Let's Play Pokémon Emerald 386!, Cause it's different from Emerald.

You could name pokemon after the move they use in battle. I had a spearow named pecker.

Update tomorrow!

Update 13: Hop on Pop

Before we begin, I'm trying something a little different this time... double size screenshots! I thought I'd see if everyone likes them better than the older updates.

However, halfway through resizing, I made a error on my batch resizing, leading to a blurry effect. I had already saved over the originals before I realized this.

Let me know which you prefer, the original pictures, the sharp resizes, or the blurry resizes!


"Dammit Red we didn't come back here to watch you evolve a million Wurmples."


In for a Penny, in for a Pound. Clearly at this rate, Meowth will be named Yen.


THERE. Let's just pretend that debacle last update never happened.


"Sorry boss, I dropped your health INTO MINE."


Blatantly stolen from Notty in the Pokémon RP.


Oh yeah, and there's more peoples to PokéNav. The Rich Boy could be a good source of monies.


Then to the Granite Cave, hey hey hey!


And some last minute moves learned on my way out.


But enough running around grinding. You people came here for CONTENT. Swapping the team, I'm mostly using the group I took on Brawly with, though I replaced Lolo the Lombre with Percy, because status effects are all the rage. Of course, if you think I should swap the team around at all, let me know!


Mr. Briney: "SLATEPORT, is it? Anchors aweigh! PEEKO, we're setting sail, my darling!"

Ugh, blurryness! I guess it wouldn't seem so bad if it wasn't right after the smooth crisp resizing, but again, let me know what you think. In the meantime... RETURN OF THE MUSIC LINKS!

♪♪Set Sail!♪♪

A nice little sea tour of some other routes. There's also a mysterious ship that looks interesting, so we'll have to check that out sometime.
Mr. Briney: "I suppose you're going to visit CAPT. STERN and deliver the DEVON GOODS?"

This part of Route 109 is a beach! And it's full of Trainers, so you know what that means.

♪♪Route 104♪♪

Sailor Huey's Emerald team: L12 Wingull, L12 Machop


Using Horsea and Psyduck here is an interesting choice, as they are both in the Hoenn Pokédex normally and also totally fit the Sailor theme.


May got $608 for winning!
Huey: "In the best port was the best TRAINER..."


Obtained the SOFT SAND!
Girl: "We're going to get all the sand from the beach and make a big castle! And then we're going to be a king and queen."
Hey, that's pretty coo-
Girl: "We'll let you be a servant."



You can just see the ambush waiting to happen.


SAILOR EDMOND and TUBER HAILEY want to battle!
Original teams: Edmond: L13 Wingull. Hailey: L13 Marril


...A Luvdisc? Now THAT I was not expecting.


May got $720 for winning!


Yes, this happened before I could move.
Ricky's Emerald team: L13 Zigzagoon


Percy has the benefit of being very tanky, because he can just drain a ton of life.


May got $76 for winning!
Registered TUBER RICKY in the POKéNAV.
Ricky: "I'm getting famished... My inner tube looks like a giant doughnut..."
Hailey: "When I learn how to swim, I think my POKéMON will become tougher."
Edmond: "I'm usually stronger than this! I'm just seasick as a dog! I'm a SAILOR, but..."


Sign: "Pokémon at the same level may not always have identical stats. Pokémon raised by Trainers are said to be stronger than wild Pokémon."

This is only technically true if you battle a lot with said Pokémon, thanks to Effort Values, a competitive battler's bread-and-butter that you can't track very well in game. Yes, I just used the phrase bread-and-butter. Deal with it.


Damn kids! I just wanted the item ball!
TUBER LOLA and TUBER CHANDLER want to battle!
Lola's Emerald team: L12 and L13 Azurill. Chandlers: L12 Tentacool x2


As you can see, this fight did not go well for Percy and Halley. Percy's goal was to Leech Marril and then bail, but an Acid from Tentacool finished him off, and the Poliwag and Marril ganged up to finish the Nincada off. But hey, go Penny, go!

