Getting Started

Welcome to the Pokémon Turquoise RPG! We're glad to see that you're interested in our game and our growing community. Whether you're new to Turquoise's style of RPG or new to forum roleplaying in general, this guide will help you find your way and jump in as soon as possible!

For the most part this guide is geared toward players who are very new to this sort of game; if you've done some forum roleplaying before then parts of this will be old news to you. At the very least more experienced players should read the section on signing up and the notes, tips and resources, but it'd still be a good idea to at least skim everything else so you're familiar with the game details specific to Pokémon Turquoise. There are also a few "spoilered" sections containing extra examples or more advanced information, so be sure to check those out as well.

First, a quick summary of how everything works around here:

In a nutshell, you'll create a character, choose a starter Pokémon and then post your first adventure thread in the appropriate forum. In your adventure you'll be exploring your current location, interacting with the characters found there or, as is most often the case, battling wild Pokémon and other trainers. Every time you make a post stating what you'd like to do next, one of the RPG Mods will respond with a summary of what happened—how much damage your Pokémon's attack did, whether or not the solution you put forward for a problem worked, etc.. Then it's your turn to post again and keep moving your adventure forward!

The rest of the guide will cover all this and more, so hang tight!

Signing Up & Waiting to Start

You'll need to sign up before you can play the RPG. The process is simple:

If you haven't done so already, create an account on the forums. Be sure to read the forum rules!
Head over to the Sign Up forum and create a new thread using the player information form in here as a template. Tell us a bit about your character and the starter Pokémon you want, and, if you like, a little about your rival, too!
A mod will check out your sign-up thread and may ask you to address any problems. As soon as everything is correct, they'll post to let you know that they've created your RPG profile in this forum. The mod will show you the link to your new RPG profile and will put that link in the "RPG Profile" field of your user profile (it will appear as a link in the postbit under your avatar) so that both you and the staff can refer to it easily at any time.
Head over to the forum that represents the starting town in the region you'll be exploring and start your first thread there. Right now the only available region is New Logora, so you'll be posting in Leddin Town and gearing up for your first rival battle. Write as much or as little as you want—maybe tell us how you met your starter, for example, or why your rival deserves the curbstomping heading their way—and have fun!

We'll do our best to make your profile as soon as possible but may not always be able to create it right away, so if you find yourself waiting for a little bit you can:

introduce yourself! We're always eager to meet and greet our new members.
check out the Turquoise Articles, our forum newsletter. The latest TAs include important announcements about rule changes, new features, special events and fun things going on around the community; there may be an additional activity or discussion you can take part in while you wait!
explore the rest of this website. The TurquoiseDex contains a wealth of information about playing the game (e.g., the FAQ and the list of differences from canon games), the world you'll be exploring and the Pokémon and characters you'll meet (e.g., the New Logora Pokédex). You can learn more about the nuances of the RPG, plan out your team or even get ideas for your personal RP storyline if you like.
make a personal profile in this forum. Personal profiles are different from RPG profiles in that you can create your own thread and use it to share whatever you like about your RPG character. You can go into detail about their history, for example, or start coming up with a personality for your chosen starter Pokémon. You get one thread and can structure it however you want to—use it as a character list, a story outline, a series of diary posts, whatever—so go wild!
hang out with the rest of Pokémon Turquoise! The forums don't stop with just the RPG, and there's bound to be something that interests you whether you like comparing your favorite Pokémon, theorizing about the latest TV drama, playing forum games or creating artwork.

Playing the Game

A mod has created your profile and you've made your first thread in the starting town... now what? This section will break down how RPG gameplay works on Pokémon Turquoise.

General Game Flow

The basics are simple and are much like any other moderated forum RP you may have seen. You create a thread in a given location for your character and state what you'd like to do: are you hunting for wild Pokémon? Do you want to battle a trainer? Is there something else in the location that interests you (usually in the form of a sidequest outlined in a sticky thread)? One of the RPG moderators will respond to your thread in accordance with what you asked for, presenting you with a wild Pokémon, a trainer or the beginning of a bit of exploration. If you initiated a battle, your next post should name the Pokémon you want to send out and the attack you'd like it to use; if you're taking on a sidequest or some other activity, you should state what your next action will be. Then another mod will respond and tell you what happened after your action, or state which attack the opponent used in response and show you what the results of that exchange were. Then you attack again or initiate another action. You can start another battle or sidequest after you finish the first one. You and the mods will go back and forth like this until you've accomplished whatever you set out to accomplish in that area, at which point you're free to move on to another location that you have access to and start the process again with a new thread. (It's helpful if you edit the first post in your topic and use the dropdown by the title to include the [INACTIVE] prefix; this way mods can see at a glance that no one's using the thread anymore.) If you want to return to a location you've already visited, you'll use the same thread you left off in (after removing the [INACTIVE] prefix if it's there).

