★ Extravaganza 2020 - Results Thread

Garish Garchomp · Feb 14, 2021

Comics

Best New Comic

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place Honorable Mention Honorable Mention

By the Sword by @SnakeEyesDraws

Simple by @sealclown

Undertow by @Riboo

HONORABLE MENTIONS
Pokemon Royal by @TheLastUnicornInOz | Dear Sergio by @feraligatr

Best Overall Comic

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place Honorable Mention Honorable Mention

Jet's Black Nuzlocke by @Zero

First Summer by @Krisantyne

Relic Radiation by @critterlingz

HONORABLE MENTIONS
Blooming Glory by @Spacey | Finding Your Roots by @Salt&PepperBunny

Most Improved Comic

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place Honorable Mention Honorable Mention

First Summer by @Krisantyne

Tala's Nuzlocke Adventure by @TalaSeba

The Long Way by @Alex_Nidas

HONORABLE MENTIONS
Step By Step By Step by @Tailsimp | The Fire Within by @SnowyUmbreon

Saddest Death/Departure in a Comic

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place (A Tie!) 3rd Place (A Tie!) Honorable Mention

Daisy, from Penumbra by @TwistedEerie

Spooks, from Deadly Syns by @SysterSyn

Petunia, from Ties That Bind by @ssandshrew | Algernon, from The Ballad of Brett by @RandomTrainer

HONORABLE MENTION
Abrey, from Pocket Space by @WildfireWhim

Best Artstyle

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place Honorable Mention Honorable Mention

@snooze

@Dschubba

@mizar

HONORABLE MENTIONS
@solaris127h and @GreyCorsola | @sealclown

Best Redesigns

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place (A Tie!) 3rd Place (A Tie!) Honorable Mention

For What It's Worth by @ratrascal

Deadly Syns by @SysterSyn

By the Sword by @SnakeEyesDraws | Relic Radiation by @critterlingz

HONORABLE MENTION
A Silly LillieLocke by @Velink

Best Teammate in a Comic

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place Honorable Mention Honorable Mention

Ruby, from For What It's Worth by @ratrascal

Mel, from Blooming Glory by @Spacey

Echo, from Hypoxia by @Polymori

HONORABLE MENTIONS
Nutmeg, from Across the Divide by @pkmnMasterWheeler | Shelly, from Finding Your Roots by @Salt&PepperBunny

Best Main Character in a Comic

1st Place 2nd Place (A Tie!) 2nd Place (A Tie!) Honorable Mention

Kai, from Undertow by @Riboo

Autumn, from Autumn in Sinnoh by @Nessi | Tala, from Severance by @Winterspheonix

HONORABLE MENTION
Devon, from Debtlocked by @Sanctell

Best Supporting Character in a Comic

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place Honorable Mention Honorable Mention

Reg, from French's Fire Red Nuzlocke by @french-teapot

Audrey, from Milos from Home by @Agent Nein

Breen, from PMD: Rangers of Sky by @solaris127h and @GreyCorsola

HONORABLE MENTIONS
Ever, from Atychiphobia by @Sarbear | Kalem, from Making Matcha by @ramendotexe

Funniest Comic

1st Place (A Tie!) 1st Place (A Tie!) 3rd Place Honorable Mention Honorable Mention

Penumbra by @TwistedEerie | Kurukkoo! by @Kadew

Jet's Black Nuzlocke by @Zero

HONORABLE MENTIONS
Autumn in Sinnoh by @Nessi | Golden Sun by @pkmnMasterWheeler

Best Dynamic in a Comic

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place Honorable Mention

Red and Blue, from Kurukkoo! by @Kadew

Edie and Abella, from Burn Away by @snooze

M2-V and M2-K, from Genesis by @DasUnicorm

HONORABLE MENTION
Yume and Chou, from Wanted! by @YumeTsuki

Garish Garchomp · Feb 14, 2021

Written Stories

Best New Written Story

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place (A Tie!) 3rd Place (A Tie!)

Leon's hand is on her waist, gently guiding her onto the dance floor and out of the serpent's lair. Sonia lets her left hand rest on his shoulder, and he takes the other hand in his. "Hope you don't mind me intervening to claim my dance now," he says, voice low, leaning in to be heard over the din of the party. His smile is mischievous. "Seemed like you were debating stabbing Rose with your heel."

"You know me so well," she laughs, but the joke falls flat and she frowns. Used to know me, she reminds herself. Her fingers curl against the thick fabric of his cape, brushing against a sewn-on sponsor's patch. They're running out of space, each one crammed against the one that came before.

She remembers the day he received his first. The cape had been a gift from Rose -- a way to wear his sponsorships proudly, with the Macro Cosmos logo in dead center to signal their overarching endorsement. He'd watched with childlike glee as she sewed his first sponsor's patch into the bottom left corner of the cape. Hugged her tightly when she'd finished.

Another couple bumps into them, jarring her from her thoughts. They dance in tighter circles to accommodate the other guests who have flooded the dance floor now that he's here.

His life is so crowded, now.
The perky-looking brunette at the oddly small ferry pier says “Welcome to Littleroot Town!”, and if I didn’t feel like throwing up already, I certainly do now.

“Excuse me?” I splutter, trying to make sense of anything at all through my seasick haze. Littleroot? That can’t be right - I specifically got on the ferry to Petalburg, although to be fair, Slateport’s ferry terminal was large and very confusing. Where even is Littleroot? I could be on the opposite side of the region for all I know - I have no idea how long I was on the boat for, the entire journey was a blur. Oh, this is just fantastic - the first time in years that I ride on a boat, and I get horrifically seasick and end up in the wrong place!

“I said, welcome to Littleroot Town!” she says, looking me up and down from my wide-brimmed hat to my open-toe wedges. “You’re not from around here, are you?”
Agatha sighed and pressed a hand to her temples. "Blue, when is the last time that you've been able to talk to someone without them comparing you to Samuel or that Red boy?" Reluctantly, Blue closed his mouth and looked away. "That's what I thought. Unova is far enough from Kanto that most of them probably haven't heard of Samuel, Red, or you."

"You forget he's the youngest champion ever," Blue muttered, receiving a death glare in response.

"Don't sass me, boy. I may be retired, but don't you think I'm soft. But back to what I was saying, maybe you need some time away from all this. Find out who you are without your grandfather or Red." She gently squeezed his shoulder. "And if not, it's still a free vacation. Take the gift, Blue. For an old woman's sake if nothing else."

Blue bit his lip and looked away from Agatha's earnest stare. Shadow bumped his head against his chest as Gale let out a chirp. Sighing, he leaned back and gave the shadow of his usually cocky grin. "Looks like I'm heading to Unova then."
The town had a sad, grey look to it, even in sunlight. The buildings leaned against each other like old soldiers, their wounds bandaged by wooden boards. The tune they whistled through their cracks was a lonely one.

She passed a betting shop, which had hung up posters in its windows she could not stand to look at. Outside its doors gathered a group of men, whose cigarette smoke and gruff discussion were sadly much harder to avoid.

“Inferno Blaze will get the most through, I think. They had a good run last season.”

“Not good enough to get ‘em out of Rank Six, though. Everyone’s forgotten about Knuckle Smash.”

“Who cares? Leon’ll destroy whoever gets to him. He’s the only one you should be putting odds on...”

