Event The Great LV Region Creation Project Announcement & Discussion

Ooh, Jup has a great idea there. It would be interesting to really have a team that isn't so villainous as it is extremist, and eventually having to work through and embrace differences with that being a main theme. It would be very difficult to write a good story around that without being too cliché or cheesy though, since stories like that have been done before time and time again.

joke idea: what if we just remade lake valor like literally just lake valor with absolutely nothing new added /j

 

okay i actually really dig the great lakes locale (duh) and the middle east/mediterranean idea!! either way: ive done a few loose sketches of potential player characters so i'll get the images sorted out and post them soon because i just LOVE character designing and did a few concepts

 

coming back here with a few character concept designs!! i know we havent decided on much regarding the locale but i hope these designs fit into any region ;w;

im uploading these from my phone so sorry if the images are huge/something else goes wrong!! these are also VERY messy so sorry for the bad quality)

Spoiler

the male and female characters!! i decided to give them the names of brooke and trent because theyre water themed names, and we're a lake!!

BUT WAIT!!! THERES MORE!!!!


this is something i wish gamefreak would do!! but heres jordan, a gender neutral player character!!

 

Ok with the idea that we need a theme for the region here is a few that we could go with:
1) Freedom vs Security
2) Reaching the Stars
3) Depths of the Heart
4) Wilderness Adventure
5) Standing Alone

While the suggestions above might not work as themes but I hope it inspires.

 

This sounds REALLY cool, I would love to help out in any possible way that I can!

 

I am really digging the middle east jerusalem vibe, and esp with locales like deserts and the dead sea.

EDIT: I also am slightly partial perhaps to a freedom/security theme, questioning the ideas of the responsibility that comes with freedom.
If not that, then justice, and how one draws the line between justice and revenge

 

gonna throw another two cents in here (by the time im done throwing two cents at a time i'll be broke lol) but im actually really into this whole middle east theme!! i just hope my character designs fit bc ive already digitized one of the doodles fffff

if we're slowly all diggin the middle east/israel vibe maybe the theme can be something along the lines of unity?? its been a hot minute since eighth grade where we learn this stuff but iirc a bunch of religions consider jerusalem their holy land and idk i think a theme that really embraces the fact that people may be different (as in the case of all these religions) but we're all still people at the end of the day. also that cheesy human and Pokémon unity stuff we've been spoonfed for the past 20 years

and a few loose character concept ideas for those who like that: every champion Ever has been an adult (except iris) so i think it would be hilarious if this region's champion is some angsty teenager who doesnt want to be here and instead of following you on your journey and telling you "i believe in you!!" theyre like "okay whatever i dont get paid enough for this"

 

The Middleeast sounds like a cool one. Unity is a great theme, and it would be interesting to see how we could put this whole thing together. That being said, is anyone here from the Middle East? I've learned about the religious clash going on in there, but again, this is a pretty touchy topic so it could be a bit dangerous to work with if nobody here is directly from the area we're taking inspiration from.

 

yeet gonna make some takes about above comments

assuming nobody else magically posts before this i do agree that handling a region theme in which nobody can actually vouch for accuracy wise is a little risky?? iirc gamefreak has gone to new york/france/hawaii for gens 5/6/7 to get a first hand view of the basis of the region before fleshing it out and while research is ur best friend i think its a lot better to have the accounts of ppl who actually visited/live there if u catch my drift....!! not saying the idea is bad or we HAVE to pick a place a member lives in but like above its a little sketchy if done wrong and that would suck

and re: arcadia and valoria: i am gonna be honest i was there for the creation of those two and i still know 0 about "cute lake valor anime girls" so i would advise to not add them at all unless a majority would die for it.... im not saying "bad concept hard pass" or that the idea isnt fun or interesting but it honestly feels like a summer scramble inside joke and making 2 characters and a valuable villain slot being used for of them feels weird??

but thats just my take on some things since i last checked....!! i honestly feel like any theme could be done with any sort of region bc the whole "POCKET MONSTERS ARE OUR FRIENDS AND OUR BONDS ARE POWER" has been present for over 20 years now and its hard to fuck that up

