Pokémon Go Community Day, 8/16/2026

Community Day time for this month is at hand, and it's a tricky one for several reasons. First up, it's on a Sunday, which hasn't happened since prior to the season when Daily Discoveries were introduced; it was actually initially scheduled for Saturday before being rescheduled to today. Then, the featured Pokémon species of this edition was determined by voting a couple of months ago, with the candidates also being tricky. That's a lot of tricks for an edition - and it's not even October 31 yet - and they have to be made clear with a post that covers it.

With that, the featured Pokémon is Nickit, a Dark type Pokémon that evolves only once to Thievul; it beat out three other species that also evolve once, making them all "tricky" as it is an unusual pattern for Community Day - in fact, it is unprecedented for a Pokémon species without an alternate or related form of some kind. Nevertheless, the latter Pokémon gets the special move of Icy Wind, which has an effect in PvP and effectively setting the destiny of species usage. As well, its appeal may also be reduced for that reason as well as its relative unpopularity.

But things carry on, and the edition still has its particulars. The main bonus is triple catch Stardust, which may be the only part that "salvages" this edition. The usual series of bonuses - double catch Candy, double Candy XL chance, 3-hour Incense, 1-hour Lure Modules, photo bombs, trade discount, and an extra Special Trade - still makes the event what it is. Of course, Research is also still there with Field tasks, Timed tasks for communities, and a paid Special set titled "Wily Whiskers", which affirms that Trainers need to be as tricky as the featured Pokémon.

Meanwhile, Ash and Goh are back from their soiree - temporarily - and they (mostly the former) are given to deal with this edition:

Goh: Nickit, huh?

Ash: Just like the ones we saw in Galar!

Pikachu: Chu pika. ["Exactly that."]

Goh: Right, and then there's the leader that evolved to Thievul.

Me: Obviously you two are familiar with them.

Ash: But as usual, you want me with your faraway friends.

Me: Well, of course. There's always January 2025 to consider. 

Goh: Anyway, how'd the Nickit hunting go? 

Ash: I really got a lot! But I only found two Shiny ones...

Goh: Huh. You'd usually find at least a few. 

Ash: Some of the others also didn't find a lot.

Me: OK, it might be an anomaly, or it might not.

Ash: As usual, I really was with them - with my world outfit, of course. 

Goh: Well, all right. That's rising to the occasion.

Pikachu: Pika pika! ["Pretty good!"]

Ash: Hey, it just had to happen.

Goh: But I also can't help to think that our friend also wanted you somewhere.

Me: Let me give you a hint: if this was on Saturday as it was initially intended, then that would have happened.

Goh: I see. That's pretty tricky. 

Ash: Not as tricky as the Nickit!

Me: If anything, the Nickit may have more tricks than they seem to appear to have.

Tricky or not, every Community Day edition offers unique potentials that every Trainer can stand to take advantage of. For this one, that would be having an interesting and unique species for PvP battle, and that is a trick in and of itself. Whatever other tricks that this edition and future ones might have may or may not be fully known, but the final trick for these tricks is to participate in them with a community and to have a good time.

One year ago: Everywhere and Nowhere

Two years ago: Aloha (Alola)! To World-Class Trainers

Three years ago: Aligning Chess and Pokémon

Four years ago: Myst Pillars, Pokémon Pillars

Five years ago: Thoughts of Cards, Again

Six years ago: The Age of Post-EX Raids?

Seven years ago: Capital Convergence

Eight years ago: Getting Lucky with It

Nine years ago: I Want to Splurge

I'm Already There (and You're Always There)

I'm already there

Take a look around

I'm the sunshine in your hair

I'm the shadow on the ground

I'm the whisper in the wind

And I'll be there until the end

Can you feel the love that we share

Oh I'm already there

Oh I'm already there...

-- "I'm Already There", Lonestar

When I bring up a song that has no apparent relation to Pokémon on this blog, it can be reasoned that the song ties into my thoughts or experiences involving Pokémon things. The song quoted above speaks to the second of these two realms, and rather strongly at that. It used to be a song that I wouldn't have second thoughts over, but I now truly have those second thoughts with subsequent listening of the song - specifically for Pokémon experience.

Now, the song is about a man reassuring a child and significant other, being separated by a great distance from them, that he is always present wherever they are and they will remain together, at least spiritually. It became popular over two decades ago likely because it spoke to the experiences of people separated in this way due to a certain conflict - not for discussion here. The quoted part above is the final chorus, a blending of the first two that preceded it. As such, the strength of feelings that pertain to this song becomes somewhat evident.

Since the parting of Ash in the anime, it could be regarded that even if he's not around in it anymore, he's still somewhere just like how it's a certain time of day in some place. With that, the spirit of the choruses - and maybe a little bit of the verses - apply for those who still appreciate him for who he is, like me. The new anime won't erase the legacy of the old, and that would apply to the presence as well. Surely, Ash will be present in some way at some place, and that would be felt through the elements that are mentioned in the chorus.