Each name dropped was a blow to her soul, the last one almost a knockout. She faltered for a moment, then forced herself to continue as she did her best to fill her mind with thoughts of cute pokémon before it could ruminate on any of those names further. None of them mattered, she told herself. Nothing mattered.

dandelion by @Aurea

Let Them Eat Cake by @SprungGeoduck

Healing Wish by @SimplyUnknown | The Thorn by @Epsilon

Best Overall Written Story

1st Place 2nd Place (A Tie!) 2nd Place (A Tie!)

“Listen,” I rasp. “I know what it’s like to be alone. I know what it’s like to be on your own and know no one is there for you. I know what it’s like to feel like no one loves you. That your life is wasted. The way you can’t stop hurting no matter what you try. That somehow, every day it gets worse. You want to give up. You want to stop existing. How it would be so much nicer if the cold finally took you to the death you’re so afraid of. I know what that’s like. You know I know what that’s like. It’s why I’m your Chosen one. Chosen of boundless cold. Boundless emptiness. Boundless nothingness.”

Kyurem's enraged growling is tapering off. I scoot forward on my knees. “But listen to me. It doesn’t have to be boundless.” I think of my Uncle, of how we fight because we’re so alike, and yet how I always have him, even when we disagree. I think of Hugh, happy and carefree and always including me in his life. I think of my pokemon, dead and alive, and know of their unyielding loyalty and love. I think of Alder, a man known by proxy of loved ones, and that he’s there for me too, even if we’re only acquaintances. I have people to keep me warm. I don’t want to become like Kyurem, cold and isolated and festering in my misery.

“If you let people in,” I murmur, “if you let people help, it doesn’t have to hurt so much. You don’t have to be alone. My father came to you even when he was afraid of you. He knew you hurt and wanted to make it better.” I choke up and have to shove it all down. “You killed him,” I blubber, “and I’m still here, aren’t I?”

Kyurem lays on the ice, staring at me. They really do look empty.
Because why not? How many times had life played Elliot for a fool, always at the ready to pull out the rug from under him? How many times had it thwarted her and Gabe's efforts to make things bearable for him to go on living? If it wasn't having to deal with an orphaned child in Violet, then it was navigating the twists and turns of his depression to keep him standing. Or a manipulative gang of morons taking advantage of his suffering.

So fuck it, why not, what did one last thing matter? Go ahead, life, throw the put-away pitch. Let loose your religious nut jobs and their crock of shit mysticism. Why wouldn't it get its last kick to the gut in after she did everything she could, for better or worse, to fight everything off.

She laughed, coming undone one giggle at a time, until she sobbed. She closed her eyes, ignoring the Rockets around her; let them look at her falling apart, it didn't matter. They'd all be dead soon anyway, who cared if they caught her bearing her emotions for the world to see.
"How can you still defend him?" Carlei asks, so quietly that I barely even hear her.

Silver's eyes go wide, and he physically recoils, almost like she'd tried to hit him or something. "Carlei...I...what?"

"After everything he's done...all the people he's hurt...how can you still defend him?" Her voice shakes, but she speaks louder this time.

"He's our King," Silver repeats. "And our father." His voice is shaking nearly as much as hers.

"And there comes a time that we have a duty as Prince and Princess to make a stand for what is right. Even if that means standing against our King - and even if it means standing against our father." Carlei takes a deep breath. "Tell me something, Silver. Do you honestly believe that what Father is doing is right?"

Ghost in the Machine by @Whozawhatcha

Lost in the Stream by @AstroDeath | Call of the Divines by @llyarden

Most Improved Written Story

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place Honorable Mention

As much as I would have liked to, it wasn’t the time to turn myself in. Not with Amira getting dragged gods-know-where because of Archer.

I got lucky. The cop behind me had stopped paying attention, so all I had to contend with was the Cotton Candy Man himself. I did my best to imitate a self-defense technique I had learned from Amira years ago in the Saffron Dojo. I palmed the barrel of the gun, and twisted to the side so that I ended up behind Archer. His grip was too loose and the cop was too far.

I wrapped my elbow around his throat and squeezed, aiming the handgun over his shoulder. I almost relished the way Archer’s nails dug into my forearm when he fought for breath. I remembered what Amira and I used to tell Lani. Why I always stuck to the long-range shit.

Never get too involved.

Too late now. I leaned right into Archer’s ear and whispered. “Now you have a decision to make.”
“Get in there, Pierre! Flame Charge again!”

With a hard surface under his feet, Pierre blasts off like a rocketship, carving a line through the sand and slamming full-force into Riptide. I yell for Constance to help him out with Water Gun, and she sends a swift lance of water straight into the Gallade’s face. If Pierre can keep Riptide occupied without getting knocked out, he shouldn’t be able to do anything about attacks from the air.

“Grab him, Pierre!” I shout. “Burn an arm, get rid of a blade! Constance, keep shooting!”

Pierre kicks one of Riptide’s spindly legs out from under him, slams him to the ground, and places a burning claw on his right arm. As he holds his claw on the arm, he swings a leg around and starts drilling into the Gallade’s back. Constance pelts his head with Water Guns that land with satisfying thumps. Still, though, Riptide raises his free arm. I’m about to cry out for Pierre to get off him when the glowing blade on the raised arm dissipates, and i hear the Gallade’s voice in my head again: I yield.

I look at Brawly nervously. “Did I win?”
"Could Ori have saved Feathers?" Rocket asked softly.

Eureka sighed. Ori... views things from an eternal perspective. To Him, a day is like a thousand seasons, and a thousand seasons are like a day. Time itself flows differently in the Garden, if it can be said to flow at all. Mortal life in Aetherai is short, but the Garden is forever, and it is where all the children of Ori eventually find themselves anyway. Death, to Ori's children, is simply the last stop on the road to paradise.

That was not the answer Rocket had been expecting, although in retrospect, he really felt he should have. His ears drooped in embarrassment. "I guess... I guess I never really thought about things that way. It's just... it still hurts, y'know? Not having him here."
“It’s nice to meet you… Kaia, right?”

“Yep.”

Another beat. “Y’know, it’s kinda hard to make conversation when I’m doing all of the work.” His eyes met mine once more, and there was a twinkle of cheekiness in them.

I snorted, before taking another pass at my cigarette. “Hey man, you sat down here with me. I don’t owe you shit.”

“Fair enough!” He replied, a light chuckle caught in his throat. “Sorry if I bothered ya.”

“…It’s okay,” I replied, tapping my shoe on the ground again. “The company is… nice.”

There was another period of silence, but this time, there was less tension hanging in the air between us. I focused on my fingernails for a moment, frayed down to their edges due to semi-consistent biting. Hau seemed content to simply recline back and finish off his cigarette. Despite the awkwardness earlier, a sort of peace had passed over the both of us—possibly because it was three am, and being uncomfortable took up too much energy. I couldn’t say I minded it.

Behold, a Pale Horse! by @localhoney

Let Them Eat Cake by @SprungGeoduck

Secrets of Aetherai: Ori's Gift by @Trollkitten

HONORABLE MENTION
Daybreak by @scrimshanks

Saddest Death/Departure in a Written Story

1st Place 2nd Place (A Tie!) 2nd Place (A Tie!) Honorable Mention

"It's okay," she murmurs.

"No it fucking isn't! For fuck's sake, just let us heal you!"

For the first time since my Blessing fully manifested I hate being stronger than someone. I'd give anything for her to still be able to overpower us, for her to still be strong enough to hold on.

The healing light falls on her now, but it's not enough. It never would have been.

She knew that.

