Let's Play Touhoumon - Gotta Graze 'Em All!

[memnarch]

Philosopher's stone move set. Cuz that's one of her Extra spells.

[SephlidJam]

Philosopher's Stone. Because it's the Patchy-est.

[Mirrinus]

Let's Play Touhoumon - Chapter 3-3

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Today I come bearing a scathing exposé of the shocking underground gambling scene gathering around Vermilion City. Drawing in children as young as 10 years old, this decadent wave of corruption has found roots in the route bordering the town.

First things first, the S.S. Anne departed as soon as I stepped off. What would I have done if it had left while I was on? Actually...that would have been a nice vacation.

Instead, I got to step out onto Route 11, where the local trainers go to practice. Little did I know, this route was filled with the most unsavory sort of characters.

The first person I met talked of cheating, which I should have recognized was a distressing sign. How would I cheat, and why would it matter? Obviously, there must have been something very sinister going on here. As it turned out, the training ground of Route 11 was little more than a cover for a nefarious gambling ring. I met several such gentlemen hustlers here, including this next displeasing fellow.

This man thought he could conceal his disreputable nature by hiding under the title of "gamer", but I saw him for what he truly was: a gambler. Carrying a cup of dice and rambling about winning bets, this was the sort of person you'd never think would be a responsible Touhoumon trainer. How shameful.

Their lust for the thrill of gambling knows no bounds. They are not afraid of corrupting even children into their unwholesome vice.

These kids don't have the income to sustain a large gambling addiction like the adults do, but the seed has been planted. Look how eager they are to battle, betting their lunch money on the outcome of a glorified cockfight.

Some show a half-hearted attempt at being responsible trainers, but they seek not the well-being of their Touhoumon. They see only what their tools can accomplish for them in the arena, preparing them only for battle with no regard towards their happiness.

They even neglect their studies to concentrate on this debauchery, spending their precious mornings all for the sake of their gambling habit rather than sleep or study.

As for the gamblers themselves, some are so painfully addicted to their vice that they continue to revel in it despite admitting to have never won. Even if they wanted to quit, they can't.

Others were so drunk on their own professed sense of victory that they could not see the precipice looming just ahead of them. Boasting of their successes and denying their failures as nothing but luck, they did not recognize that they were a slave of their very whims.

Even normally honest and hard-working men of various professions can be drawn into this dark underworld.

I met such folk working on the power cables at the outskirts of town, or so they claimed. But were they really going to fix the cables here, or were they merely stealing out to quench their addiction for gambling?

Personally, I remain doubtful of their sincerity, if only for the fact that I don't actually see any cables out here. What kind of excuse is that?

Such is the deplorable state of Route 11. I only hope that the local authorities will catch wind of this soon and put an end to such shameful behavior. But of course, I doubt that will happen. After all, Gensokyo does not seem to have the best law enforcement ever.

Turning my thoughts away from such dark matters, I made my way to the watchtower at the edge of Route 11.

Here I met Professor Oak's aide, who offered me a nifty gadget if I had fulfilled a certain objective for him. So, he's really going to bribe me to finish his Ayanote project for him? What kind of researcher does he think he is? Oh, sorry, I'm just so quick to assume the worst of people nowadays...

Glancing out of the binoculars at the watchtower, I spied something down below. Actually, it was just as easy to see without any visual aid, given how close that thing was, but whatever. A sizable creature was lying in the middle of the road on Route 12, blocking off any possible passage.

I climbed back down to confirm this for myself, and sure enough it was true. An enormous turtle was lounging in the road. I tried to wake it up by hitting it, but the thing refused to budge. And for some reason, it never even occurred to me to just climb over it, use the fence as a boost, or just jump into the water and swim around it (hey, of course I can swim). Dejected, I returned back the way I came.

There was still one more landmark on Route 11 for me to explore: Yamame's Cave. I had already come here earlier to find new species of Touhoumon, but this time I was resolved to fight my way through the entire long and winding cave. As I traveled through it, I met a fellow traveler who told me how to prepare for the upcoming Rock Tunnel. Apparently, no one in this world has heard of flashlights or even lanterns. Weird, eh?

I emerged all the way back in Route 2. However, my path was blocked by a two-foot-tall plant. How can I ever get past such an insurmountable obstacle? Why, with my trusty machete HM01, Cut! Let's see who can...oh, wait. I've got no one to use it yet.

Time to go back all the way to Vermilion City. *sigh*

At the Eirin Center, I picked out just the cute little thing to wield the awesome power of cutting down small plants: a chibi Minoriko. Plowing my way through Yamame's cave for the third time, we hacked apart the insurmountable two-foot-tall plant with extreme prejudice.

