A Little Bit Of A Color Palette Thingy

The Psychic Type Paradox

It’s been questioned on many occasions as to why Psychic type Pokemon, or at least some of the more hyperintelligent ones, were not the ones to become the dominant species on Earth, as opposed to us flimsy, powerless humans. Psychics boast unimaginable intelligence, or brains so powerful they are capable of manipulating the world around them with nothing but a thought. A firing of a neuron, and bones shatter. A single line of thinking, and the world around them moves to the beat of their neural drum. So why have they not taken over?

Unfortunately, this comes down to a debate between philosophy and biology. The philosophers say that it’s because they have no need to, for what purpose could building a civilization have to a society of people who have no need of machines, tools, or vehicles? What is the need for any of those things when you can teleport great distances in the blink of an eye, use mental power to craft whatever you need, and require absolutely nothing of the physical world save for food and water, and shelter? Philosophers claim that psychics simply have no ambition for such things, and life freer, more content lives than most humans ever can.

Biology has a far more disturbing opinion. However, context is required. Roughly 70 years ago, a group of scientists took up a study on the behavior of humanity’s closest relatives: the lineages of Infernape and Rillaboom. Both are extraordinarily powerful species with a great deal of intelligence and emotional comparisons have been drawn in their behavior to us. Infernape in particular has been shown to exhibit the same five major personality traits that we have: extraversion, neuroticism, conscientiousness, openness, and agreeableness, as well as an extra trait for aggressive dominance, fitting of a fighting type. They display the power of language, communicating both in normal Poke-speak as well as using hand-gestures. They have cultures, music especially in Rillaboom’s case. They build shelters, they make tools, they sing, dance, and fight amongst one another for dominance. 

But this never applies to other species. They never try to show dominance over another species, other than maybe a territorial display. They do not desire power over their environments, they never try to hoard resources, and do not hunger for bloodshed and death. Not even in humanity’s closest relatives have the traits of humanity been seen. Why is this?

The theory: a mental block. In the minds of most every Pokemon (plenty of exceptions can be made for apex predator Pokemon, such as Tyranitar and Hydreigon, or generally malicious species), there is a mental barrier which prevents these feelings. They are more content with their lives, at peace with their surroundings. The reason why we don’t have it any longer is because we are severed from the elemental powers we once had. It was a failsafe to keep the world safe, but we abandoned this failsafe in exchange for our abilities. Thus, psychic types such as Alakazam, with a supercomputer for a brain, or Gardevoir, with enough raw power to collapse reality into a black hole, cannot use their powers to advance, to become civilized, or build their own societies.

The question is obvious: why do Pokemon have this failsafe?

And what, or rather, who, put it there? 

Some Pokemon types are simple. Their definitions are solid, and are unchangeable. For example, Fire Pokemon. Fire is the type of not just fire, but magma/lava and most of all, heat. Or Ice, being the type of frozen water in the form of glaciers, icicles, and snow. 

Others... not so much. Either their type energy isn’t fully explained how it works or where it comes from, or it’s explained, but difficult to explain. As an example of the the first, we have the Dragon Type. Dragon energy is not fully explained, or understood, due to how volatile it is (which makes it so hard to contain and do research on), but it is thought to have been first used and harnessed by the first Dragon, or the common ancestor of the True Dragons: Tyrantrum, the Despot Pokemon, living roughly 100 million years ago during the Cretaceous Period. This Pokemon would go on to split off into hundreds of different branches all across the world, creating the Dragon typing as we know it (save for those few species that haphazardly stumbled across it in a case of convergent evolution, such as Exeggutor).

As an example of an explained but difficult to explain type is Ghost and Dark, which are closely linked by an strange matter known as Distortion. Distortion is a corrosive substance, though its less corrosive on solid objects and more corrosive upon time and space as a whole. Most ghosts naturally hail from the Distortion World, or from some other world closely related to it, as they are almost entirely compromised of Distortion matter (those ghosts who are not from the Distortion World spawn as a result of a recent death and a recently deceased soul being exposed to distortion matter, and becoming a ghost Pokemon as a result). They are not fully corporeal, able to shift in and out of existence as they please, and gleefully break the laws of reality as if a game. Dark Types, on the other hand, do not hail from the Distortion World, and are corporeal, yet they wield distortion as a water type does with water. Their bodies naturally produce the substance (often at the cost of their own health and survivability), and as a result, the distortion is far more concentrated and potent, which overloads and disrupts Ghost Pokemon.

