Riku (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
islandshore) wrote2001-06-03 12:09 am
islandshore) wrote2001-06-03 12:09 am
Entry tags:
Riku's Training Guide
Pokémon Training for Dummies
There are a lot of misconceptions about training and the way this world works. I've been here for five years, so I figured I should clear things up. This guide will cover everything from basic training to gym battles. Take it from someone who's collected all the badges in Kanto and Johto, traveled all over this world, and trained over seventy Pokémon. I've got experience to back my words, and hopefully this guide will help you get a feel for this crazy new world.
Introduction | Battle Basics | Types | Team Building and Statuses | Evolution | Gym Leaders | Pokémon Care
Introduction:
• If you can read this, chances are you're either in Johto or Kanto. Yes, it's another world. No, you're not dreaming, and so far there's no way out. Gym badges will not get you out of here. Anyone still spreading that rumor is totally clueless. So far, people leave at random. Nobody knows how or why. Better get used to the waiting game.
Over the past few years, it's become clear that none of the locals know why we're here or how to get us back. I've spoken to Gym Leaders and two Elite Four Champions, and the whole situation confuses them just as much as us. I even talked to the god of this world, and if he knows, he refuses to talk about it. Go figure, right?
• If you used to be a pony, alien, or anything nonhuman, you're gonna have to get used to your new bodies. All powers are gone and weapons are illegal, so most people just use their Pokémon to fight. However, that doesn't mean you have to be helpless. Blunt weapons are allowed, even if they might get you a few suspicious looks from the cops, and Skarmory feathers can be melted into sharp blades, but they'll wear down pretty fast.
Honedge is a sword Pokémon, but they're picky about being wielded like weapons and can drain your life force. Unless you're patient, I wouldn't recommend trying this.
• People here come from different times. Just because one of your friends is here doesn't mean they're on the same page as you. And if somebody's left and returned, they usually won't remember this place. Key word being "usually". Sometimes people do remember, and it's possible that multiple timelines are involved.
• Sometimes people end up in comas for about a week. They'll wake up soon enough, usually with some new memories intact, usually with new memories included.
• Most people start out with one Pokémon, usually in New Bark Town. You're gonna want to make the most of your supplies because it takes a few days to reach the next town. It's a good time to start training your Pokémon and catching others to add to your team. Trust me, it comes in handy.
• It's possible Team Rocket begins in one of the bigger cities. I don't have a ton of intel, but nobody seems to join the team by choice, and sometimes someone gets roped in despite being a hero back home. Team Rocket has control over the Goldenrod Radio Tower, or at least some kind of influence. They also have access to weapons and resources we could only dream of. Stay sharp.
• You should probably form a travel group, unless you're a loner. Even then, it's not a bad idea. Traveling on foot takes time, and unless you've got a bike or a Pokémon to carry you around, it'll take you anywhere from a few days to a week to reach most towns. Sometimes longer.
• Stock up on potions, antidotes, camping gear, and food. The berries will make you sick, and bug type Pokémon between Cherrygrove and Violet can poison you and your team. Once you get further in, you'll want to pick up other healing items. I'll explain those a bit later.
• Johto's seasons are pretty severe. You'll want a fire type to keep warm and a water or ice type to cool down. You can probably pick one up for free from the Breeding Center or head over to Mt. Mortar and the Lake of Rage. Fire types also help once you reach the ice path.
• Don't forget to visit Sprout Tower if you want the TM for Flash. It makes travel through caves a lot easier.
• Save at least some money if you plan on staying in town. A job's not a bad idea if you need pocket change.
• The background music never ends. Better get used to it.
• Currently, you can't challenge the Elite Four. As for why, your guess is as good as mine. Like I said before, though, they wouldn't get you home even if they were taking challenges.
• There are other ways to travel. You can buy bikes in Goldenrod City, or ride on the backs of Pokémon. Onix and Steelix are great for rugged terrain, and something like a Gyarados or Wailord will get you across the sea in a flash. But really, all you need is the Zephyr Badge and the HM for Fly, and all other methods of travel are pretty much obsolete. You can cover what might take days in just a matter of hours.
To get Fly, go to Saffron or Cianwood City. I recommend Saffron because it's closer, but a lot of people seem to overlook that.
Think that covers your basic facts for this world. Time to actually move on to the training.
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Battle Basics:
• Pokémon typically start at level 5. At this point they know one, maybe two moves, and they usually don't do much damage. They're small and get tired easily. Sticking to one Pokémon is a bad idea unless you're feeling gutsy. Battles help toughen them up, but they've got limits. Push them too far, and they'll run out of steam.
• Wild Pokémon hang around tall grass, and they'll attack without warning. They start out at low levels, making them good training fodder. If you're heading down Route 29, I recommend catching at least a flying type. You can carry up to six Pokémon, but you can get by with two or three early on.
• Once you encounter a wild Pokémon, it's time to battle. Battles involve pitting your Pokémon against an opponent. First one to faint loses. Sounds easy, right? Well, it's not just a matter of hitting hard. There are a lot of factors to keep in mind.
• When you battle against trainers, the goal is to beat your opponent's team. Winner usually gets money, but if you lose, you better pay up. Some people order their Pokémon around, others let them do their own thing. If you want, you could do a double battle.
I recommend training your Pokémon to hold their own against human opponents. Team Rocket won't play fair, and sometimes you'll have to attack the trainer instead of their team.
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Types of Pokémon:
Every Pokémon has a specific typing. Each type has its ups and downs. All attacks fit into these types, making them crucial in battle.
Fire: Super effective against bug, ice, grass and steel types, not very effective against water, fire, rock, and dragon types. Their weaknesses are rock, water, and ground type attacks. They resist steel, ice, bug, grass, fairy, and fire type moves. Seeing a pattern here?
Charizard and Volcarona are great special attackers and my top picks for the type. They have practical uses outside of battle, thanks to the move Fly, and while they share a huge rock weakness, you can make up for it with proper team building and a Pokémon with Rapdid Spin. Charizard's especially great due to its mixed attacking potential and ability to boost with Swords Dance, while Volcarona gets Quiver Dance to boost speed, special attack, and special defense.
These guys are also great choices. Arcanine has solid bulk and raw power to make a great physical attacker, plus two great abilities in Intimidate and Flash Fire. Chandelure is a devastating special attacker, though it's a bit frail. Infernape works as a mixed attacker with incredible speed and access to Stealth Rock. Finally, Blaziken works as a fairly fast and hard-hitting fighter, but can also run mixed moves, just not as well as Infernape.
Most Fire types do well in battles, but if you're seriously competitive, you're gonna want to pick carefully. Flareon's attack is solid, but it's slow and kinda frail and too slow for its own good. Slugma and Magcargo have a quadruple weakness to water and so does Camerupt. Most of the others should be decent.
Water: Super effective against fire, rock, and ground types. Not very effective against grass, water, and dragon types. Weak to electric and grass, resist fire, steel, water, and ice.
You should catch at least one water type. They're useful for travel and cooling down on hot days. They only have two real weaknesses, and they tend to have high defense and attack stats. They can almost always learn ice moves, making it easy to take out one of their weaknesses. There's a lot of variety, but it's a double-edged sword, as some water types just can't keep up with the current.
Swampert is a terrifying physical attacker whose ground typing leaves him invulnerable to electricity. The ground typing gives him an added boost when using moves like Earthquake, and if you set one up with hard-hitting moves like Waterfall, Ice Punch, Hammer Arm, and Rock Slide, you'll be pummeling foes in no time. Gyarados is equally terrifying, with decent defenses, the ability to boost its speed and attack with Dragon Dance, and a wide mixed movepool including oddball moves like Flamethrower and Thunderbolt. Just be careful, because Swampert's got a huge grass weakness, and Gyarados folds under electricity.
When you hit the special attackers, you'll find a huge variety. Greninja is fast, powerful, and has Dark Typing to give it an added edge in battle. It's just frail as paper, so if you want something sturdier, try Vaporeon. This thing's as sturdy as a tank, can heal with the egg move Wish or use Aqua Ring to slowly heal the whole party, and its Acid Armor lets it bulk up, while Toxic whittles away at your opponents.
Slowbro and Slowking also work as defensive monsters, with Slack Off for healing and Psychic typing and wide movepools for greater coverage in battles. They can use Trick Room to speed up slower Pokémon, like Porygon2 or Snorlax. Meanwhile, Empoleon's steel typing gives it some fantastic resistances, Clawitzer's Mega Launcher ability lets it wreck foes with Water Pulse, Aura Sphere, and other pulse-based attacks, Blastoise works as a bulky bruiser, and Tentacruel can set up Toxic Spikes to mess up your foe's team and hold its own with its special defenses.
There are so many water types that it'd take forever to go through them all, so go out there and experiment. Just be wary of Seaking and Luvdisc.
Grass: Effective against water, rock, and ground. Not very effective against... just about everything else. Bug, flying, dragon, fire, grass, poison, steel. Sure they resist electric, water, ground, and grass, but they're also weak to fire, flying, bug, ice, and poison.
You need to be careful with grass types. There are other Pokémon that can pick up grass moves pretty easily. Solarbeam can be learned by fire types, and their stat moves are nothing to brag about. Moves that poison, paralyze, and put Pokémon to sleep can be learned by much better types. Overall, it takes work to use a grass type effectively. But, hey, if you know what you're doing, they can still carry their weight in battle.
Venusaur brings a great mix of status effects, raw power, and bulk to the field, and its typing lets it pummel fairy types with ease. Torterra's got brute strength to match its defenses, but keep in mind that it's slow as molasses. Still, earthquake helps with fire type menaces. Chesnaught and Breloom work well as physical attackers, with Breloom's strength in its Spore attack, which puts enemies to sleep without question. Combined with Focus Punch, this combo can blow holes through teams, if you want something sturdier, Chesnaught makes up for its slow speed with bulk and muscle. Both have access to punching moves for additional type coverage. Just beware of birds.
Sceptile's great because it's fast, works as a physical or special brawler, and has a huge variety in attack options. Lastly, Ferrothorn is a great set-up Pokémon, with access to Stealth Rock, Leech Seed, Thunder Wave, and other obnoxious moves. Just keep it away from fire and let it go to town.
Electric: Effective against flying and water, not very effective against electric, dragon, and grass. No effect on ground types. They're weak against ground and resist electric, flying, and steel moves.
Electric Pokémon are useful offensively because they learn some devastating moves and they're usually quick on their feet. Plus they can paralyze. They only have one weakness, and moves like Thunderbolt can take their toll on just about any type besides Ground. Their defenses are pretty average, but power and paralysis makes up for it.
All of these Pokéon are quick on their feet, but Jolteon leaves them all in the dust. It's fast, it's cool, and it hits like a truck, with a small amount of coverage in moves like Shadow Ball and Signal Beam. Too bad it's frail, like most of its types. Raichu is decent, and miles ahead of Pikachu, but Manectric's an overall better pick due to its Lightning Rod ability. Luxray shines as a physical attacker and gains access to fang moves from breeding, and Heliolisk has two great abilities in Dry Skin and Sand Veil, and even gets some surprising moves like Surf to throw enemies off guard.
Rotom is a great pick because it can change forms to suit your needs. Just give it an appliance, and it'll change before your eyes. Personally, I think the Wash form works best due to its water typing and bulk, and if you use moves like Will-O-Wisp, you can make it last a long time. Alternatively, Ampharos is a solid tank with surprise moves like Signal Beam and Power Gem, though it's also slow as a snail.
An honorable mention goes to Electivire thanks to its wide physical move pool and Magnezone for insane bulk and special attack. It's just hindered by a crippling ground weakness.
Psychic: Super effective against poison and fighting, not very effective against psychic and steel. No effect on dark. Weak against dark, ghost, and bug types, and they resist psychic and fighting type moves.
Psychic types usually have a high special attack stat and speed, but their defenses almost always suck. These Pokémon are glass cannons. They hit hard, but the right physical moves can take them out in one or two hits tops. They can learn moves from other types, but I'd avoid physical moves. Special's where it's at.
The best Psychic in my opinion is Metagross. Its defenses make it a tank, it can learn Stealth Rock, and it's got an impressive attack stat and some pretty decent special attack. Mine helped me win the Advanced Cup not too long ago. Give it moves like Ice Punch, Earthquake, Zen Headbutt, and Meteor Mash, and watch it smash through enemies in no time flat.
Alakazam is a speedy powerhouse hindered only by paper-thin defenses. Gardevoir fills a similar niche, but with a little more special bulk and fairy typing to help it hold its own against dragons, dark types, and especially fighting types. Musharna is one of the few bulky psychics aside from the Slowpoke line, and Reuniclus Magic Guard ability mixed with its bulk lets it withstand everything from weather effects to poison.