 

i think that the discourse in the area is a pretty dangerous subject if we dont handle it with care BUT i dont think im expecting anyone to want to mirror the situation 100% here...... i was thinking we could make it pg like Pokémon does by just vaguely alluding with a cheesy story. lemme explain

i wanna go back to someone else's reply where maybe our region has three legendary Pokémon that three villainous teams think of as powerful and can help the world (basically, gods) and that's why they want the legendary Pokémon's powers. its kinda like team aqua and magma but now there are three teams and all their goals are to make the world better according to THEIR OWN image (their religion in a sense) and they each need a legendary Pokémon to help them. but as our protagonists do their thing and stop the evil teams the leaders realize that they wanted the same thing all along: a world where everyone is happy!! that could also play back into the unity theme i proposed as the team leaders set aside their differences and promise to work together to make this dream a reality together

so you can still see that the nitty gritty is down to three groups fighting over their "gods" but it's not upsetting or hard to read like some current events can be. its just what you'd expect in a Pokémon game with a cute moral at the end

EDIT: regarding arcadia and valoria....... as someone who wasnt active during this years summer scramble i dont get it and if we were to add them it would make me feel a bit left out in a sense?? i have no knowledge or attachment to these random characters so i really dont have a reason to care. but maybe if everyone points pitchforks at me i can get behind it but i feel like it would be better as a secret postgame thing kinda like the looker quests in xy

 

For those asking about Valoria and Arcadia here's the just of who they are:

Arcadia was the virus that infected BZ and was in charge of the Arcade Invasion event this year. They are the last remnant of the Arcadian Empire (who the event revolved around before) and seeks revenge for us destroying them entirely (even though they attacked first). Valoria is an ai protector created by @OzoneFruit and has a physical robotic body. She exists to counter Arcadia and just generally protect Lake Valor in general. A group of people, including myself and Ozone, believe that Arcadia is simply misunderstood and could be made to be good. So, Ozone also made a body for them, which is female, much to Arcadia's annoyance.

Yes there is a lot of lore about these two.

Onto the other stuff, the Middle East and evil team ideas for it are really cool. But personally, I'm still partially to California with a theme heavily focusing on technology and the effect of human growth on the environment. The evil team could be an extremist group trying stop human growth and give the region back to nature, and the legendaries could reflect this conflict: One is very nature- based that the evil team is trying to find, and the other is very technology-based that the people fighting against them are trying to find for defense.

Also for the one who brought up Georgia earlier (forgot who sorry), I think if we were to do something like that, it should include the entire southeast U.S., instead of just Georgia. Don't get me wrong I have nothing against Georgia, but it's freaking Georgia. I think the region would be much more interestingly of we could include stuff like the space program in Cape Canaveral, the music center of Nashville, the swamps of the Florida and Louisiana, etc.

 

Over all I think this is what we have so far:
Themes:
- Unity
- Nature vs Technology / Balance
- Freedom vs Security

Locations:
- West Coast/ California
- South East/ Georgia, Flordia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tenesse
- Middle East
- Mediteranian Sea

I might be missing one or two for both lists but if yall want to add more please do so.
But once we get a comprehensive list of themes and locations we need to pick two out of both lists then probably vote for the theme and the location.

 

more thoughts got added so naturally i will add mine....!!

honestly idc about the region basis too much i love both the middle east and the west coast ideas for lots of reasons but im a little more partial to the west coast one bc of the fact that we could expand into nearby areas with different environments and its a little more familiar to some of us so theres less chance of blundering badly but thats not to say i dont like the middle east idea at all i think its a good idea but the execution would def require more effort and care to do right

also its VERY interesting how someone mentioned the evil team could be an extremist environmental group if we go west coast, because when ruby and sapphire were still in development hell, team aqua was supposed to be just that! there are def some risks with making the evil team team aqua lite since iirc oras kinda embraced the dev intentions a little harder than rse but to be absolutely fair team aqua is composed of idiots so we could make our team smart ppl who dont dress up like pirates for a paycheck (at least. i hope archie pays them)

ive been remembering the west-central/south europe suggestion too and i like that as well in terms of landscapes and geography (might even beat out the west coast one in that regard) so thats just my thoughts,, iirc that one has assurance from someone who was there so id be a little more inclined to that if it was elaborated on more