Our reward was another one of Professor Oak's aides, this time offering me the HM05, Flash. Are these guys stalking me? Or are they just waiting at arbitrary locations and expecting me to eventually come to them? What if I never found this guy? Would he just wait here for the rest of his mortal life?

Aw...now I'm regretting coming all the way here, if only to find out the answer to that question.

Wow, you guys are showing quite a bit of solidarity on that last vote. Can't say I'm surprised.

[Terraoblivion]

We went for the obvious pick. And let's just say that the state of Gensokyo truly is terrible. Incompetent law enforcement, prolific vice and so-called "Aides" stalking young women!

Not sure Maribel is really doing anything useful about it, though.

[Assassin89]

The closest to law enforcement in Gensokyo is Marissa and Reimu. Then there is Kotohime, a loony who thinks she is a princess and a police officer.

Will the chibi Minoriko be given a nickname later or will she probably be forgotten again?

[Mirrinus]

Let's Play Touhoumon - Chapter 3-4

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With HM05 in hand and a chibi Minoriko mercilessly hacking a path of destruction past two-foot-tall plants, I made my way to the Vermilion City gym.

Now that I've gotten that broken bridge out of the way, I'm sure this gym will be a breeze to get past. Right? Right?

Locked door with switch puzzles? Eh...this can't be too bad, can it? I mean, if it's designed to be solved by ten-year-olds...

Conveniently, the other trainers in the gym are willing to give me hints for solving this puzzle. This one tells me that the switches are hidden inside something. Gee...I wonder what it could be? Taking a look around, I see trash cans...and absolutely nothing else. Gosh, did the gym leader really think no one would try to look in the only hiding places available here? Who does he think he is? Solid Snake?

Apparently so. After poor Shinku had something precious stolen, this trainer refused to divulge any useful information. How loyal of him.

There was only one more person left to question, and he just had to start the fight off on the wrong foot.

Calling me a kid again? I'm going to torment you so badly, you'll beg me to let you spill everything you know. And I have just the person to carry out the task.

After threatening the man with Suppa Tenko, he told me everything I needed to know about the gym's switch puzzle. It's nice to see there are still turncoats in the armed forces.

Unfortunately, simply knowing how the puzzle works doesn't mean I have it solved already. What followed next was a lesson in frustration.

From trash can to trash can I looked, my heart leaping each time I find one switch, only for my hopes to be dashed to pieces immediately.

I suppose I should count my lucky stars that there isn't vomit in these cans, unlike before...

Who keeps resetting this puzzle anyway? How does a switch just magically disappear whenever I happen to look in the wrong spot?

Seriously now, this is really starting to tick me off. How long does he expect me to root through garbage for some secret switch to open a god-forsaken door? This is so not worth a gym badge.

I have had it with these money-faking trash cans in this Monday-to-Friday gym!!!

All right, that's it! Surge is a dead man!

Hey, if you want to nickname our HM slaves, go right ahead! In fact, I'll even let you pick who to teach Flash to. I think these are all the characters I've caught so far that can learn Flash:

Shizuha
Minoriko
Sanae
Medicine
Sunnymilk
Lunachild
Star Sapphire
Satori
Koishi

However, note that I can't change nicknames until I reach Lavender Town (which isn't that far from now), unless I re-catch them.

Or, alternatively, I can give it to Patchouli, and delete it later on when I get to Fuchsia City. In this game, Flash is actually a pretty good move, with 60 base power, Psychic type, and reduces accuracy.

Oh, and a summary of my team thus far is now up on the first post of this thread. I'll also post it here:

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[Domochevsky]

Man, i wish these screenshots were twice as big. Have to squint pretty hard to see anything on them. >_<

[Assassin89]

I vote for Medicine for flash and nickname her Hinaichigo.
As for Minoriko, Kurumi because she will be forgotten after Celadon.

[Terraoblivion]

I don't really have a vote for this. Just don't stick it on Patchy.

However, i noticed a potential problem. What a lot of Psychic types you are using; Alice, Ran and Patchy are all Psychic. I also noticed that you are using both Bug type Touhoumon in the game. Pretty impressive when you think about it.

[Mirrinus]

I don't really have a vote for this. Just don't stick it on Patchy.

However, i noticed a potential problem. What a lot of Psychic types you are using; Alice, Ran and Patchy are all Psychic. I also noticed that you are using both Bug type Touhoumon in the game. Pretty impressive when you think about it.

Beach Alice is Water/Ice, so that's one less psychic type for us when we get there. But yes, I am using both Bugs in the game, which is rather amusing. At least they're both pretty decent.

The choices for the next vote on who to join the team shall be most sadistic, yes...