"Thank you both," she whispers, so softly I barely hear her. "For everything."
Paul blinks. For a moment, he sees his brother, his hand over his mouth. Red is seeping out from between his fingers.

It can’t be blood. Pokemon battles cause injuries, yes, but Gym Leaders are sophisticated. They have control. Only weak children lack the control to not have their Pokemon draw blood. And it was the fence. Not the Pokemon.
I’m going to-“ I felt something catch in my throat, she spoke into her wristlet once more, not waiting for me she jumped from the window..

I stumbled towards where she had been. “I’m gon-“

My vision clouded and the lump in my throat tried to force its way out. But I held it down, stopping my breathing as I bolted for the window. My fingernails dug into my palms, as they reached out towards the window sill. I wanted to jump after her, but it must’ve been thirty or forty feet up. My mouth opened once more, this time to scream at her.

But nothing came out. I tried once more, and only earned a squeak. I tried to hold everything back still, my throat felt white hot and my eyes had almost completely clouded over. I turned back to follow her out the door.

Aerith had laid down beside Barrett.

He was smiling.

I lost my vision entirely.

As soon as the first tear broke, the rest followed in an unbroken stream.

Lyra, from Call of the Divines by @llyarden

Skroll, from Brotherhood by @Bowser's Family Vacation | Barrett, from I Don't Wanna Be Your Anymore by @Beach Episode

HONORABLE MENTION
Nathan, from Don't Evolve by @Faleep

Best Writing Style

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place Honorable Mention Honorable Mention

The chairman weaves through the crowd like a rattlesnake to head them off, the other partygoers mere blades of grass that bend over backwards to get out of his way -- the click of stilettos tailing him the rattle warning of his approach. Rose's shadow is willowy and dead-eyed. They make a killer combo.

"Vanessa, Sonia!" Rose calls out, face creased into a perfectly calculated smile. "So good to see you both here."

She feels Nessa's nails bite into her arm at the use of her full name, and Sonia sucks in a breath. Message received -- should've moved faster. "Good evening, Chairman. Oleana."

The shadow makes no move to acknowledge her, instead glancing at Sonia's bare feet in apparent disdain. As if to compensate, Rose sweeps Sonia's hand into his and grips her fingers tightly, stooping to plant a kiss with too-soft lips. It takes everything in her not to recoil, or let him know that he's rattled her. She'll deny him every victory she can, no matter how small. "A fine evening indeed. I've been hoping to catch a moment with you, before the night is through. Won't you excuse us, Vanessa darling?"

It's not a request. Nessa shoots her an apologetic look and peels away, leaving her at Rose's mercy. He shepherds her to a cocktail table, waving over a waiter and winking at her. "Martini, correct?"

Her stomach sours. He's been stalking his prey all evening. "Water is fine, thank you."
Death does not have what could be described as lips. Death does not, in fact, have many of the features that can be attributed to anything that resembles a person. Death, like Conflict, had needed to pinch a part of themself off and throw it into an ill-fitting sack in order to appear in a physical form. (This is a crude metaphor, but it’s the one that, sadly, makes the most sense.)

The sacks they both wore were, in fact, so ill-fitting that bits of them both cracked through. It’s the face, you see, that’s the hardest to make work. A face is recognizable. Humans identify with a face. Conflict, then, the most familiar, has it the easiest. They only leak the façade in their eyes, little red X’s where their pupils should be.

There is a reason Death wears a hood.
You’re dying.

I hope I get there in time. The nurse I spoke to sounded optimistic about that, that there’d be time for goodbyes. He told me how sorry he was. And I don’t blame him -- you’re his sissy little paystub.

An announcement beams through: unplanned trackwork ahead. I itch over the delay.

Nobody knows if Kalos went green on time or not. I’m, maybe unsurprisingly, thinking we didn’t. Last few years it feels like the seasons have started to blur. Wildfires scorch the coasts in spring. Avalanches mid-autumn. Hot rain inbetween -- and that’s what’s delaying us.

I scratch my knuckles until they shine, first white and then a flushing red.

You and I have spoken on the phone infrequently, as infrequently as I can make it. Might have the whole country apart but you still have the instinct for catching me at my lows. You seem to always know when the fear makes me weak, manic, when I am clawing at anything to distract from the terror of oblivion, erasure. When I’m numbed or near it you liked to call and talk at me about mistakes, regrets.

I have a sister and had a mother. Your words get mealy when you talk around them. Men in our family stick together.

Fuck, the train’s too still. No complacent rocking, no worry stone pressing my feet to the earth.
And Minty said, “Oh God, oh God.”

And there was a cracking sound that struck like a tuning fork to their spines. It was the sound of ancient rock, of bone, of the heart of a glacier cleft perfectly in two.

Minty stared at her outstretched arm and found it to be fractured in two. No, in three. But it was the world that was in thirds, in sixths, fractured like a mirror, in eights, radiating from a single point over her shoulder, in tenths.

Before panic set in, before she could even think to cry out, the scent of alliums filled her nose and she tumbled forward into sunlight.
But it’s not crazy. Drayden IS descendant of Reshiram. I feel it. The way this man burns with passion, the way he digs into history to uproot the truth, the way he ignites like fire in battle, the only way he truly knows himself. I sense it in Alder, but he’s different. He’s not fire. He’s breezy wind, dancing in thunderstorms, a hidden temper. I know his type too. Chasing his ideals of a pure world where people and pokemon live in harmony, living their lives to the fullest, and unable to deliver on it. It’s why he was dethroned. He was weak. He lost his starter, and he lost his spine. He couldn’t change this world if he tried.

My fingers tighten on the mahogany arms of the chair. I wet my lips and shiver. I’m so fucking cold, but I can smell it on these men. The way they reek of the dragons. They’re DESCENDANTS. I know that bloodline. I KNOW them—

“Josey?” A hand lands on my shoulder, and I jump and hiss and twist away. It’s Uncle Marshal. His eyes are shadowed when he looks at me, asking, “What’s wrong?

Kin. He’s kin. I know him. Worshiping Zekrom in a pale imitation of devoting his life. The man who thinks a heart that desires strength and strives to grow stronger is a precious ideal. He clings to this thought, but he’s just like me. Diving into his work with maddening focus and pretending he can fill himself up. With power. With fame. With fortune. But he can’t. He’s an endless pit. Nothing will fill him up. I know this, because I know my type. I know him. Kin. He’s KIN.

@Aurea

@Wwarborday

@Flop disc

HONORABLE MENTIONS
@Missy | @Whozawhatcha

Best Worldbuilding in a Written Story

1st Place 2nd Place (A Tie!) 2nd Place (A Tie!) Honorable Mention Honorable Mention

I finally said I’d go to Mrs Lacy’s house, so.

She’s the only one in the town you can get them kinda things from. Cleanse tags, and soothe bells, and she can heal rashes and all that. It’s because she’s the seventh child of a seventh child, and that makes you blessed by Mesprit to do this shit. (when I was younger, I used to think it sounded like a class power to have, but being the second daughter of an only daughter doesn’t let you do anythin’. Maybe if you have people coming after you to do stuff for them all the time, it just gets pure tiring anyways).

