Growing Up With Pokemon

As my 18th birthday is just around the corner I want to take some time to reflect on my history with Pokemon.

    I of course used to watch the Pokemon anime, what little kid in my generation hadn't? But it never was something I really sought out until I learned about the card game. Initially I only had my next door neighbor and his cards to play with and if memory serves we had a rule set closer to Yugioh than the official game but nevertheless I loved it and when I got a ton of his cards when he was "too cool for Pokemon anymore" I was excited. There were a lot of cards but among them my favorite had to be the Turtwig family, probably because it was the only set that I had all the cards for. I still didn't know the rules though I do remember playing with the cards as if they were regular toys and -much to my current self's annoyance- bend the cards up so that the picture came off the ground.

    Eventually I did learn the rules though I came up with a few rule sets myself before hand, and I roped as many people into playing as possible into playing though I found my sister, Madison, to be the most fun to play with. Every time we went somewhere overnight I made sure Madison had her cards so we could play. I even managed to find a book about the game written for parents and I was so excited to finally have my parents play but, try as I might, I could never get them to read it. It probably didn't help that my Mom thought that the anime was annoying and that I practically had to beg her to allow me to watch Zoroark; Master of Illusion when it came out.

Over time our games improved as we started getting better cards, I focused on Grass and Ground types with high attack powers and Madison focused on Pokemon SP, especially the ever annoying Ambipom SP. I found the Pokemon website including its great big Pokedex which got me understandably excited. I poured over as many of those two to three sentence entries and loved every bit of it. It really helped me feel like the Pokemon world was a real and lived in world all its own. This was further supported when I saw the premiere of the Black and White series. Seeing all these new Pokemon, most of which I had never seen before, living and loving the world they lived in. As a twelve year old boy I sat in wonder just seeing this world that I only knew through cards, and a website come alive.

It was a few years later that I discovered the video game through my best friend who had a copy of Pokemon Diamond, yes that copy I talk about so much on this blog. I played on my friend's save for a few days beating it in that time with the team he had made but I had made my own with nicknames and everything. I eventually bought the game from him and I reset the game determined to make new friends with a starter of my choosing. I can't tell you what resonated so much with me about that game. Maybe it was the world or sense of adventure. Maybe it was the battling and sense of accomplishment after a successful battle. Maybe it was the Pokemon, creatures that I captured and felt it was my duty to protect, especially since I didn't have a pet IRL until a few years ago. And it was all that to various degrees but I think that the most important aspect of it was that this game was my adventure. I'm one of those people that puts their real name in when asking for character names so I was really drawn into this world because of that habit. Everywhere I went it was "Hey it's Jacob," "Jacob we need your help." "Jacob you're the greatest Pokemon trainer ever."

I can't express enough how much I love this game. It's part of the reason I am who I am today and I know that may seem silly to anyone who hasn't played one of the games but my early teens were a time of confusion and fear of the unknown but having a game like Pokemon, that you can play on a portable device so you can play it anywhere was really important to me. It was a world I knew enough about to not get scared of but a world with enough unknowns that it was an adventure plain and simple.

Since then a lot has happened. I've met other people who love the game including the first and so far only girl I've ever been in love with. I've bought new cards and got my other sisters to play. I've gotten Pokemon X and had a lot of adventures there (maybe soon I'll make a post about my best stories in these games.) I've found youtubers, pinteresters, and tumberers, who love the series as much as I do. And of course I've started this blog, originally a school project, and my first post here? My top Ten Favorite Pokemon Megas.

Why did I write this? Well I'm reaching a milestone in my life and I want to honor something that has helped me get through the years, one that is also reaching a new milestone this year. I look around and see so many people who love something but are two embarrassed to express their love for it for fear of being made fun of. I find this sad. I just want to say this: never be ashamed of something that you love, especially something responsible for making you. We only get a short time on this Earth and we should spend it not leaving in fear of rejection but being bold about whatever you love and never compromising your love just because someone says it's "stupid" or "childish." If anything that person is the stupid and childish one.

