Hey, I have a 7 yr old child who really wants a Pokemon for her birthday. Are their any Pokémon that are soft and gentle and calm for children?

Eevee.

Edit: My editor is currently threatening to restrict my account again, so allow me to answer this seriously.

Most starters are bred to be docile, so they’re often your best bet, particularly if they’re from a certified starter breeder or a pokémon professor. Of these, it’s often said that litten is the softest and gentlest (even though it evolves into something decidedly neither of these things), but there are plenty of people who would vouch for rowlet, popplio, oshawott, and every fire-type starter except charmander (and arguably chimchar when it comes to being calm). Some pikachu may fit this description as well.

Besides that, fairy- and/or normal-type pokémon often include those that are soft, gentle, and calm. Fairy-types in particular, as mischievous as they are, hang their reputation on being exactly this, which is why clefairy is a highly popular pet (besides being cute and reasonably easy for beginner pet keepers to handle. However, the fairy-type has plenty of other candidates to choose from, ranging from swirlix to snubbull. The type even boasts two nursing pokémon in the form of comfey and members of the jigglypuff line.

Meanwhile, normal-types cover a wide range of territory, but this territory also includes chansey and audino (two more soft and gentle nursing pokémon), as well as buneary, bunnelby, minccino, skitty, and lillipup (pokémon that are highly popular to keep as pets, especially for young girls). Of course, don’t discount other normal-type pokémon that are somewhat less popular choices for pets but are nonetheless excellent choices for young children, including bidoof, slakoth, patrat, or whismur.

Granted, every type has potential candidates (psychic has espurr, solosis, and munna; bug has joltik and venonat; etc., etc.), but generally speaking, normal and fairy tend to be the most popular for young girls. My point in saying this, though, is that there’s also a chance that neither of these types interest your daughter; while they’re fairly safe suggestions, it’s also worth it to start from what her favorite type is and work from there.

But of course, if all else fails, there’s also eevee. Cute, gentle, soft, usually calm, and can be practically any type your daughter might love. They’re the perfect pets, really.

Until they eat you out of house and home and destroy your property. —LH

Details! —Bill

I’d like to ask for your advice. I have a very frail, sickly son, who just became 12 years old. He can’t go outside much and gets sick quite easily. My husband and I decided to catch a Pokémon for him, and he said he preferred an ice type. The only ice types near our home are Vanillite and Cubchoo. Which one would you recommend we’d catch? Because of our son’s weak constitution, we’d prefer a Pokémon that doesn’t require a lot of exercise to keep them happy and healthy.

This is a bit of a tough decision, admittedly, but it hinges on whether or not your son would like a pokémon capable of evolution.

You see, if we’re only considering base evolutions, vanillite is actually the harder of the two to care for. While it doesn’t need much in terms of basic care (it only needs water and food and is perfectly content staying indoors, playing easier games with its owners), it does require cold at all times. This means an air conditioned room in your home all year round, as well as enough space in a freezer for it to rest if it gets sick. Technically, it can survive at warmer temperatures, but you may find that it will be a bit more lethargic than how it was when you caught it.

Conversely, cubchoo doesn’t necessarily require cold; it simply prefers it. If trained properly, cubchoo can survive at pretty much any temperature short of tropical or desert heat. However, it’s a far more active pokémon than vanillite and requires daily exercise and training. On the other hand, a daily walk or an easy game of fetch may be enough for some cubchoo, but this only means you’ll need to be careful when selecting your catch. The cubchoo you give your son must be of a calmer nature, or you’ll find that it will need a more active lifestyle than what your son may be able to provide.

Conversely, if your son evolves his pokémon, then the advantages will be flipped, so to speak. As a vanillite progresses up its evolution chain, its ice powers will grow stronger and stronger. In turn, this means it will gain the ability to adjust the temperature immediately surrounding it to its own liking, which will make keeping one indoors a much easier task. (As a side note, yes, some vanilluxe gain the ability Snow Warning as a result of its strengthening powers. Many believe this to mean that it will always be hailing whenever one is present, but this is only true on the battlefield. Otherwise, a tame vanilluxe with the Snow Warning ability will just be keenly capable of producing that cold aura.) Meanwhile, its needs, including its activity requirements, will likely stay roughly the same, and it’s likewise a very easygoing and caring pokémon.

On the other hand, beartic are notoriously more difficult to care for. It is, after all, a giant bear with ice powers, and as such, its appetite will grow considerably, its space requirements will increase, and, most importantly, it will require more vigorous exercise than before. (Again, it’s possible to have a more sedentary lifestyle with a beartic, but it’s not particularly healthy.) Likewise, remember that beartic are apex predators, and they need to be trained behaviorally as well. Otherwise, their tempers, which they are also notorious for, can be quite dangerous to anyone around their trainers.

