Okay guys,
Emerald Update time!
So I proceeded all the way till the E4. I got every TM that I found necessary, and fought a ton of trainers. I barely remember the E4's levels, but I think I might be a tad bit overleved (all my pokes are at level 48). In any case, I used all the PP Ups, PP Maxes, Stat-boosting items and Rare Candies I had. It's now time to post my team, right before I take on the E4 Challenge!
Hunter, the Linoone @ Focus Band
Careful Nature
(
Can only evolve after learning Flail. Must keep Flail at all times.)
~ Return
~ Shadow Ball
~ Flail
~ Headbutt
A pretty reliable poke. I made him not hold anything during the playthrough because I wanted pickup to pick me some good items. And it did. Rare Candies and Stat-boosting items, mainly. Now I'm making him hold Focus Band, in the hopes that it'll eventually combo with Flail, if on a tight spot. I'm still thinking about Headbutt. I'm thinking about replacing it for some other move, since Return already covers normal-type offense. I thought about Rock Smash, for example. It's weak, but it lowers defense. It could come in handy.
Seasight, the Pelipper @ Mystic Water
Modest Nature
(
Can only evolve after beating Flannery. Must learn and keep Shock Wave at all times.)
~ Surf
~ Ice Beam
~ Fly
~ Shock Wave
Another reliable one. Boltbeam with Shock Wave instead of Tbolt, and Surf+Fly for nice STAB moves. It could super-effective a big chunk of whatever it faced, and he's most likely going to be my main asset against the AMGDrag0nz of Zake or Zuke or whatever he's called.
Magsexy, the Magneton @ Sitrus Berry
Modest Nature
(
Cannot learn Thunderbolt nor Thunder.)
~ Spark
~ Tri Attack
~ Flash
~ Thunder Wave
Pretty good for what it can do. Without TBolt, Thunder or Shock Wave being available, Spark ended up being its next best option. Considering it's a non-optimal move, Magsexy can hold its own pretty damn good. Tri-Attack is there for more coverage, TWave for team support, and Flash just because it is. I am considering, however, putting another move instead of it. Any suggestions? Sitrus Berry is there because I could find no better item to make him hold.
Nosebleed, the Magcargo @ Quick Claw
Serious Nature
(
Must keep Smog at all times.)
~ Flamethrower
~ Rock Slide
~ Yawn
~ Smog
If only Smog wasn't there, he'd be even more awesome. Flamethrower + Rock Slide are pretty good moves with STAB, and Yawn makes team-support a very valid option. Smog is there just because it has to. I have no need for it, to be honest. Not even for poisoning, specially because my team isn't made for stalling. In any case, pretty decent poke. I loved having him around.
LeapPig, the Spoink @ Sitrus Berry
Impish Nature
(
Cannot evolve.)
~ Psychic
~ Confuse Ray
~ Calm Mind
~ Secret Power
Somehow useful poke, specially when considering he isn't at his full potential. Confuse Ray and Calm Mind make it a lot more durable, and increase his Psychic power to sky-rocketting values. Secret Power is there to allow him to hit the Dark-types with something, although I do accept other suggestions. Sitrus Berry is there for the same reason as Magsexy. Confuse Ray is also great for support.
Firefly, the Illumise @ Lax Icense
Gentle Nature
(
Cannot learn any TMs.)
~ Quick Attack
~ Encore
~ Charm
~ Wish
Weak. Weak weak weak weak weak weak. But then again, it's not supposed to hit anything. Its main function is to Charm and/or wish, thus making it easier for the other team members to perform their functions. Quick Attack is there just for it to do something when nothing else is needed. I do want an offensive move in there though. If anyone has any suggestions as for which move Quick Attack should be replaced by, please tell me. I do, however, like the Priority factor.
Overall, this team turned out to be pretty good, when considering all the restrictions. Aside from Seasight and Hunter, all the pokes have some way of supporting the rest of the team, which ended up being crucial for strategies. Notwithstanding how filthy weak Firefly is, I could not have beat Tate & Liza without the wonderful power of its triple Charm on Claydol, thus rendering its Earthquake useless. Also, Confuse Ray from LeapPig made it durable enough to Calm Mind 6x and sweep through Juan's team. Magsexy's TWave wasn't as influential, but Nosebleed's Yawn surefly was useful as hell. All-in-all, it turned out to be a pretty balanced team. I am now going to make the final adjustements (eventually change some moves), and then proceed to claim what's mine: the Pokemon League Champion Title!
EDIT: It has been done. The E4 and the Champion are defeated. I taught Hunter Dig, which replaced Headbutt. None of the battles really deserve much commentary. On the first one, Nosebleed raped through almost every one, except some pokes which Magsexy took care of. Second battle was all about Hunter Shadowball-ing and Seasight Surfing. Third one can be resumed to Nosebleed Flamethrowering and Magsexy Sparking. Zake was taken care of with Ice Beams, basically. And the Champion, well, was a mix of Magsexy Spark Sweeping, some help from Seasight's Shock Waves, and in the very end, a 6 Calm Mind + Psychic sweep from LeapPig.
Now I'm preparing for Steven. I already learned Belly Drum on Hunter, having replaced Shadow Ball for it. I kinda regret it now to be honest, but what's done is done. Now I need to find a decent strategy to beat that dude. I can go until Metagross without much trouble, but from then on, I'm having a hard time finding out how to win. I'll update later. Cheers.
EDIT 2: Totally done with the challenge now. Steven was hard, but I eventually made it.
Led with Magneton, who Spark'd Skarmory until he was no more. I'd switch to Illumise as Aggron came, and Charm him 3 times. Then switch to Linoone, Belly Drum, and Dig him to oblivion. Claydol came and killed me with EQ, but not before I Flailed him. I'd bring in Pelipper, who'd Surf for the kill. As Armaldo would come, I'd start wearing him down little by little, specially with Fly, Charm, and Return from my revived Linoone. I PP Stalled Cradily until all he had was Ingrain. I switched Linoone in and out multiple times, so that, thanks to Spikes (put by Skarmory), I'd get as near as possible to 50% HP. Then, I Belly Drum'd, used an X Speed, and Flailed with 200 bp until Cradily was done as well. Only Metagross remained. I Flailed and got immedeatly killed after. I just alternated between Magcargo and Illumise after, reviving each one of them at a time, until Metagross got burnt by Magcargo's armor. Then I waited some more turns, and Metagross was no more.
Hot n' Cold, you can have a Magby which cannot evolve, and cannot learn Flamethrower or Fire Blast.
