Uploaded August 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
With all of the DLC exploration taken care of for now, it's time for the adventure to start proper! As it turns out Scarlet/Violet are essentially one continuous Boss Gauntlet when it comes to a Hardcore Nuzlocke, with a mostly continuous rush of fights with almost no level gaps in between. This will make it especially challenging for a run like this where the encounters are much more limited in number! If something overlevels in one fight, it may not be available for the next one. Preservation and careful play will be key to surviving this!
Rules of the run:
1) Hardcore Nuzlocke rules (permadeath, level cap, Set mode, no Terastalization/Battle Items)
2) Each time a Photo jingle happens (example - A Badge is obtained), 1 Surprise Trade may occur.
3) Surprise Trades continue until a non-hacked Breedable Pokémon is obtained, which becomes the Encounter.
4) Encounters are bred and EV Trained before coming into the game. This is to ensure obedience (EV training would happen by exploring the OW, so time is saved by just allowing it)
5) Any TM I can find in the overworld is fair game, including from DLC regions. (Blueberry can be entered early via losing to Lacey without interfering with the run, as it doesn't produce additional encounters).
With all of the DLC exploration taken care of for now, it's time for the adventure to start proper! As it turns out Scarlet/Violet are essentially one continuous Boss Gauntlet when it comes to a Hardcore Nuzlocke, with a mostly continuous rush of fights with almost no level gaps in between. This will make it especially challenging for a run like this where the encounters are much more limited in number! If something overlevels in one fight, it may not be available for the next one. Preservation and careful play will be key to surviving this!
Rules of the run:
1) Hardcore Nuzlocke rules (permadeath, level cap, Set mode, no Terastalization/Battle Items)
2) Each time a Photo jingle happens (example - A Badge is obtained), 1 Surprise Trade may occur.
3) Surprise Trades continue until a non-hacked Breedable Pokémon is obtained, which becomes the Encounter.
4) Encounters are bred and EV Trained before coming into the game. This is to ensure obedience (EV training would happen by exploring the OW, so time is saved by just allowing it)
5) Any TM I can find in the overworld is fair game, including from DLC regions. (Blueberry can be entered early via losing to Lacey without interfering with the run, as it doesn't produce additional encounters).