Remember that you can only name attacks or initiate actions in your posts; you cannot determine what the outcomes of those attacks or actions are. Figuring out whether you were successfully able to break down a door or whether your Pokémon's move was a critical hit is the moderators' job. Trying to directly influence the outcome of some important action on your own (often called "godmoding" or "godmodding") is cheating and defeats the purpose of playing this sort of game at all, so please don't do it.

Make sure you check out a location's stickies before creating a thread there. They'll tell you about the wild Pokémon you might find, detail any noteworthy opponents (like gym leaders) you may run into, explain how any sidequests work and also mention any special conditions or features (such as constant inclement weather or a local shop you can purchase things from). These stickies may also tell you that certain tasks are mandatory or have certain requirements, so watch out for those!

You'll also want to look at the Beginner's Guide to New Logora, which goes into a bit more detail about roleplaying in the New Logora region specifically. Other beginner's guides for other regions will be made available when those regions open.

Battling

Battling in Pokémon Turquoise involves a back-and-forth sequence of posts between you and the RPG moderators, with you controlling your own Pokémon and the mods controlling any and all opponents. In your posts you can do just about anything you would do in the main series Pokémon video games: you can declare a single attack that your Pokémon knows, you can use an item, you can switch to another party Pokémon and you can run away (from a wild) or forfeit (when battling a trainer). The mod's job is to choose an attack for the opponent (or, in rare cases, use an item or switch). Their response to your attack post will show both of the Pokémon that are currently in battle as of the end of that turn, including their current HP and any notes about the battle state: has a battler's ability activated? Is a Pokémon paralyzed or confused? Is it raining, and if so how long until the rain lets up? The mod should also state what the opponent's attack was and whether anything special happened, such as a critical hit. You make your next move based on the posted results, and then the mod will post again, so on and so forth until either you or your opponent is victorious. You'll get some money and experience (and maybe some other rewards!) if you win, and you'll lose a bit of money if you're defeated by a trainer. When the battle is over you can start another one or do something else instead.

You do not have to begin battles with the first Pokémon listed in your party; you can start by sending out any party Pokémon you like.

The following spoiler shows a sequence of mock posts demonstrating the beginning of a typical battle:

Example Battle:: Player's Post:

Roger and his new Acafia jogged down the path, eager to encounter their very first wild Pokémon. Acafia stopped suddenly and Roger followed suit, both listening carefully to the rustling grass on the side of the road. The grass parted and out jumped...

Mod's Post:

...a wild Dustley that bared its teeth at you, looking for a battle!

[4] 21/21 [Pickup]

Player's Post:

"Wow, our first wild Pokémon!" said Roger. "Try out your new Razor Leaf attack, Acafia!"

Mod's Post:

[6] 25/29 [Overgrow]

[4] 12/21 [Pickup]

Acafia nodded and sent a flurry of leaves Dustley's way, scratching it up quite a bit. Dustley retaliated by charging at Acafia, but its weak Tackle couldn't measure up to Razor Leaf's effectiveness.

Player's Post:

"Good job! But just to be safe, let's Growl at it now!"

Mod's Post:

[6] 22/29 [Overgrow]

[4] 12/21 [Pickup] [Atk -1]

The calf Pokémon growled as fiercely as he could, sending a shiver down Dustley's spine. It couldn't put quite as much oomph behind its second Tackle as a result.

Action Updates

Action updates are a bit more like traditional forum roleplaying in that you'll be writing about your character exploring their current location and interacting with the people, places and objects around them as opposed to just attacking things with your Pokémon. Progressing through a series of action updates requires you to take certain actions to move beyond obstacles, hence the name. These actions and the situations you'll find yourself in can vary wildly, from a nighttime stealth mission to spelunking through a cave to dealing with cantankerous Pokémon that just won't get out of your way. There's no telling what you'll encounter or what you'll have to figure out! Most action updates happen as part of a specific sidequest or a forum event, but even two players undertaking the same sidequest may find themselves faced with different situations. Action updates are a test of your problem-solving ability and your creativity, so if you're planning on trying some out then you'll need to be ready for just about anything!

