Local Ex-Raid (and Changes), 8/19/2018

Every Ex-Raid seems to have their own concerns, and this one is no different. I've tagged this one with "changes" because it indeed may have some of that. This time, it occurred at the first place before new Ex-Raid Gyms became available. For this one, I tagged along with a friend for the initial "qualifier" raid, knowing that he wanted to go, so I could make his gas mileage count. The initial raid was also a Houndoom raid, which also filled my PokéDex entry for it, and that was a big change. However, it was also the first of many changes.

For this Ex-Raid, many of the regulars who often usually qualify for an Ex-Raid didn't qualify. This includes not only a good number of players at Level 40, but also a smattering in the 30s and upper 20s. Worse yet, a good deal of those haven't experienced (many) Ex-Raids. Some in my raid group theorized that the Ex-Raid distribution had returned to an older, hard-to-confirm methodology where everyone didn't qualify. Personally, while it may seem OK to see some of the Level 40 seniors "sit out" to let the juniors have a chance, it's really not fair to see the latter in the same boat. Fortunately, I was one of the many that earned this Ex-Raid, but it's still a bit worrying that this has happened and may happen again.

A good change this time is that some returning players and many new players were able to participate in this Ex-Raid, including a few of my friends. What wasn't a good change was that because of the relative paucity of participants, the battle flights tended to stack up on each other. Worse yet, because of certain celebrations that concern something of two days ago (and the fact that they're forced to stack up on Sunday, when people are likely to be free), the streets were a bit clogged, leading to some coming late or even canceling participation altogether. This is unfortunate, as is not being able to catch Mewtwo after the raid had progressed, which happened to a few.

Due to difficulties, a picture didn't work out, so here's the Mewtwo I caught instead.

Another good change this time is that the other Gym which previously hosted an Ex-Raid almost or nearly at the same time, and which I went to last time, did not host one in conjunction; instead, it will host one next week - but I didn't qualify for that because I didn't have a chance to do so. Meanwhile, that leaves the other Ex-Raid Gym in my locale, which has not hosted one since the Gym hosted its first one a month ago. This is a drastic change, given that the Gym is frequently raided, and it's an open question if it will host another. It may be a change in the making.

All told, many changes occurred for this particular Ex-Raid. Many seem unwelcome, but there were some OK ones too. It has been said that Ex-Raids are enigmatic and susceptible to future changes, and this one confirms them, presenting them as concerns. It might take one or a few more before seeing how things work out, and by then more changes could be expected as well.

One year ago: Pikachu Image Pillow