the very best, pt. xxii
Welcome back, friends and enemies, to The Very Best, our ongoing series about how cool and talented all of the NPC trainers are in Pokemon X. Last week we hung out in a cave; this week we're hanging out in a swamp! Let's begin.
A Bridge Over Trainered Waters?
So, I said last week that we'd be revisiting some previous areas in this week's session. This was, as the kids say, a lie! It turns out that not only do you get Waterfall later than I thought (at the end of this segment, not the beginning), you also can't use Waterfall until after the next Gym. So, uh, we're not doing that yet. Instead it's time for a big cinematic encounter with three of our four friends! Our final battle with Shauna, Trevor, and Tierno!
I like Route 19. It's a scenic bridge over a swampy area which is entirely optional but is full of Pokemon, goodies, and, most importantly to our purposes, trainers. You can see the bits below; I feel like this sort of design is really only possible in this not not 2D setting; when they move to fully 3D environments you really lose some of this clever design. Alas.
Anyway.
Couriway Town: Professor Sycamore
I totally forgot about the Sycamore fight until he ambushed me with a battle. He has a Venusaur, Blastoise, and Charizard at level 50. In actual practice this is a serviceable team, if a little uninspired; like, yeah, it's just all the Kanto starters, but they're all pretty solid and they give you respectable type coverage. Venusaur's Poison typing got a pretty hefty boost this generation with the introduction of the Fairy type, as well. Solid picks all round. Skill Rating: 4/5
I like Sycamore. He's the sort of idealist who sees the best in people, and wants people to experience the joy of life, all of its different people and perspectives. Though the reason he sent us on our little journey around Kalos was because he thinks our mom is hot, the reason he sent anyone is because he wants to give people the opportunity to see the world and explore and live, and I think that rules. Coolness Rating: 5/5
Route 19: Hex Maniac Josette
Josette has two level 50 Pumpkaboos. Thematically appropriate, mechanically poor. Skill Rating: 1/5
Josette appears to be having an existential crisis and possibly is depersonalizing. She seems to have grasped the sense that the self is eternally changing, and can't be sure if the person we defeated is the same person we challenged, etc., etc.; I dunno, she seems cool. We can hang. Coolness Rating: 4/5
Route 19: Sky Trainer Sera
Sera has a level 50 Noctowl and a level 52 Aerodactyl. I think she is the toughest fight so far in the entire game. I had to use X-items and play through the rest of the route to even have a chance here. Her Aerodactyl has Stone Edge, which is a TM move that we can't even get until we can use Waterfall; the Noctowl has Reflect and Hypnosis, to protect her Aerodactyl from any attempts to simply out-Aerodactyl it. Aerodactyl has been my answer to Sky Battles for a while now, and since I benched Drifblim is my only Pokemon here. While it's definitely possible to have a better team for the Sky Battle meta, I'm not convinced anyone in this game has one. Skill Rating: 5/5
Sera likes the change of perspective that flying has to offer, and wonders whether flying Pokemon see the world differently (presumably in the metaphorical sense) from non-flying Pokemon. What can I say, this is the kind of curiosity I appreciate. Coolness Rating: 5/5
Route 19: Fairy Tale Girl Lovelyn
Lovelyn has a level 49 Mr Mime, a level 49 Azumarill, and a level 49 Aromatisse. This team is a little underwhelming at this stage in the game; Mr. Mime is probably the strongest of the lot, and that's not really inspiring confidence. Skill Rating: 2/5
Lovelyn appears to have befriended some murderous fairies who desire only violence and bloodshed. Maybe they should give her some stronger Pokemon. Coolness Rating: 2/5
Route 19: Rangers Ivy & Orrick
Ivy and Orrick have a level 53 Tauros and a level 53 Miltank. A classic pairing of very similar Pokemon, this team is . . . y'know, fine. Not terrible, not impressive. I have a lingering bias against Normal types from my childhood, where I always thought of Normal as profoundly weak, but it is actually pretty solid, with good neutral coverage, an immunity, and only one weakness. I'm not sure fielding two of them is the play, but hey, it gets the job done. Skill Rating: 3/5
Ivy & Orrick seem to be on different pages about how to be a team. Orrick (I think) says that to "draw on your partners' powers, you need to know their strong points," whereas Ivy suggests that it is "better to focus on your own strong points". Okay! Coolness Rating: 3/5
Route 19: Swimmer Coral
Coral has a level 52 Stunfisk. In my mind Stunfisk is always stronger than it is because I remember the first time I saw it and assumed it was a fish and therefore vulnerable to electricity, and just how owned I got for making that assumption, but actually it's just another entry in the "solid but not great stats with abysmal speed" category, fairly easy to deal with. Skill Rating: 2/5
Coral doesn't like being seen in her swimsuit, so she's . . . swimming in a swamp. Look, I get it, I also hate being perceived, but Coral, there are so many things wrong with this plan. Fortunately being defeated seems to have given her a shock of courage and she's decided to just go hang out at the beach. Hell yeah. Coolness Rating: 4/5
Route 19: Pokemon Ranger Clementine
Clementine has a level 54 Alomomola. Alomomola is one of the "high HP, mediocre or bad everything else" Pokemon, and is, as such, really not much to write home about here. Skill Rating: 2/5
Though I take some issue with Clementine's phrasing ("It’s a Pokémon Ranger’s duty to ensure that Pokémon can live the same way tomorrow as they do today"), I respect her philosophy, which combines conservation with an eye to the future that gives her perspective on today's defeat--there will be other chances to win, so just live today to the fullest and do better tomorrow. Coolness Rating: 4/5
Route 19: Pokemon Ranger Ambre
