Tag: asks

Are there any dragon types that are good choices for starter pokemon?

As I might have noted in this post, the dragon type can be a challenging one to master at first, partly because of the general temperament of the members of this element, partly because of their sheer rarity, partly because they grow at a somewhat slower rate than most other pokémon, and partly because some dragon-types are actually rather difficult to train due to physical limitations. For example, dratini can only learn a handful of weak moves (most notably Wrap) until it advances in age. Goomy, for another example, learn a wide variety of moves, but it must be kept in a moist environment at all times and thus can only really battle in pools, marshlands, or other largely wet battlefields. Deino, for a last example, is both strong and has few physical limitations that keep it from being a valuable member of your team, but it’s highly aggressive and liable to refuse orders when given them.

The others are by and large easier to train; it’s just a matter of finding them in the first place. For example, jangmo-o is an excellent battler, but it is only found in one specific part of one specific mountain on one specific island in the region of Alola. Likewise, noibat are only found in specific caves around the world, and axew, although it’s a popular starter pokémon among dragon-type fans, really only live in three other specific caves, separate from noibat habitats.

This means that of all of the dragon pokémon, really bagon and gible are your best choices, as they are fairly reasonable to train, eager to fight for a human (or otherwise grow towards evolution, in bagon’s case), and are far, far less painful to find. Granted, of course, this doesn’t mean that you can’t ever try to train the others. Really, all dragons can grow to be wonderful, powerful members of a team if given enough patience. It’s just that bagon and gible require less patience than others.

Are there ways, other than battling, for pokemon to release energy after evolving? My ralts evolved in to kirlia and he seems a bit stressed.

Yes, of course! Any sort of exercise, meditation, or stress-relieving activity will work to expel pent-up energy, depending on your pokémon’s typing, abilities, and interests. Think of it like releasing pent-up steam as a human. Some people do so by boxing, sparring, fighting, or engaging in rigorous physical activity. Others prefer more quiet pursuits.

Try asking your kirlia what he would like to do if you hadn’t already gotten an idea during his time as a ralts. Perhaps introduce him to art or put him on an ordinary exercise routine. Maybe even engage in meditation along with him. Try a number of different possibilities until you find the one that works best for your kirlia.

Best of luck, anonymous, and congratulations on your recent evolution!

A kid was making fun of my son for being blind, so his Alakazam used his psychic powers to make the bully soil himself. I’m laughing too hard to tell him off.

Legally, as a storage system administrator, the Pokémon Association bars me from condoning pokémon-on-human violence, but on the other hand, I also don’t particularly care for bullies, especially the ableist sort. So on the record, I feel I should tell you that I didn’t hear this.

Off the record, however, please tell your son’s alakazam to keep up the excellent work.

How do you feel about the ethics of the master ball? What if that technology could be reproduced by criminals? Also, would they work on a pokemon that already belongs to someone? I’m scared for my little baby wailord. He’s fragile!

The master ball is just another poké ball, only with an increased capture rate. So if there was anything unethical about it, then there would be something unethical about poké balls in general, in my opinion. After all, you could catch a legendary pokémon with a poké ball just as you could with a master ball; it will simply take more of the former than the latter.

Ultimately, the tool isn’t the problem; it’s the intent. If you used a master ball on a pokémon because either they wanted you to catch them or because you fully intended on taking good care of them, that would be perfectly fine and ethical. However, if you were a criminal intending on using the master ball to poach pokémon or to use a pokémon for nefarious purposes, then that wouldn’t be right, but again, it’s not right because of what you intend to do, not how you go about achieving it. So yes, I would be bothered if Silph allowed the schematics of the master ball to fall into the hands of a criminal organization, but I highly doubt that would happen.

As for your final question, rest assured that poké balls in general—including the master ball—cannot work on pokémon that already have a trainer. This has to do with with the fact that a conflict of trainer’s IDs (that is, the act of attempting to apply a trainer’s ID to a pokémon that already has one without first deleting or editing the original through releasing or trading, respectively) actually decreases a ball’s effectiveness to a dramatic degree. This renders a normal poké ball completely ineffective (a pokémon will always break free, even if they’re not trying to do so) and a master ball practically so (a pokémon will break free if they will themselves to do so).

Alright so some noob trainer came to the Alola region and caught all of our island guardians. That’s cool and everything, I respect his bravery and strength but jesus christ there’s ultra beasts invading the region and no one can do anything so I’m hoping he sees this and I want to tell him to put them god damn back before we all die

There are Ultra Beasts in Alola right now?!

I’m contacting your older sister to get her to confiscate your passport, just so you know. —LH

Can I evolve both my rockruffs into the different forms of Lycanroc or will this make them fight? Would it be better if theybecame the same one?

Allow me to answer your second question first. It depends on the form. Midnight lycanroc are generally lone wolves (excuse the pun) and will fight anything within its line of sight, including other midnight lycanroc. Midday lycarnroc, on the other hand, are highly loyal, including and especially to other midday lycanroc and rockruff. Consequently, if you have two midday lycanroc in the same room, they will most likely form a pack and get along perfectly, even if they were originally from two completely different packs.

However, to answer your first question, things aren’t quite as simple as that. While the above is true for wild lycanroc, tame lycanroc typically respond to memories instilled in them as rockruff. That is to say, if two rockruff were raised by a single trainer, evolving into two different lycanroc will not make them fight—not normally, anyway. There may be some tension, and if the rockruff didn’t get along before evolving, that will continue after their evolution. But if your rockruff had gotten along quite well before evolution, they will indeed continue to get along, even if one is a midnight and the other is a midday.

Still, always be prepared to moderate any potential bickering over food, water, or sleeping locations. Just in case.

My parents divorced a few years ago and I ended up moving from Snowpoint City to Malie City. Long story short, the experience left me with some pretty bad anxiety and my mother got me an Alolan vulpix as an emotional support animal to help. He was the sweetest, most affectionate thing I’d ever…or at least that was the case until he evolved a few weeks ago. I can’t take him anywhere without him shooting ice beams at strangers or getting super protective of me! What do I do to combat this?

This is a rare but unfortunate possibility in dealing with service pokémon. All of them normally receive training to minimize negative personality shifts as a result of evolution, but in the cases of wilder pokémon, such as most fox-like ones, sometimes, the training doesn’t quite stick.

Now, the reason why I say this is because it’s just a matter of training. It’s entirely possible for a service pokémon to be retrained to heel. If you’ve done your vulpix’s initial service training yourself, you can also do the same with your ninetales. Simply repeat the process you used to teach your vulpix to heel in public situations. It may take just as long as it had with your vulpix to retrain your ninetales, but be patient.

Alternatively, if you weren’t the one to train your vulpix, take him back to the service trainer who had, or take him to a pokémon center and ask for a trainer who specializes in conditioning service pokémon. Be prepared to be involved with the retraining process even here; your ninetales will respond far better with you present than if you simply left him in the trainer’s care. If you do choose this option, rest assured that you can still take your ninetales home at the end of each session. Just remember to continue reinforcing your trainer’s work as you go out and about with your ninetales.

Best of luck, anonymous!