video;

[schachmeister]

[It's a video. It's also an Armin. He's been here for a cool four years now so most of you should be familiar with this round head.]

Ah, hello. As many of you may already know, I run a little Lapras breeding project to help boost their numbers in the wild. In fact, I just released my latest group of yearlings into wild pods. I guess it's not much, but it's eleven more wild Lapras.

[A slightly abashed and pleased smile.]

But now that I've released my yearlings, I'm down to just three young ones, so it's time for me to expand the pod again. I already have two breeding males and five breeding females, but I was hoping to see if anyone else has any Lapras they wouldn't mind having me breed to produce more eggs for the project. I prefer breeding them all together so they can grow up and learn from each other and eventually go into wild pods in little groups or two or three.

So, if anyone out there has a Lapras and wouldn't mind helping out, please let me know. I am aiming to hatch my new batch of eggs in October, so it's important for me to start working out the logistics now. Of course, if you'd like to hear more about the project first, I can do that too. Just drop me a line and thank you in advance.

Comments

[forsaintcecilia]

I'm sure Shimizu wouldn't mind hanging with your Lapras for awhile! He's not related to any of them, so he'd be good for breeding, right?

[schachmeister]

I was hoping I'd hear from you.

And yes, Shimizu would be perfect. I'm sure he'd produce some adorable babies.

[forsaintcecilia]

Hehe, he looks like such a show pony out with your battle-hardened wild Lapras. But he loves being with the pod.

It sounds like they're doing great as always-- how about your Gym?

[schachmeister]

I wouldn't call most of mine battle-hardened exactly. It's mostly just Skye and Duscae.

[Though that does leave Shimizu as the twinky pretty boy among warrior hunks.]

It's been constructed as we speak. They said it might take a bit longer than gyms on the mainland because we are so far out here, but the construction crew assures me they'll get it done. It kind of seems like they like the challenge?

[forsaintcecilia]

I may not be a trainer, but I'd love to visit when it's done! It's such a unique concept, being so far off shore.

[schachmeister]

I'd be happy to show you around. Maybe a few of my pokemon could even spar underwater so you could see what it is like.

Plus, I think you'll like my aquarium.

[forsaintcecilia]

I'm sure I will! They have some really cool ones in Japan, I kinda miss visiting them every now and again.

...Oh! And I wanted to thank you again for your donation towards my project. I think I've found a good location in Azelea Town!

[video]

[paladinlost]

I've no doubt Tida and Shiva would be happy to help your project directly. With Lapras partners, they'll even be able to pass on all their TM moves to their children, if that's a factor you need to account for.

[video]

[schachmeister]

I'd be very grateful for their help. Are they both female or a male and a female?

And I don't really take passing on TMs or egg-moves into account while breeding for this project. After all, all of these Lapras are supposed to go back into the wild, not end up battling in gyms.

[Not that he can prevent them being caught later on after he has released them, but at the very least, it's not something he is interested in.]

[video]

[paladinlost]

It might not be worth noting for battling purposes, in this case, but there's also the matter of safety. Those two will pass on Electric-type moves, along with other delights such as Hyper Beam, and newly-hatched Pokémon can be rather careless. I'd not want them to be responsible for property damage or accidental injuries.

[Dealing with one egg is one thing, but multiple clutches at once... Then again, perhaps the situation is not quite so dire when they're not egged on by a very enthusiastic team.]

They both are female, by the way. A mother and daughter pair, with Tida as the eldest.

[video]

[schachmeister]

I appreciate the warning. Thankfully, I'll be keeping them at my new gym, so there is very little property there for them to damage. I also depend a lot on the leader of my pod. Skye was formerly trained as a gym pokemon, so he has a lot of experience which he uses to help teach the young ones to use their powers responsibly.

[Armin quickly jots down Tida and Shiva's genders on the list he's keeping for himself.]

Great. And, uhm, this might be really forward to ask, but... do you happen to have a Ditto?

[video]

[paladinlost]

That's good to hear. With such experience, I've no doubt he'll be up to the task. With any luck, they'll also have pliable personalities and a lack of interest in mischief.

[However, the moment Armin mentions a Ditto, his expression switches to sheer alarm.]

If you must know, I do. But its behavior... In the presence of Pokémon that are not aware of its interests, it may act inappropriately.

[video]

[schachmeister]

[That look of sheer panic is very unsettling.]

Uh. Just how inappropriate are we talking about here?

video

[fearinahandfulof]

Lapras breeding?

video

[schachmeister]

Yes. Someone... I admired a lot actually was the one to start up this particular project, but I took over when he left this world. Making sure certain species didn't go extinct in the wild was something he cared for greatly, both in his own world and this one.

[fearinahandfulof]

Oh.

How many Lapras do you need for something like that? [And then she looks chagrined and answers her own question.] As many as possible.

[schachmeister]

Ideally, yes. But it is also important to breed a wide variety of Lapras to be released into the wild. It's not helpful to raise their numbers only to give them inbreeding issues.

[fearinahandfulof]

[Cassandra actually does remember a little about livestock. Only a little, though.]

That would make them sick, wouldn't it? Or more prone to it.

[schachmeister]

Yes. Even if they don't get sick from it, in the long term it could mean they are less adaptable to changes in their environment.

video

[un_oiseau_rebelle]

Are Lapras very endangered? I don't think I've seen one before.

video

[schachmeister]

They are. Unfortunately because of their gentle natures, they became a very desirable pokemon to own. People caught them in huge numbers from the wild, either to sell them or to keep, and it was more than their population could sustain. Luckily, protections have been put into place, but their wild populations still need time to recover.

Re: video

[un_oiseau_rebelle]

I see.

[That's probably why he hasn't seen any as yet.]

Have the protections been working well so far?

video

[schachmeister]

It looks to be. Their numbers haven't been dropping anymore, so that's good. Unfortunately, they aren't a species that produces a lot of eggs, so it's going to take a while for them to really be out of the woods. Right now their low numbers still leave them vulnerable to other threats.

video

[un_oiseau_rebelle]

They need a lot of room, don't they?

Re: video

[schachmeister]

They do. They are pretty big pokemon, and they live in large pods.