The New Normal – 9-10 – INTERLUDE – Pokenet Reactions
[THE INDIGO CONFERENCE FINALLY BEGINS! ARE YOU READY FOR THE OPEN QUALIFIERS?!] By the Indigo Post
[Symbol of the League Logo] [Picture of all the current Indigo Elite Four, with Champion Lance in the middle]
Ladies and Gentlemen! Trainers of all ages! It is this time of the year as the Indigo Conference has finally begun once again! It's time for trainers from all over Indigo to gather and show off their strength and abilities! This is the opportunity for you to show off all that you have learnt when achieving your 8 Gym Badges! Maybe it will be YOU who can become the next member of the Elite Four!
For a quick reminder of the format of the Indigo Conference, check out this graphic below!
[Graphic containing the whole format of the Indigo Conference. Starting with the Open Qualifiers, to the Preliminary Rounds (Top 256), to the Finals (Top 32)]
We managed to snag a few interviews from a few Gym Leaders to see what they had to say about this year's conference.
The New Gym Leader of Olivine, Jasmine, said this: "The Indigo Conference is a fantastic opportunity for all trainers to participate in. Even if you don't win, you'll fighting on a stage that will be seen by the entirety of Indigo, and even more from Hoenn and Sinnoh! So don't be discouraged! I didn't win the Indigo Conference either, but I still made it far enough to be recognized for my efforts! So do your best! I'm wishing all of you the best of luck!"
Similar statements were made from Gym Leader Samson, of Saffron City: "I'm sure there are many people looking at those the news have labelled as the 'hopefuls' for winning the entire Conference with some degree of envy. But don't lose heart! We've seen it time and time again where one person or another was labelled as the 'favourite' to win the whole Conference, only to lose out to a sudden surprise competitor in the end. John was a great example of this! And it could be YOU! So never give up! And do your best!"
With the Open Qualifiers opening up tomorrow, this writer wishes all of the competitors good luck! Hope to see you in the Preliminary Rounds!
Have you signed up? Or do you have a favourite to win? Are you excited for this year's Conference? Let us know in the comments!
Comments
FutureAce
WOOOOO! I just got past Giovanni so I'm definitely looking forward to signing up tomorrow! Maybe this year will be my chance to win!
Good luck to everyone participating! BUT watch out! I'm coming for that victory!
FearTheRat
Wonder who's going to win the whole thing this year!? I have some candidates in my mind, and I'm really excited to see this year's Conference. Last year's was a blast, hope this one's even better!
GeneralistGeneral
Really hoping we see some cool trainers this year! Last year was the year of type specialists, but I hope that with the discovery of Fairy types, we'll see less of these single type trainers! Excited anyways!
GroundedForLife
Nah! I wish we see some more Ground type representation! We've seen the Ice types, and the Dragons, and the Normal types, but where are the Ground types!
WiggleThatTuff
I know it's a bit early to be expecting a high-level Fairy specialist, but I can't wait! I hope this year's Indigo Conference really shows off the potential of the Fairy type and encourages more people to use it! Go Fairy types!
DragonPower
I hope this year's Indigo Conference really shows off the lack of potential of the Fairy type and discourages people from using it! Go Dragon types!
[WHO ARE THIS YEAR'S HOPEFUL TRAINERS FOR THE INDIGO CONFERENCE? WHO DO WE EXPECT TO WIN IT ALL!?] By BattleCast
As our long time readers would know, we here at BattleCast have a tradition. Every time the Indigo Conference rolls around, we do our best to research potential candidates to identify those we believe have the best chance of winning the whole Conference.
Last year, our bets were on Shin. And though we were ultimately incorrect, with now Elite John cleaning through the whole of last year's Conference, he still made it into the finals.
