Hello, and welcome back to the Torren Region! This is entry #3 in my Text Play of Pokemon Insurgence!
Last time, we helped our friend Damian get a gift Jaern, the new Augur of the region. He's basically the main protector of the region against the many cults in the region. We also encountered members of the Kyogre-worshipping Abyssal Cult and travelled to Midna Town. We started to go through the town's mine to find a trainer named Nora, as she's needed to participate in a school's tournament in town. And that's where we are at right now. Now, as is tradition, I wish to warn you that I will be spoiling this game.
So, we're going to make our way through the Midna Mine. We previously battled a Hiker near the entrance. If we go upwards, and to the right, we'll find another trainer.
We have to battle them to go forward. He complains that his suit is filthy. Well, yeah. You're in a mine, pal. There's dirt everywhere. What did you expect?
(Rich Boy) Jaden
1st Pokémon: Riolu (Lv. 16) - Defeated by Tympole.
After he's defeated, he still whines about his suit being covered in muck. Yeah, you get no sympathy from me, pal. None. Zip. Zilch. You chose to walk into a mine wearing designer clothes. Presumably nobody made you do it. You should have chosen to wear something more appropriate. Let's move on, shall we? We keep going to the left, and there's a lady there.
This lady looks like she's better equipped to explore the mine. She says that kids like us should be in school, not exploring potentially dangerous mines. Yeah, she's not wrong, but the problem is...this is a Pokémon game. In worlds like this, kids are the ones doing the world-saving.
(Socialite) Molly
1st Pokémon: Flabebe (Lv. 14) - Defeated by Charmeleon.
2nd Pokémon: Swirlix (Lv. 14) - Defeated by Charmeleon.
After she's beaten, she's...impressed? I'm not sure.
We head further downwards and we encounter...this guy.
Who is this guy? I hope he's not another cult figure. I mean, an outfit and hairstyle like that outright screams 'possible supervillain'. We talk to him, and he points out there are a lot of Rock and Ground-types in this cave. Well, yeah. It's a cave. They would feel right at home in a cave. He points out that it's not the best place for a Fire-type specialist like himself. To be fair, it's not like there aren't Fire-types that aren't also Types that are strong against Rock and Ground. For example, Scovillain is Grass/Fire. Makes me wonder why he's even here. Ah well, we gotta battle him.
(Firebreather) Ninra...yes, that's his name. It's not a typo.
1st Pokémon: Growlithe (Lv. 13) - Defeated by Tympole.
2nd Pokémon: Ponyta (Lv. 14) - Defeated by Tympole.
3rd Pokémon: Litleo (Lv. 16) - Defeated by Tympole.
Ninra's Fire Pokémon may not be the best choices to bring into this cave, but don't underestimate them. They were pretty tough. They nearly took down Krystal, and she's one of my strongest Pokémon. Same with Tympole. After we beat him, he laments his loss to us. Hey, he gave a good fight, he shouldn't feel too bad about it.
If we go further downwards, we'll find a Super Potion lying on the ground.
I'd recommend grabbing it. You'd never know when you'll need one of those. We keep going right, and we'll cross the path of the umbrella-holding Trainer we passed by earlier.
Yeah, that one. ...why does she have her umbrella open here in this cave? She thinks that thing is going to protect her from raining rocks?
Anyway, we have to battle her to keep going forward. She tells us that there's this girl training deeper in the cave. The umbrella holder finds it very annoying. Mainly because she's blocking the way for others.
(Parasol Lady) Yvonne
1st Pokémon: Flabebe (Lv. 16) - Defeated by Shiro the Charmeleon
2nd Pokémon: Staravia (Lv. 15) - Defeated by Pikachu
After the battle, she asks us to knock some sense into her. I'm guessing this mysterious training girl is Nora. Might as well. Nothing wrong with training your Pokémon, but you also have to be considerate of others. If we go to the right and upwards, we'll find another item.
It's an Awakening. We keep proceeding to the left...yeah, if you haven't figured it out, we're going in a spiral direction, going downwards further into the mine. I decided to change up my team a bit. One of the fun things about Debug Mode in this game is that I can access the game's PC any time I want. I gave myself an Emolga because I wanted a flyer and Electric type, putting it in place of my Pikachu, and I also swapped out my Butterfree for my Geodude I caught. I want to help grind them up, but I also had ended up remembering that I skipped past the Dark Cave last time. Which means...I'll have to backtrack.
Thankfully, said Dark Cave is not too far away from the Mine, so it's really not too bad. The Dark Cave does seem very intimidating, I will admit. After all, once you enter, there's no light. You can only see what is immediately around you. But here's a little secret: the Dark Cave is hardly a long, winding dungeon. In fact, the Cave is basically just an underground lake. Yeah. That's literally all it is. This is what the Cave looks like.
We can dive down in some places in the lake, but that's not something to worry about right now. We should remember this, though.
