Introduction This is a pick-‐up-‐and-‐play system designed for people who want to play traditional Pokémon trainers; your daily life probably consists of capturing, battling and exploring in a light-‐hearted world. If you’d rather delve into the deeper philosophical ramifications of giant monster combat, experience a different aspect of life in the world – to be a professor, breeder, psychic or martial artist for example – or face off against ancient or legendary Pokémon that pose a challenge far greater than anything you could overcome, then this system isn’t what you’re looking for. Instead, take a look at the Pokémon Tabletop Adventures game that can be found here:
http://forums.Pokémontabletop.com/site/
Your Pokémon Adventure The world of Pokémon is vast and strange. Professors study how fish can battle and function normally on dry land. A seedy Pokémon underworld controls a black market, while other groups protest and fight for the right of all Pokémon, even while giving them performance-‐enhancing vitamins!
So where do you fit into all of this?
Well, like most REAL Pokémon trainers, your goal is to tame the baddest laser-‐shooting reptile-‐plant monster you can find and use it to beat up the other kids’ monsters. You’ll sail the seas, soar through the clouds, and delve into labyrinthine caves. In short, you’ll have an old-‐fashioned Pokémon adventure.
Pokémon Culture Pokémon journeys are often seen as rites of adulthood, where young trainers will learn to fend for themselves while confronting situations that inevitably require mental and physical fortitude. It teaches life lessons (y’know, like kindness and fairness) the hard way, and helps instill values like humility and bravery even in the face of constant adversity. In turn, most regions operate under a simple idea with complex ramifications – that the strength of one’s Pokémon determines the strength of one’s character. Just think about that for a second. A trainer who proves themselves in battle also proves that their journey turned them into a wise, appreciative and motivated individual.
As these qualities are inherently tied to being a good leader, many regions have taken this idea a step further and replaced the idea of a government completely. Such regions are run by a distinguished Pokémon League, or an ‘oligarchy’ composed of elite trainers. Sometimes the regional Champion even has the final say in any given situation.
In short, the person with the best monsters can become president.
Making a Character Building a trainer is a pretty simple process. In fact, creating your character comes down to only five easy steps.
First, come up with your character concept in broad strokes; Are you a boy…or a girl? What sort of personality does he or she have? Then flesh out your appearance, outlook on life, settle on a good name, and maybe decide on a goal or two that keeps your trainer motivated. Don’t forget to include a couple of neat (but subtle!) traits and quirks that’ll make them memorable. Your GM might have certain stipulations on things like character age, especially if you’re playing a traditional game in which the PCs will be receiving their first ever Pokémon. It varies from region to region, but this is generally an event that happens in a trainer’s early teens.
The second step is to choose your skills. No matter your age, just about everyone shares the same common pool of five skills. They consist of Livelihood, Gut Instinct, Fitness, Outdoors, and Social. The first thing you’ll want to do is flip ahead to the Skills section to learn more about what each of these mean. Then you’ll choose one of them to get a +6 bonus, one of them to get a +4 bonus, two that get a pair of +2 boosts, and one that stays at +0. These improve over time, but very slowly, and you’ll want to make sure you’re happy with your choices before moving on.
The third – and perhaps most important! – step is to choose one of the five trainer types that represents your personality the best. Are you a Determined sort that would sacrifice everything for what was right? An unpredictable Dynamic trainer that keeps your friends and enemies on their toes? Maybe your friend think you’re the most Clever person they know, and you always approach situations with an open mind and a back-‐up plan. But then again, maybe you’re a Speedy kid who doesn’t have time to over-‐think every little decision! Perhaps you’re a Gentle soul that values kindness over all else. When you’ve made the decision, jot it down and proceed to the fourth step.
Now you’ll choose your starting Trainer Perks – you get two of these, chosen from the list that your trainer type gives you, or the list found in the All Trainers section that everybody has access to. For example, a Clever character might choose to pick up [Trainer’s Eye] from their trainer-‐specific list, and [Rich Kid] from the shared list.
Finally, pick up some basic gear. Flip ahead to the Items section and add three Cheap items to your character sheet. A character might get three pokéballs, or they might choose a Town Map, a Repel, and a Potion, for example.
You play hard, and you play to win. You've got a go-‐getter attitude and a whole lot of force to back it up. In a battle, you're great at changing your style on the fly to win with unusual techniques, or overcoming the odds with sheer force of will, but you often sacrifice defense for offense. You're the best and you KNOW it, and people often mistake self-‐confidence with arrogance. [Powerful Attacks]: Winning is all about hitting the other Pokémon harder than they hit you, and you've trained your Pokémon to give their attacks a little extra oomph when it really counts. Once per Pokémon per battle, when your Pokémon hits with an attack, select one of the Offense Dice that shows a value of 1-‐5. You can add that number to the attack’s total damage dealt.
[Adaptability]: One Pokémon of your choice permanently gains the Adaptability ability, which reads; 'Attacks that share a type with the Pokémon deal an extra 4 damage instead of an extra 2. This bonus does not apply to moves that have been used twice in a row.' This can be taken multiple times, choosing different Pokémon each time.
[Special Training]: You’ve explored all sorts of exotic training methods to get your Pokémon to surpass their normal limitations, and it shows. Whenever you spend your TIP to add an extra Offense Dice to your Pokémon’s you may roll two bonus dice instead.
[Impulsive]: Your Pokémon will fight even without you giving them orders. When you spend your turn to use an item such as a potion or a pokéball, or otherwise can’t command your companions, they’ll automatically use one move of the GM’s choice. The smarter the Pokémon, the more likely their choice of move will be a strategic pick.
[Evolutionary Surge]: Choose one Pokémon you own. Instead of learning a move at the end of their next combat they may undergo a mini-‐evolution, permanently changing one of their Types into any other Type as chosen by you, and you lose the [Evolutionary Surge] perk. An Evolutionary Surge may only occur once per Pokémon. Future evolutions of this Pokémon retain the chosen type, and other members of the species called into existence via TIPs do not share this type change. This, in turn, probably changes the types of moves the Pokémon will learn from future battles. You can take Evolutionary Surge multiple times, choosing a different Pokémon each time.
[Trader]: You’ve got a keen eye and know how to pick out real contenders among hundreds of possibilities. Pokémon traded to you are never Troublesome, and they get a +4 bonus to their INT roll at the end of the first battle the two of you overcome together.
[Saving Throw]: Your opponent teeters and prepares to fall, but you anticipated that and have one last chance to snag it before it bites the dust! Once per battle when a wild enemy Pokémon has been knocked out by an attack, you may immediately use a Trainer Action to throw a Pokéball at it.
[Stunt]: Strategy is for people that don’t have style. Once per Pokémon per battle, you may describe an elaborate combat maneuverer – ricocheting a seed off a nearby wall or, for example -‐ before the attack roll is made. During your Pokémon’s next attack roll, your opponent cannot end any negative effects or take half damage by spending successful Defensive Dice – they can only use their successes to counter yours.
[Diversity]: Your multi-‐typed Pokémon team has grown stronger by learning from one another. When you have at least six different elemental types present in your active Pokémon team – that is, the team of Pokémon you own and are carrying with you – they all gain an extra +2 bonus to their accuracy with all moves.
[Hotshot]: You use the power of trash talk to throw a wrench in your opponent’s plans. By delivering a sick burn to your opponent once per adventure, they must choose to either re-‐roll one dice of your choice or to have their currently-‐active Pokémon suffer the Ongoing Damage status effect.