However, by far the hardest type to explain is Fairy. Ever since its discovery and classification in Kalos roughly 200 years ago, Fairy type energy has defied full explanation or understanding, and the creatures that wield it are hard to fully classify as “alive.” At this time, it is believed that the first fairies, like Ghosts, hailed from another plane of existence. However, unlike the ghosts, Fairies accepted a degree of physicality to become somewhere in-between corporeal and incorporeal as whimsical and magical, somewhat grounded in reality.

The most common theory, though, is that parts of them are and are not corporeal. Take the Gardevoir/Gallade lines, for example. It’s been found that the only truly solid part of their body is their signature chest spikes. Instead, the rest of their anatomy is somewhat incorporeal, requiring no organs or muscles, simply being controlled by the will of the Pokemon (Fairy types have been found to have a pseudo-nervous system made of pure, concentrated energy running throughout all of their limbs and appendages, which is likely how they manipulate their bodies). Since this spike is the only truly corporeal part about them, it is the only thing that does not dissipate after death, as the rest of the body simply fades away while only the spike remains. 

Fairy Types continue to defy explanation, and even the most telepathically adept fairies do not or cannot provide concrete explanations, so likely, the Fairy type will remain a mystery for years, if not decades to come.

I think my absolute favorite kind of game has to be class-based co-op horde shooters. Games where you, preferably in a party of friends, mow down waves of enemies, but specifically where you've picked a particular class, so you have abilities or gadgets that others do not.

A great example of this is Deep Rock Galactic, or DRG, where the gadgets of each class compliment and work with others. For example, the Engineer has a platform gun, which can be placed on cave walls, so that the Scout, with the grappling hook, can get those previously unaccessible resources.

Another example is the Borderlands franchise, though the classes less "work together" and more "have different ways of slaughtering as many enemies as possible." In Borderlands 3, one character has helpful pets that draw attention away from the player, with skills that focus on critical hits, survivability, or upgrading your pet. Meanwhile, another character has a large, tanky mech suit, with skills that focus on high damage output, explosion damage/radius, or becoming a glass cannon.

However, as much as I love these types of games, to a certain degree, you are locked in. You choose the class which you enjoy playing the most, and are locked into that in your party for the extent of either the full story or that particular round/mission, only helping in the ways your class can.

So I have an idea. I want a fantasy, class-based, co-op, PvE game that allows you to have multiple classes.

Let's say you the maximum party size is the four, as is common in these kinds of games. Before you jump in, you each get to pick three specialties or proficiencies out of a long list, perhaps 20-30 or so. Each "class" is simple, having a few small perks, but you're free to build your character however you want. Progression works by playing with that class equipped, and your abilities in that class slowly grow stronger as you play with it and they level up.

Some classes would also naturally compliment one another, but you could mix it up for variety in case you want to do multiple things. For example, you could dedicate yourself fully to support, picking three classes which specialize in 1. party-wide healing, 2. single-target healing, and 3. offensive buffs. OR, you could mix it up, picking 1. single-target healing but also 2. bulkiness (for health and armor) and 3. self-buffing defense, to become a benevolent healing tank.

Parties could customize the skills they want to take in a particular session, working together to make something overpowered with every person playing what they want to play, without being limited by whatever the class' intended limits are, instead deciding for themselves what pros and cons they want to live with. The classes would be locked in, but there would be opportunities to swap them out at regular intervals so you weren't fully stuck. Customize, make the fantasy character of your dreams with all the features you want!

(Side note: this could also apply to a sci-fi setting as well, but I personally like the idea of a fantasy setting more).

shoutout to the gay couple at the grocery store where i work that were staring at the shelves and shelves of cereal brands, looking so concerned, and the one of em that whispered "this is the hardest decision of our lives"

do you have any recommendations for support Pokémon for autism related sensory overloads? I’m getting mixed results on Rotom Search

a roselia might be useful since they’re pretty common & are pretty soothing, esp if they learn aromatherapy and grass whistle, plus sweet scent (if youre into like. scented candles and stuff). ive also heard solosis gel can be soothing as something to stim with. take my words with a grain of salt because theres no one-pokémon-fits-all for autism, look for things that suit your needs specifically rather than the blanket diagnosis

Poison types already had a bad rap before the Rocket Age, despite what many seem to claim. Poison types are widely considered to be an “evil” type, among Dark and Ghost types, for the reason that many species of poison types naturally have “toxic” personalities. These species are considered reclusive, territorial, and in some cases, sadistic, taking enjoyment out of the suffering of their prey or enemies under the influence of poisons, toxins, or venoms.

