Raichu´s ribbon story

[Siria]

Hi, I am Raichu. When I was still a Pikachu, I used to live in a place I later found out humans call the Safari zone. I was living there happily with my family, allways staying away from the people that came here. I was afraid they would take me away, but I must admit I was sometimes curious what lies behind those safe gates.
That all changed one night. I had a dream. In it I was at my home, when a strange human appeared basically out of nowhere. She was old, short lady with grey hairs and eyes. "Hello, little one," she told me. "I have a proposition for you. Tomorrow my granddaughter will come here. If you´d like, I think it would be best if you came with her. I promise that she will take good care of you and show you many sights you would not see otherwise." After that, I woke up.
The next morning, I admit I was curious. I wasn´t completely sold on that idea, but still decided to check that human out first. And sure, she would come. I knew right away she was the one. She even had the same eyes as the old lady.
She soon spotted me and looked at me expectantly. Then she threw a ball at me. That scared me so I jumped away. Then she threw the next one, and I decided it´s time for me to go. And maybe I am imagining things, but as I was sucked into the devide, I swear I heard a voice saying: "Thank you.".
As it turned out, my new trainer wasn´t bad person. She soon noticed that I was pretty shy, but still promised me she would make me stronger. And stronger she did make me. I mean, I must have eliminated basically whole Wingull population, especially after I learned Thunderbolt. But I got to admit, it was fun.
After I got strong enough, she showed me to some lady at the marketplace, and I got my first ribbon. It looked kind of nice.
Then we challenged the Elite four. Wow, what a ride! And for that achievment, I got another ribbon! Yay!
After that, she took me to a place called Battle tower. I wasn´t allowed to participate in battles until the very last ones (the work was done by my teammates Salamence, Metagross and Slaking, who left me his place for the last few battles), but still! New ribbon was mine!
Well, battles aren´t the only thing, as I soon found out. First my trainer gave me something she called PokeBlocks. Some tastet good, some worse, but overall, I was soon pretty full. Sooner than my trainer wished, apparently. But there was nothing she could do, I couldn´t stomach even one more.
That all was done in preparation for contests. There I was shown to judge, if I am good-looking enough (and that I am, thank you very much!), and then I got to show them my moves. It was fine, but I like battles definitely more. Especially since we did it over and over again, until I won in every category possible, and got my painting in the museum. I must say, I am quite proud of that one.
Then came more training. We beat the Elite 4. And again. And again. And again. It was basically trivial at this point, but I have to say I got the precious experience. It took some time, but I finally got to level 100, the best I can be. Even more amazingly, my trainer had Thunder stone for me, something many of my brethren, who still live in the Safari zone, speak only in hushed whispers. It allows us to evolve into Raichu. And into Raichu did I evolve. It was amazing feeling, and I felt much more powerfull.
We then tested my newfound power in the Battle tower again. Yes, I sat on the sidelines for most of the gauntlet, but when I was battling, I definitely pulled my weight.
And that was the last adventure I would have in my home. Tomorrow, my trainer said, we will be travelling to entirely different place, one called Shinnoh. I must admit I am pretty nervouscited. What is awaiting us there?

Trainers notes:
Yes, this is the story of my Raichu. He is pretty special to me, even tough he is not shiny or anything special. The day before I got my pokemon Sapphire, my beloved grandma died. Later, when I played the game, I went to the Safari zone to catch Pikachu. I mean, Raichu IS my favourite pokemon, and I wanted to have him in Safari ball. Well, the VERY FIRST encoutner I had was male Pikachu (which I was happy with, since I don´t like the heart shaped female Pikachu tales or the blunt tales of female Raichu). I caught him with my second ball and checked him. It has Timid nature. I mean, I am sure it was all a coincidence, but I still consider it the last gift my grandma gave me (and yes, we have the same eyes). So I will cherish him and plan to transfer him to all future generations.

 

[bdt2002]

When my laptop is fully charged later this week, I'll be sure to read this post in full, and give my full reaction to it then- because that's the thing. I'm an absolute sucker for people's nostalgic throwback stories. I love these kinds of stories because they teach us that Pokémon is more than just "that jRPG game for kids". To people like yourself, Pokémon represents so much more than that, with this Raichu having certainly become a crucial part of your life at this point. I get that it may sound strange for me to say something along the lines of a specific Pokémon being a part of one's life, but I don't know how else I'm supposed to word it. What else would your Raichu be called? Simple words we hear every day, like "companion" or "partner" just don't cut it for me.

