If you doo a challenge run, what would you do?

[Morningstar]

The Lati@s poll and the complaints of the "casualization" of the franchise based on its difficulty has me wondering if anyone is doing challenge runs like Nuzlockes and what would they do if they do such runs

 

[Slow]

Of course people are doing them. It's just anyone serious about doing it for the challenge is likely to disallow things like Latias/Latios and the Exp. Share. Freebies and easy-mode doesn't stop people from finding ways to up the challenge level, so they'll just find/enforce more ways now, or just play it without modifying it and find it generally easy.

 

[Lysson]

I Nuzlocke in various ways. Typically where I can only use items I find and never use shops! Yes, caves make me scream.

I did a kind of blind Nuzlocke for Alpha Sapphire. I say kind of as I knew what megas there were but nothing else. However I did use Megas and Latias... would explain why I only had 2 deaths of Pokemon that I never used... I did turn off the exp share however.

Could also try a Nuzlocke where you can't evolve Pokemon?

 

[Sakuraa]

I do a combination of 1, 3, and somewhat 5.

From Y onwards, the EXP Share has gone off upon getting it. The only time I might turn it on is if I really need to get up in levels. (Like for a new team member)
I boxed Latios in OR and will do so to Latias in AS. I don't care for using Legendary Pokemon in-game anyway.
I don't know if I'd say I keep Pokemon underleveled intentionally, but rather I just try to make sure I'm not overleveled. Though in AS I haven't done any grinding or anything so technically I am underleveled and it is a pretty nice challenge. I just fought May (route 110) with my team 3 levels lower than her starter and she nearly destroyed me.

 

[Team Gaara]

Not going to be using EXP. Share, as per usual.
May reject warping options, but I may just do it if I don't feel like backtracking.
Will Box Latios just because I haven't planned for him to be on the team.
Not gonna try to "keep" my Pokemon underleveled, but I will not be overleveling them. I think the problem I had in AS was that I literally didn't use any Pokemon in my party that weren't planned for my team, making them get more experience and be a bit overleveled in the process. However, with my full team of 6 in OR, the struggle is real trying to keep them all at a decent level. I'm constantly getting near swept.

Additional rules for me:

No Pokemon-Amie to make things easier
No Super Training
Set instead of Switch
No excessive healing in or out of battle
Only if I really need to will I use a Revive and this is only for Trainer Battles, not important battles.

 

[Norzan]

- No Exp. Share
- Playing on Set (Shift is cheating to me)
- No healing items during battle
- No Pokemon Amie during the main playthrough
- No Mega Evolutions and Legendaries (I have the option of using a Mega if the opponent is a Mega user too)


I also will adopt a rule from Nuzlockes in my AS playthrough which is the first mon in a new area is the only i catch in that area. As soon as i get a full team i can't catch any new mons and that's my final team. Last, if the mon in a new area is one i already have, i get a second shot in that area.

The first four rules are my main rules for every main series game and the others are optional. All of these rules (except the Mega Evolution rule) are the rules of post-game battle facilities and online battling, to me that's how a pokemon game should be played.

 

[zoroarctic]

I don't buy more than ten potions at a time unless I'm trying to catch a legendary. It's much more difficult having to pick and choose your healing spots.

 

[Apawn:p]

Im doing a Spanish AS WounderLock where
can only catch one mon per route
faint=death
EP Share is on (do to bs lvl 2-3s so common on it)
no legendaries (unless traded it from WT)
Shinys are freebees, can catch even if you have already on route
ME is allowed
keep starter and wifi gifts

 

[Osprey]

I would turn off the Exp. Share and charge the Elite Four very underleveled. I honestly can't do a Nuzlocke and actually abide the most basic rules without coming up with exceptions all the time. Putting the battle style on "set" makes leveling a team more difficult, since switching out usually means taking a hit.

 

[Life]

If #2 is considered a "challenge" then I must be very bad-ass, because I traveled Hoenn with me and my trusty RYDEL bike. And that's it. That's as far as my bad-assory goes.