Then... there is a sense that the song could be understood to apply to those who have departed - as in, forever. I've had to experience one of those departures several months ago with my "Delia", who in many ways is also relevant to my Pokémon appreciation. This day, in fact, happens to be related to her as it's her "special day", even if in the past I've struggled to remember and not remember it because of how things have been even with her presence. And now, that presence only becomes "spiritual", again thanks to the chorus as mentioned.

For those who are always there, the assurance and perception that they will be as such may be difficult to establish. Yet this song presents some of the ways that can be realized, even for specific Pokémon matters and others that are only adjacent to it. Once assured and perceived, the hope is that people will understand that they've always been there all along, even if not physically. At that point, (Pokémon) life goes on however the presence may be.

One year ago: It's Everywhere Competitors Want to Be

Two years ago: Respect for Rachael Lillis... in Memoriam

Three years ago: The Matter of Mega Evolution in Unite

Four years ago: Pokémon Go Community Day Goodies, Round 4

Five years ago: Pokémon Go Community Day, 8/14/2021 and 8/15/2021

Six years ago: Matters of Shadow and Light (Purification)

Seven years ago: The Subtle Generational Spoiler

Eight years ago: Don't Look Back... in Anger

Nine years ago: Pokémon Desktop Wallpapers

Introducing the Explorer Gadget

Trainers of Pokémon Go will no doubt be familiar with "accessory devices" (or what I in the past called "Go Plus peripheral"), which are used to help them catch Pokémon and spin PokéStops. Since they're "devices" or "peripherals", they're necessarily physical. However, now the game has a virtual or in-game equivalent that is now available to most Trainers after having been tested with a smaller number of them. Per the title of this post, that would be the feature called the Explorer Gadget, and it is worthwhile to discuss its specifics.

Essentially, the Explorer Gadget is a virtual version of the Pokémon Go++ device, which catches Pokémon and spins PokéStops automatically, the former of which doesn't happen with other accessory devices. Like said device, though, one will need to have a ready supply of Poké Balls and ample bag and storage space, lest it won't function optimally. Furthermore, this feature as it is implemented is only active when the game is running but in the background (closed). This is unlike a device that runs as long as the game is running.

Now, the game also places a daily limit on how many captures and spins that can be made, which at present is 76 each. It also needs to be started manually each day, but it can be paused and resumed as needed until the limit is reached. It is also quite possible that later on, the limits will be changed and the feature can be activated several times a day... but at a cost, which would make sense as another way to rake in profits and with the fact that the physical devices are likewise purchased for use. Yet at least some freebies are retained for it.

As for best practices, it is certainly a good idea to turn on the feature when one can't be bothered to have Pokémon Go open and needs to do other things, keeping it in the background. It also should work well with the screen turned off while one is venturing, although this seems to be iffy at certain moments and especially now for Android users, while Apple users seem to have a better experience. It seems that further tweaks to the feature are needed to make it work in all kinds of probable situations.

Why the feature was implemented could be answered to a certain extent as well. It is known that the world is currently facing a "semiconductor crisis" that makes devices of all kinds more expensive, including Pokémon Go accessory devices. Even without the "crisis", it seems that the specific device in question (Pokémon Go++) is being rather finicky for existing users, and an alternative implementation is needed. Therefore, the virtual implementation of the Explorer Gadget serves that very purpose and is to try to resolve both issues.

If the Explorer Gadget can be described in terms of its facilitation, then it makes an accessory device experience (albeit a limited one) available to all Trainers of Pokémon Go while solving a few problems for them as well as itself in the physical form. Though the feature may not yet be free from issues and it is still in its infancy, its potential for future development may be great to an extent, and Trainers can still take advantage of it in different ways presently to add on or improve their Pokémon Go experience, if only with a virtual accessory device implementation.

One year ago: More on the New PokéPark

Two years ago: Looking at Myself as a Pokémon Fan

Three years ago: The Matter of Playable Legendaries in Unite

Four years ago: Cosplay: Japan Overdrive 2022

Five years ago: Let's Talk About Cards for Humanity

Six years ago: Localized TCG: After One Year

Seven years ago: Who's That...

Eight years ago: Worldly Reverence

Nine years ago: All in Good (Life)Time

Quickies: The Land of Miltank and Combee

There are many ways to express places that could be considered as a "paradise". One of those ways is by describing what such a fitting place might contain, like in the popular expression of "the land of milk and honey" - which I won't go into the origins of, but for those who know, well... they know. And for me, what I know is that such a description can have some Pokémon correspondence, so I thought about taking that description and bringing it into Pokémon - more specifically, using Pokémon terms within and for the description.

