Pokéathlon FOREVER!

I didn't see a thread about this, but god damn if this isn't more addicting than the contests (musicals don't even fucking count as a side game, let's face it) ever were. You actually have to get good at the games to unlock each room in turn, which is the main component of said ability to addict.

Feel free to share tips, tricks, lineups, Aprijuice mixes, possibly even some personal records. My records are from back before BW came out, when I apparently knew what I was doing in these things. Pokeathlon FOREVER!!

Okay, my records:

Course Records
Speed: 543 with Suicune, Raikou and Mewtwo (137, 150, 196, +60)
Power: 553 with Registeel, Groudon and Regirock (160, 177, 155 +61)
Skill: 527 with Suicune, Sandshrew and Magmar (192, 145, 120 +70)
Stamina: 565 with Lugia, Mewtwo and Raikou (200, 195, 131 +39)
Jump: 484 with Ho-oh, Zubat and Togekiss (141, 132, 133 +78)

Event Records
Hurdle Dash: 78.7 seconds/146 total (Suicune, Mewtwo, Jirachi)
Pennant Capture: 51 flags/153 total (Rattata, Lugia, Raikou)
Circle Push: 61 points/183 total (Kangaskhan, Snorlax, Lugia)
Block Smash: 160 pieces/160 total (Registeel, Groudon, Regirock)
Disc Catch: 90 points/135 total (Suicune, Lugia, Jirachi)
Lamp Jump: 545 points/155 total (Zubat, Ho-oh, Lugia)
Relay Run: 20.4 laps/200 total (Suicune, Mewtwo, Jirachi)
Ring Drop: 200 points/200 total (Lugia, Mewtwo, Clefairy)
Snow Throw: 75 hits/200 total (Registeel, Regirock, Groudon)
Goal Roll: 13 points/165 total (Snorlax, Mewtwo, Jirachi)

Some things I do remember:
-The highest possible Circle Push score is 66, for a maximum event score of 198. (thanks Dark Ray and Wyrms Eye!)
-You can't score more than 200 points in a given event.
-Stamina factors into how long it takes your Pokemon to recover after crashing into an obstacle or each other, which is important to some extent in every event. Don't skimp on that stat!
-In Snow Throw, prioritize hitting the team to your left, as they're the easiest targets. A flick of the stylus upward will send the ball in their general direction: Skill is what gauges the speed of the throw.
-There is a pattern to the hurdles. Given three Pokemon of the same speed rating with the same amount of speed boosts, they will encounter hurdles in a certain order except for about halfway in, when the order is reversed. Trying and failing to adjust to this switcheroo can kill many a good run, so don't go overboard with the precisely timed jumps early on in order to give yourself time to react to that. There is a bonus for not hitting any hurdles!
-Have a Pokemon with good speed in the third slot when doing the Jump Course. For Disc Catch, that Pokemon will start in the back row, where catches are worth more points, and high speed will let it get to where it needs to go.
-There are different layouts for the relay and flag courses, and some are definitely more challenging to do well on than others. You can score many fine victories by having a general idea of the different obstacle patterns and how to efficiently move around on each one.
-I never really had much of an issue with winning Ring Drop, but if you slide the stylus over a Pokemon after tapping it to have it jump into the air, it will move in midair before coming down.
-Holy shit, Goal Roll is HARD. One strategy mentioned in the game is to keep one Pokemon back as a defender, one attacking the goal you want to score at and one in the middle for flexibility. Given the size of the field and the fact that there are twelve mons attacking four goals running around it (and two balls after a certain period of time, including gold balls that score 2 points when they're kicked in!), the game quickly degrades into total chaos.
-Teams of legendary Pokemon with good all-around stats may net low Challenge Bonuses, but they have the best chance of snagging individual bonuses. If multiple Pokemon are tied for the honor of getting an individual bonus, they all get it, so this just might give you the edge you need in the final tally.
-Apparently Whitney is not only a talented Gym Leader, she's also a formidable enough Pokeathlete that she's available as an opponent in the higher-level contests. Talk to the woman on the left to gain access to this higher tier of opposition...the prize for winning is 300 athlete points instead of the normal 100.
 

