III. THE POKEMON & BATTLE SYSTEM

[Anrui Staff]

POKEMON

General Information

» Anrui's naturally warmer climate has resulted in a different colouration of the Pokemon here. The change is irreversible, and we expect you to use the sprites via the coding system we have here. You're free to use normal sprites in your PC, whatever, but we would definitely prefer it if you used our sprites for IC posts.

» You may only carry 6 Pokemon with you at a time. However, the Pokevice you are given, which is explained in a different section of the handbook, allows one to swap out and replace Pokemon after one hour in Anrui has passed.

This hour can range from a single post to an entire page, so be cautious. During battles of any kind, you are locked out from swapping Pokemon until it ends. It is advised to be realistic with the amount of time passing during your posts. If needed, play out whatever scenario is occurring and count your minutes from there.

» Your character’s ability to understand pokemon is dependent mostly on realism. In general, people who are around pokemon more often are better at understanding them then people who are not. It is possible but very rare for a character to understand pokemon word for word, especially since people with this ability are and have been particularly targeted by plasma.

» A lot of pokemon in Anrui have a little bit of an attitude problem. If they're ten levels above your loose average team level please keep in mind they probably won't be listening to you. Some pokemon even go as far as to attack their trainers or their pokemon so having one high level outlier is usually a bad idea.

Abilities and Moves

» If a Pokemon has two abilities, it is allowed to keep both. For example, a Ralts can have both Synchronize and Trace. If it naturally has both BUT it has a Hidden/Dream Ability you'd rather have, you may buy the appropriate TM on the black market to switch one of the normal abilities for a Hidden/Dream Ability. If your pokemon has one natural ability, you may buy the TM to add the Hidden/Dream Ability. Don't forget, to activate an ability you must reference it in character in your post. Both abilities may be active, but for ones such as Plus and Minus, an additional Pokemon with either ability must be active with the partner Pokemon in battle.

For example, a trainer uses Plusle and Minun. Both abilities activate. Plusle is switched out for a Klink. Despite having the same ability, Klink gets the bonus. And, if Klink was instead a Mareep, a bonus is still granted.

» Each Pokemon can have a maximum of six naturally learned moves, plus four moves taught by TMs.
For example, a Charizard's moveset could be: Dragon Claw, Shadow Claw, Air Slash, Heat Wave, Flare Blitz, Flamethrower (naturally learned), PLUS Toxic, Solarbeam, Earthquake, and Focus Blast (TM taught moves).
So your grand total would be 10 moves (6 naturally learned, 4 TMs/HMs).
Egg moves count as naturally learned.
Tutor moves count as TM/HM.

Eggs

» You may breed your pokemon in Utopia. Please make sure to follow the rules described there.

» In order to hatch your egg, you have two options; either way, you must mention it in your character's IC posts a certain number of times. If you mention it ten times, the pokemon will hatch at level 01 with a random egg move generated by a mod. If you mention it fifteen times, it will hatch at level 05 with no extra moves. You can use multiple threads to do this but you must mention how your character interacts with it in each post, and you cannot request a move for your level 01 pokemon until it hatches.

» Please note that premade pokemon are unable to breed.

Evolution

» Evolution happens right on time and in the exact same manner as the games. If it's by level, then increase your Pokemon's level until it evolves. You do not need to make a new post or include the info in a post (unless you want to), simply update your PC to reflect your Pokemon's progress.

» Happiness evolution is a little trickier as you have to complete two specifications. One, you must own the pokemon for at least one month. Sound easy enough? Good. Two, you must earn at least seven hearts for a baby pokemon (that's a pokemon that cannot breed because it is considered a "baby"), and ten hearts for any other pokemon. Hearts are, of course, little indicators that mark events between you and your pokemon and can be earned a number of ways. Some common heart-obtaining methods include:

Hatching the pokemon from an egg: 2 hearts

For each ten times you mention the pokemon in your threads: 1 heart

Completing (and winning) a battle: 2 hearts

Fighting in a gym battle: Will go half a heart up from each gym leader (1/2 heart for Pixen, 1 for Resix, 1 1/2 for Rui, etc).

