<![CDATA[Project Vanguard]]> (2025)

Hello everyone, I'm happy to share that I have begun development on the next update, version 4.0. I haven't gotten very far, but I will be showing you what I have planned!

If I didn't make it obvious enough, Act II concluded in version 3.0, meaning it's time to jump into Act III, and the North Western quadrant of Ayrei. If you've been keeping up with Vanguard's development, then you're probably used to each update introducing a single new town. 4.0 however, wont just be introducing one new town, or even two, but three new towns in North East.Kaedara

• A quaint village by the ocean side. Also the hometown of Dareth.

Levendamn

• Home of the Trainers Association and the Cionsta Corporation, Levendamn is the capital of the Ayrei region. Not quite as big as Arlen, and only the southern and more residental district will be explorable in this version.

Winterveil

• A cozy and touristy town located in the mountains on the western side of the quadrant.

While I don't have much to show for most of these areas, I assure you they will be much different from the places you've explored before! For the explorable area of Levendam in 4.0, I want it to feel like a messy and lived in city, rather than the cleaner and positive vibe you get from Arlen. Winterveil will be a big contrast to Avaros as a snowy town, with a lot of life and positivity.

New Story Content

Like 3.0, this update will introduce four new chapters. But unlike 3.0, 4.0 will include very little changes to previous story content. Updating old story can be very mentally draining, and it's not something I want to do every update. While I've only written about a few pages of the newest chapter, I would like to show off the concept art for two new characters you'll meet in Chapter 28!Xavier (Concept art by PrismShrimp)

"This is your champion speaking." After having his name loosely thrown around in previous story cutscenes, a very sleepy Xavier will finally take the stage in 4.0! What will he bring to the table, you might ask? Well, other than a whole lotta "WHERE THE FCK HAS THIS GUY BEEN" from the rest of the cast, you'll have to wait and see!

Karma (Concept art by PrismShrimp)

"Even without a Pokemon, she still packs a punch!" An alumni of the Izeka guild, she's now Xavier's trusty and reliable apprentice. Although she spent most her time dragging his half asleep self around.

Exploration and Side content rework.

Since 3.0's release, I've received a lot criticism towards the side quests and "filler content" in the story. If you don't know what I mean by "filler", a good example of that would be the numerous trainers on each route, that really only exist to make the game feel less like a cutscene simulator if you only followed the main story. In 4.0, many of the trainers and mandatory wild Pokemon will become completely optional. Will this cut down the time it takes to finish the game if you avoid every piece of side content? Yes. Will this make the main story feel like a cutscene simulator if you avoid every piece of side content? Yes. But as I grow as a developer I grow out of these old philosophies I held onto so dearly.

But if it's all optional, is there even a reason to do it? Absolutely! Allow me to introduce you to... C H E S T S.

Inspired by game's like Genshin Impact and Honkai Star Rail, the old Pokechest is being upgraded into a much bigger feature! While common (currently red) chests will remain just floating around the world, silver, gold and diamond chests will be locked behind trainer/wild Pokemon fights, puzzles, and side quests. Speaking of side quests, the current ones in game will be renamed to "Help Quests" while new and much more interactable quests will be added to make the world feel a bit more alive.Final Notes

Although I mentioned I wouldn't be reworking old story content in 4.0, there may be 1 exception, and that's Chapter 26 and 27. While I don't think I completely fumbled with them, I feel like I didn't exactly nail it properly, and improve upon how the story is presented. Will this be in 4.0? I'm not sure yet, but I'll let you know when I figure it out.But that's all I have left to say for now, I hope you've all been enjoying 3.0!- Ayrei

Hello everyone, in this post I'll be answering some questions that were asked in the feedback survey! There were a lot of them, so I tried my best to answer the most important ones.

What was your inspiration for the story?

The plot was originally inspired by my desire to write something that hasn't really been done before with Pokemon. Sure, you can probably see some similarities i a lot of other fangames, especially early on. But I feel as you progress further and further people start to see how unique it really is. The piece of media that had a pretty big impact on the story was My Hero Academia. It is one of my favorite anime, and what originally drove me to completely restart Vanguard halfway through 2021. Although, I'd say after Chapter 9 is when I started to diverge away from that and started to really figure out how I wanted the story to play out

How long will the game be/how many chapters?

The rough estimate is about 60 chapters with Five Acts. The story past Act III has all it's major events planned and I know how and when I am going to end it.

Will you add the non-regional forms of the Pokemon that have regionals?For like 99% of them, no. There are already 1000 Pokemon, on top of the fakemon we are going to continue to add. We simply can't afford to account for everyone's favorite Pokemon.

Will you continue to rework old chapters?Absolutely, but doing so takes a lot of work and mental effort, so I don't think the next version will have very many changes to old story content. I would however like to make changes to Chapter 27, especially the big cutscene.

What was your most favorite part to work on so far?

Probably the Arlen Story Arc rework (chapters 7, 8 and 9) Being able to write and introduce so many new characters in such a short period of time was very fun. Also I really think I nailed the city overworld. Will you add more regional forms of generation 8 and 9 Pokemon?There isn't really a pattern to what mons get regional variants or new evolutions. Ideas sort of get thrown around in a discord channel until one of them gets realized.

Will there ever be multiplayer/ways to trade or battle with others

No.

