Interesting Weekend
I finally managed to beat the Elite 4 in Pokemon Diamond. They were haaaard. Much harder than they were in previous games. I honestly would not have won if I hadn't cheated a bit and got egg move pokemon from someone else.
Here's the team I beat them with:
Charizard: I got this one in a trade (bit of a cheat, I feel, since I didn't even have the national dex). She was one of two egg move pokemon I got, though I got her early on in the game, knowing that starters would be semi-hard to come by. This one was indespinsible because she knew the move 'Aerial Ace'. I found out that fighting type attacks don't have much of an effect on Charizard, so switched in this one to absorb the hits. I think the only Elite 4 member I didn't use this against was Agatha. Most useful moves: 'Flamethrower' & 'Aerial Ace'. Held Item: Sharp Claw (increases critical hits).
Gengar: A shoo-in. Gengar's actually pretty weak here. Her sole advantage is that her speed is higher than that of a lot of other pokemon. Dark and Ghost type attacks deal a lot of damage to a few pokemon, but since the Elite 4 had taught their critters things outside of their traditional movesets, she was weak to everything. I trained this one up until it learned the move 'Destiny Bond', intending it for sole use against Cynthia. Absolutely vital for taking out her Spiritomb, and after a revive, it was able to go on to defeat her Garchomp too (though that turned out to not be necessary). Most useful moves: 'Shadowball' & 'Destiny Bond'. Held Item: Ghost Plate (increases power of ghost type attacks).
Bronzong: Another pokemon that became quickly vital to my efforts. As a steel type, it could absorb hits from almost anything except for what it was weak to. I had to drastically change its moveset though, because it was too weak when I finally confronted the Elite 4. It doesn't see much use at first (except against Aaron's moth), but after I taught it a dark-type attack in 'Faint Attack', it could take Gengar's place in dealing with psychic types that would kill Gengar in one hit with 'Psychic'. It became instrumental in thwarting Cynthia's most powerful pokemon, Garchomp, and probably could have defeated it all by itself if I hadn't switched in Gengar for a 'Destiny Bond' once I had put it to sleep. I didn't want to take any chances. Most useful moves: 'Faint Attack', 'Extrasensory', and 'Hypnosis'. Held Item: Psychic Plate (increases power of psychic type attacks).
Machoke: I got this one specifically to fight the Elite 4. Another of the pokemon I got in a trade, this one came with the egg moves 'Fire Punch' and 'Thunder Punch'. After I trained it up to actually survive the attacks being thrown at it, it became a great pinch-hitter, covering for Charizard when she had to recover. It turned out to be very useful against Aaron's Vespiquen, which would kill Charizard in one hit with the rock-type move 'Power Gem'. Machoke could survive it, and help conserve Charizard's 'Flamethrowers' for later in the Elite 4 fight. After Aaron, it did not see any use except to take down Flint's Lopunny. Most useful moves: 'Fire Punch'. Held Item: Fist Plate (increases power of fighting type attacks).
Carnivine: A pure grass type, I stuck this one on my team because of its immunity to ground moves thanks to the special ability Levitate. It too, was very weak until I taught it the move "Power Whip", which is about the ultimate physical grass move. After that, barrring accuracy troubles, it could kill anything weak to it in one hit. This prevented Agatha from ever throwing up a defensive screen with her first pokemon, Quagsire. It even destroyed Cynthia's Milotic in a single turn, a pokemon that would otherwise have given me loads of trouble. As a backup, I taught it the dark move 'Bite', but I turned out to not actually need it after Bronzong learned 'Faint Attack'. Most useful moves: 'Power Whip'. Held Item: Shell Bell (restores a little HP for each successful hit).
Whiscash: This creature wins my VIP award as a utility pokemon. I think I used this one against every single member of the Elite 4. Knowing both 'Earthquake' and 'Surf', it was very effective against at least one of the pokemon on everybody's roster. 'Earthquake' made short work of Aaron's most powerful pokemon, and Agatha and Flint both fell before the might of water type attacks. What's more, I had taught it Rest in case if I needed to throw up a wall so the rest of my pokemon could recover. And as a dual Ground/Water type, it could absorb hits from a surprising number of sources. Most useful moves: 'Surf' & 'Earthquake'. Held Item: Quick Claw (allows occasional first-turn strikes).
Despite all this, I had to buy a boatload of revives and lemonades to keep them in good shape throughout each battle. Aside from that, I got through the fight without using any TMs, Elixers, or Berries. All pokemon on my team were level 50-ish at the time of victory.
In other words, THE FIGHT IS WIN.
Now the end-game is kickin' my ass. :/
Also, I was right about that DnD game. It never even got off the ground, and the GM seems to have no interest in it. Now, if only I could get pervert guy to stop bothering me....
Oh yeah, and it turns out that the D20 Modern game I'm involved in with the Merideth character may be going into indefinite hiatus soon. One of the players was in the Navy and is going on extended deployment, while another has recently joined the Army. Can't say I'm really surprised about this, though I'm worried about both of them. The GM plans to start up a game of Ironclaw until the whole thing blows over, and I've been invited to play Coon. Perhaps that character sheet I made for her eons ago will finally come in handy?
It is getting closer to Halloween. Find some spooky destinations in your area to celebrate the season!
Here's an interesting article about how indie games are developing an emotional range not found in the mainstream.
I have many friends who are married, and many who, like me, hope to marry in the future. Some former brides have opened up, sharing some of their biggest wedding regrets. It's good advice for those who might be planning a wedding.