I was finally able to confirm for myself that I could get shinies in Area Zero before completing the story, so the challenge for the Area Zero storyline continues forward as planned!
Shinygate rules:
1) Every Titan Pokemon, Gym, and Team Star base is all considered “locked” until I catch a Shiny Pokemon that matches the primary type.
2) Shiny Pokemon only count if they are caught, not encountered.
3) Autosave must be on for the entire duration of the challenge.
4) In Union Circles, if someone else finds a Shiny Pokemon before I do, that Shiny Pokemon does not count towards this challenge!
5) Sparkling Power sandwiches (the sandwiches that increase the odds of finding a Shiny Pokemon) may not be used for this challenge. Encounter Power sandwiches, however, are allowed.
6) Mass outbreaks, which feature a specific Pokemon and have increased odds of finding Shiny Pokemon as more of the outbreak spawns are defeated, are allowed for this challenge as long as I disperse it soon after I find it. (Basically, I’m not allowed to let an outbreak sit on Stage 3 or 4 while I look for a Shiny Pokemon for hours.)
7) Shiny Pokemon hatched from eggs are also acceptable, but I can only hatch one egg at a time, and I cannot have Pokemon with abilities like Flame Body in my party along with the egg.
8) When I “unlock” a Titan Pokemon, Gym, or Team Star base, I am allowed to challenge that boss at any time; I do not have to rush towards the boss I just unlocked!
9) Now that I have all 8 Gym Badges, I can catch Pokemon of any level; however, until I finish the Area Zero story, I will not be raising my Pokemon above Lv. 70.
10) For the Ruin Legendaries, I only pull their stakes once I catch shinies from their respective provinces, so South Province for Wo-Chien, West Province for Chien-Pao, North Province for Ting-Lu, and (I realize it’s also in North Province, but…) East Province for Chi-Yu!
Special rules for Teal Mask:
1) I cannot progress into a new area with a cutscene involved (with one exception noted in this part) until I catch a shiny in Kitakami.
2) Only Shiny Pokemon caught in Kitakami count towards this specific challenge. Exceptions to this are the Titanic Three boss battles IF the shiny matches their type.
3) If I catch a shiny in Kitakami that has a type related to a Titan Pokemon, Gym, or Team Star Base I haven’t unlocked yet, that DOES count as unlocking the related boss!
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