My team would benefit having a fighting type pokemon, but my male kirlia decided he does not want to evolve so my only other option would be to catch a new pokemon, basically replacing him. How could I do this without upsetting him, as I wouldnt be able to fit him on the team anymore?

Before anything else, have you considered a compromise—perhaps teaching fighting-type moves to your other pokémon or using a combination of elements to cover the same types that a fighting-type would normally handle? For example, although kirlia may be weak to the steel-types a fighter can handle, many trainers teach theirs Focus Blast to counter this exact problem.

If you can’t avoid replacing your kirlia, you may want to consider keeping him as a companion pokémon. These are pokémon you keep around your home, pokémon who don’t count towards your six-pokémon limit but typically can’t accompany you on your journey. If you’re a trainer who doesn’t normally wander far from home, this may be perfect for you, as it will allow you to continue keeping your kirlia in your life while still enabling you to create a fully balanced team for battling.

Alternatively, if you do travel far from home, be sure to leave your kirlia in the care of someone he can trust as well. Call as often as you can while on your journey and maintain your bond as much as possible through conversations over the video phone. Visit your kirlia as often as you can as well.

Up until you leave, however, be sure to bond with him and make it clear you still value him, of course. Spend time with him. Explain to him what it is you need. As a psychic pokémon—especially one with a specialty in emotions—your kirlia is in a far better position to understand what you have to say than most others, not only because of his natural intelligence but also his ability to sense that you’re genuine in your feelings.

But it’s important to leave him somewhere you’ll be sure to return to, especially your family. I’ve heard of trainers promising to return for released pokémon far too often, only to forget later on, and it really is devastating to the pokémon involved. By leaving him with your family or a trusted friend, you’re saying to him that returning for him will be a guarantee and that contact during your travels is promised. It really is little things like these that will make the transition easier, but it’s important to be as gentle but as honest as you can be with him—and that the sooner you tell him, the better.

“I want to thank you for your advice, Bill. My weavile has been training more than she usually does, especially sparring with both her mate and my first mawile, and I’ve noticed a decrease in her bouts with PTSD. She and my daughter have been registered in the Ferrum League battles, and she’s been enjoying her battles, as well as bonding with my daughter. Thank you very much” – Jett

You’re very welcome. It’s certainly great to hear that your weavile is doing much better. May her condition continue to improve, and may her bond with your daughter continue to grow. —Bill

Carvanha and Sharpedo

Carvanha
The Savage Pokémon
Type: Water/Dark
Official Registration #: 318
Entry: A piranha-like pokémon native to warm, freshwater rivers. Although carvanha is known for its viciousness, it is actually a highly social pokémon among its own kind. When left in the same body of water with carvanha just as vicious as it is, an individual carvanha specimen will school with others, forming groups capable of ripping apart even the bulkiest wailmer. However, on its own, carvanha become docile, shy, and even a little skittish, which some believe is an accurate depiction of most people who spend any amount of time on the internet.

Sharpedo
The Brutal Pokémon
Type: Water/Dark
Official Registration #: 319
Entry: The evolved form of carvanha, by battle experience. This shark-like pokémon possesses fangs that can rip through the steel hulls of ships (and grow back if they snap off in their efforts to do so), barbed skin capable of lacerating anything that comes into physical contact with it, powerful fins that can propel it up to 75 miles per hour at prey, and a keen sense of smell that can detect the smallest drop of blood from yards away. With all of this in combination, sharpedo is often nicknamed “the Bully of the Sea,” which is unfortunate because sharpedo is actually a gentle pokémon that only wants affection.

Sorry, no, it indiscriminately rips apart anything that enters its watery territory short of anything else that has the audacity to train it.

What could be considered a normal behaviour in a duskull? I’ve recently caught one and while usually pretty calm, it likes to tug at my hair and prank my other pokemon a bit too often. Nothing harmful or serious, just childish. It does obeys commands in battle, so I guess it’s just excited, but I’m not really sure.