Certainly, the title of this post would be the fitting correspondence for that expression, if the Pokémon species themselves are considered and not their related substances - more on this shortly. That would mean they can exist in any place that fits them, perhaps the regions of either Johto or Sinnoh, as the regions where each respective species hails from. There may or may not be hard evidence of both of these coexisting together in the same region, but them coexisting in their respective region's games may be sufficient to consider them "paradise".

Meanwhile, those related substances would be the Moomoo Milk and Honey, which could be considered a bit awkward to say (as in, "rolling off the tongue") and "not uniquely Pokémon enough", plus there might be a couple of "relational problems" in its structure. So, "Miltank and Combee" still seems the best way of expressing the expression, showing the Pokémon influence in it, and most certainly evoking the "paradise" theme. Like the real substances they relate to, there is the sense that they might just be consumed in that place.

Paradise can be hard to find, especially with the state of the world nowadays. In fact, it seems much easier to find it in writing or speaking, like with the use of the expression that I initially mentioned in this post, than it is to find it actually manifested. For Pokémon fans like me, though, they might just have a way of interpreting that expression within a context that is very much related to its world, and that context would involve the two species as mentioned, along with their substances that still maintain ties to the original expression and conception.

One year ago: Isyana and the World of Pokémon

Two years ago: Mountains of Faith: Mt. Silver

Three years ago: Pokémon Go Community Day, 8/13/2023

Four years ago: Pokémon Go Community Day, 8/13/2022

Five years ago: NGOCO Podcast: What's Up with Pokémon?

Six years ago: Get Sporty for Sports, Pokémon Style

Seven years ago: The Changing of Boxes

Eight years ago: Toy Block Pokémon?

Nine years ago: Cosplay Briefings

"Breaking" the (Pokémon) Bank

Ever since the 3DS eShop closed down, Pokémon Bank - for those who had been fortunate enough to download it before then - became free to use, allowing all Trainers to transfer Pokémon from the main series games on that console as well as from a few prior games with some additional tools. However, I also said then that such a state of affairs might not last indefinitely... and I was right, for Pokémon Bank is now due to shutter its services, which means that I have to bring up the topic for discussion once more - specifically for that fact.

The closure will certainly "break the bank" in a figurative sense, and it means that it won't be possible to transfer Pokémon from the games as mentioned. They would cover the third through the seventh generations - the first three with the "additional tools" and the last two on the 3DS itself, plus the third by their remakes. If and when the Pokémon Bank is shuttered, these generations will become "inert" just like the first two, the only difference being that those first two generations never had much in the way of transfer mechanisms.

With the impending closure, there is the initiative to transfer necessary Pokémon as soon as possible. Even so, with the current main series games on the Switch, most older Pokémon can be obtained from them, and the exceptions aren't too great in number as some people have discovered. Those exceptions would then become imperative to be transferred through the current protocols that ultimately end up with usage of Pokémon Bank, while the rest can be found through the Switch games - unless, of course, one doesn't have them.

Some players (Trainers) have called for an extension to the active period of Pokémon Bank, and this may be understandable given some of their needs. Whether that extension can or cannot be granted, it is necessary to bear in mind that the 3DS is long in the tooth by now and its online infrastructure will eventually need to be taken down so that the ones for the Switch (2) can carry on its functions. The eShop has evidently done just that, so then that leaves the ones for games or apps themselves - in this case, Pokémon Bank as an "app".

After the Bank is "broken", players (Trainers) will then need to carry on with what has been transferred from it to Pokémon Home - certainly, a reminder for the final step of transfers - for use in the modern main series game ecosystem. Given the course of time, that's certainly where things are headed, past the shadow of prior Nintendo consoles (including the 3DS) and the Pokémon games that are on them. The "breaking of the bank" could thus be considered a turning point for that, with the brighter main series future ahead of it.

One year ago: Shonen Jump Meets Pokémon

Two years ago: Absurdly Heavy Pokémon Matters

Three years ago: Rarest Pokémon Merchandise

Four years ago: Dream Pokémon Food from Café Remix

Five years ago: On Pokémon Who Talk and Speak

Six years ago: The Fate of (Monthly) Go Fest and Safari Zones

Seven years ago: Localized TCG (Not Quite) Taking Off

Eight years ago: Pokémon Go Community Day, 8/11/2018 and 8/12/2018

Nine years ago: Cosplay: DANOBU 4

Am I Relationally Challenged?

As a Pokémon fan, I'm not without problems, which can be evidenced by two posts with similarly structured titles from past years. Now I'm about to write up a third one, which could be considered a follow-up to the second of the two posts above, but it also has some separate concerns. The earlier post dealt with communication, as in interacting with other people or entities; this one addresses relation, as in how I make sense of things - not necessarily with communication involved, but it could be. And then there's the necessary Pokémon aspect.