[Mirrinus]

Hey, I did say at the beginning that I was making up the story as I went along. But now it's time for me to start having some more fun with the game. SOHCAHTOA!

Let's Play Touhoumon - Chapter 4-1

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Okay. I'm positive I'm not crazy. Am I? I don't know. All I do know is that today, I've had ample reason to start questioning my perception of this world. You know, as if a world where fiction is truer than reality isn't already reason enough.

It began as soon as I defeated the Vermilion City gym leader, Lt. Surge. After assuaging my fury at his ridiculous trash can puzzle, I managed to calm down enough to ask him a question that's been bugging me ever since I found out who he was. If his title is the Lightning American, what was he doing here in Gensokyo? Since when did Americans get to come here?

He seemed rather surprised when I asked him, but also strangely understanding, as if he were sizing me up. He didn't give me a straight answer, but rather, his reply was...most puzzling.

When pressed further on the issue, he refused to give me any more information. Sensing that this was a dead end, I didn't press the issue any further. Although, I have to admit, I'm still wondering about just what he meant by all that.

With the Vermilion gym conquered, I could now fully enjoy myself in this city. Checking out the few remaining buildings that I haven't been to yet, I got to meet some interesting people. The first was a man obsessed with fishing.

The finest poetry...yeah, sure. I'm sure you can wring a lot of creativity out of a rod that can only catch a single species of Touhoumon.

The other location of interest was the Touhou fan club. That really puzzled me a bit, as I was starting to wonder if I really was in Gensokyo, or if I've just been wandering an anime convention this whole time.

Thinking I could get some more information on this world from the president of such a prestigious fan club, I agreed to listen to what he had to say. Unfortunately...

...he said absolutely nothing of importance. If anything, he creeped me with his obsession...particularly the part about his sleeping habits. I did not need to hear that, thank you very much.

At least he was gentlemanly enough to give me something useful for the time and brain bleach I spent on him. If this is what the club president is like, I don't think I'll be missing much if I just skipped town right now.

As I headed north back to Cerulean City, I took the time to help Asakura catch up a bit from missing out at the last gym.

The trainer blocking the insurmountable two-foot-high plant had moved aside by now, so entering the city proved a lot easier than before.

One quick trip to the bike store, and I was now seated on a sweet new bicycle. The ride feels all the more smoother knowing that I never had to pay the outrageous price gouging shop for it.

Next stop: Route 9!

As is par for the course, I was immediately assaulted by a kid who really should consider better choice of words.

Deception? How so? Are you saying I'm a reverse trap? Wait a minute...

I met quite a few mountain hikers in this area. I don't know why they were so eager to spend all their Touhoumon at me, but at least none of them called me a little kid...yet.

It's a really strange world when I feel more uncomfortable with what the little kids say to me than what the adult men say. I guess I could take that as a complement, but if this kid thinks he can hit on me or my beloved team, he's got another thing coming.

Luckily, my partners knew just how to take care of them. Our newest teammate, Tachikoma, performed beyond my expectations.

Others may try to imitate our success, but they don't stand up to the original spider tank. Accept no substitutes.

You know, it puzzles me that I never get to see any other trainers battling each other. It's almost as if everyone were just waiting for me to pass by...

Eh, I'm sure it's nothing. More experience for me!

Route 9 eventually lead into Route 10, which was a short and stubby route leading into the Rock Tunnel we've heard so much about. A river ran near a patch of tall grass, which was quite convenient, as I had wanted to try out my new fishing rod anyway.

There were only two new wild species available here, but I figured I'd find a few more once I got past the tunnel. Maybe I ought to pick up yet another member before taking on the next gym.

Even more convenient was the Eirin Center located just outside Rock Tunnel, allowing me to switch up my party. And good thing, too! Because as I soon found it...

...it's not fun stumbling around blindly in the pitch black darkness. Why, oh why, wasn't the flashlight invented yet? Looks like it's finally time to bust out that HM05.

So here's what we'll do for the next team member vote: since there's only one new Touhoumon available in each upcoming area, I'll just list all the ones I expect to see in Chapter 4 together for this vote. And here they are:

A. Hina Kagiyama (Poison, annoyer/physical sweeper)
B. Cirno (Ice > Ice/Water, special sweeper)
C. Suika Ibuki (Fighting/Rock, physical sweeper)
D. Hong Meiling (Fighting > Fighting/Dragon, physical sweeper or physical tank)
E. Reisen II (Psychic, annoyer/special sweeper; do not confuse with Reisen Udongein Inaba)
F. Keine kamishirasawa (Several final forms each with different types; in general, her human forms lean towards special while her hakutaku form leans towards physical; can tank or sweep.)