However, this is a stereotype that has been unfortunately applied to all poison types, regardless of demeanor, especially after the infamous Rocket Age, where the grunts primarily used specific normal and poison type Pokemon, which were known for reproducing easily, or were extremely common at that point in time (Grimer and Muk being prime examples, as many cities at this point in time were struggling with pollution and litter). As a result of this, and several other terrorist organizations to sprout up in the following years, such as Galactic and Flare, poison types gained a horridly bad rap that the public could not shake off.

Despite this, poison types, while often considered difficult and mostly suited for highly skilled trainers, are mostly comprised of loyal Pokemon, if not completely average Pokemon, that simply use poisons, toxins or venoms in their arsenal. For example, one of the most loyal and incredibly beginner-friendly Pokemon is the Nidoran lines. If you bond well to a Nidoran, it will often carry young trainers through at least their first few badges, if not well into the League (there have been quite a few documentations of Indigo Conference participants having Nidokings or Nidoqueens on their rosters).

Another incredibly beginner friendly Pokemon is Gulpin and Swalot. These Pokemon have gelatinous bodies, which are not actually poisonous at all. Instead, their poison comes from their incredibly potent stomach acids, which is one of the highest grade acids on the globe, with a pH of 0.04. Despite this, all you need to win a Gulpin’s loyalty and affection is a steady diet of basically any kind of food or organic substance that tastes remotely good (most of the time, they’re not picky, though they do appreciate better tasting foods). As many have described them, they are a budget Snorlax. Be warned though, while Gulpin are mostly safe, Swalot does upgrade its poisonous capabilities by sweating out excess stomach acid it generates, which can be weaponized.

But the point stands, poison types are incredibly versatile, and do not deserve the reputation they have garnered by human factors. 

A tutorial on a (bit cheating) way of creating fictional maps.

Open your editing software (RECOMMENDING Krita, since it's free and it's very good).

Step 1: Google "X country silhouette" and copy it.

Paste it onto the canvas.

Step 2: Separate the silhouette from the background you copied with it! You can do that by using magic wand selection tool or by making a gradient map with black on 49,9% and transparent on 50% on the slider.

Step 3: Repeat several times with numerous countries and/or islands, cities, municipalities, communes, continents et cetera.

Step 4: Combine, mesh, stretch, rotate, mirror - go ham, make it work.

Step 5: Erase and add.

Step 6: Have your map outline ready, copy/paste it several times in the same doc on different layers and edit in different ways like biomes, kingdoms, mountains and other.

Step Mountains+: To figure out mountains, make another layer on the doc and do something like this:

-and then in every polygon you add an arrow.

Where arrows meet or transfer onto continents, add mountains.

Color the sea with a couple layers of depth and you're done :D

Personally I think that battle sims like showdown would still be a thing in the pokemon world. Cuz like picture this: you are ten years old and the only Pokémon you have access to is the elderly family Sunflora. You love Sunny to death but also literally every media you consume involves Pokémon battles and champions and cool ass fights. Sunny is too old to fight and your neighbor’s Gothita is too young. One day on the playground your friend tells you about this cool website that lets you battle pokemon on the computer. Later that night you boot up the family computer and instantly realize that this website lets you play as GROUDON (!!!!). There’s no going back from there.

I’ve kinda wondered what would happen if you took little trope inside jokes or realizations off the internet and made them into full games. For example, this is Tumblr after all. What would happen if someone saw our many, many ramblings about humans being space orcs and made a full game off of it? What would it look like?

For me, if I had to design a “Humans Are Space Orcs” Game, I think I’d do it as an MMORPG. I think I’d actually start it off as a completely human-free game, where you get to choose an alien species to play as (with various benefits and drawbacks) being part of this gargantuan intergalactic collective of species and peoples and planets. There’d be classic “go out and do stuff adventures,” but I think I’d also take stuff from the idea behind that MMORPG called “Albion Online” where everything is a player-built economy, and have highly expansive routes you could take for crafting things. Though now that I think about it, that might just be “EVE: Online” but with aliens. So there probably would be a lot more options in terms of alien ships and weapons and parts and all that.

