Cool Contest Normal Rank: for the very FOURTH time

[Sandaa]

Once again, we're back for another Cool Contest Normal Rank, ladies and gentlemen! Let's hope we don't get any DQs this time, no? Here's the rules for the first round of the Normal Rank contest! :O

Every Contest in this Contest Hall starts with the first round of appeals. There, the participants will go on stage, and be given a bag. What the bag contains is totally random, but all of the trainers get the exact same items. During the appeal, it is NOT mandatory to use the items given to you, but it’s recommended, for if the items are used in a well combed manner, bonus points will be rewarded. During the appeal, a trainer may tell his pokemon up to five attacks, nothing else. Before entering the stage, the trainer will be offered to choose an arena of his choice. There’s a machine in which he’ll type in the arena of his wishes and in seconds the arena will be recreated just as the trainer wanted. The scoring will be based off the moves they used, their coordination to their environment, their looks, and the type of attacks used. Ordering cute or smart moves will cause a trainer to lose points, while beauty and tough moves will be allowed without penalty. Originality will also be counted, for if a trainer uses an appeal that has already be seen, he or she will lose major points, and or will be disqualified, so please do something new each time. The trainers with the highest scores will move into round 2, the Semi Finals. Items can not be used from the beginning of this round, so if you’re to use a special item, make sure you’ve attached it and or used it before this Round has BEGUN.
Here, the top 4 will be selected, and all of the rest will be sent home.

Here in today's Contest, the magical appeal item will be a.... trampoline! Today we have a wide selection trampolines for some high flying appeals if you so desire, size ranging to any minimum you please, but the maximum size of the trampoline cannot be more than twice the height of your pokemon. The only warning I have is that if you put too much weight or pressure or something sharp on the trampoline, it might rip which could be painful.

Now then, let's introduce the contestants!

Joe and Evie the AddingAccountant Plusle! xD
Jerichi and the hopefully not DQed Raichu, Luxord!
Lee-San and the shocking Nuray the Jolteon!
Stacey and the super tricky Banette, Lucius!
Jonouchi and his somewhat muddy Swampert, Kaio!
Dae-Maker along with the enigmatic Haruspex the Noctowl!
John accompanied by the super slasher Scizor, Assustador!
Theddie and the cool true blue Blastoise, Tsunami!

Okiedokie. 5 days to appeal, or you're outta here. :o

[Jonouchi]

Ricco looks at the arena in amazement as his second contest went underway. He takes a Pokeball out and releases his Swampert to the crowd.

"Alright, Kaio!" Ricco said confidently "You ready?"

"Swa Swampert!" Kaio said.

Ricco looked out at the field and sees that a lone trampoline was there, enough to most likely fit Kaio. Ricco was nervous, because Kaio didn't know any Cool Attacks for this competition. Regardless, Ricco had a unique idea that just might work, as well as using one Cool attack.

"All right Kaio, I want you to jump on that trampoline while using the attacks I give you. They have to be in this order though. First off, I want you to spin and use a widespread Icy Wind. Try not to hit the crowd. Then once that's done I want you to jump off the trampoline like this: Bounce up and squirt a Muddy Water at the ground to balance yourself, once you get close to the bottom, use Detect to get back to your feet. Got all of that?"

Kaio tried to remember, but still felt a little confident.

"It's okay, just try. Remember, it's Icy Wind all around, Muddy Water at the ground, and Detect to end the round." Ricco laughs at the rhyme he made. "Got that, though?"

The two realize it's their turn, making Swampert go forward to perfoum his act.

"I wish I had taught him more Cool moves before hand" Ricco thought as he slaps his head. "This better go well."

[Jerichi]

Luxord slowly walked up to the curtain, peering around it to see the set-up on the stage, waiting for him to come and perform. This was the third or fourth time he had been participating in this contest; he was beginning to lose count. Each time had ended in some sort of depressing failure, and he was determined this time to win, or at least fail gracefully, if anything. By now, Tetsu had begin to let him design his own appeals, since the only thing that Tetsu trusted him in doing was Contest appeals.

The stage was simple enough. A large, flat, raised platform with a medium-sized trampoline sitting upon it, which would give him enough space to achieve a reasonable hight. Thinking for a moment, he contemplated a decent appeal.

Firstly, I'll jump on the trampoline for a little bit to get a decent hight, and release a few weak Shockwaves for effect, but without hitting the crowd. Once I get to the hight I want, which should only take 4 or 5 bounces, I'll create a Present, which I'll hold for a moment before tossing it in the air as high as possible. Then, I'll jump up into it, and create a Reflect Wall over my head, and crash into it, then quickly Teleport back onto solid ground, finishing with a light shower of Thundershock.

While his appeal was complex, he felt he could pull it off. The worse thing that could go wrong was his Teleport could either not work or put him in the wrong place, but he was confident in his ability. With Tetsu giving him a few words of encouragement, and the two smaller rodents, Matt and Will, giving him a few cheers, he headed out onto the stage, ready to perform his appeal.

[Sylar]

Looking at the trampoline, Joe thought for a minute, before getting bored and just pulling something out of his arse. "Well, there's not much point generating an arena, since the Trampoline will see all the action. Okay Evie, run over to the Trampoline, and start bouncing a bit, and on the 3rd bounce, use a Quick Attack into the air to gain quite some height, before using a Charge mid-air, so that there'll be basically a ball of electricity in the air. Except the ball will be you. Kay, so then, when you come back down, get your balance and hop off the trampoline. Then, use an Ice Beam to freeze the trampoline, before using a Spark to smash it into a couple hundred pieces. Hmm, actually..." Joe went over to the arena generator thing, and input for a glass dome, as high as the contest hall was. "Well, that should stop the audience being killed in an electrical ice barrage. Okay, after you've destroyed the trampoline, which I hope is okay with the owner, use a huge Thunder Wave inside the dome to make it look like one of those scientific things that makes your hair stand on end. It'll be a bit weird going to something completely different, but hopefully it'll look cool enough for the audience not to care. You got all that?"