(……)Then she stops talking and puts out her cigarette and I’m waitin’ there while she runs her hands over the pieces of cloth. Eyes closed- starts sayin’ a blessin’ to the Three- her voice lifts up from the tone she was using before. She’s pure focused on what she’s doin’. Nearly looks like a different person than this old lady she was a few minutes ago, with the dust swirlin’ around the lit candles in time with the shapes she’s makin’ with her hands…..And then-

And then it’s over, and I remember I don’t really want to be hangin’ around here. I root around in my bag for the bottle of drink Sofia gave me to give as payment – she looks happy enough- thanks and bye and good luck-
Once you're actually inside Sinister Woods, you start to understand the appeal. Sure, all the trees make it a little shadowy, but other than that, it's surprisingly nice to look at. Soft patches of grass line the ground, interspersed with clusters of pink flowers and bright red-and-white mushrooms. Every now and then you stumble across a small sparkling pond not too unlike your own, and you wonder what could be so sinister about a place where all the water is bluer than the sky on a sunny day. Maybe you could slip into one of these pools and rest for a while, let your worries drift away, never leave and become one with the --

Don't look at anything too long, Cynders says grimly, yanking you away from the edge of the water. You blink, disoriented. Had you been looking?

That's how some of the dungeons get you, Magnemite buzzes. They look nice on the surface, but they'll mesmerize you if you look too closely, and you'll never want to leave.
Listen, child, and hear the song of the Orre region. It is an old song—old and yet not old at all. Its tones shall ring familiar in your ears, and its steps and missteps shall seem self-perpetuating. Orre, like many things sculpted by mortal hands, is little more than a circle: flat, without beginning or end, and treading the same ground over and over and over and over again. And the creatures within, small-minded and small-sighted as they be, see the horizon and plod towards it, ignorant that they have been there before, and shall be again.

There are many beginnings in a circle. The one we shall choose today comes not long after the Cataclysm. You know of which I speak, child. The dreadful day when the skies above Orre—lush, verdant Orre, green with music and promise—burned. The dreadful day when the earth shattered and splintered as if under a great weight. Ah, the destruction, the chaos. The lamentations of the wild pokemon and the pastoral shepherds who wandered the region with them.

The Cataclysm came in days that were, by the standards of mankind, ancient; when the greatest human creation was mortar to stick two bricks together, and when a collection of a few thousand individuals with pointy sticks could dominate a whole landscape. What recourse had these jumped-up apes against a desolation that upended all they knew, that filled the sky and the earth and their hearts with fearful fire?
Paul follows Hugh into a sprawling central park. Frost-coated fields. Thinly-frozen lakes. (Pre-equipped with idiots testing the ice!) People busking mercifully-covered carriage rides. In the shadow of skyscrapers on either side. Sindri stares up at them, as if he can see the thousands of pairs of eyes inside.

They pass a rotund man with a white beard that is hanging off to one side. He is ringing a golden bell next to a massive Pokemon. The Pokemon has four thick, muscular legs with tufts of white fur hiding four hooves that look almost demure. The Pokemon thrashes his head. That is when Paul realizes he has silver bells wrapped around his white horns. He winces every time his head moves. Looks like the bells aren’t attached very well. They keep knocking him in the forehead. “Geez,” Hugh hisses. “Isn’t it a little late in the season for that?”
"Here's the current socio-religious situation in Gatto. The Four Kings worship the Llama and, while they claim religious tolerance, they've been using the false sickness of wraithtouch to persecute the Children of Ori, which I guess my group is part of now? Meanwhile, the Missile Bomb rebellion -- I'm not sure whether they're more rebels or terrorists or both -- claim to be using the power of Lord Helix to fight back against the Four Kings. I shouldn't have to tell you this, but right now, we need to investigate Missile Bomb to some degree to see if they're really as horrible as Feathers believed they were, or if they're a bunch of misunderstood heroes that we could actually ally with. And all things considered, if I'm going to talk to Missile Bomb without being killed, I need You to lock Your mandibles shut and swallow the key."

Peakbound by @Bramble

Where You Belong by @cyndakip | The Dark We Carry by @Dee

HONORABLE MENTIONS
Brotherhood by @Bowser's Family Vacation | Secrets of Aetherai: Ori's Gift by @Trollkitten

Best Teammate in a Written Story

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place Honorable Mention Honorable Mention

Iva glares so hard at the camera, I think she might break it. I put out a paw, motioning for her to bring the intensity down. Beside me, Sione takes a much more direct approach: “Arceus, Iva, you’re going to scare off the voters." 

She rolls her eyes. “Can’t be scarier than you trying to fight, furball. What do humans say… 'if you can’t handle me at my-'”

“This is a bust,” Sione sighs, turning to me. “You can’t submit something old? Her stepping to Totem Salazzle or something?”

"The best way to connect with voters is to talk to them! Let them really get to know her!" I beam at Iva. She doesn't return it.

She rolls her eyes, but then collects herself. "Hello! My name is Iva. I am absolutely honored to- fuck, I sound like a hostage."

"Ivaaaaa!" I groan, while Sione cackles next to me. "Come on! You're up against real tough competition, please!"

Iva drums her talons, thinking for a moment. Suddenly, she lights up. "Okay, I think I've got it down now."

No sooner have I started recording than she pounces, tackling Sione to the ground. She glares back at the camera with a sly grin on her beak. "Vote for me, or I'll turn him into kitty litter. You watched me fight Totems, you- stop squirming." She shoves a claw on his neck, pinning him to the grass. "Watched me threaten a gang, watched us bond over a hatred of boats. Vote or else. Ending him's a service to Alola, I don't give a fuck."

I grumble unintelligibly, wiping my face as I hit stop. "Fine, fine, I'll see what I can find in the archives..."
Yes, you got out of that cave unharmed, but what if you hadn't? What if your hesitation and nerves had led to failure? You're not the teammate that Cynders deserves, and they'd be better off with someone else.

In front of your house, you turn to tell them this, but they speak up first, looking uncharacteristically hesitant.

Hey, Cassie... I have to admit, I was really nervous today. This was our first job as a rescue team! It's a big responsibility. I don't think I could have done it if you hadn't been there with your ground type attacks, so thank you! Let's do good again tomorrow, okay?

Before you can respond, Cynders scurries off down the road, looking a bit embarrassed. You watch them fade into the setting sun, and feel the warmth of it in your chest. Maybe you can both be nervous together.
Reaching down to my belt, I pulled off Lani’s pokéball, before releasing her out onto the rock near mine. She opened her eyes, yawning,and a smile crossed her face. The scratches on her cheeks seemed to be healing well, and she seemed to be able to put more weight on her injured fin, though it was still covered in—thankfully, waterproof—bandages.

“Hey, girl,” I said, reaching out and scratching her head. “How are you feeling?”

She let out a tiny squeak with an uncertain expression on her face, which seemed tantamount to a shrug.

I chuckled. “Well, if you’re feeling up to it… I figured you could practice some water moves!” I gestured to the ocean, and Lani’s eyes lit up as her gaze followed, as though she’d only just realized where they were. “Only if you’re feeling up to...”

She let out a bark and positively leapt into the water, creating a small splash, all before I could even finish what I was saying. I chuckled, shaking my head. She certainly had a lot of energy.
You cake your claws in dirt and jump.

One head butts Fireball's out of the way, and you’re free to drag your claws over his throat, down his chest, up his belly, and the scream he lets out is shrill and satisfying. You want to keep going, but he staggers back, spitting fire into the air, and even if he hadn’t gotten away from you, you doubt the girl would’ve let you continue. One drawback of being with her, you suppose.

“Ah, alright, alright, Oswald. That’s good.”

The red light takes him away, and you’re disappointed, until you hear the click of another sphere.

It’s not over yet.

“If nothing else,” the girl tells you, “I just need you to weaken what’s next. We’ve got Emi for backup.”

