Last time, we explored all of the relatively small Two Island. So, time to move on to Three Island, which looks a lot bigger on the map.
Before we do that though, let's see what celadonk had to say about the last episode.
About the set of battles in the Sweet Shop:
We had a lot of fun with the team themes here. Super Nerd Mel uses Pokemon that are melty/fluidlike/bloblike, like Magnezone, Swalot, Golem, and Hitmonlee. Fisher Ronan uses entirely non-Water type aquatic Pokemon: Kingler, Kingdra, Wailord, Gyarados, and Cloyster. There are other teams too. Each round has a random trainer out of 3 (except Lilith, who is always the third round). Psychic Byrd uses the legendary (former) birds, and Raichu/Wigglytuff/Clefable, three mons that I've always kinda seen as a trio. Their types are the same as the legendary birds' original types. Another remnant of the UB-to-fish change. Also, not sure if you've noticed, but each of the Shrine Leaders has a different stat specialty. Athalia's is, of course, Attack. Stanford's is HP. His name comes from the fact that originally, all his Pokemon were gonna use status-inflicting moves. That didn't totally pan out, but you can see vestiges of it in Jirachi's Trick Beam.The Shrine names aren't as closely related. Their main gimmick is that their names end in -ce.
I hadn't noticed the stat specialities, but I'll be on the lookout going forward.
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Three Island - Fool's Gold OST
More slow paced music here.
Here in the pokemon center, someone talks about how people used to Surf between the islands, but that's not allowed anymore because of treacherous tides. Someone else mentions this island has a Berry Forest.
There are rumors of children being kidnapped in the Berry Forest. But those are nothing but tall tales.
Hm.
This guy says you shouldn't cross Bond Bridge alone because there's a "swamp monster" lurking there. The kid says her dad is always lying and won't let her go out to swim.
The lady outside mentions that Three Island is one of the more populated islands here, but still quite sleepy. Indoors, I'm informed that very few people know the Shrine Leader's name, but that the Shrine in Berry Forest may be filled with ghosts.
And in this house, someone wants a female Torchic for her Swablu. I would have to go back and capture another Torchic so I won't do this right now. I do appreciate that several of the islands have in-game trades so you can get the traded pokemon exp bonus if you want to level up faster.
The kid wants to train his Nincada to battle Magdalen. Well... I guess the Shrine leader's name is no longer a mystery. That was quick.
The Mart here sells type boosting held items for Normal, Fighting, Flying, Ground, Rock, Bug, Ghost, Poison and Steel. There's also someone who says I'll need a "flashlight" to explore Berry Forest. All right, I'll bring out Flash when I get there.
The final thing of note in town is this TM ball here. It contains TM60 Charbroil, the 80 power special Fire move that never misses. I decide to give it to Carlsbad to increase his type coverage, overwriting Solar Beam. Solar Beam on Carlsbad was useful in the area of harsh sunlight, but now Temeraire can just do a Heat Wave / Solar Beam combo.
Bond Bridge - Fool's Gold OST
Celadonk says in the comment to this OST vid that this fun little march is his favorite song in Fool's Gold.
Oh, for this one I actually need to keep Cut in my team. After looking at my options I decide to make a quick trip to the Move Deleter in Blackthorn to make Temeraire forget Strength and learn Cut instead. If at some point I need both I'll have to figure out something else, let's hope it's not required here.
New pokemon time!
Kirlia, the Toadstool Pokémon
Type: Grass/Poison
Pokedex: Groups of KIRLIA congregate around rot and decay. Its spores can make people and POKÉMON dizzy.
I catch it easily.
I find a Pearl in the corner, then prepare to fight these Twins, Joy & Meg. They have a Delcatty and Exploud.
Next, I also find Ralts.
Ralts, the Fungus Pokémon
Type: Grass/Poison
Pokedex: It sways gently from side to side. Many people like this POKÉMON for its calm and bashful demeanor.
As well as Nincada.
Nincada, the Nymph Pokémon
Type: Bug
Pokedex: It uses flashy colors to ward off any attackers, and then flees after it is stunned.
We've already seen its evolution Ninjask. Shedinja is also in this game but is unrelated to this species.