But this year we have a new selection of trainers that we have studied and analysed – and while this is far from a conclusive list, only the best we were able to gather from the information we collected - we are very excited to see how these trainers progress:
[A graphics showing a big list of trainers, with over 2 dozen names, and including a list of known Pokémon that they have used]
First off, starting with the strongest candidate so far, it is Bruno with his Fighting types. No introductions are needed for this formidable trainer. Any avid fan of BattleCast would have already seen his incredible strength ever since his battle against John, despite his defeat. He is EASILY the best contender to win it all…if he was participating. Unfortunately, that is still unconfirmed, and all our attempts to contact him have failed.
Our next hopeful, and one we believe has a very strong chance of winning the entire Conference, is Karen. Those of who frequent the news would have seen her name pop up from time to time over the past year as Agatha's apprentice and temporary co-regent of Pewter City. She has a proven match history with her victory over Elite Sidney of Hoenn, and she is easily one of the most impressive candidates that we've had so far. We're VERY excited to see how far she can go.
However, we also have eyes on trainer Morty – who many would recognize is the current successor of the Ecruteak Gym. Coming from a long line of Ghost specialists, some are seeing HIM to be the more suitable successor to Agatha, as they both share the same type. Maybe we will end up replacing one Ghost specialist in the Elite Four with another?
But that's not all, as we still have…[Click here to continue reading]
Comments
TangelaThoughts
IF Bruno is participating in this Conference, then my money's on him. I honestly cannot believe a man like him isn't in already in the Elite Four. But that begs the question – if he's not competing this year, then what is he doing?
FearTheRat
Probably training in the mountains as usual. No offense intended, but the man is so dedicated to his training that he might have just forgotten that the Indigo Conference is even happening.
That's probably not what's happening, but I could imagine it.
PunchingBag
YEAH! BRUNO IS GOING TO DESTROY YOU ALL! HE'S WON THE INDIGO CONFERENCE ONCE ALREADY, SO HE'LL WIN ANOTHER ONE NO PROBLEM! GET YOUR STUPID NON-FIGHTING TYPES OUT OF HERE!
FlyingHigh
…Wait a minute. Use of full capital letters. The bragging about Fighting types. The dismissal of any non-Fighting types.
I know who you are FightClub. You've just gone and rebranded! What happened to deleting your accounts?
PunchingBag
Like any good fighter, YOU CAN'T KEEP ME DOWN FOREVER! AND I'M BACK TO WATCH YOU ALL GET DESTROYED WHEN BRUNO CRUSHES YOU ALL!
FearTheRat
…I missed this guy, until I didn't.
BoyPhantom
Hey, this is Morty. I was surprised, but thankful to see the support that I've gotten for this year's Indigo Conference. Truthfully, I've never interacted with Agatha before, but I would be proud if I could inherit her place in the Elite Four.
DarkManager
BoyPhantom This is Karen. Don't take this the wrong way, but I can assure you that meeting Agatha is no great pleasure. Trust me, I grew up with her.
BoyPhantom
Oh, hello! It's a pleasure to meet you. I've heard the rumours, but surely they're overblown?
DarkManager
They're not.
[JOHN VS SHIN – A GRUDGE MATCH BETWEEN THE TWO FINALISTS?! A DOMINATING 6-0 STOMP BY ELITE JOHN!] by BattleCast
[Pictures of the match]
At BattleCast, we have spent years providing our readers with coverage on all different sorts of battles that take place in our lovely region. That means that over the course of our existence, we've bore witness to thousands of matches, all with different outcomes. We've seen grudge matches, friendly matches, rivalries and the like.
This was the first time we saw a grudge match that was SO overwhelmingly one-sided that it almost felt bad to watch.
So what happened to cause such a match? Unfortunately, we're not aware of that. Nor will we get into it. However, what we DO know is that John's Slaking ended up taking a perfect, never before seen, 6-0 victory against Shin.
For those who have forgotten his name, Shin was the finalist at last year's Indigo Conference, and was predicted to win the entire thing. That was until losing to John in the finals. He fell into obscurity then, but has recently helped to arrange a 'friendly match' between himself and John for the start of this year's Indigo Conference.