To me, a word that would be much for fitting... is "friend". It is indeed possible for us to develop friendship with something or someone that does not exist within this reality- because to yourself, it's not fantasy. This is reality, and you that Raichu of yours have a history here that I can't wait to read more about. Say, you think your Raichu could recharge my laptop for me?

 

[Siria]

So, we now arrived into the lands of Sinnoh. The weather is much colder then what I am used to, so I am quite happy being in my warm, cozy Pokeball. I am creature from the tropics, you know! Dragging me into this cold wasteland is basically abuse.
And what is worse, we did spend a lot of time here, mainly in place called battle tower. See, if I want to get all the ribbons, then my trainer needs to defeat at least 50 opponents in each mode. That is brutal. Luckily, I can just sit down and watch and come only for the last battle, or, in case of basic single battles, for the last gauntlet of seven.
Between those, we also did contest. Again. Yay. And they were harder then in Hoenn. And what´s worse, you need to dress up for the presentation AND dance with that get-up. It is beyond embarassing. Is there a PETA for Pokemon? If so, I need their number. RIGHT NOW!
Then I had to show my moves to the judges. This time, there were three. But after all I´ve been through, I didn´t want to show it to them. I wanted to USE my moves on them. Yes, Dexter, would you be jumping for joy after getting a dose of Thunderbolt? I don´t think so.

Tell me, please, how are pink fluffy clouds supposed to make me look tough again???

Can you even see me under all that??? Now imagine dancing with that load.

It certainly didn´t help that I had less then perfect contests stats, whatever that means. That make things even harder, which meant we had to repeat them multiple times. Somebody please save me now.

On the bright side, we, or at least my trainer, finally managed to conquer all of the battle tower. Finally, we were free, and based on what she said, the worst was behind us.

Next was defeating the local Pokemon League, which wasn´t that hard.

We also made stop by some guy who looked at the footprints I made in the sand. OK, that´s not creepy at all... but I got at least another ribbon. I mean, I am a guy, but that doesn´t mean I don´t like good bling. And the more the better. This is also the only reason why I didn´t shock my trainer into oblivion.

But the fun didn´t stop here. We also went to the regions of Johto and Kanto. There we defeated one trainer who tought he was the best. Well, I showed his Pikachu who is the best electric rodent here!

Also, in this place I could go outside of Pokeball, so we used it a lot. Sometimes, as we walked, I managed to find a strange shiny leaf. After I found five of them, we visited a guy who made a crown from them for me. Cool! Also, my trainer got a certificate. Can someone explain to me please what it is?

Me, with my shiny crown

,
Certificate for my trainer

While walking, we also visited Viridian forest, place where Pikachu come from originally. We even met some of them. That was also pretty sweet. Anyway, seems that we will be moving soon again. We already have booked flight to Kalos, with transfer in Unova. This should be fun!

Trainers notes: Wow, this gen was definitely a ride. It has record number of new ribbons, most of which aren´t exactly easy to get. Yes, the daily ones are breeze, but the contest and especially battle tower is terrible, especially the mode where you partner with NPC for double battles. The AI isn´t exactly stellar, which in this case is a hinderance. Oh, and did I mention the slow battle system of Sinnoh? No wonder it took me more than a year to complete!

Anyway, onwards to the new generations! Unova we only use as a transfer station and after a short stop in Alola for defeating the local Pokemon league, we will go to Alpha Sapphire to get rest of gen6 ribbons. And you know what that means. That´s right! Raichu is coming home!

Also, if you wonder about his weird name - I named him after the place where my grandma lived and where I have many fond memories, so everytime I send him into battle, it makes me remeber her. That way, I don´t forget, as long as I have this Raichu by my side!

 

[Siria]

Now came another part of my story. We shorty (and I mean really shortly) stopped in Unova, and then we went for a trip to Kalos (which my trainer calls not-France).
Here we defeated the Pokemon League and I obtained another ribbon. After that, we went back to Hoenn. But it was very different from what I remember. We even went on a small trip back to Safari zone, my original home. But how it changed! Back then, humans weren´t allowed to battle us in clasic fashion. Instead, they simply had to throw Safari balls at us, or some mud od PokeBlocks.
Now, there are no Safari balls to be seen, and I did battle one of the Pikachu here. Sad thing is, they didn´t even remember me. Well, time to move on.
First we went to Pokemon Maison, which replaced Pokemon Tower for some reason. This was suprisingly easy. And then came contests. Before then, I ate more PokeBlocks. This time they were rainbow ones. Well, they were good at least.
I have to say, those were the easies performances to win I ever experienced. Yes, It was that easy.
But after obtaining all those ribbons, it was once again time to say goodbye. Next up we go to the tropical region known as Alola. In that, I am pretty interested.

