Writing PMD: Explorers of Time - PokéBeach Edition! Final Chapter! Help Me Decide The Next One!

I definitely suggest going to Zero Isle South, although East or West are cool too. Zero Isle North isn't worth your time, too easy.

Secret Missions are seven missions that allow you to fight (and later on recruit) seven legendaries and obtain their treasures, items which increase the recruitment rate for Pokemon of a specific type. You can download those missions via WFC (or at least you could, dunno if it's still supported) or by entering the correct Wonder Mail code, which you can find around the net.
 
Oh dear. Don't go to Zero Isle just yet, I'm pretty sure that's the incredibly difficult dungeon which requires planning and awesome knowledge of the game mechanics to get through and the dungeon which I've heard loads of horror stories about. Maybe later? :]

Edit: Judging from CJ's ninja, it's not? What is?
 
We are in dire need of sarcasm tags.

Zero Isle North is the easiest of the Zero Isle dungeons. The level scales as you climb floors however; it starts from 50 in the first ten floors or so, but when you reach 50+ (total floors are 75), the levels will have gotten as high as 80 or 90. Also, no Pokemon can be recruited, and you gain no exp. If you got a job there, then I hope it's not too deep inside.

Zero Isle East reduces your team to level 1 for the dungeon (you will be back to normal when you come out). You can still level inside the dungeon, but any levels and TMs you used in the dungeon disappear. You can also only bring up to 16 items. Again, you can't recruit.

Zero Isle West is similar to east, with the additional restriction that you cannot bring any items with you.

Zero Isle South is the game's ultimate dungeon It employs all restrctions of Zero Isle West, and it also forces you to enter alone. Oh, and it has 99 floors.

All Zero Isles have tremendous rewards. The Kecleon shops sell extremely rare items, you can find items that allow you to encounter legendary Pokemon in dungeons, as well as Pokemon-specific items for legendaries. But I wouldn't advise you to go there just yet.
 
Ahahaha, no wonder the missions were so many stars. Because I'm back stuck in Crevice Cave again (stupid lack of saving), I can't actually see what the jobs I grabbed were, or how deep they are, or even which quadrant they're in. I guess I'll check that out later. If the jobs aren't too deep, I might decide to give it a go just to see how terrible it is, otherwise I can always delete them and grab new jobs from the boards.
 
It's not terrible; it's the challenge you've been waiting for all along. I just wouldn't advise it yet. Zero Isle North you obviously can't go due to being underleveled, but later on it's a pretty good way to test your mettle with a Lv.100 fully evolved team. As for the other Zero Isles, East and West test good team combos and proper item usage, although again I wouldn't suggest trying these since you have no legendary. As you have probably determined, HP is really important in this game. Lv.1 legendaries have 40-70 HP, while Lv.1 starters, even fully evolved, have much less (keep in mind that legendaries need more exp to level though). Many legendaries also have good starting movesets. Same thing goes for Zero Isle South. Zero Isle South, however, (as well as Purity Forest, the ultimate dungeon of Blue/Red Rescue Team and Destiny Tower, the ultimate dungeon of Explorers of Sky) also involves a lot of RNG. Since you are alone and itemless, you can't depend on team combos or proper item stocking. Instead, you need to find the correct balance between levelling and grinding while properly managing hunger and TMs, assuming you were lucky enough to find them. In other words, if you get unlucky and find no food, or your TMs suck, or Max Elixirs are nowhere to be seen, you're screwed no matter how good you are. I've personally only completed Zero Isle North, as about then I got bored of the game, but I did try the other three dungeons enough to get an idea. I'm thinking of digging out the game from years of dust and try them again.
 
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I tried Zero Isle North, and only got to the 5th floor, despite being relatively high-leveled. Only lost that quickly because I accidentally walked into a Monster House and forgot to use floor-sweeping moves and got swept out of the dungeon.
 
Ugh, I really wish I had properly saved after that last bit. Took me another 4 tries just to get through the last 4 levels of Crevice Cave because I kept getting OHKOed by Empoleons. >_< Finally made it past, though, and I've begun working on more filler dungeons.
 
