Poképocalypse! (T)

Manganum · Jan 17, 2012

POKÉPOCALYPSE!
AKA: That Roleplay With the Extremely Unoriginal Name

Look for the OOC thread for signups and chit-chat!

A LITTLE BACKSTORY
I hope you like reading!

Haha. What's that? No, of course we don't know how to stop it.

We know the virus started in Hoenn. Early news reports showed less than a dozen infection incidents in Mossdeep City. We all watched in mild fascination, unknowing of the disaster that was about to befall our planet. And how could we have known? All that we had to go by was the knowledge of a mutated form of Pokérus, apparently the result of one of the Mossdeep space research programs. Early cases of the virus showed no adverse effects - other than the accelerated activity of growth hormones associated with Pokérus. It was only when humans were shown to be able to become infected, just as easily Pokémon, that an uneasy atmosphere began to creep through Fever, loss of appetite and insomnia were the first unusual symptoms to appear, followed by the discharging of blood from the eye sockets. This was the last we heard from the Mossdeep news reports. Breaking news coverage from the Lilycove media was to follow within the next two days, however. The virus had now been proven to mutate and spread quickly. No new knowledge of symptoms was disclosed by the media - possibly due to the Pokémon League attempting to calm the waters and prevent panic. Bastards could have saved thousands of lives if they'd let us hear the details. But no, the only sights that greeted our sorry eyes were those of a burning city. Aerial shots showed empty streets, houses on fire, and a Space Centre burned to rubble. That was all we were allowed to see, but undoubtedly the League had much more information than us civilians.

A week passed. Hoenn residents were constantly posting videos on the internet, showing large military-sect League forces moving towards Mossdeep. For the first two days, they seemed to testing the waters - sending supersonic Ninjask scouts to observe the island. Of course, this was simply observation. Ninjask fly at such high speeds that they are rendered invisible to the eyes of humans and Pokémon alike, but the utilization of their skills was well-known in all Pokémon League military operations. Thus, phase two followed. Heavily armored Aggron and Metagross squads moved throughout the region's cities, boarding Wailord fleets at the Eastern Coast. Every one of their Trainers bore the hard expression that was characteristic of the military folk, but it was obvious that they were unsure of their fates.

Hoenn awaited the return of their soldiers, but to no avail. Another four days went by, as us citizens of the other regions went about our business as if nothing was wrong. Why should we care about some faraway virus that was unlikely to affect us? The only thing we were worried about was the economy, as Hoenn was responsible for a high percentile of our products. Pokégear wasn't developed in Johto, you know.

Boy, were we wrong to think that way.

The next report arrived on our TVs after those four days. Fallarbor was all that was left of Hoenn's infrastructure. Every other city and town had been reduced to waste. Citizens from all corners of Hoenn had been evacuated to Fallarbor, the roads to which were now barricaded by the biggest League forces we had ever seen. Hundreds upon hundreds of Aggron, Metagross and Claydol squads; even the rarely-used Camerupt sector was present. The skies were dominated by the Flygon and Salamence used in the Pokémon League's air force division, which we knew had been disbanded following the Titan War between Kyogre and Groudon. Fallarbor had the utmost protection. As we watched, safe from our living rooms, we were greeted with new information by the shaky voice and camerawork of an amateur reporter.

"It doesn't like the heat... S-so we're going to stay here. Mount Chimney can only do so much though. I- I don't know how much longer they can hold out. Even the military needs to sleep... The virus takes over your consciousness first. Then it begins to deteriorate your body. That's what they told us. One of the r-refugees from Littleroot started to bleed earlier. They took him away. It travels in the water, and it likes the dark..."