We entered the Cave through the lower entrance. If we stay near the water and go up (it doesn't matter if you go up the right side or the left, it leads to the upper entrance. Near the entrance is a rock with a hidden Super Potion.
Once we pass through the upper entrance, we find ourselves in the Midna Garden.
It's a pretty place. There are several people hanging out around here. They aren't there to battle, just relax and enjoy the peace. I think that's a pretty cool thing. The kid in the red hat in the screenshot tells us some more info about the Midna Trainer School tournaments. Turns out that Nora is quite arguably the best trainer the school has ever put out, winning every tournament she has ever participated in. So yeah, she is not someone to take lightly as a trainer. This is good to know. Another person here remarks that there is a Hidden Grotto in the garden.
A Hidden Grotto is a secret place in this game where you can find a rare Pokémon or an uncommon item. If you get the Pokémon or item in the Grotto, you have to wait 12 hours in real time for another one to appear. "How do you find these Grottos", you may ask? Well, the entrances can be found by looking closely.
See that nurse standing right there in the screenshot? Well, right next to her is the entrance to the Midna Garden hidden grotto. It's the little shadow between the two trees.
And welcome to the grotto.
I caught a Stunky here. I'm not sure why a Stunky would be here. Of course, Detergent's Debug Mode makes the Hidden Grotto an obsolete thing, I just wanted to show the Grotto off. So, with that out of the way, let's head back to the Midna Mine. We go back the way we came, until we find a scientist just wandering around.
My guess is that she is a curious geologist. The scientist remarks that she is analyzing the rocks in the caves, and it leads her to scavenging items, and even finding Pokémon.
(Scientist) Sandra
1st Pokémon: Magnemite (Lv. 15) - Defeated by Shiro the Charmeleon.
2nd Pokémon: Pachirisu (Lv. 15) - Defeated by Geodude
3rd Pokémon: Emolga (Lv. 14) - Defeated by Geodude
After we win, she announces she found a rare fossil. We can too, if we smash rocks. Have to give that a try some time.
If we go downwards and to the right, we end up making our way to the exit. At last.
Once we go through the exit, we end up in another chamber. There isn't much to this chamber, it's just a big room with a raised rocky platform around it. The way up is on the left side. Once we do, we find this young lady. She seems to be performing some sort of ritual.
Celebi, huh? This is an odd place to call for one, as Celebi are often associated with forests, not caves. Despite this, the girl is able to call on the guardian of the Ilex Forest. She commands the legendary Pokémon to use "Tesseract" to move the fossils through time. The screen flashes a pale green, and...
Huh. I know that Celebi can move things through time, but I never imagined it was capable of this. It literally revived ancient Pokémon from their fossils. That's something that can be done with special technology in Kanto, presumably in the form of cloning from DNA samples left in the fossils a la Jurassic Park. At least, that's how I always presumed it'd work.
The girl is overjoyed. Unlike Persephone back in entry #1, her hard work actually paid off. She now has four living ancient Pokemon: Kabutops, Omastar, Armaldo, and Bastiodon. And not only does she have them, but she can also use Celebi's time powers to make them fossils again. The screen flashes pale green again, and they are back to fossils. They can't do that in Kanto. It's here that she spotted us.
She demands to know who we are, and what we've seen.
She begs us not to tell anyone. Can't blame her with the cults running around here. I would not be surprised if they went after this girl if they found out she was pals with a legendary. Heck, I would not be surprised if there's a Celebi cult here. We also then get a surprise visit.
Well, well, well, if it ain't Mew. Haven't seen them since entry #1. What has that Pokémon been up to? The legendary goes over to Celebi, presumably to catch up on some things, and maybe make jokes about us. Yeah, yeah, yuk it up, guys. 😒
Anyway, the girl is amazed as what she's seeing.
She asks us if we were chosen by Mew. Well, kind of. Remember, back in entry #1, a mysterious benefactor sent Mew to help us escape the Darkrai cult. Could this "benefactor" also have sent Celebi to help this girl for some reason? I mean, it does make sense. If this "benefactor" could command one legendary, why not another?
The girl gives us a bit of clarification.
She tells us of a prophecy that was written a long time ago about the Torren region. Nobody knows how exactly it goes (poor record-keeping strikes again). Her parents told her stories about it when she was little. The prophecy (what little is known) states that a dark era will fall over the region, but a hero will rise to stop it. She lampshades that it's cliche, but that's how prophecies work. Yeah, prophecies can also come with a twist.
She claims that the hero would be chosen by a legendary Pokémon...in particular, an Illusory one (the word is capitalized, that's not a typo), in the vein of Mew, Victini, Hoopa, etc.
Being chosen by Celebi was awesome, but scary for her. She felt she wasn't ready to be a hero. Not yet. It's why she's down here. She's been training herself, getting ready to be the hero she was meant to be. Also, she knows if this gets out, the cults will come after her. When the First Augur came with Hoopa, he saved the region. With Jaern now in the Augur role, she doesn't think that he was chosen by any legendary Pokémon. Yeah, no kidding.