Chapter P3: Finally found the next plot!​

More filler dungeons, woo! Finally we got bored and consulted a mystical oracle about where to go next, and they directed us to Teal, who we finally found at the very bottom floor of the Guild.


<Teal> Oh, hey guys! I haven't seen you in a while.
<Athena> Yeah, well, the job boards are upstairs, so we don't really have much of a reason to come down here very often... >_>
<Teal> That's fine. I just wanted to tell you guys about this cool new dungeon I discovered, the Surrounded Sea?
<Keeper> Ooooh, new dungeon!
<Athena> It's full of Water-type Pokémon, isn't it? *sigh*
<Teal> Of course! But there's mad crazy treasure there, too.
<Athena> Fine, fine, we'll go check it out.​


Since getting OHKOed by Water-type attacks isn't exactly my idea of a fun time, Keeper and I went through the dungeon as quickly as possible, rushing for the staircases each level. I still got KOed a couple times, and we got surprised by a Monster House, but we managed to make it all the way through to the end where we picked up 3 treasure chests and also... an egg?


<Athena> Oh, great, another egg as a prize. *sigh* I don't know why the game developers thought that giving someone a Lv. 1 Pokémon was some kind of reward.
<Keeper> Game developers?
<Athena> Never mind, it's a human thing.
<Keeper> Yeah, I guess those eggs that we've gotten as rewards for completing jobs haven't been that useful... but this is a pretty fancy egg! Maybe it's got a really awesome Pokémon or something?
<Athena> Maybe. Or it could just be a plot trigger. Who knows. Anyway, just stuff it in the bag and lets get back to town before I get OHKOed again.​


We teleported back and went to sleep almost right away. When we woke up in the morning, the egg was sitting next to us in its own bed of hay.


<Athena> The egg gathered its own hay bed? o_o;;;
<Keeper> No, that was me. I felt sorry for it being shoved in the bag all alone, so I thought a nest might make it feel at home!
<Athena> You're way too attached to that thing.
<Keeper> Aren't you supposed to be the one with motherly instincts?
<Athena> I guess I never developed them.
<Egg> *wiggle*
<Athena> Ohshi- it's going to hatch
<Keeper> Crap, now what do we do?​


Keeper and I clutched onto each other and watched in terror as the egg wiggled back and forth and cracked open. Out popped... a Manaphy?


<Manaphy> Hey guys. :3
<Athena> Sweet, a legendary!
<Keeper> A legendary?
<Athena> Yeah, it's Manaphy.
<Manaphy> Fee! :3
<Keeper> No way you know what that thing is.
<Manaphy> o.o?
<Athena> But I'm sure it's a---
<Keeper> Nope, let's go ask Tails.
<Athena> *sigh*​


I scooped the tiny legendary up and we walked over to the Guild to find Tails. Keeper told the story while I made sure the little Manaphy didn't chew on and/or poop out anything it wasn't supposed to.


<Tails> Well, this is the first time I've seen this Pokémon too.... but I'm pretty sure it's a Manaphy.
<Athena> See? I told you!
<Tails> They're extremely rare! So no one really knows much about them.
<Manaphy> Rare! :3
<Tails> So, what are you going to do with him?
<Keeper> Oh, geez, we didn't think about that....
<Manaphy> WAH! D':
<Athena> ... find a babysitter, hopefully.
<Tails> The poor guy is probably just hungry. You're a girl, Athena, you be a nice good mother and find him some Blue Gummies to eat.
<Athena> Imply that I'm motherly just because I have ovaries one more time, either of you, and I swear I'll Flamethrower you back to next Sunday.
<Tails> o_o;
<Keeper> o_o;
<Manaphy> WAHHHHHH! D':
<Athena> Fine, fine, we'll go get the stupid gummies. I think we have one in storage anyway from our last job. We'll see if that's good enough to shut him up.​


Keeper and I rushed off to the storage and then popped back to the Guild.