This trainer is Teacher Violet. She starts with Gardevoir.
Gardevoir, the Amanita Pokémon
Type: Grass/Poison
Pokedex: They are often witnessed in groups dancing around dead organisms, spreading their spores.
Gardevoir evolves from female Kirlia while Gallade evolves from male ones. Gardevoir learns Quiver Dance when she evolves, and Petal Dance later on.
The trainer also has Kingler, Venusaur, and Camerupt.
Since I wanted to go back to town to heal anyway, I decided to get the male Kirlia I caught out of the box, take his Tinymushroom, and also give him a Rare Candy.
Gallade, the Gunslinger Pokémon
Type: Grass/Poison
Pokedex: GALLADE has assigned itself as SEVII's unofficial peacekeeper, seeking justice for all POKÉMON.
Gallade learns Bullet Seed when he evolves. He has the same Grass/Poison typing as Gardevoir but is much more physical attack oriented, where Gardevoir is a special attacker. Also, while Gardevoir continues the line's mushroom theme, Gallade's pokedex description is quite different.
Surskit also can be found in the grass here.
Surskit, the Sucker Pokémon
Type: Bug/Poison
Pokedex: They are regarded as one of the biggest pests of the SEVII region. Their bites are incredibly itchy.
It's a mosquito. I hate it.
I catch the Surskit before it has a chance to show it off, but it learns a move called Blood Draw.
Movedex: Blood Draw
Type: Poison/Physical
Effect: 80 power / 100% accuracy. 1/2 of the damage dealt is restored to the user.
The sign reads:
Bond Bridge
Currently out of commission. Feel free to swim across, but beware of the swamp monster.
Swimming in a mosquito-infested jungle swamp? Lovely.
Let's fight the trainer, who tells me:
Argh, I was going to Berry Forest, but there's a monster in the water!!
This is Swimmer Tisha. She leads with Lickilicky, followed by Kantonian Venomoth, and finally Dragonite.
Speaking of Lickilicky, I never bothered evolving the Lickitung I caught back in Johto because we found a trainer with Lickilicky first.
It evolves using a Dawn Stone. But, if I evolve it with a Dawn Stone here in Sevii...
Seviian Lickilicky, the Inebriated Pokémon
Type: Water/Poison
Pokedex: The liquid it lies in is sweet, but has a distinct chemical texture. It has a hard time walking straight.
Movedex: Fruit Punch
Type: Grass/Physical
Effect: 75 power / 100% accuracy. Has a 10% chance to restore 1/4 of the user's maximum HP.
OF COURSE the pitcher pokemon is a bowl of punch instead if you evolve it on a tropical island. It is perfect.
Lickilicky and Seviian Lickilicky actually quite similar. They have the same stats and learn similar moves. The Seviian form is of course part Poison type, and other than Fruit Punch it also learns Venoshock. Regular Lickilicky learned Glass Shard and Aqua Tail instead.
Let's go surf in a lovely swamp, and hope we don't encounter any angry ogres.
It's no ogre but we do find a Zigzagoon.
Zigzagoon, the Otter Pokémon
Type: Water
Pokedex: Despite its cute appearance, it has very sharp teeth capable of crushing even the toughest shells.
It's a cute otter.
You can also find its evolution Linoone here. The easiest way to find it is by fishing with the Super Rod.
Linoone, the Bog Pokémon
Type: Water/Ground
Pokedex: The swamps this POKÉMON live in help to disguise it. It uses this natural camouflage to catch prey.
Finally, we actually need to find the swamp monster. I think the best way to do this is to surf around here with the Repel Trick.
Eventually I find it, a shiny Obstagoon.
Obstagoon, the Bog Pokémon
Type: Water/Ground
Pokedex: It is incredibly dangerous. If you are swimming and and see one in the water, get out as fast as you can.
As always, my pokedex image shows the normal palette. If you want a normal one you can either use a Water Stone on Linoone or catch one with a Super Rod.
It learns Night Slash when it evolves and it also knows Rest. Rest is not terrible, it makes it easier to catch the pokemon. It still takes quite a few balls.
Of course, this was one of the seven shinies for the quest on Navel Rock.