Texas Cloverleaf

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Okay, my records (not all of them are the best ones as i restarted the games a bunch of times):

Course Records
Speed: 513 with Togepi, Zubat and Quilava (125, 135, 188, +66) [Peak iirc]
Power: 509 with Steelix, Golem and Quilava (118, 183, 145 +63) [Peaked at ~530 iirc]
Skill: 557 with Hoothoot, Slowpoke and Zubat (200, 170, 108 +79) [Peak iirc]
Stamina: 565 with Steelix, Quilava and Golem (193, 145, 113 +63) [Peak iirc]
Jump: 459 with Hoothoot, Zubat and Togepi (150, 132, 121 +56) [Peak iirc]

Event Records
Hurdle Dash: 85.3 seconds/134 total [Peak ~80]
Pennant Capture: 45 flags/135 total [Peak ~54]
Circle Push: 61 points/183 total [Peak]
Block Smash: 118 pieces/118 total [Peak 137]
Disc Catch: 75 points/132 total [Peak 93]
Lamp Jump: 527 points/150 total [Peak ~540]
Relay Run: 18.8 laps/188 total [Peak 20.0]
Ring Drop: 200 points/200 total [Duh]
Snow Throw: 101 hits/200 total [Peak]
Goal Roll: 14 points/170 total [Peak]

Comments of each of the events:
Hurdle Dash: Ugh, this was never an easy one, even when i did everything perfect it was still difficult to break through that record--I never did manage to beat it. Fun but frustrating when you have mons that land on hurdles ;_;
Pennant Capture: The bane of my existence. Easily the toughest challenge for me at the Pokethlon, I could never master the movement and I would always be bumping into other mons or missing flags, quite frustrating.
Circle Push: This one was always fun, although it took me a long time to break the record. Trying to fit three gargantuan Pokemon into a tiny circle was funny, as was pushing random mons off the stage for kicks in the early rounds.
Block Smash: This one was very consistent for me. I could never get the red and blue rings with any sort of frequency so my score would pretty much be 120, over and over again. Never found out a trick to beating it.
Disc Catch: This one was fun, but man the scoring system. Once you hit 50 points you might as well put down your DS. I got 90+ and was getting 5 more point than I was at 70, absolutely nuts. Solid experience overall though.
Lamp Jump: Eh, it was okay. Nothing special.
Relay Run: Pretty fun, standard concept. Once the pattern was identified it was pretty much just a job of not running into things, and getting 3 laps per mon per rotation meant a quick record.
Ring Drop: Pretty sure everyone loves this one, tons of fun. Took a while to master but once I got it it was smashing things errywhere.
Snow Throw: Ahh Snow Throw. The first time I played this I swear i got 10 points, thats how difficult it was for me to figure out. Then i start to pick it up and boom, 200 points everytime, even getting over 100 hits once.
Goal Roll: I really loved this one. Beaing a soccer player it was just so much fun for me. I'd usually keep two guys guarding my goal and send one attacker out after the ball during the delay after its been kicked. After the initial rush for a ball the AI's stop for a few seconds so its pretty easy to get free goals. And of course once one of them gets tired he just swaps out and becomes a new defender. Almost always managed high scores in this one, although rarely i'd get fours after getting haxed.

overall this is my favourite side game of the series, edging out contests. Lots of concentration, hand-eye coordiation, good rewards and just generally an excellent time waster.
 