THIS IS LONG LOL but i wanna add a final thought and that is even after getting the rundown of valoria and arcadia i really think they shouldnt be here or at least be a postgame thing like the looker quests in gens 6/7 (tho in 7 u didnt get a choice haha). having it be a postgame bonus would make ppl happy and not alienate the ppl who either werent here for this years summer scramble or dont really have a strong connection to either character

 

tbf we could always expand the middle east view west a bit and get some mediterranean action in for some Extra Variety!! but i'll just leave that there until we have a thread for really deciding what the locale is but dont take this as me being opposed to the west coast theme either

gonna go back to some loose character stuff but tbh im having a lot of trouble seeing how "cute anime girls" fit into ANY locale we decide on (especially if we do go with the middle east theme as we'd have a mostly naturey vibe and we slap in some artificial robot...... oh that clashes). i also cant see how arcadia and valoria can add any impact to the plot (whatever we decide that is) because tbh im getting the vibe that theyre just gonna be there to be there. like "oh hey summer scramble stuff!!" but. what do they DO im far more interested in making up some new villains with cool motives!! i think it would be better saved for postgame and maybe we could add our other lake valor friends like trickster and lovebird!! tldr our main story should be full of new characters we create and new stories and the postgame can be lake valor fanservice as i feel like said fanservice doesnt fit well into the classic journey setting

but enough of that!! maybe we can have two rivals?? one of them is Typical Nice Rival Since Generation 5 #7892 but i think we all kinda miss jerky rivals....... dont wanna think about gym leaders rn bc i want their types to match the locale but im still advocating for a champion whos a brooding teenager and theyre not excited about their job at all

 

hmmm, another fun concept, what if we add in a pmd-esque plot/subplot; like having an amnesiac rival or sth? there be many variations of this, with all the different games and all, but 'twould be quite fun~ maybe the unknown bloke actually be the champion who went missing after battling the villainous team, or the leader of said team who was searching for a certain artefact but was brainwiped by a legendary, or sth~

 

OKAY HI with the elaboration of the arcadians and such i would like to say that 1. making them the basis of something new and original is perfectly fine by me as long as its not over the top like an actual virus or empire and 2. if we go full lv fanservice meme mode i still strongly stand by having all the memey charas like valoria/arcadia/trickster/lovebird/ect be out of the way and not interfere with the main story too much if that makes sense?? ill bring up looker again since in gen 6 he was postgame and old fans would be like HEY THERES LOOKER and be happy because them exploring after beating the game awarded them with a cool throwback/reference!

i would love to see our funny characters in a Pokémon region but ive seen ppl add memes and jokes to their projects that are not based on such to begin with and it can get. very VERY out of hand very quickly. one funny character follows the first, then 3 more come afterwards, and soon enough theres more joke to story if u catch my drift? ive seen this happen before and it makes a story much harder to enjoy

i think i would prefer having new lake valor characters to add on to our roster rather than to throw our existing selection at the main story and hope something sticks

tldr: we can totally add our existing characters or base new things from them but i heavily gun for them being out of the way if we go "yeah heres valoria" and if this was an actual game for them to be postgame so ppl could explore around and when they see trickster going "suck it losers" it feels more worth the time spent than if he told us to suck it as part of the main campaign

we are getting very off track lol making Pokémon regions is hard!!

edit: i have seen literally 1 person here talk about wippor which is DEPRESSING maybe he can be a regional form of wooper lmfao

 

As someone who lives in New York, I do know some things about the Great Lakes and some geography of upstate New York state, along with Rochester, New York. I could be of some use of state and geography knowledge.