<Athena> Here, it's a gummi, eat it and shut up.
<Manaphy> Goomy?
<Athena> No, that's a Pokémon that hasn't been invented yet. Just eat the bloody thing.
<Manaphy> *nom* Goomy! :D
<Keeper> Awww... look at that, he likes you Athena!
<Athena> *facepalm* Kids are awful.
<Keeper> So, let's keep him for a while.
<Athena> No, I'd really rather no--
<Keeper> *presses the yes button for Athena*
<Athena> Dammit Keeper. >_<
<Tails> I dunno, I'm with Athena on this one...
<Athena> Woohoo! \o/
<Tails> After all, not much is known about Manaphy because they're so rare, and they're usually raised in the sea, too.
<Keeper> But he's so small and helpless! It's not like we can just dump him back in the sea and leave it at that.
<Athena> We can't? >.> <.<
<Keeper> Besides, I'm a Water-type Pokémon too! So I can help. Let's just keep an eye on him until he's a bit bigger and stronger, pretty please?
<Tails> Alright, fine.
<Athena> Dammit. >_<​


Keeper and I took Manaphy back to Sharpedo Bluff where it proceeded to spit up on my shoulder and cry to get more gummies, which he continued to refer to as "goomies". Keeper insisted on going out to collect more of them. I agreed mostly because it meant we could escape the house for a bit. At Keeper's suggested, we went to the Craggy Coast in hopes of finding more Blue Gummies there. We finally found one on our second time through the dungeon, right before I was about to die of boredom. We quickly ran through the rest of the dungeon and went back home.


<Manaphy> Goomy!
<Athena> Look, just eat it and shut up.
<Manaphy> *nomnom* Goomy tasty!
<Keeper> Awww.... it's so cute. :3
<Athena> *sigh*
<Manaphy> *falls asleep*
<Keeper> Awwwwwwwwwwwwww...
<Athena> No. Stop making that sound.​


We had a long day of boring dungeoning ourselves, so soon we were also asleep.


<Manaphy> Good morning, Athena & Keeper!
<Keeper> He said our names! Awesome! :D
<Manaphy> Awesome! :D
<Athena> Good. Does that mean we can get rid of it now?
<Keeper> Let's go for a walk on the beach together!
<Manaphy> Walk! :D
<Athena> Kill me... x_x;​


With a heavy sigh, I led Keeper and Manaphy over to the beach. On the way, I stopped at the Kecleon store... and cursed for a good five minutes straight when I saw that they were choosing today to sell Blue Gummies. I bought it, just to be on the safe side, then we continued on our way to the beach.


<Keeper> So, uh, Manaphy... this is the sea.
<Manaphy> Sea?
<Keeper> That's where you came from, sort of.
<Manaphy> Sea! Sea! :D
<Keeper> Awwww, look at how happy he is, Athena.
<Athena> *grump*
<Manaphy> Sea! Sea! :D​


Keeper and Manaphy played until sunset while I sat in the shade and waited for my misery to be over. Afterwards, we headed back to our home and fell asleep. But later that night....


<Manaphy> *wakes up* ... ... ...​


Later the next morning...


<Keeper> Good morning Athena! Good morning Mana-- Manaphy's gone!
<Athena> *phew*
<Keeper> Oh, quit being such a spoilsport. This is worrisome! I don't think he's ready to be on his own yet. What should we do?
<Athena> Well, I think this chapter is long enough for now, so let's continue on with this later, shall we?​

Team Awesome:
Athena: Lv. 50 Charmander (Ember, Smokescreen, Scratch, Flamethrower)
Keeper: Lv. 50 Totodile (Ice Fang, Scratch, Aqua Tail, Bite)