There's so much more to life than just seeing Pokémon beat the tar out of one another. You're not a bleeding heart or some dainty flower that needs to be protected from danger, but you know better than anyone that the world can be an unsafe place. By treating Pokémon with kindness and the respect they deserve, you can turn friendship into deep, lasting bonds. [Hopes and Dreams]: Your constant encouragement does more than just keep spirits high -‐ it can actually influence Pokémon evolution. Whenever a friendly Pokémon that you've spent a significant period of one-‐on-‐one time with...such as one you've captured or taken care of via the Day Care perk...evolves to their final form, their trainer can choose which ability the Pokémon obtains. This also unlocks unusual abilities based on the Pokémon's personality and may even allow a Type change, such as a terrestrial Pokémon who has always wanted to fly gaining access to the 'Cloud Nine' ability and the Flying subtype along with visual differences.
If a Pokémon can’t or doesn’t want to evolve, then [Hopes and Dreams] can instead trigger during a major milestone in the Pokémon’s life after a great deal of time has passed.
[Companions]: You find the idea of capturing Pokémon to be distasteful, and though you don't try to push your beliefs on others, you've managed to learn how to befriend Pokémon without the aid of electronic devices. You no longer need a Pokéball to 'capture' a wild Pokémon, but must still roll the associated capture roll successfully in order to talk to a wild critter on their level and convince them that you're not a threat. You gain a +2 bonus to this roll, at the GM’s discretion, if you add a convincing argument for why the wild Pokémon would be better off alongside you than in the wild. Your Pokémon may not use any moves during this round or the 'capture' roll is automatically treated as a failure. The target must still be at 50% HP or below for this to be successful -‐ a wild Pokémon will rarely pay any attention to anybody until they've tired themselves out a bit.
[Fashion Sense]: Your Pokémon can carry up to three Held Item at a times instead of just one. Each item must grant a different bonus. When an enemy Pokémon attempts to destroy or steal an item, you can choose which one they get.
[Cautious Approach]: One Pokémon of your choice gains the Forewarn ability, which reads; 'You learn the most dangerous move possessed by your enemy (as determined by the GM), and that move is at a -‐2 accuracy penalty to hit you and your allies.' This can be taken multiple times, choosing different Pokémon each time.
[Day Care]: You can look after one Pokémon that doesn't actually belong to you. That Pokémon isn't allowed to participate in battles until you return it to its rightful owner. So long as it remains healthy and happy, that Pokémon can watch and learn Moves just by watching their real trainer battle! By spending a TIP after the fight ends, the Day Care’d Pokémon can gain a new Move and even evolve as though it had actually been participating.
[Heal Balls]: You own a book full of special stickers which you happily attach to everyone’s Pokéballs. After you or an ally catch a Pokémon, they are immediately healed to full health.
[Morale Boost]: You call out encouragement to one of the Pokémon on the field. If the target is friendly, they gain a +4 bonus to the accuracy of their next move. If the target is hostile, they instead suffer a -‐4 penalty to their next accuracy roll as they become momentarily less vicious. This doesn't take your action and may be used once per battle.
[Be Gentle]: After you deal enough damage to K.O. an opposing Pokémon, you may declare that your move had the 'False Swipe' keyword and instead leaves them at 1 hit point. Be Gentle can only be used once per battle.
[Empathy]: This useful perk is exclusive to the most kind-‐hearted of trainers. You can use your Social skill to affect the disposition of Pokémon as well as people.
[Adoption]: Each Pokémon species generally has several different possible abilities. When you call forth a new member of the species using a TIP, you can choose which ability (if applicable) the newfound Pokémon will have. You may also choose to give it the ‘Calm’ nature, or the same nature as its parent Pokémon, instead of rolling for one.
[Fixer-‐Upper]: You might be a nurse or doctor in training, know how to whip up special strength-‐restoring meals, or you just know a thing or two about general first aid. At the end of each battle you can choose one Pokémon and tend to what ails ‘em, automatically returning them to full HP.
It's all about hard work. While other trainers might play fast and loose with strategies or risk it all on wild gambits, you're a slow-‐and-‐steady customer who knows that real winners keep their nose to the grindstone and never stop trying. When others are down for the count, you've just started to get warmed up. [Superior Defense]: You’ve made sure to teach your Pokémon the value of rolling with powerful attacks or using nearby objects for cover. Once per Pokémon per battle, when your Pokémon is struck with a damaging attack, select one of the Defense Dice that shows a value of 1-‐5. The total damage dealt by the attack is reduced by that number.
[Endurance]: Both you your team know how to go the distance. All the Pokémon you own have an additional 5 hit points.
[Last Stand]: If you're going down, you'll take your opponent with you! The first time each of your Pokémon is reduced to zero hit points in a given battle, your Pokémon can roll a d20 and add their RES score. If the result is 15 or better they may use one final move before fainting. This move cannot be used to recover hit points or prevent the K.O. in any way.
[Battle Armor]: One Pokémon of your choice gains the Battle Armor ability, which reads; ‘The Pokémon may choose to use one fewer Offensive Dice (if they have at least one available) in order to gain an additional Defense Dice until the start of their next turn.' This can be taken multiple times, choosing different Pokémon each time.
[Perseverance]: Nothing can deter you when you finally decide upon a course of action. You may re-‐roll once dice per adventure.
[Barrier-‐Maker]: You've trained your Pokémon to be able to create walls of ice or psychic energy, using their natural talents to aid their companions as well as themselves. Moves that have the Wall keyword -‐ such as Reflect or Light Screen -‐ now affect all friendly Pokémon instead of just the user.
[Defender]: Declare one enemy Pokémon on your turn. If you have a Pokémon on the field and the enemy Pokémon chooses not to target it this turn, the defending Pokémon gains one additional Defense Dice.
[Always Prepared]: You're ready for anything, no matter how extreme, and own basic survival gear along with more esoteric things like a good umbrella and a sleeping. Your allies’ Pokémon are immune to the negative effects of weather caused by you, and all friendly Pokémon (both yours and your allies') are immune to the negative effects of naturally-‐occurring weather.
[Unity]: Your team’s strategy is simple and elegant, and the single-‐mindedness helps them all stay focused in battle. Pokémon you own that know at least two moves with the Utility keyword gain a +2 bonus to their evasion.
[Side By Side]: Your persistence helps give your companions them a new purpose; after obtaining this perk, your Pokémon are never Troublesome.
Your parents always told you to slow down when you were a kid, insisting you take the time to stop and smell the Sunflora. And it's not that you're impatient, you just hate wasting time! There's no sense messing around doing things the long way when there's a faster solution at hand. Your spur-‐of-‐the-‐moment strategies will leave your opponents dazed and confused. [Think Fast!]: Once per battle you may give any move the Interrupt keyword and perform it immediately.
[Switch Out!]: All of your Pokémon gain the Run Away ability in addition to their regular ability, allowing you to escape combat or swap them out regardless of circumstance.
[Shuffle]: You're prone to spontaneously changing your game plan in combat, swapping around your Pokémon seemingly at-‐will. After returning a Pokémon to its’ Pokéball during battle, the replacement may act immediately without having to wait until the start of the following round for a turn.
[Faster Than You]: Your Pokémon's SPD stats are treated as always being 2 points higher than they really are to determine the initiative order in battles.
[Unburdened]: One Pokémon of your choice gains the Unburden ability, which reads; 'When not holding any item, this Pokémon gains a +4 bonus to their EVA score.' This can be taken multiple times, choosing different Pokémon each time.
[One Step Ahead]: Your Pokémon they are no longer easy targets when afflicted by the Dormant status effect. Your opponents must still roll accurately enough to beat your SPD score when attacking a Dormant Pokémon. Better yet, you deal an extra +2 damage with Attack and Special Attack moves against targets who are Dormant or Rattled.
[Gotta Catch 'Em First]: During your first turn of each battle, you may attempt to catch a wild Pokémon regardless of how many hit points they have -‐ you don't have to follow the 'must be at 50% or less HP' rule. Such Pokémon are always treated as being at half health even if they're still in perfect fighting form.