However, the “humans are space orcs thing” would come in a form of one of those crazy expansions and events MMORPGs do. I’d have a sector of this one galaxy be hyper-dangerous, known as the “Dead Sector,” not because it’s lifeless, but because that’s what it does: make you dead. Quickly. A high population of gargantuan interstellar space worms, death worlds, all that jazz. Entering it would yield high resources, if you could make it out alive.

However, in this expansion, would enter THE HUMAN RACE and all the marketing would make them sound like they were weird and foreign and strange. They wouldn’t be playable yet, that would only be unlocked after the next major update, when they’ve really started to proliferate across the galaxies. But the whole “story” of that update would be learning about the humans and their culture, exploring Earth and slowly dawning upon the realization that oh my god these people are fucking insane.

That’s how I’d do it, anyway. It’d probably be fun.

My very first worldbuilding project is perhaps one of my favorites to date. Sure, it desperately needs revamping, yet the ideas (however poorly executed) still resonate with me. I made it in my freshman year of high school, so it was bound to be exceptionally bad, but what can I say. It was heavily reliant on fun tropes that I enjoyed at the time, but the core concept behind it was the one that I liked the most:

What if Earth was tidally locked to the sun?

What if one side of the Earth always faced it, and one side always looked away?

Science says that it would have been a wasteland. If any water had existed in the enlightened hemisphere, it wouldn’t anymore, as the very earth would have been scalding, pure magma, or close enough to it that it might have resembled what Earth looked like in its infancy. Meanwhile, the darkened hemisphere would have been so absolutely cold after billions of years of nothing but the black void of space that even the atmosphere would have frozen over and snowed to the ground. 

A slightly more fantastical world would have had the idea of all life being centered around the border between the enlightened and darkened hemispheres, a band of warmth and life that extended around the world.

I wanted a fully living world.

Granted, I never really came up with a good solution other than “ooo magic exists now so it’s fine,” but that can be worked on later (if I ever return to the world to revamp it).

I envisioned the border to be roughly cutting through the North American Midwest and western Asia (Russia, Kazakhstan, Afghanistan/Pakistan, maybe a little bit of India), with the Enlightened Hemisphere illuminating the North American East Coast, South America, Europe, Africa, and West Asia, while the Dark would have comprised of almost all Asia, as well as the totality of Oceania and the North American West Coast.

I did this because I wanted a couple things, starting with my wants for the enlightened hemisphere:

The center of the enlightened world needed to be Europe, as a pinnacle of humanity’s endeavors in science and technology. NYC would fit its name of “The City That Never Sleeps” even more, considering it would never be night there. South America would be a tropical paradise, with the jungles growing to utterly insane heights (and I wanted to introduce a kind of semi-sapient giga tree that could house entire cities within its branches). I had this really nice idea of Russia having a civil war within itself between its dark and light halves, with neither side really being “better” or “in the right,” they simply just existed and were warring across the horizon zone. Lastly, I had this idea of buffalo grazing upon the great plains in eternal twilight. 

Meanwhile on the Darkened Hemisphere, I wanted it to be a place of magic and wonder, to contradict the Sols (the people on the light side) forgoing magic to learn about science. The Nox people were something similar to elves, with pale skin and long ears, but were most notable for their massive eyes compared to Sols, who looked the most human (if you want a reference, think Alita: Battle Angel). For the dark, I wanted a few things:

Almost every plant or animal would be bioluminescent of some kind, making the world dark, but still very glowy and beautiful. China would be the center of the Darkened World, being the home of magic and wonder. They’d still have their infamous glowing lanterns, but they’d be biological, as a kind of gourd-like fruit hanging from trees. Either they’d put candles inside them, or a kind of bioluminescent bird (called Pseudo-Phoenixes) would make nests inside their carved-out innards to have shelter from predators below. Australia would be even more chaotic than normal, being a mish-mash of dangerous biomes with even more dangerous fauna. Finally, the American West Coast would actually be populated almost entirely by indigenous peoples, having managed to resist American expansion across the horizon due to them having the advantage (they are all Nox, having migrated across the land-bridge and spread out over both Americas) and establishing their own nation made of many different kinds of tribes that either natively lived there (such as the Navajo or Apache) or migrants (such as the Cherokee or Seminole). 

That’s just the basics, though. There’s a lot more nuance I put into this, but this post is already insanely long and it’s probably time to put a stop to this before I get so distracted that I can’t do my work later today. Thanks for reading if you make it to this part, though.