Chapter 11. Pokemon Training

"Hey, Rattata. Can you show me what moves you know?" Alex asked as he scanned Rattata.

The mouse obliged, showing off all the moves it knew while gray or dark light shimmered on its fur. After the demonstration, the Pokédex updated.

Name: Rattata, Novice

Type: Normal, Male

Ability: Run Away

Moves: 

Novice: Screech (Egg Move), Tackle, Tail Whip, Quick Attack, Focus Energy, Bite, Laser Focus, Take Down, Assurance

Basic: Fury Swipes (Egg Move)

Description: Rattata, the Mouse Pokemon. It is a fast and nimble Pokémon that constantly gnaws on anything to keep its sharp fangs strong. It can survive in almost any environment and is always on the lookout for food, never letting its guard down.

'What's an Egg Move? What do Novice and Basic mean?' Alex thought, confused.

After a quick search, Alex discovered that Egg Moves were moves inherited from a Pokémon's parents—Fury Swipes and Screech might have come from a Mankey. This was news to Alex, as he had never gotten too into the game and was happy enough to simply reach the end credits.

Novice and Basic were classifications of a Pokémon's power level or their proficiency with Pokémon Moves.

Apparently, Pokémon were ranked into Novice, Adept, Expert, Elite, Champion, and Master. After watching videos of battles featuring Pokémon of these ranks, Alex determined that Novice ranged from levels 1–19, Adept from levels 20–39, Expert from levels 40–59, Elite from levels 60–79, Champion from levels 80–99, and finally, Master was the rank for Pokémon at level 100 and above.

These ranks could be felt instinctively by trainers when they bonded with Pokémon. It was how they could tell, at a glance, whether a Pokémon was strong or not, irrespective of its current evolution. It was the first thing trainers learned firsthand.

These ranks applied to trainers as well. If a trainer had at least one Adept-ranked Pokémon, they were considered an Adept-ranked trainer as well.

Interestingly, this did not mean trainers got an instant pass from Gym Leaders, as owning powerful Pokémon was not an indicator of a trainer's skill in utilizing that power. Gym battles still needed to be fought in order to earn badges.

With regards to Pokémon Moves, they were ranked based on certain standards. These ranks were Novice, Basic, Advanced, Expert, and Master.

Novice moves had not yet reached the standard application of the move. These moves might occasionally fail, be weaker, or take longer to execute. Basic moves met the standard for reliable execution, speed, and power.

Advanced moves had a single improved aspect—whether it was faster execution, stronger power from the same execution time, or a reduced cooldown. These moves were a cut above the established standard. Expert moves had two improved aspects, while Master-ranked moves had a fundamental improvement that went beyond standard expectations.

Master-ranked moves exhibited changes that transcended the typical boundaries of a move. For example, Ice Beams that curved defied the standard application of the move. It was almost miraculous how a Pokémon's control over their type energy allowed them to bend an Ice Beam. This change went beyond what was expected from standard execution.

Pokémon had to be able to improve at least two aspects of a move before they could even attempt to change fundamental properties and reach the Master rank for that move. Many trainers had focused on this aspect and proven that at least two improvements were needed in order to change the fundamentals of a Pokémon Move.

On top of Pokémon ranks and move proficiencies, Pokémon trainers also had to consider their bond with their Pokémon.

Bonds with Pokémon were a much more tangible phenomenon in this world compared to the games, where players had access to a quantified number dictating their relationship with their Pokémon.

Remembering the anime, Alex understood that the power of friendship was real. Pokémon could, in fact, grow stronger if they had a harmonious relationship with their trainer.

He viewed it as emotional energy that empowered a Pokémon's type energy, so he didn't plan to slack off on that aspect—unlike some people.

Alex already had a grasp of how powerful bonds were, given his relatively strong one with Rattata.

He saw bonds as a deep understanding—just as best friends could communicate with just a glance, Pokémon had a similar connection with their trainers.

Trainers could intuitively understand a Pokémon's intent based on their expressions or posture. This almost magical phenomenon would be an indispensable tool for giving short and quick orders in the middle of battle. It was yet another aspect of battling that Alex would have to master.