[Coordinator]: You've spent hours working with your Pokémon to improve both their forms as well as your own, and their elegance and grace helps them gain the upper hand in battle. If one or more enemy’s moves miss your Pokémon due to their evasion, your Pokémon gains one additional Offense Dice on its next turn.
[Speed Ball]: You can use a Pokéball freely on your turn without it taking up your action – so, you could command your Pokémon to use a move to weaken it and then throw a Pokéball.
[Parkour]: Free-‐running is a hobby of yours, and part of your Pokémon training consists of sprinting through urban or wild areas -‐ climbing, jumping, and rolling your way over and through obstacles. Whenever you build a signature move it automatically gains the Escape keyword and your Pokémon can attack targets that have used an Escape-‐keyword move without penalty.
[Evolving Potential]: The first time a Pokémon you own evolves, it gains a permanent +2 bonus to any stat of your choice.
That's the thing the other trainers don't understand -‐ it's brains, not brawn or kindness or speed that makes a great trainer. Type advantages and disadvantages, coverage and knowledge, that's your game. There's nothing that the world can't throw at you that you haven't already prepared a counter-‐plan for, and your team will be strengthened with all the knowledge you bring. [Pokésmith]: Even without the aid of technology, you can craft nifty gizmos, helpful doodads, and pretty keepsakes for your Pokémon. At the end of each adventure you may spent a TIP to create a Held Item that can be carried by a Pokémon to increase either PWR, RES, SPD or INT by +2 points, or increase the damage by all moves of a certain Type by +2. This could be anything from a giant magnet to a spiffy fedora, a mystical spell tag or a deadly poisonous barb.
[Extra-‐Curricular]: You don't need fancy tricks to overcome your adversaries -‐ just a fail-‐proof strategy. Whenever you would learn a Superior move with one of your Pokémon, you may choose to gain a normal move instead in order to automatically earn a TIP.
[Shared Stratagems]: There's a lot that you can teach your Pokémon, and vice-‐versa...but there's also a lot that they can teach one another. Once per adventure by spending a TIP, one of your Pokémon can teach any move it knows to another friendly Pokémon. The GM must agree that the Pokémon is capable of using the move.
[Pokéball Tinkering]: Once per adventure before a catching roll is made either made by yourself or an ally, you may declare that you're adding a +4 bonus to the roll. If you don't grant this bonus during the course of the adventure, you may instead repair a broken Pokéball and make it usable once more.
[Knowledge is Power!]: All of your Pokémon gain a +2 bonus on Smarts rolls to learn new moves.
[Trainer's Eye]: The GM must inform you whenever a wild Pokémon drops below 50% of their total maximum HP and can therefore be caught.
[Intelligent Design]: You prefer to overcome your enemies with complex setups instead of just boring, repeated, bash-‐your-‐head-‐against-‐the-‐wall-‐style attacks. Moves with the Hazard keyword deal an additional +2 damage to your enemies, and moves with the Copycat and Type Conversion keywords can always calculate damage based on your Pokémon’s INT stat.
[Pressure to Succeed]: One Pokémon of your choice gains the Pressure ability, which reads; 'Your opponents may not use the same move twice in a row while this Pokémon is on the field.' This can be taken multiple times, choosing different Pokémon each time.
[According to Plan]: You spend time either concocting a fail-‐proof strategy or researching a subject – it might be a specific move you know your enemy possesses, a species of Pokémon you might encounter out in the wild, an organization or . At or near the start of each game session, name the object or event you are Planning for. When interacting with your Planned target, such as when the move is used or you meet up with the individual you had researched, you may declare that you are using According to Plan. You and all of your allies may re-‐roll any/all of their dice during that turn. Each dice can only be re-‐rolled once, and you may only declare the use of According to Plan once per game session.
[Secret Stash]: You know the value of keeping an eye potion of a few dozen pokéballs on hand, and you’re always prepared for any eventuality. When you obtain new items at the end of an adventure, you may choose to take any two Cheap items of your choice instead of just one.
The following abilities are available to any of the main characters, regardless of what other Trainer type they've chosen. This section is unfinished – if you’ve got a good idea for a perk that would fit in this (or indeed, any other section) tell your GMs!
[Type Specialist]: You feel a kinship with a certain Type of Pokémon. Training Specialists might be headband-‐wearing martial artists, bright-‐eyed bug catchers, or eccentric psychokinetics. You gain a +2 bonus to rolls to catch wild Pokémon of your chosen type, and they gain a +2 bonus on INT checks to learn moves after combat ends. In games that use non-‐standard Pokémon that the players might not be familiar with, the GM must inform you whenever a Pokémon is of your specialized Type -‐ wild or otherwise.
[Rich Kid]: You can purchase Valuable items without rolling, the same way other characters can buy Cheap items without risk. If your newly-‐created character starts with this perk, you can choose Valuable items instead of Cheap ones when picking your 3 pieces of starter gear.
[Bodyguard]: Once per adventure you may leap in front of a weak or helpless Pokémon to protect them from injury. Doing so negates the damage that would be dealt. Using this perk will earn you a disqualification in any sort of official match.
[Like-‐Minded]: You've got a knack for getting along with your newly-‐caught companions. After catching a wild Pokémon and making the random roll to determine its nature, you may choose to increase or decrease your roll result by one.
[TM Smith]: You're handy with a camera, a sketch pad, a camcorder, or even psychic impressions...and you use this natural knack to collect visual references of the moves you've seen used in battle. By spending a TIP you can choose a move that you've seen used during the adventure and turn it into a Technical Machine, or just teach it to a Pokémon of your choice. The GM must agree that the Pokémon is capable of using the move -‐ for example, a Pokémon with no mouth wouldn't get much use out of a TM for Bite or Lick. Signature Moves can't be turned into TMs, and Superior Moves are much more difficult to teach to your average Pokémon.
[No Weak Links]: When this perk is taken, the lowest stat of one Pokémon of your choice is permanently increased by 2.
[Psychic]: You were born with an unusual power. You can use your Gut Instinct skill to not only get a sense of whether someone is telling the truth or not, or if they're generally friendly towards you, but actually read surface thoughts. Such skill checks are almost always hard and require a total roll of 18 or better.
[Veteran]: You’re older and more experienced than most other Pokémon trainers at your same skill level. But with age comes experience and a +2 bonus to your Gut Instinct and Outdoors skills.
[Youngster]: You’re younger than most other Pokémon trainers, but you’ve got energy to spare and you’re just so darn adorable, people immediately take a liking to you and never see you as a threat. You get a +2 bonus to your Fitness and Social skills, and you can wear shorts whenever you want. They’re comfy and easy to wear.
Skills While Pokémon have stats and Trainers don’t, skills are exclusive to humans. The five different skills dictate everything from how quickly you can run to how renowned you are as a Pokémon Connoisseur.
To use a skill, roll a d20 and add whatever bonus your character has. The GM will tell you the difficulty from the three options below.
Easy: You need to roll an 8 or better. Easy skill checks might be figuring out if a bunch of wild berries are safe to eat or not, using a library to figure out what kind of Pokémon the locals gyms favour, Tricky: You need to roll a 12 or better. Examples of Tricky skill checks include picking an old lock, de-‐escalating a fight between two hot-‐headed trainers, or recalling details in an old myth your grandfather once told you. Hard: You need to roll an 18 or better. This might include identifying exactly what kind of creature left those tracks, haggling down the price to buy an Expensive item, or outrunning a Pokémon stampede! The five core skills all trainers have access to are as follows:
Fitness: How athletic and able-‐bodied you are. A trainer will roll this skill to climb, swim, chase down the pickpocket that snagged their cool new pokégear, or help clear away the boulders blocking a cave entrance. A character with a low fitness score might have trouble keeping up with other trainers who want to hike from sun-‐up to sundown every single day. Having no bonus to fitness probably means you’re a nerd who doesn’t get out much, are noticeably overweight or sickly and frail.