That actually sounds like normal behavior for any ghost-type, especially one that may have had a misdreavus or shuppet father. Duskull especially feed off fear and surprise, so there’s also the possibility that he’s attempting to get a between-meal snack. You may want to increase the amount of kibble he receives to tide him over from one meal to the next or otherwise work hard to establish the fact that you will, in truth, take care of all his needs (which will hopefully discourage him from taking care of itself).

However, in some varieties of duskull, this is actually their form of affection, so if the above doesn’t work, show him methods of affection you do approve of and use positive reinforcement (in the form of treats—duskull typically like sweets) whenever he engages in them.

Hi Bill! I have an elderly purrugly, who’s too old to battle now and was only ever a pet/casual pest control in her younger years. This winter just passed, I gave her an electric blanket to help her keep warm in her old age. She loved it! She barely got off it all winter. But now it’s spring, and she’s still sleeping on it all day. It’s still kind of chilly most days. But I’m worried I’ve accidentally turned my pet into a vegetable by trying to make her more comfortable. Did I mess up?

Not really. Purugly have a strong fondness for being pampered, so anything you give them that makes them feel like they’re being doted upon are things they’re not going to part with anytime soon. Likewise, purugly can be a bit lazy when pampered (at the risk of putting it too bluntly), so it’s perfectly understandable that she might react this way. It’s not something you did wrong, of course. It’s just in a purugly’s usual nature to lounge with prized possessions, especially as they get older. So long as she’s moving at all and so long as you don’t keep the electric blanket turned on all the time, she should be fine.

In fact, considering the fact that it’s spring for you, she may discard the blanket as the weather grows warmer and she grows more and more uncomfortable with it. Just be warned that she may begin begging for some sort of replacement if that happens, and contrary to popular belief, electric fans, air conditioners, and kiddie pools are not suitable replacements.

Do pokemon typically have only one egg at a time, or can they have clutches?

It depends on the species, anonymous. Some of the smaller, more mammalian pokémon only lay one egg at a time, as do humanoid pokémon. (They can lay multiple, but this is rare.) Larger pokémon as well as reptiles, birds, and insects all lay clutches, and pokémon that are more inorganic in nature lay a varying amount of eggs, depending on how much material exists around them. For example, geodude can lay more eggs if it forms its nest underground, in rocky terrain. It lays fewer eggs if above ground and indoors.

In short, I suppose you could say the answer is, “Yes, they can have clutches, but not all of them do.”

Hi, I’ve just travelled to Johto from Hoenn with my Marshtomp. He never been left in a daycare before as he’s very nervous with strangers and I just wanted to know how trustworthy the daycare is near Golderod, especially when handling shy pokemon. I ask this as I may need to leave him there for a short while with my Linoone, who has been in a Hoenn daycare before. My friend’s (who I am currently staying with) Totodile is currently sick and I don’t want them to catch anything.

Having met them personally, I can tell you that they are absolutely trustworthy.

They’re a bit … eccentric when it comes to eggs (they have yet to train their ditto to leave their other pokémon alone, so they tend to stick passing trainers off with eggs now and then under the pretense that they have no idea how the egg came to be), but when it comes to pokémon care, you’ll find no one in Johto more trustworthy and caring, to be honest.

Well. Besides my mother, actually. But unfortunately, she’s not a licensed pokémon caretaker, so I’m afraid she won’t be available to care for your marshtomp.

Let me guess. You’re only mentioning her because she’s reading this, isn’t she? —LH

No, of course not. ~~(Yes.)~~ —Bill

my pelipper recently discovered the trend of mail-carrier pelippers, and now he’s utterly smitten with the idea. i don’t want to break his heart, but he’s been a valued member of my battling team for years, and i’m not ready to retire him in favor of a full time job. how do i let him down gently? also he keeps swallowing my mail.

Well, I was going to suggest that he “delivers” your outgoing mail to the nearest post office and your incoming mail from the mailbox to you, but that last part makes that solution rather inappropriate.