With that I must leave you guys. Thank you all so much for your support and I'll be seeing you around as an official adult.

photo from e621.net which I am just realizing might actually be a furry site 0_0

Alt Rules for 5e Ranger Companion, Paladin Mounts, and Warlock Familiars, or How To Make Them Not Suck

   

   One thing that I like to do aside from video games is play Dungeons and Dragons, I'm relatively new to the game so fifth edition coming out about the time I started to find out about it was a great thing for me and I currently DM a game with a few of my siblings and cousins (noobs the lot of them)

     One of the bad things about 5e though is the ranger class is less than its potential especially the Animal Companion archetype and a lot of people have a house rules to make the ranger a bit better or just use the rules creatively and while thinking about this the other day I thought of the following idea, which I'm going to implement in my current game since I have a ranger in the party. Keep in mind this have not been play tested yet so could either lead to animals still being under powered or end up with them severely overpowered, we'll have to see.

    The idea is that the companion/mount/familiar is different from a regular animal allowing special training or magical powers beyond your control to effect your animal, which is why I have excluded wizard familiars.

    For example the three feats that give resistance are powered by your connection to something, a fey patron might want your familiar to spy for it, a god of life might see your connection to your mount, or your own concern for your companion combined with your pseu-drudic powers would all be reasons for the resistance.

Alt Rules

When you choose the Animal Companion ranger archetype, Pact of the Chain warlock pact boon, or are a paladin that summons a mount using the Find Steed spell every time you have an ability score in that class you may, in addition to your own improvements may now  choose to either increase two of your companion/familiar/mount’s stats by one point up to a maximum equal to the animal’s natural max (e.g. a Warhorse’s max would be 18 and a Mastiff's max would be 14) or you may choose an animal feat from the Animal Feat list.

Animal Feat List

Diver

Prerequisite: your animal has a swimming speed

Your animal has been trained in swimming enough that it is nearly as good in water as it is on land.

The animal now has the ability Hold Breath: the animal can hold its breath for 1 hour

Communicator

Prerequisite: animal has an intelligence of 6 or higher and you have an intelligence of 10 or higher.

You and your animal have special training that lets your animal communicate simple messages to others

You may cast animal messenger on your animal as a bonus action on your turn; the animal can be tiny, small, or medium but the other spell rules still apply.

Swift Flight

Prerequisite: your animal has a flying speed

Your animal is so fast that few can hit it even when it close to them.

Enemies have disadvantage on opportunity attacks against your animal.

Trained Attacker

You have trained your animal in the ways of offence

You can command your animal to make one attack against a creature as a bonus action on your turn.

Hellish Resistance

Prerequisite: You have a Warlock level of 8 or higher

Your deal with your patron extends to your familiar, protecting it from certain attacks.   

Your familiar gains a resistance to one of the following damage types:

• Fire
• Neurotic
• Acid
• Psychic

Blessed Resistance

Prerequisite: You have a Paladin level of 8 or higher

Your connection with your deity extends to your mount, protecting it from certain attacks.

Your mount gains a resistance to one of the following damage types:

• Slashing
• Radiant
• Poison
• Force

Earthen Resistance

Prerequisite: You have a Ranger level of 8 or higher

Your connection with the earth extends to your companion, protecting it from certain attacks.

Your Companion gains resistance to one of the following damage types:

• Thunder
• Piercing
• Cold
• Lightning

Dodger

Your animal is used to being in battle and can foresee some attacks

Your animal gains a bonus to its armor class based on its size:

• Tiny: + 4
• Small: + 3
• Medium: + 2
• Large: +1

Watch-Animal

You have trained your animal to be alert at all times and to warn you of possible attacks.

You have advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks provided your animal is within 10 feet of you and can see or hear at least as much as you can.


What do you guys think? What do you do to improve the ranger or do you like to leave it as is. I'd love to hear about it.

Until next time :)

Picture from hackslashmaster.blogspot.com

Calling all the playtesters.

     Sorry for the long gap since my last post, I've been trying to balance schoolwork and some creative projects I've been doing, namely my board game. And that is what I need you, my fellow Castler's, help with. I'm not comfortable with asking strangers to play-test and most  all of my friends would be too easy on me and it. So your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to play the game and tell my what you think about it. What all you liked and what you didn't like. What seems broken and what seems underwhelming. 

     I will hopefully in the near future have original art and a set board design. The board is just suggestion, feel free to design your own. Thanks guys, hope you enjoy. 

Game rules

game board (sorry about the potato quality)

Image from lonecanuckpublishing.ca

Pokemon Z and Pokemon in real life?

     So I was a little worried that I would miss the bus so to speak on Pokemon Go but today I also learned about the leaks for Zygade so I guess I get to talk about two big bits of Pokemon news.

