Category: Uncategorized

Kanto Starters I: Bulbasaur

bills-pokedex:

@psychms: I just noticed you haven’t written about any of the regional starters! Can you tell us about your most memorable experience with a starter Pokémon (or its evolutions)?

Ah, keen observation! Starters are a bit special to a researcher, as we tend to associate them with new beginnings while maintaining our status as a ridiculously sentimental breed of people. In particular, I must say I’m closest to the Kantonian starters, in part because I consider one of my home regions to be Kanto and in part because, despite beginning my journey in Johto, my starter was a bulbasaur. While I could go on and on about the bulbasaur line, I hardly think it would be appropriate to only cover it and not the other two families. Thus, consider this to be part one of a three-part series.

Bulbasaur
The Seed Pokémon
Type: Grass/Poison
Official Registration #: 1
Entry: One of three pokémon traditionally offered to new trainers at the beginning of their journeys in Kanto. Many people believe that out of the three, bulbasaur is the easiest to raise, as bulbasaur are more docile than the other two, the species’ offensive and defensive traits are balanced, and a grass-type has more of an advantage against the earliest Kantonian gyms than a fire- or water-type. However, while all of this is true, such advice frequently forgets any word on what to do when you have a pokémon that learns Leech Seed, Stun Spore, Poison Powder, and Sleep Powder all basically at the same time. On that note, should you be a new trainer who finds himself with a rambunctious bulbasaur who enjoys showering you with “affection,” be sure to carry full heals. A lot of full heals. Do not buy anything but full heals until your bulbasaur evolves. You will thank me later.

Ivysaur
The Seed Pokémon
Type: Grass/Poison
Official Registration #: 2
Entry: The evolved form of bulbasaur, by battle experience. As it nears evolution into a venusaur, an ivysaur’s blossom grows larger and more fragrant to the point where it naturally emits a sweet, spicy fragrance strong enough to be detected from a distance. Thus, an ivysaur is the easiest among the three middle-evolution starters to evolve, not only because the weight of the bulb makes each ivysaur more eager to battle (in order to gain the strength needed to support its own flower) but also because the scent emitting from the blossom happens to be the exact kind of aroma that draws pokémon towards one in droves. That said, while ivysaur are still among the easiest pokémon to train, new and mediocre trainers should be warned that preventing an ivysaur from battling is nearly impossible and that many of your days may be spent being dragged through Viridian Forest by a charging ivysaur chased by a horde of beedrill.

Venusaur
The Seed Pokémon
Type: Grass/Poison
Official Registration #: 3
Entry: The evolved form of ivysaur, by battle experience. A venusaur’s evolution is among the most beautiful to occur within the pokémon world. When the time comes, an ivysaur will seek the sunniest clearing in a forest, crouch within beams of sunlight, and allow its flower to grow and bloom. Petal by petal will open, and its fragrance will become more intense and aromatic. The power of this sight and the soothing nature of its signature perfume will rejuvenate an observing trainer just as much as the venusaur experiencing it, which is worth it to note as a warning to both. While you may be tempted to run forward and embrace your long-time pokémon partner in a rush of mutual pride and elation, note that your venusaur has gone from being 29 pounds to over 220 and that it will use all 220 to affectionately tackle you before realizing that it is no longer the size and weight of a large dog.

Mega Venusaur
The Seed Pokémon
Type: Grass/Poison
Official Registration #: 3+
Entry: The advanced form of venusaur, via venusaurite. Important safety tip for people who train venusaur: everything about venusaur becomes more powerful when it’s mega evolved. This includes its defensive capabilities, the destructive power of its distance attacks, the potency of its pollen, the calming effects of its spicy floral scent, and most importantly, the damage it can do to the human body if you’ve failed to teach your venusaur that it is no longer the size and weight of a large dog. Use your venusaurite with caution, preferably after you get it to forget how to use Tackle.

What is the relationship between sawk and throh? Were they just a case of divergent evolution, or do they fill the same niche?

It is indeed a case of divergent evolution, though not one most people would expect. While both sawk and throh fill the same niches, occupy the same territories, and generally live extremely similar lives, the only difference between them is, quite literally, their fighting styles. Fossil evidence shows that they had once been the same species millions of years ago, but somewhere along the lines, the species split into two groups: one that practiced a technique that centered around rapid, hard-hitting precision strikes and the other preferring a style centered around defenses and overall body strength.