Available Teammates: Sandshrew (22), Sandslash (24), Oddish (11), Paras (13), Venomoth (1), Psyduck (10), Poliwag (9), Kadabra (35), Machop (6), Bellsprout (15), Geodude (7), Doduo (10), Seel (34), Grimer (9), Krabby (12), Rhyhorn (24), Omanyte (36), Hoothoot (13), Spinarak (10), Mareep (21), Marill (41), Azumarill (46), Hoppip (13), Wooper (11), Delibird (41), Phanpy (20), Smoochum (18), Elekid (14), Larvitar (23), Zigzagoon (15), Lotad (11), Ralts (32), Surskit (12), Nincada (24), Ninjask (27), Azurill (12), Nosepass (45), Mawile (25), Aron (22), Roselia (41), Vibrava (1), Cacnea (23), Cacturne (24), Zangoose (42), Seviper (36), Barboach (1), Lileep (1), Castform (40), Snorunt (14), Shinx (18), Budew (12), Cranidos (26), Shieldon (27), Wormadam (26), Pachirisu (14), Cherubi (14), Gastrodon (East Sea) (13), Hippopotas (27), Skorupi (25), Carnivine (24)


Player Notes:

Athena does not like babies.

I gave in and GameFAQ'ed the next plot trigger after I did like 4-5 dungeons last night and didn't see anything. I guess I just don't have a reason to go to the bottom level of the Guild now that I can't save there.

The Surrounded Sea was basically OHKO zone for me, so we really did speed through with minimal exploration. Between that and combing Craggy Coast while waiting for a Blue Gummi to procedurally generate, today was not really that fun of a playing day. I have a feeling that the rest of the Manaphy-related sidequest is going to be pretty brutal on me as well if the Sea-theme continues to play a role, so I've stocked up on Reviver Seeds.

My Minions list is updated through the beginning of this chapter. I was actually planning on going back to the guild just to completely update it but then I reached the next plot spot accidentally so I just turned it off. I'll update that next bit next time I load up, I guess. I got a Dratini though. :3
 
That reminds me of being Treecko and how nice it was to stroll through these watery dungeons.

Also, finally someone who hates the "Awwww!" exclamation.
 
Ah yes, Surrounded Sea. Another dungeon that validated my decision to have Pikachu as my partner. All those Water-type Pokemon were just like giant lightning rods for Discharge attacks, as well as Thunderbolt and Shock Wave attacks too.
 
<Game> Ha, we took Grovyle away from you. He'd have been really nice against these Water-Type Pokemon, right? B-]
 
Eh, NPCs are of dubious value without being able to control what they do, which is part of the reason why I've not bothered with other teammates.
 
Or, you could pick a specialized team for those missions, too. Or take one extra partner and change the leader in-dungeon (I think it lets you do that now too) I see a few recruits who could cover you well on your list, like mareep, roselia, pachirisu or hoppip.

You'll thank this advice when you get to the isles of the legendary dogs. Goodness, I cursed just, so much, when doing those dungeons. Truly nerve-wracking. Entei's in particular, although raikou's wasn't anything resembling a breeze either. I think I must have run through it around a hundred times.
Of course, it's possible that suicune's will be the real challenge for you.
 
For personal reasons, I'm keeping myself and Keeper in the hot seat. I'm not adverse to training and bringing more Pokés on if people think it will be helpful, but I'm not going to swap either myself or Keeper or make someone else the leader. I understand it from a gameplay perspective, but it doesn't work from a playthrough perspective.
 
Athena said:
For personal reasons, I'm keeping myself and Keeper in the hot seat. I'm not adverse to training and bringing more Pokés on if people think it will be helpful, but I'm not going to swap either myself or Keeper or make someone else the leader. I understand it from a gameplay perspective, but it doesn't work from a playthrough perspective.
Click to expand...

I know; how could you write from Athena's POV otherwise, right?
But I meant (and I probably should have expressed that better) that you could take athena, keeper, and a third pokemon to the dungeon, and change the leader once you're in the dungeon (I think it's an option now when you go to the menu inside the dungeon, or around the menu of the IQ skills); athena would be behind the "leader" you control, but she would still be there to narrate.
The only downside to that is that you have less space to recruit, and that's not much of a downside to you, really.
 
You don't have recruitment problems actually; if the party is full, the new recruit is automatically sent back.
 
Thena's hate for babies makes this chapter one of the best of all of them imo!
 