This post has been edited by Red Silvers on Sep 4 2012, 03:19 AM

May got $152 for winning!
Lola: "Me? I'm here every day!"
Registered TUBER LOLA in the POKéNAV.
Lola: "If you look at the beach from the sky, it looks like a big flower garden!"
Chandler: "After I showed you my round inner tube, too..."
And after that ambush, the item? A damn Potion. GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMEEEEEEEEEE!


Old Man: "But, I get my ZIGZAGOON to pick up litter from the shoreline at times. Dirty water becomes rain and joins our rivers, which we drink from... If we pollute the sea, it all comes back to haunt us eventually."
I take this message to be a sly reference to the Pickup ability and how you get all sorts of random stuff... ESPECIALLY in Ruby and Sapphire where Pickup was broken all the hell. As for the water coming back to haunt them? I have it on very good authority that long before that can happen, a certain Psychic will terrorize the place anyway.


Here we have a place to challenge even more trainers, but I have two Pokémon down... so let's not head in right away.


Especially since the town is just to the north with no trainers in the way.

♪♪Dewford Town♪♪

...really?
Mr. Sea: "What I love about all is to see hot POKéMON battles. Let me see that your heart burns hot! If you can defeat all the TRAINERS here, I'll reward your efforts."
So we can earn a reward here. There's a total of three trainers, and you can fight two of them as a double battle, but I'm not going to do that.


We'll start with this Rydia wanna-be. Sorry, Algy!


...who turns out to not look anything like Rydia. Guess I'm safe from Algy's wrath after all! Also, what's with the slutty sheer top?
Johanna's Emerald team: L13 Goldeen


Once, Shellder and his evolution were awesome, amazing tanks. Then Generation II happened and brought with it the SPECIAL split, taking with it Cloyster's utility against all the types he's weak against.

Here, though, it's still dicey because Shellder has Aurora Beam... which it only has at this level in the Hoenn games, since in FireRed and LeafGreen, Shellder gets Icicle Spear early on and doesn't get Aurora Beam until level 22! Luckily, without the Ice-type backing it up, Aurora Beam doesn't finish Percy off.


May got $1600 for winning!
Johanna: "Whew, I'm all thirsty. Maybe I'll have a SODA POP."


"I am Simon, the diggertuber!" Simon's Emerald team: L12 Azurill and Marill.


Dammit my Grass-type just leveled why are you doing this to me.

New theory: They're throwing a lot of Hoenn Pokémon at me early so I can Pokédex them. I'm counting these two in this theory since they are in Emerald, though only post-game.


May got $76 for winning!
Simon: "If one of my POKéMON knew the move for carrying me across water on its back, I could get rid of this inner tube."


SAILOR DWAYNE would like to battle!
Dwayne's Emerald team: L11 Wingull, Machop, and Tentacool


No, Penny, no!


Water starter battle is go! It's hilarious to picture a crocodile being bit to death by a turtle.


May got $576 for winning!


By Notty's request. How viable will it be? Who knows?
Dwayne: "Whenever I'm in SLATEPORT, I enjoy hot battles and ice-cold SODA POP!"


Mr. Sea: "I'm more than just satisfied! As thanks for showing me your hot streak, I want you to take these. It's half a dozen bottles of SODA POP!"

Soda Pop's are the best healing item we've got yet, healing 60 HP, and being way cheaper than Super Potions, even if we could buy them yet. So six freebies is great! But it gets better.


We can now buy it! The downside is that you have to buy them one at a time, but I think it's worth it, so I'll just be here, buying Soda Pop, the way we used to buy Potions in Final Fantasy on the NES when we were kids. Any delays in the next update, that'll just be because I'm still here, buying them, one at a time.

In the meantime, let me know any team substitutions, and let me know what you think of the images.

Technically, Fresh Water has heals the most HP per Pokeyen spent as far as healing items go (1 HP to every 4 Pokeyens). Granted, you probably want strong healing items anyway since 50 HP isn't always going to be enough in a major battle.

Of course, the Energy Root has the same healing ratio as well (and heals 200 HP), but has the side effect of making your Pokemon like you less.