Before starting a series of action updates you'll want to be sure you've read any instructions very carefully. Sidequest threads outline exactly what your goal is, whether there's a minimum or maximum number of updates you'll have to go through and whether there are any important notes or restrictions you'll need to be aware of. Keeping your goal in mind will help you think of ways you can respond to any tricky situations that pop up.

The basic action update process is the same as any other update in the RPG: you post stating that you'd like to start the sidequest, a mod posts and gives you something to respond to, you respond, etc., etc.. The major difference is that this time the mod's post will describe the beginning of a scenario based on whatever the sidequest (or event, or whatever) is about. Their post will usually note your surroundings and whether there's anything of interest in sight, and then you'll be faced with some sort of obstacle, problem or decision that marks the first step in reaching your goal. Your post should explain what your character's decision is or what action they'll take to attempt to solve the problem. Try to come up with a logical solution first and foremost, but don't be afraid to get creative! For example, you can turn to your party for help if you think it'll do any good—if you're dealing with a rampaging wild Pokémon, maybe try asking one of yours to talk to it and calm it down. Be aware that it may take you a few tries to overcome an obstacle depending on how well the mod thinks you handled the situation!

The following spoiler shows a sequence of mock posts demonstrating the beginning of a typical action update:

Example Action Update:: Mod's Post:

The streets of Denath Village are, as usual, fairly quiet this evening. Without warning the tranquility is shattered by a child's cries of distress—someone has knocked a little boy down and taken a Poké Ball right out of his hands, and is currently dashing off with the stolen Pokémon! In the fading light you can just see the thief turn down an alleyway, and you hear something that sounds like a door slamming, but when you reach the corner yourself you see that there are three places he could've ducked into: one that looks like the back entrance to the Poké Mart, one the kitchen door of a local restaurant and one further back that you can't quite identify from here. Which door do you check first?

Player's Post:

A Pokémon thief? There was no way Roger could let that jerk get away with taking some little kid's Pokémon! He gave chase immediately, sprinting around the corner he thought he'd seen the thief turn down, but had to stop and think when he was confronted with three doors. The slamming sound could've come from any of them, but... it didn't really make sense for him to run into someplace like a restaurant kitchen, which would be busy during dinner hours like this, and the Poké Mart's back entrance was probably locked. There was no telling what might be behind the last door, but it was probably his best shot, so he hurried down the alley and gave it a try.

Mod's Post:

The door is unlocked and opens easily, letting you step inside. The hallway you find yourself in is narrow and dimly lit and it's hard to make anything out for sure... except for the three Feucrota just a few yards away, each growling menacingly and stalking toward you! They must be guarding something; you'll have time to figure out what after you stop them from attacking you!

Player's Post:

Roger panicked when he saw the three Fire Pokémon closing in on him. For a second he almost wished he'd started with Spraylet, because at least that way he'd have a Water-type to try and drive them away with. Wishing wouldn't do a thing to stop them biting him, though. He couldn't fight all three at once, especially not in this narrow hallway, but maybe...

Roger backed up outside the door as quickly as he could and held it open, watching the advancing hyenas and waiting for them to jump at him. If he timed it just right he might be able to slam it in their faces and knock them out, but if not... if not then he'd probably be on his way to the ER for some stitches pretty darn quick.

Roger has a few more options than just trying to bludgeon the Feucrota with the door, of course. Maybe he'd have better luck using his Auriole's Sing attack to lull them to sleep and sneak past them; if he's feeling particularly bold, maybe he can rush to the restaurant across the alley and snatch some tasty-smelling and very distracting food. His player could have tried almost anything they thought would've gotten him past the Pokémon and hopefully closer to the thief.

Your Profile: Pokémon, Items and More

Your RPG profile serves as a record of your progress and achievements in the RPG. It lists all of the Pokémon you own, how much money you have, which items you've collected and more. Every time something changes about your game state—you catch a new teammate, you buy Poké Balls at the store, you earn a badge, etc.—a moderator will make the appropriate adjustments to your profile thread. A mod should have given you a link to your profile after they confirmed your sign up, so you can refer to it whenever you need to as well.

