Iornia Redux Pitch

The Pitch: In the past two years, strange Pokemon have started popping up around the Iornia region, and nobody is really sure just what's causing them, or what effect they're having on the environment. As a consequence of this, some Pokemon may be different than you expect, be it through a change in look or a modification of stats, types, abilities, capabilities, and/or movepool. Pokedexes can't detect these changes, instead displaying blank or corrupted data over anything that doesn't match their information banks.

With what you read up there in mind, this is going to start as an almost archetypal PTU game. You will begin play at Boole University, an oceanside college dedicated to advanced Pokemon learning. Your characters have been summoned by Professor Albion to come and receive a Pokedex and starter Pokemon from him here. He'll also Register you as Trainers and even give you your own Trainer Cards and some additional supplies. He will then request that you aid him in studying and capturing these strange Pokemon, or Delta Species as they're popularly referred to. You're to meet his assistant outside the main doors, and they'll lead you to the right room to meet Albion.

Now then, while this is a Pokemon game, and set in a pseudo-modern era, the Iornia region also draws freely from fantasy elements. When coming up with your character's goal and mindset, treat it a bit like a fantasy game, and remember that you're in the Pokemon world - think lofty heights and awe-inspiring feats. Don't, for instance, have your character's ambition be to go to college and become a secretary. Or if that IS their goal, make them willing to take major risks to accomplish it.

Of course, Iornia has its own Pokemon League, including ten Gyms and a rough equivalent to the Elite Four, known as the Aos Si(Aes/z She, roughly), or if you can't pronounce that, the Illusory Regents, which you can challenge as in most games. There's a Safari Zone, a Rangers Association, and so on.

Things you should be aware of: Ice now resists Water, Ice, and Dragon, and is no longer weak to Rock. If you want to use a homebrew class, feel free to ask me, but keep in mind I might shut it down or offer to tweak it if I deem it too unbalanced.

The Aos Si are seeking a new member. Until recently, there was no Champion at all, only the Aos Si. After being defeated by the now-Champion, the final member of the Aos Si quit, leaving a hole(as the Champion is not technically a member). Currently the first member is a substitute that is far weaker than the rest. Little is known about these people due to their secretive ways. Even the Champion's challenge was not broadcast, unlike Gym Challenges.

And for possibly the biggest one: Battles, their payouts, and whether they're official or not are all handled automatically. To be an official Trainer, you must register with the Iornian League and the Rangers Association; Albion does this for you at the start of the game. When you battle, if you wish the battle to be official, you must sync your Pokedex with the other party's. This is assumed to have happened unless you specifically note otherwise before a battle. Cash is all in "credits" rather than paper or coins.

When a Trainer loses an official match, credits equal to their highest leveled Pokemon used x 60 are transferred from their account to their opponent's. If they can't pay the sum in credits, they must forfeit items worth roughly the amount they owe. Special circumstances are to be handled by that area's head Ranger or Gym Leader. For the record, Gym Battles, whether against Leaders or Gym Trainers, follow different rules, and your own money is never at stake in them - they're safe.


META STUFF(READ THIS SERIOUSLY):-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

You can only carry 4 Pokemon at once, not 6. Any time you catch a Pokemon, you can choose to send either it or one of the Pokemon in your party to the PC or directly to Albion himself. You could send regular Pokemon to Albion if you really wanted to, but he has no use for them and that would probably just confuse the poor man. While you can store Pokemon from anywhere, you can only retrieve Pokemon at a Pokemon Center, and can retrieve them from the PC storage or Albion's storage.

You will begin the game at Trainer Level 4, with 5000 credits. Any "class fees" or items required for your Class(such as a First Aid Kit for a Medic) are assumed to have been paid prior to the start of the game(ie, you don't need to pay for them out of this 5000 credits).

You have free reign over your build for the first 3 Sessions of the game. You can change whatever you like, even completely restat, in case something isn't working out. After that, you'll have to use the regular Retraining rules.

Pokedex Experience is in full swing here, and is shared by the party - if a new Pokemon is caught, everyone gets 1 Trainer Exp. Each unique Delta Pokemon caught instead gives 2 Trainer Exp., and Albion will pay you for them as well. Sending them straight to him is fine, but he'll give you a little extra if you help him out and spend some time with the Pokemon beforehand. He's got a lot on his hands!

As for Starter Pokemon, there will be more than the three choices offered in the video games. However, you don't have full reign on your starting  Pokemon, and don't technically "start" the game with any.

The game will use the 'balance patch' I put out: http://forums.pokemontabletop.com/topic/30114415/1/. If there's a Class you like for flavor but think is a little weak, check this out, it'll probably be fixed.