(This also doesn't apply to a maximum HP level 100 Blissey with low HP, since a Max Potion would be most cost effective in that situation.)

This post has been edited by Algasir on Jul 30 2012, 01:40 AM

For some reason though Fresh Water is only available way later than it's useful.

Buy it for out of battle healing.

EDIT: For the record, Soda Pop is actually the worst deal of the three "main" not-potion healing drinks, the ratio being 1:5, whereas Lemonade's ratio is 1:4.375.

...No, it doesn't REALLY matter, since money isn't hard to get on Pokemon games anyway, but I haven't been posting so I felt like posting things.

This post has been edited by Algasir on Jul 30 2012, 01:49 AM

And this is why my post said 'yet'

But I concede you have a point.

Yeeeessss~

You might also hold off on evolving Percy until it learns Spore, but eh. Holding off an evolution for 20+ levels is kind of dumb, even if it is the best move in the game.

... and this is where the RP can mess with you.

I totally didn't remember that Breloom doesn't learn Spore.

I'd just like to mention that I liked the smaller pictures.

Be sure to have a pokeball and an empty slot open when Halley reaches level 20.

I recommend then replacing Halley with the ensuing Shedinja, if only for the uniqueness-of-ability factor.

Also, I liked the smaller pictures better. Graphics aren't really detailed enough to justify zooming in like this.

This post has been edited by Zap Rowsdower on Jul 30 2012, 03:08 AM

Shedinja's ability isn't so great in practice as it is in theory. It can be KO'd with five types. Fire, Flying, Rock, Ghost, and Dark. A lot of Pokemon have at least one of those types. Dark is most prevalent because of Bite. Ninjask is probably better because it's speedy.

Though, by all means go ahead and get the Shedinja. You're playing Emerald 386 after all. You should fill out the Pokedex.

Seems like it'll be the normal pictures next time, unless I get strong reasoning otherwise.

Still, a fair exercise.

Bonus Update 3

♪♪Entei, Raikou, Suicune Battle (RSE Version)♪♪
We demand more Pokémon info, Red!



Before I continue with the Pokédex info, I'd just like to point out today's music link. "But Red, that song isn't in the Hoenn games!" Well, more accurately, it's not USED in the games, but the song is there! Well, at least they are in Ruby and Sapphire, but I'm not entirely sure about Emerald. There are a total of five songs in the code that are not used in the game, all from the Generation II games:

Route 38
Pokémon Communication Center
Saffron City
Team Rocket's Theme
Entei, Raikou, Suicune Battle

So there's your bit of random trivia for the day. Moving on!

---

New Catches
Bubbles - L6 F Surskit - Swift Swim, Sassy Nature (+SpD, -Spe)
"They gather on puddles after evening downpours, gliding across the surface of water as if sliding. It secretes honey with a sweet aroma from its head."

Burd - L16 M Pidgey - Keen Eye, Bashful Nature (Neutral)
"It has an extremely sharp sense of direction. It can unerringly return home to its nest, however far it may be removed from its familiar surroundings."

Buckbeak - L3 F Spearow - Keen Eye, Impish Nature (+Def, -SpA)
"Its loud cry can be heard over half a mile away. If its high, keening cry is heard echoing all around, it is a sign that they are warning each other of danger."

Demon - L3 Bellsprout - Chlorophll, Hardy Nature (Neutral)
"A Bellsprout's thin and flexible body lets it bend and sway to avoid any attack, however strong it may be. From its mouth, it leaks a fluid that melts even iron."

Bidoof - L3 Zigzagoon - Pickup, Timid Nature (+Spe, -Atk)
"Rubbing its nose against the ground, it always wanders about back and forth in search of something. It is distinguished by the zigzag footprints it leaves."

Mr. Owl - L4 M Hoothoot - Insomnia, Careful Nature (+SpD, -SpA)
"It has an internal organ that senses the earth's rotation. Using this special organ, a Hoothoot begins hooting at precisely the same time every day."

Queen - L6 F Goldeen - Swift Swim, Impish Nature (+Def, -SpA)
"In the springtime, schools of Goldeen can be seen swimming up falls and rivers. It metes out staggering damage with its single horn."