Gut Instinct: Most people have that little voice in their head or the reactionary response that tells them when something’s not quite right. You roll your gut instinct when you need to spot a dangerous Pokémon hidden in the tall grass, avoid getting conned by a magikarp salesman, or know which button to push to stop an out-‐of-‐control machine. A character without any points in Gut Instinct tends to have a knack for finding trouble, instead.
Livelihood: A profession or hobby that helps you get by. Independence comes with responsibilities, after all! This skill grants you knowledge relating to your chosen vocation, and you can roll it whenever your livelihood would help out in a given situation. For example, a budding photographer might use it to snap an action shot of someone cheating in an official match, or a hiker that gives walking tours could use it to correctly identify a fossil the team discovered. As a nurses’ aid you know how to take care of sick Pokémon and as a street performer you could cause a distraction for your allies.
The number of points you have in the Livelihood skill also relates to how much money you have tucked away – after all, it’s a measure of success in your chosen job! You roll your Livelihood skill when you’re trying to obtain items between adventures and routes. Maybe you’re a gangster who has a side gig robbing museums when you’re not denouncing the evils of truth and love, or maybe you don’t have a single point in this skill and instead rely on an allowance from your parents or a government grant given to travelling trainers.
Make sure you talk to your GM and explain exactly what your Livelihood skill refers to. With options ranging from Ranger to librarian, artist to Pokémon Coordinator, rock star to battle gambler, your specific set of skills and knowledges could be just about anything!
Outdoors: The great outdoors is where traditionalist trainers will probably spend the majority of their time, making this an invaluable skill! It covers everything from knowing how to navigate by the stars or by landmarks, how to avoid natural hazards or let you sneak up on a sleeping Pokémon without stepping on twigs, or maybe even things as obscure as communicating messages over long distances with smoke signals. A character without a bonus to Outdoors is probably a city kid through and through, or maybe they just don’t see the appeal in sleeping out under the stars when they could be getting room service instead.
Social: Your social skill determines how easily you can handle yourself and how often you get your way. You’d roll this skill to lie, persuade, ask around for information, or just be the center of attention thanks to your winning personality. A character without any points of Social might be incredibly shy or a loud braggart that people find obnoxious, or they might simply prefer the company of Pokémon to people.
Trainer Influence Points You're special. So special, in fact, that you have access to a special resource known as Trainer Influence Points -‐ or just TIPs, for short. You start each adventure with a minimum of one Trainer Influence Point (as well as any extras you might have accumulated), so you can spend them to allow your character to do something neat once per storyline adventure. They may:
Add a d6 to any dice roll. The TIP must be spend prior to the roll being made -‐ you can't see that you 'missed by one' and adjust the roll afterwards. It might be used to add an extra Defense Dice or to improve a roll when trying to catch a wild Pokémon, or even to improve a skill check when you know you just gotta succeed.
Breed a Pokémon of the same basic species as one of the creatures they own. Some GMs might shoot for a sense of realism by demanding the trainer present a compatible partner, but for the most part, the Pokémon breeding process is barely understood. Some species lay eggs without a mate, others spread a special pollen overnight that lets a new member of their species grow, and so on. In some cases, a GM might rule that the egg stage is skipped altogether, or insist that some Pokémon are one-‐of-‐a-‐king to breed (such as the trainers’ ‘starters’). Legendary Pokémon cannot be duplicated by spending a TIP.
The new Pokémon will be unevolved and relaxed, with no interest in battling the trainer or their allies. The Pokémon must still be captured with a Pokéball to be used in battles...otherwise, in time it says goodbye to its parent or parents and heads off into the wild to fend for itself.
Re-‐roll a Pokémon's nature, even for Pokémon that have been with you for a significant period of time. If you don't like the new result you can always choose to stick with the previous nature.
Earning TIPs Of course, just because the heroes only start each adventure with a minimum of one point doesn’t mean they can’t earn more. GMs might award an Influence Point to a trainer who’s in a nearly-‐unwinnable fight, or after achieving a personal goal or seeing the positive outcome of a tricky decision they made.
Players should only get an extra TIP every two or three game sessions or so – it shouldn’t be a constant thing.
Catching Pokémon Catching Pokémon instead of just outright defeating them in battle is easily the best way to improve your team – adding type diversity and experimenting with lots of different Pokémon is every trainer’s first step on the way to greatness. Throwing a Pokéball takes your trainer action. A Pokémon automatically resists all attempts to be captured until it’s been reduced down to 50% of its health or less, and you can’t capture a Pokémon that already belongs to another trainer. Upon using a Pokéball, roll a d20 and consult the following list. Add any relevant modifiers or penalties you see there. If the result is 15 or better when you’re finished, congratulations – you succeed and your target Pokémon is caught! • If your target is at 25% of its health or less, add a +2 bonus. • For each status effect on the target (Rattled, Dormant, or Ongoing Damage), add a +2 bonus. • Great balls add a +2 bonus, and Special Balls add +4 bonus. • If the Pokémon is a docile critter that has been sedated with Pokémon Food, add a +4 bonus. • If your target is fully evolved, subtract 2 from your roll. • If your target is a legendary Pokémon, subtract 6 from your roll. Remember that since most legendary Pokémon don’t evolve, those last two types of penalties often go hand-‐in-‐hand, combining to create an 8-‐point penalty. When a Pokémon is sucked inside a Pokéball, the Pokéball starts trying to convert the critter into a digital and energy-‐based format. If a Pokémon manages to resist and break free, it also destroys the delicate machinery of the Pokéball in the process. While some young trainers might balk at the idea of their pocket monsters being transformed in such a way, most actual Pokémon don’t mind one whit. It’s not that much different from evolution, and if they ever get scratched up, a Pokécenter can ‘repair’ the code itself in a heartbeat. Plus, it beats hanging out being bored all day while your trainer carts you around.
Evolving Pokémon A Pokémon that evolves keeps their moves and any permanent stat increases they may have obtained (from Vitamins, for example), but gains a different spread of stats and sometimes even a different type or ability. Some man-‐made items can prevent evolution, but they’re relatively uncommon.
In order to evolve, a Pokémon must have participated in a minimum of two battles. Beyond this minimal restriction, the exact timing of a Pokémon’s evolution boils down to GM jurisdiction. It could even happen in a dramatically-‐appropriate moment like the middle of a battle.
Trading, Storing, and Releasing Most major cities have a trading terminal where the young and old alike gather to find new homes for their Pokémon. While specialty breeders show up with entire litters of young Pokémon and famous trainers are keeping an eye out for the best of the best, mostly these terminals are filled with people looking to trade for something exotic or new to add to their collections.
There’s no limit to the number of Pokémon a trainer can carry with them at any given time, but since six is the highest number that can be registered for official tournaments and contests, most trainers agree that spreading your attention out across more than 6 Pokémon isn’t a great idea.
Some trainers have perks that permanently grant an ability or another benefit to a single Pokémon they own. If the Pokémon they selected is traded away, released back into the wild, or otherwise can’t benefit from the perk anymore, the perk is refunded back to the trainer.
Battle Over many generations the rules involved in a Pokémon battle have become highly standardized. There aren’t that many differences between an official match and, say, having a one-‐on-‐one battle to settle an issue with some thug in the middle of nowhere.
Each trainer agrees upon the number of Pokémon that will be used in the fight ahead of time. Then, each combatant attempts to knock out their opponent’s Pokémon one at a time, until one side has no companions still fit for battle.
In official matches the number of Pokémon is pre-‐determined; although three is usually the magic number, the absolute maximum has always been six. Other rules – such as no items being allowed, time limits, two-‐on-‐two matches, and so on – are all decided ahead-‐of-‐time as well. Trainers get no say in the rules during an organized or official match. If a Gym Leader declares it’ll be a three-‐on-‐three match and you only have one Pokémon…well, tough luck.
