Round 4
Round four was preceded by this teaser.
There is lots of info this round - please be sure to scroll all the way to the bottom, and read everything carefully!
This page is best viewed on a computer or tablet, if possible.
Prompt - “Spiralling Out”
On the day round four was scheduled to occur, morning marched on - uninterrupted by Merriweather’s usual Hyper Voice announcement. Daylight itself was late, leaving the sky dim and greyed in a murky dawn. Dora and the blue-scarfed Espurr gathered the semi-finalists at camp’s centre - but nobody had seen the other staff… until the Zorua sprinted at full pelt from the treeline and leapt atop her stump, affording a mere moment to compose herself.
“GOOD MORNING,” she called flatly, “I’D LIKE TO ASK THE REMAINING STAFF AND COMPETITORS TO FOLLOW ME, PLEASE. Apologies for the bluntness; we need to hurry.”
Merriweather led them through the forest, ears perked and stiff. Time was impossible to gauge - before they reached their destination, the group was already drained, fuelled only by adrenaline and last night’s leftovers.
Progress slowed as they tracked deeper and the air grew colder. Their surroundings looked increasingly unnatural: the trees leaned backward as if cowering from something ahead, the ground was ruptured, the foliage recently damaged.
As they breached a clearing, everyone laid eyes upon the disturbance’s source. An enormous spinning Hyperspace Hole hovered horizontally near the ground. Hoopa floated high above, broken ring around its neck, both arms outstretched to hold the portal open. Concentrating, they released pained cries - almost drowned by the crackling, humming energy of the vortex beyond its hoop. A brief moment of distraction upon seeing the group approach was enough for the portal to shudder and shrink. As the ring spasmed, everyone felt a tug of unknown power dragging them toward the mysterious dimension beyond.
Merri looked at Dora and Espurr, tail low. “I’m sorry… They… they’re inside…”
Espurr’s ears shot up, circular markings pulsing with a burst of energy. The blast shattered the ground beneath his paws, nearby leaves flying from their branches - Psychic’s shockwaves narrowly missed the others, dispersing around the cluster of competitors.
Dora locked an iron gaze on the portal, rushing to peer inside - but Merriweather lightly tripped them with a Grass Knot. “NO!!! No, it’ll suck you in!”
“My sister’s in there!” snapped Espurr - “we gotta get her out!”
Dora righted herself, glancing at Hoopa with an unreadable expression. “I’ll do anything for Gran. Send me in.”
“No, no, no. This isn’t a normal Hyperspace Hole - we don’t know where it goes, it just looks like a big spirally v-vortex in there! It splits down the middle - to two different dimensions. H-Hoopa told me Gran went one way, and Green went the other.” Merriweather whirled toward the competitors. “Y-you guys can help! We drew the match-ups last night – it isn’t what we had planned, b-but consider this an extra-special round four - go in and save them!”
“W-what!?” exclaimed Dora. “Merriweather, this is… this is m-madness!”
“I… I don’t know about this one, Merri,” said Espurr, clamping his ears down with gritted teeth. “Let’s go save them and worry about the tournament later.”
The Zorua stared between her friends - she faced such an immense choice, with so little time to think. After some stammering…
“NO! You don’t understand – Hoopa’s only getting worse," she cried. "If we gave up now, we’d be throwing everything away! Forget the tournament, forget the prize, forget the competitors - forget ALL OF IT!" She slammed a paw on the cracked earth.
"Hoopa and I are in charge, and what we say goes.” She rounded on the semi-finalists, expression warped by grief and determination.
“The first team to rescue their target in one piece wins.
Bionic Meteorsaurus versus Team Riders: follow the left fork at the vortex and look for Gran;
Team Ice-Breaker versus Team Hokum: go right and find Espurr.
We don’t know what’s in there - the glimpses I’ve caught are like nothing I’ve ever seen. Be on your guard, fight hard, and get back before this portal closes - if any of you dies in there, I will NEVER forgive you!”
“You m-must understand, this is too reckless,” Dora croaked, “i-if we pit them against each other, it’s more likely someone will get hurt.”
“Or lost,” said Espurr. “Let’s focus on sis and Gran, not–”
“Go with them and referee if you want -” interrupted Merri - “I’m staying here to look after Hoopa and the others. I’ll see you all at Base Camp for the final. Hurry.”
As what remained of Merriweather’s precious tournament dove into the vortex, her emotions finally broke whatever dam held them; tears flooded her cheeks. “Good luck,” she said weakly.
And so began round four.
“...You’re right.” She slumped, defeated.