Participating in a Galleon Gardens thread with that Pokemon gaining the levels: 1 heart

Participating in a successful mission: 1 heart

Additionally, if this Pokemon is in a Luxury Ball or a Friend Ball or if they carry a Soothe Bell, the hearts that you earn are doubled. So for winning a battle you'd get 4 hearts.

These effects DO NOT stack. You cannot use both a soothe bell and a luxury/friend ball. You will literally be wasting one or the other, because the effect doesn't stack.


» Alternatively, if they happen to evolve by using a stone or trading, those can be done at any level or stage. Be wary of moves, though. Some stone evolutions stop natural move learning, and if you're not careful, you'll be stuck with just 4 TM moves. You still need the stone or to trade, though - they can just be done at any level.

[Anrui Staff]

BATTLING

[atrb=border,0,true] Guidelines This illustrated guide is to help people from getting confused. You don't have to follow this exactly, but it's a good idea to read through it at least once and try to stick to it loosely. It's not "THE RULES LOL", it's more of a guideline to make sure you're not using an ungodly amount of attacks per turn and godmoding. » So you're battling, right? It's a vital part of the RPG - battling serves many purposes. You can display your 1337 writing skills, show off your elite team of pokemon, gain levels, beat gyms, etc. We wouldn't get anywhere without battling. However, have you ever encountered something like this: You're battling another trainer. You're using Charmander, they're using Sandshrew. Since you're a bit of a newbie, you feel like you need some levels, and what better way to do that than to battle somebody else! You're all set, pumped to go. Your have Charmander use Ember, and get something like this in response... "Sandshrew gracefully dodged the ember attack, using it's strong tail to propel itself into the air. It came down on Charmander, striking it hard with it's razor-sharp claws. Scratch attack was brutal - Sandshrew wasted no time in dealing out major damage. The trainer grinned, before calling out another order. 'Poison Sting!' Ground-type nodded, barely finished with the previous attack, and fired off a round of noxious darts that sunk into Charmander's thin orange skin, badly poisoning it...." That doesn't really seem fair, does it? An evasion tactic, and two attacks! Not to mention the slight powerplaying (which was added because it's just an illustration - the actual post wouldn't have the powerplaying in it). You only used a simple ember attack, and the nasty Sandshrew triple-teams you with a barrage of attacks. It's pretty common to use several attacks at once, but we've seen some people get carried away with the amount of attacks used in a one-on-one battle. Naturally the rules change a bit for two-vs-two*, but we're sticking to one-on-one here... Things to do per turn » You know in the games how you can do ONE attack per turn, be it an attacking move, a status move or an item. Well, here it's a bit different. A "turn" counts as a post. A single post is your "turn", and there are a few things you can do during it. This may seem like common sense, but you'd be surprised at how many people don't realize this... » Deal Damage. You can use one damage-dealing attack. Not two. Not three. Not any more than one. Scratch, Ember, Quick Attack, anything that deals damage. Direct or Indirect, you get ONE per turn. You can also substitute your damage-dealing attack with any other Pokémon attack (double team, recover, substitute, sand attack, whatever), although that brings us to our next point... » Non-damage Attack + Attack. Sometimes, it's better to use a "status-affecting" attack in conjunction with a damage-dealing attack. You could use swords-dance and quick attack in the same turn, for example. Or double team and slash. Or screech and scratch. Or endure and reversal. One status-affecting attack and a damage-dealing attack. There are exceptions, though. Just use your head. » Uber-tactics. There are certain attacks that aren't really fair to get to use with a damage-dealing attack. These include Recover (or any healing move), Protect (or any cheap move like that), Substitute/Minimize (cheap), etc. You can use one of these per turn, or a maximum of three recovery moves per battle. You can't use one of these attacks along with a damage-dealing attack in the same turn. Remember, we're only talking about one-on-one battles (one Pokémon vs one pokemon), so naturally if you're using two Pokémon vs two pokemon, one could use a recovery move and the other could attack. Again, common sense. » Items. Since items are one time use, you may use as many items as you want during the battle. It's generally frowned upon and isn't in good taste to keep using full restores until you win, though, so do it at your own risk. Beware though. Using an item means you forfeit your right to do any other actions during your turn. That's right kids, using a full restore means you can't attack! Onoez! » Dodge + Attack. If the situation calls for it, you may dodge your opponents attack and come back with an attack of your own. This can be any kind of attack from any of the categories listed above (except b - you can't use two attacks as well as dodge). You can use a damage dealing move, a status-affecting move, an uber move, or an item. » Switch + Attack. You may switch your Pokémon out, defeated or not, and use the new one to attack with. It can use any combination of attack patterns listed, including B. Although if the Pokémon you've returned already attacked, then the one switching in forfeits its right to attack. One or the other folks. » Mega Evolve + Attack. See the 'Mega Evolution' section below for more information. *Concerning 2vs2: The same rules all apply, however we've found that if an attack your pokemon is using doesn't say it hits multiple targets in its description, then you can only aim at ONE opponent with it. That doesn't mean you can't still get creative with it, however.