Leviathan - L9 F Magikarp - Swift Swim, Timid Nature (+Spe, -Atk)
"Its swimming muscles are weak, so it is easily washed away by currents. In places where water pools, you can see many Magikarp deposited there by the flow."

Wadsworth - L3 M Wingull - Keen Eye, Sassy Nature (+SpD, -Spe)
"It makes its nest on a sheer cliff at the edge of the sea. It has trouble keeping its wings flapping in flight. Instead, it soars on updrafts."

Dots - L14 M Nuzleaf - Early Bird, Relaxed Nature (+Def, -Spe) *Traded*
"A forest-dwelling Pokémon that is skilled at climbing trees. Its long and pointed nose is its weak point. It loses power if the nose is gripped."

Creeper - L10 F Beautifly - Swarm, Gentle Nature (+SpD, -Def)
"Its colorfully patterned wings are its most prominent feature. It flies through flower-covered fields collecting pollen. It attacks ferociously when angered."

Lucky - L10 M Dustox - Shield Dust, Quiet Nature (+SpA, -Spe)
"It is a nocturnal Pokémon that flies from fields and mountains to the attraction of streetlights at night. It looses highly toxic powder from its wings."

Pound - L9 F Skitty - Cute Charm, Bold Nature (+Def, -Atk)
"A Skitty's adorably cute behavior makes it highly popular. In battle, it makes its tail puff out. It threatens foes with a sharp growl."

Ginny - L8 F Smoochum - Oblivious, Quirky Nature (Neutral)
"It actively runs about, but also falls often. Whenever it falls, it will check its reflection on a lake's surface to make sure its face hasn't become dirty."

Albert - L13 M Makuhita - Guts, Bashful Nature (Neutral)
"It loves to toughen up its body above all else. If you hear quaking rumbles in a cave, it is the sound of Makuhita undertaking strenuous training."

Evolved Pokémon
Kakuna
"It remains virtually immobile while it clings to a tree. However, on the inside, it busily prepares for evolution. This is evident from how hot its shell becomes."

Beedrill
"A Beedrill is extremely territorial. For safety reasons, no one should ever approach its nest. If angered, they will attack in a swarm."

Wurmple
"It sticks to tree branches and eats leaves. The thread it spits from its mouth, which becomes gooey when it touches air, slows the movement of its foes."

Silcoon
"It prepares for evolution using the energy it stored while it was a Wurmple. It keeps watch over the surroundings with its two eyes."

Cascoon
"To avoid detection by its enemies, it hides motionlessly beneath large leaves and in the gaps of branches. It also attaches dead leaves to its body for camouflage."

Seedot
"It hangs off branches and absorbs nutrients. When it finishes eating, its body becomes so heavy that it drops to the ground with a thump."

Furret
"A Furret has a very slim build. When under attack, it can squirm through narrow spaces and get away. In spite of its short limbs, it is very nimble and fleet."

Electabuzz
"When a storm approaches, it competes with others to scale heights that are likely to be stricken by lightning. Some towns use Electabuzz in place of lightning rods."

Kirlia
"A Kirlia has the psychic power to create a rip in the dimensions and see into the future. It is said to dance with pleasure on sunny mornings."

Update 14: We Were Lying About the Exit to Port

50 free Red Points to whoever gets the reference in the title.


Well, that should be a nice stash to start with.


And just on a whim I decided to see if I could track Totodile. You can! Turns out he's located in the Meteor Falls. In comparison, we can't track any of the Kanto starters, or Treecko.

♪♪Slateport City♪♪

At last, here's Slateport City! And it's a big city, too, second biggest in this game! So let's look around.


Spiky-haired Dude: "I wonder if it doesn't startle POKéMON in the sea."


CoolTrainer: "GYMs are fun, but the BATTLE TENT's awesome in its own way. You should go find tough POKéMON for the BATTLE TENT!"

This is a change from Ruby and Sapphire, which had a Contest Hall here instead of the Battle Tent. As for 'finding tough Pokémon', we don't actually use our own Pokémon there.