So ultimately, it comes down to this: if your son has no intent of evolving his pokémon, consider a cubchoo. Catch a docile one and give it an everstone, and your son will have a partner who will be fairly easy to care for.

If, however, he would prefer to let his partner evolve, catch a vanillite. Just be sure you have enough room in your freezer for it, or help your son train it until it’s ready to evolve. Either way, over the long term, vanillite’s evolutions are excellent indoor companions.

Best of luck!

My daughter just turned 12 and really wants to be a Pokemon trainer, and she is dead set on her starter being a dark type. I’ve considered getting her an Eevee but there’s no guarantee it’s evolve into Umbreon. Do you have any suggestions?

Actually, umbreon is one of the easiest eeveelutions to obtain because all it requires is for you to befriend an eevee and have it hold an everstone until nightfall, but since I can feel my editor leering at me through the internet, allow me to point you to this post, as it offers a more comprehensive guide to dark-type starters: http://bills-pokedex.tumblr.com/post/166971002585/my-daughter-will-become-a-trainer-soon-she-adores

Best of luck to your daughter!

Dear Bill, My birthday was a few days ago, and my family, in their ever present lack of communication, got me a Rowlet, a Piplup, and a Torchic, along with a SNivy, Turtwig, and Treeko. Do i need to worry about the Avian starters picking fights with each other? and what of my Grass Reptilians? Also, any Care tips you can suggest for them? and are there any concerns i should watch for in their Later Stages? I’d rather avoid issues BEFORE i need to take a ‘Mon to the Pokemon Center ER.

This is … quite an ask, I must admit. So to begin, I’m afraid I can’t offer care tips for six vastly different pokémon in a small amount of space, so I’ll simply offer this as a general tip: read up on each pokémon species to get hints about their basic needs. For example, treecko is a tropical insectivore, so it will need a moist environment and a largely insect-based diet. While you could possibly double up on habitats or diets for like pokémon, it’s also worth it to be aware that two pokémon, as alike as they may be, might actually have different needs. (Turtwig is an herbivore, and snivy needs larger prey, like feeder mice.)

If you’re out on the road and these are meant to be your starters for a journey, it might be easier to care for all of them (that’s what kibble and general care facilities at pokémon centers are for), but if you live at home, a team this diverse might be difficult unless you have a lot of space and money. If it is difficult, consider leaving a few at a shelter or rehoming them. This goes especially if you plan on evolving them, as their needs—not only for space but also basics—will increase exponentially. It’s not impossible to house six fully evolved starters if you’re not a trainer, but it’s difficult. And, well. Expensive.

As for your avian pokémon fighting one another, most bird-like species are actually highly social, so it’s more likely that they’ll form a flock (and perhaps try to rope in some of the reptiles while they’re at it), especially once they understand they’re part of the same team. The others, meanwhile … generally, you shouldn’t have a problem because in most cases, starters are bred to be amicable with other pokémon, but keep an eye on that treecko and snivy.

Best of luck!

The Mudkip Line

bills-pokedex:

Mudkip
The Mud Fish Pokémon
Type: Water
Official Registration #: 258
Entry: One of three pokémon traditionally offered to new trainers at the beginning of their journeys in Hoenn. A small, amphibious pokémon native to Hoennian rivers. It uses its large head fin to sense the flow of water and its large back fin to propel itself through turbulent currents with surprising power for its size. Likewise, the large gills on its cheek allow it to breathe even in the murkiest, muddiest depths, and its physical strength alone allows it to pick up and push boulders along river bottoms. In general, mudkip is a fascinating pokémon, and this is because the species itself carries a number of interesting qualities, not because someone “herd u liek it.”

Marshtomp
The Mud Fish Pokémon
Type: Water/Ground
Official Registration #: 259
Entry: The evolved form of mudkip, by battle experience. An amphibious pokémon primarily native to rivers and banks, marshtomp had to develop strong, bulky legs to compensate for the fact that its habitat lacks stable footing. Thus, marshtomp is capable of literally standing through even the fiercest earthquakes, the likes of which routinely plague its volcanic home region of Hoenn. A less composed young researcher would likely say that marshtomp has had the foresight to “not skip leg day,” but luckily, the writer is not the storage system administrator of Sinnoh.

Swampert
The Mud Fish Pokémon
Type: Water/Ground
Official Registration #: 260
Entry: The evolved form of marshtomp, by battle experience. Never let its seemingly cute species name fool you. In actuality, swampert is a four-foot-tall mass of pure, sea-tempered muscle. It is powerful enough to tow ships to shore, rend boulders in two with one swipe of its bulky arms, swim against the current of stormy waves, dive to the depths of the Hoennian sea, and spew jets of water that can tear holes in the hull of the ships it had towed to shore at the beginning of this list. About the only thing cute about it is the fact that it still wears a perpetual grin and enjoys belly rubs and literally sucking down insect prey, just like its ancestral cousin, quagsire.