Status Ailments

Okay, we all know that it sucks when your Pokemon is hit with a Paralysis or Confused status. Thing is. . . when do we let it stop? This is to help you. Only up to two ailments may affect one Pokemon at the same time. They will be ONE offensive, and ONE defensive.

Ex: Burn ailment + Sleep ailment.
Poison ailment + Freeze ailment.
Curse ailment + Paralysis ailment.

Note that Offensive Ailments in one way or another, take away health, while Defensive Ailments merely affect if they're able to retaliate, etc.

»Burn: The burn inflicts some damage each turn. That means 1 round of your turn and your opponent's. Now, a burn will probably hurt those that are super effected by fire, right? Right. Just go with it. Can only be healed during the battle with a Burn Heal or Rawst Berry.

» Freeze: The pokemon that is frozen cannot move or attack in any way. They will thaw naturally in 3 of your turns just to simplify things. That means you'll do a "Turn pass 1/3", "Turn pass 2/3", etc. You may RP your pokemon naturally thawing out by the 3rd turn. They may attack after that. If the pokemon is weakened against ice, the turn pass will be upped to 4.

» Paralysis: There's technically a 1/4 chance the pokemon afflicted cannot attack. Since no one wants to flip a real quarter, we'll just say you can't attack for 2 of your turns. This follows the same "Turn pass" deal as mentioned above. If the pokemon is weakened against electric, the turn pass will be upped to 3. Electric Pokemon cannot be paralyzed naturally.

» Poison: It gradually lowers the pokemon's health until it faints. You'll be stuck with this throughout the entire battle. Your only choice would be to use an Antidote or Pecha Berry to get rid of it. Pokemon super effected by poison will have more energy that is lowered.

» Badly Poisoned: Same deal as above, but this time, the energy that is lost gradually increases throughout the turn. That means that the longer your pokemon is badly poisoned, the quicker your pokemon will faint. You should definitely have an Antidote or Pecha Berry handy in case this happens. Attacks that give such a status are Poison Fang, Toxic, and Toxic Spikes.

» Sleep: Your pokemon will be asleep for 3 turn passes. If the Early Bird ability is in play, it cuts down to 2 turn passes.

» Attract: If the gender of the pokemon isn't opposite to yours when the attack Attract is used, it won't fucking work. I don't care if it's bisexual and thus affects all genders. Doesn't work like that. DON'T DO IT. If your pokemon is affected, it will endure 3 turn passes.