But Shin wouldn't be forgotten any longer. As in this definitely-not-friendly match, he was completely and utterly dominated by John's singular Slaking, who managed to take out all 6 of Shin's Pokémon without going down. In fact, it still wasn't close to fainting even after finishing off Shin's final Scizor.
This marks Shin to be the first trainer to directly challenge an Elite Four member, in an official capacity or not, and lose without managing to take down a single one of their Pokémon. It has NEVER been seen before; not when the loser was the one to issue the challenge.
This writer does not know whether to praise John's strength, or to question why Shin thought he had a chance of winning, as he confidently boasted about in his pre-match interview.
In fact, our analysts have all concluded that Shin was likely STRONGER in last year's finals match against John then he was at this fight. Shin had seemingly abandoned his plans to be a Steel specialist in favour of choosing Pokémon that were likely picked to be direct counters to John, and had brought in additional Fighting and Ghost types in a futile attempt to counter John's Normal types. However, due to a lack of training, or an overreliance on a plan, they heavily fell short of Shin's expectations.
It would not be inaccurate to say that they stood no chance against the calibre of John's Slaking.
One of the greater highlights of the match was John's Slaking utterly jaw-dropping display of strength as it managed to LIFT AN ENTIRE STEELIX INTO THE AIR! How INCREDIBLE Is that! How strong is that Slaking anyways to pull something like that off?!
[Picture of Steelix being lifted by Slaking]
This writer has no idea what Shin did to piss off John like that. But Arceus, he really made a bad decision challenging him like this. Who knew John had such a vengeful streak in him? But if anything, this has really opened our eyes once again about John's Slaking. Could it actually be a match for Lance's starter Dragonite?
Let us know in the comments!
Comments
SlugmaBalls
Woah! So I don't know what happened between these two, but that match was INSANE! I guess this is what happens when you challenge an Elite Four and are grossly unqualified to do so.
That wasn't a battle, that was a thrashing.
NotTooMuchWater
More like a spanking. What the fuck was that!? That match looked SO unfair. Man, John really came out of that looking really strong. And a little vengeful.
I'm so curious as to what Shin did. John doesn't come off as someone easily angered.
FutureAce
I think those who thought he was slipping must be rethinking their thoughts at the moment. There's no way that Slaking is 'slipping'. Shin really thought so, until Slaking slipped its way into a 6-0 victory HAHAHA!
I bet many future challengers are REALLY going to rethink their plans before they challenge an Elite Four member. Wow!
FearTheRat
Good on John for showing that the position of being an Elite Four is not just for show. The title actually MEANS something, and you shouldn't just challenge an Elite Four casually.
Shin got what he deserved for going into that battle cocky and unprepared.
ANormalFan
WOOO! I always knew that John's Slaking had the potential to match up against Lance's starter Dragonite! Who says Normal types were weak anyways! ALL HAIL SLAKING! Absolute CHAMPION potential right there!
DetectivePikachu
Clearly, Shin is a paid actor here. Paid by John to lose the fight spectacularly to him to reinforce John's position in the Elite Four in this time of need.
Wake up people! Shin's in cahoots with John!
TangelaThoughts
…I highly doubt that the animosity between John and Shin were faked. The sheer vitriol that they were hurling at each other during the match was definitely NOT a performance. Nor could you fake the brutality of Slaking's beatdown on Shin's Pokémon.
Yes, the match was one-sided as I've ever seen, but does anyone KNOW why the two even came to blows over this?
AlluteNinja
I can guess what Shin's anger towards John stemmed from – he likely felt inadequate and forgotten due to his loss against John. He WAS the favourite to win, but he's since fallen into obscurity since his defeat, while John has been achieving success after success. Very understandable that he might be feeling envious.
No idea why John's so angry at him though. Must be a big reason.