Unless, of course, you can train your pelipper to not swallow mail. Perhaps introduce to him the idea that real mail-carriers always deliver their mail undigested to discourage him from eating your letters and packages, then proceed with the above mentioned compromise. This should satisfy pelipper’s need to deliver mail while at the same time keeping him on your team and restricting the amount of time he spends “on the job.”

If, however, he insists on becoming a mail-carrier pelipper, begin by emphasizing that he’s a valued member of your team and that you respect him and his wishes as much as you can. Then follow through by telling him politely that becoming a mail-carrier would mean giving up his adventures with you and that you would prefer not to part with him. He may still wish to become a mail-carrier after this, but at the very least, you can be open with him about your stance on the matter. By being that open, you’ll invite a conversation in which he (as best as he can, considering the fact that he’s a pelipper) and you discuss his options and try to find a suitable compromise.

Best of luck, @basilbones. May you find a balance that will make the both of you happy.

Or, at the very least, may you find a balance that doesn’t result in your mail getting partially digested.

Numel and Camerupt

Numel
The Numb Pokémon
Type: Fire/Ground
Official Registration #: 322
Entry: True to its species designation, this small, camel-like pokémon is known for its dense nature; it doesn’t notice when it’s been hit until much later. Of course, this pokémon’s body is also a walking cauldron containing magma that reaches temperatures in excess of 2200 degrees Fahrenheit, so even if it fails to notice when it’s being hit, that doesn’t necessarily mean hitting it is a good idea.

Camerupt
The Eruption Pokémon
Type: Fire/Ground
Official Registration #: 323
Entry: The evolved form of numel, by battle experience. The “volcanoes” on this camel-like pokémon’s back are actually bone protrusions with direct connections to camerupt’s magma reservoirs. Said reservoirs are normally the source of camerupt’s fire-based abilities, but every ten years—or whenever camerupt is angered—these volcanoes erupt, spewing super-heated molten magma dozens of feet into the air. How can this pokémon’s volcanoes erupt with such force, without harming their camerupt host? That is an excellent question, reader! The answer is [CONTENT TO BE INSERTED WHEN THERE ACTUALLY IS AN ANSWER]

My Hawlucha sleeps perched hunched up, which seems to be how they do it out in the wild, but lately it seems like his back is getting stiff. We get regular exercise and flying drills so I don’t think it’s anything in our training regimen. I remember getting knots in my back when I was sleeping against my Charizard on my journey, and I don’t want Hawlucha to wind up with those kinds of aches. Is there a better way for him to be sleeping that would alleviate some of his back pain?

Unfortunately, the way hawlucha sleep in the wild is actually the ideal position for a trained hawlucha to sleep, so changing that isn’t particularly something I would recommend.

However, there are other things you can do to keep your hawlucha from experiencing back pains. Giving him a massage after every battle (or daily) as well as a warm compress will help his muscles to relax and, therefore, heal themselves. Additionally, some fighting-type pokémon—even in the wild—engage in their own forms of meditation or relaxation techniques to avoid the exact problem you’re describing (or muscle issues in general). Consider engaging in guided meditation with your hawlucha to ease his tension further.

Of course, if you haven’t already done so, adding exercises to increase flexibility and core strength may also help by stretching the muscles and reinforcing the abdominal muscle. The latter is handy by taking pressure and weight off the back muscles whenever your hawlucha performs day-to-day activities. Not to mention it strengthens his front so that moves such as Flying Press are much less of a shock to his system.

And finally, most importantly, ensure he’s standing straight when not in battle. If he slouches to eat, while walking—anything, this could further strain his back.

In short, while correcting one’s sleeping position is the easiest way to alleviate back issues in humans, in bird pokémon, it’s far more complicated. Instead, it’s far better simply to treat or prevent back pain in a bird pokémon’s waking state, when it’s active and can adopt changes to its routine.