Other physical Psychics include Gallade and Medicham, though their fighting type makes fairies a bit of a pain. Starmie's another great psychic and water type I forgot to mention before with its speed and access to Rapid Spin. Espeon also works as an alternative to Alakazam.
Ice: Effective against grass, flying, dragon, and ground. Not very effective against water, steel, fire, and ice. Weak against fire, fighting, steel, and rock, and their only resistance is ice.
Basically, ice types have terrible defenses. Seriously, they have one resistance, and their weaknesses are all pretty common. They have some tough moves, but you'd probably be better off teaching a water type ice moves.
Weavile's a useful Pokémon to have due to its high speed and attack stats. It's the evolved form of Sneasel, and you can get it using a Razor Claw. Just thought I'd point that out.
Mamoswine's another reliable ice type, and its ground typing gives it at least some edge against its fire weakness. It learns both rock type moves and Earthquake and can pick up Stealth Rock for good measure. Plus, throw up some hail, and it's a nightmare to hit. Avalugg works as a defensive force and actually gains access to Recover for healing. And while I haven't used one, Glaceon seems like a great special attacker if you can make up for its weaknesses.
Dragon: Super effective against dragon, not very effective against steel. They resist fire, water, electric, grass, and their only weaknesses are dragon, ice, and fairy. The downside? Their dragon moves do nothing to fairies. Great...
The thing you should know about dragon types is that they're almost all dual-type, and you shouldn't rely on dragon type moves alone. They're heavy hitters that can learn moves from almost all elemental types, and their stats are insane.
These guys are the cream of the crop. Garchomp is one of the strongest pysical threats out there, with great moves like Outrage, Dragon Claw, Earthquake, Stone Edge, and Fire Fang, just to name a few. Iron Head lets it smash through fairies, and if you throw up some sand, it becomes a nightmare to hit. Dragonite is bulky, can boost its speed with Agility or Dragon Dance, and has such a wide movepool, you can use it against just about everything. Salamence is kind of like a faster, sleeker Dragonite with a bit less variety, and Hydreigon Just be careful about their quad weaknesses in ice, or for Hydreigon, fairy.
You really can't go wrong with dragon types. Each one has its own special skills, and their moves are wide enough that they can take on their weaknesses. Of these guys here, Goodra is one of the best picks due to two great abilities in Sap Sipper and Hydration, and a wide mixed movepool.
Dark: Effective against psychic and ghost, weak against steel, fighting, bug, and fairy. Resists dark and ghost.
Dark types are useful against psychic and ghost types, but they're more geared towards physical moves than special attacks.
Tyranitar and Weavile are easily the strongest dark types to pick from, but Umbreon's pretty sturdy. I've got all three, and they're all useful for different reasons. Tyranitar's slow, but it can take a lot more punishment than a Weavile, plus they create sandstorms for added damage.
Zoroark's a killer special sweeper with a unique ability in Illusion. Want to throw your enemies off guard? A Zoroark can take on the form of another Pokémon in your party, giving them a nasty surprise with the right strategy. Plus, they're fast and hit hard as long as you give them the right moveset.
Bisharp's defiant ability makes it stronger when its stats drop, which combined with its intense strength makes it downright terrifying. Just look out for fighting types. Krookodile's got great dual typing with ground and either Intimidate to lower enemy attacks or Moxie to boost its strength when it wipes out opponents. Honorable mention goes to Malamar for the great ability Contrary and unique Psychic/Dark typing, but bugs are gonna drive you nuts if you train one.
Normal: They aren't super effective against anything, do next to nothing against rock and steel, have no effect on ghosts, and are weak against fighting. The upside is that they're resistant to ghost moves. Still, this type is... pretty average.
These guys are your hard hitters. Kangaskhan even has access to Scrappy to let it hit ghost types. Stoutland has Intimidate to weaken opponents and Sand Rush to bolt through sandstorms, plus some solid speed to back it up, and Zangoose is immune to poison in addition to its strength. And then there's Slaking... great stats, but its Truant ability's a bit of a pain. Use with caution.
Porygon2 and Blissey both work great on the defensive side, while Porygon-Z is a terrifying glass cannon. Snorlax has the benefit of power and bulk, making it another solid choice.
Fighting: Strong against rock, normal, steel, ice, and dark. Weak against poison, flying, bug, fairy, and psychic. Resist bug, dark, and rock, and they're weak to flying and psychic. No effect on ghost types.
Fighting types are heavy hitters. One of the best offensive types, hands down. Their attack stats are high, and if you combine that with moves like Close Combat or Aura Sphere, they're a force to be recommend with. You just have to watch their weaknesses. Pure fighting types are easy to nail with flying and psychic moves.
That's why I recommend Lucario. Its steel typing gives it added resistance, and it's great with both physical and special moves. That, and Aura Sphere never misses.
For fighting purists, Machamp's a great choice due to its No Guard ability making sure every move hits. Combine that with Dynamic Punch, and you'll instantly confuse your opponents, if the move doesn't knock them out. Conkeldurr benefits from bulk and its Sheer Force ability making attacks even tougher than before. Both of these guys also have access to Guts which boost them when hit by statuses.
Mienshao is kind of like Lucario lite, but it's fast and lacks some of Lucario's weakness. Finally, the Hitmon trio all fill different niches that make each one successful in unique ways. Hitmon top is probably the best of the bunch, thanks to its Technician ability and Rapid Spin.
Flying: Good against grass, bug, and flying, but don't expect them to do much to electric, rock, and steel types. They're weak against rock, ice and electric moves, but they resist grass, fighting, and bug attacks. Plus ground attacks do nothing to them.
Flying types tend to have high attack and speed stats, but their defenses are pretty average. Doesn't help that most are part normal type, so that resistance to fighting? Consider it gone. I don't think I've seen any monotype flyers. Only a few flying type moves do decent damage. Fly, Air Slash, and Sky Attack are pretty good. They can heal using Roost, making up for their low defenses.
Flying types are best for transportation and battles where they have a type advantage. Pidgeot is great for a first time flying type, but as you become more advanced, I'd aim for something more durable, like Skarmory or Charizard, but I already covered him.
If you don't mind something that'll probably try to tear your throat out, try shooting for an Aerodactyl. Togekiss is another great pick thanks to itS Serene Grace ability making moves like Air Slash more likely to trigger secondary effects. Combine Air Slash and Thunder Wave, and you'll make your opponents scream. Finally, Honchcrow has great attack and immunity to Sleep, and Sigilyph is an impressive glass cannon with its special moves.
Poison: Poison types only do serious damage to grass and fairy types, and plenty of types can resist them. Ghost, ground, poison, and rock come to mind. Plus steel is unaffected. They're weak to ground and psychic, but they've got a few resistances under their belt. Mainly poison, bug, fighting, fairy, and grass.
The thing about poison types is that they're mainly good for status inflictions. They have pretty solid defenses, and their immunity to poison comes in handy, but don't expect them to have amazing movepools unless you go dual type.
If you want a good poison type, try Nidoking. They've got a pretty flexible movepool and can learn elemental attacks if you use TMs or the move tutors. I already mentioned Tentacruel as another option, especially if you play more defensively.
Or you could get yourself a Toxicroak. Trust me, you won't regret it. Their Dry Skin ability may add a weakness to fire, but between their part-poison typing, immunity to water, and solid movepool, they're a great addition to any team. Croagunks can be caught at the Safari Zone.
With fairies are on the rise, poison types are a great way to knock them down a few pegs. Other than the ones I mentioned, Scolipede's a good dualtype with impressive speed, and Dragalge may be part dragon, but it's unique, pretty bulky, and can poison on contact.
Ground: Good against electric, rock, fire, poison, and ice. Weak against bug and grass, does nothing to flying. Resists poison and rock, weak to ice, water, and grass. Immune to electric.
Ground types are powerful. They're great with physical moves, and some have pretty heavy defenses. The real problem is that their weaknesses are common. Even other ground types can pick up Surf, a powerful water type attack. How does it work? Beats me, but the point is, you need to watch their weaknesses.
On the plus side, they've got some great moves, like Earthquake and Earth Power that'll take down a steel type with ease. And steel's one of the best defensive types out there. I'd say most ground types will work, but I'd suggest Garchomp, Nidoking, or Dugtrio. Rock/ground combo is risky.
Steelix and Excadrill are both great ground types due to their steel typing. The downside is that they're weak to ground type moves, but with Steelix's great defenses and Excadrill's high attack, I'd say they're both worth the risk.
Excadrill gets bonus points for being a Rapid Spinner that can set up stealth rocks.
One of the most unique ground types is Gliscor. It's bulky, can boost its attack to ridiculous levels with Swords Dance, learns all the elemental fangs once it evolves from Gligar, and has a dangerous offensive movepool. Mine was a life saver in the last tournament. Just be careful about ice.
Rock: Good against bug, fire, flying, and ice. Weak against fighting, ground and steel. They resist normal, fire, flying, and poison, but fighting, grass, ground, steel, and water will tear them apart.
Rock types are strong, but they're almost always dualtype with ground. That means water and grass do twice as much damage than it would to a pure rock type. Defenses are alright... at least on the physical side of things.
But, hey, rock type attacks are heavy-hitting, and plenty of powerful Pokémon are open to full-on assault. Put a Charizard up against a rock type, and you won't last long. Not unless you've got Solarbeam on your side.
Tyrantrum is everything you could want from a Pokémon. It's cool, it's fierce, it's a dinosaur, and it also acts as a hard-hitting monstrosity with its Strong Jaw ability boosting its bites. Aggron may have a huge fighting and ground weakness, but if you can work around it, you'll have a tough, reliable partner. Breed one with a Tyrantrum, and you can even get the egg move Head Smash, which benefits from the Rock Head ability preventing recoil damage. And then there's Rhyperior... Well, its Solid Rock ability makes up for its huge weakneses, and if you can build your team around its weak spots, you'll have another great physical power house.
Nearly every rock type is a physical attacker, so you'll want to pack plenty of Burn Heals to keep them at top strength.
Bug: Good against psychic, dark, and grass... and resisted by fire, poison, flying, fighting, ghost, fairy, and steel. Have fun with that. They might resist ground, fighting, and grass, but they're weak against fire, rock, and flying. These are all common types.
I may have been hard on bugs, but they can and do work under the right circumstances. Scizor is probably the best of the bunch thanks to its single weakness to fire, great resistances, Technicain ability boosting moves like Bullet Punch and Bug Bite, and sheer durability. Heracross is another strong choice, picking hard-hitting moves like Close Combat and Megahorn, though you'll want to watch out for flying types.
Again, Scolipede works as tough, agile bruiser, and Galvantula's Compound Eyes ability makes sure Thunder hits over 90% of the time. Scyther and Pinsir are also great physical attackers, though you'll want to keep Scyther away from bugs.
Ghost: They only do heavy damage to psychic and ghost types, and and dark and psychic types resist them. I already mentioned how normal types have an edge when fighting ghosts, since powerful moves like Shadow Ball do nothing. They resist bug and poison and are usually immune to fighting and normal moves until you use Foresight on 'em. Problem is, dark and ghost moves can really do them in. And with Pokémon like Gengar, even Psychic moves are an issue.
But you know what? Ghost types are awesome. Under the right circumstances, they can mess you up. They can inflict just about every status problem. Poison, paralysis, confusion, and sleep... Heck, they can Curse their opponents, trap them using Mean Look, and then heal using moves like Dream Eater.
You can pick up a ghost as early as Route 31 and Violet City, and I suggest you do it. Gastly's evolutions can learn a number of useful moves. Tutors can teach them elemental attacks, and they can use confuse ray and hypnosis early on. TMs in Goldenrod will teach them moves that burn and poison, and ThunderPunch has a chance of paralyzing.
Their defenses kind of stink, but they make up for it with speed and strength.
Gengar and Haunter both fill the same niche of fast, lethal special attackers with status and other nasty tricks up their sleeves. Jellicent is a bit slower, but makes up for its slow speed with durability. Spiritomb is unique due to its single weakness in fairy, but it'll lag behind its foes unless you use Trick Room.
The best ghost of the bunch is Aegislash. Steel/Ghost? Awesome ability in Stance Change? Mixed attacking potential? You can't go wrong. King's Shield lets it block out physical attacks and weaken its foes, Stance Change lets it shift from a brick wall to a lethal blade, and if you can cover its fire, ghost, and ground weaknesses, you'll have it made.
Trevenant and Gourgeist are two more recent ghosts, and while they're both grass types, their movesets bring a lot of fun tricks to the battlefield.
