Lunatone and Solrock

Lunatone
The Meteorite Pokémon
Type: Rock/Psychic
Official Registration #: 337
Entry: A cave-dwelling, moon-shaped meteor pokémon. Due to the fact that it had been discovered at the site of a meteoroid strike, popular theory states that lunatone came from space. Although there has been no definite evidence proving this, it’s very clear that lunatone is affected by celestial objects: as the moon gets closer to being full, lunatone begin to swarm and grow in power. On the night of the full moon, lunatone begin to glow intensely, and such a sight has been known to intimidate even the bravest humans and pokémon. Just about the only creatures who are not intimidated by lunatone in this state are members of the clefairy line, who have been known to mistake lunatone for the moon itself and proceed to engage in prayer dances beneath lunatone swarms to appease their lunar deities.

Solrock
The Meteorite Pokémon
Type: Rock/Psychic
Official Registration #: 338
Entry: A cave-dwelling, sun-shaped meteor pokémon. Due to the fact that it had been discovered at the site of a meteoroid strike, popular theory states that solrock came from space. Although there has been no definite evidence proving this, solrock are greatly affected by the state of the sun. During sunny days, solrock become more energetic and are capable of storing sunlight within its body. When it spins, solrock can release this energy in the form of intense waves of heat and light. As this is a cave-dwelling pokémon that has no known sleep cycle, this behavior has also been known to greatly confuse the clefairy it sometimes cohabits with.

Binacle and Barbaracle

Binacle
The Two-Handed Pokémon
Type: Rock/Water
Official Registration #: 688
Entry: A barnacle-like pokémon native to the warm seas of Hoenn and Kalos. Unlike many other clustered pokémon, the two binacle occupying each rock are two distinct entities that require the utmost care in maintaining a working relationship in order to function. Should one disagree, it will leave its rock to find a different habitat, which halves the power of the binacle cluster. Incidentally, this exact fact accounts for more than 67% of the plots of Binaclebob Trapezoidpants’s currently 201-episode run, which the author knows because he has counted in a desperate attempt to maintain his own sanity during the Binaclebob marathons he has had to sit through for one reason or another.

Barbaracle
The Collective Pokémon
Type: Rock/Water
Official Registration #: 689
Entry: The evolved form of binacle, by battle experience. Upon evolution, the two binacle in the collective multiply into seven, increasing their power dramatically. Consequently, barbaracle fight with the power of seven binacle … which, incidentally, was the plot of an even better 90s show than Binaclebob Trapezoidpants.

Why are all “fossil” pokemon rock type? My friend has a theory that during their time they were not all rock types and that it is the restoration process from the fossil that gives them the type. Is there much evidence of this and what these pokemon were like in the past?

Oddly enough, I’d actually written an entry on the subject here, but suffice to say, I’d like to agree with your friend. The whole restoration process is an imprecise one at best, so errors in the rendering of pokémon—including the physiological makeup of each specimen—would hardly be surprising.

Are certain pokemon, for example rock and steel types like Geodude, Metang, Roggenrolla and Magneton silicon based life forms? Or are all pokemon carbon based?

Yes, it’s true that some pokémon actually differ in composition from the more traditional carbon-based class. However, it’s a bit more complicated than one might think.

To be a bit more specific, only very certain pokémon under very particular conditions are silicon-based. It’s true that many of these are rock- or ground-types, but in addition, they’re not the ones that have even trace amounts of tissue. Putting it another way, if a pokémon possesses flesh-based organs, then it’s actually a mostly carbon-based life form. This includes pokémon such as geodude and onix. Likewise, steel-types such as probopass or the beldum line are actually quite literally steel and are thus also both iron- and carbon-based.

When you get into species that have either extraterrestrial or manmade origins or that are solid rock—such as solrock, lunatone, the baltoy line, and the roggenrola line—then you begin to encounter silicon-based life. It is also said that, being literal embodiments of their respective elements, legendaries such as Zygarde, Regirock, and Landorus are all silicon-based as well, even though one of them, Landorus, is apparently made of flesh. The exception to this rule is Diancie, as it is a living diamond and is thus carbon-based.

Then you have sableye, which eats rocks to the point where much of its body is pure precious stone, despite it not possessing the elemental affinity for the rock-type. (Although to be fair, whether or not it’s considered a silicon-based life form depends entirely on what gems comprise its diet, so whether or not it counts is up for debate.)

