Pokémon: Realities

[Jeran Korak]

Introduction​

You've all heard of Pokémon; it's that terminally addictive franchise that you swore you'd never get into, yet somehow just can't drag yourself away from. Even if you've never played Pokémon or watched the anime, you probably know more about it from unavoidable media exposure than you do about Star Trek. Anybody can give you a summary of the key concept behind Pokémon; to capture and battle them against other Pokémon. But isn't that a slight oversimplification? What, really, would a world in which Pokémon exist be like to live in?

Enter Pokémon: Realities, an attempt to subtract the merchandise-driven elements from the Pokémon franchise and provide a much grittier, darker and more believable experience for the players. Heavily inspired by the superbly written fanfiction Regret, Pokémon: Realities showcases a world where Pokémon are dangerous creatures and human society is well adjusted to the harsh realities of daily life. To be a Trainer is to live a high-risk, high-reward lifestyle that can either bring fame and glory or an early introduction to the grave - if not worse.​

Core Concepts
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The principle idea behind Pokémon: Realities is to create a living, dynamic enviroment for players to explore at their own pace. Many of the traditional aspects of the Pokemon franchise have been heavily adjusted for the sake of the setting. A major change is that Pokémon no longer evolve instantly when they reach a certain experience level, but instead grow naturally over the course of their lifespans until they are ready to metamorphose into their next evolutionary stage. The vast majority of Pokémon are non-sentient, and cannot communicate with either their trainers or other members of their species with any degree of coherency. Pokémon are also dangerous, with even very common species being quite capable of mauling a defenceless human to death. Many of the more powerful and dangerous Pokémon are even restricted, with special credentials needed to own one or release it in public surroundings.

A second major departure from the anime is the set age at which Trainers may depart on their journeys. Permission to become a Trainer is only given after a stringent set of physical and mental requirements are met, and courses in wilderness survival and basic self-defence are mandatory for all individuals seeking a Trainer's license. For this reason few Trainers set out on their adventures before the age of fifteen, and many choose to wait until their late teenage years before stepping outside the security of their hometown.

In short, this is not a world for the faint-hearted.

Roleplaying Platform
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Pokémon: Realities is an instant-message based roleplay which runs on RPU, which in turn is a sub-program for the BYOND engine. BYOND is a simple freeware games development platform that can be downloaded from the website, located here. Once you have installed BYOND, you will need to create an account and log in to the server. To do this, go to the Games panel, click Open, copy-paste byond://75.67.117.196:26513 into the uppermost field and hit 'OK'. This will prompt a small download and then take you directly to the server. Once there, merely click 'new data' (or 'load data' if you've been there before) to get started. BYOND is non-invasive and spyware free.

Features List
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• In-character news broadcasts keep the players up to date on current events and allow them to drop in and out of the main storyline as they wish.
• Player submitted content: write up your own description of a certain Pokemon species and assign unique attributes that will then be considered setting canon if approved.
• Freeform combat system: choose whichever method you like to battle, from roleplay to dice-based combat to online battle simulators.
• No prior experience with the world of Pokemon required - no keeping track of stats, levels, effort values or other such variables. Simply relax and enjoy the full roleplaying experience without getting bogged down with the details.
• Player-controlled gyms: apply to take control of a canon gym leader and challenge prospective trainers.
• Play as many characters as you like. If you've got the picture and the backstory, then the only limit to the number of characters you can have is the time you have to roleplay them.
• Help build the world: If you've the will and the creativity, you can help us design the game world and see your ideas implemented. We're still new, and there are lots of oppertunities for player contributions. If you've got a good idea, there's a very good chance we'll be willing to use it.

For questions, additional details and any other information about this game, please make your requests either below or via Private Messaging. The character sheet is located on the server itself.