Steel: Best defensive type, hands down. I'm just gonna throw that out there. Super effective against ice, fairy and rock, weak against, electric, fire, steel, and water. Here's where it gets good... Pure steel types resist bug, dragon, flying, grass, ice, normal, psychic, rock, and steel. They're immune to poison, and their only weaknesses are fire, ground, and fighting.
You really can't go wrong with steel types. They have great defenses, heavy resistances, and most of them have pretty strong attacking stats. You could get away with multiple steel types as long as you knock out their weaknesses or steer clear of them.
You've probably noticed that I keep recommending steel types in just about every section. Well, that's because they really are among the best Pokémon out there. Just keep in mind that steel types are usually pretty slow. Lucario and Excadrill are the rare exceptions, and running a team full of steel types will leave you with huge and predictable weaknesses.
A unique steel type is Klefki, which is also part fairy. Its Prankster ability lets it land non-offensive moves before its opponents, so you can mess them up with Swagger, Thunder Wave, and other obnoxious moves like Toxic.
Fairy: This type. This type... Ugh. Okay, so I'm kind of biased because I love dragon types, but fairy Pokémon literally popped out of nowhere. They're unique, though. Their only weaknesses are Steel and poison, and they resist bug, fighting, and dark, and have an immunity to dragon moves. They do heavy damage to fighting, dark, and dragon, though fire, steel, and poison types resist them.
I'm still researching these guys, but based on what I've seen so far, I can recommend at least a few.
Sylveon is like a fairy-typed Vaporeon, bulky on the special side, can heal with the egg move Wish, and it has the added bonus of setting up moves like Light Screen to protect your team. Azumarill benefits from its Huge Power ability, making Play Rough downright terrifying. It also gets Belly Drum and Aqua Jet as eggmoves, so once it sets up, it's almost impossible to take down.
Clefable is sturdy and can fill the role of a cleric with Wish, Softboiled, and statuses. Its Magic Guard lets it soak up statuses without trouble, and its special movepool is ridiculously diverse. Then there's Granbull, a slow but reliable bruiser with a scary face to match.
Overall, type plays a huge role in battles. Knowing your types makes it easy to build the perfect team, pick moves for your Pokémon, and find holes in your opponent's battle style. Also, if your Pokémon uses moves that match their type, they do more damage, making dualtypes especially great.
Now that I've covered types, I think it's time we get into the specifics of team building.
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Stats and Team Building:
There's more to battles than types, though. One thing you need to keep in mind is that different Pokémon have different capabilities. Speed, strength, and defense are all important factors to consider. If you want specifics, just use your Pokédex, and it'll show:
Attack: How strong their physical attacks are. Moves that involve punching, kicking, biting, and tackles all count as physical.
Special Attack: Special attack strength. For example, the move flamethrower is special. These tend to be more magical/elemental.
Special Defense: Defense against special attacks.
Defense: Defense against physical attacks.
Speed: Self explanatory.
Personally, I think it's important to have a Pokémon with a solid offensive stat, speed, and defense. Low or average defenses are alright if your Pokémon's fast and can make up for it with offensive power. Thing is, some Pokémon have awful stats all around. A lot of unevolved Pokémon can't stand up to a fully evolved enemy without a solid strategy, and then you've got Pokémon that never evolve and keep poor stats even at level 100.
That doesn't mean it's impossible, and power isn't everything. A balanced team has balanced roles. A Pokémon for every situation. To give you an idea of what I mean, here are a few sample roles...
Sweeper: Basically, something fast that comes in, maybe boosts a few stats, and mows through opposing Pokémon. Many Pokémon in this category are frail, but they make up for it with offensive potential. If you like playing hard and fast, I recommend one physical and one special sweeper on your team to cover all the bases.
Tank/Wall: They're usually slow but make up for it with longevity due to bulk and occasionally healing. A few examples include Blissey for taking special hits, Skarmory for physical damage, Slowking and Slowbro, and Porygon2 for mixed bulk. But that's not all by any means. Umbreon, Ferrothorn, Goodra, and Cofagrigus all spring to mind. The great thing about bulky Pokémon is that you can fit a bunch of different niches with them.
Some work best at laying traps, like Ferrothorn and Skarmory. They can use Toxic to stall for time and heal up with Roost in Skarmory's case. Some can deal decent damage despite their slow speed, like Goodra and Ferrothorn, while others like Vaporeon and Sylveon can use Baton pass to boost a team member and heal them up.
Like with sweepers, I recommend at least one of each kind of tank. These guys also work great if they have at least one status move. Will-O-Wisp is essential for crippling physical attackers, Toxic lets you stall for time, and Sleep, Paralysis, and Confusion are all obnoxious. Speaking of which...
Booster: Their sole purpose is to boost their stats and pass them onto another Pokémon with Baton Pass. It helps to use Substitute with these guys because some of them are frailer than others, like Ninjask.
General Nuisance: Status effects, confusion, Taunt, there are so many nasty moves you can use to make your opponents scream. Encore will lock an opponent into an attack. Taunt will prevent non-offensive moves. Klefki is probably the best example of this thanks to Prankster, but a lot of ghost types fill this niche.
Trapper: Usually goes hand in hand with the previous two. Trapping moves are attacks that deal damage to foes as they switch in. Spikes hits anything that doesn't fly or levitate. Toxic Spikes can poison or badly poison anything that doesn't Fly or Levitate, but Poison types absorb it, and Stealth Rock... hah. It hits everything that doesn't have Magic Guard. The weaker the Pokémon to rock, the greater the damage.
The only way to get rid of them is through a move called Rapid Spin. Not that it'll help if you're up against a Ghost. Of these, I find Stealth Rock the most useful, but when combined, you'll easily wear down your team.
Skarmory is a fantastic trapper because it gets access to Whirlwind and can force switches. Anything with Roar is another good alternative, and moves like Dragon Tail yield the same results but with a little extra damage thrown in.
Statuses:
One more thing to keep in mind is status problems. They are a pain to deal with, but make battling a breeze if you're the one dishing them out. I'll give a quick summary of them.
Poison: Slowly weakens your Pokémon until they faint. Can be cured with an Antidote or a Pecha Berry. Doesn't affect poison or steel types.
Paralysis: Sometimes keeps your Pokémon from attacking. Can be cured with a Paralyze Heal or a Cheri Berry.
Burn: Like poison, but lowers attack power. Cured with Burn Heal or Aspear Berry.
Sleep: Pokémon falls asleep, can't attack, and is open to moves like Dream Eater and Nightmare. Some attacks let you fight while sleeping, like Sleep Talk, but most require a move tutor or TM. Cured with Awakening and Chesto Berry.
Confusion: Sometimes your Pokémon attacks itself. Wears off on its own if you switch out or wait long enough. You can cure it with a Persim Berry.
Other moves like Curse and Nightmare are close to status problems and drain your Pokémon's health constantly.
I'll wrap this up by explaining how to catch Pokémon. All you have to do is weaken them and catch them in some kind of Pokéball. There are different types, and some work better than other. I recommend Ultra Balls, but they're pretty expensive. If the enemy Pokémon faints, you can still catch it, and sometimes status problems help.
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Evolution:
So how does evolution work? Basically, most Pokémon go through a transformation. Usually that means becoming bigger, stronger, and sometimes gaining a new type. The downside is that they don't learn moves as quickly, and if you evolve your Pokémon with a stone, they stop learning new moves on their own. Evee's an exception; its evolved forms actually learn better moves the sooner you use the stones.
Here are the main types of evolution:
Level: Basically, the Pokémon evolves through training. Some evolve three times, others just once. I'd say the average for a three-stage Pokémon's first evolution is 16 and the second at around 36. Dragon types evolve slowly, and Pokémon that evolve once usually don't do it until at least level 20.
Happiness: If you treat your Pokémon well, they'll evolve after about two months. I'll list some examples of Pokémon that evolve by happiness...
With Eevee, it'll either become Umbreon or Espeon based on the time of day. Riolu, Happiny, and Budew evolve during the day, and Chingling evolves at night. Otherwise, time doesn't matter.
Trade: Sometimes you have to trade a Pokémon for it to evolve. Most people do temporary trades just to get their Pokémon to evolve.
These guys only evolve when traded with each other. It's weird, but there you have it.
Trade + Item: Sometimes you have to give your Pokémon a specific item and then trade them for them to evolve. Here are the ones I know about...
Scyther (Metal Coat), Onix (Metal Coat), Poliwhirl (King's Rock), Slowpoke (King's Rock), Porygon (Upgrade), Seadra (Dragon Scale), Electabuzz (Electrizer), Magmar (Magmarizer), Rhydon (Protector), Dusklops (Reaper Cloth), Clamperl (Deep Sea Scale/Deep Sea Tooth), Spritzee (Sachet), Swirlix (Whipped Dream), Feebas (Prism Scale), Porygon2 (Dubious Disc)
Some Pokémon only evolve with stones. The upside is that stone evolutions are usually pretty powerful, but the downside's that they stop learning new moves after they evolve. You should probably wait to use stones until your Pokémon's at a high level. It's frustrating, but worth it. Before I go into each stone, though, let's talk about Eevee.
This little guy can evolve with the Fire Stone, Water Stone, Thunder Stone, Frozen Rock, and Mossy Rock, and I suggest you do it early on to ensure the eevee gets the most out of its evolved movesets. As for the stones themselves...
Fire Stone
Thunder Stone
Water Stone
Water Stone
Moon Stone
Sun Stone
Shiny Stone
Dusk Stone
Dusk Stone
♂
♀
Holding Item + Battle:
Sneasel evolves into Weavile with the Razor Claw if leveled at night. Gligar evolves into Gliscor with the Razor Fang at night. Nosepass and Magneton evolve with the Coronet Rock.
Level Up + Move:
Yanma, Tangela, and Piloswine evolve with the move Ancient Power. Bonsly and Mime Jr. evolve with Mimic, Aipom evolves with Double Hit, and Lickitung evolves with Rollout.
Level up at Night:
Evolves at level 39.
Level up in the Day:
Evolves at level 39.
Sylveon: Sylveon gets its own category because of all the ridiculous hoops you have to jump through. First, you have to care for it for a few months, and you have to feed it Poképuffs for good measure. By the time it's happy enough, you need to make sure it knows a fairy-type move.
Inkay: Get your Inkay to level 30, buy an Inkay bottle, stuff it in the bottle, and spin it until a Malamar pops out. Yeah, it's weird.
Even if you prefer cute Pokémon, you should consider letting your team evolve at least once if you're serious about battling. It pays off.
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Gym Battles:
So what about gyms? Basically, they're a way to test your skills as a trainer. If you beat a Gym Leader, you earn a badge and usually another prize to go with it. Even if you're not big on battles, you should consider taking on the gyms because the prizes make traveling a whole lot easier. Tried of spending days on the road? Fly gets you to places in a fraction of the time. Thing is, you need badges to be able to use these moves out of battles.
Each Gym Leader besides Blue focuses on a specific type, and they get stronger as you progress. Falkner's strongest is level 35, while Clair's is in the 70's. But don't let that scare you. They're easy enough if you've got the right team. I'll go over each one real quick, just to give you a basic idea.
Falkner: Flying type trainer, uses Pokémon in the 30's. You should use a rock, ice, or electric type. Rock types can be found in the caves, and you can catch an electric type right outside Violet City. Beating Falkner's important if you want to use Fly outside of battles. Plus, he gives you the TM for roost.
Bugsy: Uses bug types, strongest is level 40. Bring a fire type if you want to take down his Scizor easily. Otherwise, a flying type can cover the rest. Beat him and you get the TM for U-Turn.
Whitney: Normal type trainer, and you fight her in Goldenrod. If you can, get a fighting type or something that can handle rock type moves. Trust me, you're gonna need it when she sends out her Miltank. Strongest is level 45, and you get a Squirtbottle if you beat her. Makes it easy to get past the Sudowoodo. Other prizes include the HM for Rock Smash, TM for Attract, and you can use Strength any time.
And just as a warning, she throws a fit whenever she loses. Just thought I'd throw that out there.
Morty: Ecruteak Gym Leader. Ghost type trainer, and his strongest is at level 50. Expect to deal with status problems, Shadow Balls, and Curse. You really should get a Psychic or Dark type if you're going up against him. At least something that knows Bite or Crunch. If you've got a normal type, here's a good place to use them.
He's not a sore loser like Whitney, and he gives some cool prizes as a reward. You get the TM for Shadow Ball, the HM for Strength, and you can use Surf any time.
Jasmine: Olivine Leader. Here's the thing about Jasmine. She's stronger than Cianwood's Gym Leader, but not by much. Problem is, she's a steel type trainer, making her a tough contender. Water type moves work on her Steelix, and you can use electric moves on her Skarmory. Ground or fire should handle her Magneton. Fighting types help with her Steelix. Strongest is level 60.