Smothered by shame, she turned wearily to the would-be competitors. “I’m sorry for dragging you into this. You’ve proven yourselves to be strong. If you can find it in your hearts, please, go inside and try to save our friends. I’ve got no right to ask, but… maybe we c-can work something out once you’re back.”
Dora and Espurr walked to Merri - they stood together as a team.
The Zorua cleared her throat. “I’d recommend equal groups if you decide to go.
Frankie, Mylo, Louise, and Samantha should go left inside the vortex and look for Gran.
Mo, Ray, Bell, and Hux should go right and find Green.
Watch each other’s backs, okay?”
“I’ll help look for sis,” said Espurr, “if you guys want that.”
“A-and I can assist the search for Gran if need be,” said Dora. “It’s the least I could do.”
“I’ll stay here and help Hoopa keep the portal open," Merri rasped. "I-if this one closes, we can try to make a new one - I’ll come through to guide you to it, okay? You’ll all be back before dinnertime if I can help it,” she promised with a feeble smile.
As the reminders of Merriweather’s precious tournament dove into the vortex, she allowed herself to release her feelings, beginning to cry. “Thank you,” she said firmly.
And so began the search.
This description of events may be altered to suit your story, so long as the prompt and matchups themselves are consistent.
KDP and Silf may each choose whether Dora accompanies their matchup; Beanie & Geefee and Kuu & Ciam whether blue-scarfed Espurr accompanies theirs.
You may each decide whether Merriweather disbands the Hyperspace tournament in your entry.
Prompt Details
Purrmageddon couldn’t make any signs, but we real-world judges still have notes for you to keep in mind.
Alien Domain
The dimension your characters find themselves in beyond the vortex should be at the very least based on the Distortion World and/or Ultra Dimensions. You are free to use an existing one (like the Distortion World, Ultra Deep Sea, or an Ultra Megalopolis without humans), make your own, or combine characteristics of both.
The Locals
Normal species do not live in the dimensions beyond the vortex. Check the rules for a full list of species which may be natives here! Life is still limited to plants, fungi, microorganisms, and Pokémon - so no animals, humans, aliens etc.
The Mischief Pokémon
Is Hoopa really just sick, or was this heinous act on purpose? That’s up to you! Either way, the situation at hand might call into question how any characters will return home from base camp - not just those from worlds populated with humans - if things continue to decline.
Home, Sweet Home
Regardless of whether Merri calls off the tournament, events going forward will still be centred at base camp - so all the characters can’t get lost in the world beyond the vortex.
Dimension
Weather condition: any.
Terrain: any.
Pokémon: Ultra Beasts, Paradox Pokémon, the Light Trio, and/or Giratina. You may include your own original Ultra Beasts and Paradox Pokémon! Other species do not live in the uncharted dimensions - if any appear, there should be a specific reason for them being there.
Geography: a world in which physics and logic seem to play fast and loose, and nothing feels quite the same as home. Feel free to make your dimension an Ultra Dimension, Distortion World, or combination of both.
Playlists (these are just for fun):
Battle themes (includes spoilers for the Hidden Treasure of Area Zero DLC's epilogue)
Inspirations:
Images from various Pokémon media.
Rules
You must show your characters and their opponents venture into the uncharted dimension beyond the vortex and attempt to find and rescue Gran / Green respectively. Dora / Blue may accompany them.
It's up to you whether the Hyperspace Tournament continues in your entry.
If it continues: one or both of your characters must return to Base Camp with Gran / Green before the opposing team (for the opposing team to forfeit in-universe, both members must agree to it - though the judge NPCs will surely still want Gran / Green to be found).
If it's cancelled: one or both of your characters must return to Base Camp after searching extensively for Gran / Green, regardless of who else makes it; your entry doesn't need to depict your team "winning" or the other "losing". Two-Ring Circus may optionally help the competitors and other judge NPCs by making a new portal back to base camp.
The uncharted dimension can have any appearance, climate, geography, etc., but must be distinctly different from any dimension encountered before (likely with unique physics). If you wish to alter how fundamental mechanics work (e.g. type matchups, moves, characters' senses), please run the changes by us via the questions channel on Discord or in an email.
Please keep in mind our regulations for round four -
You may show -
One of your characters (not both): become unable (or refuse) to continue participating.
Your opponent’s characters: evolve, learn new moves, and sustain minor injuries.
Two-Ring Circus: sustain minor injuries.
You must ask permission from a character’s creator to show -
Your opponent’s characters: sustain major injuries, get left behind, or die.
You may not show -
Any judge NPC: die.
Two-Ring Circus: evolve, learn new moves, or sustain major injuries.
Two-Ring Circus and spectators (including ex-competitors): leave base camp's dimension.