Will Terastilization be added?No, we have enough gimmicky stuff with the custom moves, abilities, regional forms, megas, and Fakemon.

What is your favorite battle theme in the game?

End of Chapter 14 important character fight :)

Will there be romance in the game?Do I need to make Calvin and Rylas any more obvious? Like c'mon guys...

How big will the game map be?:)What's your favorite regional variant?Cyndaquil

Who is your favorite character?Laurel!

What is your favorite Fangame?Rejuvenation.

When do you think the game will be comple- IDK!!!!!!!!What happened to the other 2 Ameliera cousins in the old versions? (2.3)They were not necessary for the plot, so I axed them.Will the regionals that are mostly recolors get resprited?Yes, a few already have, but keep in mind that this takes time and can't happen all at once.

Will you add following pokemon?No, there are way too many regional forms that we would have to make sprites for.Any news on the next update?Gimme a few days :3Will there be dialogue choices?No, the story will be completely linear.

How long does it take to write the storyIt depends, I usually write the script for the set of chapters in a word doc then event it all in game. So maybe a few days worth of writing for each chapter, but the eventing takes longer.How do you feel about the feedback your community gives you?I appreciate the feedback I get, even when it's somewhat negative. But I think some people need to remember that we all work on this game for free and I'm not going to change/remove fundamental aspects of the game, like the level cap for example, because some players don't like it.Okay, that's it for the questions. I purposely didn't answer any plot related questions, you'll have to figure those out on your own :)

Hello Everyone, we are excited to announce that the Pre-Release of Vanguard 3.0will be available to the public starting May 24th 2024(Or the weekend of).But what is a "Pre-Release"? Well, most of the version is done and ready to be played, but I also would like to give more time to my spriters to finish a few things. So what's done?

• The brand new Story Chapters 24-27

• A complete revamp to half the existing story, with almost every chapter receiving major and minor changes.

• A complete revamp of the Pokemon encounters

• 50-60 New regional Variants/Fakemon

• Changes and overhauls to Expert mode trainer teams

• The Male MC has been upgraded, and the Female MC has been completely re-designed

• Tons of soundtrack updates (no original OST, just changes)

• Updates to almost all of the main cast

• A ton of map changes and redesigns

• New side content

• A revamp to the trainer score rewards

• A brand new Pokedex reward system

• All Monoruns have been taken into consideration, you will now be able to have a unique team of 6 before the first boss on any type

• Probably more stuff I forgot (but I'll edit this when I remember :P)

What's not done?

• Back, party, and shiny sprites for a good couple of new regionals/resprites

• Additional optional bosses

• A few Expert mode teams

Content will be added as it is tested and finished internally. Vanguard 3.0 is a new beginning for the Project, we want as much feedback as possible as we push the game into the future. We hope that despite a few missing pieces, you will play this version anyway, as it is still to our belief an incredible experience. We have also decided to officially rename the game to "Project Vanguard"and will have a new logo to share within the coming weeks. We've also included a FAQ regarding 3.0's release!

Will my old save files transfer over?

There are three conditions to your old save being compatible

- You must have completed Chapter 21

- Your save must have been started on version 1.3 (sept 2022) or later

- You are advised to load your save from either the Vanguard Academy Main Hall, or the Izeka Guild Main Hall

While your save may load if these requirements are not met, I cannot guarantee you will be safe from progression issues.

Is this the completed game?

No

What will happen to my canon mons that get new regionals?

They will be safely overwritten by the new regional variant

Is it suggested to start a new save?

It is heavily advised to start a new or throwaway save file to understand the story changes better.

What is the level cap for the end of the new version?

52, but the 3 level increase is not an accurate representation of how much new story content there is.

How much new story content is there?

There are 4 new chapters after 23, they are about as long as each of the previous Act II chapters. But once again, there is a ton of new story content if you replay the game, as well as a whole new Chapter

There is a brand new chapter in the old content?

- Old Chapters 1-6 are now chapters 1-5, as i felt the old 4 and 5 were short enough to be 1 chapter

- Old Chapter 7 is now chapter 6

- The old Chapter 8 has been heavily extended into 2 chapters, pretty much adding an entire new chapter

Will future updates be as long as this one?

I have plans I do not wish to disclose as the moment, but it is unlikely since I will be taking a break from updating old content, as I belive it sits in a good place at the moment

Can I play this on Joiplay?

While find a proper solution to the Joiplay compatibility issues is something I want to do, it is not currently one of my main priorities, so I cannot confirm or deny it will work. You are welcome to ask for help, but please do not post bugs or direct message any staff or developers if you have an issue on Joiplay

Which difficulty is suggested play on?

Probably expert mode, as normal mode battles haven't been properly updated yet. But if you don't care about the battles and/or are playing for JUST the story and exploration, then casual mode is fine

Final Remarks

- If you did not enjoy what Vanguard had to offer in version 2.3, I highly suggest you give it another go, as once again, it will feel like a different game from the beginning.

- If you enjoyed Vanguard, but didn't think much of it, I think you're really going to enjoy how the game has changed.

- If you really enjoyed Vanguard, and think highly of, then you're in for a wild ride.Finally, I would like to introduce you to our brand new Female Protagonist, Nephele!