Evie quickly nodded, and Joe smiled back, glad that he didn't have to explain it again. Rushing off to get into the dome (somehow), Evie prepared to start her appeal, looking at the trampoline that was about twice her size.

[Dae-Maker]

Looking at the audience, Grey felt a daunting pressure build in his chest. But, taking a deep breath, he cleared his mind, repressed his emotions, and turned towards his Noctowl, who was perced on the back of chair backstage. Lifting his left arm to make the standard rapto perch, Grey whistled and Haruspex flew over to him. Together, they walked toward the stage and the generator machine for their appeal. Seeing the keypad to type on, Grey input his instructions as clearly as possible, trying also to incoporate the trampoline as well. After he finished, he stood back with Haruspex and saw the stage take the shape he wanted.

The ordinary stage started to shif and take shape according to the commands Grey had given, the first thing being that the trampoline became center stage. Next, the backdrop that the audience viewed became a clear blue sky, as if the stage was airbourne and floating. Then appeared a range of targets from the walls, all in differing shapes of hot air ballons, and all with a red-and-white target plastered dead center on the inflated part. Each target was about two-and-one-half times the size of Haruspex, and each was strategically placed inside the arena. There were four targets in total, each sticking out from different parts of the newly constucted stage. There was a target-ballon "floating" on the back wall, right in front of the audience, there was one suspended on the left wall, another haning in front of the right, and one a few meters in front of the trampoline, standing up tall and covering the view of provided object. Each target seemed to be solid, however, they were each only painted paper stretched over a wood frame. Grey looked on in satisfaction as a bullet-proof glass shield stretched over the new area, providing perfect viewing, but also protection.

This last piece went down without a hitch and then Grey turned to his Noctowl, who was now hovering by his side. "Okay, dude, this is the stage I've chosen for you. Obviously, it's a practice range. However, it also appears like it's in the air, hence the ballons, and it is your natural element. I want you to fly out there calmly and hover over the trampoline for a second - be about a meter above it when you hover. Close your eyes like you are meditating, and use a beautiful Feather Dance to make it seem like you're concentrating. After that, flash your eyes open like practice has just begun. Stop hovering and let yourself bounce off the trampoline back to your original height. At that position, twirl and release a Swift at the target to your right (the audience's left). Hit it, then fall back and bounce off the trampoline again. At the same height, use a Sky Attack to destroy the target to your right. Fall back to the trampoline for the last time, bounce up, and then turn around to face the back target. Start flying toward it and use an Air Slash to bring it down. Do a wide circle, where you turn upside down in the air (like jet's do) to turn around and then dive and Take Down the target in front of the trampoline. You should pass right through the paper, where you'll land on the stage, facing the audience. Turn you head all the way around, turn it back, then bow."

Having faith in his extremely smart bird, Grey felt that this appeal was a sure-fire success and he early hoped it would go well with the judges. Watching with anticipation, Grey looked to see his Haruspex flying toward center stage...

[Arc_Angel]

Stacey and Lucius watched the appeals of the contestants before them with interest. This was not her first contest but she had never taken part in a Cool one before. It was a new experience for Lucius who seemed to be brimming with energy and excitement, not at all nervous. Stacey grinned, his warm hyper energy filling her being and felt herself become excited too. They would try their best to dazzle the crowds and show how truly Cool Lucius was; he was one of the coolest pokemon in her team and knew that he wanted to showcase that.

As their time approached Stacey thought over an arena that would best fit them. Beaming as she thought of the perfect arena she approached the machine near the stage and after a few moments of working out how to operate it typed in the specs for their scene. She looked on with awe as the previous stage shimmered out of existence and their own personalized one emerged. The setting was at early night and the sky was a dark blue, a few grey clouds blocking the stars but the full moon shone bright. Set in the centre were sandy coloured ruins of what looked like an old temple in disrepair but the most interesting centrepiece of the stage in amongst the ruins was a life size statue of Giratina. It had a trough dug around it in the circle with dry grass filling it and a clear crystal sat atop its head. Its wings were spread wide and its mouth was open in a battle cry. The special item for their appeal, the trampoline large enough for Lucius to fit was situated a couple metres away from the statue and had several sandy coloured stones around it making it seem more in place with the surroundings. A small grove of trees were either side of the ruins giving the impression that it was in a very secluded place. From where the audience sat they had a side on view of the setting.

Satisfied with their arena Stacey winked at Lucius who cackled back in return, eager to commence his appeal.

“Alright Lucius, lets show them what your made of.� Stacey said brimming with excitement. Float onto the stage and kneel down on the trampoline facing the Giratina statue. Bow down in respect to the ghost legend and blow your Dragonbreath as you do so onto the dry grass surrounding the statue to set it aflame with an eerie green glow. Stand back up and cross your arms over your chest deep in concentration whilst letting loose a small Thunder Wave outwards around yourself, showing your building power in your ritual. Then snap open your eyes and bounce off the trampoline with Knock Off and float up into the air up into the clouds. Then fire off a Nightshade down at the statue hitting the crystal on its head making it glow a ghostly purple. Finish off by floating back down to earth and reaching the trampoline, bowing down to the statue in respect once more, thanking the Ghost legend for answering you and ending your ritual. How does that sound?� Stacey asked Lucius who opened his zipper mouth and grinned.