The first post contains general information about your character and your rival. Most importantly, it lists all of your badges, your money and all the items you currently own. The items are sorted into a few self-explanatory categories to keep things organized. Items generally function exactly the same way and at the same times they do in the canon games (any major exceptions should be noted here or here), so in most cases all you have to do is state in your post that you want to use one of your items, and, if necessary, what you're using it on. The next mod to update you will have the item take effect and then remove it from your profile if it's used up. TMs act as they do in Gen V onward and are unlimited use*; they are untradeable and cannot be sold. You can have your Pokémon hold most items as well by telling the mods what you're attaching to whom.

*In order to keep the RPG balanced early on, trainers with fewer than two badges are not permitted to use TMs that teach moves with a base power of 70 or greater. (And no, you can't get around this rule by trading and trading back with players who are further along.) You'll just have to be patient if you come by a powerful TM and don't have enough badges to use it.

The second post in your profile details your active party, including their current levels, abilities, moves, etc.. There is no limit to the number of moves any given Pokémon can know at one time. As in the games you can carry up to six Pokémon with you; anything you catch after that is automatically sent to your PC. The order your party is listed in does not matter, as you can send out whichever Pokémon you like when a battle starts. Your party heals automatically after every battle unless a specific ruling says otherwise, so changes to their HP or status will never be tracked in your profile.

The third post (and any subsequent posts if necessary) is your PC, which lists all of your additional Pokémon in the same format as your party. Any Pokémon you receive when your party is full will automatically be sent here. You can access the Pokémon in your PC when you are either in a city/town or in the first post of a non-city/town thread (e.g. out on a route); once you have started down a route or other non-city location your PC is inaccessible until you return to civilization. If you are returning to a previously-visited location, you can use the PC in the first post you make when you resume traveling in that thread. You cannot access the PC at all if you are currently in the middle of a battle, action update or other similar event; wait until it's over before switching things around again.

You can ask a moderator to nickname any of your Pokémon at any time, even if that Pokémon does not have your OT.

The Global Plaza

Turquoise's Global Plaza serves as a hub for anything RPG-related that isn't the RPG itself or a profile. Its subforums contain a collection of useful shops and services your character can visit, a place to claim special promotions and participate in events, and even a discussion area dedicated to all aspects of the game.

The Global Plaza Shops subforum is likely the one you'll use most often. Here you'll find services like the Daycare Center and the Trade Center. Instructions for using these threads are given in their first posts, but the gist of it is that you post stating what you'd like to buy/who you'd like to deposit/who you're trading with/etc. and a moderator will come along, deduct any money you spent and make the appropriate additions or changes to your profile. They'll usually leave a note in your post to let you know that they've taken care of your transaction. The one exception is the Global Poké Mart, which is listed in the Global Plaza Shops for convenience but is actually used within your own adventure thread. You must be in a town or city to use any service in the Global Plaza Shops subforum unless something specifically says otherwise.

There are also a few department stores and local specialty shops scattered around the RP, such as the Open-Air Market in Denath Village or Fabulous Items 'R' Us in Dia City. You can purchase things from these shops the same way you would the Global Poké Mart, but you must be in that shop's exact location to use it.

The RPG Promos subforum is a special place in which limited-time promotional RPG events are occasionally held. The staff will post a thread in this forum detailing what the current promo is, and then assuming you meet any requirements for it you can post in the thread and claim it as a (usually) free gift. Promos will likely be few and far between and they don't remain active for very long, so be sure to take advantage of them while you can! The Birthday Promo thread is an exception in that it is open year-round, but you can only claim a birthday promo once per year.

RPG Discussion is just what it sounds like: a place for you and other members to talk about the Pokémon Turquoise RPG. You can chat about the latest storyline event, ask questions about how the game works and more. This subforum also contains a few other miscellaneous utility threads, notably the RPG Update Required thread and the IRP setup threads.

Special Rules/Notes and Additional Gameplay Elements

When you're just getting started on your journey you'll be able to get by with the information that's been covered so far; it isn't completely necessary to read the additional notes below, at least not at first. It's recommended that you read the contents of the following spoilers as soon as you're comfortable with the basic game, however, as they'll clarify some additional rulings you may run into and also detail some other gameplay options that you may want to utilize.

Special Battle Rules

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Declaring an Attack Early: You cannot declare an attack if you don't know what your opponent is; a moderator needs to show you what the wild Pokémon (or trainer's Pokémon) is before you can attack it. For example, you can't start your first post in a thread with something like "Roger walked into the woods and saw a wild Pokémon. He told Acafia to use Tackle." If you do know exactly what Pokémon you'll be facing, however—if you're challenging a gym leader or if you're attempting a sidequest that has you battling a specific wild, for example—you are allowed to declare an attack immediately to save time.