Swapping someone else to the leader probably would work, actually. Though I could even just swap to Keeper in that case.

And I have a tendency to just send my recruits back to the guild as soon as I get them, otherwise they tend to suck up my Reviver Seeds.
 
Chapter P4: Freedom!​

Keeper and I rejiggered our inventory and prepared for a search, but before we could get anywhere, we ran into Tails outside the guild.


<Tails> Hey guys, 'sup?
<Keeper> Oh, we're going good. You know how it is. It's not like we lost Manaphy or anything... *sweat*
<Tails> ... let me guess, you lost Manaphy.
<Athena> Yep.
<Tails> *sigh* You guys are useless. I guess I'll help you out. You guys go hunt... wherever. I'll go look inside the guild. *runs off*
<Athena> ... thanks Tails, that's a huge help. Not. >_>​


I thought it was rather unlikely that we'd find Manaphy in a dungeon, so I thought we'd check the beach instead. Sure enough, there he was, hovering and staring out at the sea.


<Keeper> Thank Arceus! Manaphy, you gave me a heart attack. ... Manaphy?
<Manaphy> *collapses* x.x;
<Keeper> Manaphy! D: *picks up* Ohshi- I think he has a fever.
<Athena> Well, at least he's quiet about it. Let's take him back home.​


Keeper carefully cradled Manaphy in his arms as we rushed back to the bluff. he laid him in the hay nestbed with a sigh.


<Keeper> Poor Manaphy. :<
<Tails> *rushes in* You found him!
<Athena> No thanks to you. :U
<Keeper> I think he's sick. D:
<Tails> *feels* Oh, my, yes, that's quite the fever.
<Keeper> We found him on the beach and then he just.... collapsed, like.
<Tails> *sigh* He really probably should have been raised in the sea. It's quite a bit different being on land.
<Athena> Well, I would have been perfectly fine with just tossing him in the sea and letting him be, but noooo, we have to take care of the baby until he can fend for himself. >.>
<Keeper> Do you have any ideas of how we can cure him?
<Tails> Well, there's a Pokémon called Phione that naturally produces a Pokémon miracle drug called Phione Dew. Even better, Phione are also sea Pokémon, so it should work well on Manaphy.
<Keeper> Sweet! Where can we get some?
<Tails> Phione live in an area called the Miracle Sea. You'll have to go there if you hope to find some.
<Athena> *groan* Another Water-type dungeon...
<Keeper> Let's go!​


Keeper and I carefully and quickly went through the Miracle Sea dungeon, trying to keep my casualties to a minimum. Eventually, thanks to a careful application of Oran Berries and also Pure and Reviver Seeds as needed, we made our way to the final level of the dungeon where a bunch of Phione were playing in a circle. We were about to approach them when an angry Gyarados appeared suddenly! He roared mightily and scattered the Phione about the room.


<Gyarados> Mwahahahaha, I have found you!
<Phione> o.o?
<Gyarados> I will be your permanent and only boss from here on out! You will make Phione Dew for me and me alone, and I'll get filthy rich! And if anyone objects, I'll Bite your ass. :U
<Keeper> I'd like to see you try! >:|
<Gyarados> Ohohohoho, puny challengers! Come, we fight!​


Soon the battle was on! Gyarados was tough for a single opponent, speeding himself up frequently to break through my Smokescreens, but with me keeping him under control and Keeper attacking, we slowly wore him down and eventually won the fight.


<Gyarados> Gyah! *flees*
<Phione> Hurray, we're saved! :D
<Phione> Thank you so much! :D
<Phione> Have a gift! :D *hands over Phione Dew*
<Athena> Welp, I guess there's a good thing there was a boss to fight to make them grateful to us. Let's head home then.​


Keeper and I teleported out of the dungeon and went back to the bluff where Tails was keeping an eye on the unconscious Manaphy. Keeper fed the Dew to Manaphy, who began to recover from its illness almost immediately.


<Manaphy> ... thanks.... Keeper.... Athena.... :3 ...
<Tails> There, he's improving already! Just give him a couple days to rest and he should be right as rain.​


After a couple days of rest....


