Spring 2007:
A young trainer entered Mt. Coronet, determined to capture the legendary Pokémon of time: Dialga. But he wasn't searching for just
any legend of time. He wanted to become a legendary
shiny hunter. His Dialga would shine, and he wouldn't leave the mountain until he found what he came for.
He searched day and night, but the Sinnoh landmark would not be conquered by just any traveler. Using the full range of his Pokémon's capabilities - their Strength, their Surf, their Rock Smash, and even their vaunted Rock Climb - the young trainer kept the faith that he and his Pokémon would prevail. They searched high and low, but the fabled shiny of the mountain was nowhere to be found.
He would not accept defeat. Setting up camp on the snowy summit, the trainer continued his hunt. Days passed, and soon weeks turned into months. But he was determined not to leave until the shiny Dialga was his.
July 31st, 2007:
At long last, the hunter bravely weathered the blistering cold of Mt. Coronet's peak and stepped forth onto the very apex of the Sinnoh region - the Spear Pillar itself. And there, waiting at long last to meet the fearless hunter, was the noble legend of time: the great green Dialga.
With a Luxury Ball, the young hunter captured the legend, taking the first step on his path to becoming a Legendary Shiny Hunter.
August 21st, 2007:
Less than a month after Dialga's capture, the young hunter discovered a small cavern in the center of one of Sinnoh's three lakes. Spending many days in search once again, he was rewarded with a prize of tremendous power and wisdom: the shiny Uxie, guardian of the lake. But that was not enough.
In the far northern region of Sinnoh, the elders speak of three ancient entities that were involved from the beginning of time itself. These three entities were said to be Dialga, the legend of time; Palkia, the legend of space, and Giratina, the legend of Ghost, that incorporeal essence which is the epitome of all coolness. These Dragons were the
true legends, those whose unfathomable powers inspired awe in whatever passersby had the fortune to traverse their graceful regard.
The young trainer needed to find the other two. While Uxie was a powerful shiny, it paled in comparison to the roaring Dialga. So the hunter set out once more, scouring far and wide to discover the other two shinies of the Creation Trio mentioned in folklore from time immemorial.
November 17th, 2008:
The hunter stared in awe at the being before him. At last, it had appeared!!! The legendary Giratina. A battle for the ages ensued, with the blue spectre finally succumbing to a Time Ball, quite fitting coming from the trainer who'd already captured the legend of time.
Just one more to go. One final legend of Sinnoh, and the trio would be complete.
But alas, the legends of the realm do not bow to just any hunter of shinies. They test one's might, and require the greatest of fortitude in one's heart. The legends are no ordinary shiny Pokémon - they are towering behemoths that exude power and radiance, only presenting themselves to the most worthy of hunters.
With his triumph over Giratina, this hunter now had successfully captured 12 shinies. But even with the aid of 12 shiny Pokémon, he was far from worthy of appearing before the legend of space itself.
May 20th, 2011:
After several years had passed, the hunter had gained admission into the pinnacle of shiny hunting society, an organization known as the "Shiny Hunters Club." With several more shinies captured, he dared to challenge the third and final member of the Creation Trio, hoping to cement his name as a shiny hunting legend:
I also started my Palkia hunt today and found out that Palkia has absolutely awesome walk-up music. I dual hunted it with the Johto starters today, and I got up to 250 Palkia.
Challenging the master of space, he deigned call forth the final colossus of Sinnoh's trio, time and time again. But the beast would not shine. The battle raged for days and days and days atop Mt. Coronet, but the legend would not deem the hunter worthy. How could one who has not even captured a minute fraction of the small, weak Pokémon that scurry in the tall grass claim the mantle of hunter of shiny legends??
December 18th, 2011:
I picked up my Palkia hunt for a little bit last night, got to 5700 SRs, and then tore open a portal in time and flung it far into the future where my evil is law. Expect a shiny Palkia from me circa 2016. :laugh-squinted: I restarted Pearl...
