AOTW Rapid-Fire!! Illuminate, Pickup, and Honey Gather

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There’s no denying that what we all love about the Pokémon games is the battling. It’s the core “easy to learn, difficult to master” mechanic that’s kept many of us, myself included, coming back for more time and time again for upwards of fifteen years, and boy howdy, are the developers aware of it. If you need evidence of their own self-awareness, look no further than the vast library of Abilities. 

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AOTW: Teravolt and Turboblaze

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Nothing quite pulls you out of a Pokémon slump quite like a full-blown new game, does it? I’ll admit it, Abiliteers, I’ve been in the midst of a bout of disinterest of my cartridge-bound monster-wrangling. But some 20 hours into revisiting the vistas of Unova, I’ve caught the bug again (along with a Lucario and a Swadloon and a Whirlipede and…) 

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AOTW: Reckless

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I’ve brought this up more times than I care to admit lately, Abiliteers, but having covered about 2/3rds of the many Abilities in Pokémon, it gets harder and harder every week to find an interesting topic to discuss. But, folks, it appears that I’ve managed to overlook a fun one. That, or I wanted a sufficient amount to time to pass from Travis talking about it before I covered it. Either way, we’re kamikazing it up in today’s Ability of the Week: Reckless!

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AOTW: Defeatist

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We think of Abilities as a perk-system. They’re an added benefit that helps to differentiate one pokémon from the other. They’re why you choose to use Gyarados over Lapras, or Cofagrigus over Gengar. Without Abilities to set them apart, the massive library of going on 700 pokemon wouldn’t be nearly as appealing and potentially addicting to immerse yourself into, and that’s what makes them great! So when you find yourself staring down the proverbial barrel of an Ability that just doesn’t measure up, it’s a very strange scenario to find yourself in. Such is the case with our Ability of the Week: Defeatist!
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AOTW: Water Absorb and Volt Absorb

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Sometimes, guys, you just need to stop and soak everything in. Just take it easy and let the waves go by. Watch out the window while a thunderstorm rumbles by. It can be healthy for you! Unless you, you know, let the waves go by so much you get caught in the tide. Or watch that storm so closely you catch a lightning bolt with your face. That wouldn’t help you out much, unless you enjoy hospitals. I suppose that’s a fundamental difference between human beings and digital representations of imaginary monsters that do battle with each other, because for a select few pokémon, that’s exactly what the doctor ordered. This is Ability of the Week: Volt Absorb AND Water Absorb!

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AOTW: Steadfast

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A few weeks ago, we talked about Abilities that speed up your pokémon by manipulating the weather conditions on the battlefield. Specifically, Chlorophyll, Swift Swim, and Sand Rush. These are all handy-dandy Abilities, but maybe by this time, you’re getting sick of having to run a weather-maker on your team. Well, you can take your teams indoors, because this is Ability of the Week: Steadfast!

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AOTW Rapid-Fire!! Own Tempo, Insomnia, and Color Change

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It’s one day away, Abiliteers! PKMNcast’s charity art event 649 Monsters begins tomorrow at 6PM Central in Milwaukee, WI. And me? Yeah, I’m stoked. 649 represents a fantastic collision between my greatest passion and one of my favorite hobbies: art and Pokémon. And in that spirit, I’m gearing up for the show by celebrating the union the best way I can- by waxing intellectual about some art-themed Abilities. Grab up a sketch pad and settle in. This is an Ability of the Week Rapid-Fire!! Own Tempo, Insomnia, and Color Change!

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AOTW: Swift Swim, Chlorophyll, and Sand Rush

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Abiliteers, I feel the need. The need for acceleration beyond the usual pace at which I move in a forward direction. I’ve also conveniently wrapped chains around my tires so I can do so in any weather! In the summer. I didn’t think this scenario through well enough, guys. ANYHOO, this is Ability of the Week: Swift Swim, Chlorophyll, AND Sand Rush!

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AOTW: Telepathy

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Okay, guys. Here’s your article for today.

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And there you go! Have a week!

…What? That one didn’t beam directly into your brain? Sonuva… thought I had mastered this Ability. Guess we’ve got to do this the old-fashioned way. Stupid helmet wasn’t worth half of the $80 I paid that old man.


And all I wanted in the first place was for him to donate the Youth Coast Guard Auxilary.

Muddled Back to the Future references aside, this is Ability of the Week: Telepathy!

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AOTW Rapid-Fire!! Immunity, Toxic Boost, and Poison Heal

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If there’s one thing I love to do in Pokémon, it’s poisoning opponents. Longtime fans of course know the running joke of me running Toxic on my HGSS-era Blastoise, but that’s only the tip of the iceberg. Using a poison affliction to my advantage on either side of the battlefield is one of the most fun things to do in the game. Maybe I’m a little sick, but I love making my opponents squirm. Of course, Abilities are the best way to accent any facet of the game, and status afflictions including poison are no exception. Let’s line up three of them. This is an Ability of the Week Rapid-Fire!! Immunity, Toxic Boost, and Poison Heal!

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