That reminds me - I completely forgot to look for the quest shiny on Two Island. You know, let's go do that right away before I forget.
It's actually in this area just before the waterfall up to the shrine. Can you see it?
Yep, that's quite hidden. There's no hint whatsoever that it's here (except that apparently the NPC can walk into that tree tile at random).
Going far enough up into the trees takes us into this tiny room with the shiny.
It's a shiny Cacturne. Its snow is... yellow. No comment.
I capture it in one go. That's three shinies done.
After that, I get a call from Bill saying I filled my ninth PC Box. And that's not counting the 14th box, where I store a bunch of pokemon I want to be able to switch in quickly such as HM users. Fool's Gold seems to have the same number of boxes as regular Crystal - 14 boxes with 20 pokemon each, for 280 pokemon total (and 6 in your party). With 475 different forms in this game total, that means it's unfortunately not possible to complete a Living Dex in a single save file.
Back to Three Island, the swamp isn't actually that large, we quickly make it to the other side.
Picknicker Nicki here has a Heracross, Girafarig, Cloyster and Gardevoir.
Perhaps that reek is your sweaty Pokemon's body odor...
Rude.
The last trainer here is a Schoolboy who leads with Raticate, followed by Gengar.
His third pokemon is Shedinja.
Shedinja, the Resilient Pokémon
Type: Bug/???
Pokedex: This hardy POKÉMON can survive in any environment. Many trainers find it frustrating in battle.
You may see in the pokedex sprite that it's been given a slightly brighter palette in the latest patch.
As I already said, Shedinja is completely unrelated to the Nincada line.
In this case, the ??? typing indicates that it is immune to Normal, Fire, Water, Electric, Grass, Ice, Fighting, Poison, Ground, Flying and Rock moves. The wiki says that "otherwise it has the same type interactions as standard Bug-type pokemon", but since bugs are weak only to Fire, Flying and Rock, and resist only Grass, Fighting, and Ground, that means in practice it takes neutral damage from everything else.
I guess this is the closest they could get to Wonder Guard in a game that doesn't have abilities yet.
It also has very low HP. The wiki says its base HP is 1. Without catching one, I don't know if it's hardcoded to actually have only 1 HP or if it has slightly more. Giving it just 1 base HP and slightly more actual HP would be much easier to code, so I wouldn't be surprised if that's what the devs did.
Anyway, I send out Temeraire and knock it out with a Dragon Pulse. Carlsbad defeats this guy's final Victreebel.
Before fighting this guy he said that his teachers told him to use diverse moves. After beating him:
Man, I knew my teachers were full of crap.
I'm pretty confident that this quote isn't copied from FRLG.
We enter the gatehouse.
It's quite dark in Berry Forest.
But it's full of strong Trainers, cool Pokemon, and useful Berries, so it's worth it to adventure through.
Alright, time to get Flash. I decide to temporarily teach it to Taigei the Wailord, for the very simple reason that she's still way too low of a level to be useful in battle, so this way she's can light up the forest, but I can also keep training her with the Exp. Share. I'll just give her a TM move later.
Here's what the forest looks like without Flash (those are the windows of the gatehouse).
Berry Forest - Fool's Gold OST
Time to light her up.
We're treated to yet another new song here .
They weren't kidding about rare berries. Right away we find the Nutpea Berry, that's the one that's used at the start of battle and raises Evasion.
The path to the South curves around for a bit until we're blocked by a one-way ledge that can only be crossed on the way back.
We find Masquerain here, Surskit's evolution.
Masquerain, the Mosquito Pokémon
Type: Bug/Poison
Pokedex: It will attempt to drain a foe of all its energy until it is nothing but a husk. It makes a low buzzing sound.
The two paths north lead to the same area, where we encounter a biker.
Outta my way, kid.
I'm off to take on the Shrine.
This is Paxton, and he has a Magmortar, Electivire, and Furret.
Wait a second. I'm not allowed to bike in the forest, why can he?
The tree here has another Nutpea Berry. I also find a Max Revive around the corner.
This trainer, Lass Kay, warns me about thieves before challenging me. She has Umbreon, Weezing, Slowking, Honchkrow and Sandslash.
She likes to use Destiny Bond and to switch out pokemon.