At the start of your turn you may either perform a trainer action like throwing a Pokéball, using a healing item, or calling back your current Pokémon and switching it for another battler. Most of the time, however, your trainer action will be to command your active Pokémon to use one of the moves it knows. The Pokémon does so immediately.
If you’re attacking, you’ll roll an Accuracy die – a d20, and a handful of Offense Dice, which are represented with a few d6. If you’re defending, you get d6 Defense Dice instead. We’ll talk about those in a moment.
If your Pokémon takes enough damage that they get reduced to 0 hit points, they’re unable to battle any further.
Accuracy This is determined by that d20 we just mentioned, plus any bonuses or penalties to the roll you might have. If your accuracy results in a number that’s equal to or greater than your target’s Evasion (which is just his SPD score plus any extra bonuses it might have), the attack hits. Right on!
If you roll too low, the attack misses and your turn is over.
If you roll a natural 20 on that twenty-‐sided die, this ‘critical’ success means that not only does your attack automatically hit, but you get to count it as a successful roll on an Offense Dice too.
Offense Dice In addition to the accuracy d20, you also get a couple of six-‐sided dice. Normally, nothing happens if they land on five or less…but a 6 counts as a success on one of these Offense Dice. It cancels out and negates a 6 on a Defense Dice rolled by your target (if any) and, if you have any 6s left over, you can…
• Deal critical damage, doubling the total amount of damage that gets dealt by the attack! • Trigger a status effect or other special function caused by a keyword, such as Weakening.
If you roll 2 more successes than your opponent, you can choose to do both these options!
You automatically start with 2 Offense Dice, and you get a bonus dice if you’re using a move with a Type your opponent is Weak to. If your opponent is doubly Weak to your attack – such as a water/flying Pokémon getting hit with an electric attack -‐ you get an extra 2d6 instead. Certain abilities, moves and even trainer perks can modify the number of Offense Dice you get.
Defense Dice When your Pokémon is the target of an aggressive action you also get to roll one a pair of six-‐sided dice. You get a bonus dice if your Pokémon has a resistance to the type of move that would be used, and you can acquire more through moves, perks and abilities. Just like with an Offense dice, nothing generally happens if they land on five or less but a result of 6 counts as a success. A success on a Defense Dice cancels out a success on an Offense Dice rolled by your opponent (if any) and, if you have any 6s left over, you can…
• Resist damage, halving the total amount of damage that gets dealt by the attack! • End the effects of a status effect or hazard currently affecting you.
Status Effects There are three different status effects that can cause detrimental effects to your Pokémon. Unless specified otherwise, status effects can generally only be removed by using an item, waiting until combat ends, or by rolling enough 6s on your Defensive Dice that you not only cancel out all of your attacker’s successes, but have at least one more success left over.
Ongoing Damage is described as a nasty burn, poison chemicals, toxic fumes, or worse, and works exactly as you might expect. The affected Pokémon loses 5 hit points at the end of each of their turns.
Rattled Pokémon might be confused, paralyzed, angry, dazzled, or even unwilling to fight due to being love-‐struck. At the start of each turn roll a d6 dice; on a result of 1-‐3 the Rattled Pokémon uses a random move (or one chosen by the GM, in some cases), and on a result of 4-‐6 they act normally.
Dormant Pokémon are either frozen in place physically or shut down mentally, such as from a psychic blast, getting trapped inside a block of stone, or simply needing a mid-‐battle nap. The Pokémon can’t use any moves that don’t have the Unrestrained keyword and are treated as having an evasion score of zero – attacks always hit them. The Dormant status effect is unique in that it ends automatically on the Pokémon’s third turn after being afflicted by it, and they can’t gain the status again for the rest of the battle.
This space reserved for any additional status effects that may be needed after playtesting.
Unfinished This page will deal with how multiple Pokémon can team up and combine their attacks to overcome adversaries or reinforce their defenses.
Weather Effects The weather is usually considered to be unremarkable; slightly overcast skies with fluffy clouds. But cases of extreme weather – either naturally-‐occurring or caused by a Pokémon’s move – can change how a battle plays out. Only one type of weather can be active at any given time. If a new type of weather is caused by a move, it replaces the prior effect.
Each type of weather favours one or more elemental types – in such weather, the listed types of Pokémon gain an additional Offense Dice or Defense Dice, their choice.
Sunny weather refers to an extremely hot and sweltering day. This weather benefits Fire, Bug and Grass-‐type Pokémon. All other types of Pokémon have their energy sapped by the intense heat, and can only use a maximum of one superior move while the heat lasts, and can’t access signature moves at all.
Raining weather denotes a constant downpour, usually combined with an unpleasant blustery wind. This weather benefits Water, Flying and Electric-‐type Pokémon. All other types of Pokémon suffer a -‐2 penalty to their evasion due to the muddy and slippery ground.
Hailing weather is the result of rain turning to hard ice balls. This environment is unique in that it only Ice-‐type Pokémon, and all others suffer 5 points of damage at the start of every turn.
Sandstorms involve powerful winds whipping up hard shards of sand and rocks and making it nearly impossible to see. This weather benefits Rock, Steel and Ground-‐type Pokémon. All other types of Pokémon suffer a -‐2 penalty to their accuracy.
Foreboding weather is often associated with an eerie quiet, a rolling fog or the feeling that you’re being watched. This weather benefits Ghost, Dark and Poison-‐type Pokémon. All other Pokémon need two successes on their Defensive Dice in order to remove status effects and similar effects during foreboding weather instead of just one.
Serene weather is a feeling of calmness or general good cheer. While it might be the result of a legendary Pokémon’s supernatural influence on an area, Serene weather is just as often caused by a dazzling rainbow after a harsh downpour, or found in the lights and excitement at a major festival. This weather benefits Normal, Psychic and Fighting-‐type Pokémon the most, but during Serene weather the other types of Pokémon cannot add bonuses to their rolls, and no Pokémon needs to suffer penalties to their rolls regardless of their type.
Troublesome Although most wild Pokémon generally work well with their new trainers, some particularly unruly and vicious specimens can be downright frustrating! They are considered to be Troublesome. A Pokémon might be Untamed after being traded away by a trainer who loved them, due to unhappiness about being caught, or simply the feeling that their current owner is an unfit trainer – which might be caused by fear, disrespect, or arrogance. Ultimately, how long a Pokémon stays troublesome boils down to roleplaying and GM discretion.
Nature A Pokémon's nature determines not only its personality and how they interact with their trainer, but also how they behave in battle. An excitable Pokémon, for example, is likely to be one of the first ones to leap into action, but they tired quickly due to a lower RES score. When you obtain a Pokémon, you roll a 1d20 -‐ the result dictates the nature of your Pokémon. If a Nature would ever reduce a Pokémon's stat to less than 1 or more than 10, re-‐roll!
(1) Calm: No change (2) Adventurous: +1 PWR, -‐1 RES (3) Brave: +1 PWR, -‐1 SPD (4) Reckless: +1 PWR, -‐ 1 INT (5) Peaceful: +1 RES, -‐1 PWR (6) Grumpy: +1 RES, -‐1 SPD (7) Fickle: +1 RES, -‐1 INT (8) Silly: +1 SPD, -‐1 PWR (9) Excitable: +1 SPD, -‐1 RES (10) Restless: +1 SPD, -‐1 INT (11) Odd: +1 INT, -‐1 PWR (12) Relaxed: +1 INT, -‐1 RES (13) Timid: +1 INT, -‐1 SPD (14) Stalwart: +1 PWR and RES, -‐1 SPD and INT (15) Rowdy: +1 PWR and SPD, -‐1 RES and INT (16) Cheeky: +1 PWR and INT, -‐1 RES and SPD (17) Determined: +1 RES and SPD, -‐1 PWR and INT (18) Lazy: +1 RES and INT, -‐1 PWR and SPD (19) Competitive: +1 SPD and INT, -‐1 PWR and RES (20) Vain: +1 to all stats, but the Pokémon is Untamed.
