UPDATE 31: Last badge. Last time.
Welcome back! It’s time to fight the last Gym. The final badge. The last challenge before the Elite 4.
Unless Victory Road is a challenge? Maybe the Gym is the challenge and Victory Road is the last ordeal before the Elite 4.
I…
Forgot about this.
Volkner’s at the lighthouse.
He’s the one with the unique sprite.
Dang, got the new wainscoting done already?
Volkner’s team is actually kinda nasty, so it’s not an idle threat.
Volkner’s back and feeling better.
You know, is this the first Gym we’ve been to that Barry didn’t beat before us? Or did he clear this Gym so long ago that Volkner had time to get depressed and renovation-y again?
Last time we get to talk to the Advice Guy.
He’s a little excited.
Maybe this time is the time he just lays out every Pokemon the Gym leader has and all their tricks like, “Alright so when he throws the Water move out what he’s trying to do to you is the Alolan Shuffle so don’t fall for it.”
…oh.
Okay well I guess that you should know by now how to handle Electric types.
So you walk on gears, step on the button, and the gears turn. Actually, this Gym managed to stump me for a minute because in the final room you have to double-back. You do not just keep walking straight along the one path that you’re allowed to move on and get to the end point. Finally, a puzzle!
Anyway, here’s Volkner.
The burnout when anything you’ve begun as a hobby becomes an ordeal is real. Even if it’s not a directly competitive affair, if there’s just some aspect of comparison between your success and someone else’s, that pressure combined with the pressure of having to do something as an obligation drains the enjoyment out of whatever you love. Breaking your routine can actually be helpful to avoid burnout, which is probably why Volkner’s turned to another outlet of self-expression in the Gym renovation.
…I’m not projecting anything shuddup.
I… took this awkward screenshot midway through his standing up animation. Oops.
Anyway, Volkner’s team actually changes a lot between Diamond & Pearl and Platinum, so if you’ll excuse me for snipping Bulbapedia:
Diamond & Pearl:
Platinum:
The DP team has a few cute inclusions like the Baton Passing Ambipom (assuming, y’know, the AI is programmed well enough to use Baton Pass. I do not remember this battle in my original original Diamond run) and Octillery as the main Pokemon holding all the coverage moves.
Then you get to the Platinum team where the theme is “Your Torterra will not save you.”
It’s actually kind of impressive.
Anyway, I don’t have a Torterra.
Poison Tail poisoning was really lucky here.
So, I will admit I’ve overestimated Shell Bell. When you’re grinding against Pokemon of a much lower level than your party, and dealing between 75% damage and one-shotting them, Shell Bell is extremely good at keeping your lead Pokemon healed up through chip damage.
But in an even fight, the 7 HP that Sid healed is probably never going to be relevant. After this I’m going to give Sid the Quick Claw back, the chance to guarantee he hits first is probably more useful in the long run.
Also that poisoning was really lucky. This might’ve been a different battle if the Jolteon got full-healed and was able to keep using Charge Beam and raising its Special Attack.
This Electivire hurts .
If you ever doubt that I look at Gym Leader teams once and then forget almost everything I saw, I keep forgetting to switch to Castellia and let her Bug Bite the Berries off of these things.
Also it’s extremely lucky that Sid gets the Berry used immediately.
But Sid’s luck can’t hold out forever.
In hindsight… When the Electivire was in the red I should’ve remembered to use Swords Dance. Might’ve given me the edge here.
Or Anomalo gets a lucky crit and gives me the edge that way!
Dogu still doesn’t have a Ground-type move because I still haven’t made up my mind about whether to give him Earthquake or wait for Earth Power.
Although at this rate he’ll learn Earth Power and inaction will have made up my mind for me.
JERK
PUTTING SIGNAL BEAM ON MY ELECTRIC TYPE TO BEAT UP GRASS-TYPES WAS MY IDEA FIRST
Anyway, complaining about hacks aside…
Signal Beam does good chunks of Supereffective damage to Dogu, but Dogu’s Psychics do more.
Guess what I keep forgetting about.
Pokemon that are super likely to have Crunch and smash Dogu like Link breaks pots looking for loose change.
Reina is actually an incredibly dirty pick for this Gym. Evolving and getting the Dragon type means that she’s only vulnerable to… Dragon-type attacks? Water/Dragon gets hit for normal damage by Electric attacks, that much I know.
Look at how little that Thunder Fang did.
Unless she just failed every Paralysis roll until the end, she always had this one in the bag.
Honestly she might have rolled most of Volker’s Pokemon if I sent her out earlier.
That was a lot of me getting lucky at the exact right time.
oh no did we break him
Bacon Beacon Badge means we can use Waterfall. Waterfall means we can get to the Pokemon League.
If Charge Beam wasn’t balanced and only had 50 power, I’d probably consider it for Mina. A 70% chance to boost Special Attack isn’t nothing, but it’d probably take too long for her to ramp up to dealing the same damage Thunderbolt can from the get-go.
It is tempting though.
I certainly hope so. I’ve got a lot of painful memories of trying to push my way through the Sinnoh Elite 4 even when I could use whatever Pokemon I wanted.
Oh right, it’s also the last time we get to talk to the advice guy on our way out.
Dang dude, can we just get a compliment?
Let’s just leave it at that, advice guy.
NEXT TIME: Who in their right mind would go into a cave