POKEMON GOLD PROGRESS... ENTRY 25
No new Pokemon today.
Let's resolve the cliffhanger from Entry 24...
As you recall, I'd entered Shiroganeyama, gone north through two or three levels of cave, then exited onto a stone bridge that led to the top of the mountain at the foot of a terraced pinnacle. Ascending the stairs, I saw a lone Trainer waiting at the top with his back turned. Going up to him and pressing "B" to initiate conversation, he turned, said nothing, and a Trainer Battle began- and I smiled when I saw who it was...
GUESS WHO??
It's Red! (aka "Ash" or Satoshi, but only in the "anime" world.) Red's on-screen character appears exactly as it was drawn in the prior Pokemon games (but now in color with better and sharper detail).
Red is, without a doubt, the most powerful trainer in the game, and the battle WILL be long, drawn out, and impossible to win unless you know how to make the best of the types you've come in with. If you don't expect this encounter and jump in unprepared, you'll be running back to the Pokemon Center at the foothills with your tail between your legs and, I suspect, a renewed dedication to developing the Pokemon you have. In my case, I actually had enough resources on hand to be able to do it in one go.
The rest of this message might be a spoiler, so be warned.
Red has the following Pokemon, with nobody less than level 73...
Pikachu, level 81
Kamex (Blastoise), level 77
Effee, level 73
Fushigibana (Venusaur), level 77
Kabigon (Snorlax), level 75
And, of course...
Lizardon (Charizard), level 77
This battle was, to say the least, a killer and a white-knuckler at times. Seeing Red wasn't totally unexpected, but the fact that he had Pokemon of such astonishingly high levels and variability took me by complete and total surprise.
I actually saved the game before I went up to Red as a precaution, but was determined to see if I could beat him with what I had rather than run away or keep coming back after saving...
For good or bad, I'd gone into the mountain with most of my original team but had a couple of additions which I'd chosen to take along for development and/or transport:
Meganium lvl 60
Granbull lvl 58
Lugia lvl 71
Houou lvl 47
Mariluri lvl 53
Yoronozuku lvl 23
Since I'd been seeing a number of Rock Pokemon, I'd left the Denryuu back at the PokeCenter and figured the Meganium could handle Rock or Water Pokemon I found.
Pikachu went down in one shot from Lugia's Psychokinesis attack (which I'd taught it). The Kamex lasted a bit longer with a lot of exchanges between it and my Meganium and Granbull, the Fushigibana fell to Houou's fire attack in one hit (Houou weathered this Pokemon's Solarbeam very nicely), and the Effee duked it out with Lugia with Psychokinesis. Lugia could recover, however, and it was no contest.
Then came the Kabigon, and the most exhausting part of the battle. The Kabigon has a "head butt" attack which was devastating, as well as an ungodly amount of HP, and it would perform "sleep" and recover all its HP just when you thought you had it on the rocks. Then it would hit you with "Snore" while sleeping, knocking about 50 HP off your total every time.
Rocks were just what was called for. I got the Granbull up and just kept heaving rocks with "Kairiki", replenishing my HP with potions and PP when needed. A very long, drawn out battle much as it was with Lugia, but Kabigon finally took a big hit while asleep (finally got a critical) and one more "kairiki" did him in. Whew.
Last up was, as expected, a Lizardon. Mariluri jumped in and did "Naminori" and "Bubble attack", reducing the Lizardon but not doing it in one shot. Then I remembered Lugia, put him on the line, and used "Hydropump." Bye-bye, Lizardon!
The battle ends (Wow! I did it first time!) - and Red continues to have nothing to say, though you get 7000 yen for beating him. And as you return to the plateau, Red again says nothing (in a box full of "....."), the screen flashes, and you're alone on the plateau. And the credits roll for the second time- looks like I've officially finished the game.
Still, though, some goals appear to be unmet and it's hard to believe that I've seen 222 Pokemon with 29 remaining anonymous so far. Makes me wonder what lies within Silver.
When the credits finish rolling, you're back at the Pokemon Center at the foothills of Shiroganeyama, and the world continues with continued opportunities to play. I still have not been allowed access to the Silph Company floors nor been able to go to other floors in the Radio Station in Cyan Town- and of course, I have lots of Pokemon still left to catch (I only have 139). I'll still be exploring for some time to come. If and when I get past some of these obstacles and have new information (and new Pokemon) to reveal, you'll be the first to know.
--Richard E. Rae