Hi everyone! It's been about a month since the last developer post, where I talked about revamping and improving a majority of the game. Today I'm here to talk about what's been done, and what's planned. But first, here are two regional redesigns, and two new regionals from one of our amazing spriters, PrismShrimp!

What's been done

When I wrote last months post, all that had been done was some changes to Chapter 1 and began to revamp Chapter 2. Now, the entire "Vanguard Academy Introduction" arc (chapters 1-6) have been improved. Chapter 7, now "Chapter 6" was also given some hefty changes, but we'll get into the new chapter order while I give a brief overview of the changes.

• Chapter 2 no longer brings you right to Route Two. Instead, you will have to navigate through another area to reach the Academy, along with a new rival battle.

• Chapter 3 has been extended past dealing with a few rats, and Calvin will now join you in your battles.

• Chapter 4 and 5 have been merged into the new Chapter 4. I didn't see anything to add to these chapters, but they felt way to short by themselves.

• Chapter 5, The Bronze exam, is now a gauntlet. Battle your way through a series of trainers and tough wild Pokemon before facing off against Clarity.

• Chapter 6, You and Destiny will be sent to Qyilex to investigate a mysterious location.

There is one more big change in these chapters, but I will be keeping it behind close doors until release. I have a feeling you will all appreciate it though. Finally, I've decided that every Pokemon center will look different from one another. This is to hopefully give each town a unique feeling.

The new Arlen arc (Chapters 7-9)

On top of what I mentioned above, I've also started to work on the newly revamped Arlen story, which comes with a brand new chapter, Chapter 7.The arc will begin like it did before, you and Destiny will be invited to participate in the Arlen Tournament. And that's pretty much where the similarities end. Upon reaching Arlen city via train, you will be greeted by Calvin, who will invite you to a nearby cafe to explain how the city works, after exploring the district and catching up with Zeke and Rylas.

I don't want to spoil too much of the new content, so that's where I'll leave off, with that being only about a 1/4 of the new chapter. So instead I'll dive into a broader overview of all the new Arlen content. The arc will take place over the course of nine days, three days per chapter. Each day you'll do something different with different characters, some who will now appear earlier in the story than before. Chapter 9, the tournament chapter, will be much longer than before, throwing the player into a massive elimination game with a bunch of other trainers, before participating in the main event.

That's about it from me, but below I'll show off the trainer resprites for Calvin (by Prismshrimp), Dareth and Chelsea (by Simonz)!

I'm going to try and do this month by month until the release of 3.0, which no, I don't know the release window for yet. So please don't ask me. Once again, thank you for playing and showing your continued interest!

It's been quite a while since I made one of these posts, and there's a reason why. I usually just don't have enough to talk about, but this time, I have a lot to talk about. So let's dive in.

Ok but real quick, I just want to mention that I'm not messing with save compatibility, since a lot of people are worried about that all of a sudden. Your saves are fine.

A look at the pastI first want to take everyone down memory lane to version 1.1 (January 2022), and if you weren't around during that time, I'll just explain. Back then the game had only around 2,000 downloads and about 300-400 members in the discord server. This was before I had any expectations of the game getting big before it's completion and even aimed to complete it in only a few years.

Around the beginning of February that year, I started to gain a large amount of publicity from youtubers playing Vanguard. While I was excited, I was also panicking. I feared that I would lose player attention quickly due to the lack of content the game had to offer at the time (9 chapters, lvl 25 cap). So I scrambled together an update in about a month and a half. Three short chapters, some new regionals, and very few past content updates. Four months later, came another update: Three short chapters, some new regionals, and very few past content updates. September? Two short chapters, some new regionals, and very few past content updates. November? Two short chapters, some new regionals, and very few past content updates.

Do you see where I'm going with this? Other than the regional variants and fakemon, each update doesn't bring much, and the only trade off is how quickly they come out. I never gave myself time to fix dialogue. I never gave myself time to revamp early parts I was unhappy with.I never gave myself time to fix outdated content. So now, I'm done with this old method.The delayNow to address the elephant in the room, the delay. Vanguard is getting increasingly more popular every day. Having more than doubled the discord server size in the past 3 months, I realized something. I don't want this to be a slightly above average game that people play once and forget about. I don't want this to be a game where people have to force themselves to enjoy certain parts to get to the actual good content. I want this game to be special. So yes, I'm delaying the update. I originally planned to be done around the end of the year, but that would only be new content. I'm going to go back through the first 21 chapters and make a lot of updates, because I'm personally not happy with a lot of it. Over the next few months I'll be keeping you all updated on how each chapter will change.This is for the better. I promise.

Hello everyone! In this developer post I'll be discussing the plans for Vanguard's next update, and answering some questions from the QnA channel in the discord and the feedback survey!

First we obviously need to address the elephant in the room, the "3.0 update". Since I'll be taking more of a quality over quantity approach to the updates now, I'm going to name each one "X.0". That being said, here are some of my loose plans for 3.0:

• Chapters 24 - 27 will be added to the game.

• Maps for chapters 8, 14, and 19 will be updated/remade.

• New cutscenes will be added earlier in the story to cover up some potential plot holes (I will upload the cutscenes to YouTube for people who have no interest in replaying through the game).

• New regional variants (obviously, we just don't know how many yet).

• Player access to Mega Evolution.

