Emerald's Gym Leaders are Worse Than You Remember

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Credits: Craig Livingstone (Production), Weebra (Editing)

[BGZAM]

For Juan and Wallace, I always liked the idea of splitting them between saltwater (wailord, tentacruel, kingdra) and freshwater pokemon (ludicolo, whishcash, milotic) respectively to help better distinguish their team identities.

[joshchrono]

why not give Gorebyss to Wallace? Fits his elegant theme and is an unrepresentated Gen 3 water mon. While we're at it, Juan can get a Huntail to show their relationship

[montyeggman]

Giving Roxanne the two Hoenn fossil Pokemon makes perfect sense, since Rustburo is where you can revive the fossils you get later in the game.

[calamelli]

Giving Magcargo Water Absorb is unhinged in a good way, but giving Tate/Liza an odd number of Pokemon is unhinged in a bad way. A double battle with an odd number of Pokemon just feels wrong.

[ivanbluecool]

Smith plays: this will be the last legacy game. Promise

Smith plays in 5 years: pokemon broken(cue intro music)

[Yomismo]

I don't think Tate and Liza should have an odd number of pokemon since they are a pair. This kind of breaks the balance between them in my opinion.

[keonhazel]

Starmie goes well with Tate and Liza their theme is cosmic, with the space center being in their town too

[ottav]

I know some people complain about it, but I actually like it when a gym leader uses a Pokemon that doesn't necessarily have the "right" type but still fits the team well thematically. It almost always makes the gym leader more challenging and fun to fight than if they just used all the exact same type. I do think Diamond and Pearl went too far with some of them, but still, it usually made battles more interesting.

[Vrsds]

Why put Masquerain on the 8th Gym???

If you do what you said about the switch, Gorebyss makes more sense. Wallace is also a pokemon coordinator and not only a gym leader. And Gorebyss is a lot more good looking than a bug type Pokemon. (Masquerain can also be place in some of the bug catcher teams).

Juan is also the teacher of Wallace. So you can give Juan, the more aggressive looking Huntail. So Juan has one of the Clamperl evolutions, while Wallace (the student) has the other one.

Also both Huntail and Gorebyss are very underrepresented in gen3. So it make more sense to have them, than having Masquerain.

[devilsandchargersfan]

Man, I know you thought about this a lot, but I think one thing that you didn’t consider is the fact that after you beat Stephen, you’re the champion now. Why would Wallace beating Stephen make him the champion if you’re the champion. I personally am OK with overlooking this as we don’t want to be the Proto typical champion and want to be more like the red type of champion but I feel like that would need to be mentioned.

[Taijirai]

While the early Gym leaders' teams scale pretty evenly, each Ace being about 4-5 levels apart, there is a sizeable jump between Fortree City and Mossdeep gym of 9 levels as you explore most of the map between them. Since you fight your rival for the last time in Lilycove, I think it would be great to include a Wally encounter in Mossdeep City, where he establishes his desire to be your rival. This would foreshadow his appearance in Victory Road and also provide a basis for his team growing between just having a Ralts and his eventual team of 5 Pokemon. We just dont get enough of Wally, dig?

[Powerman]

I don't like the broly change, gym leaders hold back by using weak pokemon but they use them seriously not by using good mons and going easy on the challenger.

[nevenpatrk]

I like a majority of these changes but adding a Pokemon to Tate and Liza sounds really unnecessary. The main reason why they have 4 pokemon in base Emerald is because 2 of them are Tate's and 2 of them are Liza's so adding another Pokemon ruins that balance. Also, I'd argue that Double battles are harder than Single battles so having 1 less Pokemon evens out the difficulty a little bit.

[Vaati]

Totally think that your ideas for Norman are fire. Love Girafarig there, plus it getting Psychic-type moves with STAB would be a fun counter to players who hope that a single Fighting-type could sweep there.

[TheLostSheep]

Dive, toxic, leftovers Milotic will make me hate myself....



I love it

[NyanMacrusJohnson]

Bug/water Masquerain. I know you're reluctant for type changes, but It makes it more distinct from ninjask, beautifly and the previous gen mons. Plus I feel its the same sort of change as switching ghost's and dark's physical and special, its intuitive. It also means that even with trite stats, both of its stab types will at least come off of its dominant attacking stat. It fits Hoenn water presence, and only half breaks your "no more water type rule" since the line already had a water type. I could go on! So I will. I even feel that making masquerain bug/water is a smaller change than the slugma line getting water absorb because its not entirely knew to the line. AND IT FITS WITH WALLACE. ITS PERFECT

[gabrielkorzanowski]

So. Regarding the Wallace-Steven Conundrum, I think that a good way to expand on the dynamic is gove wallace more appearances. There were changes made in Crystal Legacy with giovanni for example, so this wouldnt be completely outlandish. And I remember in one of the stream someone commenting that we should get a gift feebas from one of the contests since it's so hard to get. Considering Steven gives you a Beldum and his Ace is Metagross, I think having Wallace give you the Feebas according to his ace Milotic AND his lore connection to the contests would be a neat way to showcase his character more during the story.

Not only that, but he could also appear sometimes in the other contest locations to check on how your possible contest career is doing or how the feebas is or speaking with Scott or some if the interview crews, while also giving opening for him to give a hint of Working (maybe) with Steven against Team's magma and Aqua once he hears you've been getting involved with them, which would lead well into his reveal during the skypilar event of being a descendant of an ancient line of guardians (or something)

You could even add him thinking about or wishes of becoming the champion, which would tie in to the story you guys are thinking of him becoming the champion In the post game, since after the 8th gym battle, (which the character might be surprised he would be the gym leader since he'd been appearing more as focused on contests and on the Skypilar thing) and after you beat him, he'd finally be sure of his resolve to beat Steven and become the next Champion since the battle would maybe ignite more of an interest for it in him.

[carterlazarus]

I feel the fossils also make sense for Roxanne because you both revive your own fossils in Rustborough; and in the remakes, they make very clear that she has an interest in fossils. I'd say it's strange she doesn't use them in her regular fight to begin with

[Thunderjpg]

Isnt it a crime that someone uses just plusle and not minun?

[egg]

2:08 Isn't Grant the second gym leader, not the first?