Trainers notes:
This finished Gen6 ribbons, and I have to say, those were the easiest ones. On another note... I finished getting ALL the available ribbons on my Raichu! That´s right, until Home is updated with acces to trading between SW/SH and BDSP, we are finished! The last one was obviously the Master Rank ribbon for winning one battle in Master rank in Ranked battles.
This was difficult because I had to start from begginer Rank. I decided for doubles, since I have more experiences with those in PvP, but it took me almost a month to get to the master rank. Month of battling DAILY.
Yep, there is the fact that I was at first using s-itty team, and as soon as I changed it completely, I got to the Master Rank in a few days, but still.
Anyway, the last battle was also something.
I start with Calyrex-S and Groudon. My opponent sends out Thundurus and Kyogre. And I immediately get important information: Kyogre was NOT scarfed (since my Calyrex-S abilities activated first), but also was faster then my Groudon. I EVd my Groudon intentionaly that way, so he can win a weather war in cases like this.
Now, I tell Calyrex-S to use Astral Barrage and Groudon Rock slide (to hit Thundurus too). I am certain that no water attack can KO either of them.
Kyogre Dynamaxes, but that is still OK - even his Max water attack isn´t gonna KO either of my mons, thanks to the sun.
But then Thundurus comes in with a mischievous grin. "Thunder!" (Raichu! Are you telling the story or am I?) "Sorry, trainer, go on!!
Thundurus says "It looks like rain!" and starts doing his frantic dance.
Well, that priority Rain Dance kinda flipped the tables. Now Kyogre would KO any of my mons. And here it was that my opponent made a critical mistake - he targeted Groudon.
But first went my Calyrex-S. He did more than quarter of HP damage to Kyogre, but also more importantly KOed the Thundurus. And got the Sp.Attack boost. Groudon of course went down to Max Geyser, before he could even attack.
I send out Venusaur next, my opponent Zacian-C. Well... what now? Even with the boost, Calyrex-S won´t KO the Kyogre. So what to do? I decided to Gigantamax Venusaur and use G-Max Vine Lash to a) KO Kyogre and b) for some passive damage. Like, it WAS a nice plan, but... basically, Zacian went for Behemoth blade on Venusaur and killed him before he could attack. Calyrex then goes for Astral Barrage, does plenty of damage to Kyogre, but more importantly KOes Zacian. But then, Kyogre goes for Max Hailstorm! I think he wanted to be sure Venusaur dies. But because of it, he didn´t KO Calyrex and his trusty steed! He took away about half of their HP tough.
I send out my last mon, Charizard and he sends out his - Celesteela. In normal circumestances, that would be great, but we have Kyogre here still, so my fire lizard is basically useless. Still, I have Calyrex, and he outspeeds both of his opponents. Celesteela doesn´t resist ghost attact and doesn´t have the best special defense. Not to mention, Calyrex is now at +2. It is no wonder then that he kill her in one hit. I went for Flamethrower on Celesteela in case it did live, but it didn´t so it was directed to Kyogre and does very, very minisule amount of damage. Kyogre goes for Max Geyser and this time he KOes Calyrex. But it is too late - he only has tiny, tiny sliver of HP.
Not only that, but also his Dynamax ended. And Charizard outspeeds. Any attack would KO him. So it´s no wonder that my opponent decided to end the battle.
But that also meant, that Raichu finally got his last ribbon! Finally! My quest is done for now! So happ!
Now I am training a team in my Brilliant Diamond for Battle Tower, so I can get to the last gauntlet before the patch comes.
Anyway, what a ride.