I can't really give too much of an estimation on when this update will arrive, but if I were to take a wild guess, probably some time in December.

Now onto the QnA!There will be two parts of the QnA, one where I answer questions and the other where I address concerns.

Questions

Will older sprites, regional variants and characters, be updated in the future?Absolutely, I want to get the simple recolored variants brand new designs, but obviously it can't all be done in a single update. As you've already seen with the recent Totodile and Cyndaquil line re-sprites, we wont be holding them until it's time to release the next big update.

Will you be adding any more new types?No, the biggest reason I added the sound type was to balance out the type chart a bit. Adding anymore new types seems unnecessary and something I don't want to sink a ton of time into.Will (insert mon name) get a variant?

We don't have a full list planned regional variants we abide by. But rest assure that we do plan to give every starter a regional variant, and by the looks of it, an eeveelution of each type is also very possible.Will you ever add following Pokemon?No, never. As well liked as a feature it is, the hurdles it would take to implement them at this point (Both on the coding and graphical side) are just not worth it. Plus it was never a feature I cared to much about anyway.How many chapters will the game have?Approximately 63.Addressing Concerns

Story contentSomething I've seen asked a few times about the story is, "When will this happen" or "when will this get revealed!" First let me start by saying that we are only about 36% of the way through the story, the same story that I have planned up until the very end. Rushing plot points for the sake of pleasing the impatient would only hurt the pacing of the story and provide a worse experience later down the line. Everything you've experienced so far is just the calm before the storm, everything after the 25th chapter will be a never ending rollercoaster. Please bare with me, for just a little longer.Level caps

Oh boy, this is a fun one. Level caps, especially when forced, have always been a touchy subject amongst the fangame community. Whether you feel that they "Limit player freedom" or that they're "fake difficulty" doesn't really matter to me. I force level caps for a few reasons:

• I want to prevent the games difficulty from being avoidable by using methods like over-leveling and/or obtaining stronger evolutions before certain battles (If the fights are too hard for you, just play on an easier difficulty mode).

• I do not want to spend hours trying to balance a level curve, which sounds impossible to balance for players who want to use only a single team of 6 vs players who want to use multiple teams.

• I want to pace progression between chapters.

ExplorationOne of the things I really want to revisit in 3.0 is exploration, and what really makes it enjoyable. Most of the side areas in Vanguard go like this: Walk around, collect chest, fight boss, leave. I want to add things that make side areas feel for exciting to explore. Puzzles, unique items, and distinguishing overworld visuals are all things I'm looking at."Damnit!"

I PROMISE I'M LOOKING AT THESE AND WILL LESSEN THEM!

Pokemon Vanguard 2.3 Update notes 6/29/23

New Content

• 2 new story chapters have been added, Chapter 22 and 23

• Level cap has been increased to 49

• 43 New Regional Variants/Species (199 Total now)

• 8 New story areas to explore

• 2 New side areas to explore

• Added Dens (See more below)

• New QOL feature, the Infinite Repel! Recieved either right after selecting your starter, or by entering the Vanguard Academy Entrance or Koriko outside maps.

Updated Content

• Multiple Important Characters have recieved a visual update/redesign.

• 15 Regional variants have been given a major visual update.

• Encounter rates have been drastically increased across the board. Switching off the Infinite Repel should make Pokemon hunting a quick process.

• The battle AI has been changed, enemy trainers should no longer select random moves.

Dens

• Dens are a new side content option for players to delve into, as well as a unique way to obtain rare Pokemon.

• Dens can be found all around the region, there are currently 20.

• Inside each Den is 1-3 strong Pokemon that you will fight against in a 2v1.

• After completing a Den, you will receive:

  • Trainer Points

    • Trainer Score

      • The level 5 version of the Pokemon you fought, or a choice between them.

Version 2.2 Changelog

IMPORTANT DO NOT UPDATE YOUR GAME WHILE SAVED IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS- Arlen- Route Seven- Avaros Mountain

Graphics quality update

- Overall game and framerate performance has been improved, you will experience a lot less lag than before

- Trees and grass tiles have been updated on most maps

- Backsprites in battle will no longer be "half pixely"

- New weather effects have been added to some maps to add more detail

New Content

- 2 new story chapters have been added, Chapters 20 and 21

- Level cap has been increased to 45

- 16 New Regional Variants/Species (150 Total now)

- 6 New story areas to explore

- New Gamemode, Monotype (See more details below)

Updated Content

- Almost all regional variants have been properly rebalanced

- The Virtual Arena has been removed! Instead, "Super Fans" can be found all over the region. They will look like old gym leaders and use similar teams as them. Defeating one rewards you with Trainer Score, Trainer Points, and a TR which you can buy more of from them for Trainer Points.

- At the end of some numbered routes, an Ace Trainer with some powerful Pokemon will challenge you (This is disabled on casual mode)

- The Pokewheel has been removed. Instead, starters can be purchased for Trainer Points in various locations.

- The stone shop has been disabled, it will return later

- Eevee's evolution method has been changed, it will evolve when leveled to 32 when holding the corresponding gem to the type you want (all of them can be purchased from Pokemon centers)

- You can now choose if you want to set the Ability, Nature, and hidden power type (which is not tied to IV's anymore) when you catch or receive a Pokemon.