The Roggenrola Line

Roggenrola
The Mantle Pokémon
Type: Rock
Official Registration #: 524
Entry: A small, boulder-like pokémon native to Unovan caves. Roggenrola are easily recognizable by two features: the hard-as-steel skin covering its entire body and the hexagon-shaped ear hole drilled into its front. The author will pause here to give the reader time to get over their inevitable astonishment that the hole in the front of a roggenrola is, in fact, an ear and not an eye or a mouth.

Boldore
The Ore Pokémon
Type: Rock
Official Registration #: 525
Entry: The evolved form of roggenrola, by battle experience. After having trained deep within the harsh conditions of its underground home, boldore has attained power too great for its body, and thus, upon evolution, orange crystals have burst through its steel-like skin to contain its excess energy. And yes, those are two ear holes.

Gigalith
The Compressed Pokémon
Type: Rock
Official Registration #: 526
Entry: The evolved form of boldore, via trading. Upon evolution, gigalith’s crystals not only retain the ability to store their host’s excess energy, but they are also capable of collecting solar energy on the rare occasions that this pokémon is on the surface. Once enough energy has been collected, gigalith can compress this energy into its core and fire it off as a destructive ball of light. And yes, those are still ear holes. This pokémon has no eyes, and its mouth is on its underside. These are just facts the reader must become accustomed to, should they wish to train any member of this evolution line.

Unova Legendaries, Part II

Cobalion
The Iron Will Pokémon
Type: Steel/Fighting
Official Registration #: 638
Entry: Said to be the most charismatic member of the legendary group known as the Swords of Justice. Long ago, when Unova was engulfed in war, this goat-like legendary appeared to do battle against mankind and protect pokémon from human violence. Some say Cobalion had the right idea, and there are times when, quite frankly, this author can’t argue with that.

Terrakion
The Cavern Pokémon
Type: Rock/Fighting
Official Registration #: 639
Entry: Said to be the brawniest member of the Swords of Justice, capable of toppling castle walls with a single blow. Long ago, when Unova was engulfed in war, this legendary is said to have protected pokémon that had lost their homes to human violence … by destroying entire settlements, villages, fortresses, and other establishments of human civilization. Terrakion then went on to become a symbol of the Unovan military philosophy, because if there are two things no other institution can do better than the Unovan military, it’s seeking out the least productive methods of solving problems and missing the point entirely. (On that note, the author would like to announce his acquisition of several ground-types to Lt. Surge, former officer of the Unovan Army.)

Virizion
The Grassland Pokémon
Type: Grass/Fighting
Official Registration #: 640
Entry: Said to be the swiftest member of the Swords of Justice, whose battle style consists of confounding opponents with ultra-swift moves. Long ago, when Unova was engulfed in war, this legendary is said to have focused completely on protecting its pokémon friends, rather than going after humans or human settlements directly. Because of this interest in the well-being of its own kind and its focus on actual strategy, certain pokémon experts wonder if it is a native to Unova at all.

Corsola

Corsola
The Coral Pokémon
Type: Water/Rock
Official Registration #: 222
Entry: A vibrantly colored coral-like pokémon that dwells in warm, shallow seas. Although this pokémon can be highly mobile, it prefers congregating into massive colonies not far from sandy, warm beaches and staying there. This behavior is so well-known that humans feel perfectly safe building entire communities atop corsola forests, and pokémon frequently make nests in corsola’s sturdy horns. However, due to rising ocean temperatures, corsola’s normally brilliant colors have been fading, and its normally sturdy arms—which shed naturally at a rate of once per year—have begun shedding more frequently every year. All of these signs are key indicators of an oncoming drop in corsola populations as corsola devote more time and energy to self-preservation than breeding. Or, at least, this is what scientific experts say. According to Unovan politicians, meanwhile, the weather changes all the time, and corsola are known for being lazy pokémon that have absolutely no overall impact on our ecology, so what’s a few corsola, anyway?