Mega Swampert
The Mud Fish Pokémon
Type: Water/Ground
Official Registration #: 260+
Entry: The advanced form of swampert, via swampertite. Mega swampert is the only starter that doesn’t change drastically in terms of physiology or elemental affinity upon mega evolution. It simply becomes more muscular and adept at punching things … which is why it’s perhaps a bad idea to imply its mega evolution isn’t as interesting as its peers’ while it’s within earshot.

The Treecko Line

bills-pokedex:

Treecko
The Wood Gecko Pokémon
Type: Grass
Official Registration #: 252
Entry: One of three pokémon traditionally offered to new trainers at the beginning of their journeys in Hoenn. This small gecko pokémon is famous for its calm disposition, which makes it an ideal partner for a beginning trainer. It is said that absolutely nothing shakes it, not even the rage of a forest fire. This, of course, is not entirely true. The calm demeanor it displays at all times actually hides abject panic and other extreme forms of emotion … which, given the fact that trainers routinely and happily face danger on a daily basis without so much as a frown, still makes treecko an ideal partner for a beginning trainer.

Grovyle
The Wood Gecko Pokémon
Type: Grass
Official Registration #: 253
Entry: The evolved form of treecko, by battle experience. Grovyle is noted for its nimbleness. Well-adapted to its native jungle environments, it can skitter up trees and jump from branch to branch with an unrivaled swiftness, making it difficult for pursuers to keep up with it. It should be noted that these pursuers, of course, may include trainers who mistake their calm demeanor during their treecko stage as consent to subject it to extreme stress.

Sceptile
The Forest Pokémon
Type: Grass
Official Registration #: 254
Entry: The evolved form of grovyle, by battle experience. In Hoennian lore, sceptile are traditionally seen as forest guardians. Not only are their jungle combat skills completely unrivaled in the pokémon world (due to both its surprising agility and the sharp leaf blades on its arms), but also, the bulbs on their backs contain seeds that they can plant in order to revitalize parts of their forest homes. It should also be noted that this image of sceptile as a jungle guardian is perhaps only helped by the fact that the aforementioned bulbs explode in order to release the seeds within, yet sceptile, much like its original treecko form, take the violent bursting of parts of their body without even flinching. Needless to say, the disinclination to fight a creature that refuses to show pain is something of a survival adaptation for the rest of the forest.

Mega Sceptile
The Forest Pokémon
Type: Grass/Dragon
Official Registration #: 254+
Entry: The advanced form of sceptile, via sceptilite. As mega sceptile, this pokémon is imbued with the ability to detach its lengthy tail as a form of self-defense. Actually, many lizard pokémon possess this ability; it’s just that mega sceptile is the only one for whom this also entails (forgive the pun) seizing the detached limb and stabbing its attacker with it.

The Torchic Line

bills-pokedex:

Torchic
The Chick Pokémon
Type: Fire
Official Registration #: 255
Entry: One of three pokémon traditionally offered to new trainers at the beginning of their journeys in Hoenn. A small, chick-like pokémon whose natural body temperature is so hot that the fireballs it launches during battle can reach temperatures in excess of 1800 degrees Fahrenheit. Thus, in Hoenn, it is said that torchic are very warm to cuddle, but given that these are the same people who live in a region that feature a desert, an active volcano, a dormant volcano, and a tropical jungle, outsiders should take torchic’s cuddliness with a grain of salt.

For your information, it is very cuddly, and someone who had the misfortune of being raised in a region where you don’t see sun for six months out of the year because of the constant rain should perhaps keep his opinions about Hoennians to himself. —LH

The reason why I poke fun at every other region but Hoenn, ladies and gentlemen. —Bill

Combusken
The Young Fowl Pokémon
Type: Fire/Fighting
Official Registration #: 256
Entry: The evolved form of torchic, by battle experience. A powerful and energetic pokémon, combusken is capable of delivering ten kicks per second, and each kick is capable of rending solid concrete in two. In Hoenn, this has made combusken a prized fighter ideal for taking on the rock- and steel-heavy Hoenn League. In Unova, however, combusken are noted for their muscular legs, which apparently taste wonderful to an Unovan when said legs are breaded, seasoned, and fried in whatever magical oils the local Floccesy Fried Chicken establishment uses.

Blaziken
The Blaze Pokémon
Type: Fire/Fighting
Official Registration #: 257
Entry: The evolved form of combusken, by battle experience. Upon evolution, blaziken gain the ability to jump thirty-story buildings, set their fists on fire via flame cuffs, breathe jets of flames, and endure hours of intense fighting. Upon mega evolution, it also gains the ability Speed Boost … because that’s exactly what you need a six-foot-tall chicken with fire powers and superhuman martial arts skills to do: gain speed boosts naturally.