She wonders which of us the prophecy is about. Maybe it's about both of us. She logically theorizes that there may be others like us. Possible foreshadowing?
She also theorizes that Mew hasn't joined us fully because we are not quite ready. Well, we are starting out. Haven't even gotten our first badge yet. She gives us something to help with that: An EXP Share...which we already have thanks to the Debug Mode.
Well, to be fair, I'm playing this game blind, so I had no idea we'd get the item now. She wishes for us to be careful. You too, girl. She then asks us what we're doing here, and we tell her that the Trainer School Tournament is waiting. She utterly forgot about it. Yup, this is Nora.
She suggests we join as well. Would be a great way to help get stronger for our destinies. She leaves, and we have to go out of the Mine ourselves. Razzin frazzin'... 😖Thankfully, it was not a long walk. And I got to do a bit of extra grinding on the way. Presumably at this point, this part was meant to show you what the EXP Share does and how it can help strengthen your whole team. So, I get it from a gameplay perspective.
Since we're now at a bit of a calmer point in this game, I think it's time we explored Midna Town a bit more. I went to visit the Pokémon Center, where you can find a Move Deleter. Outside of it, there's a lady who will tell you some interesting stuff about Electrode. That mainly, it's the third fastest Pokémon that is not a Mega Evolution or a Legendary? I wonder how that ranking will be affected once Winds and Waves come out?
The lady wonders how it can be so fast, and I think, well...it's shaped like a ball. I imagine that allows it to get around quickly. Near the Pokémon Center is a house with this guy standing in front of it.
Turns out the dude wants to introduce us to the wild, wonderful world of...landlording.
Yeah, you can buy this house and collect money from people renting it every few steps. I would like to remind you all that we are playing a kid. I would wonder the legality of this, but in Pokémon games, kids are battling evil organizations, so I can imagine they are also allowed to be landlords.
Inside the house are a pair of bookshelves. The books talk about something called the "Kanto Civil War". It was an event that occurred several decades before the events of this game. It grew from civil unrest due to several of the then-Gym Leaders and Elite Four basically being very corrupt, involved in criminal activities and the like. Makes me wonder how much power these folks had back then. I mean, I always imagined Gym Leaders and Elite Four members being basically like famous athletes in these games. They can speak out on political issues, but they're not politicians. They don't dictate policy. The most infamous were Agatha, Madeleine, and Giovanni.
This got my interest because I knew who Agatha and Giovanni were. Agatha is one of the Elite Four and Giovanni was the Gym Leader of Viridian City in Pokémon Red/Blue and its remakes. I looked "Madeleine" up on Bulbapedia, and I got two possibilities. One was a priestess who appeared in one episode of the anime, so it couldn't be her. The other was a little girl who appeared in another episode. It definitely can't be her. So, I have no idea.
I know that Giovanni was a villain in the games, as he was the leader of Team Rocket. But Agatha confused me. The games never gave me the impression that Agatha was some kind of supervillain. Thing is, in the manga, she is a villain who had a massive vendetta against Professor Oak. She helped attempt to destroy humanity. So, I'm guessing the game is set in the manga version of the Pokémon universe. Or at least, a version of that timeline.
The mysterious Madeleine was beaten and arrested by Lt. Surge, who was also a villain in the manga. he was one of the sub-leaders of Team Rocket. Maybe in this timeline, he reformed or never was a bad guy. Anyway, we learn that "Madeleine" was the Vermillion City Gym Leader before Surge. Agatha would be pardoned, but her former friendships were still understandably strained.
Giovanni managed to avoid capture (presumably to his tendency to stay behind the scenes) for several years, until Red, the son of a soldier that died in the Civil War, managed to bring down Team Rocket and expose him as the leader. This led to the Indigo League undergoing a lot of changes, presumably reformation. Yeah. That's quite a backstory.
This can indicate that the darker story mode was meant to be the default, because Gym Leaders being villains isn't something you normally see in "official" Pokémon games. Yes, Gym Leaders can be seen as bosses, but they often are just neutral obstacles that you have to get past to go forward. They normally don't impact the game's story much. At least, as far as I can remember.
Right, I'm getting off track again. If we go upwards from the house we can charge people to rent, we'll end up here.
The Ryu-wannabe is in a bit of a foul mood. He jumped down the ledges hoping that he could use this route as a two-way shortcut from here to Narra Town. But it turns out that he just can't climb the ledges back upwards.
It is...strangely comforting that player characters are not the only people in these games that can't seem to climb for some odd reason. He calms down, realizing staying mad isn't going to solve the problem. That's a good attitude. 👍
He gives us TM128 (Work Up). He decides to take the long road back to Narra Town. Trying to find an upside, he thinks maybe it'll allow him and his Pokémon to get stronger. Yeah, that's not a bad thing. Not a bad thing at all. Get some more grinding in. He heads out. See ya, pal!