Sailor: "They sink them in the sea so they become habitats for POKéMON."
Another Sailor: "The sea is just so vast... Could the sea have been make by the tears shed by POKéMON?"

The ocean is a plot device from the first movie? I have to admit, the first time I played Ruby, this tears line seemed so random it cracked me up.


Man: "It has higher SPEED compared to my other POKéMON. Maybe their nature has something to do with the stat gains of POKéMON."
Girl: "You're a TRAINER, aren't you? Since you came to SLATEPORT CITY, you must be going to the BATTLE TENT."


Old Woman: "And where people gather, a market soon starts. That is how a town is born and grows."

The shipyard is right there, but we can ignore that for now!


Girl: "The original TRAINER's love for that POKéMON is in the nickname."


Slateport also offers us our first chance to buy Great Balls! As you can imagine, they're GRRRRRRRRRRREAT!

Black Belt: "The MARKET does have some interesting merchandise. But there are some items you can only get at a POKéMON MART."
CoolTrainer: "A GREAT BALL is better than a POKé BALL at catching POKéMON. With this, I should be able to get that elusive POKéMON..."


Sign: "The port where people and POKéMON cross paths."


It's not dress like a pirate day! What's going on, here?

Bald Guy: "STERN, the fellow who built the MUSEUM, also happens to be the leader of an undersea exploration team. So, everyone calls him CAPT. STERN."


Second Grunt: "TEAM AQUA has a policy of assembling and dispersing at the operation site."
Third Grunt: "Our BOSS is brilliant. What would he want to do with a MUSEUM now?"
Fourth Grunt: "Grumble... I should've brought my Game Boy Advance so I wouldn't get bored in line... Grumble..."
Fifth Grunt: "What? What do you want? You want to read this sign? I'll read it for you! Let's see... Um... I think it says something like 'the life in the sea is endless.' Yup, I'm pretty sure that's what it says."
Sixth Grunt: "'When this operation's over, I'll take you to a hot spring spa!' That's what our leader said. I can't wait!"
Seventh Grunt: "Hey, you there! Don't butt in!"
Eighth Grunt: "If there's something we need in the MUSEUM, we should take it all!"
Ninth Grunt: "What's the new scheme, I wonder? Our BOSS is scary when he's mad, so I'd better not screw things up..."
Tenth Grunt: "A long line, huh? It reminds me of the times I lined up to buy smash-hit games..."
Eleventh Grunt: "Why are we even lining up and paying? We should just march in!"

I hope that was enlightening to you all.


Super Nerd: "...RATER to help you."
Little Girl inside: "Do POKéMON enjoy having items used on them? Mine acted really happy when I gave it some PROTEIN."
Woman: "I love seeing POKéMON that love their TRAINERS. POKéMON are very sensitive to the feelings of their TRAINERS. If you treat your POKéMON with love and care, they'll love you back. When your POKéMON grow to love you, please come show me."
Bald Man: "If you keep letting a POKéMON faint in battle, it'll come to resent it. Soon, it will become less trusting of the TRAINER. In other words, it certainly won't like you very much."


Reporter: "It's plain to see that you lavish your love on your NINCADA. Okay, it's named HALLEY. Can I ask you a favor? I'm a TV reporter, and I'm running a survey on POKéMON. Would you be willing to answer a few simple questions for me? Great! Thank you! Okay, here goes. I just need quick answers, okay? Your NINCADA is cared for lovingly. If you were to liken it to something that you like, what would it be?"


So the way this works is you get to select a word from several lists of words. They have a section with all the Pokémon we've seen in the Hoenn Pokédex (but not the National), and then there's a bunch of other random lists. I'm gonna just put the words for here.

Reporter: "Okay, that makes sense. The next question might be a little on the tough side. Here goes... What do POKéMON mean to you?"

"IMPORTANT"

Reporter: "I see! Hmhm... Okay! Thanks for helping me out. It was fun and enlightening chatting with you. It's possible that our interview will end up on TV. Tune in and check! Okay, that's all. Bye-bye!"

This is actually something that will happen! Different things you do will randomly end up on the TV. But that's not all, you can do a process called Mixing Records on a Game Boy Advance, and then get information on that players interviews and such.