After I defeat her she admits she was the thief.
I need to go healing. You can't Fly out of the forest, but there's ledges to get back reasonably quickly.
This berry restores 90 HP. It's... decent at a point in the game where pokemon have over 200 max HP.
There's also some ponds in the forest. The trainer is Bug Catcher Lonnie, who has 5 Johto Venomoth and one Kanto Venomoth.
Before battling he says: "I like bugs!" After we defeat him, he says "I like bugs!" After battling, he says "I like bugs!". Do you think he likes bugs?
Anyway, he was blocking the way to a Max Elixer.
I Thundersoon Bird Keeper Fred here. He only has two pokemon, but he tells me afterwards that he used to have 3. The third one flew the coop, "that traitor".
Maybe you should learn how to care for your pokemon, man.
The tree here has a Chilan Berry which boosts Speed at the start of battle.
I find another wild pokemon I was looking for, Skiploom.
Seviian Skiploom, the Fruit Pokémon
Type: Grass
Pokedex: Although a fruit botanically, this POKÉMON's flesh has a distinct and desirable umami taste when cooked.
Mmm, I love to eat Grass Pokemon. It's the vegetarian alternative. I catch it.
I also battle Cooltrainer Jaggy, who has 6 pokemon.
One of them is an Alakazam. And that reminds me, I caught an additional Kadabra way back in the Jungle Maze in Johto for a specific reason.
Using a Moon Stone in Johto/Kanto evolves Kadabra into regular Alakazam. Using one here evolves it into Seviian Alakazam.
Seviian Alakazam, the Chaos Pokémon
Type: Dark/Dragon
Pokedex: An asteroid that was rumored to hit Earth was named "ALAKAZAM" after this embodiment of destruction.
Interesting, its colours are much closer to Kadabra compared to regular Alakazam.
Again, the two Alakazams are practically not that different, but this one is part Dragon-type.
While we're here, let's use a Rare Candy to evolve Skiploom.
Seviian Jumpluff, the Aubergine Pokémon
Type: Grass
Pokedex: The leaves on its body snap forward rapidly when provoked, deterring POKÉMON who try to feed upon it.
It learns Bullet Punch, a steel-type move, upon evolution. It can also learn Egg Bomb.
We haven't seen Seviian Hoppip yet, but I think I'll need to breed Jumpluff to see it. I'll do that later.
To reach the deepest part of the forest, we need to cross this water.
There's a side path that leads to TM59, Energy Ball, a Grass-type attack that may lower the enemy's special defense.
And another Chilan Berry tree here.
This is Pokemaniac Oswald. He has 3 Kanto/Johto pokemon and then Seviper.
Seviper, the Temptation Pokémon
Type: Dark/Grass
Pokedex: One of the oldest POKÉMON known. It loves to tempt people and POKÉMON alike into bad deeds.
It's a biblical reference. Seviper can be found at certain times of day here in Berry Forest, but only as a 5% encounter. This trainer saves me from having to search for it.
I've been pwned!
You seem cool.
When does the Sharpedo bacon?
...
...Never mind...
Apparently this is a reference to "When does the narwhal bacon?" an old way of recognizing redditors IRL, akin to SAs "Do you have stairs in your house?"
Made it to the Shrine of Radiance.
If each Shrine Leader's name is a reference to a specific stat, then what is this one? My guess would be "magic defense", aka special defense.
Shrine - Fool's Gold OST
Welcome to the Shrine of Radiance...
Here, we focus on the natural beauty of the power of Pokemon.
I'll open up the gate for you.
Good luck on your trials.
The second floor here is quite dark. There's only one path to take, which stands out because it's animated.
I get jumped by someone... or something?!? in the dark.
Huh.
... Hahaha, they added the Lavender Town ghost as a trainer type.
It sends out a Dustox... at level ??. Lots of strange stuff going on here.
Dustox, the Moth Pokémon
Type: Bug/Dark
Pokedex: At night, its eyes and patterns make it seem much bigger than it is. It appears before imminent danger.
The other final form of Wurmple. It is fast and has a powerful Dark Pulse. Only Wednesday and Hrunting can survive a hit from that. By having them work together they manage to knock out this Dustox. I think it might be level 100.