Items When you make a new trainer you choose three Cheap Items your character possesses.
After the end of each adventure, the heroes have the opportunity to dip into their savings to replenish their supplies when they’re in an urban area. The GM has the final say on when this is appropriate. You can pick a Cheap item without needing to roll, but getting a Valuable or Expensive item takes a Livelihood skill check – a Tricky skill check (12 or better) is required for Valuable items, and a Hard check (18+) is necessary for Expensive ones. If you don’t roll high enough to get your pre-‐selected category of item, you walk away with nothing.
Every item can only be used once unless it is marked as either a (Special) or (Held Item). Special items generally provide non-‐combat benefits to a trainer and can be used over and over, and Held Items must be given to a Pokémon to carry before they can gain the listed effects. A Pokémon can only hold one item at a time.
This list is by no means complete – there’s all sorts of interesting items out in the world just waiting to be discovered. If you have a suggestion for an item and its function to help flesh-‐out this otherwise-‐unfinished section, such as a bicycle, pokédoll, music instrument, fossil-‐hunting kit, or just about anything else, please suggest it to the GMs!
Cheap Items
Name Type Effect Balloon Held Before rolling Defense Dice, a Pokémon holding a balloon can choose to gain an automatic
success on their roll. They may only spend Defense Dice to reduce the damage from an attack or cancel out an opponent’s success. After the balloon is used in this way, it pops, floats away, or is otherwise destroyed.
Berry Held A Pokémon will automatically eat this when their health would be reduced to 0 or less from an attack, and leaving them with 10 HP instead. Can only be used once.
Leftovers Held Attacks that are made against a Pokémon holding leftovers roll one additional Offense Dice, but the Pokémon regains 2 hit points at the start of your turn.
Mail Usable Usually delivered by a specially-‐trained Pokémon, Mail can be sent containing letters – or even items! – to anyone in the world, even if you don’t know where they are.
Old Rod
Special
Although commonly used as a fishing rod, in reality this item is little more than a lure and bait attached to a long string and works equally well on dry land. Using an Old Rod in battle takes an easy Outdoors skill check. If you succeed, one additional Pokémon joins the battle fighting for your opponent’s team! The Pokémon must be unevolved and of a species already present in the fight. This increases the overall difficulty of the battle but grants the trainers more Pokémon to potentially capture. Only one extra Pokémon can be added to a fight in this fashion.
Potion Usable Using this restores 10 hit points to one of your Pokémon. Pokéball Usable Use this to catch a wild Pokémon as an action on your turn. You can only use one each round!
Pokémon Food
Usable
Made from a flavoured blend of berries and other healthy ingredients, using Pokémon Food allows all of the Pokémon in the party to completely regain all their health after a good night’s sleep, when otherwise they’d need to be healed at a Pokémon Center in a major city. It can also be scattered during battle with a Trainer action to make wild Pokémon easier to capture, granting a +4 bonus on catching rolls. This secondary bonus does not consume the item…however, it is only effective when the characters are first setting out on their journey, and are encountering docile Pokémon used to human contact!
Repel
Usable
This foul-‐smelling chemical concoction keeps wild Pokémon away! Using it in battle as a trainer action lets you choose one un-‐evolved Pokémon in the fight. That Pokémon must either run away to escape the horrible smell or lose one Defensive Dice until the battle ends.
Scarf Held Before rolling Defense Dice, a Pokémon wearing a scarf can choose to gain an automatic success on their roll. They may only spend Defense Dice to end an effect on them or cancel out an opponent’s success. After the scarf is used in this way, it becomes frayed and is destroyed.
Town Map Special You can consult the Town Map to learn the details of any town you visit, ranging from local landmarks and tourist attractions to the gym’s speciality.
Valuable Items Name Type Effect Ether Usable Using an Ether allows your currently-‐active Pokémon to use all of the Superior and Signature
moves it knows twice in a single fight instead of just once.
Good Rod
Special
Using a Good Rod in battle takes a tricky Outdoors skill check. A success means that one additional Pokémon joins the battle, fighting for your opponent’s team! The Pokémon must be unevolved and of a species indigenous to the area, but not necessarily already present in the battle. Only one extra Pokémon can be added to a fight in this fashion.
Great Ball Usable As a standard Pokéball, but grants a +2 bonus to your d20 catching roll.
Herbal Remedy Usable Using a Herbal Remedy automatically removes one negative status effect of your choice from a Pokémon.
Lemonade Usable Real winners drink lemonade! It grants a +2 bonus to all of your skill checks ‘til the end of the adventure!
Pokédex
Special
By scanning a Pokémon with this common trainer tool, you can learn basic facts about the species by accessing a global database. In turn, this passively helps feed information about its location and activities back to the database.
Silph Scope Special A trainer who owns a Silph Scope can attack Ghost-‐type Pokémon as though they didn’t have an immunity to Normal attacks.
Super Potion Usable Applying a Super Potion restores 20 hit points to one of your Pokémon. Super Repel Usable Using a Super Repel in battle as a trainer action helps turn a difficult encounter in your favour.
Choose one enemy Pokémon -‐ that creature must either flee from the fight or lose one Defensive Dice until combat ends.
Expensive Items Name Type Effect Evolution Stone
Usable Certain Pokémon must absorb the energy from an Evolution Stone in order to trigger evolution.
Hyper Potion Usable Using a Hyper Potion restores 30 hit points to one of your Pokémon. Max Repel Usable Spraying this as a trainer action in battle allows you to select one Pokémon and cause it to make
a tough decision – either run away, or roll two fewer Defensive Dice until combat ends and it can wash the stuff off.
PlusPower Usable Until your Pokémon is knocked out or called back, they roll either one extra Offense Dice or one extra Defense Dice – your choice.
Revival Herb Usable Using this as a trainer action allows you to wake up a fainted or knocked-‐out Pokémon, granting it 10 hp.
Scanner
Special
Using this on a trainer provides a complete list of all his registered information – real name, age, hometown, and so on. This might even include things like battling style or most-‐commonly-‐used Pokémon if the individual is a notable trainer.
Special Ball
Usable
As a standard Pokéball, but grants a +4 bonus to your d20 catching roll when certain criteria is met. For example, a ‘Net Ball’ might grant a +4 bonus to catch Water and Bug-‐type Pokémon, while a Dusk ball would grant the bonus at night or when used deep in a cave.
Super Rod
Special
Using this item takes a hard skill check, but a success means that one additional Pokémon joins the battle (as always, already aggressive towards you and your friends). The Pokémon lured out can be just about anything. Only one extra Pokémon can be added to a fight in this fashion.
Vitamins Usable These multivitamins can permanently increase one of your Pokémon’s attributes (such as RES or INT) by 1 point. A Pokémon can’t ever gain the benefits of more than 2 vitamins.
Priceless Items Name Type Effect Fossil Usable Unfinished
Full Restore Usable This item fully restores the hit points of one Pokémon when used. Master Ball Usable When you use a Master Ball to try and catch a wild Pokémon, it automatically succeeds if the
target is below 50% health. No d20 roll is necessary, even for legendary Pokémon. Rare Candy Usable Unfinished
T.M.
Usable
Each Technical Machine – or TM for short – has been imprinted with information about one specific Move. To use a TM the player needs only to choose a Pokémon they own, and the GM must agree that the move actually makes sense for that Pokémon. For example, a whale-‐like creature wouldn’t be able to learn Double Kick or Fly. TMs that teach superior moves are much more difficult to teach to your average Pokémon.
