Appendix
"Red, you should read this."
"Uh…what is this?"
"Just read it, Red."
"All right. Let me have it."
Monster Training Championship: Commonly Asked Questions
Q: What is the MTC? What is a Trainer? Who should join?
A: MTC is a commonly used abbreviation for the Monster Training Championship, the premier martial arts program started in Kanto and taking the world by storm. A Trainer is any person participating in this program. Individuals join the MTC for reasons ranging becoming a hobbyist, entertainer, public service worker, and military personnel. The opportunities are endless!
Q: How do you advance in the MTC?
A: Trainers in Kanto can collect up to 8 Belts after beating a Designated Gym Leader or qualified staff in combat. All qualifying MTC matches must be witnessed by at least two other individuals of good reputation though typical matches are recorded on film and available for public review. Once a Trainer collects a Belt in one location, he can not collect another Belt at this same location to advance in the MTC though additional training in one or all of the qualified Kanto gyms is generally encouraged. Once the Trainer collects a Belt of one level, he cannot collect a qualifying Belt of the same or equal level from the same or different Gym.
Q: What requirements are there to become a Trainer?
A: All individuals wishing to join the MTC must register with their home town, city, or surrounding area officiating office and consent to any and all local agreements. An individual must be the age of 18 or older to join the MTC independently, but an individual can join at the age of 10 and up if request to become a Trainer is followed by signed consent of both a parent and pediatrician. Any and all participants of the MTC must submit to an initial physical evaluation and subsequent physical once year following acceptance. Should any person fail to get these basic requirements or fail their physical evaluation, they will not be allowed to acceptance into the MTC.
Q: What do you need to start?
A: All trainers must have access to an accredited Bill 3.0 Skillfinder or newer edition. Information about where to get an accredited Skillfinder can be found at your local MTC officiating office. You will also need Element Crystals.
Q: What are Element Crystals?
A: Element Crystals are natural stones found nature combined with genetically engineered bacteria from Pokémon. When the surface of an Element Crystal comes in contact with a wild Pokémon a pairing forms. Once the pairing forms with this Crystal, the Pokémon and Crystal cannot be impaired unless the stone and contents are destroyed by a qualified Deleter. (Information on qualified Deleters can be found at your local officiating office.)
Q: Can you explain more about pairings? How do they work?
A: Trainers will use an Element Crystal to make contact with wild Pokémon and then crack the charges Skill over their foreheads. The Skill is charged once the color on the stone changes to reflect to corresponding Ability typing. (Typing and related material found in Monster Training Handbook) Once the resin in a Crystal touches skin, the Element Skill will begin to spread throughout the bloodstream and pair with the user's genetic material. An individual is advised to pair up to six different Skills but any more can cause disruptions in the user's genetic material and lead to various medical health conditions. Please let your doctor know about any concerns that arise after a successful pairing or pairing attempt.
Q: What is a Skillfinder? How does it work?
A: A Skillfinder is an apparatus that is externally implanted into back of the wrist of choice by a qualified professional at the time of acceptance into the MTC. The Skillfinder monitors the mental and physical health of the given user and also stores data on the user's genetic data and pairing externally implanted Pokémon Elements. A display on the Skillfinder screen will show changes in real time to the related data of human user, Pokémon abilities, and pairing. Please let an official or know if anything damage is done to your Skillfinder in battle or otherwise as this can damage pairings and cause related medical health conditions.
Q: What is a Pokémon? What does this have to do with my training?
A: Pokémon (Japanese) or Pocket Monsters (English) are creatures found in nature with stronger than usual abilities or Elements. Pokémon are abundant though not exclusive to the nation of Kanto and have various Abilities that are used by Trainers during battle. Having an adequate knowledge of Abilities and Element related Skills or simply ES is crucial to becoming an effective Trainer. (For more information on Element Skills and Abilities, please the related materials in the Monster Training Handbook; Monsters and Fighting like Them.)
Q: How do I train?
A: In order to train, an individual must condition various aspects of their physical health. It is advised that Trainers eat a well balanced diet, get quality sleep each night, and devote time to Monster Training as well as strength and conditioning..
Q: How do I win a battle? What should I know about items and costs?
A: Matches between Trainers are determined by the status of the individual's Skillfinders. As Trainers fight one another, they will use various Monster Skills to do damage to one another. The damage will be tracked on the corresponding Trainer's Skillfinder and should the active Skill pairing be sufficiently damaged, the Skill will "break" or fail to work and the Trainer will be unable to use Abilities from that Skill.
When an active or currently used Skill fails or breaks, the Trainer must transition to another Skill. This will take only a few seconds but be warned that an opponent is not obligated to wait for the transitional period to end. Should all of a Trainer's Skills break they will lose all ability to fight and lose the match. The last standing Trainer wins the match. Losers are required to pay winners a town issued fee to winners. Failure to pay fees to any Trainer can leave the Trainer at fault to subsequent review and possible termination from the MTC. Items can be used to modify and repair damage to the physical body of the Trainer as well as status changes in corresponding Skills. (For more information on Items look for the Items section in Monster Training Handbook.)