Oh hey, I forgot about the Pokéathlon! I loved it, easily my favourite Pokémon minigame and I played it far more than could be considered reasonable. Never did get the hang of a few of the games, as my scores will prove:

Course Records:
Speed: 460 pts (Zapdos, Voltorb, Jirachi)
Power: 501 pts (Scizor, Poliwrath, Swampert)
Skill: 478 pts (Zapdos, Uxie, Dialga)
Stamina: 481 pts (Moltres, Groudon, Azelf)
Jump: 452 pts (Zapdos, Skarmory, Voltorb)

Event Records:
Hurdle Dash: 81.6 seconds / 140 Total
Pennant Capture: 41 Flags / 123 Total
Circle Push: 56 pts / 168 Total
Block Smash: 122 pieces / 122 Total
Disc Catch: 70 pts / 131 Total
Lamp Jump: 500 pts / 142 Total
Relay Run: 17.7 laps / 177 Total
Ring Drop: 132 pts / 198 Total (yeah, abysmal, I was terrible at it :L)
Snow Throw: 58 hits / 174 Total
Goal Roll: 10 pts / 150 Total

Pennant Capture was the bane of my life. Games like Block Smash, Goal Roll and Hurdle Dash were tricky, but I could generally manage them well enough. Pennant Capture was simply obnoxious in every single way D: Favourite game... from memory, probably Hurdle Dash, though Goal Roll came close when I wasn't being randomly awful at it. I never really messed with Aprijuice after getting relatively pointless results with my first few times using it; is it worth bothering with?

I should go play these some more now I've been reminded of the best Pokémon minigame ever. :p
 
Good to see I'm not the only one who thinks Pennant Capture should go rot in a hole, some of these aren't my best as like Texas Cloverleaf I've restarted my game multiple times and lost some old records.
(Copying format from the OP)

Course Records

Speed: 495 with Mewtwo, Mewtwo and Mewtwo (143, 123, 181, +48)
Power: 516 with Groudon, Groudon and Groudon (130, 165, 150 +71)
Skill: 562 with Palkia, Dialga and Giratina (189, 165, 135 +73)
Stamina: 531 with Arceus (Dragon), Regigigas and Jirachi (200, 152, 110 +69)
Jump: 465 with Latios, Rayquaza and Zapdos (149, 136, 133 +47)

Event Records
Hurdle Dash: 79.9 seconds/143 total (Celebi, Latios, Latios)
Pennant Capture: 45 flags/135 total (Palkia, Dialga, Giratina)
Circle Push: 66 points/198 total (Arceus [probably Dragon], Arceus [porb Dragon again], Regirock)
Block Smash: 138 pieces/138 total (Arceus [just assume all from now on are Dragon], Arceus, Heatran)
Disc Catch: 105 points/137 total (Mew, Arceus [actually I think these two were Flying], Arceus)
Lamp Jump: 523 points/149 total (Latios, Rayquaza, Zapdos)
Relay Run: 18.3 laps/183 total (Mewtwo, Mewtwo, Mewtwo)
Ring Drop: 200 points/200 total (Dialga, Palkia, Giratina)
Snow Throw: 71 hits/200 total (Arceus, Jirachi, Regigigas)
Goal Roll: 18 points/190 total (Latias, Ho-oh, Lugia)

Not sure why the OP thinks 63 is the max for Circle Push, I've hit 66 atleast 5 times so unless they changed it for certain regions...
 
Oh jeez, I never maxed the back room of the Pokéathlon. All I needed was to use more things, since I did everything else.

Course Records (Never cared much about these)
Speed: 493 (Sentret/Sentret/Ledyba) (144 + 105 + 178 + 66)
Power: 493 (Arceus/Groudon/Gyarados) (122 + 156 + 145 + 70)
Skill: 492 (Arceus/Ho-Oh/Entei) (174 + 130 + 132 + 56)
Stamina: 510 (Dialga/Arceus/Groudon) (200 + 143 + 120 + 47)
Jump: 456 (Articuno/Zapdos/Moltres) (145 + 124 + 119 + 68)

Event Records
Hurdle Dash: 79.3 Seconds / 145 Total (Arceus/Raikou/Mewtwo)
Pennant Capture: 50 Flags / 150 Total (Mewtwo/Raikou/Arceus)
Circle Push: 61 Points / 183 Total (Entei/Mawile/Mewtwo)
Block Smash: 140 Pieces / 140 Total (Dialga/Arceus/Groudon)
Disc Catch: 76 Points / 133 Total (Articuno/Zapdos/Moltres)
Lamp Jump: 554 Points / 158 Total (Articuno/Zapdos/Moltres)
Relay Run: 17.8 Laps / 178 Total (Sentret/Sentret/Ledyba)
Ring Drop: 150 Points / 200 Total (Dialga/Arceus/Groudon)
Snow Throw: 74 Hits / 200 Total (Regirock/Regice/Registeel)
Goal Roll: 11 Points / 155 Total (Krabby/Gyarados/Farfetch'd)

