Hey, all! Here's chapter 2 of the Pokemon Black Nuzlocke! Hope you all enjoy it!
Chapter 2: The Road to the 1st Gym
We started on Route 19 (pretty high number for the first route, but we ll roll with it), and immediately ran into a Purrloin. Catching her was easy, and Catkyoin (yes, my friends, that is a JoJo reference) joined our team with ease. In my total and utter paranoia of losing someone so early on, though, we didn't immediately move on to the next location. Instead, I ran through Route 19, back and forth, grinding these guys up until they were laughably over-leveled for the starting Pokemon. Once that was done, we moved on to the next city, getting sniffed by a weird guy named Alder along the way, who sent us to go get Bobby in Route 20 to deliver a map so he could find his way around through that stupid shock of hair.
And there, in Route 20, we met our next target Pokemon: Seawaddle. He was so eager to join us, he didn't put up any fuss when I immediately threw a Poke Ball, and was dubbed Nibbles for his adorable little teeth. And so it was back to grinding, running back and forth so we could get Nibbles the XP he needed to properly join the team.
For a moment there, it was an adorable dynamic. Nibbles would go out first, deal a little damage, and then either Catkyoin or Wotter would step in like big, badass siblings, and kick the snot out of whatever had just hurt Nibbles.
They were the cutest team I had ever seen.
For all of 5 seconds.
And then something became very, very apparent; Nibbles was a killing machine, especially when he learned Bug Bite. Everything he touched turned to hole-filled debris, and his bloodlust knew no bounds. Purrloins, Patrats, other Seawaddles, Nibbles did not discriminate. Those poor Trainers on the route, too they all came at Nibbles with Pokemon as low-leveled as the wild ones, and Nibbles gave them just as much mercy. Eventually, we found Bobby at the nearby farm, who wanted a fight, because of course he did. And, bless his soul, he had only his Snivy, and we were still higher level than he was. What Nibbles did to that poor Pokemon would be spoken of in feared whispers for generations to come. After that, Bobby gave a tally to the Not Going to be an Impending Bad Guy list by comforting his Pokemon as best he could. So, at least we didn't have to watch our backs around him. Which was good, because this mop of hair ensured I would be seeing nothing that wasn't directly in front of me.
So, after being asked to find a lost dog, I found said dog being kidnapped by a grunt of Neo Team Plasma. I was ready to let Nibbles go John Wick on him for trying to steal someone's pet, but the grunt clearly saw how much blood Nibbles had on him at this point and decided escape was his most viable option. Can't say I blame him.
With that out of the way, it was time for more grinding, and when that was finally done, then it was time for a trip back home to fight the first Gym Leader. At that point, I didn't know their name, or their type. All I knew was that my team was as prepped and ready for them as it could be, and they weren't going to stop us so early in this crusade.
Gym Leader #1: Cheren Type: Normal
Cheren. It was Cheren. The Brainiac know-it-all from the first games. He was the first Gym Leader. I knew he had to be here somewhere in this game, but I had never expected him to be a Gym Leader. Well I suppose that was a solid career choice, all things considered. He built it out of the back of the school, sure, but it was a good place nonetheless. And, given his personality and the location, it seemed only fitting that he be a Normal-type Gym Leader.
This man had me sweating. Because I didn't know what to expect, the moment the music kicked in, my anxiety shifted into overdrive, especially when he threw out a Patrat only one level lower than Catkyoin. Not only that, but his Lilipup actually out-leveled all of my Pokemon, which sent me into near-panic mode when he started having both of them use Work-Up to boost their Attack, which I knew would already be high. I had been a little too cocky, and I thought we were going to pay for it.
But Nibbles and Catkyoin put in some work. Catkyoin managed to Fury Swipe his Patrat to pieces before it could use any insanely-boosted moves, much to my relief, and Nibbles, to my shock, pride, and horror, continued his terrifying streak of devastation when he swept Cheren's Lilipup in two Bug Bites, even with the drop of a Potion.
So, the Basic Badge was ours. First gym, complete. And even this first one had taught me a little something about hubris, corny as that is to say. We still had a lot of grinding to do, and a lot of new friends to make along the way. Even with all of the horrible carnage at his feet, Nibbles was still a happy member of the party, and the three of them could back each other up like nobody's business.
Next stop: Virbank City.
See y'all next time!