» Confusion: The pokemon afflicted will not be able to attack OR will attack itself (it's your choice, really) for 2 turn passes.

» Curse & Perish Song: The pokemon afflicted lose 1/4 of its health each turn, regardless of the type (there are NO exceptions to this attack). To simplify, we'll say the affected pokemon will faint in 3 turn passes. There is no method of healing, except to switch it out. Watch out though, there are some attacks that prevent it.
Also take note that PERISH SONG will affect ALL pokemon in battle and Curse will affect only a specific Pokemon.

The Speed Stat

As you might have noticed, Anrui doesn’t have any specific rules about calculating damage or keeping track of stats. We pride ourselves on not forcing members one way or the other - you are free to calculate every bit of damage down to the last percent, or you are free to calculate nothing and simply give a description of your pokemon’s health in your posts. Most members find a happy medium, and will generally keep track of stat modifications at the very least, such as increases or decreases in attack, defense, and their specials, due to their frequent ability to have an effect on certain moves.

The speed stat is handled differently in Anrui than in the games. In the games, there is a clear beginning and ending to a round of moves, and it is obvious which move is first, and which move is last. While roleplaying, however, once you get several posts into the battle, it becomes more difficult to justify which move is “first” and which move is “second” because the back and forth posting method doesn’t lend itself well to rounds. Our usual method of posting can also make it more difficult to realistically portray a fast pokemon moving before a slow pokemon like in the games and anime.

We believe the method that we use in Anrui is an adequate way of taking the game mechanics and bending them to fit our roleplaying needs. Just as we do not force anyone to fully consider the natural attack and defense stats of a pokemon - that is the stats that the pokemon automatically has going into a battle - we also will not force anyone to consider the natural speed stat. What we work with are the modifications to the speed stat and the resulting stages.

If your pokemon has a two-stage lead over the opponent’s speed stat, your pokemon may make its move before the opponent’s attack hits. For example, lets say you are using a carvanha to battle a scyther. Regardless of what their natural speed stats are, both pokemon begin the battle with 0 speed; their speed stat stages are equal. Let’s say your carvanha uses the move agility, which both in the games, as well as in Anrui, increases the pokemon’s speed by two stages. Your cavanha will now have +2 speed, while charizard still has 0. Because your carvanha has a two-stage lead over the scyther’s speed, your carvanha can now make its moves before the opponent’s attack hits. So, maybe your opponent writes, “Scyther moved forward, aiming to cut the carvanha with slash!” You could then write something along the lines of, “As the scyther moved towards him, carvanha swam forward with his mouth open, rushing to try to bite down on the scyther’s arm with ice fang before it could complete the slash attack.” You will still need to leave the attack open so as to avoid godmodding, however it is realistic to say that a cavanha with the two-stage lead will be successful in biting down on the scyther. That is also not to say that the scyther’s attack shouldn’t land - the ice fang wasn’t used as a dodge, after all. The carvanha should still be effected by the slash attack.

Now, lets say during the moves leading up to this round, both the carvanha and the scyther had used agility more than once. If the scyther had +4 speed, the carvanha would need +6 speed to pull it off; similarly, if the charizard had -2 speed, the carvanha wouldn’t need any positive speed change at all, since there is still a 2-stage difference between -2 and 0.

If your pokemon has a four-stage lead over the opponent’s speed stat, your pokemon may use an extra non-damaging move! For example, if scyther was still neutral at 0, and carvanha used agility twice to get a +4 speed stat, carvanha could use ice fang, leer, and an additional non-damaging move (leer, growl, etc) before the scyther’s attack hit! If your pokemon has a six-stage lead over the opponent’s speed stat, your pokemon may use an extra damaging move! For example, if scyther was at -4 speed, and carvanha was at +2 speed, the carvanha may use ice fang, leer, and an additional damaging move before the scyther attacks! You’ll need to play this out realistically, and also take into consideration moves such as hyper beam that require a resting period between moves. Also, when you reach the six-stage lead, it is non-damaging or damaging - one or the other, and not both! This strategy can really come in handy when the results of the battle depend on just one move!