Above him is this dude with a cab rocking a Pikachu cosplay. He's a driver for a PikaTaxi service. Give him 500 PokeDollars, and he'll take you places that you've been before. If you use the service enough, he'll give you a special pass that'll let you have it for free. I can't imagine that being a very sustainable business model. If everyone eventually got to ride for free, where's he going to get his gas money or funds to maintain his vehicle? It has to come from somewhere.
I know, it's a game about catching monsters and making them fight each other. I shouldn't think too hard about this stuff. But I can't help it. I do try to not let it get in the way. We'll have to remember this guy, when we go further in the game and have been to more places.
I'm sure we'll see him again. One of the houses contains a man who's been studying Delta Pokémon. This one right here.
He wishes he could see one in person. I tried showing him Krystal, her being a Delta Pokémon and all, but it doesn't seem to do anything. Well, that was pointless. But the upstairs has something interesting.
I used Debug Mode to give myself an extra Caterpie to trade for his Elekid. It's a regular Elekid, but having an extra Electric type to help counter any Gym Leaders with Water-type Pokemon is always handy.
Talking to people around town allows you to learn a bit more about the region or just get a laugh. For example, the house next to the one where I got the Elekid had two residents. One was a woman who is dressed as a maid. She reveals that not only was the First Augur a hero to Torren, he was also a Gym Leader. She worked at his Pokémon gym before he "retired". I wonder if he was the leader of the 8th Gym, in a nod to Giovanni, only not a secret mob boss.
She does remark that not a lot of people knew he was a Gym Leader. I found that statement odd. As I said, I see the Gym Leaders in Pokémon games as essentially the equivalent of famous athletes. Lots of people know who they are. They can have an effect on culture. I'd think the First Augur being a Gym Leader would be well-known. People would come to his Gym to watch him take on Trainers.
And for the laughs, the one other resident brags that Fire-type Pokémon are the best. I bet Water, Rock, and Ground-type fans laugh at this dude a lot.
But seriously, it's okay to have a favorite type. Just remember this: No type is invincible. They all have their strengths and their weaknesses. Wait a minute, didn't we have somewhere to go? Ah yes, Nora said we could attend and maybe participate in the school tournament! We should get going there!
Before we do, there's a little side thing we should do. In front of the school, at the foot of the plateau it's on, is a little lake. It has a little bit of green area we can walk on, that leads us to a free Great Ball.
Yeah, there. Once we get inside, the tournament is almost ready to go since Nora finally has returned.
Nora is feeling impatient, as presumably she wants to add another tournament win to her record. The blonde is more understanding, thanking us for finding her. And with that, the tournament can finally begin.
The game takes us to the front.
The promoter announces that we and Damien from Telnor will also be participating. The tournament comprises of 8 students. The winner becomes "Champion". Here is the bracket.
I'm assuming this tournament is single-elimination. As you can see, we're fighting Kyle first. Then we'll fight whoever wins between Toby and Damian. The favorite to win is Nora, naturally. She's been established to be a very talented trainer. Not to mention I think it's also been established that she's won these tournaments in the past. Which makes me wonder how often are they held? Well, let's do this.
(Ninja Boy) Kyle
1st Pokémon: Tyrogue (Lv. 15) - Defeated by Krystal the Delta Ivysaur
2nd Pokémon: Riolu (Lv. 15) - Defeated by Krystal.
And with that, we advance into the semi-finals. We don't see the other first round matches, but we do get the winners.
Damian defeated Tony, so we face him next. I'm excited to see how he's grown since Telnor. Nora defeated Tamara, and that's to be expected considering her record. Simon defeated Daniella. She brought a Squirtle to a Grass Pokémon fight. We go right into the next battle. Don't worry, your Pokémon do get healed up before every battle, so we get to face every opponent at our best.
Let's see what Damian can do.
(Rival) Damian
1st Pokémon: Corphish (Lv. 15) - Defeated by Krystal.
2nd Pokémon: Delta Charmeleon (Lv. 17) - Defeated by Krystal. Delta Charmeleon had Shadow Sneak, which nearly allowed it to defeat Krystal.
3rd Pokémon: Luxio (Lv. 16) - Defeated by Turtwig.
Damian gave a good fight. He's really taken to Pokémon training. I can't wait to see how far he comes. Maybe in the next tournament, he could actually win it! And speaking of wins, since we defeated Damian, we get to go to the finals. And that means...
...we face Nora. Hardly a surprise. After all, Nora tends to be a big ol' butt-kicker in these things.
(Rival) Nora
1st Pokémon: Sewaddle (Lv. 16) - Defeated by Shiro the Charmeleon.
2nd Pokémon: Trapinch (Lv. 16) - Defeated by Tympole.
3rd Pokémon: Bayleef (Lv. 17) - Defeated by Shiro.
Nora is shocked by her being beaten so easily. Hey girl, there's an old phrase you should always keep in mind: "No matter how good you are, there is always someone better." The tournament holder encourages the participants to study hard. After all, if they do, they could be champions themselves, like me.