Pleased with his appeal idea Lucius prepared to dazzle the crowd.

[[Dootakun]]

John took a peak behind the curtain. They had just been informed about what object would be used, if the contestants wished to. A trampoline. "Damn" he thought. "Need to adjust my plans, if I want to use the trampoline." Assustador seemed a bit nervous, not even taking a curious look at what was waiting for him. After all, it was his first contest, and like any other contestant, they were there to win it. Both had heard little bits of some of the other contestants' appeal plans; quite good, to say the least. Extra work for them. "First of all, we need to think of an arena. And I think I've just came up with it."

Both walked towards the Arena Generator, as the trainer started to input his thoughts into the computer. Both giving it a long read, John turned to Assustador, which nodded in agreement, even smiling while doing so. He returned the smile, before clicking the "Submit" button, hoping the machine would do their bidding correctly.

They looked in amazement as the default arena started to change, thanks to virtual reality and some other fantastic technology, into what seemed a Battle Stadium: the Official Pokeball seal in the center of the battleground, it seemed to be an early evening, as the lights shined upon them. However, there was more to it: the trampoline, large enough so that Assustador could jump freely and without problems, stood near them, at the beginning of what seemed an obstacle course. Three meters above the trampoline floated a large horizontally-located ring, and scattered around the stadium stood three more rings, although these were floating vertically. Their position wasn't random however, as the Scizor would have to do a lap around the stadium, passing through the rings. One ring on the right side, the other on the far end, and the last one on the left side, although it wasn't exactly a ring; it was a circular concrete wall (but it was still floating).

"Technology sure can do anything." John exclaimed, as the generator had done exactly what they asked for. "Very well, Assustador. I'm sure you can do it. As you see, this will basically be a race around the Stadium, counterclock-wise. Go near the trampoline, and bow to the audience, as the race is about to start. Hop into it, and start jumping. The reason I put that ring above you is that, when you pass through it with your jumps, the race will begin. So, start jumping, and after you pass through the ring, create several clones of yourself with Double Team, and fly quickly with your clones and pass through the next ring with your Agility! It's a combo, so it might give us some more points. Afterwards, use an Aerial Ace to get to the next ring. Then, the finale: you'll probably have to stop for a while, although if you don't need to, then don't. There's only one barrier between the ending and you, and that's the circular wall. Focus your Energy, and prepare to smash the wall with your Brick Break, aiming your claw at it, like Superman and his stretched arm. But, before doing that, send your clones before, and you'll be the last one. As they contact with the wall, the clones will disappear, and you, being the last and real one, will smash the wall. As the race is over, get to the initial ring, and hovering slowly, descend to the trampoline, and eventually, to the ground, bowing again."

[Lee-san]

Lee stood beside Nuray, his Jolteon, behind the Cool Contest stage. It wasn't the first time the trainer was here - he had come in 3rd place last time - but for his Pokemon, this was all new. So, Lee made sure that Nuray's Red Scarf was on tightly and patted his Pokemon reassuringly, hoping that the Electric type wouldn't be too nervous.
Before telling Nuray what Lee wanted him to do, he again looked at the stage he had set up beforehand. At the end of an about 10 m-long catwalk stood a medium-sized trampoline. 5 m straight away from the trampoline, 3 posts, each about 4 metres high, were standing next to each other, forming a horizontal line. At the top of the 3 posts were rings with a diametre of 1,5 m. A good distance behind those, above where the audience was sitting, 19 red balloons were hanging from the ceiling. A single golden balloon is strapped to the ring at the middle post and is dangling above it.

With a satisfied nod, Lee kneeled down to his Jolteon and explained his strategy to his Pokemon.
"Listen up, this is gonna be a little tricky, but I'm sure you can pull it off. Start by running along the cat walk as fast as you can, and halfway down it, give yourself a boost with Quick Attack. Jump on the trampoline and aim for the middle one of the rings atop the posts. Then, shortly after you've jumped, use Double Team to create two shadow clones of yourself, and hopefully, those will jump through the right and left ring respectively while you will jump through the middle one. Land with a cool pose on the other side, and then aim for the 19 balloons hovering at the ceiling above the audience. Use your Pin Missile attack to pop them all, then turn around. Proceed by using your Charge Beam on the right hand post in order to, well, charge yourself up, but also for a nice visual effect. After you've finished doing that, aim for the golden balloons atop the middle ring and destroy it with your Zap Cannon! That should do.."

[thed3]

Thed looked over at his dojo generated arena with a huge boulder in the middle and feeling satisfied with it walked over to Tsunami.

"Time for some appeal/training Tsunami"
The Blastoise looked at the dojo himself and spotted a large trampoline leaning against one of the walls of the dojo. Tsunami looked over to Thed and said, "Blast Toise Toise?"

"Alright, since you asked I'll tell you. Today we're going to attack that large boulder that sits right in the middle of the dojo. I figure you need to work on your agility as a fighter and there's no doubt that you are more agile than that boulder."

Tsunami gave Thed a little side-eye.

