Goldenrod City

Victory at the gym was too costly here. It’s kinda mean that Whitney has her gym next to a flower shop, it’s like she knew I’d need to decorate some graves…

Hello and welcome to the flower shop! Oh hey, I see you got the Plain Badge. There’s a pokemon on the path to Ekruteak City that’s blocking the way.

- And you want me to move it?

Well yes, I do a lot of trade with Ekruteak. I’m told this pokemon hates water, take this SquirtBottle and use it on that pokemon. Hopefully it’ll move out of the way.

- Right, er.. sorry but can I buy some flowers?

Sorry but we’re out of stock right now, that pokemon is blocking my supplier.

I try to deal with my sorrow by gambling at the game corner. I win big and then I notice the prize list…

Welcome to the team, Drake!

Drake ♂ Lv. 15

Dratini: Supposedly rare to find, they’re quite common as prizes in arcades.

And with that I head north.

National Park

A bug catching contest? Well this does count as a new area so why not? Only five other contestants too, I like those odds.

As I stalk through the grass I see the other contestants around me. A bug catcher named Barry says he’s waiting for a specific pokemon to show up before he tries to catch it. A girl named Abby is already battling a metapod. Benny was just ambushed by an angry beedrill. Samuel’s pokemon already looks beaten up, seems he just had a tough battle. And Josh is just throwing his pokeballs into the grass randomly…

What’s that noise? Something’s behind me, it’s a scyther! Pokeball go!

Scyther: This badass bug bas blades for hands!

Welcome to the team, Blade!

Blade ♂ Lv. 14

I wait in the gatehouse for the competition to end. The officials have us gather near the fountain in the middle of the park.

Josh was disqualified because he caught a pidgey.

Barry got a DNF as he caught nothing. Seems he was looking for a scyther…

Samuel caught a caterpie.

Benny came in third place with a beedrill.

Abby is second with a venonat.

Seems Blade is the winning pokemon!

I’m awarded a sun stone, Barry keeps staring at me. He doesn’t look too happy. I should leave.

Route 36

So that’s the pokemon blocking the path, it sort of looks like a tree. Oh I’ve not seen any other pokemon here yet so I can catch it!

It’s a sudowoodo. Pokeball go!

Sudowoodo: So this weirdo is actually a rock type and likes to pretend it’s a tree…

Welcome to the bench, Woody!

Woody ♂ Lv. 20

There’s a guy on the other side who just gave me a HM06 for no reason. There’s some nice folk in these parts.

Rock Smash is a HM now, HM06 evidently.

Ekruteak is in the north so I head that way.

Route 37

Another opportunity to recruit! A stantler appears! Pokeball go!

Stantler: Apparently this reindeer’s horns can hypnotise, just don’t… look… at… ALL GLORY TO THE HYPNO-STANTLER

Right… er… welcome to the team? Rudolph.

Rudolph ♂ Lv. 15

Ekruteak City is not far away now.