Boy: "Heh! My POKéMON totally rules! It's cooler than any POKéMON! I was lipping off with a swagger in my step like that when the CHAIRMAN chewed me out. That took the swagger out of my step. If you'd like, I'll teach the move SWAGGER to a POKéMON of yours."

I did not remember this. This is a Move Tutor, a one-time chance to learn the move. As it happens, my entire party could learn the move! But I'll pass for now.


Chairman: "Being the CHAIRMAN, I am naturally the most important! No one can best me when it comes to raising POKéMON. No one! Well, let me tell you about POKéMON CONTESTS. They're events where one can show off POKéMON for the world to see! However, they're held in far-off towns, so I cannot participate often enough. That is why we gather here to show off our POKéMON, and have others show us theirs."


Woman: "If a traded POKéMON is holding an item, it makes me twice as happy!"
Sailor: "Want a tip for battling? I'd say it's raising different kinds of POKéMON in a balanced manner. It's no good to make just one POKéMON strong. If it has a type disadvantage, it might not stand a chance."


Fat Guy: "I hiked over from MAUVILLE CITY. But, boy, this city's huge. If I'd known this, I would've ridden my BIKE here."
Sign: "SLATEPORT HARBOR: The ferry S.S. TIDAL is under construction in the SHIPYARD. Service is scheduled to begin shortly."


Boy: "But before that, I need to catch some POKéMON!"

Didn't I just say you don't use your own Pokémon in there?


Women. Am I right, fellas?
Another Shopper: "Shopping where you can breathe the scent of the ocean... SLATEPORT is such a wonderful place!"
Another Woman: "If a wild POKéMON gets hurt, it heals itself by chewing on BERRIES. Did you know that? Somebody saw that and got the idea of making medicine from BERRIES. Did you know that? To turn BERRIES into medicine, they must be crushed into powder. Did you know that? You seem to have an interest in BERRIES! I've got something good for someone like you."
Obtained the POWDER JAR!
Powder Jar Woman: "I recently had machines installed at POKéMON CENTERS for crushing BERRIES. The BERRY CRUSH machines are at the DIRECT CORNER upstairs. Did you know? Could you make BERRY POWDER for me using those machines? I can make you all sorts of medicine if you bring me lots of BERRY POWDER."

The Berry Powder thing is a minigame you can play with multiple people. Did you know that? It wasn't in Ruby or Sapphire but it was added to FireRed and LeafGreen. Did you know that? You can use the powder to buy bitter medicines, as well as vitamins. Did you know that?

I don't think this is any use if you are playing alone, but I suppose I'll find out!


Cashier: "Our group, we love the TM SECRET POWER. One of our members will give it to you. Come back and show me if you get it. We'll accept you as a member and sell you good stuff in secrecy."

Highly suspicious!

Chef: "Ooh, look at this! The seaweed you can get around these parts is fresh and full of life. Why, it looks like it can even rear up and attack!"

...I'm backing away now.


Here's the obligatory source of vitamins in the game. Furthermore...
Guru's Girlfriend: "Oh? Your NINCADA... You have to go for it a little harder. If you do, I'll give your POKéMON something nice."


Lastly, here's a shop that sells dolls! But why?!

Next time, we'll go see Stern, possibly figure out what booty the pirates are after, and maybe even show off the Battle Tent!

Yeah, this is still happening.

Update 15: Oceanic Minifacts!

Well, time for me to go play some Minecra- *knock at the door* Huh, I wonder who that could be? *heads to the door* Oh, hey Notty, what's up? *sounds of brutal violence*

...

*limps back in* So, yeah... time for me to play some Emerald 386!

Since no one tried to guess the source of the title to Update 14, it was a reference to the DOS Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy game.


♪♪Slateport City♪♪

And here's Stern's Shipyard, so let's head in.


Bald Guy: "Then where does this thing go? And what about that doohickey? Aaargh! I can't make heads or tails of this! Hm? Hi, I'm DOCK. CAPT. STERN commissioned me to design a ferry. Oh! That there... Are they DEVON GOODS? But, hmm... This wont do... CAPT. STERN went off somewhere. He said he had some work to do. Could I get you to go find CAPT. STERN and deliver that to him?"