"Approach the boulder and give a little bow then make like you're kickboxing with an opponent and use a Mega Punch to crack the boulder. Make little dodging movements and give it some light jabs then I want you to Mega Kick it to crack the boulder some more. But, we won't be satisfied until you knock your opponent out! So run towards the trampoline and launch yourself at it, just like you're in a boxing ring and you'll bounce right back towards the boulder. While you're in the air going towards the boulder charge up a Dynamic Punch and break that boulder into pieces! When the smoke clears I want you to bow towards where the boulder was at first and then I want you to bow towards the audience signifying the end of the appeal."

Tsunami liked the idea of breaking the boulder so he walked onto the dojo arena. Thed watched his large Blastoise and hoped he could pull it off and impress the judges.

[Sandaa]

First of all, I'd like to say a couple of things... I really enjoyed all of your appeals, and they were all great (except for one of them lol >_>; ) If you didn't make it onto the next round, don't feel down because it was really close in the end, and a lot of people missed out of points just cause they were missing Cool stats, so that's just a heads up on an easy way to prepare for next time. Anyway, onto the appeals!

Jonouchi:
First up today we have a brand new contestant to the Cool Contest Hall, Ricco and Kaio the Swampert! Kaio Begins by going on a trampoline in the middle of the stage and bounces on it until he gets to a good enough height. He then spins around and releases an Icy Wind, which makes an icy mist in the air, until the Swampert goes back down for another bounce. Once airborne again, Kaio prepares for a landing, jumping over the edge of the trampoline while in the bounce, and blasts a jet of Muddy Water to the ground to slow his descent, while he flips into a landing, Detecting where his footing should land.

Judge’s Notes: As you said yourself, I think it would be a great help to get some more cool moves for Kaio, as well as cool points. As for the appeal itself, the combination was very fluent, and went very smoothly in transition. However, the appeal itself seemed sort of bland and short altogether, like it was over almost instantly. While Kaio did seem to pull off the appeal well, it also didn’t seem very Cool, with the exception of the flip at the end. Just take notice for next time you might appeal.
I score this appeal with 75.8 points!

Jerichi:
Back for a third time in the Cool Contest are Tetsu and his Raichu, Luxord! Setting off to do his appeal, Luxord begins by bouncing on the trampoline, sending off Shock Waves for a cool effect. He then creates a rather large Present, which he tosses into the air as it glows brightly. On his next bounce, Luxord pulls up a Reflect wall, going right into the Present, but something goes horribly wrong as the Present explodes massively (RNGed for 120 damage), which obliterates the Reflect wall, and makes the audience start to stampede for the exit in panic. In a quick flash, Luxord appears on the ground, having been Teleported by the judge’s Typhlosion to safety, yet unconscious from the blast. The judge’s Espeon, Smeargle, and Stantler all then hold the roof in place with Psychics before it collapses and makes this any more disastrous until someone comes to repair the ceiling.

Judge’s Notes: It’s very unfortunate that this had to happen, but that’s just the luck of the RNG sometimes when using a highly dangerous attack… More importantly though, it’s suicidal to try and send your pokemon against a bomb head on like that, luckily the Reflect shielded Luxord from being horribly disfigured from the blast. Luxord did look cool before he was knocked unconscious, as well as the Shock Wave looked cool, and overall it was a nice strategy (except the head on to a bomb) so I’ll have to give you credit there. However, please don’t try and kill everyone next time… with a Cute move too, lol.
I score this appeal with 39.3 points.

Joe:
Back once again as well is Joe but with a new pokemon this time, Evie the Plusle! Evie begins by bouncing a couple of times before darting into the air with a Quick Attack, glowing in a great ball of electricity as she Charged up. Landing, Evie then blasted the trampoline with an Ice Beam and smashed through it with a Spark, the shards flying every which way, but were harmlessly scattered into the glass dome. Evie then finished by blasting out a magnificent blue Wave of Thunder, the tendrils zapping the glass like one of the static balls.

Judge’s Notes: Great job, this appeal was incredibly cool to witness, and there were plenty of great electrical combos that you used. However, there are two points that you should focus on for next time. Firstly, you completely disrupted the appeal by stopping the action and started up something completely different with the Ice Beam. This made it look like you changed appeals halfway through. Secondly is that next time Evie could use a little better stage presence instead of just appealing… interacting with the judge and the audience is a good key to getting them more into it.
I score this appeal with 95.1 points!

Dae-Maker:
For their Cool Contest debut, Grey is next up with his Noctowl, Haruspex! The appeal starts off with a colorful sky target practice, the Noctowl beginning by hovering over the trampoline. He spreads his wings in a swoosh as soft Feathers fly out and he Dances around them melodically, as to pump himself up. Haruspex then flies up and blasts a target with a Swift, and then bounces back down onto the trampoline, beginning to glow in a bright phoenix-like flame, searing back into the air with a powerful Sky Attack into the next target. Using that momentum, Haruspex get an even higher bounce off of the trampoline and spreads his wings quickly once again, to use an Air Slash to break the third target. Finally, falling into an aerial flip, Haruspex Takes Down the last target, landing in front of the stage, with an elegant bow, spreading his wings.

Judge’s Notes: This is probably one of the best appeals I’ve seen in the history of this contest yet. You’ve got everything I expect out of an appeal; great stage presence, a wide array of cool attacks, an original backdrop, and most importantly, a well thought out, fluent strategy that one can picture perfectly in one’s mind. The only think you might need to work on are the cool points, as they count for 11% of the appeal.
I score this appeal with 96.0 points!