The conversation afterwards gives Damian no respect. He asks is his battle with us was good, and the holder says the final was better. Hey, lady! Damian put up a better fight than Nora did! Put some respect on his name, as the kids say. The holder gives us some prizes for winning: a Muscle Band, a par of Wise Glasses, and a Lucky Egg.
We don't seem to get any XP from these battles. It's so weird. We get a Muscle Band, a pair of Wise Glasses, a Lucky Egg, for winning. Nora gets a prize as well. Damian gets nothing, even though he was in third. Wouldn't Simon be considered third place as well? Nora did defeat him to get to face us. I do feel bad for Damian. I mean, third-place winners in the Olympics get medals, why not here?
The holder suggests we head to Suntouched City out west to face Orion, who specializes in Fire and Grass Pokémon. This fills Damian with determination. He's going to get stronger and win all the Gym Badges. You go, Damian!
With the tournament won, there's really not much reason to stick around here in Midna Town anymore. Time to head on down the dusty trail out west to Suntouched City. The way there is on the left side of Midna.
Once we head upwards, we enter Route 2.
Welcome to Route 2, everyone. At the beginning of the route, we find an item in the grasses and an old man at the nearby river.
The item is an Ice Heal. You know, I find it funny that Ice Heal bottles are pink in color. I mean, it's not a color I think of when I think of ice. I mean, if you don't want to go the classic light blue route, one could use blue or even black. Yeah, I think funny things when I play Pokémon fan games.
The old man there in the screenshot is a fisherman. He'll ask us if we enjoy fishing. If we say yes, he'll give us an Old Rod. I like that we got a Rod early in the game, but I still feel we should have gotten it earlier, like maybe in Telnor Town. That would have been nice. But that's a minor complaint. Fishing will be fun. 😀
The fisherman is blocking the way to a grassy area with a PokeBall in it. I'm not worried about it, we can try to explore there later. For now, I wanted to try some fishing. In this game, you can register an item to a particular key, allowing you to literally use it with a push of a button. I love this feature. It's so convenient. All you have to do is remember what items you registered to which keys. In this case, I registered the Old Rod to "Q". First time I used the Old Rod, I got a Corsola.
Corsola's PokéDex entry revealed to me that it gets sickly from pollution...which makes sense. I mean, Corsola is basically a coral reef as a fighting monster. Pollution is a bad thing, folks. Anyway, on this little island, there is a person here looking out at the forest.
I imagine that dude loves the trees. Trees are quite nice. If we talk to him, he'll brag that he bred these Pokémon to be stronger than any others, and they are genetically superior to any other Pokémon. I can imagine the Legendaries bursting out laughing and having no clue why.
(Pokémon Breeder Isaac)
1st Pokémon: Pignite (Lv.17) - Defeated by Tympole.
2nd Pokémon: Servine (Lv. 17) - Defeated by Shiro the Charmeleon.
After we win, he remarks that he'll need to try again. Yeah, bud. Your Pignite put up a good fight. It nearly defeated my Tympole on its own despite the type disadvantage! Be proud of that! That's the sign of a good trainer to me!
Some people are never satisfied. Ah, well. Let's move on. We can battle another Trainer here.
This kid claims that we don't stand a chance against him! For he is Michael, and he is mighty! Let's see how great he is.
(Youngster Michael)
1st Pokémon: Pidgeotto (Lv. 16) - Defeated by Tympole
2nd Pokémon: Helioptile (Lv. 17) - Defeated by Turtwig
An easy fight, Michael lamenting it wasn't fair. Try fighting cult members, kiddo. It'll toughen you and your Pokémon up real good. If we keep going to the left, we hear a drill sergeant barking out loudly, as they are wont to do in their jobs.
Military maneuvers out here? We see a trio of people in blue uniforms march by us, heading upwards. Huh. I wonder what that was all about. Ah, well. Likely not our problem. We keep heading left, and we find more of those uniformed folks on a bridge.
They won't let us pass, so it looks like we'll have to go upwards. But not before we battle that big bald dude in the grass patch. He says he's as tough as they come. Let's test that, shall we?
(Roughneck) Cory
1st Pokémon: Flabebe (Lv. 16) - Defeated by Shiro
2nd Pokémon: Jigglypuff (Lv. 18) - Defeated by Krystal the Delta Ivysaur
He laments that his Pokémon aren't seen as tough, because he considers them the toughest around. On one hand, I found it pretty darn funny that this guy's Pokémon are what would be considered "cutesy". I mean, it's not what you'd expect from a big tough-looking biker dude. But on the other, I do like the subversion. Just goes to show that appearances are not everyth2ing.
So, yeah. We've got to go upwards. I hope these guys aren't another cult. On our way up, we find another Antidote lying on the ground.
Trainers in these games must be more butterfingered and forgetful than I thought, considering how many items you can find lying on the ground. If we continue up, we go to an area that has some ancient ruins. Hey, that's pretty cool. Learn a bit more about Torren's history.
