Need help with my Pokemon fanfic

[Chaririley]

In the story, my main character's team has to defeat a Golem when they're all weak against it. I'm having trouble figuring out how they're going to do it. I'm not against taking the anime route in defeating opponents, as in doing things that are impossible in the game, as long as it's not ridiculous ("Pikachu! The horn!").

[psyanic]

Well, I was going to say get creative, but that's not very helpful, is it?

Think about a Golem, then think about the situation. Golem, while they can be nearly indestructible without the right attacks, are very slow. In turn, it would take a while for them to get close and hit your Pokemon, considering most of its effective attacks are close ranged, unless you count Rock Slide or something. Distance would be one way you could defeat a Golem, because they tend to need to get closer.

Setting could also be a factor. I have no idea what your setting is, but if the battle is near a lake or maybe even a cliff if you're feeling the mood, then use that as well. Specifically, Rollout comes to mind. Rolling is the only way a Golem can be fast enough to get close to an opponent so they can attack, but the problem is, Golem have to tuck in their arms, legs, and their head, so they can't see a thing when they're rolling. And with the high speeds they tend to go, well, a Golem might as well fall off a cliff or something.

These are just random ideas, but I hope you get something out of them.

[icomeanon6]

Make 'em lose! >:D

My first thought is poisoning and other status ailments, if that's applicable. This may be too cheap for a fanfic, but in the game almost any pokemon can learn toxic. Aaaand I just broke every pokemon story ever written. :)

But seriously, statuses are a big way to overcome type disadvantage. And like psyanic said, the best option is often to make the setting of the battle factor in to it. Good luck with your story!

[Cypher DS]

I like Psyanic's idea of using the Golem's rollout attack against it. Is there a poison type on your team? Maybe you could describe it launching Toxic Spikes over the battlefield so that as the Golem rolls around it keeps jabbing itself on poisonous land mines until it collapses from exhaustion.

How "dirty" or "gritty" are you writing? Would your pokemon attack the golem's softer facial skin?

Maybe this Golem has a weak spot in its armor - a scale that has come loose, exposing its fleshy underside?

[Cutlerine]

There are quite a few ways you could do this. One is by having your characters abuse the Golem's rolling strategy, as mentioned above, but there are others. For instance, their Pokédex entry states that Golem are capable of leaping vast distances very quickly by using a series of minor Explosions to propel themselves. I don't know where you're setting the battle, but several locations would offer the option of tricking it this way in a similar manner to the Rollout abuse. It's not a huge difference, but unlike the rolling trick, it's not actually been done before (to my knowledge, at least).

Alternatively, you could start to think about how a Golem would fight. They're huge, unstoppably strong and terminally slow; they probably either try to back their enemies into a corner so they can't dodge their attacks, close the distance between them as swiftly as possible by rolling or Explosion-jumping and then punch, slam and bite them into submission. Avoiding this would be key to the battle, since if you can avoid being trapped the Golem would have to rely on its limited ranged movepool, mainly Earthquake and Rock Slide/Stone Edge, at least two of which are relatively easy to dodge.

That's how not to be beaten, then, but how to win? Well, Golem have a tiny head in relation to their body size; I think it's fair to say they're not going to be the smartest of enemies. If this is a Trainer battle, you could try preventing it from hearing its master's orders (perhaps deafening it with SonicBoom, Astonish or Uproar, or by caking mud around its ears with Mud Slap or something - since Golem are obviously reptilian, chances are that their hearing isn't too hot). In a situation like that, it might well panic and start lashing out wildly, perhaps not even using moves; if you get to that stage, as long as you can remain out of its reach, it's probably going to tire itself out eventually. Even if it doesn't panic, it's not going to be able to see through any tricks you might try to pull on it in the same way its Trainer would be able to, so you could lure it in close, status it and wait for it to either faint from poison or knock itself out from confusion. Alternatively (and this depends on the location) it could blunder into something it shouldn't, perhaps Earthquaking something that collapses onto it - again, something it wouldn't have done if it had had its Trainer to command it.

What if it's a wild one? Well, it really all depends on the setting here. You could lure it over a bridge where its weight will make it fall through into a river below - or, make it use Earthquake or Stone Edge on a bridge, destroying it and making it fall. I'm pretty sure Golem are too heavy to swim, and by the time it gets out of the river your characters could easily make their mistake. If no bridge is available, a frozen lake might be a good substitute.

The key is to be creative. Think about the environment, and think about how each Pokémon move actually works. Even Splash has a use; it might do nothing in terms of harming an opponent, but I bet the randomly-flying water droplets would scramble a Zubat's sonar and let something approach it through the veil of water. Actually, speaking of that, Golem seem to me like they would have comparatively weak eyesight, so a similar tactic might confuse them.

Well, I've rambled for long enough, and I don't think I've actually said anything that anyone else didn't say. Sorry about that. I guess the main point is that for an answer more interesting than a standard status defeat, use the environment against the enemy and your Pokémon's moves creatively.

F.A.B.

[Rhea2x5g]

Okay, your main character's team has to consist of mainly water-type Pokemon to defeat Golem, who's rock and ground-type. For example, your main character in your story should have an Oshawott, which is mostly water-type and during the battle, it evolves into Dewott. The Dewott uses Razor Shell on the Golem and the Golem faints. Your main character wins the battle. I think that story would be a little bit boring, so make sure the Oshawott gets attacked by Golem and it's about to faint, but it then evolves into Dewott. Dewott uses Razor Shell on Golem and it faints from exhaustion.

[bobandbill]

Why does the team have to be mainly water types just because the writer wants the trainer to battle a Golem? In fics you don't need to rely on having super-effective moves or advantages to win; just a good imagination and an ability to write.

And besides, what if later on said water types go up against a Pokemon they are weak against? You can't just suddenly change what the Pokemon are to suit the situation in a story.