Arc_Angel:
Another first timer to the Cool Contest, next up are Stacey and Lucius the Banette! The stage for this appeal is an elaborate setting with a massive statue of the legendary pokemon Giratina, and Lucius bows to it before alighting the grass around it with a green inferno of Dragonbreaths. He then sparks up with a Thunder Wave, followed instantly by his arms glowing with a black aura for a Knock Off, and the ghost bounces high into the air. Lucius then blasts a bolt of Night Shade into the crystal, making it glow dazzlingly with a dark purple aura as the ghostly beam reflects off its sides. Lucius then finishes by landing and bowing to the statue once again.

Judge’s Notes: I really like how Lucius had plenty of stage presence in his appeal, as well as used lots of cool looking effects to amplify his looks. The background was very intricate but very fitting as well as original. However, one thing I noticed was how Lucius managed to pull off using a very opposite array of moves in combo well; switching from dragon to electric to dark seems difficult to manage, but Lucius did it. Unfortunately, Lucius’s score was hurt by the lack of cool points, as it is 11% of the appeal.
I score this appeal with 84.4 points!

[Dootakun]:
Next up for appealing is John and his Scizor Assustador as they are another pair of newcomers! For the setting of this appeal, an obstacle course is set up, with many hoops and such. Assustador begins by creating three Double Team clones, as he bounces high out of the first horizontal ring from the trampoline. In single file, they all then dart through the first vertical hoop, using all their Agility. Continuing right to the next hoop, all Scizors use Aerial Ace, spinning and flipping as fast as they can through it. The Assustadors all then land and take a battle stance as they glow while Focusing their Energies. All three clones then jump headfirst into the solid wall, followed by the real Assustador bursting through it Superman style with a Brick Break. He quickly lands and then jumps back to where he started and bows for the audience, who is applauding loudly.

Judge’s Notes: I’ve said this twice in a row already now, so I feel kind of repetitive, but this appeal was excellent on all standards. You chose an original background, used a great combo that worked flawlessly, used lots of Cool moves which got the audience going, and had an excellent stage presence. The only thing holding you back are your Cool points, or lack thereof. A third reminder in a row, but appearances are 11% of the appeal.
I score this appeal with 96.0 points!

Lee-san:
Returning to the cool contest is Lee, but this time he’s back with a different pokemon, Nuray the Jolteon! Using a catwalk stage with ballooned hoops at the end, the Jolteon proceeds to sprint down the way and breaks into Quick Attack lightning speeds. As he jumps onto the trampoline, Nuray splits into two Double Team clones, who split up as the three each bounce through a hoop. Landing in a cool pose on the other side, the Jolteons all rapid fire Pin Missile needles at the balloons above, popping all of them in the blink of an eye. Nuray then turns on the hoop to his right and blasts a Charge Beam at it, which makes it crackle with electricity, and then he turns on the golden balloon, firing a powerful Zap Canon at it.

Judge’s Notes: Nuray did a great job in his appeal, showing a wide variety of coolness and utilizing his setting to execute his appeal with no problems. The only question I arise is that what was the point of using the Charge Beam? It didn’t really seem to do much and was kind of just thrown in there. Anyway, get him some more cool points, and he’ll be a dominant force in future contests.
I score this appeal with 93.7 points!

Thed3:
Finally, for the last appeal of the day, we have Theddie returning with Tsunami, his Blastoise! In the setting for Tsunami’s appeal, the Blastoise stands before a rather large boulder in a martial arts dojo. Tsunami begins by Mega Punching the boulder, cracking it slightly before he proceeds to act like a boxer, working his way around the rock. He then Mega Kicks it rather higher than it would seem that a Blastoise could stretch, but he seemed to pull it off as the rock cracked more. Tsunami then took a few steps back before charging in for a powerful Dynamicpunch, obliterating the boulder. Tsunami then turned to the audience and bowed, karate style.

Judge’s Notes: The appeal was great; worked well in combo, and stuck to a particular theme throughout the entire appeal. Tsunami looked very cool out there too and had great stage presence. Finally, I commend you for being the only one to not use the trampoline, having pulled off an appeal well without needing to use it.
I score this appeal with 87.4 points!

Now that all of the judging is done, it's finally time to get down to business, let's see who moves on to round two! Like I said at the top, it was extremely close this time around, just that some people were hurt a lot by the lack of cool points, which is unfortunate, but I'll be looking foward to seeing some of you back here for more appeals next time, cause you guys were all really great. Anyway, now that the suspense has built up, the mystery number for using the special appeal item was... 7! Yeah, a pretty high number this time around for using the trampoline. Additionally, the bonus points have already been added into the totals above in the judgings.

Having that been said, let's see who progresses onto the next round by order of first to last!
[center:a9bf7]Dae and Haruspex with 96.0 points
Joe and Evie with 95.1 points
Lee and Nuray with 93.7 points
Thed and Tsunami with 87.4 points[/center:a9bf7]

Congratulations to the four of you, you've made it on to round two! As for the rest of you, I'm really sorry I couldn't make it more than 4 contestants onto round two, but the rules are the rules. Until next time, I can't wait to see y'all again! Now, for the four winners, let's take a peek about the rules of the second round:

Originally Posted by Sandaa

Round Two: Semi Finals

Here, the last standing trainers will battle the semi finals out. Last time around, the trainers were able to choose their environment, but this time the environment here changes at random, and you don’t even get to decide on the first arena. The only exception to this rule, will be to the trainer with the highest indicator from the last round. He or she will be granted the advantaged to choose the first arena of the match, although we are giving this sort of “special reward� this does NOT guarantee that the arena will stay as it is. To keep the trainers on their toes, and ready for any sort of obstacle, the arena will be constantly changing from different arena, it is completely random to what and when will the arena will change, so exploit all the time you have with one arena, just don’t get too much familiarized with it. As for the order of attacking, the battles will go “ASB Style,� which means Player A orders attacks, followed by Player B. I then ref, and then Player B attacks first followed by Player A. This pattern repeats for ten rounds straight. Now as to the battle details and scoring system, it all depends on the attacks and the way that they are used. Both Pokemon begin the battle with 200 C-HP, or Cool Hit Points, essentially their Coolness Meter. The object is to obviously get your opponent’s C-HP down to zero by attacking them. However, you will be docked of your own points for using a Smart or Cute attack, which will be judged on how the attack actually has been used. If the move was originally Cute/Smart, but the pokemon pulled it off with impeccable coolness, that pokemon will not lose points, and on the extreme contrary may actually gain some extra bonus for its creativity. For every attack in which the pokemon makes physical contact, and hurts his opponent, the opponent will of course lose points. If the opponent however, uses a move to counter attack and send back the original attack back at the opponent, then the opponent will lose points instead of the other pokemon, so always keep that in mind with your attacks. At any time a pokemon faints, it will lose the battle. Healing Items or any other items are not meant to be used at any time of the battles. If no one has reached 0 C-HP by the end of ten rounds, whoever has the higher amount will be victorious. If both C-HP are tied, or the match results in a draw, we will move onto a bonus, Sudden Death round.
Only two winners will remain, and the other 2 shall have to go home empty handed.

Alright, now to see who is going to battle who for the second round, decided by my trusty rusty RNG thingy! *goes to roll it up* Okay, the two pairs of combatants for today will be.....
[center:a9bf7]Grey and Haruspex vs. Thed and Tsunami
Joe and Evie vs. Lee and Nuray[/center:a9bf7]

Okie doke, that's that, now it's time to fight! Because Dae and Joe each got the highest scores of their pair, they will be choosing the arenas in which you guys will be fighting, and then they will post attacks first. Then Thed and Lee post attacks respectively, and I'll ref. The order will switch and the pattern will go on as such! There's a 4 day DQ limit so please pay attention because I will not be leniant unless you have good reason and give me plenty of warning if you're going out of town or something. Fight fight fight!

[Sandaa]

In an act of honesty, John has confessed to accidentally using a move he didn't know and has been disqualified from the contest, so I boosted the rankings up and Thed and Tsunami are now ranked fourth place in the contest. Thanks for being honest, John, maybe next time you'll do even better.

[Dae-Maker]

Elated that he and Haruspex had made it to the next round, their faces froze in determination as they found out who the opponent would be - Thed and his extremely tough (yet utterly cool) Blastoise, Tsunami. Knowing this battle woud be difficult, Grey stepped up to the field with Haruspex flying by his side:

Butterfree Orchard: Fruit Trees. Apples, cherries, and some strange pink fruit. Many Butterfree pollinate the plentiful flowers. Occasionally a Bulbasaur may wander by. Fruit may be thrown to cause minor damage. If any wild Pokemon are hit by an attack, they will attack the offender. If a Butterfree is hurt, a swarm of Butterfree will Sleep Powder the offender, the sleep lasting for two rounds. Area 2: Strange Fruit. The fruits here are different. Some almost glow. Only the odd Butterfree ventures here. Eating the fruit may cause strange things to happen: 40%: Nothing 15%: The Pokemon that ate the fruit will fall asleep 10%: The Pokemon that ate the fruit will be poisoned 10%: The Pokemon that ate the fruit will float for one turn 10%: The Pokemon that ate the fruit will become confused 5%: The Pokemon that ate the fruit will glow, and a flock of Butterfree will send the opponent to sleep for two rounds 5%: Some energy will be restored to the Pokemon that ate the fruit. 5%: Some health will be restored to the Pokemon that ate the fruit. The trainer may order their Pokemon to eat the fruits at any time, but only one fruit per Pokemon.

Knowing the place seemed kooky, and completely un-cool, Grey was hoping that this oddity of a field would provide a unique challenge to both Tsunami and Haruspex. Looking to the eyes of his confident raptor, Grey stared into the browns and greens, imparting a sense of purpose and calmness. Then, both with a simultaneous nod, turned from each other to begin the battle.

"Haruspex, lets begin this battle with something cool. Face off against Tsunami by opening with an Air Slash. If he tries anything, use a Faint Attack to avoid and then attack."

Crossing his fingers and hoping for luck, Grey was relying on experience, and some skill, to battle this fiercesome opponent.

[Sylar]

I'm assuming I can just pluck an arena from the ASB site. >>; If I can't, then I'll change it. xd Also, sorry for shortness, but I couldn't be bothered.

"Okay Evie, let's start this battle by choosing an arena! YEAH MAAHHNN!!!" screamed Joe, slightly scaring his Plusle. "Hmmm...."

Lawn (Outdoor. Standard Arena for Outdoor Battles): A basic, standard terrain. Nothing special. The "Grass Field" arena from the Indigo Pokémon League in the anime is a prime example of a Lawn Arena.
Special Rules: None

"WOO LAWN!" screamed Joe, for the second time frightening his opponent. "Well, that's simple enough. On to attacks. Start off by using a Flash. After that, use a Quick Attack from any random direction you want. Since Jolteon will either have it's eyes closed or be blind, it should be okay." Evie quickly nodded, before Joe turned to Lee.

"THIS. IS. COOLL CONTEEESTTTT!!!"

[thed3]

"Hey! Tsunami we made it to the next round!" Thed yelled aloud surprised by the outcome.
"Blast. Blast."
"Heh, you were pretty good out there."