Rending the fabric of space itself, the beast tore open a portal and ejected the hunter from the mountaintop, exiling him to the lowly grasslands of a distant region. He would spend the next seven years and three months searching far and wide, capturing shinies of all shapes and sizes, of varying powers and types.
But none held a candle to the monolithic Palkia. These tiny starter and grassland Pokémon would not be of any use in capturing the Dragon of ancient lore. Nonetheless, the hunter carried on with his quest, vowing to return one day with a massive army of shiny Pokémon to challenge the mighty beast and claim the lofty title to which he so boldly aspired.
March 7th, 2019:
The grizzled veteran - no longer the youthful hunter he once was - reflected upon his recent string of victories. He'd been seeking a shiny Sableye in the Unova region, to no avail. While this Pokémon was but a weak cave-dweller compared to the fearsome Giratina over whom he'd claimed victory in his youth, the cave boasted a number of formidable Pokémon in its own right. There was the exploding Graveler, a large rock monster capable of demolishing any unsuspecting traveler with its Explosion; the respectable Boldore, a cornucopia of gems and valuable stones whose Rock powers could take down even the most cautious of trainers; and the noble Mawile, a mischievous demon of Steel whose unrelenting jaws were the subject of scary tales around campfires the world over.
And the hunter had caught all three. With the addition of Mawile, his collection had grown to 78, a sizeable number compared to the meager 12 he'd boasted after the grueling battle with Giratina 11 years prior. While most were small, grass-scurrying Pokémon, they were all capable shinies nonetheless, and the recent additions of Graveler, Boldore, and Mawile emboldened him to once again seek the sparkling legend of space.
And so on March 7th, 2019, he ascended the treacherous slopes of Mt. Coronet once more.
March 11th, 2019:
The hunter arrived at the pinnacle of Sinnoh, surrounded by those relics of antiquity that give the Spear Pillar its name. Taking in his surroundings, the hunter glanced a swirl of blue stars out of the corner of his eye...
And there it was. At long last, shiny Palkia was his to confront. Standing firm atop the mountain, he gazed directly into the eye of the beast.
And with a thunderous roar, the beast challenged the hunter, now worthy of combat after so many arduous years of battles with lesser shinies. The hunter sent out Modesto, a Sychronize Kadabra who'd been captured and trained solely for this one moment. This was his time to shine.
But the mighty legend had no pity for the weak. It instantly launched a pulse of water at the Psychic, whose pedestrian stature was nothing more than a speck of sand in the shadow of the towering Dragon.
The hunter called Modesto back to its Poké Ball, replacing it with yet another weak grassbound Pokémon: Karla, the cheerful Kricketune.
Karla's pitiful size did not preclude it from exhibiting great utility, however. Her melodious Sing put the legend of space to sleep, allowing the trainer to toss Heal Balls at the elusive shiny. But the first capture attempt failed, as did the subsequent.
Palkia woke up.
Karla tried once more to lull the beast to sleep, but Palkia would not fall for the same deceptive maneuver twice. With a Spacial Rend, it tore open a portal of space and sent the feeble Bug to its doom. The hunter mourned for the loss of his comrade, a noble veteran of his long Nuzlocke journey that would now have to be laid to rest. So fell Karla.
Fearing the permanent loss of yet another trusted team member, the hunter paused before sending another friend into the battle. He settled on the strongiest, bulkiest, most reliable member of his squad: Finn, the unyielding Lumineon.
Finn was the team member of whom the trainer was most proud, boasting mighty defenses and tremendous coverage for a Water-type companion. Finn was such an integral part of the team that, after he had fallen in battle once before, the entire team had journeyed clear across the region in search of a shiny so that he might be revived, ultimately enlisting the aid of one shiny Shellos named Clyde.
Thus emerged Finn from his Ball, ready to take a hit or two to give his trainer enough time to capture the legend he'd sought for so many years.
The hunter readied another Heal Ball in his hand, determined to capture the pink shiny in a pink Ball, one whose sparkly aesthetic meshed so well with the glisten of shiny Pokémon.
And then it happened...
