Silver Conference
The Johto League Silver Conference Victory Tournament, better known as simply the Silver Conference (Japanese: シロガネ大会 Shirogane Conference) is the Johto League general championship competition.
The conference is held annually in Silver Town, located at the base of Mt. Silver. Competing trainers are housed in a giant Pokémon Center in the Athlete's Village. All trainers have a page set up online with a list of their Pokémon.
Tradition
Opening ceremony
The Silver Conference begins with the the passing of the ceremonial torch lit with Ho-Oh's Template:M2. The opening ceremony is so important to the conference that the competition could not be held without it.
The legend
According to legend, the site of the Silver Conference was once the setting for a great war. People fought hard and left the area a war-ravaged place. Both the land and the Pokémon in the area suffered from the humans' hostility and carelessness. Ho-Oh appeared and used its Sacred Flame to burn life back into the place. Ho-Oh returned things to normal, but one tree continued to burn, serving as a reminder of the event. The fire from that tree was taken and placed in a shrine on Mt. Silver.
Competition
Rounds
The Silver Conference competition is divided into three parts: pre-screening qualifying rounds, semi-finals, and the finals.
Before every match, a digital spinner randomly decides which trainer will go first. The Pokémon used in the match must be decided before the match and entered into the computer system.
Screening
The competition begins with the Athlete's Greeting. Registered trainers are screened at assigned courts. Most lower skilled trainers are weeded out in three rounds of one-on-one battles. Trainers are judged based on their battling ability, so a trainer may still be able to advance to the semi-finals even if he or she has one loss. The top 48 trainers move on the preliminaries.
Semi-finals
A point system is employed in the semi-finals. The 48 trainers are split into 16 groups of 3, and each group, known as a block, participates in a round-robin tournament in a series of three-on-three matches. Three battlepoints are awarded for every win, one point for every draw, and no points for every loss. The 16 trainers with the most battlepoints out of the trainers in their blocks will move on to the finals. In the event of a tie, another round-robin is held.
Final rounds
After a day of no battling, the final battles are held in Silver Stadium with rotating grass, water, rock, and ice fields for each battle.
Each trainer fights a sudden death full battle. After a trainer's first three Pokémon are defeated, there is a short intermission. Losing trainers are eliminated and winning trainers continue on until a League Champion is determined.
Trainers who have participated in the Silver Conference
The following trainers have competed in only the screening rounds of the Silver Conference:
The following trainers have competed in just the preliminary rounds of the Silver Conference:
- Jackson of New Bark Town (Block H)
- Macey of Mahogany Town (Block H)
The following trainers have competed in the final rounds of the Silver Conference:
- Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town (Best Eight)
- Gary Oak of Pallet Town (Best Sixteen)
- Harrison of Littleroot Town (Best Four)
Former participants
- Paul of Veilstone City
- Jimmy of New Bark Town
- Marina of New Bark Town
Silver Conference winning trainers
The following trainers have won the Silver Conference, becoming League Champions:
Trivia
- The competition is broadcast globally.
- If Pokémon are caught battling outside of the competition, their trainers may be disqualified. Sparring, however, is allowed.
- On the eve of the competition, Gary notices that it is a full moon. After Harrison loses, a quarter moon is present. The time between the two is usually either 8 days (third quarter) or 22 days (first quarter), but only about 12 days are represented on screen.