So, as far as prizes go, you get the HM for Surf.
Chuck: Cianwood Gym Leader. His specialty's fighting types. By now you should have at least one flying or psychic type. Personally, I found him almost too easy. He's got two pure fighting types and one water/fighting. They're strong, but with the right team, you can finish him before he can do too much damage. Strongest Pokémon is level 55. If you can beat Jasmine, you'll have no problem with Chuck.
You get the HM for Fly after beating him. About time.
Pryce: Prepare to be lectured. Anyway, Pryce is the leader of the Mahogany Gym, and he uses ice types. If you thought about using a fire type, well, you might want to hold back. He's got a Dewgong and a Lapras, and their part-water typing makes fire useless. I'd aim for an electric or fighting type for those two. Once you get to his Mamoswine, fire away. Just keep in mind that it's level 65.
You get the TM for Hail as a prize, and you can start using Waterfall outside of battle... once you get it, anyway.
Clair: Blackthorn Gym Leader. You better have at least one Pokémon with ice type moves because Clair's specialty is dragon types. She's the final Gym Leader in Johto, and her strongest Pokémon is a level 70 Dragonite. But I wouldn't worry about him. Instead, you should worry about her Kingdra. Unless you've got a Pokémon with dragon type moves, he's going to be a pain.
She's a sore loser like Whitney, and you'll probably have to follow her to the Dragon's Den to get your prize. Once you get through to her, she'll hand over the Waterfall HM, and you can use Rock Climb out of battle. ...Except I haven't seen that HM anywhere. Kind of pointless, if you ask me.
And here's a list of the Kanto Gym Leaders. Keep in mind that I've only faced their Elite Teams, but given that they're the stronger rosters, my tips probably apply to their standard teams.
Sabrina: Psychic type enthusiast. Hands out the Marsh badge, a TM for Psychic, and the Fly HM if you don't already have it. Her Elite Team is made up of Alakazam, Gardevoir, Gallade, Espeon, Jynx, and Wobbuffet.
Don't get cocky when facing her. Even if you have a decent roster of dark, ghost, or steel types, she might still nail you with moves like Confuse Ray, Lovely Kiss, and Hypnosis. It helps if you have Pokémon that can nail her physically. The sooner the better. Also, when taking on Wobbuffet, be very careful. It's got moves like Counter, Mirror Coat, and Destiny Bond, not to mention Safeguard to prevent status effects. If you want to beat it, either use something fast enough to nail it with a stat problem like sleep or paralysis and then attack or use something with decent defenses.
By the way, you can't switch out on a Wobbuffet, and its Counter and Mirror coat make it a nightmare unless you've got a Ghost type that dishes out physical moves or a Dark Type that can nail it with special.
Generally, though, if you've got something that knows Crunch or Dark Pulse, you should be okay. Scizor's another good option due to the bug/steel typing.
Normal team consists of an Espeon, a Mr. Mime, and an Alakazam.
Erika: Grass type trainer. Hands out the Rainbow Badge, Giga Drain TM, and Strength HM if you don't already have it. Her Elite Team's made up of Shiftry, Jumpluff, Victreebell, Roserade, Bellossom, and Vileplume.
When you face her, be prepared. Expect sleep, poison, and paralysis at all times and make sure you've got something that can counter it. If you have a Dragonite or any other Pokémon with Safeguard, use it. It'll save you some trouble. Packing some Full Heals and other items wouldn't hurt, either.
Other than that, just nail her team with some flying and fire attacks, and you should be all right. Steel types like Scizor and Skarmory come in handy due to their poison immunity, but if you've got a Charizard or any other fire types on your side, that badge is as good as yours.
Standard team consists of Jumpluff, Tangrowth, and Bellossom.
Lt. Surge: Electric type user, hands out the Thunder Badge and Thunder TM. Elite team's made up of Manetric, Magnezone, Pachirisu, Electrode, Electivire, and Raichu.
Pack at least one ground type or a Pokémon that knows Dig and/or Earthquake. It'll make your life a lot easier. Since ground types are immune to electric moves, you won't have to worry about Thunder Wave, and with the right Pokémon on your side, you can plow through most of his team's frail defenses. Just watch out for Magnezone if you take on his Elite roster. It knows Magnet Rise, meaning ground type immunity if you've got nothing to knock it down. Steelix can help with the move Smack Down, but otherwise, you might want something with fire moves as backup.
Standard team consists of Electabuzz, Magneton, and Raichu.
Misty: Water type leader, hands out the Water Pulse TM. Her Elite team's made up of Quagsire, Lanturn, Floatzel, Lapras, Starmie, and Milotic.
Electric moves should cover most of her team except Lanturn and Quagsire. For these guys, you'll have to take their dual types into account. Quagsire's immune to electric, but if you've got a Pokémon with a solid grass move, it'll be an easy win. As for Lanturn, grass and ground moves should do the trick. Other than that, just watch out for ice moves and status problems. If you're doing the Elite team, a dark and fighting type might help with Starmie and Lapras.
Standard team's got Golduck, Lapras, and Starmie.
Brock: Uses rock types. Hands out the Rock Slide TM, Rock Smash HM, and his Elite Team's made up of Rhyperior, Ramparados, Onix, Golem, Omastar, and Kabutops.
First thing's first: Rhyperior, Onix, and Golem are all rock/ground types. That means a water or grass move should cut them down easily. They should cover Rampardos for good measure, but for Onix and Kabutops, their water typing neutralizes any water moves. When facing them, you should aim for a grass move or just nail them with ground, electric, and fighting.
Standard team has Rhyhorn, Golem, and Onix. Just wet them down or nail them with grass.
Blue: Probably the toughest of the Gym Leaders. Hands out the Earth Badge, Hyper Beam TM, and an SS Anne ticket. Blue doesn't stick to any specific type, and with a balanced team, you'll need strategy to overcome him. When I faced up against his Elite Roster, I went up against a Charizard, Blastoise, Venusaur, Pidgeot, Tyranitar, and Jolteon. Word is, his regular team's made up of Arcanine, Pidgeot, Gyarados, Rhydon, Exeggutor, and Machamp. Either way, you'll have your hands full with this guy.
If you can, try to pick Pokémon with a wide enough move pool to catch this guy off guard. Dragons and Steel Types would probably come in handy against him, and if you've got Pokémon that can inflict status problems, bring them. It'll make your life a million times easier.
Standard team has an Exeggutor, Machamp, Rhydon, Gyarados, Pidgeot, and Arcanine. Yes, he's packing a team of six, so be careful.
Blaine: And we're back to single-type leaders. Blaine hands out the Volcano Badge, the TM for Fire Blast, and the HM for Whirlpool. If you haven't guessed already, fire types are his specialty.
The Elite Team's made up of Torkoal, Camerupt Magcargo, Houndoom, Magmortar, and Rapidash. When facing these guys, don't just jump in with a water type; some of these guys know electric moves and Solarbeam. While water moves will help, you might want to bring some backup. Dragon types can still use water, rock, and ground moves, and their resistance to fire, grass, and water makes them a great trump card. If you've got a Dragonite or Garchomp on hand, make sure you bring them along.
Come to think of it, Kingdra would probably get the job done.
His standard team's just a Magcargo, Magmortar, and Rapidash. Wet them down. Just watch out for Magmortar's electric attacks and possible Solarbeams from all three.
Janine: Poison type Gym Leader. Hands out the Soul Badge, Toxic TM, and the HM for Surf. Her Elite Team's made up of Crobat, Weezing, Toxicroak, Drapion, Arbok, and Venomoth.
All I will say is bring steel types. They're immune to poison, giving you an added edge on the battlefield. If you've got a Nidoking or Nidoqueen, they're just as useful due to their dual ground/poison typing. Makes them resistant to poison and allows them to nail Janine's team with super effective moves like Dig and Earth Power. The only problem is her Weezing and Crobat, whose typing and abilities leave them immune to ground... unless you've got a Steelix. Then all you have to do is use Smack Down, and they're wide open.
Scizor's another good pick due to the poison type's weakness to bug moves. Overall, steel, ground, and poison types are my recommendations. Also, watch out for other status inflictors like Sleep Powder and Stun Spore; even if your Pokémon can't get poisoned, she'll have other ways of dealing with them.
And that's all the Gym Leaders. If you can get past them all, then congrats. You've cleared some of the biggest challenges in this world.
Her standard's made up of a Crobat, Ariados, and Venomoth. Crobat's probably gonna be the most obnoxious to deal with.
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Pokémon Care:
This is a new section added to address how to actually treat your Pokémon. Keep in mind that every Pokémon is different and that what works for me may not work for you.
First and foremost, you're probably wondering what they can or can't eat. Well, I'm here to clear that up right now.
Pokémon Can Eat:
• Each other. Yeah, sorry, but it's true. Many Pokémon do hunt each other, especially in the wild, and while you might find that morally objectionable, keep in mind that they are animals. Pidgeots enjoy hunting Magikarp, for example, and you won't get away with feeding an Aerodactyl a diet of berries unless you're really lucky.
Luckily, most caught Pokémon know better than to attack their teammates or another trainer's team.
• Eggs. Some species like Sneasel and Weavile love eating Pidgey and other eggs. I let mine go out and grab them all the time. And like with trained Pokémon, they usually know better than to eat eggs from their trainer or others.
• Berries. They heal Pokémon in battle, and a fair number them enjoy them as a snack, especially if you're on the road. Still, I personally wouldn't feed a carnivorous Pokémon like Feraligatr or Garchomp a diet of berries because...
• Pokémon can eat meat! Most stores sell plenty of it, and I recommend feeding them raw. There are proteins in meat that can't be replicated with tacky, dry kibble and berries.
• Pokémon food. AKA dry, disgusting kibble. Some love it. Most of mine hate it. There's also some in the wet variety, and it's probably easier than preparing meats.
• Most human food, so don't stress over sharing your meals.
• Metals, if you're dealing with a steel type.
• Dreams. Many Psychic and Ghost types love to snarf them down, so uh. Don't be too alarmed if they try that with you.
• Your life force. Haunter, Litwick's forms, and other ghost types can and will feed on your life energy, so watch out. It won't kill you, but it does lead to exhaustion sometimes.
So, with food out of the way, let's talk about...
Pokémon Behavior and Upkeep:
Honestly, it varies between Pokémon to a point where you really should check the Pokédex. It's not always an indicator, a shown by my timid Hydreigon, but the general rule of thumb is that certain species tend to behave more aggressively than others. Especially large predators like Tyranitar and Ursaring.
Some of you probably hate the idea of battling, but I'll tell you straight up that avoiding battles is detrimental to a Pokémon. How are they supposed to grow if they can't fight and level up? Training with your Pokémon allows them to hone in their skills, and it can be a bonding experience for some people. But if it's really that much of a hassle, just let them train on their own. Once they hit around level twenty, you don't need to stay with them the whole time.
Heck, my time battles with each other to level up.
I'd also like to recommend giving your team some time to stretch their legs... if they've got them, anyway. Keeping them in their balls or the PC may be practical, but think of it like keeping them in more comfortable cages. They usually don't mind it, but if they don't get some free space, they'll probably grow lethargic after a while.
If you're in town, you can pull out more than six Pokémon and let them run wild. Just remember that you can only keep six on you at a time.
Most importantly, if you want your Pokémon to trust you, you're going to have to treat them with at least an ounce of respect. They aren't mindless fighting machines, and if you don't take their needs into account, they could turn on you at any time. The only time I'd recommend getting hard on them is if they're violent, unruly, and need discipline. Some Pokémon do like hurting others for fun, and some will attack humans without provocation. So, just be careful.
Pokémon Breeding:
Pokémon make eggs. Sometimes they make a lot of them. To some trainers, this might come as an upleasant surprise. Rather than stress over it, you could always give the eggs away to the Breeding Center or try selling them on your own. Heck, with the right pair-ups, you might find yourself with overpowered offspring that can rake you in some quick bucks.
I might go into more detail on breeding at a later date, but here are a few things to keep in mind...
• Pokémon can only breed if they're in the same egg group or if they're with a Ditto.
• Genderless Pokémon can only breed with Ditto and do not inherit egg moves.
• A mother-species offspring inherits moves from the father. For father-species, it's the opposite.
• Any move that the opposite parent knwos that the first form of the offspring can learn is fair game. So, if you do a same-species breeding with two level 100's, you'll get babies with all their moves pre-learned and any TM or tutor moves the parents might have on hand. Or you might get some moves the offspring can only learn from another species parent if you mix and match.
• Some Pokémon have two egg groups. Also, some Pokémon can breed with Pokémon you would never expect. Like Skitty and Wailord or Serperior and Nidoking or... heck. Gardevoir and Gastly. Your best bet is to look up the egg groups. I'll list them out, but since there are over six hundred Pokémon, I'm not gonna tell you which Pokémon goes where; the 'dex will probably clear that up instead.