...Dock, you're useless. So useless I was prepared to make a Back to the Future joke but now I just feel like it would be a waste. ...That's right, DH, you know EXACTLY what joke it would have been.


Scientist: "These and other conditions make the sea change its expression. That's right! The sea is like a living thing!"
Scientist 2: "I get seasick real easily. So I get to help out here instead."
Scientist 3: "Designing a large ship is more like making a big building than putting together a transportation vehicle."
Scientist 4: "Don't you think it's strange that a ship made of heavy iron floats? It floats because of a principle called buoyancy."
Or because they were built by A WITCH!

Okay, so the Shipyard was a bust. Clearly I shouldn't have waited so long between updates, I might have caught him before he left. So now what?


Hmm, those pirate people aren't in line anymore. And here's a random note for you... the sign doesn't say what that one dude told us it said. You mean, pirates aren't trustworthy? How could you trick me like that, game? I could look around, but screw that, museums are boring.

♪♪Route 110♪♪

New Route music that isn't Route 104? MADNESS. For some reason I thought this route was blocked out, so I didn't bother to come see what wild Pokémon were here last time. And now that I know, I'm going to ignore it anyway!


Uh oh...
Aqua Grunt 1: "TEAM AQUA's activities... We can't talk about them yet."
Aqua Grunt 3: "This is my first job after joining TEAM AQUA. It's a little scary."
Aqua Grunt 4: "TEAM AQUA's actions should bring smiles to people's faces!"


The pirates are planning to cause a ruckus! I've gotta do something! They could be up to something terrible and I didn't stop them when they were outside! It's like Spider-Man! They could be planning to steal something, or attack the place, or...


...or casually enjoy the ambiance of the museum...

So, it costs $50 to get in, but if you're out of money they'll just assume you're with Team Aqua and let you in. Sadly, I am too rich to be a cheapskate, but now you know.

♪♪Oceanic Museum♪♪

The music is a remix of the S.S. Anne theme from RBY! More awesome considering these games were released before the FireRed and LeafGreen remakes.

Aqua Grunt: "Me? I'm the TEAM AQUA member you thumped before, remember? Back in RUSTURF TUNNEL? Here, take this! You have to forgive me!"
Obtained the TM46! (Thief)
Aqua Grunt: "That TM, it suits you more than it does me. Hope I never see you again, Wahahaha!"
Did... did he just call me a thief? He runs off before the swarm of NPC text.

Male Grunt 1: "We were told to assemble here, so we did, but... Our BOSS, the linchpin, isn't here."
Female Grunt: "We, TEAM AQUA, exist for the good of all!"
The tanks those two are standing next to are trying to simulate some Pokémon moves... Waterfall and Whirlwind. Oh, I suppose you could say they're simulating the natural phenomenon, but, this IS a Pokémon game.

Male Grunt 2: "I didn't have $50, so it took a long time getting by the receptionist."
I TOLD YOU THEY WERE GOING TO STEAL.

Male Grunt 3: "What I learn here, I can put to use on nefarious deeds..."
Exhibit 3: "It's a sample of soil from the ocean floor. 'Over many years, the remains of life-forms settle at the bottom of the sea, making sedimentary layers. By analyzing these layers, the ancient past is revealed.'"
Exhibit 4: "It's a sample of beach sand. 'Stones from mountains are washed down by rivers where they are chipped and ground down. They are reduced to grains and end up as sand on beaches.'"
Exhibit 5: "It's a fossil with wavy ridges on it. 'Soil on the ocean floor gets scoured by the tide. The flowing seawater marks the soil with small ridges and valleys. If this soil becomes fossilized, it is called a ripple mark."
Male Grunt 5: "If our goons didn't bungle things in RUSTBORO, we wouldn't be here!"
Male Grunt 6: "If I ripped off the stuff here, would it make me rich?"