--------

My favorite course was the speed course, and it would have been the perfect course if not for PENNANT CAPTURE. Had a decent bit of trouble with Block Smash as well. Goal Roll was always bipolar for me, either I did horribly bad or amazingly well (And I did keep a goalie or two. In fact I think I had two goalies then swapped them out with my offense every so often). Best games are most definitely Relay Run and Hurdle Dash.

Honestly this is the best main Pokémon game minigame. So active.
 

Codraroll

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My DS' touch screen is broken. I tried the Pokéathlon once, where the controls failed spectacularly, and completely gave up after that. It was impossible to steer anything in any way, it was plot irrelevant, and I never found it very interesting anyway. I plan to get a new DS one day, perhaps I'll give it another chance then.
 
I had a long spell where I played the Pokethlon primarily to pick up Rare Candies and other valuable items. I would be surprised if anyone else didn't take advantage of some of the other items on sale with the points they earnt.

Course Records
Speed: 460 (Yanmega / Ho-oh / Gligar) (132 + 123 + 149 + 56)
Power: 532 (Heatran / Feraligatr / Entei) (120 + 186 + 140 + 86)
Skill: 515 (Gallade / Gliscor / Electivire) (200 + 135 + 123 + 57)
Stamina: 547 (Feraligatr / Tyranitar / Typhlosion) (200 + 150 + 140 + 57)
Jump: 472 (Gligar / Yanmega / Honchkrow) (138 + 132 + 123 + 79)

Event Records
Hurdle Dash: 86.7 Seconds / 132 Total (Yanmega / Ho-oh / Gligar)
Pennant Capture: 44 Flags / 132 Total (Murkrow / Pupitar / Typhlosion)
Circle Push: 66 Points / 198 Total (Typhlosion / Feraligatr / Ampharos)
Block Smash: 140 Pieces / 140 Total (Typhlosion / Feraligatr / Tyranitar)
Disc Catch: 86 Points / 134 Total (Entei / Ho-oh / Manectric)
Lamp Jump: 512 Points / 146 Total (Honchkrow / Staraptor / Yanmega)
Relay Run: 17.2 Laps / 172 Total (Entei / Typhlosion / Charizard)
Ring Drop: 200 Points / 200 Total (Tyranitar / Feraligatr / Typhlosion)
Snow Throw: 74 Hits / 200 Total (Gallade / Gliscor / Electivire)
Goal Roll: 15 Points / 175 Total (Riolu / Combusken / Monferno)
------
I have to agree that of all of the events that are available to play, Pennant Capture is by far the most irritating one of the lot and has often killed any chances of improving the course records simply due to the layout. I don’t know about those above, but the layout with the ring of flags is by far the easiest layout of this event. My average flag score on Pennant is somewhere high 20s to low 30s, I’ve only ever broken into the 40s on three separate occasions.

The Goal Roll is definitely a fun game, and the record I have was purely a lucky massacre after three gold balls fell right in front of my attacker in the ring and just had an easy shot at goal on all three occasions. Two goalies is optimal, especially as it cuts down the amount of pokemon you have to actively move around the field.

The event’s that I’d certainly be keen to improve on are the Hurdle Dash and Relay Run, because I’ve never had a good, clean run on either, and I know I have pokemon easily capable of thrashing both records. Block Smash I’m sure could also be improved to 150 or so, but it has to be with the assistance of the blue and red rings really pushing you on. Then again, it’s very easy to hit around 120 blocks if you have a good rhythm going.