No, you’re burying whatever comes next.

Iva, from On the Run by @Garish Garchomp

Cynders, from Where You Belong by @cyndakip

Lani, from Daybreak by @scrimshanks

HONORABLE MENTIONS
Aya, from Agency by @Thirteenth | Bree, from Tightrope by @Zephyr_Iphis

Best Main Character in a Written Run

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place (A Tie!) 3rd Place (A Tie!)

I hounded down the drink aisle until I came across the classic Ditto Cola bottles they only released for the summer. Had to get those collectible labels while they were still in season.

“You know,” Karissa said as I grabbed a six-pack. “I’ve never actually tried this stuff.”

Gary and I stopped dead in our tracks. “WHAT?!”

Throwing caution to the wind, I snagged two more packs off the shelf and marched to the counter. Slamming the soda in front of a very startled cashier, I turned to my friends and declared, “We’re gettin’ wacky tonight!”
I just want every fucking star there is. I want to smash every den in the Wild Area and break off every single shard from Eternatus himself and shove it all in Rose’s face so he’ll never forget my bloody face again.

This is what I get for being content. This is what I get for finally thinking someone has faith in a problem child like me. I get a mouthful of pebbles. Sand under my goggles. A fistful of dirt. Two new pokemon thinking I’m a neurotic mess. And it’s all in the most barren fucking part of the region, gods damn it all to hell.

I pound my first into the dirt, freezing everyone. The breeze lifts, if only for a moment.

I glance over at my Hattrem. She’s shaking, giving me an icy glare that seems to match my own, almost.

The last thing I see is her rearing back with a ponytail.
“Hold the phone! You’re no gaun’ anywheres ‘til ye’ve telt yer Gran where yer gaun,” her mum interrupted. “Inperson, young lady, this isnae the kindae thing you just call up aboot when she only lives the other side ay Clubbie fae here!”

“Mum! We’ve got tae be there afore nine pm oan the second!” Mhairi complained. “I wis gaunnae call her fae the train—”

“You can port in at ten tae nine an’ make it in time, mind,” her ma pointed out.

“I like my atoms where they are, ta.”
She gazed up at the sky, seeing a tableau of navy speckled with stars that glowed pearl and rose and a soft azure blue. “If you’re up there,” she whispered, “I hope you’re looking down. I hope you’re proud. All of you. And I know—I know that whatever I face, so long as you all watch after me, I’ll never be alone.”

The ember in her heart had warmed into a coal, and she let it spread to her body, crying and then laughing amidst the tears. She thought she understood Entei, at least a little bit. She was divine. Unchanging. Pining for someone a millennia gone. For all her power, the goddess couldn’t change.

But mortals bloom and grow. They could change. Some for the worse.

But not all of them.

One of the paths called to her. “It doesn’t matter if it seems hopeless,” Rui told herself. “No one would expect me to win. It doesn’t matter.” She thought back to herself in the trunk, scared but defiant, vulnerable yet resolute. “I’ll still kick and kick. Because someone has to. Because it’s worth kicking.”

Renny, from Looking Backward by @glancesherlock

Bede, from This is a Low by @Garish Garchomp

Mhairi, from Ignoble Idolatry by @SayleeK | Rui, from The Dark We Carry by @Dee

Best Supporting Character in a Written Run

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place Honorable Mention

Veilstone felt emptier than when I was there last. The monastery had lost its characteristic liveliness. Rightfully so. I heard whispers among the monks that their most sacred treasures had been stolen after the death of Ayya Maylene. I took a short walk in the brisk fall weather and quickly stopped at the nearest pillar to catch my breath. I had already been dreading trudging through the thick snow to challenge Byron or Candice in the winter. It was not shaping up to be any easier, if I could convince my doctor to let me out of their sight. Future problems.

The heavy breathing of the monk assigned to me reminded me of where I was. I whirled around and snapped on him. “Don’t you have anywhere else to be?!”

“Apologies, Mr. Mich-”

“Don’t call me that. It’s fine. I’m just… tired,” I sighed. It wasn’t his fault that everyone in my orbit had decided I needed a chaperone just to exist. I wanted to be alone. Or I thought.
I regret sayin’ it out loud the minute I see how Alik’s face lights up.

“Ha- never thought you’d be the one suggestin’ it!” He puts on this voice, all- what’s the word?- prim like this teacher Mrs. Golden we had a few years ago. “Where has the “quiet little pet” gone to? Golden would be turnin’ in her grave like she’s using Whirlpool or somethin’.” The chimchar has halfway climbed up his leg, and it lets out this little screech like it’s agreein’.

“She isn’t even dead. I seen her at the shop the other day. And that sounds nothing like her anyways, Dom does a way better imitation than you.” I look down, but I’m not getting any back up from my one. He’s distracted, eating a dandelion.

“Oh, you would say that, yeah,” he smirks.

“Shut up.” I mutter. (……)

I remember then that we have to sort out what to do about the pokemon. It’s always like this, talking with Alik. You end up somewhere different from where you started, which is kinda good if where you started isn’t where you want to.
Hop went into his bag and pulled out this year’s diary, “CHRONICLES OF LEGEND” detailed on the cover, and flipped it open to the most recent entry. “Wrote that this mornin’ after I got home. That’s what you saw too, yeah?”

Mhairi looked away from the actual entry and focused on the sketch Hop had done of what he thought he saw. The outline was vague, offering no more than the impression of something large and hulking, but he’d gotten the eyes down in detail, the bright, piercing eyes that Mhairi remembered so vividly. He’d even added a few flecks of yellow pencil to suggest the bright gold colour really was what she’d seen, and not just the dream she’d had mixing up with what she’d seen in her brain.

“We really saw it, huh?” she said, handing the book back for Hop to tuck away securely.

“Yeah,” he said quietly. “What d’you think it was?”
“So, anyway,” said Marnie. “That’s why you should never use an octillery as a hair-dryer.”

“I have many questions,” replied a bewildered Aria.

“We never did find out where Paul’s amp went.”

“And your brother is really banned from Kalos for life?”

“I’m not sure if it’s for life, but when you piss on the statue of their legendary king or whatever the hell, youse probably askin’ for it. ‘I’ll show you a laser, you old dickhead’ he yelled, and off he went...”

EXCERPT FROM WINNER
Deion, from Behold, a Pale Horse! by @localhoney

Alik, from Peakbound by @Bramble

Hop, from Ignoble Idolatry by @SayleeK

HONORABLE MENTION
Marnie, from The Thorn by @Epsilon

Funniest Written Run

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place (A Tie!) 3rd Place (A Tie!)

Hau lies flat on his back, letting puppies crawl all over him. "I can die happy," he says reverently.

"This is not when you die."

"I want it to be." Hau turns to Death, one eye closed to avoid slobber while a dog licks at his face. "Can I pick when I die?"

"Hau," Death says gravely, petting their sleeping Lillipup. "I am holding a puppy. Please do not ask me about free will versus determinism."
Raihan leaps over the couch opposite and saves me from my inner monologue like the saint he is.

"Oh good, you found her." He lets himself fall onto the seat without spilling a drop of beer. "Now we're really having a champion time!"

Leon sighs and rubs the bridge of his nose.

I have to giggle. "What now?"

"New catch phrase," he says with some exasperation. "Not my idea."

"You know." Raihan dramatically sweeps one leg over the other. "Just when I thought Rose had peaked with how stupid he makes you look on main, he shocks me yet again. What a legend." He laughs heartily. "It's not even champion of a time. Just 'champion time.' Who the fuck would even say—just a minute."

