There's really no point in continuing further as I can't possibly top last post's glorious robot train wreck, but I guess I can keep going for now. I need to figure out where that fishing rod is, at least. (At this rate it's not likely I will be able to finish tonight, but I'll see what I can do.)
Tempted though I am to grab my new jinkai (especially because he's level 15), I haven't even had a chance to try Zin Falza out yet—her only damaging move at the moment is vice grip, which of course wasn't going to help much against the ghosts steely bodies of the other robots. Maybe she'll see a little more action out on the next route?
Here we are on Route 4, which the girl in the gatehouse has informed me is "fun, but long". Sounds like the ideal place for some training, then! Hey, you, backpacker! Help me out with my new magnut, would you?
GAH. Also, that's a bit of a level jump from the Route 3 trainers. I guess it is a good thing that half of my team was overleveled leaving Longspur after all. Break out the bait-and-switch!
Tall grass! What new "what on God's green earth is that"s await us there?
This "what on God's green earth is that", for one! I have no idea what an oodode is, but I do know it looks weird enough that I want one at a higher level than 8. Next!
Dimeles, which is (half a) badger, apparently! Also still level 8. I wish the wilds were a bit stronger around here... surely I shouldn't still be encountering things under level 10 if the trainers are around level 17, should I? At least Zin Falza's thunder wave confirms that it's a ground-type and not the normal (or at least, not pure normal) it kinda looks like.
Found a stronger oodode. I thought it'd have something to do with geodes. I didn't think that geodes somehow acting like cells would be that something, but hey! Cacturne has sand for blood, etc., etc.. Regardless, I wonder what its evolutions will look like... geodes make for some very pretty potential.
There's fuegruff! I was beginning to think this guy would never show up, heh. Not that I know why I was so eager to find one, considering I already have Aenjara... maybe because it's the last of the pre-release reveals I hadn't actually encountered yet. It's all sparkly and new from here on out, folks!
puppeeeeeeee
A puppy that wasted several poké balls, granted, but eh, I wasn't going to use him anyway, and at least he didn't bleed me dry like some pokémon.
Okay, this girl's pokémon is only level 14. The eearr was probably 17 because it was all the backpacker had. Not as severe a gap, then, although I would still like to see fewer level 8s around now.
Hey now! Finally, our first double battle!
Hm, the positioning of the status marker is a little unfortunate there. Is there room to move it to the right during double battles, maybe?
Perhaps slightly more troubling, though, is the fact that Zin Falza went first even though Halmar is faster. I do recall noticing a bug in Essentials a while back that caused the leftmost pokémon on the player's team to always/sometimes act first regardless of speed in doubles, and although I personally never figured out what caused it I'm pretty sure it's fixed in the newer versions of the kit? Hm. Not sure if the devs know about this, but I'll probably bring it up as a bug report later just in case.
Granted, I'm not going to complain too hard right now because otherwise that other magnut would've cut in front of me, haha.
The good news is, apparently Zin Falza is going to learn gear grind at level 12–13! STAB technician gear grind, mmm, delicious. The bad news is, that guy's STAB technician gear grind just crit. Poop.
Okay, waaaait a minute here. At this point the collector has used magnut, squeaker and zuzumi, and the bug catcher has used hojacoon (switched out), maggona, polbee and moston? I'm not seriously about to fight twelve pokémon when I only have six, am I? The image a few screenshots up only shows four poké balls... so maybe that means four each, then? I mean, there is/was another Essentials error involving the wrong number of opposing pokémon being displayed in joint double battles, so that probably explains that, but... still, eight opponents for the game's first double battle is a bit of a tall ask! Doesn't help that Malda and Halmar are poisoned now on top of Zin Falza having fainted... ah, well, I think I can manage. I've still got Durvas. Nothing survives a good hustle double-kicking to the face.
(...and then the moston, who is 5 levels lower and I know for a fact very slow, somehow went before Durvas even before any other speed modifiers were in play. Yeeeeeah the doubles turn order is kind of jacked up.)
Whew! Okay, looks like the collector only had those three, then. This is one of those double battles where two distinct trainers see you at once, but you can also approach and battle them separately. If you're playing along and would rather avoid that hassle, I suggest you take them on one at a time... although while afaict it's never been possible to face more than six pokémon on a side in the canon games (canon optional-double-battles are set up so neither opponent has more than three pokémon), this battle was difficult but not completely unreasonable, so if you like a challenge then it's there. Your mileage may vary if you don't have several level 18/19s on you, though.
I cheated? You cheated, Little Miss Three "But" Types Plus An Extra Moston Of All Things To Sneak Your Side's Total Up To Seven!
Unfortunately we didn't get terribly far along the route, but my team is as messed up as the doubles turn order and I need to get ready to go anyway. The trek down Route 4 shall resume tonight!