<Keeper> Hey, look! He's right as rain! :D
<Manaphy> Rain! :D
<Keeper> Awwwwwww..... :3
<Athena> Anybutts, since he's all better now, does that mean we can finally set him free?
<Tails> Yeah, he really does need to be raised in the sea to grow up properly, so I've taken some steps to find him a new home.
<Athena> Yay! \o/
<Keeper> Awww... :< I'll miss the little guy. D':​


The four of us walked, flew, and/or floated back to the beach where a Walrein was waiting for us.


<Walrein> 'Sup?
<Tails> This is Walrein from the Northern Sea. He should be able to take care of Manaphy until he's old enough to live on his own.
<Walrein> Yeah, don't worry, he'll be safe with me.
<Athena> Thank you so much, man, you have no idea. >_>
<Keeper> Take good care of him for me.... Manaphy, you be a good boy and listen to Walrein too, ok?
<Manaphy> :3?
<Keeper> Don't forget us.... ;~;
<Manaphy> Keeper? Athena? :3?
<Walrein> Come with me, now, little guy...
<Manaphy> !!! Keeper? Athena?​


Walrein picked up Manaphy and took him out to the sea while the rest of us watched on, Keeper sobbing pitifully.


<Athena> There, there. *pat pat*
<Keeper> I know it's for the best, but.... I miss the little guy already.... ;~;
<Athena> It'll be okay.
<Keeper> Yeah, I know he wouldn't want us to stand around crying all the time. We need to be strong and carry on!
<Athena> No problems here. >.> Ready for some more filler dungeons?
<Keeper> Sure! :D​

Team Awesome:
Athena: Lv. 51 Charmander (Ember, Smokescreen, Scratch, Flamethrower)
Keeper: Lv. 51 Totodile (Ice Fang, Scratch, Aqua Tail, Bite)

Available Teammates: Sandshrew (22), Sandslash (24), Oddish (11), Paras (13), Venomoth (1), Psyduck (10), Poliwag (9), Kadabra (35), Machop (6), Bellsprout (15), Geodude (7), Doduo (10), Seel (34), Grimer (9), Krabby (12), Rhyhorn (24), Omanyte (36), Dratini (11), Hoothoot (13), Spinarak (10), Mareep (21), Marill (41), Azumarill (46), Hoppip (13), Wooper (11), Qwilfish (46), Delibird (41), Phanpy (20), Smoochum (18), Elekid (14), Larvitar (23), Zigzagoon (15), Lotad (11), Wingull (12), Ralts (32), Surskit (12), Nincada (24), Ninjask (27), Azurill (12), Nosepass (45), Mawile (25), Aron (22), Roselia (41), Vibrava (1), Cacnea (23), Cacturne (24), Zangoose (42), Seviper (36), Barboach (1), Lileep (1), Castform (40), Snorunt (14), Spheal (11), Relicanth (48), Shinx (18), Budew (12), Cranidos (26), Shieldon (27), Wormadam (26), Pachirisu (14), Cherubi (14), Gastrodon (East Sea) (13), Hippopotas (27), Skorupi (25), Carnivine (24)


Player Notes:

And so we are free of Manaphy, though I have a feeling he'll be popping back at some point as a recruit if nothing else.

Team and Minions fully updated now too, woohoo!

Not much interesting to say about today's dungeon, just played it cautiously. Used 2 Reviver Seeds (one in dungeon, one against the boss) and found 1, so not too much of a loss. :U Kind of a short chapter in general, I suppose, but I don't have enough time to do filler dungeons and start progressing the plot again, so I figured this would be the best place to stop.

I'm not sure when the next update will be. On Thursday I will be leaving for my vacation and tomorrow I will be mostly busy preparing for my trip, so no updates for the next couple days for sure. I'll probably at least do some filler dungeons while I'm traveling and start working on the next plot bits as time permits. New chapter might be as soon as Friday or as late as a couple weeks, so please don't hold your breath.
 
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