Is it just me, or is there something really...foreboding about these columns? The statues of Lucario are pretty neat, though. The path takes us to this ancient building.
It does look really simplistic, but I can imagine the builders' mentality basically was "It doesn't need to be pretty, it needs to do its job." So, let's do what any responsible Trainer would do here: let's go exploring!
Before we go in, we may want to get that Super Potion lying around at the building's side.
Yeah, that one. We go inside, and the building has a big central chamber with lots of rooms. The main room is very long, decorated with columns that have what look like statues of some Rhydon-like creature on them. At the end of the chamber, we find those guys in the uniforms, cornering a Riolu.
I knew it! It's another Cult!
Well, if there's one thing that I can't stand, it's people bullying a Pokemon. These clowns remind me of Dahlia bullying that X Ponyta and X Rapidash over in Eldiw. I hate Dahlia. I hope she's rotting. Anyway, someone else is not happy with this, either. The cultists going after the Riolu, not the bullying of the X Ponyta. Althought they probably would dislike that, too.
Hey, Nora. Nice to see you again. Like me, she's not happy with these clowns. Purple Ponytail there is the leader of this crew, and he asks his redhead and bluehead compatriots to take care of us. And he wants it done quickly, as he really wants to get that Riolu caught. They identify them as part of the Abyssal Cult. We first battle the Bluehead.
(Abyssal Cultist) Bluehead
1st Pokemon: Horsea (Lv. 17) - Defeated by Grotle
2nd Pokemon: Skrelp (Lv. 17) - Defeated by Grotle
3rd Pokemon: Corphish (Lv. 19) - Defeated by Grotle
Presumably the redhead was defeated by Nora. Purple Ponytail isn't happy with this, as he claimed they had some of the best Pokémon the Cult had. I doubt that.
He'll deal with us...after he catches that Riolu. But then someone new enters the playing field.
A very angry Mama Lucario. Purple Ponytail reminds his men of the rumors regarding this Lucario, and they need to catch it quickly before...
...it Mega Evolves. Yeah, Mega Evolution is a thing in this game. And based on Purple Ponytail's words and actions, this Lucario seems to somehow be able to do it without a Mega Stone. No wonder the Cultists want out of here.
That just leaves us and Nora with the Mega Lucario. Oh no...
Nora seems to know this Lucario, so she asks it if that was Mega Evolution. Which it is. Lucario and Riolu just leave in response.
Nora didn't come here intending to rescue us, she just wanted to explore this ruin. I don't blame her, it's pretty cool. I'm glad she still did anyway.
She also reveals that all she knows about the Abyssal Cult is that they worship Kyogre. She also knows that Mega Evolution requires a close bond between trainer and Pokémon. So, it's a mystery why this seemingly wild Lucario can do it. Ah well, nothing we can do about that right now. Since we're here in these ruins, we might as well explore them a little bit. Just be very careful. If the Indiana Jones films have taught me anything, it's that these places have plenty of booby traps...and they are not to be messed with.
The raised platform at the end of the main chamber has a PokeBall on it.
We can't get to it right now. That's fine. This building is a big one. The main chamber has passages to eight rooms, four on each side. Let's check the chambers out, shall we? The first one is the top chamber on the left.
This is a rather small room. I wonder what the builders intended it for, and what it was used for. Nothing much here, just a Super Potion. Let's check out the next room below.
Again, not much here, just a grass patch you can find wild Pokémon in. Let's go downwards.
Now here's something more interesting. You see that funny-looking rock on the upper left corner? I've seen those funny rocks in other places around Torren, but they were generally in places that I couldn't get to. It always left me wondering what on Earth those were. Well, since we found one that's accessible, it turns out that it's not a rock. It's a Compact Disc. Yeah. It's a Technical Machine, a device used to teach Pokémon moves they don't learn by leveling up. In this case, we now have TM104 (Silver Wind).
Below that is another Delta Pokémon: Delta Geodude.
I have to admit; I love the look of Delta Geodude. It looks like it came from, well, an ancient ruin. Makes sense it'd hang around here. And that's this room cleared. Let's look at the one below.
Yeah, like the others, not much here. Just some Charcoal and another Super Potion. Hey, you can never have too many Potions. And the Charcoal will be a handy item for a Pokémon that knows a Fire-type move yet is not a Fire-type itself. Charcoal powers up Fire-type moves.
And that's all the rooms on the left side. I'm getting the impression that this building wasn't some equivalent of an ancient town's City Hall. I think it was used as a giant warehouse, a glorified storage area. Let's look at the rooms on the right, starting with, naturally, the chamber closest to the entrance.
Yeah, still not much here. Just a grass patch and a Rare Candy. Let's go to the room above.
Well, here's something different. There appears to be some musical notes scribbled on the wall. I can't read music, so I have no idea what they mean. It could be a musical clue for something, but it could also likely be the work of some smart alec. Let's move upwards.