I'm also sure Circle Push's maximum is 66 points (1 Round with a maximum of 3 points, 2 Rounds with a maximum of 9 points each round and 3 Rounds with a maximum of 15 points each round if I remember correctly)
 
I never really understood how the Pokèathlon really worked, I could never get into it. I do agree that even this is better then the Pokèmon Musicals, since you don't get anything beneficial from the Musicals at all, whereas for the Pokèathlon, you get points to buy rare items.
 
Hmm...with two guys getting 66 points, I'll have to have another look at that minigame. Thanks for the explanation, Wyrms Eye!

As for a primer on Aprijuice: You can give Pokemon custom mixes by putting up to five Apricorns into the juicer and walking around, which provides enough for three drinks, or you can buy pre-made blends from the plaza to the left of the event dome which must be administered immediately. The varieties available change depending on the day of the week.

As a general rule, what Aprijuice does is improve a Pokemon's performance in one area at the cost of one or possibly two others. Their nature might also have something to do with the presence of big or small stars as well (my Registeel is Adamant and has five big stars in Power with no effort on my part). However, if you walk around with Aprijuice in your blender for long enough, it'll be so smooth that you might not get the negative effects. The boosts are temporary, however...if a Pokemon that's "juiced up" is in your party when the clock rolls over to midnight, it will lose the effects of the juice unless it's in the PC, much like the effects of a Pokerus infection.
 

Level 51

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I like the way the Pokeathlon is so easy to win, but so hard to master.

I think I broke four first place records with a team of three Slowpokes :P
 
Speed Course: 514 points (Raikou, Suicune, Latias)
Power Course: 567 points (Aggron, Nidoqueen, Scizor)
Skill Course: 562 points (Articuno, Zapdos, Moltres)
Stamina Course: 546 points (Tauros, Pinsir, Heracross)
Jump Course: 468 points (Voltorb, Ledian, Skarmory)

Hurdle Dash: 79.9 sec (Arceus, Voltorb, Ledian)
Pennant Capture: 52 flags (Raikou, Suicune, Latias)
Circle Push: 66 points (Aggron, Nidoqueen, Scizor)
Block Smash: 151 pieces (Aggron, Nidoqueen, Scizor)
Disc Catch: 102 points (Torterra, Infernape, Empoleon)
Lamp Jump: 529 points (Voltorb, Ledian, Skarmory)
Relay Run: 19.2 laps (Arceus, Entei, Kingdra)
Ring Drop: 200 points (Tauros, Pinsir, Heracross)
Snow Throw: 98 hits (Delcatty, Gorebyss, Relicanth)
Goal Roll: 14 points (Abomasnow, Magnezone, Rhyperior) + (Bibarel, Kricketune, Roserade)

Medalist Pokemon: 210
Total points: 5404 points
Trophies: 40
Athlete points: 99999P
 

Level 51

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To go off on a slightly odd tangent (but also to bump this), does anyone know the absolute fastest way to get Athlete Points for farming Rare Candies/PP Ups?
 
Pokeathlon for dayz

Hello, friends, I would just like to post a few records and words. My records aren't the best either (cough cough.. pennant capture), but here it is.

Okay, my records:

Course Records
Speed: 542 with Ponyta, Nidoran-F, Doduo (147, 126, 193, +76)
Power: 526 with Garchomp, Snorlax, Metagross (120, 174, 150 +82)
Skill: 546 with Rapidash, Phanpy, Goldeen (200, 160, 102 +84)
Stamina: 545 with Garchomp, Snorlax, Metagross (200, 123, 140 +82)
Jump: 484 with Zubat, Arceus, Ponyta (161, 133, 143 +47)

Event Records
Hurdle Dash: 78.1 seconds/147 total (Ponyta, Nidoran-F, Doduo)
Pennant Capture:45 flags/135 total (Arceus, Electrode, Rapidash)
Circle Push: 66 points/198 total (Donphan, Wigglytuff, Dratini)
Block Smash: 140 pieces/140 total (Snorlax, Garchomp,Metagross)
Disc Catch: 100 points/136 total (Arceus, Voltorb, Zubat)
Lamp Jump: 565 points/161 total (Arceus, Zubat, Ponyta)
Relay Run: 20.0 laps/200 total (Arceus, Electrode, Rapidash)
Ring Drop: 200 points/200 total (Snorlax,Phanpy, Abra)
Snow Throw: 87 hits/200 total (Articuno, Abra, Abra)
Goal Roll: 13 points/165 total (Mudkip, Squirtle, Tentacool)

