Five millennia ago, the region of Ageos was the most advanced civilization in the world, full of marvels even the modern world would envy today. The ancient empire was much larger than modern-day Ageos, spanning the entire continent. With their cutting-edge technology, they were able to befriend and bond with Pokémon the rest of the world considered far too dangerous for a world without Poké Balls. With such terrifying power, few attempts at a power grab were made, and those who tried all perished at the hands of the empire.

As time passed, the emperor became more and more lustful for power, musing that perhaps the Pokémon-befriending technology could be used on even the gods. Not taking too kindly to the effort to obtain limitless power, three legendary Pokémon were sent to punish the greedy empire and unleashed three disasters on her largest cities. The first, an otherworldly, life-sapping firestorm few could withstand. The second, a catastrophic flood to douse the flames and wash away the technological marvels and take the reins of history away from mankind. The third, a wave of plant overgrowth causing rapid natural reclamation and burying Ageos’ tragic past. The only prominent sign of the ancient empire’s existence is the Obelisk, a black tower that stretches into the heavens, visible from almost anywhere in Ageos.

As the years passed and technology improved, Ageos developed into a more and more modern region. Though it was small by national and world standards, it had the amenities of a first-world country. Pokémon bonded with people once more, the balance of man and nature had been restored, and people lived generally comfortable lives. It even had its own Pokémon League, Contest Halls, and the like. However, the human species has long been one to poke its nose where it doesn’t belong.

But time flows like a river, and history repeats itself…

World of Pokémon: Ageos is a route-inspired RPG. This means there is a linear order in which areas are accessed. Upon character creation, you will choose a starting city. That city and all areas adjacent to it will be available to create threads in. Once an area has been unlocked by meeting its post requirement listed in its description, you may return to it freely in the future. It is recommended, but not required, that you keep track of which areas each of your characters has unlocked, as well as how many posts you have made in areas not yet unlocked. This is particularly helpful if you are going to split the requirement among two or more threads.

Every Route or non-City area will have a posting requirement listed in its description. In order to unlock the Route, you must have at least a number of posts on that Route equal to its posting requirement (usually 10 or 15, but some can have more). Each character’s posting requirement is tracked separately, and Moderator posts do not count. This requirement can be combined across multiple threads, and across multiple thread types (Social, Journey, Event, etc.) What matters is meeting the post requirement.

If you are riding a bike or a mountable Pokémon in a Route, every post you make counts as 2 posts for purposes of unlocking the Route. Exceptions include Wild Areas, which always require the full amount to unlock, and Sea Routes, which require a “Fast” Sea Ride Pokémon to double travel speed. You must show your character biking or riding at least some in the thread to take advantage of this. Any Pokémon on the Ride Pokémon spreadsheet whose entry for Sea Riding is colored a darker shade of blue is considered “Fast”. Note that a Sky Riding Pokémon does NOT double travel speed over Sea Routes.

You may also RP in the city that is your character’s Current Residence as indicated in the character’s application. This is useful if you want to start in a different city than your character’s home city (for instance, if you want Starter options that require you to Professor Pear’s Lab in Shire Town). Note that this does not unlock the city, and you cannot RP on surrounding routes until reaching it by normal means. This simply lets you RP within your hometown. Additionally, you are allowed to just start from your hometown, or you can put “Traveling” as your Current Residence.

Ride Pokémon must go through training Quests to be certified to carry riders. Note that Land, Sea, and Sky Ride quests are all separate, and the Pokémon must be trained in each method. Pokémon that are Land Ride-trained and Sea Ride-eligible, but not yet Sea Ride-trained, can ferry riders across shallow bodies of water for flavor, but not deep bodies of water required for progression. Pokémon that are Land Ride-trained and Sky Ride-eligible, but not yet Sky Ride-trained, can still fly with a rider for flavor, but no more than a few feet into the air, and not over large bodies of water. If a flying Pokémon is listed as Land Ride-eligible but not Sky Ride-eligible (e.g. Butterfree and Beedrill), then the Pokémon is not strong enough to carry a rider in high, sustained flight.