[CAN CYNTHIA BECOME THE NEXT CHAMPION OF SINNOH? WHAT WOULD HER POLICIES BE?!] By Sinnoh News
[Pictures of Cynthia's battle against Aaron]
Unless you've been living under a rock for the past 2 weeks, you will have already known that we recently have had a new challenger looking to take the throne of Champion, ever since it has been left vacant by Champion Hayato's departure.
Yet Challenger Cynthia has really proven herself to be a legitimate contender to becoming the new Champion of Sinnoh, having already swept through both Elite Bertha and Elite Aaron with significant ease. And now as Cynthia prepares for her fight against Elite Flint, her prospects of actually becoming the new Champion grows by the day. We've already covered who she is in a previous article, but the next crucial question is: What would she do if she became Champion? And would she be able to hold her position for long?
The answer to the latter is quite simple. There is really no need to get into her strengths as a trainer, as her dominant performance against Elite Aaron and Bertha should have solidified that already. Assuming she continues her performance against Elite Flint and Lucian, it is highly doubtful that she would have any issues holding her position as Champion in the future.
However, to answer the first question, it must be noted that Cynthia, beyond her impressive scientific connections, seems to have built up significant political connections to the current Elite Four. After all, it is practically an open secret that Cynthia was 'chosen' by Lucian to become the next Champion, as there have been many documented instances where the two could be seen frequently conversing before her challenge.
Could Lucian have already seen Cynthia's potential and decided that she was the best for Sinnoh? If so, then this writer believes that this bodes well for the future of Sinnoh to have our Champion and Elite Four to have a mutual understanding with each other.
And regarding our analysts prediction on her political positions…[Click here to continue reading]
Comments
RuinsManiac
Really rooting for Cynthia! She's honestly a great scientist and administrator – very kind, helpful, and knowledgeable. Love to see that a scientist is making it big in the world of battling; we're normally looked down upon for focusing on 'less martial' pursuits.
Hope she wins it all!
ResearchMagnet
Hmph. The pursuit of martial strength over intellectual ones is a honest waste of time. If Cynthia was so talented as a scientist, she ought to have continue going down that route. The advancement of science is worth more than just petty glory.
What a waste.
LoveIsEterna
ResearchMagnet That's so short-sighted. If Cynthia were to become Champion, then she could help advance the sciences far more by just implementing policies to encourage scientific research. I've looked into the news from the other regions, and it really looks like a scientific boom has been occurring in those regions.
Cynthia being Champion would be a great win for scientists everywhere!
GeneralistGeneral
I was stunned, then ecstatic, then screaming with joy when I saw that a GENERALIST was currently tearing through the Sinnoh Elite Four with an incredibly powerful and diverse team.
I mean look at her roster of Pokémon! Every single one of those Pokémon are incredibly powerful! Can't wait to see more from her.
GodBidoof
GeneralistGeneral And Cynthia has yet to really show off her STARTER Garchomp in a battle. She's managed to sweep through Bertha and Aaron without it.
Sure, Flint and Lucian are considered to be the stronger members of the Elite Four, but the margin isn't that much bigger. I think we're really about to see a new Champion take the stage.
Gardevoir34
OMA! AND SHE'S A HOT BLONDE TOO! ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT! We've had enough of cool male Champions. It's about time we got a hot female one!
NotTooMuchWater
Gardevoir34 What – Wallace not doing it for you? No offense to him, but he's more effeminate than most females that I know. No shame to him – dude's beautiful.
PianoLover
I really want to see how Cynthia would match up against the other Champions of other regions! Maybe something like that could be arranged in the future?!
[GYM LEADER JASMINE DISCOVERS THE A NEW DIGLETT FORM? ANOTHER SUCCESS OF THE PIT TECHNIQUE! A-DIGLETT DISCOVERED!] By The Indigo Post
[Picture of the new A-Diglett]
After a short lull in the discoveries created by the PIT technique, it seems that another success has finally blossomed from our very own Gym Leader Jasmine, of Olivine City! She has discovered a new alternate form for Diglett, which is now a Ground/Steel type! Jasmine also anticipates that it should evolve into a new Dugtrio as well! Leave it to the Steel specialist to find out a new Steel Pokémon for us!