Mega Blaziken
The Blaze Pokémon
Type: Fire/Fighting
Official Registration #: 257+
Entry: The advanced form of blaziken, via blazikenite. As noted in the entry for its base form, blaziken gains the ability Speed Boost upon mega evolution. This ability allows it to launch its notorious flurry of kicks with even greater speed than it would as an ordinary blaziken. It does not, contrary to popular belief, allow blaziken to become a “spicy fast boy,” as the internet puts it.

Hello! I was wondering which feline/cat Pokémon would be ideal for a pet? I also have a Ralts (female) and a female Rowlet if it factors in any. I work from home and have a pretty sizeable back garden. Oh! And I live in Kanto.

Pretty much all of them, short of perhaps Mew and Mewtwo (not that you would be able to keep one of either to begin with). However, if you want a local pokémon, meowth are easy to find in Kanto. I would warn you against evolving it considering your ralts, though. Persian can be rather fickle and rough, and ralts tend to be delicate.

If you can import pokémon, or if your local shelter hosts a wider variety of pokémon than usual, the best you can possibly get are members of the skitty and espurr lines, as these have more easy-going personalities, generally speaking. Furthermore, espurr and meowstic would make excellent training partners for both your psychic ralts and your (eventually) ghost rowlet. However, avoid litten and Alolan meowth, partly because they either evolve into or already are dark-types (meaning they won’t mesh well with your pokémon) and partly because Alolan meowth in particular tends to be higher maintenance than other felines.

You may also wish to avoid litleo in general, as you will likely not have a back yard if you keep one. Not because its evolved form would set it on fire but instead because it would be your pyroar’s garden, not yours.

Best of luck!

I’m training in MMA, and I’ve been thinking of having a Fighting-type Pokémon train alongside me! Does that sound like a good idea? If so, what kind of Fighting-type Pokémon would be recommended for younger trainers (around 13 y.o.) in specific?

If you’re careful, it could be a good idea. More specifically, if you do this, be careful about which pokémon you choose. Quite a few fighting-types may be too eager or too rough for a human to train with, while some can tone it down (so to speak) to match the limits of their partners.

In particular, starters are very attuned to human partners and thus can adjust their power fairly easily. The downside, of course, is that no “official” starter line is part fighting in their most basic stages, so whichever you choose will need a bit of training before it can begin mastering fighting techniques. That said, of the three (technically four, if one counts chesnaught, although that requires more rigorous training than the others), the torchic line tends to be the most popular due to its flexible fighting style and the fact that it’s neither too fast to keep up with (as in the case of monferno and infernape) or nearly too bulky to train with (as with pignite and emboar). But really, any of them may make excellent choices.

Alternatively, if you can’t obtain a starter, machop tends to be both easy to obtain and easy-going in personality, and as such, it can make for a patient sparring partner. Meditite as well, particularly if you’re looking for a less aggressive approach. Members of the makuhita line are popular among fighters due to their bulk; they can take hits as well as show their human partners how to perform formidable punches of their own. Conversely, hawlucha and members of the riolu line are often sought-after as training partners due to their eagerness to train; it’s fairly easy to learn along with these pokémon as a result.

Whatever you choose, anonymous, always remember that training your pokémon is as important as training yourself. Be sure your pokémon understand your limitations and boundaries before engaging in any sort of training with a fighting-type.

Good luck, anonymous! Your journey sounds like it will be quite interesting, although I admit I don’t entirely know what MMA means exactly. I imagine it’s something like judo?

EDIT: After having discussed this entry with my editor, looked it up, discussed this entry again with my editor, and then discussed it with the lawyer who handles many of the issues surrounding my work, I am now obligated to add that I am not an expert in human sports or health and that neither I nor the editor are liable for whatever happens as a result of my advice concerning either of those particular subjects. I am also obligated to phrase that as “as a result of my advice, however ridiculously terrible it may be” for reasons I’ve been told I’m not allowed to question.

i work with professor birch in Hoenn, and recently went to Johto to provide information discovered by Birch to Elm. Well while i was staying with professor Elm, one of the starters he had, cyndiquil popped out of its ball and imprinted on me. is it common for pokemon like this to choose their trainer?

Only in Johto, Unova, and occasionally Kalos. (Alola as well, but for them, it’s less an accident and more a cultural point.) No one is quite sure why, but the going theory is that the starters often emulate the disposition of the people within their region of origin.

As a Johtonian, I feel like I should be offended by the implication that my people are all impulsive and extremely transparent about their opinions of others, but on the other hand, you wouldn’t exactly be wrong if you said that…