Pokémon Let's Go, Eevee! Alt Main Pokes (Kabutops) F.A.Q.

Pokémon Let's Go, Eevee! Alt Main Pokes (Kabutops) F.A.Q.

Q: What are you trying to do?
A: I am trying to complete Pokémon Let's Go, Eevee! as fast as possible using Kabutops as my main Pokémon

Q: What does Alt Main Pokes mean?
A: It means I am going to defy the normal Any% route for the game, and opt to use an "Alternate Main Pokémon" for the run. The rules for what qualifies as an Alt Main run are:
1. The Pokémon must be caught before obtaining three badges
2. The Pokémon must have the highest level of any Pokémon that you obtained during the course of the run
3. The Pokémon must participate in each trainer battle after the Pokémon is obtained

These rules force the runner to primarily use the Pokémon in battles, however, allows for "helper Pokémon" to take on some tough fights. Think about the normal Any% run and how Dodrio is needed to fight Blue. Same idea

Q: What other Alt Main Pokes can you run?
A: Really anything! You can see the leaderboard with all of the currently run mains here: https://www.speedrun.com/pkmngen7ext#Alt_Main_Pokes_LGPE

Q: What is your best time?
A: My best time is 3:14:34

Q: What is the World Record?
A: The World Record time is 3:12:23 by jyash4

Q: Where can you save time?
A: All over the Kabutops section. My one run so far was with a thrown together route. Over the next few runs, as I tidy up the route a bit more, we should see lots of timesave

Q: What Pokémon do you use in the run?
A: I start with Eevee, which I use until I reach Fuschia City, where I get Sea Skim and surf down to Cinnabar Island to get a Kabuto. Then I use Kabutops until the end of the game

Q: Can you do this run on Let's Go, Pikachu!?
A: You can! It is its own category though

Q: Which game is faster?
A: Currently, Pikachu is faster (however I believe Eevee has the better upper-end at the moment)

Q: What are the differences between the two games for the speedrun?
A: This is a loaded question for sure, but I'll break down the biggest factors for you
- Both Eevee and Pikachu learn Headbutt, but Eevee's Headbutt has STAB (same type attack bonus). This makes Eevee OHKO many more things early game than Pikachu
- Both Eevee and Pikachu learn move tutor moves in Cerulean City, however Eevee gets far better coverage from its moves. Eevee OHKOs every Oddish, Gloom, Sandshrew and Rhyhorn that it faces, while Pikachu does not
- Eevee learns four total move tutor moves, so Pikachu saves time by learning one
- Pikachu (currently) needs Dig, which is behind an optional battle
- Pikachu overall has a faster Rival 4, Giovanni 1, and PokéFlute splits
- Champion has a Jolteon in Pikachu rather than Raichu, often needing more setup than in Eevee

Q: Why do you have a PokéDex on screen? Is this Catch 'em All?
A: No, this is Any%. The PokéDex is counting the Pokémon I have caught because the requirement to enter Koga's gym is to catch 50 unique Pokémon

Q: Gym requirement? Are there others?
A: Yes! Each gym has it's own requirement, though only one of them is really time consuming:
Brock - Have a Grass or Water Pokémon
Misty - Have a Level 15 Pokémon
Lt. Surge - Use Chop Down on the bush outside the gym
Erika - Have a Cute Pokémon (still not sure wtf this means)
Koga - Have 50 Pokémon registered in the PokéDex
Sabrina - Have a Level 45 Pokémon
Blaine - Retrieve the Secret Key
Giovanni - Have 7 badges

Q: What are the colors on the PokéDex?
A: The colors on the PokéDex Counter correspond to information for me and the viewers. Neutral Blue = Planned Catch | Light Blue = Caught | Dark Blue = Bonus Catch

Q: What are the numbers next to your splits?
A: The first half of my splits will appear like this: Split Name [XX]. This means that on my PB, I owned XX Pokémon (colored Red). This allows you and me to see not only how far ahead/behind I am in time, but also in Pokémon count as that is arguably more important in some cases

Q: What does using 2 controllers let you do?
A: 2 controller is used in two ways. The first is it allows you to catch Pokémon using 2 controllers which makes the Pokémon more likely to be caught as well as boosts the EXP you gain by almost double. Secondly, it allows you to summon another trainer for battles which gives you a 2 Pokémon to 1 advantage

Q: Wow, 2 on 1 battles sounds super OP! Why don't you use it on every fight?
A: It's slow. In general, you need to be able to save a move select in order for it to be worth it. For example, take a fight is normally something like Headbutt x2. You could do that as a 2 controller fight, however it'll take about the same amount of time, which makes it slower (summoning and de-summoning the other controller takes a few seconds)

Q: What is your goal time?
A: Sub 3:10 would be killer