- Encounter rates have been lowered

Early game updates

- The PC can now be accessed from Destiny's room

- Berries that resist the type of the next boss can be found in routes beforehand

- Many encounters have been altered for Monoruns

- The first grunt fight has been changed for Monoruns

Map Updates

- An NPC with a "Portable Pokemon Storage" will be placed on routes to avoid unnecessary backtracking

- Route Seven and Avaros Mountain have been extended

- A new segment of Riverside Cross has been added that can be accessed after obtaining rock smash (CH14)

- Arlen has been split into two maps to reduce framerate drops

Expert mode

- Doubles mode is now forced in expert mode

- Items can no longer be used in battle

- After Chapter 7, some important fights will have access to mega evolutions (I am completely open to changing this if it gets out of hand, honestly the AI still sucks so I guess we'll see..)

Monotype Challenge

- When you start a new save, you will be asked if you would like to do a "Monorun".

- A Monorun forces the player to use only Pokemon that are the selected type.

- Pre-evolutions can still be used, for example: if you choose to do a fire mono, you can still use Eevee because it can evolve into Flareon.

- This can always be disabled later, but it can not be re-enabled.

- Encounters have been modified to account for monoruns, a few are still a bit bad early game (Ice, Sound) but I'm open to changes down the road.

- Nincada has been added to the starter pool to account for Mono-bug runs.

- Trade NPC's in monoruns will instead just give you the Pokemon (since the traded Pokemon might be restricted)

- A full monotype guide will soon be available on the spreadsheet guide.

Hi everyone! My name is Ayrei and I'm excited to launch the first Developer Question and Answer!

What inspired you to make this game?

I was inspired by a lot of things, pieces of fiction I liked, as well as other Pokemon fangames. I saw concepts displayed that made me think "this is cool, but what if I could do it better?" I wanted to write a story that would stand out, which is mainly why I took the "no gyms" path because let's be honest how many fangames have overused the traditional concept?

Where is the story going?

I think I have to remind everyone that the story isn't even halfway done. In fact, chapter 19 barely marks the first third of the story. I know people want plot twists and big moments but if I break away from my plan the story will just lose its way. I need this time to develop characters and conflicts, flesh out the region's lore, and make it understandable before I dump a new load of information on everyone. Just trust me that I have everything planned, obviously the reveal, and even the ending.

Will there be Megas/Z-Moves/Dynamax/Terastilization?

Dynamax? No. Z-moves? Maybe. But the other two will definitely make their way into the game at some point. I teased mega's for regional Noctowl and Fearow during 2.0's development phase and I want to make more for the regionals. Altaria and Butterfree will have mega-evolutions, but I can't think of any others right now. I am hoping to introduce mega evolution in 2.2 as a main story quest reward. As for Terastilization, I'm still waiting for a stable script/plugin to be released since I don't have the knowledge or time to make it myself.

Will there be romance?

This is a question I get from just about everyone who has a lot of interest in the story. But I need to explain that just because two or more characters have a close connection to each other doesn't mean that they're in love. It's also worth mentioning that all of the main characters are still 16/17 years old and much more focused on their goals than developing romantic feelings for each other. But I'm not going to leave everyone hanging with that, yes there will be romance, but I promise you that I can make romance subtle and wholesome without it feeling cringe and WITHOUT it feeling like A GODDAMN FANFICTION.Will there be a post-game?

Unfortunately, the best answer I can give to this is that I'm simply just not there yet. But if I were to make a postgame I don't think it would continue the story but just add a bunch of content to do. And if I do make a post-game, I will not lock any regionals or non-legendary Pokemon behind it.

What inspires the sidequests?Honestly.. nothing really. The sidequests are mainly meant to just be more stuff for the player to do, and it's the only relation to the story is that they're just basic tasks you would be expected to accomplish as a Trainer. I put a lot more focus into the main story.

Will more characters get the full art cutscenes like Rylas and Destiny?

I'm not happy with the art ATM, but maybe sometime in the future. It's something I want to do, but not something I have the resources for.

Do you respond to bugs quickly?

Even after a new update releases, I'm still at my PC for the next few hours to fix anything that comes up, but after that, It depends on the scale of the issue. If a bug is game-breaking I will look into it immediately, if it's something small that barely affects gameplay then I will provide clarity and usually just wait for more to be posted so I can fix them all at once because to be honest, I would rather not post "patch 2.1.67" after only a month.

Will you take Fakemon/Regional variant suggestions?If someone comes to me with a concept that they're willing to sprite or have already sprited then I'm pretty on board with it, otherwise, I don't really take suggestions unless they pique my interest. And with the total Pokemon count being over 1000 now, I'm pretty set on the number of fakemon that currently exist in-game.

What is your favorite regional variant in Vanguard?Either Conkeldurr or Roserade, the level of detail is nuts! Also, the first, and one of the few, regionals I made myself, Swablu, holds a special place.

What is your favorite official Pokemon game?

Mainline: BW2Non-Mainline: Explorers of sky

Favorite Pokémon from each Generation?

I: Pidgeot

II: Umbreon

III: SceptileIV: Bidoof

V: ExcadrillVI: GogoatVII: MudsdaleVIII: CentiscorchIX: ShroodleFavorite Legendary: LugiaAnd for the final question...How Dark will the story be?