Please note that your pokemon does not need to use these benefits. If you’d like your pokemon to use the normal amount of moves at the normal time within the round, you are welcome to do so.

This is a relatively new change (September ’18). If you have any comments or suggestions on how we can improve our use of speed in Anrui, please feel free to hit up our Suggestions Thread - just don't forget to tag the staff!

Mega Evolution

» Mega Evolution functions similarly to in the games, with only a few slight differences!

» First, it's important to know what you need in order to utilize this power. In order to Mega Evolve any pokemon, a trainer will need a Key Stone, which can be embedded into any in-character object that you would normally be able to embed a small stone into, such as a ring, necklace, glasses, etc. Please note that most average citizens probably won't be able to recognize a Key Stone as more than just a fancy jewel, however if you come across an experienced trainer, your character could put themselves at risk by displaying their Key Stone openly!

Additionally, whichever Pokemon is attempting to Mega Evolve will need to be holding a matching Mega Stone. This Mega Stone will function as the Pokemon's held item for the duration of the battle, and can only be switched in or out when the character is not battling. In order to switch a Mega Stone in or out, it must be done in-character within a post.

Lastly, a Pokemon must have reached level 30 or above, and have obtained maximum happiness before they can Mega Evolve. Legendary Pokemon cannot Mega Evolve, and their Mega Stones cannot be bought, won, or earned.

» Just as in the games, Mega Evolution is considered a free action in Anrui, meaning that it essentially pauses the battle and puts everything on hold until it the Evolution is finished; the opponent cannot attack, switch out, or use an item while the Evolution is occurring. The exception to this rule would be if the opponent's Pokemon has a speed stat lead of two or more, in which case the opponent's Pokemon may also Mega Evolve while your pokemon is Evolving. However, if the opponent's Pokemon does not have a speed stat lead, the opponent will need to wait until the first Pokemon's turn is completely over before they can Mega Evolve as well.

In order to initiate a Mega Evolution, the trainer should activate the Key Stone while their Pokemon activates the Mega Stone. At that point, the battle can continue normally, which includes the normal combinations of attacking, using an item, switching out, etc.

» Mega Stones cannot be moved to or from a Pokemon via moves or abilities such as thief or pickpocket. Additionally, Pokemon cannot Mega Evolve if they are unable to move, such as when they are asleep, frozen, paralyzed, flinching, or involved in a semi-invulernable move such as skydrop, dig, etc.

» Please note that if Mega Evolution causes a change in abilities, you must reflect this change. If the Pokemon knows two abilities naturally (or if a hidden ability was applied on an otherwise single-ability Pokemon), you may choose which ability to swap out for the Mega ability. If the Pokemon only has one ability, it will swap with (not add to) the Mega ability.

» In order to purchase or receive a Mega Stone from an NPC (including shops and Gyms), you must have that Pokemon (or a pre-evolution) in that particular character's PC. This Pokemon-in-PC rule does not apply to Mega Stones won via event/OoC contest prizes, however characters cannot have more than one of the same species stone in their PC.

» Mega Evolution will take an in-character toll on your Pokemon. As such, we strongly, strongly recommend restricting Mega Evolution to once every IC 24 hours maximum, which usually translates to once per thread. Of course, we understand that there will be trainers who will push these IC boundaries. Please see below for information on how Mega Evolving more than once within 24 hours will effect happiness. Additionally, if the trainer runs out of hearts (Mega Evolves 11x in a thread/within 24 hrs), that Pokemon will lose the ability to earn happiness with that trainer, and it will turn against them. c:

If a Pokemon Mega Evolves...

