Why does N's name not appear on the certified challengers list in gyms?

Question

Considering that he defeats the Elite 4 and Alder, he must have all 8 badges.

And I don't see why or how he wouldn't have beaten the gyms, talking into account that, in Nimbasa, he tells you:
>Just try and stop me! If you want to be together with Pokémon, your only hope is to collect the Badges from each area and head for the Pokémon League! Try and stop me there, if you dare!

Comments

Poke-Logic is somehow ... stupid ...

Answer 1

Well the plaque at the entrance of the gyms are really just a sign to honor the trainer that just defeated the gym. However it is not mandatory for your name to be on the plaque mainly due to the fact that just a reward. Like all rewards I believe this one can also be declined. When we analyze N's personality we come to notice that he doesn't tend to like to stand in the spotlight and is rather reserved and mysterious so it is very well possible that his name was not added on behalf of his own request.

Another possibility is that his name was never known to the gyms and thus no plaque was made for him. Again because of his mysterious personality even after he defeated the Elite 4 he is described by Alder and the Elite 4 members but never do they mention his name. With no identification a plaque can't be made

Comments

That's interesting. I thought that gyms just automatically updated this kind of stuff, you know like the electric bulletin board between routes that display "a trainer from Nuvema Town challenged the Straition Gym and won!" kind of affair.

As for his name being unknown.... I mean, he told you, a complete stranger, that he was called "N".

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Didn't he tell you that because he saw potential of something of that sort?

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Well he told Cheren as well (by proxy since he was standing next to you) and I got the feeling he didn't know Cheren exited.

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N probably told the player because he did see that special bond that we so said had with our Pokemon at such a short stage seeing as we just started our Journey. He is pretty much like Red, just friendlier  Though people knew Red's name because he was still an open person when he was on his Journey, no one still knows much about him. N has been mysterious as far as we know him so even though he did all this, he is not known. Team Plasma is known by the entire region but only a few people seem to remember Red. He also seemed to like the player from the start and thus revealed his name.

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If you go to N's room in his castle, you'll see toys littered all over the place. They all have the name "Harmonia" written on them. It was the name given to him when Ghetsis found him, as it is later revealed in the series, in b2/w2. His real name is unknown, but I think it's possible that he doesn't even have one. His parents could've disowned him because they thought he was a freak, with his ability to talk to Pokémon.

Answer 2

He does not necessarily have all 8 badges (in my opinion). Seeing as N is at the time part of a criminal organization, and is in his own mind not a Pokemon trainer, he may have just roamed Unova as he pleased no matter what gym badges were required for moving around certain areas. He also would have avoided fighting with his Pokemon altogether, and would only do so to "liberate" a gym leader's Pokemon. Seeing as, as far as we know, no leader has lost a Pokemon to Team Plasma, so I assume that N has not beaten the gym leaders. Also, he just kind of barged in to the Elite 4 with the backing of a massive criminal enterprise, and although I agree the strength of his Pokemon would suggest that he has undergone a good deal of training, it does not necessarily mean he has beaten the gym leaders. He may have not had to defeat the elite 4 either, as he could have simply just barged in on Alder while Team Plasma took control of the Elite 4's castle, and managed the Elite 4. It seems even more likely that they just bypassed the elite 4 altogether, as they seem unaware that Team Plasma is challenging Alder. Finally, the key words are "if you want to be together with Pokemon". N states he shows great admiration for the player character, and desires benevolence between humans and Pokemon, and perhaps he sees the standard league challenge as the best way of achieving this. He also is a truly moral person, and maybe he sees some sort of error in Team Plasma, or just wants what is truly valorous to prevail. Anyone just my musings but I hope this helped

Comments

If he really wanted to avoid fighting, then why did he ever challenge the protagonist to a fight? Also, note that Grimsley says, "Man oh man... What is going on today? Challengers coming one right after another", just before you battle him, and Cheren defeated the E4 after you, so N must be the person Grimsley is referring to. If he bothered with the E4, then he should've bothered with the gym leaders. If he wanted to just steam roll through and ignore rules, he would've ignored everyone and just gone straight to Alder, but N believed he was meant to "capture the hearts" of people, so he had to do things "right" or would be seen as a fraud.