Let's say I was to rate the story's dark/edginess to 1-10, 1 being like Pokemon Emerald, and 10 being Reborn. I would say we start the story at around a 4 and slowly make our way to an 8.5 at the end. But I want to clarify that things will happen for a reason. I plan to shift the entire tone of the narrative in chapter 27, but I don't plan on killing people or characters for no reason. We're this far in and the only death at this point was a random grunt which was to signify how mentally unstable Rylas has become, and even afterward she still immediately regrets it. But that's just the beginning. Death isn't meant to make the story "darker", it's meant to push the narrative and character development forward.

Hello everyone, it's been a little while since I've made one of these, but I got a whole lot of details to share about the next update, so get ready to dig in!

So I'm sure the first question everyone has is, "When is the update coming out?" well dear player, I have just the answer! Version 2.0 will release in early November! So let's quickly go over some of the new content coming to the game.Main story content

Version 2.0 will launch with the introduction to Act II, being two new story chapters. I have estimated that the new story content will be around two hours long. While that might not seem like a lot, I hope you all can agree with me that two hours of new story content after only two months is a pretty good deal. But please remember that I'm only referring to new story content and there will be other new things to do in the game as well.Gauntlets

Gauntlets are the new gimmick coming to the game that will make weaker Pokemon viable in interesting ways and give already strong Pokemon more opportunities to gain value in battles.

Gauntlets are a Pokemon-Family-specific gimmick, meaning a "Wurmple Gauntlet" will only provide buffs to the Wurmple evolution family. If you're curious about how Gauntlets will work, you can visit this page to see each of their effects.

Memory Rifts

After completing Act I of the story, you will unlock memory rifts. Interacting with a memory rift will allow you to rematch important trainers that you would usually only fight once in the main story. Upon defeating a memory rift, you'll receive trainer points, trainer score, and sometimes even a Gauntlet. You'll be able to battle memory rifts for additional trainer points as many times as you want.Ingame Character Art

As the plot thickens and our characters develop, it only feels right that you should be able to understand them from a perspective other than a top-down pixelated chibi. Some characters, including the main four (Destiny, Calvin, Zeke, and Rylas) will receive in-game art that will appear on the screen when a vital moment in the plot occurs.That will conclude this development blog, but don't worry I'll be keeping you all up to date with the smaller details about the update in the discord before the release. Thank you all for playing and continuing to support the game!

Hi everyone thanks for taking the time to read this! Today I'll be sharing information about the new Gimmick being introduced next update, and changes to difficulty that will be made!

GauntletsGauntlets are the brand new battle gimmick that will be introduced in the next update, version 2.0! Gauntlets are Pokemon family specific, meaning their effects will only apply to the Pokemon who the Gauntlets are named after, and their pre-evolutions. Gauntlets will provide special buffs to Pokemon that can increase the value gained from them in battle, or change how they can be played a bit. In version 2.0, 12 Gauntlets, 10 of which will be obtainable, will be added to the game. If you would like to learn more about what each Gauntlet will do, click here to visit the spreadsheet!

Battle AI

While I haven't heard anyone specifically complain about it, from my experience and just watching other play, the AI is garbage. I'm about 90% certain it literally selects random moves, which is something that wild Pokemon are supposed to do, but most trainers are set to the highest skill level. I'm currently experimenting with a new AI script, but it's somewhat outdated so hopefully I'll be able to get a better understanding of if it works or not during beta testing.

Difficulty changesDifficultly modes are a core part of Vanguard battle design, so I'm going to explain what's going to happen with each individual mode, separately.Casual mode

Casual mode is designed to give players who don't have knowledge of or don't want to focus on the innerworkings of the battle system (EV's, IV's, natures, etc.). Since no one has made any complaints about casual mode, I likely won't be making any changes to it. Please let me know if you believe I am incorrect and I will make the changes!

Experienced mode

Experience mode is designed to give players an experience equal or a bit high in difficulty to the more challenging mainstream titles (Platinum, BW2, Emerald, etc.). Therefore, I will be making slight additions to how difficulty will fare in Experienced mode. For example, starting in Southeast, all regular trainers will have atleast four Pokemon and each with perfect IV's.Expert mode

Expert mode is designed to give players a challenging experience that relies on them needing to invest EV training and Good IV's into their Pokemon, aswell as swapping out team members for different challenges. Coming next update, each main story boss will have either a Gauntlet or access to Mega evolution (and maybe both in the future). I may also take different approaches such as granting a few boss mons an illegal number of EV's. While some of this may sound unfair, you also must consider the options you have and will have access to. On top of a collection of slightly overpowered regional variants, you'll have gauntlets of your own, easy access to EV training, a plethora of exp candies to make team swapping a piece of cake, and coming next update, IV boosting items and nature changing mints. Oh and let's not forget.. the AI isn't a real person..That's about it for this developer update, I would greatly appreciate any feedback on the changes list!

Hi everyone! Thank you for taking the time to read this, as I have some news about how I'll be handling future updates and what will actually be in them. But first, enjoy these screenshots of from two new story maps in the upcoming version 2.0! (Still a bit WIP!)

Alright now onto the first thing I want to bring up. There has been a bit of confusion about save compatibility, so allow me to quickly answer your questions in a short F.A.Q. format.Can I use my save file from version 1.2 or older in version 1.3?No

Can I use my save file from version 1.2 or older in future versions?