Ride Pokémon eligibility is listed on the Ride Pokémon spreadsheet, with Land eligibility in green, Sea eligibility in blue, and Sky eligibility in purple. Minimum and maximum sizes for each category are listed for your reference. Some Pokémon at their minimum sizes may not be appropriate for particularly tall or heavyset riders. If that is the case, they will certainly be appropriate for the next size category up. If your character is particularly small (say, under 5 feet tall), that character could potentially ride a Pokémon that is one size category smaller than listed. Ultimately, there is no strict size requirement, but use your common sense and your best judgment.

Note about Ditto: While not explicitly in the Ride eligibility, Ditto can be used as a land, sea, or sky mount if it transforms into an eligible Pokémon. Once it has done so and completed Ride training, it retains the training across all its transformations. When transforming, Ditto can transform into an appropriately-sized Pokémon, even if the example it saw was smaller. For instance, if an Average Ditto sees a Small Absol, the Ditto could then transform into the equivalent of a Large Absol for riding.

Sea Notes: For shallower water, you may be able to ford it on a tall enough Land Ride Pokémon. Some of the smaller Pokémon on the list might not be large enough or properly shaped to sit on, but could pull a character on a raft, surfboard, etc. Only Pokémon listed in dark blue on the spreadsheet double rate of travel on Sea Routes.

Q: What Pokémon can be captured in Ageos? What are my Starter options?
A: Almost every Pokémon across all eight generations can be captured. Some are rarer than others, some can only be captured through site events, and some cannot be captured at all. The complete list of Pokémon that can be captured is on the Ageos Pokémon spreadsheet.

Q: Can I have a shiny Pokémon/shiny Starter?
A: In short, yes. There is a small chance (currently 1 in 100) for a Pokémon to spawn as Shiny in most encounters. There is the purchaseable Shiny Powder item, which can transform one Pokémon into its Shiny form. There is also an option to have a Shiny Starter at the cost of half your starting gear.

Q: Do Pokémon Natures have an impact on battles? What effects do they have?
A: No. Natures are primarily for flavor, but they can have minor effects on some items such as certain Berries. It can help you craft a personality for your Pokémon. Note that a Pokémon’s Nature can change over time. Perhaps a particularly violent, Rash Pokémon becomes Timid as it spends more time around a shy Trainer. If you would like to change a Pokémon’s Nature, Mod Call. You will receive a DM asking for the relevant thread(s) containing the events leading up to the change, and will approve it on a case-by-case basis.

Q: Why can’t I own a legendary Pokémon/Ultra Beast?
A: Many Legendary Pokémon have godlike powers in this setting, and some are one-of-a-kind. There are plans to have Legendary Pokémon as character allies later on in the site’s run, approximately when Rank 4 Quests become available. The list of Legendary Pokémon willing to ally with humans are listed as “Unique” on Ageos Pokémon spreadsheet.

Q: Why are some Pokémon banned?
A: The Pokémon on the Banned list either do not fit the setting, or are Legendary Pokémon that are not willing to ally with humans.

Q: Do people eat Pokémon? Are there non-Pokémon animals?
A: People do not eat Pokémon under any circumstances, either in Ageos or in the world in general. Pokémon have driven predatory animals to near-extinction, allowing farm animals to exist and prosper under human care. Some predatory animals do still exist, but most of them are in human captivity.

Q: Can you tell me more about Ageos’ laws?
A: Please reference the Committing Crimes section of the Advanced Class Guide for further details.

Q: Can my character have a gun or another weapon?
A: Guns do not exist in this setting. Archaic ranged weapons such as crossbows, as well as archaic melee weapons such as spears, exist. Guns are a fictional concept in this setting, so characters can be familiar with them.

Q: Can we Mega Evolve, use Z-Power, and Dynamax?
A: Yes to Mega Evolution, yes to Z-Power, no to Dynamaxing. There are no Power Spots in Ageos, so Dynamaxing is possible; however, the power of Gigantamax has been condensed into Mega Stones. Any Pokémon that has a Gigantamax form can assume that form through Mega Evolution. However, they aren’t giant; they are roughly the same size as their normal form. Please reference the Mega Evolution & Z-Power section of the Pokémon rules for further details.