------------------------------
Similar to what many of you have said before, the pennant capture is by the the most difficult event. I absolutely agree that at many times, the rounds are based on chance. As long as you get the course that allows the pokemon to swing in a clockwise or counterclockwise loop in order to capture the flags, it will be okay. There are other factors as well such as getting hit by other trainers' pokemon. All I can say to that is to make sure that you are the one hitting the other pokemon because that will actually make a big difference.

As some of you can see in the records above, I tend to use some pretty wimpy pokemon, but some how come out with good scores. First of all, I enjoying trolling other players, but more importantly, I feel that the beginning bonus has a huge factor in the game. The starting bonus just helps me get a confidence boost. Also, I think they are easier to control in most events. Keep in mind that it is the performance of the pokemon that matters.

Have fun with this you guys. If you feel as if you are about to throw your DS into the wall in frustration, it's probably going to go downhill from there. Everything that the fluffy guy with the pink shirt in the potential room says is true. Use those tips to your advantage, and memorize patterns in the events, such as relay run and hurdle dash. Well... tata for now :))
-(ノ °益°)ノ 彡 ┻━┻
 
i'm curious as to how many medalist pokemon you have. i've only twenty-eight due to having to restart my file because my original soulsilver was destroyed, but i'm intrigued as to how many you guys have/if any of you have all 493.
 

Celever

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Oh man, the pokeathlon was absolutely brilliant. I still love it, however I restart my file loads so I can't really give you my records, but I make sure I complete the pokeathlon dome in full every single run, so I could give you a few tips on them I suppose.
Hurdle dash: In my plays of this event I very rarely hit a hurdle more than once. Basically instead of having 3 5 star speed pokemon, you want a fairly good mixture, since it is a massive task to get 3 fast pokemon running at exactly the same speed over all the hurdles. Have one guy mark a really good time, have any guy make an above average and the last one make an average time due to the running speeds, the average as a whole is your score, so it works well for this.
Pennant capture: The way I figured out how to do this is to have your hand at a really awkward angle, kinda angling your wrist downwards so that you can have full view of the touch-screen besides maybe the bottom and the stylus. Besides that you just have to always keep on going, don't go back and get a pennant, go round in a circle digging in and out to try and grab the flags and every time you get near the scoring line you have to go into it, as any time your flags could get stolen. Watch the time, and when 10 seconds appear grab 2 flags and go into the line, there is no more time for any more.
Relay run: This has always been the hardest event for me in the speed cup, since you are going to lose control somewhere along the line. This doesn't take skill more than just swiping right and clicking a button, so yeah.

Might update later, I got stuff to do rn.
 

cant say

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The ability to get a Scizor / Steelix / both right after the 3rd gym?
POKÉATHLON FOREVER!!

When doing a marathon farm session for points I usually like the games with tapping or slow sliding movement controls rather than fast repeated swipes because to me, using the stylus like that is like nails on a chalkboard (thanks for wrecking my screen Pennant Capture / Relay Run) so I like the Jump and Power course, the AI also seems to suck extra hard at those games too.

Even though I hate playing them, I was actually pretty good at Pennant Capture as well as Relay Run. The trick i found to getting loads of Pennants was much the same as celever's tactic, just do laps of the outside and don't turn back if you miss. I did anti-clockwise laps if I started on the left side and vica-versa as this gave me the best angle to leave the start line. I would also sometimes see where the AI went as they normally follow each other, you just go somewhere else.

The tracks on Relay Run are never very tricky, I usually just constantly zig-zag between the obstacles. The laps are short so just memorize the pattern!

EDIT: I've sometimes wished this was a full proper spin-off. So much fun
 

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