As he absorbed all this information, Alex suddenly found himself overwhelmed. This was so much more complicated than simply running around in the wild, battling random Pokémon until they reached the right level to challenge the next Gym.

Being a Pokémon trainer required actual proficiency in teaching, intense study, and a strategic mindset. He was completely out of his element—not that he would have been an expert even if this were a game.

'No, it's not that complicated. This is still a fight, and all fights fundamentally rely on training, practice, coordination, and timing,' Alex muttered to himself.

Back on Earth, Alex had been a retired MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) fighter turned coach after suffering a knee injury. He was intimately familiar with the dance of combat—building the body up through training, reading the opponent's abilities through experience, timing attacks with wisdom, and executing practiced strategies under pressure.

He might not know much about Pokémon, but he knew everything about fighting. At the highest level, fights were no different from chess matches—so long as the fundamentals were mastered.

He just needed to adapt to his new environment, like an old dog learning new tricks, to claim his place among top-tier Pokémon trainers.

Not that Alex had any plans of becoming a Champion, but in a world where strength determined everything, the first rule was to be able to defend yourself from those who ignored the laws of society.

From now on, Alex decided to dedicate all his time to memorizing and familiarizing himself with every Pokémon, their moves, their held items, their diets, known strategies, and emerging technologies that influenced battle strength in this world.

He would give everything to carve out a place at the top—no matter what happened.

To fulfill this desire, the first step is to come up with a plan for his first-ever Pokémon. Alex needs to think up a training routine and diet plan for his little buddy.

After some more targeted research, Alex found that the F.E.A.R. strategy is the only one that can possibly apply, so he might as well get that under his belt, even if it is the most predictable strategy around.

'You never know when it might come in handy.' Alex justified.

Regarding the diet plan, Alex found that Pokémon meat and supplements can elevate specific stats in Pokémon, though it is just an unproven theory currently, as experiments have yielded inconclusive results. Some Pokémon did not exhibit any changes whatsoever, while some did, in fact, gain an increase in the targeted stats despite the lack of training.

This reminded Alex about Effort Values, or EVs, which only go up a certain amount per Pokémon. Once that threshold is reached, they will never increase again.

'If I remember correctly, Pokemon can max out two stats in EVs plus spare change,' Alex muttered with uncertainty.

He may remember this small snippet of information, but he ultimately does not have specific memories of actually taking advantage of it. He does, however, remember simply ignoring it altogether and just power leveling in tall grass for hours.

'The reason some Pokémon do not exhibit stat changes is that they have already maxed out their EVs. They will have to lower other stats to see any gains in their targeted stats. This might be my ticket into the intellectual community. I'll think about this more when I'm in a more comfortable situation. For now, Rattata needs to increase his Attack and Speed while lowering the other stats,' Alex internalized.

After some more internet surfing, he found what he was looking for—berries that decrease certain stats in Pokémon. These berries, other than sparse use in certain recipes, were very unpopular and thus dirt cheap.

If Alex can complete scientific research on these berries and their positive effects on EVs, he could make a boatload of cash on farms. Too bad he needs a significant upfront investment to build said farms first.

'Maybe in the future, but for now, I need some Pomeg Berries to lower HP EVs, Qualot Berries to lower Defense EVs, Hondew Berries to lower Special Attack EVs, and Grepa Berries to lower Special Defense EVs.

Next, I will need some Pokémon meat that promotes Attack and Speed EVs,' Alex calculated.

After some quick research on these specific meats, Alex zeroed in on the cheapest options—Beedrill meat for Attack EVs and Weedle meat for Speed EVs.

Beedrill are a significant threat to trainers due to their large colony sizes while simultaneously being coveted for their honey and stingers, which benefit Poison-type Pokémon, so their meat is cheap. The same roughly applies to Weedles, since a bunch of them are killed whenever honey harvesting occurs in the wild.

Alex considered using supplements like Protein and Carbos but they are over a thousand times more expensive for only ten times the effect so he will have to stick with Pokemon meat which doubles as a filling meal. 

Now, Alex just needs to visit the local market for the first phase of the diet plan and finally take his first steps as a Pokémon trainer.

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