 

[BlackButterfree]

These don't really count as Challenge Runs but they do make the games somewhat more difficult for me, so I don't mind. I did this in X/Y and followed up in OR/AS.

Keep Exp. Share on. Battle every trainer up until about Route 7 (Kalos) and Slateport City (Hoenn), then avoid all optional battles like the plague. This makes it so that your Pokémon are slightly under-leveled. (By the time I faced the Kalos E4, my strongest was the same level as Diantha's weakest, while my team was pretty much even with Steven's and I still won both matches through spamming Revives and Full Restores.)

Use the first six Pokémon you catch/obtain. This barely counts as a Challenge because I can use any Pokémon I wish, but you stick with them for the full game, so it does take some thinking. In OR/AS, I did have Shiny Metagross and Demo Glalie on my team. But Metagross wasn't useful until he was fully evolved (thank you, Exp. Share!) and Glalie can't be used until Norman which is when she was needed because she was on par with his Slaking while my Swampert was about level 30... I've always done the "use your first six forever" method and have only started to use a rotation in my teams since BW2. A rotation can only be used post-Delta Episode is ORAS to clear all areas. Need those HM slaves lol

 

[Tyrfing]

I always turn off the EXP Share and always use Set in a Gen VI run. WHY is Shift a thing?! Also, my Pokemon always end up underleveled, even when I fight all the trainers, so there's that.

However, I did try a Wonderlocke once. It... wasn't pretty. Viola obliterated me and my team of six Level 2 Weedles.

 

[Morningstar]

I always turn off the EXP Share and always use Set in a Gen VI run. WHY is Shift a thing?!

It's could be seen as training wheels (The game letting you know in advance so that you can prepare) prolly meant to help beginners know the typechart like the Gym Leaders/Elite 4.

However, I did try a Wonderlocke once. It... wasn't pretty. Viola obliterated me and my team of six Level 2 Weedles.

Ouch. That had to been painful.

 

[firepanda]

Yeah, the standards for me are: no in-battle items, set, no fainting wild pokemon, no legendaries and no gen VI exp share. If I want to mix things up I'll usually do a monotype challenge.

 

[Team Gaara]

no fainting wild pokemon

What's that mean? No training/grinding?

 

[firepanda]

no fainting wild pokemon

What's that mean? No training/grinding?

Yeah. So minimise the experience I get, to prevent being overlevelled. That means no rematches or wild pokemon battles. On the other hand, my obsessiveness means I need to battle every trainer on any given route. That usually works, although I ended up being wildly overlevelled then wildly underlevelled in Johto. The difficulty curve in those games seems to do its best rollercoaster impression.

Also, wow your avatar. Sonic fan?

 

[Team Gaara]

Yeah. So minimise the experience I get, to prevent being overlevelled. That means no rematches or wild pokemon battles. On the other hand, my obsessiveness means I need to battle every trainer on any given route. That usually works, although I ended up being wildly overlevelled then wildly underlevelled in Johto. The difficulty curve in those games seems to do its best rollercoaster impression.

Also, wow your avatar. Sonic fan?

I get it. I do the same in terms of not trying to be overlevelled, but if it's to the point where I literally need to in order to progress, then I normally do some grinding. ORAS is a blessing in that regard, as I can rematch trainers, rather than getting destroyed by the wild Pokemon/not getting any experience from the wild Pokemon.

And yas.

 

[DoctorWhy]

I never used Lati@s anyway. And I only keep the Exp. Share on maybe half of the time, but that's only because I use and rotate more than 6 Pokemon.

Real challenges don't start at least until you do a monotype or unevolved challenge. Or a Nuzlocke of some sort.

 

[HyruleAlpha]

I'd turn off he Exp. Share, and not evolve any of my Pokémon.

 

[godiego]

At this point, besides severely gimping myself through limiting healing outside and in-battle as well as evolving Pokemon there isn't much I can do. Unless I went in completely blind with a game I'd just be able to maneuver around my restrictions.