Again, not much here, just a free Repel. You can take it if you want. I would. Never know when you'll need a Repel. Let's move upwards.
Hey, now this is a bit more interesting. We got a grass patch we can catch wild Pokémon in, and we got a Spell Tag. Spell Tags boost the power of Ghost-type moves, much like the Charcoal we also got earlier does the same for Fire. You know, I find it kind of funny that in this abandoned, old ruin, we only find wild Pokémon in the grass patches. You'd think they'd be all over the place. Ah, well. Let's head back outside. On the way, we find a hidden item in a rock.
A Stone Plate. What does that do, you may ask. Well, it boosts the power of Rock-type moves. Since there's really nothing else here to explore, let's move forward. Thanks to the Abyssal Cult members being driven off, they aren't blocking the rest of Route 2. So...yeah, we can finally go on our way.
We should give the guy there a battle. He once worked at the Fiery Caverns in a place called Hekate Town. Thing is, he's lost his job thanks to said caverns getting cleared out for some reason. I can relate.
(Miner) Thomas
1st Pokémon: Roggenrola (Lv. 18) - Defeated by Grotle
2nd Pokémon: Riolu (Lv. 17) - Defeated by Krystal
3rd Pokémon: Roggenrola (Lv. 19) - Defeated Tympole with Rock Blast. Defeated by Grotle
Once that's handled, we can enter the cave. Welcome to the Cyan Cavern.
I can certainly see how this place got its name. You'll notice a nurse near the entrance. She'll heal up your Pokémon for you if they've taken a beating on the way here. That's pretty handy. I don't need this since this game has Debug Mode, but I can imagine that for the regular version of Insurgence, this is a godsend. If we go downwards, we can see a person here.
The trainer is feeling cold. Well, yeah, you're wandering around in a cave. It's hardly a sauna. They suggest a battle to warm up.
(Ace Trainer) Nina
1st Pokémon: Pikachu (Lv. 19) - Defeated by Grotle
2nd Pokémon: Kecleon (Lv. 18) - Defeated by Grotle
3rd Pokémon: Goomy (Lv. 17) - Defeated by Krystal
She may have lost, but she's all warmed up...only to feel cold again.
We head downwards, then cross a bridge to go to the left. From there, we head upwards and encounter another Trainer.
Unlike Nina, we have to battle this trainer to go forward. If you try to pass him, he gets mad about you trying to pass him. Hey, you're just standing there, bud! You clearly aren't going anywhere! Where do you get off, pal! I'm going to enjoy wrecking this guy.
(Gentleman) Jimmy
1st Pokémon: Zorua (Lv. 20) - Defeated by Grotle
2nd Pokémon: Grimer (Lv. 20) - Defeated by Krystal
3rd Pokémon: Cubone (Lv. 18) - Defeated by Tympole
And I did enjoy wrecking this clown. He admits he has to train harder. Yeah, if you spent more time bonding with and training your Pokémon than yelling at kids, you may actually have a challenge, Jimmy. You are not very gentlemanly.
Anyway, if we go up, we find an area with climbable rocks and TM.
We can't get to it now. So, we'll have to remember this place when we can. From here, we go downwards. We can walk through this little valley and see a Hiker nearby.
Hopefully he's nicer than Jimmy...although I wouldn't doubt he is. You don't have to battle the Hiker to go forward, but I want to because I want to get my Emolga and Onix to have some extra XP. Thank you, EXP Share!
The Hiker claims he specializes in Rock-types. Yeah, I think that's a Hiker thing, them liking Rock and Ground Pokémon.
(Hiker) Carlos
1st Pokémon: Tyrunt (Lv. 17) - Defeated by Grotle
2nd Pokémon: Kabuto (Lv. 18) - Defeated by Grotle
When we beat him, he asks what type is your favorite? Me, I don't really have an answer to that. It's something that has never crossed my mind. Once we go downwards, we find a ladder that takes us to the second sub-floor of the Cavern.
Second floor! Electronics! Sporting Goods! See that lake up at the top of the screenshot? We can fish in that. And there's another trainer there, too. He brags that he's so rich, he'll have his own kingdom one day. He'll fill it with all kinds of Pokémon...except Ice-types.
(Rich Boy) Hans
1st Pokémon: Jolteon (Lv. 19) - Defeated by Grotle.
2nd Pokémon: Flareon (Lv. 19) - Managed to defeat Tympole, although Tympole weakened it enough for Onix to finish him off.
3rd Pokémon: Vaporeon (Lv. 19) - Defeated by Grotle
I learned during this battle that this game will not let you use Revives during battles. Other healing items, yes, but not Revives. Nuts.
Hans laments that he shouldn't have lost because he was rich. Boo hoo, buddy. No one cares. Anyway, I felt bad for Tympole getting taken down during that battle. So, I decided to let it take the lead for the next few wild battles so it could get some XP of its own to make up for it. After I did, we went upwards, going above this massive lake. It's here we found a Great Ball.