Lots of crowd favorites here...so take your pick!

[Terraoblivion]

So Gensokyo is actually located in Shibuya? I didn't quite expect that...wonder what happened to Shibuya to make it so rural. I can understand why Maribel is getting worried about her sanity, really. Not nice of the kids to call her a reverse trap either, especially since she hardly looks like that.

And this is indeed sadistic. There is of course only one of these characters i can vote for, but it means giving up some of my favorites. It will be a shame to be without Cirno and Suika and i have also gotten more fond of Keine lately, but there is no way around it. The one and only Touhoumon i can vote for here is Meiling, even if you have no Sakuya to match her up with.

[memnarch]

If what I found online was right, Mokou isn't available until after the E4...

so I'll vote for the next closest; Keine Kamishirasawa! Blarg, people to focused on Meiling & Suika. I'll change mine to Meiling.

[kamikasei]

B. Cirno (Ice > Ice/Water, special sweeper)
C. Suika Ibuki (Fighting/Rock, physical sweeper)
D. Hong Meiling (Fighting > Fighting/Dragon, physical sweeper or physical tank)

Hnnnnnnnnnghuah! *head asplodes*

I! But! You! Argh!

...Suika. "Ontherocks".

[Rolaran]

Gotta go with Suika! The oni are two of my favorite characters, and we already missed Yuugi. Maybe her power will kick in, and gather fans to vote for her

As for a nickname, I don't know. Preferably something that works with her being evolved into a Miko Miko Suika. Yes, that's in the game.

[The Dark Fiddler]

D. Hong Meiling (Fighting > Fighting/Dragon, physical sweeper or physical tank)

Oh hell yes.

[Prime32]

Meiling. I'd say Cirno, but you've already got a Water/Ice type.

[Assassin89]

As much as I wanted a Cirno nicknamed Suiseiseki, for the sake of team balance, I vote for Meiling, who is totally a dragon. Nickname: Ku Fei

As for a nickname for Suika, Demogirl, because she's drunk no one else here has an excuse.

[kamikasei]

A better suggestion than my first for Suika's nickname: Oniplane?

Although a Ku Fei Meiling is tempting...

[Tengu_temp]

Crap. I'm having flashbacks to the Best Female Character ITP competition, where votes where often filled with such terribly hard choices.

Suika. And I hate this game.

[Terraoblivion]

Meiling is a great deal smarter than Ku Fei, though. Not that it is a big feat, but still. Or at least she is usually smarter than Ku Fei, the Life of Maid portrayal has Meiling be even dumber than that other Chinese martial artist.

[Drascin]

Yeah, this is one hard choice. Meiling or Suika? Arrgh. Can't vote against Meiling, can't vote against an Oni.

Meiling. And curse this stupid game.

[Tome]

I'm going to have to go for Ku Fei Meiling.

[kamikasei]

Yeah, this is one hard choice. Meiling or Suika? Arrgh. Can't vote against Meiling, can't vote against an Oni.

Look at it this way. You vote against Meiling? Meiling suffers one more minor disappointment. She's used to it. She gets worse than that every day. We'll give her a consolation cookie and she'll go find comfort with Sakuya when the boss isn't watching.

Vote against Suika? You'll make Suika sad. That's like kicking forty puppies. That's as many as four tens.

[Terraoblivion]

That's like kicking forty puppies. That's as many as four tens.

And that's terrible!

I still say Meiling, though. She doesn't deserve further disappointments, poor girl is mistreated enough already. Also she gets to look pretty damn awesome at higher levels of evolution.

[kamikasei]

You'll be taking her away from her Sakuya! That's too precious a thing for Magical Mary to steal.

[Cubey]

This choice is evil. So sadistic.

Suika. Call her Tsurupettan ("Don't call me flat chested! T_T").

[Terraoblivion]

A character too many, Cubey.

And you make a good point, Kami. However, Meiling deserves to go out and show that she can handle herself, though. How would she do that if she just stays at home with Sakuya? She needs to have success for once.

[Drascin]

Look at it this way. You vote against Meiling? Meiling suffers one more minor disappointment. She's used to it. She gets worse than that every day. We'll give her a consolation cookie and she'll go find comfort with Sakuya when the boss isn't watching.

Vote against Suika? You'll make Suika sad. That's like kicking forty puppies. That's as many as four tens.

I'm pretty sure Suika is genetically incapable of being sad .

Though on the other hand, when we get ahold of a Byakuren (I wonder where they appear, though?) we'll have well enough kungfu in the team anyway...

Blargh.

[Neon Knight]

Meiling. And nickname her Chun-Li, because we need some variety in our references.