No

Can I use my save file from version 1.3 in the upcoming version 2.0?

Yes!

Can I use my save file from version 1.3 or newer in future versions?

Yes!

So is the game worth investing in right now?

Yes!

Next up, I want to go over the new update format. Ever since the initial revamp in August of 2021, I've been delivering three chapters per update. That's going to change with 2.0! From now on I'll be releasing two chapters per update. Before you make any assumptions, let me just explain a few reasons as to why.

• Future chapters will be longer than previous ones.

• The quicker I'm able to put out content the more motivated I am to keep working.

• You guys will only have to wait around 7-8 weeks for new content.

On top of the first point, I already completely planned out the content for the next four chapters, so yes I am aware of their lengths. As for what will actually be in the update, you'll have to wait a bit longer for me to go over that. Anyways, that's about it for now! Hope you all are enjoying 1.3!

~ Ayrei

Hello Everyone, It's been a little while since I've actually posted anything regarding the next update, but I'm back and ready to share some things about both this and coming updates..! So first, please enjoy some screenshots from 1.3!

Upcoming ContentWith Essentials v20 now being released, I've done a bit of thinking and I've decided to change what will be added when and where. I'd like to share what I have planned for the next 2 big updates.- Update v1.3 (July 2022)- 3 new Chapters (13, 14, 15)- Conclusion to Act I- New Protagonist Sprites!

- New/Updated Sprites for Rylas, Destiny, and Calvin.- New Regional Variants

- Oceia city remake

- New Sidequests in South West Ayrei- Updates to the Virtual Arena and other side areas- Update v2.0 (Fall 2022)

- 2 new Chapters (16, 17)- Introduction to Act II

- New Gimmick (Gauntlets)

- Introduction to South East Ayrei- Arlen city remake

- New Regional Variants

New Character Sprites!I've finally gotten around to making new sprites for the Important new characters of the story! While these are mostly edits to custom sprites from public assets (which will be credited obv.) I'm doing my best to give every important character a unique look! I do also plan to give more context on the protagonist character in the future.

A delay on Gauntlets?While I stated Gauntlets would be included in 1.3 in the last post, I'm going to push them back an update. The reason for this is because Gauntlets will be the first unique mechanic coded into the game. With an update to the engine out, I have plans to port to v20 next update but doing so isn't a simple process. Long story short, it will be much less tedious for me to create this new mechanic AFTER I've updated to v20.

Final notesI know I didn't show off too much but I'm keeping about 95% of the new content behind closed doors for now, and that's simply because I want a lot of the new stuff to be a surprise for everyone. I've finished Chapter 13 and am about halfway through Chapter 14's content. I'll be honest, 14 has probably been my favorite chapter to write so far, so I'm really looking forward to everyones reactions once it's all public.

Hello friends, 1.2 was released only 5 days ago and realistically I bet some people aren't even finished with the content. But let's talk about 1.3 content :D (No 1.2 spoilers ahead!)

A Conclusion to the First Story Arc

I'd like to take a moment to appreciate the people who have taken a liking to the story in its current state. So what's next? No spoilers, but these next three chapters will conclude the first arc of the overall story. If you're unfamiliar with what that means, I'll try my best to explain: Rather than having a story, with a single climax, major antagonist, and group group of characters, you'll instead have the story split into multiple parts, each with their own major conflict and end goal.

Act 1 will conclude the major story events in South Western Ayrei.

Gauntlets

The biggest new feature of 1.3 will be a new gimmick I'll be introducing called Gauntlets. Gauntlets are special Pokemon evolution line specific items that grant unique stat boosts and/or buffs. The primary objective of Gauntlets is to add buffs to Pokemon that don't make them super powerful from the get-go, and increase their power in important trainer fights.

Here are a few Gauntlet examples:Unfezant Gauntlet - Doubles Special attack

Raticate Gauntlet - Raises Defense and Special Defense by one stage when a tail move is used.

Arbok Gauntlet - Grants priority to Biting moves

Fearow Gauntlet - Raises Special Defense by 50% and heals for 1/4 of the damage it deals with attacks.

Abomasnow Gauntlet - Doubles speed and increases defensive stats by 50% during a hailstorm

While Gauntlets will be a more balanced alternative to mega evolution and dynamax, you wont be able to obtain all of them just next update.

IV's and Natures

Alright let's be honest here, who doesn't love spending 50 minutes looking for the perfect Pokemon with decent IV's, a good nature, and the right ability. Wait.. you don't? Cool neither do I, which is exactly why I'm bringing a change to the IV system.

As shown in the image, all Pokemon you catch will start at 19 IVs, and using IV gummies that can be found around the region and bought with trainer points, you can increase them. Additionally, nature changing mints can be found found around the region and also bought with trainer points.

Side Content

I'm just going to say it, I hate making side quests. It's tedious, unfun, and boring. 1.3 and further update will likely not include new side quests. HOWEVER, when I refer to side quests I am not talking about ALL side content. Side exploration areas, future virtual gym challenge content, wild boss battles, and even more, will still be 100% expanded upon.Final Notes

There's a few more additional things coming to the 1.3 update that aren't big enough for me to go into detail about so I'll just list them here:- More Regional Variants (obviously)- Access to the final evolutions of starters- Every Pokemon will be able to evolve at least once by next updates level cap- Two new expanded difficulty options added to both casual and expert mode.

