Part 59: H-how Cheeky
Update 60: H-how Cheeky
And so we have our second starter. But these Pokémon have a secret: once they hit their final evolution they can Gigantamax, the first Pokémon I’ve owned that can do so.
And then there’s Gigantamaxing, a very special way of Dynamaxing for very special Pokémon… Speaking of Gigantamax, there’s that secret recipe of the Master Dojo! Drinking it makes you gigantic and strong! I call it Max Soup! I’d love to have a bowl of Max Soup full of Max Mushrooms right about now. It sure has been a while…
Max Mushrooms are the key to Gigantamaxing, and I’m tasking you with finding three!
And there we have it. As we head out, Mustard runs after us to give us a quick briefing on how and where to find Mushrooms, telling us they mostly grow in one nearby forest area – but for this trial we’ll only be able to find them in a distant cave. A VERY distant cave, like on the other side of the island. As we work our way through the island…
… We encounter some very strange Pokémon as we go. We win this fight.
Bulbasaur goes up 20 levels and evolves in the aftermath. The exp charm is POTENT.
Also, we find my single favorite Pokémon from when I was a kid once we approached the cave entrance. I don’t know WHY I liked it so much; I think it was the design, especially the scythe blades. I’ve always had a weakness for long bladed weapons. It didn’t matter that it was difficult to find and not that great; I just thought it looked cool.
It was one of the first Pokémon to get a new evolved form in Gen 2: give it a certain item, level it up after a certain level, and you get a brand-new Pokémon with added Steel-type. Which is all well and good, but Scizor was fucking awful: garish red color scheme, a Type I didn’t sign up for, and the blades were replaced with pincers. Pincers! We already HAD Pokémon with pincers, they didn’t have to take one of the coolest Pokémon in the game and incentivize you to get rid of its coolest feature. Gen 2
But anyway, soon enough we find the cave in question and run into some of the largest and most unlikely-looking mushrooms I’ve ever seen.
PLEASE let these mushrooms not actually be hallucinogens… Hmm?
Wait just one moment!
My psychic powers picked up on these Max Mushrooms eons before you found them. I believe I should be the one to get those Max Mushrooms. First come, first served, and all! No.
If you gave me a reason, I’d probably ignore it. You infuriate me. I find your presence most disturbing! You show up at the dojo unannounced and go on to show such talent, even though you’re still so young… How old even are you? 25? Also, you want me to give these mushrooms up based on SENIORITY? What makes you think you’re even remotely worth me giving you a handout? How dare you?! I worked damn hard to make myself the star student of this dojo! I’ve been here for YEARS! And you wander in and make a fool of me! Repeatedly! “Damn hard”? All I’ve seen is you fail to complete tasks and try to intimidate me into not competing. Or is THAT how you gained your position, just cheating egregiously – ENOUGH!
Battle! Avery [8-bit; VRC6] - Pokémon Sword and Shield
Another unremarkable battle; his Pokémon are now a couple levels higher, his Abra has evolved, and he’s added a Woobat to his team. That’s all. His Pokémon each only know two moves
. Plenty of wonderful screenshots to be had, though. 
(It missed
)
(This is how he responds when I get a super-effective hit in on it.)
Maybe he would’ve been more intimidating if I’d come here early, but as it is this fight is solidified
. I promise I’ll be more in depth in the next fight.
Mate, what is your problem? I’m not going to judge you more than I already have, go ahead and lay it on me. I know it’s more than just an inferiority complex. Well, CHAMPION, tell me: how much of YOUR family considers you to be subhuman? Most of it. Enough that they kicked me mum out because she wouldn’t give up her small autistic child, exiled us from the Crown Tundra, and set me along the path that would culminate with me attempting suicide at 12.… Weren’t expecting that, were you? 
Look, tell me what’s going on and I can help you. I don’t need your bloody help! Avery, Teleport! 
(Now THERE is the woman I’m familiar with.) (Taking the piss out of him was fun at first, but the sheen wore off pretty quick. Now, I just wish he’d stop bothering me and go his own thing, let me be smug at him in peace.) (You’re getting soft in your old age.) (You’re one to talk!)…
All my other students ended up getting lost in the forest… Turns out finding Max Mushrooms was the least of their problems!
Well, first things first—a proper meal! Let’s have the Max Mushrooms made into a delicious Max Soup, shall we?
Mmm, mmm, mmm! I’ve really outdone myself this time! Now all that’s left to add are those lovely Max Mushrooms you’ve brought us –Wait!
Why, Avery! What in the world has gotten into you! I’ve never seen you in such a flutter…
Master, Ms. Honey...if you could grant me one wish, just this once, I would be indebted.
I feel that everyone here should enjoy the taste of my efforts… Well! If that’s all you’re after... then I’m perfectly happy to oblige! Though this is hardly the first time you’ve asked for something, and I rather doubt it’ll be the last. Ms. Honey. I hope you don’t feel that your thunder’s being stolen, Gloria… But we’re a family here, and families share! So... we’ll go ahead and use Avery’s mushrooms today! 
It’s just so rare for him to try hard at something. I really want to reward that. You understand, don’t you? 
Yeah, I don’t mind. Nice work, Avery 
. Don’t condescend to me. I was being sincere . (You were being awkward.) (Oh, and what would YOU do?) (Not seem to immediately change postures, just to start...)…
You see, when one drinks this dojo’s famous Max Soup… 
But! Things are a bit different when certain Pokémon drink the soup! You see, there are some Pokémon that have distinct potential… and when they drink the soup, their Dynamax form will change into a Gigantamax form! 
Now then, let’s wrap things up! You all did your best on the second trial, and I’m proud of everyone here! And last but not least…
…
We will soon enough, but there’s something we have to do first. See, while we may have eaten Avery’s Max Soup, we still have three Max Mushrooms that we can give to one of the students hanging around in the kitchen – and if we do, they’ll give us an item that lets us turn on (or off) the Gigantamax factor of any eligible Pokémon. They even have a book on a nearby shelf that gives you a full eligibility list! Before we progress the plot, I take a cruise around the island…
… Finding something truly baffling along the way…
… Before I get the opportunity to show off Bruce’s fourth and final form. Cinderace is one of several Pokémon (including the other Galar starters) to get a new Gigantamax form with the DLC, and by using the soup I got from those mushrooms, I was able to activate it for him. This form replaces all of Bruce’s Fire-type moves with G-Max Fireball, a move as powerful as anything he could have fielded before while letting him drain PP from his weaker Fire moves. Also, it looks like this:
The reason it looks so washed out is because the attack animation was painfully bright; the game must have automatically toned it down when taking the screenshots.
But we have more to do.
You two are the only ones who successfully finished the second trial! You’ve pushed each other to greater heights and helped each other grow. …
The rules are simple. Whoever wins will complete the trial! The winner will be granted the secret armor of the dojo!
I must make for the Battle Court, posthaste! I must meditate on my upcoming victory! A good day to you, then. I’ll be on my way. Feel free to take it easy like a Slowpoke, and take all the time you need to get ready!
He’s never felt the need to try hard at anything, I guess. Even with his training here at the dojo, I can tell he’s been doing just the bare minimum. Less than that, as far as I can tell. He is kind of a pain in everyone’s –
Do NOT insult Avery. 
Avery helps me all the time! I thought you were a good person… I’d ask you not to judge him that quickly – or put down one of your fellow students, for that matter! He’s right, you know! Okay, okay. I apologize, and I will do better in the future. Good 
. That said… Even with his training here at the dojo, I can tell he’s been doing just the bare minimum. 
Maybe you’ve helped awaken some sort of passion and drive in him, eh?
...