Like a Boltund, he bounds over our couch (still no spills). Tearing open the patio door, he screams into the night. "We out here having a champion time!"
"She's made her demands."

Demands, huh? I tap a cloven foot against the floorboard, motioning for her to continue.

Pride stretches across the couch to hug Cheryl. "She wants to be friends! Isn't that adorable?"

What? Was she even more of a brainless simpleton than she appeared? Demons didn't have friends!

I snort, throwing my head back. The noise that erupts from deep within my gut is loud and rude. I can feel the shift in the air, my insult stifling whatever baseless aspiration the child has. I bask in it, the angry energy all too familiar.

Cheryl nudges Pride away, jumping to her feet. She shivers, relying on would-be confidence, and balls her fists. "Don't laugh at me!"

"Why shouldn't I?" Humans. Predictable, puny rats. "Even if demons made friends, what makes you think you're worth our time?"
"I can't believe I'm saying this, but please stop dancing on the boombox on Celeste's head."
==
"Celeste, please stop throwing the bugs."
She stops, looks back at me and snorts before ignoring my request and throwing a Caterpie clear of the trees.
==
(...)she looks less like a demon and more like an indifferent, sentient pineapple…
==
Colress blinks twice, processing the fact that he is now holding a Wepear between his teeth.

Don't Fear the Reaper by @Wwarborday

Brick by Boring Brick by @glancesherlock

Sindignity by @AstroDeath | Devoured by @Obelisk

Best Dynamic in a Written Run

1st Place (A Tie!) 1st Place (A Tie!) 3rd Place (A Tie!) 3rd Place (A Tie!) Honorable Mention

Colour paled away around them. The air hummed low. Hala issued the same instructions to Moon that he had for Hau. This time, Lillie recognised them for what they were -- breathing exercises, designed to calm. Like the ones Wicke had tried to teach her.

“Think about waves,” she whispered, when they didn’t appear to be working. Some mornings, Lillie noticed that rather than coming ashore from her swim right away, Moon would float just past where waves broke; a speck on a rolling tapestry.

Paradise in calm seas.

But instead of following instructions and relaxing, Moon made a throaty noise: imitating a plunging wave crashing into shore. She drew it out, too, until the two of them cracked and giggled together. Lillie didn’t dare look around her, for fear of being met by disappointment. Whether it would be worse from the kahuna or from dear Hau -- she couldn’t decide. Her breath caught as she tried to calm herself and she snorted, which made Moon laugh in earnest, and then they were both lost.
“You know, my parents offered to pay for the wedding. When they ‘apologized.’” He puts air quotes around the word. He swears Naomi looks a little proud about it. “Down to your kimono. Maybe we could have it on One Island after all.”

She hums and purses her lips, and he thinks about kissing her. “Destination wedding where they pay for everyone’s travel?”

“And hotel arrangements.”

“My kimono could be made of diamonds.”

“Nothing too beautiful, you’ll kill me.”

She laughs, and his chest fills with the sweetest feeling. She’s home. She’s been home for years and years, but marrying her will make it official in a way that maybe shouldn’t matter but still does, at least to him. “I feel like that should be my only goal when I buy a kimono. Will it make you pass out the instant you see me.”

He squeezes her hand. “Please, my heart is weak.”

“Weak for pretty faces in pretty kimono,” she teases, with a smirk that reminds him of when he asked her to come to Galar.

He rubs his thumb over her ring, kisses her cheek, and can’t wait for the day he can call her his wife. “Weakest of all for you.”
“Surprised you aren’t asleep,” Wally quips, removing one earbud and reaching down to grab a small hand towel resting on his chair. He wipes his face and bare chest with it before tossing it onto the pile of water toys, sunscreen bottles, and other towels on the ground.

I groan, leaning back in my chair and wiggling my toes restlessly. “I’ve taken enough naps these past two weeks to last a lifetime. I’m bored of doing nothing.”

Wally sits down on his chair, dragging our cooler closer to him so he can grab a bottle of water. “We don’t really have a choice,” he reminds me, unscrewing the top of a half-drunk bottle of his from before. He pauses before taking a sip, giving me a confused once-over. “Are you seriously not going to take off that cover-up in this heat?”

Crossing my arms over the over-sized white t-shirt I’m wearing, I glare at him through my sunglasses. “This is to protect me from pervs like you ogling me in my bikini.”

With a disbelieving scoff, Wally rolls his eyes. “How long do we have to know each other before you get that I have zero interest in leering at you?” he asks. He considers me for a moment before a small, uncharacteristic smirk registers on his face. “Besides, you’re the one who’s been staring.”
Estelle was the first to escape. She posed herself like a doll at the end of the hallway. “This is ridiculous.”

Gwen came next, sauntering. “What, the fireworks display back there? Are you not having fun?”

Minty was last, ruffled like she’d escaped a gunfight. “It’s like they’re about to start biting and scratching.”

They stood together in a square of light that fell through the eastern window. This was the first time they’d seen each other in years. A string of messy legal troubles and a divorce had separated them soon after birth, and life had pulled them apart from there, awash, as distant as Canalave and Sunyshore. For each of them, meeting her sisters was like gazing into a warped mirror. Except the mirror walked and talked and upset your constitution.
“Ais—” Serena stopped herself, started over. Xoana glanced over, and Serena met her eyes instead of Aisling’s. “My Queen.” She blinked and shifted her focus to Aisling as she grunted to acknowledge she was listening. “I’m sorry for what I said about Dáire.”

Aisling’s face betrayed nothing, but her shoulders hunched and her knuckles strained on the railing.

“I truly didn’t mean to imply it was anything other than a tragic accident. I was shocked and spoke carelessly. I apologize and I will do my best to not be as insensitive in the future.”
Xoana thought she heard Aisling’s teeth grind, but a quiet thanks passed her lips.

They actually did it!

But after that there was stiff silence rather than catharsis. Maybe they weren’t ready yet, but at least they had tried. Xoana caught Serena glancing at her again. Maybe they had tried for her. They had both spent the day trying to make sure she was happy. The least she could do was try the same for them.

Lillie and Moon, from Trainer-watching by @Flop disc | Naomi and Kenneth, from Family; or, Proposals and Forever by @Thirteenth

Lilian and Wally, from As Above, So Below by @Rhema | Estelle, Gwen, and Minty, from Three's a Crown by @Missy

HONORABLE MENTION
Aisling, Xoana, and Serena, from Tightrope by @Zephyr_Iphis

Garish Garchomp · Feb 14, 2021

Screenshot Runs

Best New Screenshot Run

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place Honorable Mention

It was incredibly easy. If only you had a person somewhere nearby with good Pokemon who knows how to battle and could have taken care of this problem without the help of a random stranger.

You could maybe put this person in charge of a training facility for Pokemon. A gym of sorts. Make them the leader of that. That sounds good.
ーー GAME OVER ーー

--> Reset?
--> Retry?

I do believe I could beat this if I grind my Poliwag just a little more, so I won't be resetting the whole game this time since I don't have the sanity left to go through the first couple of routes again.
I dodged the blade of Boar, managing to parry with my cutlass. The bastard was smiling, smiling, while blood dripped from my left shoulder, staining my blue dress.