Thed noticed that he would have to face a trainer named Grey along with his Noctowl. The Noctowl was quite initmidating and looked knowledgable and of course if the Noctowl looked that great then the trainer had to have worked hard with the owl pokemon. Thed wasn't too sure on how to battle with 'Cool'-ness, but at least he did know how to battle which Tsunami was no stranger to.

Thed looked at Tsunami, "Ready for some battling?"
"Blastoise!"
"Then let's go! Let's start with a nice new move ya learned, Aqua Ring. Brace yourself for that Air Slash that Noctowl will send at you by crossing your arms in an 'X' shape. I'm sure that'll look cool along with the initial Aqua Ring effect. Then stay braced for more impact and use a Counter attack to send that Faint Attack damage right back at Noctowl!"

Thed hoped Tsunami was ready for this, although the Blastoise had always made it a point to never be nervous under pressure. This was definitely going to be a battle, but Thed tried to keep in mind to just stay cool like his Blastoise.

[Lee-san]

Yay, semi final. Good luck Joe ;p

"Alright Nuray, close your eyes in order to avoid that Flash - you probably will get hit by that Quick Attack, but it can't be helped. Afterwards, hit Plusle with Pin Missile, and then Dragonbreath."

[Sandaa]

[center:39c8e]Grey and Haruspex vs. Thed and Tsunami[/center:39c8e]

For our first battle up today, we've got two newcomers to the Cool Contest battle round, Grey and his Noctowl Haruspex versus Thed and his Blastoise Tsunami! We're fighting in an interesting orchard type arena for now, so let's see how this battle will pan out!
Haruspex begins by flying up into the air and beat his wings hard, making the Air Slash at Tsunami, who tried bracing himself and squirted water into the air, making an Aquatic Ring that hovered around him. The attack still slashed at his arms however, dealing 20 C-HP damage to Tsunami's bar. Haruspex certainly looked cool using that Cool move, but his C-HP bar was already maxed out at 200. Seeing as Tsunami wasn't going to make any other moves just yet, Haruspex disappeared and then went in for a Faint Attack, slamming into Tsunami to deal 15 C-HP damage, but the Blastoise glowed brightly, Countering the damage back at Haruspex for 30 C-HP damage. Haruspex's C-HP then dropped by another 5 for using such a Smart move, as it isn't very favored in this contest. Some of Tsunami's Aqua Ring then beamed a stream of water at him, returning just a little bit of the energy that Tsunami used up in that Counter.
As the first round draws to a close, both pokemon are still looking like they are in decent shape. Tsunami used up a bit of energy with that Counter, but currently has that Aqua Ring to restore just a tiny bit of energy each round. Tsunami's C-HP rests at 165. Haruspex didn't use up quite as much energy, but took a heavy hit with that Counter. His C-HP is down to 165 as well, the extra 5 deducted from the Smartness of his Faint Attack. Now to see if the arena changes at all...
OnlineHost: ssgary333 rolled 1 100-sided die: 2
Sorry Dae, but it looks like I'm gonna have to change your arena lol

Originally Posted by ASB Arenas

Rock (Outdoor): The arena is covered by boulders of varying shapes and sizes. Exactly what is there is up to everyone's imagination. If someone says a rock is there (or isn't there), it's there as long as it doesn't contradict something someone has already said.
Special Rule: Boulders

Alright, attacks by Theddie first followed by Dae. Thanks

[center:39c8e]Joe and Evie vs. Lee and Nuray[/center:39c8e]

Next up on our agenda today, we have two returning contestants, but both are using new pokemon. And they're both electric! Should be interesting who should win... On Joe's side we have Evie the Plusle, and on Lee's side we have Nuray the Jolteon. Without further ado, let's fight!
On the lawn type arena, Evie begins by lighting up with a bright Flash, but Nuray quickly closes his eyes, bracing himself for the impending attack for letting down his guard. Evie then Quickly moved in and Attacks the Joleton, pouncing in an uppercut motion, knocking Nuray on his ass while he gets back up and fires a Pin Missile at Evie, hitting her... (RNGs) 5 times. Nuray's C-HP drops by 15 and Evie's drops by 25, (5 x 5). Nuray then turns back onto the offensive, blasting a Dragonbreath at Evie as she tries to scamper away, dealing 20 C-HP damage. His C-HP then goes up by 5 for the coolness of his attack.
As this round draws to a close, Nuray seems to have come out on top. Nuray has used up just a bit of energy, remaining with 190 left. Evie is left with 155 C-HP, however, has barely used up any energy at all. Now to see if the arena will be changing...
OnlineHost: ssgary333 rolled 1 100-sided die: 45
Nope, arena stays. Attacks by Lee, followed by Joe please.

[thed3]

"Oh! Great job Tsunami just keep going strong and we may be able to pull this one off!"

Thed was quite glad to see that Tsunami and Gray's Noctowl were tied at the moment. At least he hadn't messed up badly on his first attempt at battling 'Cool'. But, now he had to think up another strategy to use since the field had changed so quickly. A couple moments passed by and Thed hoped for the best.

"Tsuanmi let's use these hill-like boulder formations to our advantage. Get into that shell of yours and use Roll Out continuously using the hills as a way to launch yourself into the air right at Noctowl. You weigh quite a bit in comparison to it so either it won't be able to stop you while you're rolling or it'll need to expend a lot of energy in order to do so. Hopefully it's not the latter of the two, but whatever. After a couple of launches from the hills I want you roll as fast as you can and launch yourself from another hill. Once you're at the peak of the jump I want you to pop out of your shell and release a wide-spread Icy Wind at Noctowl to ensure that it gets chilled."