• once in one thread/24 hrs, no happiness will be lost;
• twice in one thread/24 hrs, one heart will be lost, and will need to be regained before Mega Evolving again;
• three times in one thread/24 hrs, an additional two hearts will be lost, and will need to be regained before Mega Evolving again;
• four times in one thread/24 hrs, an additional three hearts will be lost, and will need to be regained before Mega Evolving again;
• etc., etc.

» Members should keep in mind that Mega Evolving immediately shifts your thread into the High Risk category, especially when used against a character on a different team (Plasma versus Resistance, Neutral versus Plasma, etc.). NPC's will call for backup, snap pictures, chase your character, and generally do all they can to take your character down, or at least ensure that your character is placed on the Wanted List for their faction.


Quick Facts:

• In order to Mega Evolve, the trainer will need a Key Stone, and the Pokemon will need a Mega Stone. The pokemon must be level 30 or higher, and have obtained max happiness; Legendary Pokemon cannot Mega Evolve at all. You cannot switch the Mega Stone mid-battle.
• Mega Evolution completely pauses the battle (unless the opponent has a speed stat lead of two or more). Once the Evolution is over, the battle continues as normal.
• Any ability changes due to Mega Evolving must be reflected by swapping out an ability.
• Mega Stones cannot be moved to or from a Pokemon via moves or abilities. Pokemon cannot Mega Evolve if they are unable to move, such as when they are asleep, frozen, paralyzed, flinching, or involved in a semi-invulernable move such as skydrop, dig, etc.
• In order to purchase or receive a Mega Stone from an NPC, you must have that Pokemon (or a pre-evolution) in your PC. This rule does not apply to Mega Stones won via event/OoC contest prizes. Characters cannot have more than one of the same species stone in their PC.
• It is strongly recommended that you refrain from Mega Evolving more than once per in-character 24 hours (once per thread). Mega Evolving more than once per 24 hours (once per thread) will cause your Pokemon to lose happiness.
• Mega Evolution is a High Risk activity, and will be treated as such by NPCs.

Health Bar

To best communicate what is going on during a battle, we in Anrui strongly recommend the use of a health bar. Said health bar can be presented in any way you choose however if you want feel free to use the code below.

[div style="width:100px;height:5px;background-color:green"][/div]

Said code will wind up looking like:

Health percentage is dictated by the width:100px area. To change it merely decrease the number. You can replace the background color as well.

another, more complex code:



[table border="0"][tbody][tr][td style="width:83PX;background-color:GREEN;padding:-1px;text-align:center;color:#ffffff;border:1px solid #000000;border-right:0px solid #000000;"]83%[/td][td style="width:17PX;background-color:WHITE;border:1px solid #000000;border-left:0px solid #000000;padding:-1px;margin-left:-10px;"] [/td][/tr][/tbody][/table]

Please note that the health bar is merely an ooc communication tool and should not affect how you roleplay your fight.[/style]

Creativity

» Though we do have guidelines, we want to emphasize that this is a roleplay not a game meaning you do not have to restrict yourselves to game mechanics. Don't just say your pokemon used tackle and leave it like that. How did they use tackle? Did they aim for a certain spot, did they push off a wall, did they tackle another object to push into their opponent? So long as it makes sense and its not cheap (if you're worried it is don't be afraid to ask your opponent or a third party) feel free to play with moves as much as you want! Combine moves, use an offensive move defensively or vice versa.

[Anrui Staff]

LEVELING

Of course as your Pokemon grow stronger they need levels, right? Well, there are a number of ways on Anrui to gain levels for them.

Since Anrui is largely an interaction-based site, your character may not always be in a battle. Similarly, even in the battles things may go a little...sideways...from time to time. Recognizing this, we've tried to adapt our leveling system to be as versatile as possible for your useage.

First and foremost, the biggest thing that you need to remember is that you gain a static amount of levels to distribute amongst your Pokemon for certain things that you do with them in-character. For example, if you're in an interaction thread with another character on the site and your Pokemon is playing with them or otherwise getting to know you, they're still gaining experience. Or say you decide to battle and use all of your Pokemon in turn, but you still lose. It's not exactly fair to say "Well, here's one single level. I don't care how many pokemon battled, you only get one level."