So the groupings...
• Field, Flying, Dragon, Monster, Water 1 - 3, Grass, Amorhous, Mineral, Fairy, Bug, Human-like.
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There are a lot of misconceptions about training and the way this world works. I've been here for five years, so I figured I should clear things up. This guide will cover everything from basic training to gym battles. Take it from someone who's collected all the badges in Kanto and Johto, traveled all over this world, and trained over seventy Pokémon. I've got experience to back my words, and hopefully this guide will help you get a feel for this crazy new world.
Introduction | Battle Basics | Types | Team Building and Statuses | Evolution | Gym Leaders | Pokémon Care
Introduction:
• If you can read this, chances are you're either in Johto or Kanto. Yes, it's another world. No, you're not dreaming, and so far there's no way out. Gym badges will not get you out of here. Anyone still spreading that rumor is totally clueless. So far, people leave at random. Nobody knows how or why. Better get used to the waiting game.
Over the past few years, it's become clear that none of the locals know why we're here or how to get us back. I've spoken to Gym Leaders and two Elite Four Champions, and the whole situation confuses them just as much as us. I even talked to the god of this world, and if he knows, he refuses to talk about it. Go figure, right?
• If you used to be a pony, alien, or anything nonhuman, you're gonna have to get used to your new bodies. All powers are gone and weapons are illegal, so most people just use their Pokémon to fight. However, that doesn't mean you have to be helpless. Blunt weapons are allowed, even if they might get you a few suspicious looks from the cops, and Skarmory feathers can be melted into sharp blades, but they'll wear down pretty fast.
Honedge is a sword Pokémon, but they're picky about being wielded like weapons and can drain your life force. Unless you're patient, I wouldn't recommend trying this.
• People here come from different times. Just because one of your friends is here doesn't mean they're on the same page as you. And if somebody's left and returned, they usually won't remember this place. Key word being "usually". Sometimes people do remember, and it's possible that multiple timelines are involved.
• Sometimes people end up in comas for about a week. They'll wake up soon enough, usually with some new memories intact, usually with new memories included.
• Most people start out with one Pokémon, usually in New Bark Town. You're gonna want to make the most of your supplies because it takes a few days to reach the next town. It's a good time to start training your Pokémon and catching others to add to your team. Trust me, it comes in handy.
• It's possible Team Rocket begins in one of the bigger cities. I don't have a ton of intel, but nobody seems to join the team by choice, and sometimes someone gets roped in despite being a hero back home. Team Rocket has control over the Goldenrod Radio Tower, or at least some kind of influence. They also have access to weapons and resources we could only dream of. Stay sharp.
• You should probably form a travel group, unless you're a loner. Even then, it's not a bad idea. Traveling on foot takes time, and unless you've got a bike or a Pokémon to carry you around, it'll take you anywhere from a few days to a week to reach most towns. Sometimes longer.
• Stock up on potions, antidotes, camping gear, and food. The berries will make you sick, and bug type Pokémon between Cherrygrove and Violet can poison you and your team. Once you get further in, you'll want to pick up other healing items. I'll explain those a bit later.
• Johto's seasons are pretty severe. You'll want a fire type to keep warm and a water or ice type to cool down. You can probably pick one up for free from the Breeding Center or head over to Mt. Mortar and the Lake of Rage. Fire types also help once you reach the ice path.
• Don't forget to visit Sprout Tower if you want the TM for Flash. It makes travel through caves a lot easier.
• Save at least some money if you plan on staying in town. A job's not a bad idea if you need pocket change.
• The background music never ends. Better get used to it.
• Currently, you can't challenge the Elite Four. As for why, your guess is as good as mine. Like I said before, though, they wouldn't get you home even if they were taking challenges.
• There are other ways to travel. You can buy bikes in Goldenrod City, or ride on the backs of Pokémon. Onix and Steelix are great for rugged terrain, and something like a Gyarados or Wailord will get you across the sea in a flash. But really, all you need is the Zephyr Badge and the HM for Fly, and all other methods of travel are pretty much obsolete. You can cover what might take days in just a matter of hours.
To get Fly, go to Saffron or Cianwood City. I recommend Saffron because it's closer, but a lot of people seem to overlook that.
Think that covers your basic facts for this world. Time to actually move on to the training.
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Battle Basics:
• Pokémon typically start at level 5. At this point they know one, maybe two moves, and they usually don't do much damage. They're small and get tired easily. Sticking to one Pokémon is a bad idea unless you're feeling gutsy. Battles help toughen them up, but they've got limits. Push them too far, and they'll run out of steam.
• Wild Pokémon hang around tall grass, and they'll attack without warning. They start out at low levels, making them good training fodder. If you're heading down Route 29, I recommend catching at least a flying type. You can carry up to six Pokémon, but you can get by with two or three early on.
• Once you encounter a wild Pokémon, it's time to battle. Battles involve pitting your Pokémon against an opponent. First one to faint loses. Sounds easy, right? Well, it's not just a matter of hitting hard. There are a lot of factors to keep in mind.
• When you battle against trainers, the goal is to beat your opponent's team. Winner usually gets money, but if you lose, you better pay up. Some people order their Pokémon around, others let them do their own thing. If you want, you could do a double battle.
I recommend training your Pokémon to hold their own against human opponents. Team Rocket won't play fair, and sometimes you'll have to attack the trainer instead of their team.
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Types of Pokémon:
Every Pokémon has a specific typing. Each type has its ups and downs. All attacks fit into these types, making them crucial in battle.
Fire: Super effective against bug, ice, grass and steel types, not very effective against water, fire, rock, and dragon types. Their weaknesses are rock, water, and ground type attacks. They resist steel, ice, bug, grass, fairy, and fire type moves. Seeing a pattern here?
Charizard and Volcarona are great special attackers and my top picks for the type. They have practical uses outside of battle, thanks to the move Fly, and while they share a huge rock weakness, you can make up for it with proper team building and a Pokémon with Rapdid Spin. Charizard's especially great due to its mixed attacking potential and ability to boost with Swords Dance, while Volcarona gets Quiver Dance to boost speed, special attack, and special defense.
These guys are also great choices. Arcanine has solid bulk and raw power to make a great physical attacker, plus two great abilities in Intimidate and Flash Fire. Chandelure is a devastating special attacker, though it's a bit frail. Infernape works as a mixed attacker with incredible speed and access to Stealth Rock. Finally, Blaziken works as a fairly fast and hard-hitting fighter, but can also run mixed moves, just not as well as Infernape.
Most Fire types do well in battles, but if you're seriously competitive, you're gonna want to pick carefully. Flareon's attack is solid, but it's slow and kinda frail and too slow for its own good. Slugma and Magcargo have a quadruple weakness to water and so does Camerupt. Most of the others should be decent.
Water: Super effective against fire, rock, and ground types. Not very effective against grass, water, and dragon types. Weak to electric and grass, resist fire, steel, water, and ice.
You should catch at least one water type. They're useful for travel and cooling down on hot days. They only have two real weaknesses, and they tend to have high defense and attack stats. They can almost always learn ice moves, making it easy to take out one of their weaknesses. There's a lot of variety, but it's a double-edged sword, as some water types just can't keep up with the current.
Swampert is a terrifying physical attacker whose ground typing leaves him invulnerable to electricity. The ground typing gives him an added boost when using moves like Earthquake, and if you set one up with hard-hitting moves like Waterfall, Ice Punch, Hammer Arm, and Rock Slide, you'll be pummeling foes in no time. Gyarados is equally terrifying, with decent defenses, the ability to boost its speed and attack with Dragon Dance, and a wide mixed movepool including oddball moves like Flamethrower and Thunderbolt. Just be careful, because Swampert's got a huge grass weakness, and Gyarados folds under electricity.
When you hit the special attackers, you'll find a huge variety. Greninja is fast, powerful, and has Dark Typing to give it an added edge in battle. It's just frail as paper, so if you want something sturdier, try Vaporeon. This thing's as sturdy as a tank, can heal with the egg move Wish or use Aqua Ring to slowly heal the whole party, and its Acid Armor lets it bulk up, while Toxic whittles away at your opponents.
Slowbro and Slowking also work as defensive monsters, with Slack Off for healing and Psychic typing and wide movepools for greater coverage in battles. They can use Trick Room to speed up slower Pokémon, like Porygon2 or Snorlax. Meanwhile, Empoleon's steel typing gives it some fantastic resistances, Clawitzer's Mega Launcher ability lets it wreck foes with Water Pulse, Aura Sphere, and other pulse-based attacks, Blastoise works as a bulky bruiser, and Tentacruel can set up Toxic Spikes to mess up your foe's team and hold its own with its special defenses.
There are so many water types that it'd take forever to go through them all, so go out there and experiment. Just be wary of Seaking and Luvdisc.
Grass: Effective against water, rock, and ground. Not very effective against... just about everything else. Bug, flying, dragon, fire, grass, poison, steel. Sure they resist electric, water, ground, and grass, but they're also weak to fire, flying, bug, ice, and poison.
You need to be careful with grass types. There are other Pokémon that can pick up grass moves pretty easily. Solarbeam can be learned by fire types, and their stat moves are nothing to brag about. Moves that poison, paralyze, and put Pokémon to sleep can be learned by much better types. Overall, it takes work to use a grass type effectively. But, hey, if you know what you're doing, they can still carry their weight in battle.
Venusaur brings a great mix of status effects, raw power, and bulk to the field, and its typing lets it pummel fairy types with ease. Torterra's got brute strength to match its defenses, but keep in mind that it's slow as molasses. Still, earthquake helps with fire type menaces. Chesnaught and Breloom work well as physical attackers, with Breloom's strength in its Spore attack, which puts enemies to sleep without question. Combined with Focus Punch, this combo can blow holes through teams, if you want something sturdier, Chesnaught makes up for its slow speed with bulk and muscle. Both have access to punching moves for additional type coverage. Just beware of birds.
Sceptile's great because it's fast, works as a physical or special brawler, and has a huge variety in attack options. Lastly, Ferrothorn is a great set-up Pokémon, with access to Stealth Rock, Leech Seed, Thunder Wave, and other obnoxious moves. Just keep it away from fire and let it go to town.
Electric: Effective against flying and water, not very effective against electric, dragon, and grass. No effect on ground types. They're weak against ground and resist electric, flying, and steel moves.
Electric Pokémon are useful offensively because they learn some devastating moves and they're usually quick on their feet. Plus they can paralyze. They only have one weakness, and moves like Thunderbolt can take their toll on just about any type besides Ground. Their defenses are pretty average, but power and paralysis makes up for it.
All of these Pokéon are quick on their feet, but Jolteon leaves them all in the dust. It's fast, it's cool, and it hits like a truck, with a small amount of coverage in moves like Shadow Ball and Signal Beam. Too bad it's frail, like most of its types. Raichu is decent, and miles ahead of Pikachu, but Manectric's an overall better pick due to its Lightning Rod ability. Luxray shines as a physical attacker and gains access to fang moves from breeding, and Heliolisk has two great abilities in Dry Skin and Sand Veil, and even gets some surprising moves like Surf to throw enemies off guard.
Rotom is a great pick because it can change forms to suit your needs. Just give it an appliance, and it'll change before your eyes. Personally, I think the Wash form works best due to its water typing and bulk, and if you use moves like Will-O-Wisp, you can make it last a long time. Alternatively, Ampharos is a solid tank with surprise moves like Signal Beam and Power Gem, though it's also slow as a snail.
An honorable mention goes to Electivire thanks to its wide physical move pool and Magnezone for insane bulk and special attack. It's just hindered by a crippling ground weakness.
Psychic: Super effective against poison and fighting, not very effective against psychic and steel. No effect on dark. Weak against dark, ghost, and bug types, and they resist psychic and fighting type moves.
Psychic types usually have a high special attack stat and speed, but their defenses almost always suck. These Pokémon are glass cannons. They hit hard, but the right physical moves can take them out in one or two hits tops. They can learn moves from other types, but I'd avoid physical moves. Special's where it's at.
The best Psychic in my opinion is Metagross. Its defenses make it a tank, it can learn Stealth Rock, and it's got an impressive attack stat and some pretty decent special attack. Mine helped me win the Advanced Cup not too long ago. Give it moves like Ice Punch, Earthquake, Zen Headbutt, and Meteor Mash, and watch it smash through enemies in no time flat.
Alakazam is a speedy powerhouse hindered only by paper-thin defenses. Gardevoir fills a similar niche, but with a little more special bulk and fairy typing to help it hold its own against dragons, dark types, and especially fighting types. Musharna is one of the few bulky psychics aside from the Slowpoke line, and Reuniclus Magic Guard ability mixed with its bulk lets it withstand everything from weather effects to poison.