Pokémon Stats Each Pokémon has four main stats, usually ranging from 2-‐10.
The power stat (PWR) is a Pokémon’s strength, and denotes how much damage they can dish out with their physical attacks. Most moves deal damage equal to the user’s PWR stat.
Resolve (RES) helps determine how tough and hardy your Pokémon is, increasing their hit points dramatically. Pokémon start with 10 hit points, plus 5 hit points for each point of Resolve they possess. This total value is called their 'maximum HP' -‐ they can't ever gain more HP than this from healing effects. When a Pokémon runs out of hit points, they faint!
Speed (SPD) is how fast and evasive your Pokémon is. The creature with the highest speed stat goes first in a fight, and you need to roll higher than your opponent's SPD on the d20 accuracy roll in order for the attack to hit.
A higher Intelligence (INT) score helps your Pokémon evolve faster and learn more powerful moves. At the end of each combat, you roll your Smarts score plus a d20 to try to get 15 or better -‐ doing so permanently nets you a superior move instead of a regular one.
Allocating Stat Points The first thing that you’ll notice is that there’s no universal guide to what stats each species of Pokémon has – each GM gets to make that judgement call when they introduce a new species into their games, whether canon or something they’ve invented themselves. However, there are some very specific rules about how many points a species gets to distribute.
Pokémon with a three-‐stage evolutionary chain (like Charmander, Charmeleon, and Charizard) have the following numbers of points allocated to their stats; First Evolution: 14, with no stat naturally occurring above 7. Second Evolution: 18, with no stat naturally occurring above 8. Final Evolution: 22, with no stat naturally occurring above 10. Starters gain an additional +1 stat in their final evolutionary form. Pokémon with a two-‐stage line (such as Pikachu to Raichu) gain the following; First Evolution: 16, with no stat naturally occurring above 8 Final Evolution: 20, with no stat naturally occurring above 9 Pokémon who do not evolve at all (such as Snorlax) are built on 18 points, with no stat naturally occurring above 8.
Some Pokémon are Late Bloomers (such as Magikarp), meaning they suffer a -‐1 or -‐2 point penalty to all of their non-‐final evolutions in order to add that collected value as a bonus to their final stage.
Legendary Pokémon are built with 36 points, with no maximum stats.
If a Pokémon is of two types that cause it to suffer a whole slew of disadvantages – say, a Bug/Grass type – a GMs may choose to give those Pokémon an additional +2 stat points during each stage of the evolution. Conversely, powerful type combinations – such as Water/Dragon or Dark/Ghost – might be built with 2 fewer stat points to compensate at the GM’s discretion.
Sample Pokémon Species Let’s use Bulbasaur to demonstrate how this stat allocation works.
Bulbasaur is the first Pokémon is a three-‐step evolutionary line, since it’ll eventually evolve into an Ivysaur and then a Venusaur. This means it gets 14 points to allocate among its stats, with no score higher than a 7 in any of them. The GM decides that ALL bulbasaurs, not just this one, have the following stats; 4 PWR, 4 RES, 2 SPD, and 4 INT. Pretty balanced across the board, with a lower SPD score because he thinks that the four-‐legged Pokémon doesn’t look very quick.
Since it needs an ability, our GM decides that Bulbasaurs in his world randomly either start with Overgrow – the same ability they get in the games – or Solar Power. He likes the idea that Bulbasaur’s bulb helps gives the Pokémon a bit of extra energy by drawing power from the sun. He decides he’ll flip a coin to see which ability this particular Bulbasaur has, and it winds up being Overgrow.
He chooses a couple of moves for the Pokémon and voilà – it’s ready to leap into action as part of a wild encounter or an NPC trainer’s team. This particular Pokémon is part of a wild encounter, and that means there’s one last step that takes place IF it gets captured by a player; nature. After a trainer catches the wild Bulbasaur, they roll a d20 to determine its general attitude. In this example the player ends up rolling a Peaceful nature, giving it a +1 bonus to its RES stat at the cost of 1 point being taken way from PWR. This Pokémon is tough (with 35 hp) and smart (meaning it’ll learn superior moves more often), but not very fast or strong. Later on the trainer uses a vitamin to permanently give it a +1 bonus to INT.
When Bulbasaur evolves and turns into an Ivysaur, it will have a brand-‐new set of attributes build on 18 points instead of 14...plus a +1 bonus to INT at the very end, thanks to the vitamin! The GM decides that this form has pretty similar attributes, and when all is said and done, Ivysaur has 5 PWR, 7 RES, 2 SPD, and 5 INT.
Abilities This section is unfinished, and although abilities are already written, will be introduced on a case-‐by-‐case basis so that tweaks can be made (if needed) before they get introduced to the game.
Learning Moves When combat ends, the Pokémon who did the bulk of the work for each trainer gets a new move. Roll a d20 while your GM decides on a couple of appropriate options that make sense for your companion, and add your Pokémon’s INT stat to the result. Getting a total of 15 or better means your Pokémon can choose from one or two superior moves the GM offers, and rolling anything less means that you can choose from a minimum of two standard moves instead.
GMs may choose to rule that encounters that weren’t a challenge to the Pokémon and their trainer don’t grant a new move, but these situations should be extremely rare in most cases.
A Pokémon can only ever remember a maximum of 6 moves at a time, and at least two one of them have to be standard moves. If a Pokémon ever learns a seventh move, they simultaneously lose access to one of their older moves.
Standard Moves With familiar names like Tackle and Absorb, standard moves are built with 5 points. You can use them as many times in a fight as you want, and they generally stay useful throughout a Pokémon’s entire battling career.
Superior Moves Built using 8 points instead of 5, the title of this moves is actually a bit of a misnomer. While they sometimes do represent flat-‐out better versions of a Pokémon’s previous movelist…like Slam or Mega Drain…they’re just as often unique, situational moves that suffer severe drawbacks or limitations. A Pokémon may only use each of their Superior moves once per adventure!
Signature Moves When a Pokémon you own evolves, or reaches a major milestone and is unable or unwilling to evolve any further – you construct a special attack exclusive to that Pokémon. These ‘signature moves’ and a part of the special bond the two of you share; if the Pokémon is ever traded or given away they lose access to the move, and other Pokémon can’t learn another creature’s signature move from it.
Signature Moves are constructed using 8 points, the same as a Superior move. Work with your GM using the system to the right to build something. A trainer may only use one signature move per adventure, no matter how many they and their Pokémon have available to them.
Weaknesses and Resistances Not all the elemental types are created equally. When building new Pokémon with unusual type combinations, use the list below to help determine at a glance where their strengths and weaknesses lie. Words marked in red refer to immunities instead of just resistances; moves of that type have no effect whatsoever against the defender. Type +1 Offense Dice vs: +1 Resistance Dice vs: Bug Dark, Grass, Psychic Fighting, Grass,
Ground Dark Ghost, Psychic Dark, Ghost, Psychic Dragon Dragon Electric, Fire, Grass,
Water Electric Flying, Water Electric, Flying, Steel Fighting Normal, Rock, Steel,
Ice, Dark Bug, Dark, Rock
Fire Bug, Grass, Ice, Steel Bug, Fire, Grass, Ice, Steel
Flying Bug, Fighting, Grass Bug, Fighting, Grass, Ground
Ghost Ghost, Psychic Bug, Poison, Fighting, Normal
Grass Ground, Rock, Water Electric, Grass, Ground, Water
Ground Electric, Fire, Poison, Rock, Steel
Poison, Rock, Electric
Ice Dragon, Flying, Grass, Ground
Ice
Normal None Ghost Poison Grass Bug, Fighting, Poison,
Grass Psychic Fighting, Poison Fighting, Psychic Rock Bug, Fire, Flying, Ice Normal, Fire, Flying,
Poison Steel
Ice, Rock
Bug, Dark, Dragon, Flying, Ghost, Grass, Ice, Normal, Psychic, Rock, Steel, Poison
Water Fire, Ground, Rock Fire, Ice, Steel, Water
Move Keywords When a move is created, give it an elemental Type -‐ either Normal, Water, Grass, Ground, Bug, Fire, Electric, Dragon, Psychic, Ice, Ghost, Steel, Fighting, Rocky, Dark, Flying, or Poison. Then, use the point-‐buy system found over the following two pages to purchase additional keywords, or grab penalties to give yourself a few extra points to work with.