The ghost has nothing to say after being defeated.
A few steps ahead, there's another ghost.
It has a... what?
Grumpig, the Broadcast Pokémon
Type: Electric/Psychic
Pokedex: It has such a good signal that it can receive broadcasts from other worlds, which it displays on its face.
Reminds me of Raticate, with that screen.
Wednesday and Carlsbad are best suited to knock out this pokemon, but even super effective special attacks do barely any damage to Grumpig. I think this proves my theory that this shrine is about Sp. Def.
Nobody else can survive a single hit from Grumpig.
For the flow of this LP... I think it's cheese time. Let me go find a PC.
On the way back through Berry Forest, it's now night time, so we can find new pokemon. Seviper, and also Mawile.
Mawile, the Fly Trap Pokémon
Type: Grass/Steel
Pokedex: Rumor has it that this POKÉMON was bioengineered to get rid of the pests found in the SEVII region.
It knows a Grass-type move called Snap Trap. A trapping move introduced in gen 8.
Meditite can be found here, as well.
Meditite, the Cryptid Pokémon
Type: Psychic
Pokedex: They attack humans in the dead of night. Some think that it comes from another world.
I catch it.
Alright. So my plan was to use the strong physical attacker Groudon against this. But... Grumpig still outspeeds it and kills it with a single Psychic.
After considering my options, I decide to try something completely different.
I give Wednesday the Odd Honey, which turns Special moves Physical. Now I have a Physical Monsoon. The first hit doesn't do too much damage, but once the rain is going, two more Monsoons are enough to knock out Grumpig.
Since a Psychic from Grumpig still takes over half of Wednesday's health, I have to do one Monsoon, switch to another pokemon, heal Wednesday, switch Wednesday back in when the other pokemon faints, and so on. And hope Monsoon never misses. But I get it done.
There's a third Ghost, again with a single pokemon.
This time it's Tyranitar, who is only weak to Fairy. I could go and train up the Fairy-type Overqwil to deal with this, but hopefully that's not necessary.
It turns out this Tyranitar is really quite easy. Its Thrash is not that strong against my pokemon and keeps confusing it, so it just keeps hurting itself. I didn't even go heal after the last fight, I just decided to see how this one would go, and it was no trouble.
Pfft, we're past those scary ghosts now. Here's a regular trainer.
You look totally petrified!
Did you see one of our ghosts?
I didn't realize before, but in every shrine so far, the Trainees have had different sprites. The devs really put in a lot of work for Sevii.
Cradily, the Chalice Pokémon
Type: Ghost/Steel
Pokedex: Now that it's found the perfect cup to reside in, it is always filled to the brim with pure joy.
That Pokedex entry is clearly a followup to whatever Lileep is. We'll find it later.
This trainer is way simpler than the ghosts. I can go back to using normal strategies of just using super effective moves. She also has an Azurill and Spinda.
Hee hee...
You're so gullible.
There were never any ghosts!
It was me throwing my voice and chucking Pokeballs from over here the whole time!
Oh, so she has 6 pokemon total? I guess that makes sense.
Man, are kids from Johto easy to fool or what!
Oh come on, I bet you didn't see a Physical Monsoon coming.
I guess I better go heal one more time before I battle the Shrine Leader upstairs.
While I'm at the Pokemon Center, let's chuck a Rare Candy at the Meditite I caught.
Medicham, the Cryptid Pokémon
Type: Psychic
Pokedex: Usually found in groups of two or three. It appears at dusk and leaves nothing behind but a pungent stench.
Apparently it's a reference to the Flatwoods monster from West Virginia folklore. I'm not familiar with it.
Either way, time for the Shrine Leader of Three Island.
Ehehehe...
Magdalen, the wonderful witch of Berry Forest, is my name.
I've been around Pokemon for over seventy years, and I know their secrets better than anyone.
I'll show you what this old woman's got, you whippersnapper.
Shrine Leader Battle - Fool's Gold OST
She leads with Roserade.
Roserade, the Spore Pokémon
Type: Grass
Pokedex: The powder that comes out of its hands is so potent that it can knock out even an Indian elephant.
It makes me uncomfortable when pokedex entries reference real-life animals.