Switching (and "Bait-and-Switching"): As the TRPG moves more slowly than the video games, a Pokémon that has just been switched in mid-battle is allowed to attack on the same turn to save time (for example, "I'm calling back Acafia, sending out Auriole and using Peck"). If you choose to attack that turn, however, your Pokémon will attack last no matter what its speed or the priority of the moves being used. The Auriole in the example would act second even if it was using Quick Attack instead of Peck.

A common tactic in Pokémon games involves sending out a weak Pokémon, then immediately switching it out for a stronger Pokémon that finishes the battle; that way the weak Pokémon gets experience without being put in any real danger. You are allowed to "bait and switch" like this once per turn, but if you choose to do so you forfeit the switchin's attack for that turn.

Most opposing trainers should not switch out their Pokémon, but the same switching rules apply to them in the event that they do.

Pre-Battle Item Switching/Use and Party Changes: You cannot change your Pokémon's held items, use items like TMs or rearrange your party with the contents of your PC once the mod has posted a battle opponent for you. In other words, you can't see that the opposing trainer has a Misdreavus, teach your Mortarat Shadow Ball and attack with the new TM in the same opening post, nor can you put Mortarat in the PC and withdraw your Murkrow for a more advantageous matchup against the Ghost-type. Uses of items with no in-battle effect, held item switching and PC-party exchanges must be completed outside of any battles. If you want to rearrange your items/party after a mod has already posted a trainer or wild for you to fight, you'll be told that in order to let you do that they'll have to give you a new trainer/wild instead of the one you're currently facing. (You cannot do any of these things at all after the battle has actually started, obviously. Once you've announced your first move it's too late for you to change anything.)

Two-Turn Attacks (Dig, Fly, Solarbeam, etc.), Multi-Turn Attacks (Bide, Outrage, Rollout, etc.) and Sleep/Freezing: Using two-turn attacks means that it takes those two turns to cover just about the same amount of progress as a one-turn attack like Tackle, and that means that they cause the battle to move more slowly. If you use a two-turn attack you have the option to skip ahead to the attack's final turn—in fact, the mod should generally do this without having to ask you—which means your Pokémon will start the attack and the opponent will do something, then the attack will strike and the opponent will do something else within the same post. Similar rules apply to attacks that cover multiple turns like Rollout unless the attack allows you to switch or use items during its duration (most do not). A multi-turn attack will stop if something interrupts the attack, such as the user fainting or Rollout missing.

If an opponent uses a two-turn or multi-turn attack, however, each turn must play out in its own update because you still need to be able to choose an attack each turn. In most battles you cannot ask to order all of your attacks ahead of time and have the mod carry them all out at once and skip to the end (but see Auto-Battle Updates at the end of this section).

Similarly, you are permitted to skip ahead if your Pokémon is asleep or frozen and unable to act for several turns, but note that it is impossible to know how long a Pokémon will be frozen ahead of time because defrosting occurs at random. You cannot skip an opponent's sleep or freeze turns.

Throwing Poké Balls: A similar ruling applies to throwing Poké Balls at a wild Pokémon. If you have more than one Poké Ball in your inventory and you want to catch a Pokémon, you can tell the mod ahead of time that you want to throw X Poké Balls at your target. The mod will calculate the chances for each of those Poké Balls to succeed until either the Pokémon is caught or the mod has used all the Poké Balls you specified; for each turn in which the wild is not caught it will continue to attack whatever Pokémon you currently have out. (This does mean that you have to specify a Pokémon that will remain in battle and take hits if needed.) The mod will also stop if your active Pokémon faints before the capture succeeds and will give you an opportunity to send out something else.

Auto-Battles: Auto-Battles are a battle mode in which a player may choose a single move to perform for up to five turns. This is an option that can only be performed in the early game, when it still takes a while to to defeat opponents due to the simplistic nature of low-level moves. The rules for this method of battling are as follows:

Auto-Battles can only be performed until you have earned 2 gym badges.
Auto-Battles can only be performed in battles with wild Pokémon and with NPC trainers that are not plot-related, sidequest-related, or otherwise important. This means you cannot use Auto-Battles against your rival, gym leaders, Revivalist testers, or other special characters.
Auto-Battles are barred from use in community-wide events.
In an Auto-Battle, you can choose a single move to use for anywhere between 2-5 turns in advance. This means that you can use up to five Tackles at once. However, if you would like to use three Growls and then two Tackles, you must split up your actions into two separate auto-battle posts.
Alternatively, you can also set a requirement for the Auto-Battle ending (but with an upper limit of five turns still in place). For example, you may opt to use Supersonic until the five turn max has been reached or the opponent has been confused.
The following moves cannot be commanded during Auto-Battles: Any two-turn or multi-turn attacks (Dig, Solar Beam, etc.), and multi-hit moves (Bullet Seed, Fury Attack, Icicle Spear, etc.).
WARNING: Using Auto-Battles puts your Pokémon at greater risk of fainting due to being unaware of what its status is between moves. If used, one must accept the higher probability that their Pokémon may be defeated before the Auto-Battle reaches its end.

An example Auto-Battle:

Player's Post:

Bucarat, use Scratch for five turns or until Nincada is poisoned!

Mod's Post:

Through a series of bouts, Bucarat managed to inflict heavy damage on the Nincada, while poisoning it as well! Nincada fought back with a couple of Leech Lifes and Scratches, but sustained much more damage in the end!

[5] 23/23 [Poison Touch]

[5] 22/22 [Compound Eyes]

OOC: Turn 1
Bucarat used Scratch! (-3 HP)
Nincada used Leech Life! (-1 HP) (+1 HP)

OOC: Turn 2
Bucarat used Scratch! (-3 HP)
Nincada used Harden! Nincada's Defense rose!

OOC: Turn 3
Bucarat used Scratch! (-3 HP)
Nincada used Scratch! (-4 HP)

OOC: Turn 4
Bucarat used Scratch! (-2 HP)
Bucarat's touch poisoned Nincada!
Nincada used Leech Life! (-1 HP) (+1 HP)
Nincada was hurt by its poison! (-2 HP)

End of auto-battle results:

[5] 17/23 [Poison Touch]

[5] 11/22 [Compound Eyes] (Def +1) (Poisoned!)

Raising Your Pokémon's Happiness

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We generally don't track happiness here at Pokémon Turquoise, as it's a largely unnecessary statistic for most of a trainer's Pokémon. If you want your character to grow closer and closer to their teammates as your adventure progresses you're more than welcome to roleplay that progression as you see fit, no extra numbers required. If you do need to do something that would normally involve the actual happiness stat, however—if one of your Pokémon evolves via happiness, if you want to use a move like Return or Elegant Wave at full power, etc.—it is possible to "officially" raise a Pokémon's happiness, usually by bonding with it.

Bonding is done via a short series of action updates you can initiate at any time in your adventure (assuming you're not in the middle of a battle or anything else, of course). Simply state that you'd like to spend some time bonding with one of the Pokémon in your active party and the mod will have the updates commence. A bonding session will usually consist of three updates and will give that Pokémon ten happiness at the end of the session, though if you want to get into some detailed roleplaying during these updates you can gain fifteen happiness per session instead (extra five points given at the moderator's discretion).

The action updates usually won't be too intensive or dangerous and should tend toward simpler, more easygoing situations, though this may change depending on where you are and what's going on when you decide to start a bonding session. If you'd like to suggest a lead-in situation the updates should follow—"Acafia and I decided to spend some time practicing her Razor Leaf attack", "I challenged Crocoal to a race down the hill", "Spraylet and I snuck over to the fountain to try and fish out people's wishing coins", etc.—you're free to do so. Do remember that these are action updates, however, so your suggestion should involve you and the Pokémon in question actually doing something. Watching the sunset is a very lovely experience, sure, but if it doesn't give the mod enough to work with then it's their prerogative to throw something a little more exciting into the mix.

It is also possible to raise happiness by feeding your Pokémon certain berries (Pomeg, Kelpsy, Qualot, Hondew, Grepa, Tamato). This is obviously much simpler than going through multiple bonding sessions, but these berries must be purchased and don't have as dramatic an effect as a single bonding session would. Catching a Pokémon in a Luxury Ball increases its happiness by 100. Other happiness-affecting items, like Soothe Bells and bitter herbs, can also be used to modify your Pokémon's happiness. Still other methods for affecting happiness and bonding with your teammates should be available soon!

No matter which method you use to start raising your Pokémon's happiness, after that interaction/transaction is complete the mod who handled it will add that Pokémon's gained happiness to your profile for future reference.

