red.  Poliwag destroys the balance of Crystal by outrunning and disabling everything, then buffing its Return.  Some of the deaths came because I was complacent and bored after too many easy wins.  That, and I was close to Pokemon burnout at the time this playthrough happened.

[superdeath]

Have you done solo meowth?