Arc Development:Orre

(This page is a Orre Arc primer WIP)

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Arc Brief

Trouble is stirring in Orre, and Cipher is at the heart of it. This in itself is nothing new - Cipher have always been a menace to the desert region, and despite their many defeats they have always managed to return, each time stronger and more determined. But for most of the J-Team, it's personal this time around. Cipher may well be the largest and most dangerous enemy they've ever faced, but it's up to the J-Team to put an end to them - and this time, it'll hopefully be for good.

Major Synopsis

Having dealt with the Shady Scientists in Holon and learnt about their Cipher backings, the J-Team decides that heading to Orre to deal with Cipher for good is the next logical course of action. Interpol may or may not sanction their actions. Once there, however, things start to go wrong as several members of the J-Team (including Crewe, Duke, Diane, Regina and Maekrite) are captured and some (including Every and Crow) even end up defecting of their own accord - though how much choice they had in the matter is unclear.

Whilst fighting Cipher and combating their usual plans of perfecting the Shadowing process, the J-Team also learns about another of Cipher's goals - the creation of suits of powered armour that will elevate the already-formidable Shadow Pokemon to nigh-unbeatable levels of power. In order to stop this plan from coming to frution, the J-Team goes on a search-and-destroy mission to eliminate every Cipher base in Orre. But in addition to this, each of the Cipher Admins has their own agenda...

Known Operational Details

Details from here are much more technical and are subjected to change. None of this should be taken as an official decision unless it is stated as such in the Discussion Thread!

Add eg.: major links here.

Subject #1: Cipher

As one would expect from an Orre arc, the villainous team will be Cipher, with its Admins, Commanders and other assorted hangers-on as the main villains. Cipher's plans are illustrated in the arc synopsis, but all that really needs to be said here is that they're a particularly nasty bunch - probably the most ruthless and threatening group in WAAPT's OU, with no qualms about subjecting Pokemon to extreme emotional torment in order to transform them into ferocious Shadow Pokemon.

That being said, it should be established that they're not ridiculously dark and evil, and that bloodshed during conflicts with Cipher should ideally be kept to a reasonable level. After all, Pokemon as a whole generally has a fairly light tone. Cipher doesn't just randomly murder people for the evulz, and in return the J-Team shouldn't be using Cipher operatives as morally-justified target practice.

In terms of organisation, Cipher is headed by Ardos, though he remains in the background for the most part and allows his Admins to handle Cipher's day-to-day operations. Each Admin is in charge of their own department, and there are four departments:

• The Operations Department is one of Cipher's larger branches. They are Cipher's footsoldiers, for want of a better word, and if Cipher are causing trouble somewhere these guys are likely going to be at the forefront. The Admin in charge of the Operations Department is Tokarev, a ruthless mercenary commander who has a history with Tagg.
• The Research and Development Department (R&D for short) is another comparatively large division, containing the bulk of Cipher's scientists, engineers and research staff. They manufacture the majority of Cipher's equipment (such as Snag Machines) and carry out most of their experiments, though they only play a limited role in the development of Shadow Pokemon. Odin is the thoroughly amoral Admin in charge of R&D.
• The Pokemon Shadowing and Distribution Department's role should be fairly obvious, given their name. They specialise in capturing of Pokemon and turning them into Shadow Pokemon, then distributing these Pokemon to the Peons in other departments or spreading them across Orre as a whole by offering them as contest prizes and so forth. The Admin in charge of this department is the mysterious and rarely-seen Siren.
• The Resources Department is the smallest of Cipher's subdivisions, though it compensates for this by being the butt of the most jokes due to their comparative harmlessness when compared to the other departments and their Admin's frankly ridiculous dress sense. Their role is to acquire (read:steal) any, well, resources that Cipher's other departments may require. The eccentric and enigmatic Alexiel is in charge of Resources.

Cipher members, regardless of department, are split into three main ranks: Admins, Commanders and Peons.