Advanced (or "Literate") Roleplaying

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Pokémon Turquoise aims to be an RP that is open to players of all skill levels, and as such there is no "minimum word/paragraph count" that players need to meet—in fact, the game can be enjoyed without any real roleplaying at all if you so choose. Those players who like to tell a story are free to do so, of course! Turquoise is a moderated RP (i.e., you post back and forth with a mod rather than with other players; see the section on interactive roleplaying below for an exception), and as the moderators are busy keeping the entire site updated rather than assigned to specific players they're not necessarily going to be able to get into particularly detailed RPing with any given player. As such you'll be carrying just about all of the storytelling and roleplaying weight for your adventure yourself. On the plus side, this means that you've got more freedom to interpret what happens and who you meet. You can't outright ignore the Pokémon the moderators give you to battle or the tasks you need to complete in an action update, of course, and you can't godmode or cheat as mentioned above, but you'll almost always be able to put your own spin on what you're presented with such that it fits right into the context of your story.

Don't forget that you can make a personal profile to write more about your character and your story! In the future we also hope to have a designated place for advanced roleplayers to chat about what they've done so far, get feedback from other players on their writing or the events of the story, etc., so be on the lookout for that!

If you're going to be doing a lot of writing, or if you otherwise feel like you may need to clarify things for the mods or your readers, you can mark parts of your post as "OOC" (out-of-character). Turquoise even has a handy OOC BBcode you can use to make sure that your OOC note is clearly differentiated from your in-character text. Just wrap your OOC text in tags like this: [ooc]This is an OOC comment![/ooc]. This is especially useful if your posts get lengthy from time to time—while the mods are updating it's easiest on them if your battle commands are summarized in an OOC tag and they can clearly see the name of the attack you're calling out, for example.

Interactive Roleplaying

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Interactive RPing is a system that allows players to interact amid the primarily independent battling of the TRPG. We believe that with this system it is possible to achieve harmony between Member-Member RPing and Member-Updater RPing. Basically, it involves you and a few friends in creating a story in the TRPG that is separate from your main player profile. You and your friends may choose to use your normal Turquoise TRPG characters, or you can create all new characters of your own and post wherever you'd like to in New Logora. Whenever doing this traditional style of roleplaying, however, you will be required to add the [IRP] prefix to your topic titles. This not only lets other players know to come check out your topic for a cool story between friends, but also lets the moderators of the RPG know to not bother with checking the topic when updating the TRPG. Any adventuring done via Interactive RPing has absolutely no effect on anything in your RPG profile* (see the section on profiles below), and is simply for the purpose of expanding your story with others or creating a new story altogether. Everything you do via IRP can be done while you are doing your normal adventuring in the TRPG, meaning that you do not need to pause your current adventure in the TRPG to enjoy the IRP system.

*"IRP Quests" are an exception, and give you a chance to earn in-character rewards for completing IRP tasks outside of your adventure. See the threads in this forum for more information.

The process starts by finding someone or some people you'd like to RP with (via PM or the IRP Society thread). Next, the group you are IRP-ing with will create a thread at the place you plan to IRP at together, again remembering to use the [IRP] prefix. From there the members are free to RP in the IRP topic for as long as they wish. And if they plan to continue their IRP adventure with their friends, they may simply just make another topic in another area. They can RP any sorts of activities between their characters, even descriptive battles or dilemmas they must work themselves out of together. Whatever they decide to RP about is fine (as long as it's considered appropriate under the forum rules!).

At this time IRP is available to as many members as you'd like, within reason. It is asked that while RPing with your partners you are all respectful of each other and that you avoid trying to take too much control of the situation or being abusive in any way. Any problems that arise from Interactive RPing between a group of members can be reported and will be dealt with accordingly. Be warned that any unfair treatment or abuse of the Interactive RP system, or any disregard for the feelings and stories of other members, can result in an indefinite ban from the Interactive RPing system. Further problems after an indefinite ban could result in a temporary ban from the Turquoise RPG altogether. If for whatever reason, one or more of your IRP partners discontinues the adventure without properly notifying you, we will help you to either try and find a new partner who can slide into the story, or you might just have to discontinue the adventure altogether if you are no longer satisfied with the experience. We ask that you currently limit yourself to two active IRP stories outside of your main adventure so as to not clutter the forums or have too many IRP stories starting up and dying early on.

We created this system to give members a chance to interact with each other and have fun cooperating in a Pokémon RPG. We hope that you all enjoy the opportunity we have provided and make good use of it.