Other physical Psychics include Gallade and Medicham, though their fighting type makes fairies a bit of a pain. Starmie's another great psychic and water type I forgot to mention before with its speed and access to Rapid Spin. Espeon also works as an alternative to Alakazam.
Ice: Effective against grass, flying, dragon, and ground. Not very effective against water, steel, fire, and ice. Weak against fire, fighting, steel, and rock, and their only resistance is ice.
Basically, ice types have terrible defenses. Seriously, they have one resistance, and their weaknesses are all pretty common. They have some tough moves, but you'd probably be better off teaching a water type ice moves.
Weavile's a useful Pokémon to have due to its high speed and attack stats. It's the evolved form of Sneasel, and you can get it using a Razor Claw. Just thought I'd point that out.
Mamoswine's another reliable ice type, and its ground typing gives it at least some edge against its fire weakness. It learns both rock type moves and Earthquake and can pick up Stealth Rock for good measure. Plus, throw up some hail, and it's a nightmare to hit. Avalugg works as a defensive force and actually gains access to Recover for healing. And while I haven't used one, Glaceon seems like a great special attacker if you can make up for its weaknesses.
Dragon: Super effective against dragon, not very effective against steel. They resist fire, water, electric, grass, and their only weaknesses are dragon, ice, and fairy. The downside? Their dragon moves do nothing to fairies. Great...
The thing you should know about dragon types is that they're almost all dual-type, and you shouldn't rely on dragon type moves alone. They're heavy hitters that can learn moves from almost all elemental types, and their stats are insane.
These guys are the cream of the crop. Garchomp is one of the strongest pysical threats out there, with great moves like Outrage, Dragon Claw, Earthquake, Stone Edge, and Fire Fang, just to name a few. Iron Head lets it smash through fairies, and if you throw up some sand, it becomes a nightmare to hit. Dragonite is bulky, can boost its speed with Agility or Dragon Dance, and has such a wide movepool, you can use it against just about everything. Salamence is kind of like a faster, sleeker Dragonite with a bit less variety, and Hydreigon Just be careful about their quad weaknesses in ice, or for Hydreigon, fairy.
You really can't go wrong with dragon types. Each one has its own special skills, and their moves are wide enough that they can take on their weaknesses. Of these guys here, Goodra is one of the best picks due to two great abilities in Sap Sipper and Hydration, and a wide mixed movepool.
Dark: Effective against psychic and ghost, weak against steel, fighting, bug, and fairy. Resists dark and ghost.
Dark types are useful against psychic and ghost types, but they're more geared towards physical moves than special attacks.
Tyranitar and Weavile are easily the strongest dark types to pick from, but Umbreon's pretty sturdy. I've got all three, and they're all useful for different reasons. Tyranitar's slow, but it can take a lot more punishment than a Weavile, plus they create sandstorms for added damage.
Zoroark's a killer special sweeper with a unique ability in Illusion. Want to throw your enemies off guard? A Zoroark can take on the form of another Pokémon in your party, giving them a nasty surprise with the right strategy. Plus, they're fast and hit hard as long as you give them the right moveset.
Bisharp's defiant ability makes it stronger when its stats drop, which combined with its intense strength makes it downright terrifying. Just look out for fighting types. Krookodile's got great dual typing with ground and either Intimidate to lower enemy attacks or Moxie to boost its strength when it wipes out opponents. Honorable mention goes to Malamar for the great ability Contrary and unique Psychic/Dark typing, but bugs are gonna drive you nuts if you train one.
Normal: They aren't super effective against anything, do next to nothing against rock and steel, have no effect on ghosts, and are weak against fighting. The upside is that they're resistant to ghost moves. Still, this type is... pretty average.
These guys are your hard hitters. Kangaskhan even has access to Scrappy to let it hit ghost types. Stoutland has Intimidate to weaken opponents and Sand Rush to bolt through sandstorms, plus some solid speed to back it up, and Zangoose is immune to poison in addition to its strength. And then there's Slaking... great stats, but its Truant ability's a bit of a pain. Use with caution.
Porygon2 and Blissey both work great on the defensive side, while Porygon-Z is a terrifying glass cannon. Snorlax has the benefit of power and bulk, making it another solid choice.
Fighting: Strong against rock, normal, steel, ice, and dark. Weak against poison, flying, bug, fairy, and psychic. Resist bug, dark, and rock, and they're weak to flying and psychic. No effect on ghost types.
Fighting types are heavy hitters. One of the best offensive types, hands down. Their attack stats are high, and if you combine that with moves like Close Combat or Aura Sphere, they're a force to be recommend with. You just have to watch their weaknesses. Pure fighting types are easy to nail with flying and psychic moves.
That's why I recommend Lucario. Its steel typing gives it added resistance, and it's great with both physical and special moves. That, and Aura Sphere never misses.
For fighting purists, Machamp's a great choice due to its No Guard ability making sure every move hits. Combine that with Dynamic Punch, and you'll instantly confuse your opponents, if the move doesn't knock them out. Conkeldurr benefits from bulk and its Sheer Force ability making attacks even tougher than before. Both of these guys also have access to Guts which boost them when hit by statuses.
Mienshao is kind of like Lucario lite, but it's fast and lacks some of Lucario's weakness. Finally, the Hitmon trio all fill different niches that make each one successful in unique ways. Hitmon top is probably the best of the bunch, thanks to its Technician ability and Rapid Spin.
Flying: Good against grass, bug, and flying, but don't expect them to do much to electric, rock, and steel types. They're weak against rock, ice and electric moves, but they resist grass, fighting, and bug attacks. Plus ground attacks do nothing to them.
Flying types tend to have high attack and speed stats, but their defenses are pretty average. Doesn't help that most are part normal type, so that resistance to fighting? Consider it gone. I don't think I've seen any monotype flyers. Only a few flying type moves do decent damage. Fly, Air Slash, and Sky Attack are pretty good. They can heal using Roost, making up for their low defenses.
Flying types are best for transportation and battles where they have a type advantage. Pidgeot is great for a first time flying type, but as you become more advanced, I'd aim for something more durable, like Skarmory or Charizard, but I already covered him.
If you don't mind something that'll probably try to tear your throat out, try shooting for an Aerodactyl. Togekiss is another great pick thanks to itS Serene Grace ability making moves like Air Slash more likely to trigger secondary effects. Combine Air Slash and Thunder Wave, and you'll make your opponents scream. Finally, Honchcrow has great attack and immunity to Sleep, and Sigilyph is an impressive glass cannon with its special moves.
Poison: Poison types only do serious damage to grass and fairy types, and plenty of types can resist them. Ghost, ground, poison, and rock come to mind. Plus steel is unaffected. They're weak to ground and psychic, but they've got a few resistances under their belt. Mainly poison, bug, fighting, fairy, and grass.
The thing about poison types is that they're mainly good for status inflictions. They have pretty solid defenses, and their immunity to poison comes in handy, but don't expect them to have amazing movepools unless you go dual type.
If you want a good poison type, try Nidoking. They've got a pretty flexible movepool and can learn elemental attacks if you use TMs or the move tutors. I already mentioned Tentacruel as another option, especially if you play more defensively.
Or you could get yourself a Toxicroak. Trust me, you won't regret it. Their Dry Skin ability may add a weakness to fire, but between their part-poison typing, immunity to water, and solid movepool, they're a great addition to any team. Croagunks can be caught at the Safari Zone.
With fairies are on the rise, poison types are a great way to knock them down a few pegs. Other than the ones I mentioned, Scolipede's a good dualtype with impressive speed, and Dragalge may be part dragon, but it's unique, pretty bulky, and can poison on contact.
Ground: Good against electric, rock, fire, poison, and ice. Weak against bug and grass, does nothing to flying. Resists poison and rock, weak to ice, water, and grass. Immune to electric.
Ground types are powerful. They're great with physical moves, and some have pretty heavy defenses. The real problem is that their weaknesses are common. Even other ground types can pick up Surf, a powerful water type attack. How does it work? Beats me, but the point is, you need to watch their weaknesses.
On the plus side, they've got some great moves, like Earthquake and Earth Power that'll take down a steel type with ease. And steel's one of the best defensive types out there. I'd say most ground types will work, but I'd suggest Garchomp, Nidoking, or Dugtrio. Rock/ground combo is risky.
Steelix and Excadrill are both great ground types due to their steel typing. The downside is that they're weak to ground type moves, but with Steelix's great defenses and Excadrill's high attack, I'd say they're both worth the risk.
Excadrill gets bonus points for being a Rapid Spinner that can set up stealth rocks.
One of the most unique ground types is Gliscor. It's bulky, can boost its attack to ridiculous levels with Swords Dance, learns all the elemental fangs once it evolves from Gligar, and has a dangerous offensive movepool. Mine was a life saver in the last tournament. Just be careful about ice.
Rock: Good against bug, fire, flying, and ice. Weak against fighting, ground and steel. They resist normal, fire, flying, and poison, but fighting, grass, ground, steel, and water will tear them apart.
Rock types are strong, but they're almost always dualtype with ground. That means water and grass do twice as much damage than it would to a pure rock type. Defenses are alright... at least on the physical side of things.
But, hey, rock type attacks are heavy-hitting, and plenty of powerful Pokémon are open to full-on assault. Put a Charizard up against a rock type, and you won't last long. Not unless you've got Solarbeam on your side.
Tyrantrum is everything you could want from a Pokémon. It's cool, it's fierce, it's a dinosaur, and it also acts as a hard-hitting monstrosity with its Strong Jaw ability boosting its bites. Aggron may have a huge fighting and ground weakness, but if you can work around it, you'll have a tough, reliable partner. Breed one with a Tyrantrum, and you can even get the egg move Head Smash, which benefits from the Rock Head ability preventing recoil damage. And then there's Rhyperior... Well, its Solid Rock ability makes up for its huge weakneses, and if you can build your team around its weak spots, you'll have another great physical power house.
Nearly every rock type is a physical attacker, so you'll want to pack plenty of Burn Heals to keep them at top strength.
Bug: Good against psychic, dark, and grass... and resisted by fire, poison, flying, fighting, ghost, fairy, and steel. Have fun with that. They might resist ground, fighting, and grass, but they're weak against fire, rock, and flying. These are all common types.
I may have been hard on bugs, but they can and do work under the right circumstances. Scizor is probably the best of the bunch thanks to its single weakness to fire, great resistances, Technicain ability boosting moves like Bullet Punch and Bug Bite, and sheer durability. Heracross is another strong choice, picking hard-hitting moves like Close Combat and Megahorn, though you'll want to watch out for flying types.
Again, Scolipede works as tough, agile bruiser, and Galvantula's Compound Eyes ability makes sure Thunder hits over 90% of the time. Scyther and Pinsir are also great physical attackers, though you'll want to keep Scyther away from bugs.
Ghost: They only do heavy damage to psychic and ghost types, and and dark and psychic types resist them. I already mentioned how normal types have an edge when fighting ghosts, since powerful moves like Shadow Ball do nothing. They resist bug and poison and are usually immune to fighting and normal moves until you use Foresight on 'em. Problem is, dark and ghost moves can really do them in. And with Pokémon like Gengar, even Psychic moves are an issue.
But you know what? Ghost types are awesome. Under the right circumstances, they can mess you up. They can inflict just about every status problem. Poison, paralysis, confusion, and sleep... Heck, they can Curse their opponents, trap them using Mean Look, and then heal using moves like Dream Eater.
You can pick up a ghost as early as Route 31 and Violet City, and I suggest you do it. Gastly's evolutions can learn a number of useful moves. Tutors can teach them elemental attacks, and they can use confuse ray and hypnosis early on. TMs in Goldenrod will teach them moves that burn and poison, and ThunderPunch has a chance of paralyzing.
Their defenses kind of stink, but they make up for it with speed and strength.
Gengar and Haunter both fill the same niche of fast, lethal special attackers with status and other nasty tricks up their sleeves. Jellicent is a bit slower, but makes up for its slow speed with durability. Spiritomb is unique due to its single weakness in fairy, but it'll lag behind its foes unless you use Trick Room.
The best ghost of the bunch is Aegislash. Steel/Ghost? Awesome ability in Stance Change? Mixed attacking potential? You can't go wrong. King's Shield lets it block out physical attacks and weaken its foes, Stance Change lets it shift from a brick wall to a lethal blade, and if you can cover its fire, ghost, and ground weaknesses, you'll have it made.
Trevenant and Gourgeist are two more recent ghosts, and while they're both grass types, their movesets bring a lot of fun tricks to the battlefield.