You may make your own weather conditions and terrains. In the uncharted dimension, you may make your own (fakemon) Ultra Beasts and Paradox Pokémon and give them original moves - these must be designed by you. Existing characters cannot evolve into fakemon or learn original moves.
While leaving certain characters behind is an option this round, we discourage you from doing so without a strong story reason and plans to make it relevant to the plot.
KDP and Silf:
May show -
Gran and Dora: learn a new move (maximum one each).
Gran or Dora (not both): get left behind.
May not show -
Team Ice-Breaker, Team Hokum, or Purrmageddon: evolve, learn new moves, sustain any injuries, or return to base camp.
Feel free to DM Mattie with questions about Grand Aid!
Beanie & GeeFee and Kuu & Ciam:
May show -
Green and Blue: learn a new move (maximum one each).
Green or Blue (not both): get left behind - so long as whomever returns still knows Magic Room.
May not show -
Bionic Meteorsaurus, Team Riders, or Grand Aid: evolve, learn new moves, sustain any injuries, or return to base camp.
Purrmageddon's Magic Room functions differently in the uncharted dimension - they cannot access the items already stored in there, only store and retrieve things found in this dimension (until they return).
Feel free to DM Fox with questions about Purrmageddon!
…And the tournament in general -
Do not edit your entry after the deadline. If you wish to make slight changes (which don't alter the story, just its presentation), you have two options; make a separate version or make changes after judging is complete. We prefer the first! Don't make drastic changes as this becomes confusing - if you'd like to write an alternate version, feel free to do so, but the canon the tournament follows will always be in line with official submissions. Breaking this rule will result in a 0/5 for Rule Adherence and possibly disqualification.
Do not depict characters in base camp besides competitors, spectators, and judge NPCs. Don't make your own NPCs in base camp; it can create confusion and unfairness. Ours suffice.
Be communicative with your opponent (and anyone else who has questions about your characters)! Please email us if your opponent doesn't respond for a long while and it disrupts your entry's creation - we'll take this into consideration.
Hyperspace Holes can’t lead to dimensions which harbour any species other than Pokémon - and in this case fanmade Ultra Beasts and Paradox species - thus they cannot appear in round prompts.
Characterise the Judge NPCs how you like whilst obeying the info on their refs.
Masterlist of species which may be native to the uncharted dimension -
Ultra Beasts:
Nihilego
Buzzwole
Pheromosa
Xurkitree
Kartana
Guzzlord
Poipole
Naganadel
Stakataka
Blacephalon
Past Paradox Pokémon:
Great Tusk
Scream Tail
Brute Bonnet
Flutter Mane
Slither Wing
Sandy Shocks
Roaring Moon
Koraidon (“Winged King”)
Walking Wake
Gouging Fire
Raging Bolt
Future Paradox Pokémon:
Iron Treads
Iron Bundle
Iron Hands
Iron Jugulis
Iron Moth
Iron Thorns
Iron Valiant
Miraidon (“Iron Serpent”)
Iron Leaves
Iron Boulder
Iron Crown
Light Trio:
Cosmog
Cosmoem
Solgaleo
Lunala
Necrozma (base form; Dusk Mane; Dawn Wings; Ultra)
Giratina (Altered; Origin)
Fakemon: you may design your own original Ultra Beasts and Paradox Pokémon, as well as new signature moves for them. Keep in mind -
Ultra Beasts -
Have the ability Beast Boost (with the potential exception of the Light Trio, which may or may not be UBs).
Are primarily based on invasive species and designed to have contradictory elements to distinguish them from other Pokémon.
Paradox Pokémon -
Are recognisably based on existing species.
Past -
Have the ability Protosynthesis (except Koraidon).
Have spikes and facial markings resembling makeup.
Future -
Have the ability Quark Drive (except Miraidon).
Appear to be metal-plated, robotic, and fitted with lights, regardless of typing.
You don’t need to feature species from every available group: e.g. feel free to stick to just Past or Future Paradox Pokémon, a single species of Ultra Beast, or show the world to be devoid of life except for Giratina!
Good luck in the unknown - may Arceus smile upon you, if it can still see you all the way out there.
…Oh, and one last rule:
Hoopa cannot turn Unbound.
Not yet, anyway.
Deadline
7th of May, 23:59BST.
Our deadlines are rigid, and entries will not be accepted past them - the only exception is "grace" (a 2-hour grace period granted under certain conditions). To be granted grace, you must:
Specifically request it via email,
Provide us with an admissible entry - which we will judge if you don't submit a "final" one by the end of grace (e.g. a version in which elements are rushed or sketched, which you polish during grace).
Both of these things are needed before the deadline - requests made after it will be denied!
Matchups