• Admins are the guys in charge - they don't answer to anyone except Ardos himself, though since they work as a group they still need to heed the opinions of the other Admins. They don't do field work unless they particularly want to. Each Admin also has their own department, as explained above.
• Commanders are senior to Peons but below Admins, and usually work for one Admin in particular. They command a number of staff themselves but do not have a department of their own. These are the guys that do a lot of the grunt work, since they're essentially junior officers.
• Peons are the grunts. The bottom of the metaphorical food chain. If there's a dirty job that Cipher needs doing, they're going to be the ones doing it. They might have a Shadow Pokemon of their own, but they're not nearly as much of a threat as their superiors. Cipher scientists are on the same level as Peons in terms of rank, though don't expect them to get their hands dirty unless absolutely necessary.

Subject #2: Shadow Pokemon

Shadow Pokemon are the main tool in Cipher's arsenal. The process of Shadowfication suppresses their personality, transforming them into little more than living, breathing weapons for Cipher to use and abuse. However, they are not beyond redemption - though Cipher continues to try and make the process more difficult to reverse, showing enough care and affection to a Shadow Pokemon can undo the damage done to their psyche.

There are several traits that set Shadow Pokemon apart from regular mons. For a start, they are unable to evolve or learn new moves. However, they gain a noticeable increase in strength - in a straight-up fight, a Shadow Nidorino will almost always beat a regular Nidorino. They also gain access to powerful Shadow moves, which damage both the target and the user, and are super-effective against all non-Shadow Pokémon. Shadow Pokemon are banned from participating in official tournaments and League-sanctioned battles, though in Orre such matters are rarely a concern.

Most trainers in possession of Shadow Pokemon - save for Cipher operatives, of course - will be eager to cure their Pokemon of this condition. Doing so is fairly simple, as the Pokemon just needs to be treated fairly and kindly by its trainer. After extended periods of affectionate treatment (probably about a month in RP terms, give or take a couple of weeks) the Pokemon should be ready for purification, and can be taken to either the Relic Stone in Agate Village or the Purification Chamber in the Pokemon HQ lab to be un-Shadowed for good.

It is worth noting that in terms of personality, Shadow Pokemon are not mindless, insane beasts, nor are they completely emotionless robots. Shadowing does not lock away the Pokemon's original personality completely - rather, it twists and distorts it into something Cipher can manipulate and use as a deadly weapon. In general, Shadow Pokemon tend to be aggressive, ruthless, and demonstrate a lack of restraint and concern for their own wellbeing, but this may vary on a case-by-case basis.

Appearance-wise, Shadow Pokemon look no different from ordinary Pokemon, though those used to taking care of Pokemon may note their unusually aggressive behaviour. Only individuals with an Aura Reader - or those that are Aura-sensitive themselves - can visually identify a Shadow Pokemon. As an added bonus, they can also estimate how close the Pokemon is to purification.

Subject #3: Snag Machines and Aura Readers

In order to deal with Shadow Pokemon properly, the J-Team will need to add two new pieces of equipment to their repertoire: the Snag Machine and the Aura Reader. Both are usually fairly rare, but thankfully PEFE is capable of reverse-engineering and mass-producing both with their extensive resources, and as such can supply any member of the J-Team who needs them with the necessary equipment.

Snag Machines are mechanical devices worn over the arm, often used by Cipher. Their purpose is quite simple - they are designed to steal Pokemon from their trainers. Whilst using a Snag Machine, a trainer may attempt to catch or "snag" an opposing trainer's Pokemon with any type of Pokeball in the same manner as they would a wild mon. Normally a group such as the J-Team would have nothing to do with such devices, but they are necessary for liberating Shadow Pokemon from Cipher operatives. For this reason, the Snag Machines used by the J-Team are incapable of working on any non-Shadow Pokémon.

Aura Readers are another type of device, thankfully not designed to be used for anything illegal. They do exactly what it says on the tin and read a Pokemon's Aura. Whilst they can't glean nearly as much information as a trained Auric could, they are useful for identifying whether or not a Pokemon has been Shadowed, and if so, how close it is to purification.

Known / Planned Battles

Note: Since there's going to be a lot of battles occurring during the Orre arc for obvious reasons and it's kind of a given that Cipher Peons are going to be stomped into the ground during any given fight, try to restrict the battles listed here to encounters with Commanders/Admins which external parties shouldn't be getting involved in.

• Multiple(?) battles with Odin in order to faciliate the snagging of Shadow Pokemon
• Maggie versus Paula
• Umbra vs. Paula
• Silent versus Every, resulting in Maekrite being snagged for Cipher.

Arc Outline

• To be added.

Planned Consequences

• To be added.