Chapter 123: 123. Defending(3)
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"Game start!"
Jacob and Wrenly threw out their Poké Balls simultaneously. Jacob led with his Shiny Charmeleon. Since it was a 3v3 battle, Jacob decided not to send out his trump card, Grovyle, preferring to test the waters with Charmeleon first. Across the battlefield, Wrenly started with Breloom.
Breloom possessed both Grass and Fighting-type attributes. Though its base stats weren't impressive, its combat capabilities were quite formidable.
Wrenly's Breloom was unusually large, significantly bigger than average specimens, and showed exceptional development. Unlike the typically gentle nature of Grass-type Pokémon, this Breloom had a fierce look in its eyes as it stared down Charmeleon with a combative spirit—quite uncommon among Grass-types.
What made this Breloom truly special, however, was its ability—the extremely rare Technician ability. Compared to calling it a "technical expert," Jacob preferred the term "technician"—after all, who wouldn't appreciate a good technician?
The Technician ability increased the power of low-power moves by 50%. The standard combination for this ability included the priority move Mach Punch and Bullet Seed, both low-power moves that could be used repeatedly. With the 50% boost combined with Breloom's impressive 130 physical attack stat, these moves became quite powerful.
Of course, the most impressive thing about Breloom wasn't its Technician ability or its 130 base physical attack, but its potential to learn one of the most formidable moves: Spore.
In the games, Spore could put opponents to sleep with a 100% accuracy rate. It was only ineffective against Grass-type Pokémon, Pokémon with the Overcoat ability, and those holding Safety Goggles. Only Pokémon with Vital Spirit or Insomnia abilities could resist it. It was an incredibly frustrating move to face.
Sometimes Jacob thought it would be amazing if Togekiss could learn this move—Spore combined with Serene Grace would be nearly unbeatable!
However, while Spore was a god-tier move in the games, in reality, it wasn't quite as terrifying. Although real-world Spore was still difficult to dodge when it erupted across the battlefield, if the quantity released wasn't substantial, it could be countered by using Hurricane to blow away the spores or Fire-type moves to burn them.
Fortunately, Breloom couldn't naturally learn Spore. Under normal circumstances, it could only acquire the move when raised to a high level without evolving.
Jacob quickly checked Breloom's stats through his system and confirmed that this elite Breloom hadn't learned Spore. This was acceptable to him. The only thing he needed to watch out for was its Mach Punch move, amplified by the Technician ability.
...
"Breloom, Mach Punch!" Wrenly commanded as soon as the battle began, instructing Breloom to launch the first attack. Red claws gathered Fighting-type energy and burst forward at incredible speed to strike Charmeleon.
Breloom's figure practically vanished, and in an instant, the red-glowing fist connected with Charmeleon.
Though Mach Punch wasn't particularly powerful on its own, its main advantage was its extreme speed. With the boost from Technician, its power became remarkably impressive.
"Charmer, Heat Wave!" Jacob had anticipated the Mach Punch. Knowing Charmeleon's speed might not be sufficient to dodge the attack, he abandoned any evasion plans and instead opted for a direct counterattack after taking the hit.
Charmeleon had neither time to react nor intention to dodge, taking the punch head-on. Between the Technician boost and Fighting-type advantage, the Mach Punch delivered substantial damage. Even Charmeleon winced in pain, having taken considerable damage.
But this positioning gave Charmeleon the perfect opportunity to strike back. Fire energy erupted and enveloped Charmeleon's body. It took a deep breath and expelled scorching air from its mouth, blanketing the area in front of it.
As the Heat Wave swept forth, spectators saw only a red haze. The scorching air instantly inflicted severe damage to Breloom, causing white smoke to rise from its body.
As the white smoke grew denser, the intense heat actually ignited Breloom's body.
"It's burned!"
"Jacob got so lucky—Breloom's been inflicted with a burn status!"
"The match is practically decided now! With both Pokémon at similar strength levels, Jacob will definitely seize this advantage for the win."
...
In the games, a burn status caused Pokémon to lose 1/16 of their HP each turn while reducing physical attack damage by 50%.
Reality worked differently, though. In real battles, fire could be extinguished—as long as it wasn't caused by a move like Will-O-Wisp. Flames from Heat Wave could be doused by simply flushing with water or diving into a pool.
Additionally, after extinguishing the fire, burns wouldn't necessarily reduce physical damage output as they did in games, but the pain would certainly affect a Pokémon's battle performance.
However, while fires could typically be extinguished, the Grass-type Breloom had already been significantly ignited with no water source nearby. Its Grass-type body was particularly susceptible to fire. Within moments, the flames weren't diminishing—they were growing more intense!
Wrenly clearly hadn't expected this development. As he watched the flames engulfing Breloom grow stronger, he felt helpless.
"Return, Breloom !"
Wrenly naturally wouldn't stand by while Breloom was consumed by flames and lost its fighting capability. He opted to recall it immediately, but Jacob remained unfazed. He knew that switching Pokémon would leave the incoming Pokémon vulnerable to Charmeleon's attack as it entered the field.
This strategy worked in real battles too. Trainers rarely switched Pokémon carelessly, as the replacement would almost certainly take a hit!
"Charmeleon, prepare Heat Wave."
"Roar!"
As Wrenly threw his next Poké Ball, the golden Charmeleon took a deep breath and, with perfect timing, released another blast of scorching air, covering the entire area before it.
Before Conkeldurr, who had just materialized, could get its bearings, it was struck by the Heat Wave. The intense heat scorched Conkeldurr's body, causing it to glare at Charmeleon with a pained and angry expression.
Clearly, Conkeldurr was furious about being attacked the moment it appeared on the battlefield.
"Conkeldurr! Earthquake!"
Facing a Fire-type like Charmeleon, Conkeldurr naturally opted for a Ground-type move.
Conkeldurr executed an impressive maneuver. It suddenly raised its right leg straight up above its head in a standing split, then slammed it down with tremendous force!
"BOOM!"
Ground-type energy surrounded Conkeldurr's right leg, instantly shattering the battlefield and generating shockwaves that radiated in all directions!