“Lelov, help out Cini with the Quilava!” I rapped out orders to the Poliwag while parrying with my free arm; the other was numb. I saw the Poliwag go in front of my Chikorita, who kept pleading with the Quilava to stop fighting. “Skan, Ston, the Gastly and Zubat are yours!”

“Quilava, burn it all down!” the red-haired man shouted, a dark fire alight in his cruel eyes.

The fiery badger, his eyes weary with pain from his trainer’s abuse, reluctantly opened his mouth and blew a giant flame at the surrounding area and my Poliwag, whose eyes widened in terror.

“LELOV!” I screamed.

Dust in the Wind 3 by @Erberor

Breakin' the Lore by @mewstein

Vee Reviews - Pokemon INSANE Red by @Veerle

HONORABLE MENTION
Translucent Legends by @Memento

Best Overall Screenshot Run

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place Honorable Mention Honorable Mention

“I now proclaim… King Orys of the House Baratheon, the first of his name, King of the Andals and the First Men, Protector of the Seven Kingdoms, The Black Stag of Westeros, Bane of the Kraken and the Lion, The Stranger from Beyond the Narrow Sea, Savior of Storm’s End, and Conqueror of the Beast Realm.”

When Kotaz had finished his proclamation, King Orys approached the Iron Throne.

His gait was a limping stride, and he gritted his teeth with every step. The throneroom was silent and nearly empty. There was Kotaz, bowing deeply before the steps to the throne itself. On the other side was Ser Cleos, looking older and more worn than ever. Next to him stood Rickard, dark and somber, his gaze turned to the ground. They were the only three present to witness his ascent.

Orys stared down at the dark steel of the throne. The warped blades twisted around one another in metal tendrils, some jutting out like spines waiting to pierce the flesh of the fool who would dare to take their place.

Would this really be the representation of his rule? After all he’d been through to win it? Is this why his daughter was fighting for her life, marred forever? Did his son lose his wife for this? Did so many of his people really give up their lives for this cold, metal mass?

No. They gave up their lives for a king.

Orys spat blood on the seat of the throne, turned around, and walked out.
It’s bullshit, I did not forget to take screenshots of Barry outside Oreburgh Cave after Roark, I did naatt. Oh hi Floaroma Town.

GoT-ta Catch 'em All! by @Spectacles

Sinnoh After Dark by @Violenceman

I wanna be the very best by @SnackyTheSylph

HONORABLE MENTIONS
Dazzling Supernova by @RubyClaw | Jenga! by @Bowser's Family Vacation

Most Improved Screenshot Run

1st Place 2nd Place

2013: None whatsoever. The author might, he's seen the Queen before. Ask him.
Remaster: Begin every single sentence with "Your Grace," followed by bad news. That's how people speak to kings in all the TV shows I've watched.
Most of which were a bad idea to let you watch aged TEN...
Also, Kevin, say 'hark' a lot. But not too much or they'll think you're a Wingull in a human suit.
my team is so good, i don't need some stupid box macot legendary / mythic. you know what, let's just make that a new rule! no catching legendaries, 'cause some of 'em are kind of broken. the fact that i'm using a broken 620 BST bug/dragon with punk rock-boosted STAB is irrelevant to this conversation.
i can totally just solo every major battle with set-up spam anyway. nothing can possibly go wrong here, ever!

Dearly Me! by @Master Bryss

Insurgence Hard Mode by @antingaround

Saddest Death/Departure in a Screenshot Run

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place

Fanpop is gone... it's truly the end of an era. While they joined us on the third island relatively late in the run, they've definitely stuck around long enough for me to consider them veterans of the team. I remember how, along with Concerto, they were the only ones left in my party after that half-party wipeout in Aether Paradise. Them dying just never seemed like it would happen, but alas no one is immune to such a fate in a challenge like this.

If anything, I can appreciate that Fanpop went out in a heroic way, as it basically took a mini boss situated at the end of the largest gauntlet in the game to take them down.
Speaking of scary encounters, I got crit by a Mr. Mime's Thunderbolt literally two minutes later and lost one of my best team members. It went for Thunder Wave first which made me believe that perhaps it did not have Thunderbolt but I was wrong. As good as Gyarados was, having a Pokemon with a 4x weakness to Electric might not be the best in a game where almost everything has Electric & Ice coverage...

Pounce, from The Terribly-Titled Nuzlocke of Pokemon Rejuvenation by @Derogatory Trainer

Fandango and Bitpop, from Ultra Moon Wedlocke by @pikasphere

Hydrogen, from Vee Reviews – Pokemon INSANE Red by @Veerle

Best Commentary Style

1st Place (A Tie!) 1st Place (A Tie!) 3rd Place (A Tie!) 3rd Place (A Tie!) Honorable Mention

Strategy

Ilima's team hasn't changed much from Sun & Moon, but nothing needed to be changed. Although his Smeargle attracts the most notoriety, his Yungoos honestly scares me equally as much. Without the use of healing items, the damage output will rack up dangerously fast against us.
Okay, so this will be a job for

K-pop and

Polka. The latter will actually play a valuable role, namely in setting up Reflect and firing off Silk Scarf boosted Swifts, which actually pack quite a punch. However, I'm not sure when, or if, I'd be able to switch K-pop in safely. Every hit point is important for him.

Carolina, here's a Pretty Wing: your secret weapon. If it really comes down to it, use that to declare an emergency offering of peace.
as i said in the previous part, Crates is definitely my best choice in actually damaging Brock's pokémon, the problem is just that Crates is 4x weak against rock attacks. thankfully, Geodude doesn't have rock tomb, which means Crates should be able to take it down pretty easily. The problem is his Onix. not only is it fast, it also has rock tomb. i can only hope that it misses, which means sand attack hax would be great.
On this Episode:

Manstar enters Telnor cave, and while he catches a new warrior to aid him in his travels, he learns a very harsh lesson about the world of Pokemon...

That most people learn the first time they play.

Poison and ground types do not mix, and unfortunately Bethh is slain by a careless mistake.

Manstar forges ahead, and eventually finds Damian at the end of the cave.
He also finds some cultists that are totally plotting to kill the second Augur...

Looks like we've got a day to save...

and doom to have happen to us.

ANALYSIS - I suck at Pokemon and am probably going to bite it if I don't shape up.

@pikasphere | @RubyClaw

@Sunny in the Valley | @mewstein

HONORABLE MENTION
@Manstar

Best Written Log

1st Place

After that, N approaches and declares that he'll be the champion. Right, you may want to go south and east. First gym's over in Striation.
==
"Why can't I beat you?" Well, because I have Protagonist Powers™ and Plot Armor™™.
==
I can’t even start to count how many times I’ve seen wild Durant rolling crits while Tharp is under half-health. This game isn’t even bothering to hide it anymore - it clearly wants me to fail and keeps trying to crit me to death at every opportunity.
=
So now...I’m down to Pelipper and Marowak. Great. Great.

Cycle of Hurting by @Obelisk

Best Teammate in a Screenshot Run

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place (A Tie!) 3rd Place (A Tie!)

This excursion has wasted enough of my time.