The Rhyhorn Line

Rhyhorn
The Spikes Pokémon
Type: Ground/Rock
Official Registration #: 111
Entry: This rhinoceros-like pokémon possesses a hefty body reinforced by a rock-like hide. Due to its weight and durability, the average rhyhorn is capable of inflicting a devastating amount of damage. However, this ability, combined with its bulk and relative lack of intelligence, mean stampedes of this pokémon can be incredibly dangerous or even deadly, as once it begins to charge, it finds it difficult to turn or prevent itself from plowing into and destroying anything in its path. So naturally, Kaloseans have developed rhyhorn racing, a sport in which human riders spur rhyhorn forward at each specimen’s topmost speed along a winding track, likely because when your culture is built upon centuries of war and death, your residents end up with unfortunate judgment.

Bill, your home region’s culture was built upon centuries of war and death. —LH

Yes, well, look at Johto’s reputation. —Bill

Okay, fair point. —LH

Rhydon
The Drill Pokémon
Type: Ground/Rock
Official Registration #: 112
Entry: The evolved form of rhyhorn, by battle experience. Upon evolution, this pokémon rises to its hind feet. This gives it the ability to use its hands for stability, allowing it to brace itself against walls or its opponent as it drills. Additionally, the drill on its head is said to be harder than diamond and capable of punching holes into virtually anything, including solid bedrock. It should be noted that although the horns of male rhyhorn are longer than those of the female, they are not phallic objects either, Bebe.

Rhyperior
The Drill Pokémon
Type: Ground/Rock
Official Registration #: 464
Entry: The evolved form of rhydon, via trading if the subject has had a protector applied to it. This tank-like pokémon can withstand the heat and force of a volcanic eruption, and its cannon-like arms are capable of shooting rocks the size of geodude. These rocks are not produced by the rhyperior (unlike the rocks of many other rock-types’ attacks) but are, rather, picked up from the ground and inserted into the holes in its palms. In rare cases, rhyperior may pick up actual geodude and use them as ammunition. Given the image of a pokémon inserting a living or otherwise foreign object into a hole within its body, it should be noted that this is neither a euphemism, nor is it particularly pleasant for the geodude involved.

Onix and Steelix

Onix
The Rock Snake Pokémon
Type: Rock/Ground
Official Registration #: 96
Entry: A giant serpentine pokémon native to the cave systems of Kanto and Johto. As it grows, onix’s stone body hardens until its skin resembles diamond, which protects it as it burrows at high speeds in search of sustenance … all of which is not an extended euphemism, contrary to the opinions of the Sinnohan storage system administrator.

Steelix
The Iron Snake Pokémon
Type: Steel/Ground
Official Registration #: 208
Entry: The evolved form of onix, most easily via trading if the subject has had a metal coat applied to it. As this snake-like pokémon ages, it burrows deeper into the ground, where the pressure of the earth itself and the heat from the planet’s core tempers its steel skin. While tamed steelix may have this coat artificially applied to it before trading, it is possible for steelix to evolve from wild onix. Using this process, steelix initially have a rocky hide but form their coats from the minerals it consumes as it burrows. A sheath begins to form on its face first (as this is the first thing that burrows into the ground) but gradually slides backwards until it coats the entire length of the specimen. Friction compacts and hardens this coat until the aforementioned process of tempering (via pressure from the earth and heat from the planetary core) may occur. And no, this is still not an extended euphemism, Bebe.

The Bonsly Line

Bonsly
The Bonsai Pokémon
Type: Rock
Official Registration #: 438
Entry: A short, artificial tree-like pokémon. Native to more arid climates, bonsly struggle in humid heat and thus expel water through their eyes in order to regulate body moisture levels. This process is often accompanied by cries that are so plaintive and baby-like that some humans have been known to run to a “crying” bonsly and proceed to dote on them. Some bonsly are also known to use this to their advantage for the sake of getting spoiled by humans, such as in the case of one particular research subject that was temporarily in the care of a good friend of the author’s.

Before you continue to make fun of me for falling for one bonsly, Bill, may I remind you that you do this to literally every eevee in your care? —LH

Sudowoodo
The Imitation Pokémon
Type: Rock
Official Registration #: 185
Entry: The evolved form of bonsly, by battle experience, if the subject knows Mimic. A tall, artificial tree-like pokémon. When attacked, sudowoodo will drop everything, stand among the closest trees, and cease moving in an effort to blend in with its surrounding forest. This tactic is surprisingly very effective, despite the facts that a sudowoodo’s skin is very clearly rock, that it possesses a face, and that it will often use this tactic even when closely pursued by its attacker.