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Pokemon FireRed "Skill IronMON" FAQ
Updated October 2023

NOTE: As of November 29, 2023, this FAQ is obsolete. View the updated version here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qmE-FFSiCbbtBGkBRyisWfz7tg0qJ3n3s2ods7YYgN4/edit#bookmark=id.emr9hu9cv2eb

Q: What are you doing?
A: I am attempting to beat a randomized version of Pokemon FireRed using the "Skill IronMON" ruleset.
 
Q: What is Skill IronMON?
A: A variant of iateyourpie's IronMON challenge that I designed to test a runner's skill rather than luck, while also engaging viewers in decision-making processes. It is currently in the testing phase, so rules may change.

The main rule changes from Kaizo IronMON are:
- You can choose any starter ball
- All TMs are allowed to be taught
- All TMs are 100% compatible
- The banlist been updated to ban broken moves and unban weaker moves
- All balls have a 100% catch chance
- You can learn any one move on your main Pokemon at the start of the run
- You can buy any 6 items at the start of the run
- Every area is a dungeon, including routes and buildings; this means you can only use each Pokemon Center once and some areas are banned

A full list of rules can be found here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qmE-FFSiCbbtBGkBRyisWfz7tg0qJ3n3s2ods7YYgN4

Q: What is the purpose of each rule change?
- Choose any starter ball: To reduce randomness and early resets.
- TMs allowed and 100% compatible: To reduce randomness and runs lost to good mons not learning moves, to create more fun decision points, and to engage chat more during the midgame.
- 100% catch chance: To reduce randomness and early resets.
- Learn any move: To reduce early resets and test the runner's knowledge of which moves are best for beating the game.
- Buy any 5 items: To reduce early resets and test the runner's skill in choosing the most optimal items for their Pokemon. This rule is the most important for the early game because you pretty much need Rare Candies to survive Rival 1 + Viridian Forest + Brock.
- Every area is a dungeon: To add skill-based difficulty to the run, particularly the midgame, which is notoriously easy and boring for viewers in Kaizo IronMON. Runners will be constantly tested on their ability to use the correct moves in high-stakes situations and perform risk-reward analysis when grinding for experience. This rule also reduces the amount of time spent backtracking for items, centering after every fight, etc.

Q: Doesn't the move tutor make the game too easy?
A: Sure, if your idea of difficulty is losing most runs to move RNG. Most Pokemon have no chance of beating the game with their learnsets and the available TMs, and attempting to run them is often an exercise in false hope ("I need this specific move or I can't win"). The move tutor removes this pure RNG barrier but still presents many difficult choices that the runner must handle skillfully in order to win.

Q: Isn't there a way to promote skill without always teaching the perfect move?
A: Imagine that you forgot to study for an exam. The exam is 25 True/False questions. You have a 21% chance of passing the exam if you know 0 of the answers, a 59% chance of passing if you know 5 answers, and a 94% chance of passing if you know 10 answers. In other words, because the choices are so limited, you have a high chance of succeeding with little skill. Also, the exam only counts for 5% of your grade. This is what typical move decisions are. Do I teach this level-up move or not? Half the time you'll get it right without trying! And often the decision doesn't matter because the move isn't good enough to give the Pokemon a proper chance at winning.

Now imagine the exam is 25 short-answer questions, you must know the answers to get credit, and the exam is worth 20% of your grade. Now you need to know 15 answers to pass. This is a much more effective way to test if the student has learned the material. And that's what the move tutor is. Unlike every other decision in the game, the decision is open-ended, with 256 possible move choices. And you'll keep the move the whole game, so your decision can be the difference between winning and losing on any battle.

Q: What is your goal?
A: Mainly to test the rules and see what needs to be changed, if anything. I want to create a challenge where runners never get walled in the early game and spend a lot of time making fun decisions. I also want more runs to die to "skill issues" than pure luck, so that runners can improve with each run and strive for mastery of the game.

Q: Why don't you use speedups?
A: I explain this in detail here: https://pastebin.com/CZmTgZx7

Q: What are those calculators at the bottom of the screen?
A: I show my damage calculator, my "best move" calculator, and Sfayne's IV calculator during runs. These can all be found in the #ironmon channel of my Discord: https://discord.gg/Tu6QwBT

Q: How can I play this?
A: Follow the instructions below.

1. Make sure you have a ROM of Pokemon FireRed on your computer.
2. Download the Universal Pokemon Randomizer (ZX 4.6): https://github.com/Ajarmar/universal-pokemon-randomizer-zx/releases/tag/v4.6.0
3. Download the Skill IronMON patch: https://github.com/seadogstingray/firered-skill-ironmon-patch/archive/refs/tags/v4.zip
4. Double click on the patch you downloaded.
5. The patch will ask you to load a file; choose an unmodified FireRed ROM.
6. The patch will ask you where you want to save your modified ROM; you can choose anywhere on your computer.
7. Open the Randomizer ZX program through the ..._launcher.bat file.
8. Click "Open ROM" and select your patched FireRed ROM.
9. Click "Get/Load Settings String"
10. Copy and paste this settings string: 321WRIEEjIBAAQABwCRAAKeBhsEiAEAiAACCQAuEgAAAAAABRi45ATkAYYICTIGBAIyAAUgEEZpcmUgUmVkIChVKSAxLjFO7AbF48M4ig==
11. Click "Randomize (Save)" in the upper-right
12. Type in a name for your ROM and click "Save".
13. Click "Yes" on the prompt to Save the log file
14. You're done and ready to play! See the IronMON Discord for instructions on setting up the tracker.

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