Steel: Best defensive type, hands down. I'm just gonna throw that out there. Super effective against ice, fairy and rock, weak against, electric, fire, steel, and water. Here's where it gets good... Pure steel types resist bug, dragon, flying, grass, ice, normal, psychic, rock, and steel. They're immune to poison, and their only weaknesses are fire, ground, and fighting.
You really can't go wrong with steel types. They have great defenses, heavy resistances, and most of them have pretty strong attacking stats. You could get away with multiple steel types as long as you knock out their weaknesses or steer clear of them.
You've probably noticed that I keep recommending steel types in just about every section. Well, that's because they really are among the best Pokémon out there. Just keep in mind that steel types are usually pretty slow. Lucario and Excadrill are the rare exceptions, and running a team full of steel types will leave you with huge and predictable weaknesses.
A unique steel type is Klefki, which is also part fairy. Its Prankster ability lets it land non-offensive moves before its opponents, so you can mess them up with Swagger, Thunder Wave, and other obnoxious moves like Toxic.
I'm still researching these guys, but based on what I've seen so far, I can recommend at least a few.
Sylveon is like a fairy-typed Vaporeon, bulky on the special side, can heal with the egg move Wish, and it has the added bonus of setting up moves like Light Screen to protect your team. Azumarill benefits from its Huge Power ability, making Play Rough downright terrifying. It also gets Belly Drum and Aqua Jet as eggmoves, so once it sets up, it's almost impossible to take down.
Clefable is sturdy and can fill the role of a cleric with Wish, Softboiled, and statuses. Its Magic Guard lets it soak up statuses without trouble, and its special movepool is ridiculously diverse. Then there's Granbull, a slow but reliable bruiser with a scary face to match.
Overall, type plays a huge role in battles. Knowing your types makes it easy to build the perfect team, pick moves for your Pokémon, and find holes in your opponent's battle style. Also, if your Pokémon uses moves that match their type, they do more damage, making dualtypes especially great.
Now that I've covered types, I think it's time we get into the specifics of team building.
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Stats and Team Building:
There's more to battles than types, though. One thing you need to keep in mind is that different Pokémon have different capabilities. Speed, strength, and defense are all important factors to consider. If you want specifics, just use your Pokédex, and it'll show:
Attack: How strong their physical attacks are. Moves that involve punching, kicking, biting, and tackles all count as physical.
Special Attack: Special attack strength. For example, the move flamethrower is special. These tend to be more magical/elemental.
Special Defense: Defense against special attacks.
Defense: Defense against physical attacks.
Speed: Self explanatory.
Personally, I think it's important to have a Pokémon with a solid offensive stat, speed, and defense. Low or average defenses are alright if your Pokémon's fast and can make up for it with offensive power. Thing is, some Pokémon have awful stats all around. A lot of unevolved Pokémon can't stand up to a fully evolved enemy without a solid strategy, and then you've got Pokémon that never evolve and keep poor stats even at level 100.
That doesn't mean it's impossible, and power isn't everything. A balanced team has balanced roles. A Pokémon for every situation. To give you an idea of what I mean, here are a few sample roles...
Sweeper: Basically, something fast that comes in, maybe boosts a few stats, and mows through opposing Pokémon. Many Pokémon in this category are frail, but they make up for it with offensive potential. If you like playing hard and fast, I recommend one physical and one special sweeper on your team to cover all the bases.
Tank/Wall: They're usually slow but make up for it with longevity due to bulk and occasionally healing. A few examples include Blissey for taking special hits, Skarmory for physical damage, Slowking and Slowbro, and Porygon2 for mixed bulk. But that's not all by any means. Umbreon, Ferrothorn, Goodra, and Cofagrigus all spring to mind. The great thing about bulky Pokémon is that you can fit a bunch of different niches with them.
Some work best at laying traps, like Ferrothorn and Skarmory. They can use Toxic to stall for time and heal up with Roost in Skarmory's case. Some can deal decent damage despite their slow speed, like Goodra and Ferrothorn, while others like Vaporeon and Sylveon can use Baton pass to boost a team member and heal them up.
Like with sweepers, I recommend at least one of each kind of tank. These guys also work great if they have at least one status move. Will-O-Wisp is essential for crippling physical attackers, Toxic lets you stall for time, and Sleep, Paralysis, and Confusion are all obnoxious. Speaking of which...
Booster: Their sole purpose is to boost their stats and pass them onto another Pokémon with Baton Pass. It helps to use Substitute with these guys because some of them are frailer than others, like Ninjask.
General Nuisance: Status effects, confusion, Taunt, there are so many nasty moves you can use to make your opponents scream. Encore will lock an opponent into an attack. Taunt will prevent non-offensive moves. Klefki is probably the best example of this thanks to Prankster, but a lot of ghost types fill this niche.
Trapper: Usually goes hand in hand with the previous two. Trapping moves are attacks that deal damage to foes as they switch in. Spikes hits anything that doesn't fly or levitate. Toxic Spikes can poison or badly poison anything that doesn't Fly or Levitate, but Poison types absorb it, and Stealth Rock... hah. It hits everything that doesn't have Magic Guard. The weaker the Pokémon to rock, the greater the damage.
The only way to get rid of them is through a move called Rapid Spin. Not that it'll help if you're up against a Ghost. Of these, I find Stealth Rock the most useful, but when combined, you'll easily wear down your team.
Skarmory is a fantastic trapper because it gets access to Whirlwind and can force switches. Anything with Roar is another good alternative, and moves like Dragon Tail yield the same results but with a little extra damage thrown in.
Statuses:
One more thing to keep in mind is status problems. They are a pain to deal with, but make battling a breeze if you're the one dishing them out. I'll give a quick summary of them.
Poison: Slowly weakens your Pokémon until they faint. Can be cured with an Antidote or a Pecha Berry. Doesn't affect poison or steel types.
Paralysis: Sometimes keeps your Pokémon from attacking. Can be cured with a Paralyze Heal or a Cheri Berry.
Burn: Like poison, but lowers attack power. Cured with Burn Heal or Aspear Berry.
Sleep: Pokémon falls asleep, can't attack, and is open to moves like Dream Eater and Nightmare. Some attacks let you fight while sleeping, like Sleep Talk, but most require a move tutor or TM. Cured with Awakening and Chesto Berry.
Confusion: Sometimes your Pokémon attacks itself. Wears off on its own if you switch out or wait long enough. You can cure it with a Persim Berry.
Other moves like Curse and Nightmare are close to status problems and drain your Pokémon's health constantly.
I'll wrap this up by explaining how to catch Pokémon. All you have to do is weaken them and catch them in some kind of Pokéball. There are different types, and some work better than other. I recommend Ultra Balls, but they're pretty expensive. If the enemy Pokémon faints, you can still catch it, and sometimes status problems help.
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Evolution:
So how does evolution work? Basically, most Pokémon go through a transformation. Usually that means becoming bigger, stronger, and sometimes gaining a new type. The downside is that they don't learn moves as quickly, and if you evolve your Pokémon with a stone, they stop learning new moves on their own. Evee's an exception; its evolved forms actually learn better moves the sooner you use the stones.
Here are the main types of evolution:
Level: Basically, the Pokémon evolves through training. Some evolve three times, others just once. I'd say the average for a three-stage Pokémon's first evolution is 16 and the second at around 36. Dragon types evolve slowly, and Pokémon that evolve once usually don't do it until at least level 20.
Happiness: If you treat your Pokémon well, they'll evolve after about two months. I'll list some examples of Pokémon that evolve by happiness...
With Eevee, it'll either become Umbreon or Espeon based on the time of day. Riolu, Happiny, and Budew evolve during the day, and Chingling evolves at night. Otherwise, time doesn't matter.
Trade: Sometimes you have to trade a Pokémon for it to evolve. Most people do temporary trades just to get their Pokémon to evolve.
These guys only evolve when traded with each other. It's weird, but there you have it.
Trade + Item: Sometimes you have to give your Pokémon a specific item and then trade them for them to evolve. Here are the ones I know about...
Scyther (Metal Coat), Onix (Metal Coat), Poliwhirl (King's Rock), Slowpoke (King's Rock), Porygon (Upgrade), Seadra (Dragon Scale), Electabuzz (Electrizer), Magmar (Magmarizer), Rhydon (Protector), Dusklops (Reaper Cloth), Clamperl (Deep Sea Scale/Deep Sea Tooth), Spritzee (Sachet), Swirlix (Whipped Dream), Feebas (Prism Scale), Porygon2 (Dubious Disc)
Some Pokémon only evolve with stones. The upside is that stone evolutions are usually pretty powerful, but the downside's that they stop learning new moves after they evolve. You should probably wait to use stones until your Pokémon's at a high level. It's frustrating, but worth it. Before I go into each stone, though, let's talk about Eevee.
This little guy can evolve with the Fire Stone, Water Stone, Thunder Stone, Frozen Rock, and Mossy Rock, and I suggest you do it early on to ensure the eevee gets the most out of its evolved movesets. As for the stones themselves...
Fire Stone Thunder Stone Water Stone Water Stone Moon Stone Sun Stone Shiny Stone Dusk Stone Dusk Stone ♂♀Holding Item + Battle:
Sneasel evolves into Weavile with the Razor Claw if leveled at night. Gligar evolves into Gliscor with the Razor Fang at night. Nosepass and Magneton evolve with the Coronet Rock.
Level Up + Move:
Yanma, Tangela, and Piloswine evolve with the move Ancient Power. Bonsly and Mime Jr. evolve with Mimic, Aipom evolves with Double Hit, and Lickitung evolves with Rollout.
Level up at Night:
Evolves at level 39.
Level up in the Day:
Evolves at level 39.
Sylveon: Sylveon gets its own category because of all the ridiculous hoops you have to jump through. First, you have to care for it for a few months, and you have to feed it Poképuffs for good measure. By the time it's happy enough, you need to make sure it knows a fairy-type move.
Inkay: Get your Inkay to level 30, buy an Inkay bottle, stuff it in the bottle, and spin it until a Malamar pops out. Yeah, it's weird.
Even if you prefer cute Pokémon, you should consider letting your team evolve at least once if you're serious about battling. It pays off.
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Gym Battles:
So what about gyms? Basically, they're a way to test your skills as a trainer. If you beat a Gym Leader, you earn a badge and usually another prize to go with it. Even if you're not big on battles, you should consider taking on the gyms because the prizes make traveling a whole lot easier. Tried of spending days on the road? Fly gets you to places in a fraction of the time. Thing is, you need badges to be able to use these moves out of battles.
Each Gym Leader besides Blue focuses on a specific type, and they get stronger as you progress. Falkner's strongest is level 35, while Clair's is in the 70's. But don't let that scare you. They're easy enough if you've got the right team. I'll go over each one real quick, just to give you a basic idea.
Falkner: Flying type trainer, uses Pokémon in the 30's. You should use a rock, ice, or electric type. Rock types can be found in the caves, and you can catch an electric type right outside Violet City. Beating Falkner's important if you want to use Fly outside of battles. Plus, he gives you the TM for roost.
Bugsy: Uses bug types, strongest is level 40. Bring a fire type if you want to take down his Scizor easily. Otherwise, a flying type can cover the rest. Beat him and you get the TM for U-Turn.
Whitney: Normal type trainer, and you fight her in Goldenrod. If you can, get a fighting type or something that can handle rock type moves. Trust me, you're gonna need it when she sends out her Miltank. Strongest is level 45, and you get a Squirtbottle if you beat her. Makes it easy to get past the Sudowoodo. Other prizes include the HM for Rock Smash, TM for Attract, and you can use Strength any time.
And just as a warning, she throws a fit whenever she loses. Just thought I'd throw that out there.
Morty: Ecruteak Gym Leader. Ghost type trainer, and his strongest is at level 50. Expect to deal with status problems, Shadow Balls, and Curse. You really should get a Psychic or Dark type if you're going up against him. At least something that knows Bite or Crunch. If you've got a normal type, here's a good place to use them.
He's not a sore loser like Whitney, and he gives some cool prizes as a reward. You get the TM for Shadow Ball, the HM for Strength, and you can use Surf any time.
Jasmine: Olivine Leader. Here's the thing about Jasmine. She's stronger than Cianwood's Gym Leader, but not by much. Problem is, she's a steel type trainer, making her a tough contender. Water type moves work on her Steelix, and you can use electric moves on her Skarmory. Ground or fire should handle her Magneton. Fighting types help with her Steelix. Strongest is level 60.
So, as far as prizes go, you get the HM for Surf.
Chuck: Cianwood Gym Leader. His specialty's fighting types. By now you should have at least one flying or psychic type. Personally, I found him almost too easy. He's got two pure fighting types and one water/fighting. They're strong, but with the right team, you can finish him before he can do too much damage. Strongest Pokémon is level 55. If you can beat Jasmine, you'll have no problem with Chuck.