Never know when you'll need an extra Great Ball. We make our way around the big lake, and we find this guy walking around.
He's a painter who finds inspiration in painting caves. I imagine this dude is the Bob Ross of painting caves. Happy little stalagmites...
(Artist) Mark
1st Pokémon: Smeargle (Lv. 18) - Defeated by Tympole.
2nd Pokémon: Smeargle (Lv. 18) - Defeated by Shiro the Charmeleon.
Mark compliments our battle as beautiful and a work of art. I hope he paints it. I would so love to have a painting of it hanging on a wall. From here, we can go downwards, and we'll find a ladder that'll take us upwards to the ground floor of the cavern. But there is one thing we have to do first. I forgot to do this. You remember when we first came to this floor? The area where we battled that rich punk?
Yeah, that area. You see that little magnet on the ground there? We should grab that. We get up there by walking up an incline on the side of the ridge on top of the screenshot. From there, we go around, then go up another incline, go down, and we're now the proud owners of a Magnet. Magnets are used to increase the power of Electric-type moves. And with that, let's get out of here.
Nothing really here to explore once we climb up this ladder. Just take the nearby ramp down to the exit.
Yeah, that ramp there. Just go downwards, and we're now in Suntouched City! Yay!
Suntouched City is a rather unique place, and I'm not just talking about its name. It turns out that it's a city on two levels. Some of the city is on the ground...but some of the city...is in the sky. Yeah, it's a literal Cloud City.
I wonder how on Earth they pulled that off?! I mean, I know that in some ways, the Pokémon world has more advanced technology than our own (I mean, Pokeballs), but wow! That's amazing! I want to know how they pulled this off! It's so cool! That cloud area is where Orion's Gym is located. But first, we have to go hit the Pokémon Center, as the Center here is also special. You see, it's more than just a regular place to get your Pokémon healed up and your supplies replenished. This place is a full-on mall.
Yeah, here you can customize your player character's appearance some more. Not every town has a PokeMall, though. Only the bigger cities do, as they can afford it. I'm guessing that Suntouched is one of those bigger cities. The other shops are behind the area the nurse that heals your Pokémon works at. There's some stairs behind her. On the floor at the top of the stairs are lines on the ground, a red and white-stripes line going to the left and blue going to the right. Immediately going upwards takes you to the supplies shop.
I bought some Super Potions. If we follow the red and white-striped line, we go to the clothing shop.
You know, I could use a new look. We've been wearing this jumpsuit since we escaped the Darkrai Cult, and it's about time we started looking like a normal person. So, I got some new clothes: a red shirt, some blue pants, a fedora, and a yellow backpack. Yup! No more wearing that cult jumpsuit for me!
Do I look good, or do I look good? Nothing like a new outfit to make you feel like a new person. I love this outfit. It's basic, but basic ain't a bad thing. On the other side is the Hair Salon.
Here, you can change your hairstyle and hair color if you want. At least, that's what I thought. But if you talk to the hairstylist (who is dressed like a nurse for some odd reason), she just asks if you want to alternate between having a shaved head and grown out hair. You know, I like my hair the way it is, so I'll keep it. Thanks anyway. The bottom of this floor has a sitting area with a vending machine.
Unfortunately, said machine doesn't work right now.
Yeah, so that's a pain. Ah well, maybe after we beat Orion, it will get fixed. We also find the Name Rater here. He's the bald bearded guy. I've never really done the whole "name rating" thing, but if you want to, here he is. We also have the Move Deleter sitting at that table on the left.
And that's where we're going to have to stop for the month, I'm afraid. Join me next time as I explore Suntouched City some more and hopefully get to face Orion. Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves and each other! If you like the silly stuff I write here, please drop a donation in my Ko-Fi! See you next time!
Pokemon Obtained:
(Midna Mine)
- Shuckle
- Emolga (Obtained by Debug Mode)
- Woobat
(Dark Cave)
- Abra
- Purrloin
- Delta Ivysaur (evolved from Delta Bulbasaur)
(Midna Garden Hidden Grotto)
- Stunky
(Midna Town)
- Heatmor (thanks to Debug Mode)
(Route 2)
- Corsola (by fishing)
- Marill
- Staryu
- Bidoof
- Grotle (evolved from Turtwig)
(Ancient Ruins)
- Riolu
- Tyrogue
- Delta Geodude
- Sandshrew
(Cyan Cavern)
- Magnemite
- Whismur
- Roggenrola
- Relicanth (Obtained through Debug Mode. Can be obtained by fishing with the Old Rod, but the odds are only 30%)
- Makuhita
- Panpour (Obtained through Debug Mode. Can be obtained through surfing in Cyan Cavern)
- Wooper (Obtained through Debug Mode. Can be obtained through surfing in Cyan Cavern)
- Pancham (Obtained through Debug Mode. Can be found in Cyan Cavern, but chances of encounter are only 1%)
- Carbink (Obtained through Debug Mode. Can be found in Cyan Cavern by using Rock Smash).