It is perhaps the pettiest example of divergent evolution scientists have ever discovered among pokémon.

Can magnemite evolve to magneton on their own, or do they always need other magnemite to fuse with? Same goes for beldum and metang– do I have to worry about my beldum going out and fusing with another trainer’s beldum? (And, if so, who gets ownership of the pokemon?)

In the wild, yes, beldum and magnemite (and diglett, for that matter) need fellow pokémon to evolve. This is largely because these pokémon don’t naturally gain enough energy on their own, but they can gather this energy by pooling their resources together. When tamed, though, trainers will usually develop their pokémon’s abilities, which in turn allows them to develop the energy reserves needed to evolve on their own. Thus, these pokémon essentially undergo a form of budding that allows them to create clones of themselves in order to evolve. This may sound disturbing, but because evolution is often spontaneous, most trainers are fortunate enough not to see this process happening.

Slowpoke undergoes a similar transformation, by the way. The only difference is that in the wild, they simply force innocent shellder to merge with them, rather than members of their own species. Slowpoke are, truth be told, extremely terrifying once one gets past their slowness and innocuous appearances.

Regarding object-mimic pokemon– which comes first, the pokemon or the object? For example, did people model leis after comfey, or did comfey evolve to look like leis?

It depends. For the most part, the two are actually unrelated. Comfey, for example, simply likes to collect flowers and does so in the way that’s most efficient for its species. Leis, meanwhile, come from a rich cultural background that has less to do with comfey and more to do with the tapu.

On the other hand, sometimes, objects are indeed tied to pokémon or vice-versa. For example, punching bags were absolutely inspired by the wobbuffet line (right down to their general shape), and if you believe in certain ancient legends, many languages were based on unown shapes. (The modern-day language of Common also based its writing system on unown markings, which is why many of our letters seem blocky and thick.) Conversely, sometimes, objects come before the pokémon, especially in the case of many ghost-types, which tend to inhabit objects. (Banette, the honedge line, and dhelmise are all examples of this.) Then of course, you have the voltorb line, which looks the way it does because of an object, but it’s more because an accident or other strange happening involving said object led to the creation of the pokémon.

Alternatively, some pokémon appeared much later in time, and scientists theorize that these pokémon actually adapted themselves to look like inanimate objects in order to better interact with humans. The drifloon line, for example. Or the trubbish line for an example that doesn’t involve consuming the souls of the living.

i’m suing, bill

Oh, please do. For whatever reason, both the Pokémon Cutting-Edge Technology Research Center and the Pokémon Association have teams of lawyers they’ve hired to cover the things I do and say, so I might as well get their money’s worth.

Bill, they’re not your personal lawyers… —LH

Let’s be honest with each other, Lanette. There is literally no difference between my private and professional lives at this point, so close enough. —Bill

The Snorunt Line

bills-pokedex:

Snorunt
The Snow Hat Pokémon
Type: Ice
Official Registration #: 361
Entry: Despite the fact that this childlike pokémon is much more comfortable in regions with heavy snow, it was curiously first discovered in the Hoenn region, specifically in the lower chambers of Shoal Cave. Given the general warmth of the seawater in that region, the presence of snorunt—and, in fact, the frigid environment of the cavern it lives in—has baffled researchers since its initial discovery. However, the author would also like to remind the research community that this is the same region whose legendary pantheon includes a giant sentient block of never-melt ice, so honestly, the fact that there is a chamber that has been iced over and sealed off from the outside world for centuries should come as a surprise to absolutely no one.

Glalie
The Face Pokémon
Type: Ice
Official Registration #: 362
Entry: The evolved form of snorunt, by battle experience. Through the process of evolution, a snorunt gains a shell of rock, which in turn collects a thick hide of ice thanks to the instantaneous freezing of the moisture in the air immediately surrounding it. The resulting pokémon is a creature that not only has the ability to instantly freeze anything surrounding it but also appears to be a giant, floating, disembodied head. Yet despite its intimidating powers and appearance, it’s actually quite gentle, largely because it retains the shyness of its pre-evolved form. Despite this, it is still not recommended to come into physical contact with a glalie, largely because—thanks to its ability to instantaneously freeze anything within immediate vicinity of it—skin-to-shell contact has the same effect as licking a metal pole in the dead of winter (not that the author has done either).