Oh spoons what is she doing

Now speak, fool.
I'll... live.
Geez, Ludo... don't scare me like that.
I didn't just... almossst die for fun, you know.
My (accidental) Route 17 encounter is a level 7 Frillish who I snagged in a single Net Ball. His name is Langbein, after Walter Basil Langbein, a hydrologist known for his contributions to hydrology (...)
=
Foe Absol used Night Slash! A critical hit!*
*Abbot fainted!*
...no. Why, game?
*Foe Absol used Me First! Foe Absol used Return!*
*Curie fainted!*
…Langbein, please be strong enough to take a hit.
*Foe Absol used Night Slash!*
*Langbein survives at 42/212 HP, KOs Absol*

Glimmer, from Dust in the Wind 3 by @Erberor

Beau, from Back to Basics by @pikafan96

Ludo, from DARK IS NOT EVIL by @Alan900900900 | Langbein, from Cycle of Hurting by @Obelisk

Best Main Character in a Screenshot Run

1st Place (A Tie!) 1st Place (A Tie!) 3rd Place

But, Pokemon also open their hearts to you, so you can become friends.

So the odds of forging a life-long friendship as opposed to getting horribly mauled is what? 50/50?

Give or take.
Pico had to think about that for a moment. Soon enough, though, he spoke. "You're naive, inexperienced and a bit immature. But I suppose you're also kind enough. I have no problem working with you, really. It's just that I've only just met you."

I looked over at Rowan. He simply shrugged. I looked down at Pico again. "Okay...well, why is it that you think I'm naive and all that?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Pico started pacing in front of me. "Trainers are dying out there, and you still want to do this. It's extremely dangerous. Odds are, you'll get hurt or even killed. And then what will any of this matter? Why do you people even want to do this, knowing the risk you're taking?"

That question kind of caught me off guard. Maybe I just wasn't expecting to have to answer that so soon, or maybe I was just surprised that my starter Pokemon was asking me instead of, say, my mother. But I knew exactly what the answer was.

"Well...I can't speak for everyone. After all, no two people have the same story. But...I wanted to be a Trainer with full knowledge of the risk...because I want to try and make it better."

Pico's eyes widened a bit at that. "...Hmm. All right, I'll bite." The hints of a smile crept onto the corners of his mouth. "Let's see just how well you hold up to that."

Sean, from The Terribly-Titled Nuzlocke of Pokemon Rejuvenation by @Derogatory Trainer | Jack, from Sinnoh After Dark by @Violenceman

Diana, from Smile Through the Pain by @erk pls

Best Supporting Character in a Screenshot Run

1st Place 2nd Place

...Soooo, how much money are you willing to put on the fact that Dark Organisation 'acquired' him as a work experience boy following the mysterious disappearance of his family?
Do you mean murder?
Of course I mean murder. I'm a realist. The war against the small pink flowery tapirs that shoot mist out their heads taught me that.
Quick Attack!
A Critical Hit! Foe Haxorus fainted! FELICIA WINS!
Hot damn girl, didn't think you'd be able to pull that off. That's a great Pidgeot you have.
Don't feed his ego.
BOW BEFORE YOUR NEW GOD!

Bryss, from Dearly Me! by @Master Bryss

Pollo, from Unfamiliar Faces by @Uberle

Funniest Screenshot Run

1st Place 2nd Place 3rd Place (A Tie!) 3rd Place (A Tie!) Honorable Mention

we bully the local kids and coerce them for their money.

not to sound like a high school bully but if you think about the whole taking money from the loser thing, it's really funny.
imagine if you're a middle-aged business man and was on your way back home, and suddenly you're accosted by a ten year old who wants to have a pokémon battle. you'd go sure why not, let the kid have fun. and then suddenly the kid throw out gigantic monsters and occasionally an actual god to fight you and you get your ass handed straight back at you and now the kid is forcing you to pay up. now you have to go back home glassy eyed thinking how you're gonna survive till next month since your paycheck has just been taken away by a ten year old.

y'know, just something to think about
Everyone just stared at this abomination like it was about to attack.

Well, everyone except Pico, that is. Because he suddenly took the poffin from my hand. We all very slowly turned to look at him as he stared it down, almost as if trying to make it submit.

"...What are you doing?" I asked. You could reach out and touch the trepidation in my voice.

Pico didn't answer. He didn't even indicate that he had heard me. All he did...was take a bite.

The sound was the first thing that hit me. It sounded like a granite countertop had gotten smashed with a sledgehammer. I thought I saw a spark. The sound of a man in steel-toed boots tap-dancing on a window reverberated throughout the street. Pico's eyes filled with tears, but he kept chewing. Eventually, after a good five minutes...he swallowed.

The atmosphere grew heavy. We couldn't take our eyes off of Pico if our lives depended on it. Pico, meanwhile, just shivered in place for what felt like an eternity. Eventually, he opened his mouth to say something, his tongue looking like it had gotten run over by a bus...and he couldn't even speak. All that came out was a wheeze and a puff of smoke.
my team is so good, i don't need some stupid box macot legendary / mythic. you know what, let's just make that a new rule! no catching legendaries, 'cause some of 'em are kind of broken. the fact that i'm using a broken 620 BST bug/dragon with punk rock-boosted STAB is irrelevant to this conversation.
i can totally just solo every major battle with set-up spam anyway. nothing can possibly go wrong here, ever!
WHY
WHY DO LEVEL 4 RIOLU HAVE FUCKING TAIL GLOW
WHERE IS YOUR GLOWING TAIL, RIOLU
WHERE IS IT

One Man's Trash by @Pika

Falkner is a terrible gym leader (but a decent trainer) by @Sunny in the Valley

Smile Through the Pain by @erk pls | Insurgence Hard Mode by @antingaround

HONORABLE MENTION
Perfectly Balanced by @Dumboldore

Best Dynamic in a Screenshot Run

1st Place 2nd Place

“…Papa? Why do we worship the Many-Faced God? Death? I don’t see a single good thing about it. I’m gonna miss them a lot, and there’s nothing anyone can do about it. Death stole them from us.”

“Sendriss,” said Orys, putting a hand on her shoulder, “it’s not easy to understand. But death didn’t take them from us. Death only takes back what should be theirs. One day, it will take us all back. And it sounds bleak, I know. But, life wouldn’t be so precious to us if it weren’t for death. If we had infinite days, would we still honor each one as the gift they are?”

A warmness came over Sendriss, and she turned her attention back to the pyres.

Orys followed her gaze, and his face hardened again. “The Greyjoys are the ones who stole from us…They stole from us, and they stole from the Many-Faced God. A heavy debt is owed in return. And it is up to us to make sure it is paid. It’s time for Westeros to see what the fury of House Baratheon really looks like.”

She thought of the Lannister man, then. Her first kill. She could see it again as if he was right in front of her- his wide blue eyes, his mouth gasping up blood, the way his body looked as he slumped to the floor. It had made her ill then, but now…He stole from us. A debt was owed, a debt was paid. She summoned the words of Maester Barno. “Valar morghulis…”

For the first time since his wedding, Orys smiled, and Sendriss swore he looked years younger. “Valar dohaeris.”
"You have me. I know Ser Terrence has his own faults. As do I. But I care about you, Millicent.”

“You have an odd way of showing it, Ser.”

Hosanna took a deep breath. “You...you remind me so much of me,” she confessed. “You’ve been through hell, same as me and the others. I only wish I could be as upbeat as you can be at times. I don’t ever want you to lose that.”

“Is that why you say you’re my friend? Because I remind you of something you lost?” Millicent asked coldly.

“No. You’re my friend because you’re kind, positive, and you deserve to be a maester more than anyone who wears those weird metal chainlinks. Because you are a genuinely good person who has dealt with shit and manages to get back up.”

Orys and Sendriss, from GoT-ta Catch 'em All! by @Spectacles

Millicent and Hosanna, from Beware, We Sting by @Memento

★ Extravaganza 2020 - Results Thread

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