I've begun a Nuzlocke Challenge run of Pokemon Pearl. This hard-mode ruleset specifies that I must start a new game and play using the following restrictions:
1. If a Pokemon faints, it is considered 'dead' and you release it. No exceptions.
2. You can only catch the very first pokemon that appears in each area. If it faints/runs, there are no second-chance catches.
3. You must nickname the pokemon so that you are more attached to them.
4. No repels.
I will be keeping a journal of this experience, and I hope you enjoy it.
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July 21st,
Lewis dragged me out to the lake today. He had seen some TV special about a rare Red Gyarados and wanted to try and find a rare Pokémon at Verity Lake. At the lakefront, we saw this old guy and a girl leaving. They passed by without registering us much, though I heard the guy say something about Sandgem town. Lewis saw a suitcase by the water that he said they must have left behind. It was in a patch of tall grass though. I was hesitant to go in—that’s where wild Pokémon are after all—but Lewis talked me into it. Funny how often that happens.
Second I step into the grass there was a loud cry and I was knocked over by a swooping Starly. Lewis got hit, I think, but he could have been yelling out of fear too. In the chaos one of us must have knocked into the briefcase because the next thing I knew it was open and I was staring at three Poke Balls. I grabbed the first one I saw and hurled it at the nearest Starly. Not only was this ineffective, but the ball burst open—there was a Pokémon inside it! It was a...green thing with a pretty big head. I had never seen a Pokémon like it before, but I didn’t hesitate and started calling out commands like I’d seen trainers do on TV. Believe it or not, it worked! Me and the green thing fought off the Starly! Well... me, the green thing, and Lewis. He had apparently grabbed a Poke Ball too. I didn’t know what his Pokémon was, either. It looked kind of like a Mankey, but I don’t think Mankey had fire tails.
Once out of the tall grass, Lewis said we had to go to Sandgem town and return the Pokémon. I didn’t want to, but he had a point. These were someone else’s Pokémon, and I couldn’t just claim one for my own. Anyway, turns out that the old guy is some professor named Rowan and that girl—Dawn—was his niece. They were researchers, evidently, not trainers. He identified the Pokémon I had taken as a Turtwig, and the one Lewis had as a Chimchar. Rowan was about to take them back, but I guess he saw something that made him change his mind, because he said we could keep them! Even better, he gave the both of us these neat gadgets called Pokedexes. Lewis and I are supposed to help fill them out by catching new Pokémon and raising them. In other words, we just became trainers! A quick run to Twinleaf Town got Mom’s permission and some new running shoes, but soon me and William (my new Turtwig!) were off! Adventure awaits!
July 22nd,
...I had a close call. Too close. I spotted another trainer on Route 202 and challenged him without thinking. The Starly this guy used was nothing like what I had seen at the Lake. It moved faster and struck harder. Was this the result of a trainer’s bond? I didn’t know. I just tried to do what had worked at the lake. William did his best—I know he did—but he barely made it through. If that last attack hadn’t missed...I can’t bear to think about it. We won, but at a big cost. William was slashed up fierce and his shell even had a crack in it. I ran back to Sandgem as fast as I could. The nurses at the Pokémon Centre fixed him up like new, but it was still a big scare. When I look at William’s eyes, I can’t help but feel guilty for the pain I caused him. I have to do better. For both of us.