Using a move that your target has a weakness to causes the move to deal additional damage -‐ you add +2 to the base damage value and may roll an additional Offense Dice. Conversely, using a move that your target is resistant to means your target gains an additional Defense Dice. If a target is immune to a certain elemental type, moves of that type don't have any effect whatsoever on them!
Keyword Cost Effect Attack 3 The attack deals physical damage equal to the user's PWR stat.
Special Attack 4 The attack deals special damage equal to the user's PWR, RES, SPD or INT attribute, chosen when the move is created.
Utility 0 The move deals no damage, to your target, but you are always treated as automatically rolling one success on your Offense Dice.
Enhancements Accurate 1 The attack gains a +2 bonus to the accuracy roll. Delay 1 The effects of the move -‐ damage, status effects, and so on -‐ don't occur right away. Instead they take
place at the end of the target's next turn. False Swipe 1 The attack always leaves the target at a minimum of 1 hit point. It cannot cause an enemy to faint.
Area 2 The move can hit two different targets. If you take this keyword twice you can hit three targets instead, and so on.
Blinding 2 You can spend a success on an Offense Dice to reduce your target's accuracy score by 2 points. This lasts until the target faints, switches out, or removes the penalty via a success on a Defense Dice.
Damage Bonus 2 The attack deals an additional 2 points of damage when a certain condition is met -‐ in specific types of weather, when the user is fighting in their natural environment (such as underwater) and so on. This cannot be combined with Limited.
Drain 2 After the damage-‐dealing attack harms the target, the user regains hit points equal to half the total mount dealt.
Heal Block 2 You can spend a success on an Offense Dice to prevent your opponent from gaining any hit points until the target faints, switches out, or removes the penalty via a success on a Defense Dice.
Interrupt 2 You may use a move with the Interrupt keyword at any time, even when it isn't your turn. You must skip the next turn. A move with the interrupt keyword may only be used once per battle, and you can only use one move with the Interrupt keyword each round. Can't be combined with Switchout or Recharge.
Re-‐Roll 2 If the attack misses you may reroll the d20 accuracy dice. If you choose to do so, the attack may not be used again for the remainder of the battle.
Status Effect 2 You can spend a success on an Offense Dice to apply either the Dormant, Rattling, or Ongoing Damage status effect, selected when the move is created. Status effects lasts until the target faints or removes the penalty via a success on a Defense Dice.
Switchout 2 At the end of the user's turn they retreat back to their side of the field or return to their pokéball, and a new Pokémon must be switched in immediately.
Unrestrained 2 This move can be used normally when the user is afflicted a negative status effect that would otherwise prevent them from acting.
Weakening 2 You can spend a success on an Offense Dice to reduce one of your opponent's attributes by 2 points. This lasts until the target faints, switches out, or removes the penalty via a success on a Defense Dice.
Break Ability 3 You can spend a success on an Offense Dice to remove your target's ability, or change his or your ability into a different pre-‐determined one. This lasts until the target removes the penalty via a success on a Defense Dice.
Item Lock 3 You can spend a success on an Offense Dice to prevent your opponent from using or benefitting from any held item. If this keyword is taken twice, the item can be destroyed instead, or the user may steal the held item (provided the user currently isn't holding anything).
Protection 3 The target or user gains a resistance to one pre-‐selected Type, such as Water or Fire. This replaces any immunity or weakness they might have already had. This protection lasts until the target faints or an opponent removes the benefit by spending a success on an Offense Dice.
Stat Up! 4 Choose one attribute when the move is created. When used, the target or user of the move gains a +2 bonus to that attribute until they faint or get switched out.
Trap 3 You can spend a success on an Offense Dice to prevent your opponent from switching out or running away. This lasts until the target removes the penalty via a success on a Defense Dice.
Vulnerability 3 You can spend a success on an Offense Dice to give your opponent a weakness to one pre-‐selected Type, such as Electric or Normal. This replaces any immunity or resistance they might have already had. This vulnerability lasts until the target faints or removes the penalty via a success on a Defense Dice.
Escape 4 The user removes themself from immediate danger by digging under the ground, flying into the air, phasing into an alternate dimension, teleporting out of sight, and so on. They gain a +6 bonus to their evasion score until they use a move without the Escape keyword.
Powerful 4 The move deals triple damage on a critical effect instead of double damage. Hazard 5 You can spend a success on an Offense Dice to create a Hazard that lasts until a certain condition is
met. A hazard deals damage up to a maximum of once to each Pokémon on the field each round whenever they perform a pre-‐specific condition. The hazard might deal damage when a Pokémon switches in, attacks the user, or even attacks at all. Hazards deals damage equal to the user's SRT or PWR score, and deals an extra 2 damage if the target is weak to the hazard's Type.
HP Restore 5 The target or user of this move regains half of their maximum hit points, or 5 hit points every turn. This move may not be used again for the remainder of the adventure.
Never Miss 5 The move can never miss regardless of the accuracy roll. This cannot be combined with Inaccurate. Nullify 5 Choose a keyword, such as Item Lock or Attack. Until combat ends, you may cause one move with the
pre-‐specified keyword to automatically miss as though it rolled a 1 on the accuracy check. Type Change 5 The user or target of this move changes all of their current Types to any other single Type. In some
rare cases Type Change might be random, or base the decision on other factors such as the local environment or the type of the last move that was used before this one.
Copycat 6 Copycat has all the same keywords and effects as any move that was used in the previous round. Weather Effect 7 The Pokémon creates a weather effect until combat ends.
Wall 7 The move creates a protective barrier. Choose either the Attack or Special Attack keyword -‐ whenever the Pokémon with your protective wall is struck by one of those moves they gain an additional Defensive Dice. The Wall effect lasts until the user faints or is switched out.
Fang 8 The target has their total hit points reduced by half. This may never reduce a Pokémon to zero hit points.
New Ability 8 The target gains access to an additional pre-‐selected ability until combat ends. Rule Change 8 A fundamental aspect of the battle is altered, such as both Pokémon being reduced to 0 hit points if
one is, or the Pokémon with the lower SPD attribute goes first each round. The Rule Change keyword is almost always exclusive to moves created by the GM, and may not be applied to signature moves without explicit permission.
Drawbacks Damage Penalty 1 The move only deals normal damage when a certain type of condition is met -‐ in specific types of
weather, against a certain type, species or gender of enemy, and so on. In other situations it deals 2 fewer points of damage. Cannot be combined with Limited or Damage Bonus.
Inaccurate 1 The move -‐ which must require an attack roll to hit -‐ suffers a -‐2 penalty to the accuracy roll. This keyword can be added multiple times but cannot be combined with Never Miss.
Limited 2 The move can only be used under specific circumstances that are determined when the move is created; it can only be used when the user or target is at full health, afflicted by a specific status effect, and so on.
Recoil 2 After the damage-‐dealing attack harms the target, the user takes damage equal to half the total mount dealt.
Self-‐Status 2 At the end of the user's turn they have a 50% chance of suffering either a pre-‐determined status effect.
Split-‐Second 2 Any status effects, hazards, rule changes and other non-‐damaging effects caused by the move only last for one round.
Recharge 3 The user loses their next turn. This keyword can't be combined with Interrupt or Switchout.