The new form for Diglett has been named A-Diglett by Jasmine, standing for "alternate-Diglett".
We managed to catch the Gym Leader in an interview, where she explained how she came with this discovery: "It was honestly something that was discovered by pure coincidence over several months. We had an area that we used to raise Steel Pokémon for the Gym, and it's a place that's full of metals to allow Steel types to thrive in there. One day, I brought in a Diglett that I had found abandoned by an ungrateful trainer, and allowed it to stay with the other Pokémon."
"But…as time passed, the Diglett became really attached to me and wanted to prove itself. So I trained it up in hopes of making it a Gym Pokémon to deal with the many Fire types that get brought in against my Gym. But one day it evolved and ended up mating with a Mawile that we had, which produced an egg. I raised it, as any good trainer should, but I left it in with all the other Steel eggs in the Steel habitat."
"It took me awhile to realize it, but the egg was sporting some silvery lines after some time. At that point, I recognized what was happening, and started taking notes to document what was happening. At the end, the new form of Diglett hatched out, and I'm very pleased to welcome it into my team."
Jasmine was asked if she had any intentions to continue seeking new Steel types after this discovery, but Jasmine said that she did not see herself pursuing the route of science. She stated she was satisfied enough with this one discovery, but her heart lied with the Gym.
This writer hopes we see more discoveries being created from the PIT technique! Especially with all this extra funding to the sciences, surely more successes can be found soon!
Comments
FutureAce
Accident or not – I'm happy to see another success come out of the PIT Technique. New Pokémon are always appreciated. Although I'm really unsure if a Steel/Ground Diglett or Dugtrio is going to be strong.
Their standard forms were never very strong Pokémon. I doubt this would be much different.
GeneralistGeneral
Well, Steel types are known to be more defensive, so perhaps this is a more defensive version of the Dugtrio line? But again, Dugtrio were always considered to be fragile Pokémon, so I'm unsure how tanky a 'more defensive' version of it would even be.
It looks fabulous though.
GroundedForLife
Even amongst Ground specialists, Dugtrio have never been the most sought out. They make for good ambushers, but not much else. AND, we already have a Steel/Ground type in Steelix, which I'm confident is infinitely stronger than this A-Diglett.
It's a nice discovery, but I don't see it being too useful in battle. But maybe Jasmine or Giovanni could prove me wrong! I hope they do!
ResearchMagnet
…'Discovered by luck' is pathetic. There was no skill, no application of scientific observation. Just 'luck'. Disgusting.
But Jasmine's discovery of a new Pokémon still provides useful insights for finding other alternate forms. Maybe us REAL scientists can make something out of this.
FlyingHigh
Hey, who cares how she found it out. She admitted she wasn't a scientist anyways, so I don't know why you feel the need to degrade her.
And at least she found SOMETHING. What have you found? Besides your own feelings of inadequacy?
DragonPower
Where are all the new Dragon alternate forms at?! WHY ARE MORE PEOPLE NOT FOCUSING ON THIS! Dragons are the best type, the STRONGEST type! Surely more people should be trying to find new Dragon forms?!
EDIT: No, I understand now. The superior power of Dragons means that only the worthy are able to find them. That's why they take more time. I will be patient, for greatness demands it.
WiggleThatTuff
DragonPower Greatness demands that your Dragons get 3-0'd by a Clefable! HAHAHAHAH!
A.N. A big focus on the Indigo Conference this time, but there's been some developments with the PIT technique. I've not forgotten about it! But I had to account for how long eggs took to hatch, so I thought now would be a good time to reveal that experiments HAVE been going on in the background. Just slowly.
And to anyone who wants to support me, please check out my p atreon at CartecTNN where you can read 8 advanced chapters! Thanks to those who have supported me already!