Similarly, if for plot reasons, a battle is interrupted and doesn't have a chance to finish, it's not fair to completely deny you any levels for a thread that may have been going on for months.

On the other hand, why would you get levels in a thread where you don't interact with your Pokemon at all? How could they possibly gain any experience if they aren't experiencing anything except the inside of their Pokeball? Keep this in mind as you make your threads. Obviously the mod team isn't going to go to every thread and enforce this, but we do read threads by our members and so sooner or later we will say something if you're consistently adding levels to your Pokemon without ever interacting with them in-character.

Keeping these things in mind, these are some of the myriad of ways that you can earn levels and experience inside of Anrui:

• Creating a thread OR replying to a thread for the first time gains you 1 level. [You do NOT earn 2 levels for replying to a thread that you created]
• Every five pages after that, you earn a level. So at Page 5, you'll earn a level, and at Page 10, etc. HOWEVER, after page 20, this will drop to 1 level every ten pages. So after page 20, you won't earn another level until page 30.
• You will earn 2 Levels for each Pokemon that battled in a completed battle if you win. When it comes to battles, only the Pokemon who battled will receive the levels, as it doesn't make sense for non-battling Pokemon to receive levels.
• You will earn 1 Level for each Pokemon that battled in a completed battle if you lose. Again, if a Pokemon doesn't battle it doesn't make sense for them to get a level.
• In Gym battles, you will receive an additional 1 level for each pokemon in your stated party. Even if they don't battle, they'll at least get 1 level. If they battle, they could get 3 levels if you win. The idea is that even if they don't battle, the pokemon in your party during a Gym Battle gain experience from watching each other battle.
• If you lose a battle, each pokemon that battled gets 1 level. This means that in Gym battles, the minimum that each Pokemon who battles will get is 2 levels.
• If you have a Lucky Egg, only one Pokemon is allowed to hold onto it. Said Pokemon then gains twice the number of levels usually gained. So if your Charmander holding a Lucky Egg gains 1 level, in reality it gains double of this, therefore, 2 levels.
• Now if you pokemon is carrying a handy dandy EXP Share, you are essentially adding the Pokemon to the battle. So if Charmander was in battle against a wild Pokemon and a Squirtle holds an EXP Share, then Charmander and Squirtle each get 2 levels if you win or 1 level if you lose, regardless if Squirtle actually battled.
• You may use both a lucky egg and an EXP share in your party. However, the EXP share will not share the double levels that the lucky egg produces - it will only share the original amount. For example, a raichu is holding a lucky egg. The raichu wins a battle, and earns 2 levels, which gets doubled to 4. A slowpoke is holding an EXP share. Instead of gaining the 4 levels that the raichu gained due to the lucky egg, the slowpoke gains the original 2.
• Levels will be distributed from Missions and Major Plot Events as the Mods and Admins see fitting. They can also award extra or deplete levels given at their discretion. If we think you deserve them, you could be rewarded extra levels for a roleplay, conversely, if you are fighting cheaply, you could receive little or no levels!
• There's also the ever-popular Rare-Candy method, of course. Your pokemon can gain up to Ten (10) levels via Rare Candy each month. That means if your pokemon is holding a Lucky Egg, they can only be fed five rare candies in one month. The kicker here? If you choose to feed your pokemon rare candies while holding the Lucky Egg, the Lucky Egg must remain with that pokemon for the entire month. That means that you cannot give a charmander the Lucky Egg plus some rare candies, and then do the same to your bulbasaur a day later.

Generally speaking, the levels you gain from interactive threads could be distributed to any Pokemon on your active team, and even some of the Pokemon who aren't on your active team if they are available and interactive inside of the thread, it's really up to you once you've received the levels.