Lastly on this floor are 'OCEANIC MINIFACTS'! And you get to read them too. Aren't you happy?
Oceanic Minifact 1: Why is seawater blue? - "Light is composed of many colors. When light passes through water, most kinds of light lose color. However, blue light retains its color, making the sea appear blue."
Oceanic Minifact 2: Why is the sea salty? - "Seawater contains dissolved salt in the form of sodium and chlorine ions. These ions leech out of rocks and are carried out to sea by rain. The concentration of dissolved salt makes the sea salty."
Oceanic Minifact 3: Which is bigger? The sea or land? - "The sea covers about 70% of the planet, and the rest is land. The sea is therefore more than twice the size of land."


More exhibits are upstairs! Here, May tries to find his new hometown on the map even though he has a map he can look at ANY TIME HE WANTS TO. He then looks at some models of vehicles he'll never see in actual size.


Finally!
Capt. Stern: "Ah! Those must be the parts I ordered from MR. STONE of DEVON. Thank you! That's great! We can prepare for our expedition now."

♪♪Team Aqua Encounter♪♪

Capt. Stern: "Wh-what? Who are you people?"
Aqua Grunt: "We're TEAM AQUA! Our BOSS wants those parts! Shut your yap and fork them over!"

♪♪Grunt Battle♪♪

Aqua Grunt's Emerald Team: L15 Carvanha


Sheesh.


May got $460 for winning!
Aqua Grunt: "Oh, man, what a disaster... The BOSS is going to be furious..."
Aqua Grunt 2: "Humph, sniveling wimp! Let me take care of this!"


Aqua Grunt 2's Emerald Team: L14 Zubat, L14 Carvanha


I guess I'm a little disappointed Zubat didn't change to something else. Qwilfish, for example. Oh well.


May got $440 for winning!


Aqua Grunt 2: "Arrgh, I didn't count on being meddled with by some meddling kid!"

♪♪Team Aqua Encounter♪♪

Boss: "...simps are held up by a mere child? We are TEAM AQUA, and we love the sea! And I am TEAM AQUA's leader, ARCHIE! What makes you interfere with us? ...No! You can't be! You're not one of TEAM MAGMA? Wait, that can't be right. You're not dressed for the part. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... Pokémon, people... All life depends on the sea. So, TEAM AQUA is dedicated to the expansion of the sea. Don't you agree? What we are going is a magnificent undertaking. Ah, fine... You're still to young to understand our noble objective. But, I warn you, don't even consider interfering with our plans again. The consequences will cost you dearly! And don't you forget it!"
Well, he seemed nice.

♪♪Oceanic Museum♪♪

Capt. Stern: "Anyway, that was a tense situation! Thank you for saving us! Oh, yes, I almost forgot that you even brought the parts from DEVON!"
May handed over the DEVON GOODS.
Capt. Stern: "Whoops! There's no time to lose! We have to set out on our ocean-floor expedition really soon. Thanks again, but now I've got to go! Feel free to wander around and check out our facilities, though."
*cue random Pokémon Center healing for no apparent reason?*
Random fact: there is a model of the S.S. Anne here. Not found: the Mew truck of legend.

♪♪Slateport City♪♪

Stop following me!
Scott: "Have I introduced myself to you? If not, my name's SCOTT. I just saw TEAM AQUA run away from here like they were stung. Let me guess--you drove them away?"


Sure, just talk like I'm not here, jackass.
Scott: "All right! I think you're going to become a good friend. So, let's register each other in out POKéNAVS."
Registered this SCOTT person in the POKéNAV.
I love that even the game isn't sure what to make of this guy.
Scott: "What I'd like to do is tag along with you, but I do want to keep an eye on the talents of other people, too. So, I'll be off to roam other towns a bit more. Be seeing you, MAY!"


That was fast.
Scott: "MAY, let me guess--you're going to take the BATTLE TENT challenge? Yeah! That's a good idea! Thats a really great idea! After all, a tough TRAINER is the perfect fit for the BATTLE TENT! Give it your best effort!"

Sadly, this will have to wait for... NEXT TIME *dun dun dun*

Don't take forever this time!

Or next time I use the nailbat.

Eep.