 

[Siria]

I have to say it: MY TRAINER IS AN IDIOT! There is a reason why I didn´t post for so long. After we visited Sinnoh again (and yes, it is still cold there), my trainer tought that one of the ribbons I have t get is the Battle tower ribbon. First she tought you get the ribbon for battling Palmer at the 50th battle, but then she found out I have to beat Palmer in Master Class battles - and he is the last opponent in the 10th rank!
So we spend several months training my teammates (Garchomp and Cloyster) and climbed the ranks. It was hard. But after we finally got to rank 8th (by that time we had accumulated about 700 battle points), she found out that I already HAVE that ribbon, from beating Leon in Galar Battle Tower (which was significantly easier, I might add). So, all that work and grinding for nothing!
So we went for contest. After several attempts I managed to get the Coolness ribbon. Then she decided to get the Briliant contest. Since I got handicapped there for visual appeal for some unexplained reason, it wasn´t easy.
Like, the Normal and Super ranks weren´t hard, we got on the first try, but the Ultra one... was somethign else. I couldn´t for my life beat it, but luckily we found out that to get to next rank you don´t need to win - you just need to put on succesfull show, which we all in the end managed.
Then came the master rank. This was terrible. It took literal HOURS of attempts, because even tough I had maxed out all stats, wore a scarf and my trainer put maximal amount of capsules on my PokeBall, my visual was still slightly over 50 %. And the melody was hard. Like, really hard. But after like 3 hours of trying I got lucky. Finaly, I won. And since I already had all the other contest ribbons from Hoenn, I got the Twinkling Star ribbon - my last one. Finaly I am done!

Trainer notes: I am really stupid. I tought I had to take on Battle tower, even tough Raichu already HAS this ribbon. And I didn´t found out until MUCH later. Grrr. In the end it turned out that even tough the original Sinnoh had most ribbons from all the games, the remake has the least one (with the exception of 5th gen - one). Plus, since my previous contest ribbons counted even here, I just needed to beat the Briliant contest (even tough it is the hardest one) to be done - which was complete in ONE day, instead of month I spend griding the tower.
But it doesn´t matter. Now I can return back to shiny hunting Arceus, while I wait for Scarlet/Violet to be released and their compatiblity with Home allowed, which won´t be for many months yet. Now I can be glad that I have for now completed my goal.

 

[Volt-Ikazuchi]

Are you sure you ain't a Zoroark or a Ditto?

All jokes aside, pretty wholesome story, and I respect the grind. Good work.

 

[Siria]

View attachment 449803
View attachment 449804 Are you sure you ain't a Zoroark or a Ditto?

All jokes aside, pretty wholesome story, and I respect the grind. Good work.

Pssst! Don´t give away my secret identity!

 

[Siria]

Wow, in my wildest dreams I never tought I would time-travel! Yet that´s exactly what happened. I traveled to the past of Sinnoh. Like crazy! But the weather is even colder there than in modern times. And I don´t like it.
I even met Alpha Raichu, which was aweseome. I mean, I´ve heard about alphas of course when I still lived in the wild and listened to the stories the elders told us young ones, but they vere considered myth from ancient times. Now I managed to meet living, breathing one! Amazng!

Like, can you see how BIG the Alpha is?

Then, to commemorate my time travel, I got a photo done in the local studio. I struck the coolest pose I could imagine.

But soon after that, I got to rest and retire at Home. It is nice cozy place where I can chill and relax until it will be time to tackle new region. I´ve heard that next time I am going somewhere called Paldea. That will be cool, but I think I earned a little rest for now.

Trainers notes:
So, I found out I am actualy one ribbon short on my Raichu! How could this happen? Well, by programing oversight of the developers, of course! :-D Just recently I´ve heard that there actualy IS a ribbon in Legends:Arceus, called Pioneer ribbon. Getting it is simple - you have to take a photo with the Pokemon in the studio in Jublife village. The problem is, altough it IS flagged, it doesn´t show on the summary screen, neither in L:A, BDSP, SWiSH or Home. But it exist in the pokemons data.
There were test done with the ribbon institute in BDSP - person went there for the first time with pokemon with 9 visible ribbons and the "hidden one" from L:A. And they vere admitted. This proves that this ribbon is indeed there and as such I felt obligated to get it.

After that, I finaly transfered Raichu back to Home, where he would stay until connectivity for Scarlet and Violet is released. I even favourited him, so when I open the app in my phone, it´s Raichu who meets me in my room. Also, this way I can take him anywhere (since I take my phone) and I can see his ribbons. So, for now we are done.

Raichu in my room

Raichu´s summary and ribbons in Home. So happy with this work. :-) Just a shame that Battle Tower ribbon is blue, but I couldn´t make a connection for the Wi-fi ribbon in gen 4. Also there is missing one from Colosseum or XD, but since I don´t have those games, I had to pass (uless they release them on Switch and make trading possible for mons gen1-3.