Making sense of (understanding) things to determine their relations is important in daily life, never mind doing so for all kinds of Pokémon games. Yet for all I've done well in this regard, it seems that there are still plenty of circumstances where I've had problems in determining relations. In the specific case of Pokémon games, this would involve how I make sense of their elements and then applying them, for example like moves in a battle. Sometimes they don't turn out how I'd expect them to be and I only find out about them after the fact.

Then there is the issue of putting out my thoughts on those relations in words - particularly on this blog. In doing so, I have to make sense of the relations Pokémon things first before I then go on to put them in writing on a post, and in either case, it seems sometimes that as I build those relations, I also have problems in doing so, like they don't make sense (to me) even as I've tried to make them make sense - if you get my drift. After having done so in the past ten years or so, it seems odd that it does happen, but the fact of the matter is... it does happen.

Like with the communication challenges discussed earlier, there may be a chance that the problems I have with relating things in and outside of Pokémon may be explained by a certain (mental) condition, even if that could only be explained later on and somehow. Whether that is or isn't true, probable, or resolvable - if it happens to be so - in some way, I want to say that I'm doing the best I can in any case. And of course, that won't change the fact that I'll always be attracted to Pokémon and be doing something with it in some form for everyone.

I've had many years of being able to make relations and make sense of them for all kinds of things, including but not limited to Pokémon. Many of them have turned out sensibly and in the best manner, but quite a few didn't or haven't seem to, which then became the prompt for this post and the question that its title entails. Even so, it just seems to be a part of the many "challenges" that I seem to possess when it comes to dealing with life and all the elements that are present in it, and with Pokémon included, that makes for a challenging life as well.

One year ago: (More on) Pokémon and Quiz Shows

Two years ago: Cosplay: Dalbo Fest Japan Market

Three years ago: The Championships Come Home

Four years ago: The Currencies and Shops of Café Remix

Five years ago: Great League and Ultra League, Newly Remixed

Six years ago: Pokémon Go Feature Wishlist Realizations

Seven years ago: Monthly GO Fest/Safari Zones?

Eight years ago: Pokémon Go Personal Feature Wishlist

Nine years ago: Cosplay Scrapbooking

Making a Late Start in TCGP

One of my friends has recently indicated an interest in the mobile Pokémon TCG platform that is TCGP, and has in fact started playing the game. Subsequently, that friend has also asked me for recommendations of where to start playing - specifically what packs to open and what decks to build. It's a fascinating question and one that I don't give much thought, since I've been playing practically from the very beginning. As such, now I'd like to consider the query and providing an answer to that query, for both the time that it was posed and the general consideration for when future expansions become released for the game.

 

For the current consideration, specifically at around the time of this post, the most recent expansions are of the B series that feature Mega Evolution. With that in mind, new and prospective players should try to make use of those specific expansions in order to build decks and battle. Depending on the deck and cards to play (or be played), however, one may need to utilize expansions from the A series in order to obtain possibly useful older cards that can still complement what is normally possible - even if it would become a matter of novelty and consideration for what decks could be manifested for current play of all kinds.

 

As for the general consideration, the current series is then always a good place to start looking for cards and building decks based off of them. This is especially true as the newer expansions always offer some refreshed mechanics in terms of the Trainer cards and some of the moves in the Pokémon cards, so going through them for deck-building inspiration makes for a good priority. After that, players should then feel free to look into the older expansions for cards that could change up the ways that they play, particularly ways that have been established by the prior experimentation of other players with those cards. 

 

Still, there is also absolutely no harm in looking into all the existing pre-built decks across all the expansions, many of which can be said to remain relevant even in current times. This would also include the "Elite Decks" and their composition, even if it may not be possible to recreate that fully with currently present and obtainable cards. After that, then comes the challenge of making and implementing variations to them as any player of the TCG should do, whether the cards are virtual as in this game or its sibling TCGL, or of course with possession of the physical cards, however many or few there may be. 

 

It's always a challenge for new players to start out in an already established game, even if that game has only been around for a year or so. That is (was) very much the case for my friend as above and the game of TCGP, who looked for guidance on the matter to me. With that, I thought I'd give my takes on the matter as I had presented them to my friend and now subsequently in a post on this blog. Whether that may or be helpful for others is up to them to determine, but based on my experience, at least a good deal of it should be. If so, then that achieves its purpose, and it'll be helpful for late players in making achievements in this game.

One year ago: Seeking for (My) Pokémon Unite Friends

Two years ago: The Values of Posts, Again

Three years ago: By Experience or By Information?

Four years ago: The Importance of Training in Café Remix

Five years ago: Realized Personal Social Media Experiments with Pokémon

Six years ago: Let's Talk About Events, Conventions, and Beyond

Seven years ago: A Tale of Two (OK?) Performances

Eight years ago: Ode to Magikarp

Nine years ago: Snorlax's Awakening