Ambre has a level 51 Emolga and a level 51 Grumpig. I think this team would have gotten a better rating 10-15 levels ago, but it's still fine. Not exciting but, hey, not everything has to be. Skill Rating: 3/5
Ambre is into parkour. I don't really know anything else about her, but hey, so long as she's having fun. Coolness Rating: 3/5
Route 19: Pokemon Ranger Shinobu
Shinobu has a level 51 Zangoose and a level 51 Beartic. Another entry in the world of "that seems fine, I guess" Trainers that seem to congregate here in the swamp. Skill Rating: 3/5
Shinobu seems to be an advocate of creating places that are reserved for Pokemon, rather than insisting on humans and people coexisting in all places. I'm for it, I think; wild spaces are important, and conserving nature is important. Coolness Rating: 4/5
Route 19: Pokemon Trainer Shauna
Shauna has a level 49 Delcatty, a level 49 Goodra, and a level 51 (Insert Starter Pokemon Here). It must be here said that Delcatty is just not a great Pokemon at this stage in the game, but the other two, honestly? Great picks. Goodra is a pseudo-legendary, fairly versatile and pretty tanky; and of course the final evolved form of a starter Pokemon is nothing to sneeze at. Sure, she's guaranteed to have a type weakness to us, but we're not grading her on how good she is at beating us in particular. Overall I feel that Shauna is a pretty solid trainer, but one who is willing to field some favorites even if they are putting her at a bit of a disadvantage. Skill Rating: 4/5
Of all our friends, Shauna seems to be the one who is mostly just here to have a good time. She even has a moment earlier in the game where she laments that everyone else seems to have a goal in mind while she's just vibing; she says she's just kidding and she isn't having a crisis, but I think she just sensed that she was bringing the mood down and she's too much of a people pleaser to let that stand. But we also see that she is a puzzle enthusiast who is able to fairly quickly pick an electronic lock with a device made by Clemont, so there's some depth there that we're not seeing. I like Shauna. Coolness Rating: 5/5
Route 19: Pokemon Trainer Tierno
Next up is Tuerno with his level 48 Talonflame, level 49 Roserade, and level 52 Crawdaunt. I am a little biased here in that Talonflame and Roserade are two Pokemon that I am always strongly considering for my teams (and indeed I have a Roserade on this team), but I do like this team. Crawdaunt is a little bit lackluster at this point, but it's not terrible, just a bit slow and vulnerable in the Sp. Def department. This is a solid team. Skill Rating: 4/5
Tierno's whole deal is being into dancing. Most of the rest of the friend group fit a fairly clear archetype of Pokemon player: Calem as the serious battler, Tierno as the Pokedex nerd, Shauna as the person who's just here for the vibes; Tierno I think represents the ". . . and so much more!". Like, I doubt there are many people out there who build teams around Pokemon who can use moves with the word "dance" in the name, but there's people out there who do equally weird and niche shit, right? Anyway. As a Trainer he's clearly not that into battling, but he does value it, and the whole 'there was almost an apocalypse' thing seems to have given him a renewed appreciation for the skill. He does end up feeling a touch one-note at times but I can't fault him too much. Coolness Rating: 3/5
Route 19: Pokemon Trainer Trevor
And finally, we have Trevor, with his level 49 Raichu, level 49 Aerodactyl, and level 51 Florges. This team is pretty good. Doesn't really have a big weak point like the previous two; Raich is definitely the weak link here but it's still a pretty solid lead, with a lot of potential for paralyzing the opponent's lead. (It does suffer from the fairly common problem to Electric-types, which is "being a free switch if you have a Ground type on your team, but that's not really Raichu's fault, y'know?) I'm giving Trevs a Skill Rating: 5/5.
Unlike the others, Trevor seems to actually get pretty down when we beat him here. "Do I just not have what it takes?" he asks, possibly rhetorically, upon his defeat. He is overall the most reserved of the group, and though I think this is the game's fault rather than his, he's laughably bad at filling up his Pokedex despite being a Pokedex nerd. You can beat him in his "Pokedex battles" by just fighting every Trainer you see; no need to put in any extra effort. Trevor doesn't really do a lot to stand out, but that's fine. Not everyone has to. Coolness Rating: 3/5
An interesting choice they made for this final series of battles against our pals: we are ambushed from behind; there's no trainers visible on the bridge, and then Shauna pops up out of nowhere and battles us. Very easy to be in a situation where you are already a bit worn down from the rest of the route. Then Tierno challenges us, with no chance to heal in between fights, and with how I'm playing this game (no grinding, set battle style, max one item per fight unless it's Sky Trainer Sera, who probably should have gotten a 6/5 on her skill rating but I respect the scale too much), both of these fights are probably costing you at least one or two Pokemon each. I was thinking, as Trevor's challenge approached, "ah geez, this could be a rough one," then Trevor gives us a full heal before the fight. It's an interesting choice! It makes the moment a bit less climactic but it does make it much harder to lose here, and the way this scene is presented, it would feel a bit weird to lose.
This route is wrapping up some of those emotional beats of "going on a journey around Kalos with our pals." We are approaching the end, after all: next stop is Snowbelle City, the Ice-type gym, a veritable playground for special Fire-types like our Delphox. So here is the chance to get in one last battle before we move on to that next step of challenging Victory Road. It's a nice little moment on a cinematic route. Next time: Snowbelle Gym, and then, maybe, finally, wrapping up those previous route trainers that are gated behind Waterfall! I'll see you then, friends.