[Dae-Maker]

Watching the field shift right underneath the wings of his nocturnal raptor, Grey knew then, that the battle was going to be much more difficult then he had previously assumed. However, pressing forward, he devised a plan to, hopefully, overcome the entropic arena change.

"Haruspex, let's continue. Before, or at the same time that Tsunami begins to perform his rollout, I want you to whip up a terrific Whirlwind. Create a cool maelstrom to offset the giant tortoise, complete with hurtling rocks and filled with dissorienting dust. Then, while you are safely out of range of the storm and you see a opportunity, use your righteous anger to summon a blazing Sky Attack and strike hard."

[Lee-san]

sorry for the slight delay, my Internet was down yesterday evening

"Nuray, well done so far! Now, start by firing your Thunderbolt at your enemy, then use Double Team to hopefully evade any attacks thrown your way."

[Sylar]

"Quick Attack to dodge and attack, then Flash"

WOO FOR SHORTSOMENESS xd

[Sandaa]

[center:51a11]Grey and Haruspex vs. Thed and Tsunami[/center:51a11]

Alright we're back for round 2 now, and as we take a look back on how our contestants left off, both Haruspex and Tsunami were tied, at 165 C-HP each. Tsunami seemed a but more tired than Haruspex, but also had an Aqua Ring boosting him. Anyway, attacks are in so let's get on with it!
Tsunami starts off by withdrawing into his shell, which begins to spin very rapidly. He begins to Rollout at Haruspex, but the Noctowl counters by beating his wings incradibly hard, whipping up a massive Whirlwind that blows back the Blastoise as well as turning many of the boulders into rubble as they roll back, colliding with each other hard. Neither pokemon seemed to lose points from damage, as there was none given, but Haruspex's C-HP went down by 5 for using yet another Smart move. Haruspex then burst into the sky as he began to glow brightly, and Tsunami popped back out of his shell, dusting himself off and getting ready for the next attack. Haruspex then swooped down on the Blastoise, flaming like a phoenix as he Attacked from the Sky. Tsunami tried countering with wind this time, blowing an Icy Wind up at the speeding owl. The cold winds seemed to slow Haruspex down slightly, but it wasn't enough to stop the attack, as the Noctowl collided into Tsunami for a whopping 50 C-HP damage while the sheer coolness of the attack boosted his own by 10 C-HP. However, the Icy Wind wasn't in vain as 15 points were taken off of Haruspex's bar. The round finishes with the Aqua Ring around Tsunami restoring back a bit of his energy, once again.
Haruspex appeared to take quite the upper hand this round in terms of the cool points, Tsunami's bar going down to 115 C-HP, while the Noctowl's dropped only to 155 C-HP. However, Haruspex used a LOT of energy this round and is nor beginning to pant mildly. Tsunami used a little bit of energy, mostly from the Ivy Wind, but with the Aqua Ring, it doesn't seem too bad at all. Now to see if the arena changes at all again...
OnlineHost: ssgary333 rolled 1 100-sided die: 45
Looks like arena stays.. Attacks by Dae then Theddie please.

[center:51a11]Joe and Evie vs. Lee and Nuray[/center:51a11]

Now we proceed into the second battle for today, and as we recap from last time, Joe's Plusle Evie was left with 155 C-HP and is still lookin' fresh, and Lee's Jolteon Nuray had 190 C-HP still, and seemed just only a bit more tired. Anyway, attacks are in so let's get this show on the road!
Nuray begins by blasting a Thunderbolt at Evie, but the Plusle is one step ahead as she uses the power of a Quick Attack to quickly avoid the bolts. While Evie's C-HP rises by 5 for the coolness of her move, Nuray's doesn't seem to change, because the coolness of his Thunderbolt is countered by the fact that he goofed up and missed his target completely. Nuray then proceeds to create some Double Team clones, making 4 clones in total as the Jolteons dart around, but suddenly stops in their tracks as Evie lights up with a bright Flash, blinding her target this time. Neuray's C-HP went up by 5 this time, thanks to the coolness of his attack.
Both pokemon's C-HP went up by a puny 5 each in this uneventful round, Evie's resting at 160 and Nuray's at 195. However, thanks to Evie, Nuray is not blinded pretty badly, and it will be hard for him to see at all in the next round. Luckily he has 4 clones to accompany him and to protect him though. Evie seems prefectly fine, after having used up barely any energy once again this round. Now to see if the arena changes...
OnlineHost: ssgary333 rolled 1 100-sided die: 91
Nope, arena stays. Attacks by Joe, followed by Lee please.

[Sylar]

"Fire a Thunder Wave into a Jolteon. Even if it's the right or wrong one, follow up with a Spark."

[Dae-Maker]

"Haruspex, let's show Tsunami how cool we are. Use a Wing Attack on the brute to do some damage. If/when he tries to retaliate, use a Feather Dance to dance right out of the way."

[thed3]

Thed winced as he saw Tsunami's Cool HP meter go down. He had to at least try and even things out this round.

"Sorry about that Tsunami this Grey character is really good. But, let's give that Noctowl a Blizzard it'll never forget as it comes in for that Wing Attack. Then with no hesitation go straight for a Dynamic Punch to the face!"

[Lee-san]

"Alright Nuray, set up a Light Screen to deflect his attacks, you should be able to do that even if you are blinded. That'll be enough for this round.."