Froslass
The Snow Land Pokémon
Type: Ice/Ghost
Official Registration #: 478
Entry: The evolved form of female snorunt, by exposure to dawn stone. Sinnohan legends warn about froslass. According to regional folklore, travelers lost on snowy mountains may encounter what appears to be a beautiful woman beckoning to them. If one goes to this woman, they will quickly find a wild froslass instead, who will immediately freeze them and drag them to her lair. Whether or not this is true is still a matter of debate, but it is known that tamed froslass do have a habit of staring at their trainers oddly and growing unsettlingly quiet whenever it snows. The author reassures his readers, however, that there have been no cases of a tamed froslass kidnapping their trainers and stealing them away to frozen wastelands … that he knows of, anyway.

Stop scaring the readers. You know that only happened six times in recorded history. —LH

Mega Glalie
The Face Pokémon
Type: Ice
Official Registration #: 362+
Entry: The advanced form of glalie, via glalitite. The most common question the author has ever gotten concerning this mega evolution is whether or not it’s ethical to use, considering the fact that the mere act of mega evolving does actual, bodily harm to the pokémon. While the author has no adequate answer on the subject (as it’s a bit of an internal debate among pokémon researchers), if it makes readers feel any better, when the subject is a giant, sentient ball of ice that barely possesses a nervous system of any sort undergoing a temporary physical change that completely restores a pokémon’s form upon wearing off as if nothing had ever happened, bodily harm tends to be somewhat irrelevant. Also, seeing as glalie seem to enjoy it for reasons that are not entirely beyond comprehension if you have any experience with certain parts of the internet, it is perhaps best not to think about this question at all.

Aerodactyl

bills-pokedex:

Aerodactyl
The Fossil Pokémon
Type: Rock/Flying
Official Registration #: 142
Entry: A ferocious, pterosaur-like pokémon that once ruled the skies of ancient Kanto. Aerodactyl is noteworthy in that it helped establish many practices used in modern paleo-pokémon ethology, which itself is an extremely specific but fascinating field. Much of what goes into paleo-pokémon ethology is guesswork, really. For example, when one sees a set of serrated teeth such as those of aerodactyl, one can safely assume that this pokémon used them for cutting into meat. When one sees wings and claws, one can assume that the pokémon in question was an aerial hunter. Of course, this method of hypothesizing and assuming behaviors based on physical traits of fossilized remains is not infallible. For another example, it was once assumed that aerodactyl was a vicious, fearless hunter, but recent resurrections of specimens using fossil revival technology has proven that aerodactyl are more like very large, very confused, very vocal parakeets.

Mega Aerodactyl
The Fossil Pokémon
Type: Rock/Flying
Official Registration #: 142+ 
Entry: The advanced form of aerodactyl, via aerodactylite. Some experts believe that the mega evolved form—with its boost in power, its generally violent temper, and its myriad of stone spikes and claws covering its rough skin—is the actual, true, original form of the aerodactyl species. Others recognize that there is actual fossil evidence to the contrary that has been part of public knowledge for decades, but this school of thought doesn’t have the heart to tell members of the other camp that they’re [REDACTED].

If you’re not willing to do a professor dex, why would you say this about other members of the Symposium? —LH

Because it’s true, and Professor Oak isn’t included in that first camp. —Bill

Oh, that second part explains it. —LH

How come dragonite look so different to their pre-evolutions? I know it’s not uncommon for pokemon to look different from their pre-evolutions, but dratini and dragonair look so similar…

True, but it’s nonetheless pretty normal for a pokémon line with high-cost evolutions. In dragonite’s case, it’s simply that dragonite represents the adult form of the line, whereas both dratini and dragonair are the larval stages.

Putting it another way, many lines whose stages look vastly different (remoraid and octillery, venonat and venomoth, magikarp and gyarados, and so forth) are often two-stage lines because the larval or basic stage can achieve the energy and power needed for evolution without much trouble. Dragonite needs an immense amount of power to evolve, so it needs to pass through an intermediary stage before it can reach its adult. Consequently, the evolution from dratini to dragonair uses a minimal amount of energy, which means it ends up strongly resembling its basic stage, rather than a cross between dratini and dragonite.