That was the last we ever heard from Hoenn. In that one report, we had been given all the knowledge we needed. The Leagues of Johto, Kanto and Sinnoh immediately declared a state of emergency. Unova was assumed to have taken a similar course of action - we never recieved much contact with our distant neighbours. A curfew was in effect, so that no chances would be taken in regards to the attraction to the dark which was outlined in the Fallarbor coverage. Military perimiters were established around every major city. Citizens of the smaller towns were ordered to evacuate to the Indigo Plateau, so that no resources would be wasted. The efforts of the defensive procedure were in vain, though. The virus broke through. Sinnoh was completely overtaken. The Kanto region, having the largest military force, took it upon themselves to defend their sister-region of Johto. Only a few safe havens remain, namely Blackthorn City, the Indigo Plateau, Saffron City and Pewter City. Soon, our so-called "protectors" decided that they were tired of helping us. The inhabitants of the Plateau, as well as the entirety of the League, called all forces out of Kanto and Johto. They have not spared any expense on fortifying themselves from the pandemic. As always, they couldn't give any less of a damn about their citizens and subjects.

The status of each region's respective Legendary Pokémon is unknown. It is always possible that they have fallen to the illness - we can only hope that they have simply forsaken us. If they are found to be susceptible to the virus, we can abandon all optimism.

Now then, you know everything we know. So tell me about yourself - think you've got what it takes to be a Midnight Runner?

YOU THERE, PLAYER!
Here there be pirates.

You are a citizen from either Kanto or Johto. After the virus spread, you fled to one of the still-standing cities in your region. You met up with the local virus-resistance force, informally dubbed "The Midnight Runners". Their front man/woman offered you a place in their ranks, which you accepted - or did you? Will you join their efforts to rid the planet of the virus? Will you strive to earn a place in the Indigo Plateau? Perhaps you'll seek the Legendary Pokémon, whose powers are more than sufficient to make a difference. It's all up to you - there's only one rule, and it's damn clichéd.

Stay alive.

YOU AND YOUR POKÉMON
Is it Friday yet?

This roleplay will not force you to choose a starter Pokémon before writing anything. Due to large migration occurances in the past few years, Kanto and Johto are now home to Pokémon from Hoenn, Sinnoh and Unova! You can choose to not be a Trainer at all, but keep in mind that when a zombie Pikachu clings to your face, you won't stand much of a chance. Three general rules of thumb:

Grass-types (spores, organic matter) = BAD, avoid wild ones!

Fire-types (incineration, sterilization) = GOOD, get yourself one of these!

Steel- and rock-types are immune to infection, so seeing one in the wild shouldn't be too much of a worry!

You can either start with a few Pokébros (try and keep them either first or second stage for the beginning of the roleplay), or go and catch yourself one from an uninfected source early on in the story.

BREAKING THE FOURTH WALL
Ghosts and stuff!

In this roleplay, there will only be a vague storyline. You are mostly free to roam Kanto and Johto (perhaps even the neighbouring regions, if you can find a way!), as well as to outline any choices your character makes. There's a rather basic story, which I will probably make clear throughout a few posts in the duration of the roleplay (it mostly involves the ultimate goal of eradicating the virus). Team up with other roleplayers - it's your best chance of survival! Remember, this is the zombie apocalypse-equivalent of Pokémon, but with 100% less firearms, 100% more Pokémon, 3% more Bleblswar and 50% more awesome! I won't force rules upon you - you want to catch a Legendary? Consult me first, but I'm pretty easy-going, so I'll definitely give it some thought. Otherwise, no godmodding unless it's very minor, write in third-person blah blah blah. Why waste time with generic copied-and-pasted rules?

Note: I do have one small pet peeve - it's not a requirement of the roleplay, but where possible, please attempt to use correct paragraph, sentence and grammar structure. None of this script-style writing (which is already one of the forum rules, mind you!).

This roleplay is dedicated to my brain, and the fact that it is unfair that all of the good roleplays are generally taken. Hopefully people will find this interesting, and there will be options for new roleplayers who wish to join an existing thread. I hope to see your signups and posts!

-El Manganero

Poképocalypse! (T)

More options

Manganum

Your local sine wave