Magdalen's Roserade knows Scald, Giga Drain, Spite, and Spikes. I knock it out with Groudon.
Banette, the Sea Angel Pokémon
Type: Water/Flying
Pokedex: While swimming in the sea, it will offer help to any struggling POKÉMON and watch over them.
Banette knows Monsoon, Hurricane, Heal Bell, Energy Ball.
I have Wednesday use Thunder, hoping that Banette will set up a Monsoon for us. It doesn't, using Energy Ball instead, but Thunder hits and knocks it out anyway.
The Shrine Leader follows with Gardevoir, who knows Petal Dance, Energy Ball, Clear Smog, and Ominous Wind.
It doesn't even get a move off, because Groudon knocks it out with a single Fire Punch.
After that comes a Gorebyss, who knows Heat Wave, Flamethrower, Dragon Pulse, and Amnesia.
I'm noticing that Magdalen doesn't really have pokemon with huge special defense. Perhaps I was wrong after all?
Anyway, I get a little bit unlucky against Gorebyss, missing a few Monsoons, and it getting some crits off. Once I get its HP low, Magdalen uses a Full Restore. Eventually I switch to my own Temeraire so I can heal Wednesday, but at that point she switches out Gorebyss and brings in Dustox.
It knows Dark Pulse, Silver Wind, Toxic and Light Screen.
You realize Dustox won't fare much better, right Magdalen?
I knock out both Dustox and Gorebyss with Groudon.
Magdalen's final pokemon is Camerupt. It knows Hydro Pump, Scald, Flamethrower, and Hyper Beam. Wednesday finishes it with Thundersoon.
That was way way simpler than those ghosts, even though these were 6 level 100s. I think those pokemon used by the ghosts were boosted somehow.
I'll hex you for that, you scamp!
...Hahahaha!
I'm not a witch, silly kid!
You looked white as a ghost!
You should go and challenge our beautiful Totem Pokemon, sonny.
What's with this shrine and me getting pranked?
Let's go upstairs.
Come forth, the Totem of magic and wisdom... Rayquaza!
Totem Pokémon Battle - Fool's Gold OST
Rayquaza, the Wisdom Pokémon
Type: Grass/Dragon
Pokedex: It's made entirely of straw and stray flowers. It uses strategy to win battles rather than brute force.
It is the Scarecrow.
They made it look more straw-y in the new patch.
Rayquaza knows four moves: Nature Blast, Deep Thought, Dragon Pulse, and Magic Spell.
Dragon Pulse we've seen plenty, a hard hitting Dragon type move. Magic Spell is a powerful Psychic move that has a chance to raise all the user's stats. In the 1.3.2 patch, it was actually replaced by Brainstorm, a similarly strong Psychic special attack which has a chance to paralyze instead.
The other two moves are unique to Rayquaza.
Movedex: Nature Blast
Type: Grass/Special
Effect: 120 power / 95% accuracy. Has a 50% chance to lower the target's Special Defense by two stages.
Movedex: Deep Thought
Type: Dragon/Status
Effect: 100% accuracy. Maximizes the user's Special Attack.
Rayquaza also has a gigantic base special attack (250). This thing hits hard it you let it.
Its other base stats are much lower, so it's easy to outspeed Rayquaza and at least lower its HP to catch it.
The AI also doesn't realize there's no point to using Deep Thought more than once.
Okay, so I did get it wrong - this shrine is not about special defense but about special attack.
Of course, it has a legendarily low catch rate, but eventually I catch it.
I make it back to town, then bring my party back to normal, get rid of Flash at Blackthorn's move deleter and unequip the Odd Honey.
One more thing this episode - breed Seviian Jumpluff.
Seviian Hoppip, the Egg Pokémon
Type: Grass
Pokedex: A young plant POKÉMON that has taken on the appearance of a bird's egg to avoid being eaten.
Progress:
- Pokemon seen: 369/433 (85.22%)
- Pokemon seen (including regional forms): 401/475 (84.42%)
- Fool's Gold moves seen: 89/104 (85.58%)
.
I'm going to abuse this rain as much as I can.
This place actually has a use but only if you start a new game with a certain password. I will get back to this much, much later.