Hi everyone, before we begin I just want to say thank you for showing interest in the project in its current state. Yesterday we hit 10,000 downloads, which is an absolutely crazy number and something I didn't expect to see until I was at least a quarter way through completion. With that out of the way, lets talk about something exciting, content lock.Content lock is basically the point in development in the where I actually know what is going to be in the next update. You might think that should be a pretty early point in planning, and I guess you aren't wrong, but I got a bit ahead of myself so I decided to changed a few things.So what will be included in the next update? Here's a somewhat detailed list!- 3 New story chapters- All 24 starters available- Level cap raised to 30- 189 Pokemon available, including regional variants, but not including starters.

- 36 Regional variants (increasing the total to 68)

- Balance changes for EVERY non regional - Evolution changes that work around the Level caps- Five sizeable new side areas to explore!

- EV Training

- Free Move relearners in every Pokemon Center

- Fast Travel

Yeah those are the big ones, I could totally be missing some small stuff but if so then I'll address that later.

There is something else that I wanted to talk about, which might disappoint some of you. With all the new side content that I'm bringing to life in this update, there are a few things that I'm going to be pushing back, and normally I just wouldn't bring them up but some of it is already in the game. I'm talking about the Battle Dojo, and Trainer Score/Trainer Points. I know that those are two concepts that I've created a bit of hype around for those interested, but with everything else it just feels overwhelming to even think about. Both Trainer score and Trainer Points will still be available and given to the player internally. Any mention of it will be remove to well.. remove confusion. I hope you guys understand, and I promise they will be a big feature in the future <3.I don't have much else to say other than development has been going very well. While I'm now very against giving out a release window, I'll just say that I'll be reaching the finish line for the update quicker than I had originally anticipated. But for now, enjoy a few screenshots from the side content our mappers have been working hard on, and an updated region map!

Once again, thank you all for the continued support, and I'll do my best to give you guys content as soon as I can!

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another development blog for Pokémon Vanguard! I've made extensive progress over the past month since 1.1's release completing every indoor map redo and nearly every new map! We've also completed nearly every regional planned for next update leaving just a few shiny sprites to be made. The only thing left to do is eventing and trainer teams, which shouldn't take too long since I know exactly what I'm going to do with each of those. While I don't wanna show off too much new content, have a look at a stylish new update to the Academy.

Yep, the stretched building tile I lazily added originally is finally gone! And enjoy these screenshots from the interior and exterior courtyards!

You heard him, different Pokemon will appear in each courtyard, adding a plethora of variety!

So what else? Well for the past few weeks in the discord, I've been mentioning the return of all starters being available. While this is in fact true, I've gone through and given some updates to each starter.

Want a super fast Froakie that plays around critical hits? A hard hitting HP tank Tepig? A Bulbasaur that ACTUALLY learns special attack moves? Each starter has been updated to add move diversity to the pool of 24 allowing you to choose from sweepers, tanks, all rounders, and more. On top of that, each starter has been given a 3rd ability (regionals will get overgrow/blaze/torrent as their third just didn't get to editing that yet). And yes as you may have noticed, Protean was removed from Froakie, but him and other starters will have other methods of balancing given to them to compensate for their possibly/already removed abilities. All of these images will be visible when given the option to pick your starter.

While I don't have any images to show off for this final one, I would like to announce that a third difficulty mode will be added to Vanguard 1.2, Expert Mode. Expert mode will bring forth the full potential of regional variants and Pokemon updates hopefully creating a truly difficult experience. With this, both Casual and Normal (will be renamed "experienced") modes will receive a few changes since there is a third option now.

That's all for now, and I do wanna also say thank you for 7.8k downloads and 960 discord members as I'm currently writing this! ~ Ayrei

Hi everyone! My name is Ayrei, the lead developer of Pokemon vanguard! I handle mapping, story writing, balancing of trainer battles and regional variants, and well... pretty much everything that isn't spriting or script (code) writing. For a while I used the discord to post progress updates, but as time went on, I needed a better way of expressing my work. So from now on all progress updates will be written here, and in a much more detailed format! But with that out of the way, lets talk about 1.2.Regional VariantsThe feature that seems to get people excited the most is regional variants, or more canonically referenced as "Genetically modified Pokemon". I have around 20 new variants already sprited for the next update with 2 or 3 more to go. Most of them are sprited by Celestial Fearow and I have a few other new ones by our new spriter chobbis3!

These are only a small few of what to expect from the next update. For those of you who prefer the old regional Butterfree over the new one that's coming, don't worry you'll still keep yours, and for those that haven't already obtained it, you'll be able too get a special Metapod from a quest that will evolve into the old Butterfree.Map Updates

I've gone ahead and updated every indoor map from the previous version, but on top of that I've also updated a few overworld maps. The updates to the indoor maps will include a lot more things to interact with than before, rewarding you for that extra exploration!

That's right, inside houses you'll be able find things like Pokeballs, Healing Items, Berries, Money, Exp Candies, and even the occasional pests...I'll leave at this for now, as much as I want to talk about other features I have planned, I want to save those until I have them more fleshed out. Until next time, and I hope you're all currently enjoying the game!~ Ayrei