Creating Custom ("Plot") Opponents

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As stated above it is the moderators' responsibility to determine/randomize the Pokémon you will battle and the situations that you encounter; it would defeat the purpose of the game for you to decide that you want to fight exactly this team at exactly these levels at exactly this time every time. This includes your rival, who can potentially have any available Pokémon at all by endgame. Most moderators will tend to keep your opponents' descriptions and personalities fairly generic, and so aside from their team you're typically able to decide everything else about how you interact with that opponent anyway. You may make simple requests for certain opponents or your rival on occasion, however. These requests are limited to either a "theme" the trainer's team will follow (e.g., "he uses scary-looking Pokémon" or "she likes orange Pokémon") or a single Pokémon that you can choose for them; you cannot ask for anything more specific than that lest you remove all surprise and/or challenge from opposing trainers. You can only choose one of the Pokémon in your rival's team overall, not one per encounter. The staff has the right to ignore these requests if they are impolite or unreasonable; you should also make these requests sparingly. As long as you're not asking for a plot trainer every other battle and as long as you're asking nicely and accepting it when the mods aren't reasonably able to meet those requests, however, the staff has no reason not to indulge you once in a while and let you tailor a few otherwise "random" opponents to your story.

Trainers with predetermined Pokémon (e.g., gym leaders, opponents in certain sidequests, etc.) cannot have their teams altered or influenced at all.

Notes, Tips and Resources

The above should have you pretty well covered and ready to start playing, but we've got a few other useful tips, tidbits and resources in this section that you might find useful.

48+ Hours with No Updates: Our goal is for most players to receive at least one update to their adventure every two days (and ideally much more often than that). If it's been at least 48 hours since the last time you responded to your active thread, however, you can post in the RPG Update Required thread and ask for assistance. Please wait at least 48 hours before going for help, however, and ensure that it's been 48 hours since your last post and not a mod's last post. More details on requesting assistance are given in that thread.

Updating Errors: Turquoise's mods do the best they can to keep the game running smoothly, but sometimes mistakes happen. Should one of those mistakes happen in one of your adventure threads, just mention it in your next post and the next mod to update you should fix everything as best they can, usually editing the post with the mistake and then taking the adjustment into account in their own post. If the error is urgent then you may want to PM the mod who made the post or an admin, but for minor issues like forgotten experience or an incorrect HP value it's usually fine just to post normally and point it out.

If you've spotted some other kind of issue that's not related to a player in the RPG, such as misinformation or a typo on the website or in a stickied RPG thread, report that error here.

BBcode and Sprites: Most of Turquoise's BBcode is fairly standard, and if you've used any other forums before you should be familiar with the basics of formatting your posts. If you do need a refresher on that, a list of MyBB's main BBcode tags can be found here. Using the special "OOC" BBcode tag was explained in the "Advanced Roleplaying" spoiler above. When it comes to displaying sprites, however, Turquoise uses a slightly different syntax than what you might be used to from other RPGs or forums in general. This thread covers sprite tag usage in detail. In a nutshell, you display a sprite using [sp=thingname], where "thingname" is the name of the Pokémon, item, type, etc. that you want. (Note that we do not currently have images for all Pokémon uploaded at this time; our primary concern was for Pokémon that are actually present in the RPG. Other Pokémon will be added as needed. The only way to display a sprite or other image of a Pokémon that has not yet been uploaded is to use the standard [img] tag and a URL it is okay to hotlink from.)

Topic Subscriptions: A quick and easy way to be notified of new posts in your RPG threads is to subscribe to them. At the bottom of any thread is a "Subscribe to this thread" link. Clicking that link will add that thread to your subscriptions, all of which can be viewed here (or by going to User CP >> Subscribed Threads). Checking your subscription page will tell you when someone other than you has replied to a subscribed thread, and you can click on it from that page to be taken straight to it. You even have the option to have the forum email you whenever a thread is replied to. It's much faster than drilling down through the list of forums to see whether a mod has updated you yet!

Got all that? Good! Go ahead and jump in, then, and we hope you enjoy your RPG experience!

Question not answered here?

Still need help? No worries—we've got a whole forum for you to ask questions in. (Be sure to search the topics that are already there to see if someone else has asked the same question, though!) If you're on Discord, you can also stop by the #general channel of Turquoise's server and talk to members and staff directly. Don't forget that this website may also have information that answers your question, too—check the FAQ and some other pages and see if that helps!