You get the HM for Fly after beating him. About time.
Pryce: Prepare to be lectured. Anyway, Pryce is the leader of the Mahogany Gym, and he uses ice types. If you thought about using a fire type, well, you might want to hold back. He's got a Dewgong and a Lapras, and their part-water typing makes fire useless. I'd aim for an electric or fighting type for those two. Once you get to his Mamoswine, fire away. Just keep in mind that it's level 65.
You get the TM for Hail as a prize, and you can start using Waterfall outside of battle... once you get it, anyway.
Clair: Blackthorn Gym Leader. You better have at least one Pokémon with ice type moves because Clair's specialty is dragon types. She's the final Gym Leader in Johto, and her strongest Pokémon is a level 70 Dragonite. But I wouldn't worry about him. Instead, you should worry about her Kingdra. Unless you've got a Pokémon with dragon type moves, he's going to be a pain.
She's a sore loser like Whitney, and you'll probably have to follow her to the Dragon's Den to get your prize. Once you get through to her, she'll hand over the Waterfall HM, and you can use Rock Climb out of battle. ...Except I haven't seen that HM anywhere. Kind of pointless, if you ask me.
And here's a list of the Kanto Gym Leaders. Keep in mind that I've only faced their Elite Teams, but given that they're the stronger rosters, my tips probably apply to their standard teams.
Sabrina: Psychic type enthusiast. Hands out the Marsh badge, a TM for Psychic, and the Fly HM if you don't already have it. Her Elite Team is made up of Alakazam, Gardevoir, Gallade, Espeon, Jynx, and Wobbuffet.
Don't get cocky when facing her. Even if you have a decent roster of dark, ghost, or steel types, she might still nail you with moves like Confuse Ray, Lovely Kiss, and Hypnosis. It helps if you have Pokémon that can nail her physically. The sooner the better. Also, when taking on Wobbuffet, be very careful. It's got moves like Counter, Mirror Coat, and Destiny Bond, not to mention Safeguard to prevent status effects. If you want to beat it, either use something fast enough to nail it with a stat problem like sleep or paralysis and then attack or use something with decent defenses.
By the way, you can't switch out on a Wobbuffet, and its Counter and Mirror coat make it a nightmare unless you've got a Ghost type that dishes out physical moves or a Dark Type that can nail it with special.
Generally, though, if you've got something that knows Crunch or Dark Pulse, you should be okay. Scizor's another good option due to the bug/steel typing.
Normal team consists of an Espeon, a Mr. Mime, and an Alakazam.
Erika: Grass type trainer. Hands out the Rainbow Badge, Giga Drain TM, and Strength HM if you don't already have it. Her Elite Team's made up of Shiftry, Jumpluff, Victreebell, Roserade, Bellossom, and Vileplume.
When you face her, be prepared. Expect sleep, poison, and paralysis at all times and make sure you've got something that can counter it. If you have a Dragonite or any other Pokémon with Safeguard, use it. It'll save you some trouble. Packing some Full Heals and other items wouldn't hurt, either.
Other than that, just nail her team with some flying and fire attacks, and you should be all right. Steel types like Scizor and Skarmory come in handy due to their poison immunity, but if you've got a Charizard or any other fire types on your side, that badge is as good as yours.
Standard team consists of Jumpluff, Tangrowth, and Bellossom.
Lt. Surge: Electric type user, hands out the Thunder Badge and Thunder TM. Elite team's made up of Manetric, Magnezone, Pachirisu, Electrode, Electivire, and Raichu.
Pack at least one ground type or a Pokémon that knows Dig and/or Earthquake. It'll make your life a lot easier. Since ground types are immune to electric moves, you won't have to worry about Thunder Wave, and with the right Pokémon on your side, you can plow through most of his team's frail defenses. Just watch out for Magnezone if you take on his Elite roster. It knows Magnet Rise, meaning ground type immunity if you've got nothing to knock it down. Steelix can help with the move Smack Down, but otherwise, you might want something with fire moves as backup.
Standard team consists of Electabuzz, Magneton, and Raichu.
Misty: Water type leader, hands out the Water Pulse TM. Her Elite team's made up of Quagsire, Lanturn, Floatzel, Lapras, Starmie, and Milotic.
Electric moves should cover most of her team except Lanturn and Quagsire. For these guys, you'll have to take their dual types into account. Quagsire's immune to electric, but if you've got a Pokémon with a solid grass move, it'll be an easy win. As for Lanturn, grass and ground moves should do the trick. Other than that, just watch out for ice moves and status problems. If you're doing the Elite team, a dark and fighting type might help with Starmie and Lapras.
Standard team's got Golduck, Lapras, and Starmie.
Brock: Uses rock types. Hands out the Rock Slide TM, Rock Smash HM, and his Elite Team's made up of Rhyperior, Ramparados, Onix, Golem, Omastar, and Kabutops.
First thing's first: Rhyperior, Onix, and Golem are all rock/ground types. That means a water or grass move should cut them down easily. They should cover Rampardos for good measure, but for Onix and Kabutops, their water typing neutralizes any water moves. When facing them, you should aim for a grass move or just nail them with ground, electric, and fighting.
Standard team has Rhyhorn, Golem, and Onix. Just wet them down or nail them with grass.
Blue: Probably the toughest of the Gym Leaders. Hands out the Earth Badge, Hyper Beam TM, and an SS Anne ticket. Blue doesn't stick to any specific type, and with a balanced team, you'll need strategy to overcome him. When I faced up against his Elite Roster, I went up against a Charizard, Blastoise, Venusaur, Pidgeot, Tyranitar, and Jolteon. Word is, his regular team's made up of Arcanine, Pidgeot, Gyarados, Rhydon, Exeggutor, and Machamp. Either way, you'll have your hands full with this guy.
If you can, try to pick Pokémon with a wide enough move pool to catch this guy off guard. Dragons and Steel Types would probably come in handy against him, and if you've got Pokémon that can inflict status problems, bring them. It'll make your life a million times easier.
Standard team has an Exeggutor, Machamp, Rhydon, Gyarados, Pidgeot, and Arcanine. Yes, he's packing a team of six, so be careful.
Blaine: And we're back to single-type leaders. Blaine hands out the Volcano Badge, the TM for Fire Blast, and the HM for Whirlpool. If you haven't guessed already, fire types are his specialty.
The Elite Team's made up of Torkoal, Camerupt Magcargo, Houndoom, Magmortar, and Rapidash. When facing these guys, don't just jump in with a water type; some of these guys know electric moves and Solarbeam. While water moves will help, you might want to bring some backup. Dragon types can still use water, rock, and ground moves, and their resistance to fire, grass, and water makes them a great trump card. If you've got a Dragonite or Garchomp on hand, make sure you bring them along.
Come to think of it, Kingdra would probably get the job done.
His standard team's just a Magcargo, Magmortar, and Rapidash. Wet them down. Just watch out for Magmortar's electric attacks and possible Solarbeams from all three.
Janine: Poison type Gym Leader. Hands out the Soul Badge, Toxic TM, and the HM for Surf. Her Elite Team's made up of Crobat, Weezing, Toxicroak, Drapion, Arbok, and Venomoth.
All I will say is bring steel types. They're immune to poison, giving you an added edge on the battlefield. If you've got a Nidoking or Nidoqueen, they're just as useful due to their dual ground/poison typing. Makes them resistant to poison and allows them to nail Janine's team with super effective moves like Dig and Earth Power. The only problem is her Weezing and Crobat, whose typing and abilities leave them immune to ground... unless you've got a Steelix. Then all you have to do is use Smack Down, and they're wide open.
Scizor's another good pick due to the poison type's weakness to bug moves. Overall, steel, ground, and poison types are my recommendations. Also, watch out for other status inflictors like Sleep Powder and Stun Spore; even if your Pokémon can't get poisoned, she'll have other ways of dealing with them.
And that's all the Gym Leaders. If you can get past them all, then congrats. You've cleared some of the biggest challenges in this world.
Her standard's made up of a Crobat, Ariados, and Venomoth. Crobat's probably gonna be the most obnoxious to deal with.
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Pokémon Care:
This is a new section added to address how to actually treat your Pokémon. Keep in mind that every Pokémon is different and that what works for me may not work for you.
First and foremost, you're probably wondering what they can or can't eat. Well, I'm here to clear that up right now.
Pokémon Can Eat:
• Each other. Yeah, sorry, but it's true. Many Pokémon do hunt each other, especially in the wild, and while you might find that morally objectionable, keep in mind that they are animals. Pidgeots enjoy hunting Magikarp, for example, and you won't get away with feeding an Aerodactyl a diet of berries unless you're really lucky.
Luckily, most caught Pokémon know better than to attack their teammates or another trainer's team.
• Eggs. Some species like Sneasel and Weavile love eating Pidgey and other eggs. I let mine go out and grab them all the time. And like with trained Pokémon, they usually know better than to eat eggs from their trainer or others.
• Berries. They heal Pokémon in battle, and a fair number them enjoy them as a snack, especially if you're on the road. Still, I personally wouldn't feed a carnivorous Pokémon like Feraligatr or Garchomp a diet of berries because...
• Pokémon can eat meat! Most stores sell plenty of it, and I recommend feeding them raw. There are proteins in meat that can't be replicated with tacky, dry kibble and berries.
• Pokémon food. AKA dry, disgusting kibble. Some love it. Most of mine hate it. There's also some in the wet variety, and it's probably easier than preparing meats.
• Most human food, so don't stress over sharing your meals.
• Metals, if you're dealing with a steel type.
• Dreams. Many Psychic and Ghost types love to snarf them down, so uh. Don't be too alarmed if they try that with you.
• Your life force. Haunter, Litwick's forms, and other ghost types can and will feed on your life energy, so watch out. It won't kill you, but it does lead to exhaustion sometimes.
So, with food out of the way, let's talk about...
Pokémon Behavior and Upkeep:
Honestly, it varies between Pokémon to a point where you really should check the Pokédex. It's not always an indicator, a shown by my timid Hydreigon, but the general rule of thumb is that certain species tend to behave more aggressively than others. Especially large predators like Tyranitar and Ursaring.
Some of you probably hate the idea of battling, but I'll tell you straight up that avoiding battles is detrimental to a Pokémon. How are they supposed to grow if they can't fight and level up? Training with your Pokémon allows them to hone in their skills, and it can be a bonding experience for some people. But if it's really that much of a hassle, just let them train on their own. Once they hit around level twenty, you don't need to stay with them the whole time.
Heck, my time battles with each other to level up.
I'd also like to recommend giving your team some time to stretch their legs... if they've got them, anyway. Keeping them in their balls or the PC may be practical, but think of it like keeping them in more comfortable cages. They usually don't mind it, but if they don't get some free space, they'll probably grow lethargic after a while.
If you're in town, you can pull out more than six Pokémon and let them run wild. Just remember that you can only keep six on you at a time.
Most importantly, if you want your Pokémon to trust you, you're going to have to treat them with at least an ounce of respect. They aren't mindless fighting machines, and if you don't take their needs into account, they could turn on you at any time. The only time I'd recommend getting hard on them is if they're violent, unruly, and need discipline. Some Pokémon do like hurting others for fun, and some will attack humans without provocation. So, just be careful.
Pokémon Breeding:
Pokémon make eggs. Sometimes they make a lot of them. To some trainers, this might come as an upleasant surprise. Rather than stress over it, you could always give the eggs away to the Breeding Center or try selling them on your own. Heck, with the right pair-ups, you might find yourself with overpowered offspring that can rake you in some quick bucks.
I might go into more detail on breeding at a later date, but here are a few things to keep in mind...
• Pokémon can only breed if they're in the same egg group or if they're with a Ditto.
• Genderless Pokémon can only breed with Ditto and do not inherit egg moves.
• A mother-species offspring inherits moves from the father. For father-species, it's the opposite.
• Any move that the opposite parent knwos that the first form of the offspring can learn is fair game. So, if you do a same-species breeding with two level 100's, you'll get babies with all their moves pre-learned and any TM or tutor moves the parents might have on hand. Or you might get some moves the offspring can only learn from another species parent if you mix and match.
• Some Pokémon have two egg groups. Also, some Pokémon can breed with Pokémon you would never expect. Like Skitty and Wailord or Serperior and Nidoking or... heck. Gardevoir and Gastly. Your best bet is to look up the egg groups. I'll list them out, but since there are over six hundred Pokémon, I'm not gonna tell you which Pokémon goes where; the 'dex will probably clear that up instead.
So the groupings...
• Field, Flying, Dragon, Monster, Water 1 - 3, Grass, Amorhous, Mineral, Fairy, Bug, Human-like.
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