So it's been a while since I've done a Pokemon run, and was looking for a challenge to do. My Beedrill run was fairly successful, and I didn't want to do a Nuzlocke, but that got me thinking - I've never done a challenge run in Omega Ruby before and haven't played through the story of this game in years, and Seedot is available from the very beginning of the game, so an unmodded solo run is totally possible and perfect for what I want. After looking at Shiftry's stats, I figured it would be a little too good, so I opted to restrict myself to only using Nuzleaf. It has...decent stats. 70 attack and 60 special attack along with a pretty diverse coverage movepool give it a lot of options for dealing damage. The main issues are twofold: Nuzleaf has pitiful 40/40 defenses, and at 60 speed it's only mediocre. Regardless, it should be a fun challenge, so let's get into it. All the usual rules apply: no using other Pokemon to battle, no Pokemon-Amie or Super Training, no items in battle.
I opt to pick Treecko as my starter. This is less consequential than in other games, but this does impact the rival's choices. Their team will be the starter, Raichu, Swellow, and two of Wailord/Breloom/Magcargo. Since I chose Treecko, this means the rival has Wailord/Breloom/Blaziken. The starter is obviously the biggest concern, but I can work with this. The initial Poochyena battle and the rival battle have to be done with the starter, but after getting my Seedot the real fun begins. Now, to anyone thinking of doing this run: don't. The simple reason: Seedot's only attacking move is Bide, and the only other level-up moves it gets before evolution are Harden (pretty much useless) and Growth (good for later). (It does learn Nature Power at level 15, but this requires another level past evolution and I was sick of Bide by then.) This essentially turns the entire early-game into a complete crapshoot. The only way to deal damage is to take damage back, and the only real way to deal with trainers with multiple Pokemon is to use my very limited supply of Oran Berries. The crowning moment of this came when I encountered Youngster Billy on Route 104 to discover that his lead Pokemon was...a Seedot. With no options, I was left with the humiliation of watching two Seedot stare at each other until his Taillow came in and Pecked me to death. I won't go into the details of how long it took to evolve Seedot (which I named Pikmin for obvious reasons) or how many times I blacked out, but I evolved into Nuzleaf immediately before facing Roxanne at about two hours of in-game time. With this, Nuzleaf learns Razor Leaf and I can now progress with a way to deal direct damage.
Roxanne
Even with Nuzleaf learning Razor Leaf upon evolution and having a type advantage, this battle still isn't free. Roxanne's Geodude has Sturdy, meaning Nuzleaf takes one Rock Tomb back before taking it out. Nosepass is problematic as unboosted Razor Leaf at Level 14/15 is only a 3HKO, so I need to set up with Growth to turn it into a 2HKO or else Nosepass can outspeed me after the second Rock Tomb and faint me before I can beat it. However, this means I take more damage from Geodude, so I need one of a few things to occur:
"Pikmin" the Nuzleaf, Level 18
- Razor Leaf
- Rock Tomb
- Torment
- Growth
I opt to pick Treecko as my starter. This is less consequential than in other games, but this does impact the rival's choices. Their team will be the starter, Raichu, Swellow, and two of Wailord/Breloom/Magcargo. Since I chose Treecko, this means the rival has Wailord/Breloom/Blaziken. The starter is obviously the biggest concern, but I can work with this. The initial Poochyena battle and the rival battle have to be done with the starter, but after getting my Seedot the real fun begins. Now, to anyone thinking of doing this run: don't. The simple reason: Seedot's only attacking move is Bide, and the only other level-up moves it gets before evolution are Harden (pretty much useless) and Growth (good for later). (It does learn Nature Power at level 15, but this requires another level past evolution and I was sick of Bide by then.) This essentially turns the entire early-game into a complete crapshoot. The only way to deal damage is to take damage back, and the only real way to deal with trainers with multiple Pokemon is to use my very limited supply of Oran Berries. The crowning moment of this came when I encountered Youngster Billy on Route 104 to discover that his lead Pokemon was...a Seedot. With no options, I was left with the humiliation of watching two Seedot stare at each other until his Taillow came in and Pecked me to death. I won't go into the details of how long it took to evolve Seedot (which I named Pikmin for obvious reasons) or how many times I blacked out, but I evolved into Nuzleaf immediately before facing Roxanne at about two hours of in-game time. With this, Nuzleaf learns Razor Leaf and I can now progress with a way to deal direct damage.
Roxanne
Even with Nuzleaf learning Razor Leaf upon evolution and having a type advantage, this battle still isn't free. Roxanne's Geodude has Sturdy, meaning Nuzleaf takes one Rock Tomb back before taking it out. Nosepass is problematic as unboosted Razor Leaf at Level 14/15 is only a 3HKO, so I need to set up with Growth to turn it into a 2HKO or else Nosepass can outspeed me after the second Rock Tomb and faint me before I can beat it. However, this means I take more damage from Geodude, so I need one of a few things to occur:
- Geodude to not use Rock Tomb twice.
- Either Geodude or Nosepass to miss with Rock Tomb.
- Razor Leaf to get a crit against Nosepass.
"Pikmin" the Nuzleaf, Level 18
- Razor Leaf
- Rock Tomb
- Torment
- Growth