     First up is Pokemon Go. I'm sure most of you already know about it but to refresh: it is an app currently in production that works kind of like the game Ingress in terms of how game-play is handled. One thing I noticed about the trailer is that with the exception of one girl all the actors are in their 20s and 30s, so Pokemon Co is probably aiming at the older Pokemon audience (a claim further supported when you realize that all the Pokemon shown in the trailer are from Gen. 1.) With that and the fact that at least one senior Pokemon staffer will help out with the game, makes me definitely interested in the game. I do want to caution everybody, including myself, to not get too excited over the visuals shown since while it would be EXTREMELY cool if the game played like that it probably won't.

     The other thing I want to touch on is the fact that, accounting to a recent leak:

That's right guys that legendary from X and Y that most if not everybody ignored isn't even fully formed, 50% formed actually. With 10% form preceding it and 100% form following it. If these rumors are true it could mean both the first evolving legendary (yes I know Raquaza got a Mega but that's a different type of evolution even by Pokemon standards) and could also mean Pokemon Z is coming out. Over all I am super stoked to see what this rumor has in store for us.

Why Pokemon Amie is a great feature (rant)

   

     OK I'm going to get a lot of hate for this but I love Pokemon Amie. While I never what to see a game built solely around this type of gameplay I don't love it for its gameplay of simple mini-games and petting and feeding Pokemon, but rather its whole concept.

     You see I play Pokemon differently from most people in that I don't make my team around whose has the most stats or even who looks the coolest but rather who feels right for the team. For example in the Glistening Cave in Pokemon X I caught a Cubone because... because it seemed lonely. I know that seems ridiculous since its a video game character but something just made me think "this is a Pokemon that needs me." And I can go back in my past and bring up some sob story about how Pokemon helped me and I was just returning the favor or something but I won't.

     So let us look at Pokemon Amie. What is it? Well it is a feature in Pokemon X, Y, Alpha Sapphire, and Omega Ruby that lets you play with your Pokemon and just love on one another. So this is right up my alley. And lets look at the some of the battle quotes when you increase a Pokemon's affection

Being sent out:

• <Pokémon> trusts <Trainer> to come up with the best strategy!
• <Pokémon> turned back toward <Trainer> and nodded in understanding!
• <Pokémon> and <Trainer> are breathing in perfect sync with one another!
• <Pokémon> trusts <Trainer> to come up with the best strategy!

Come on guys these all show how much the Pokemon trusts you. Even if you've never won a battle they still know that you both will try your best.

Recovering from a status condition

• <Pokémon> managed to expel the poison so that <Trainer> wouldn't worry!

All of them end like that: So that <Trainer> wouldn't worry. Even in the middle of a battle the Pokemon is less concerned about the poison actually hurting or being frozen but more about not letting you worry.

And come on guys, every Pokemon essentially getting Natural Cure, getting increased chance to dodge moves even those with 100% accuracy and getting an increased change of critical hitting. Even if that last one occasionally comes at bad times but it comes in handy more often then not. 

What I want to say is that I play Pokemon with sentiment and Pokemon Amie has definitely helped with that and is why I think it is now a necessary Pokemon feature now.

Picture from bulbipedia.com
   

The Fireflies and the Stars

   How similar they are,

the firefly and the star

Both give us light

from here or from afar.

How much like the storyteller are

none seek fame,

but all give light.

And how silly a thing:

to give in a world of take

But the beacons of light care not

it is after all,

their duty to answer the call,

and give light to this dark and greedy world

“In hope that one day,”

All three say.

“Our light will be outshone

by the One who created this Stone

that we call Earth.”

Picture from germanshepherdadventures.wordpress.com

Here's to... A poem about Robin Williams, Mr Iwata, Lenard Nimoy, and Sir Christopher Lee

Here's to the Dreamer,

who could play a soldier or an old crone,

a salesmen or a schemer,

and could put a smile on any face.

except of course his own

Here's to the Innovator

who was the first not of kin

but without him Nintendo would fall
but thanks to his ability

it will always stand tall

Here's to the Actor

who played a scientist its true

and was an example for all of us

scared of a feeling or two

Here's to the Legend

who fought Nazis in a war.
He was descended from a king

and became the king of Mordor

and could play both the Devil and his foul Sting

Here's to them
and the stories they left behind
and praying for their families would surely be kind.