Pokémon Creepypasta: Scary Stories in the Pokémon Games

Not sure what possessed me to write this at midnight, but screw sleep and pleasant dreams. Here we go.

We all know Pokémon for what it’s meant to be perceived as – a franchise aimed at kids, with cute and cool-looking monsters that non-lethally fight in good spirit. But, like most children’s series created in the 90s, there’s some darker stuff beneath the surface that you don’t quite get until you’ve gained a few levels yourself. Things I either ignored or didn’t think much of in the games now make me want to sleep with the nightlight on and cuddle up with Mr. Snugglepuss. Seriously, a lot of this stuff would be perfectly welcome in an episode of X-Files or Criminal Minds. Things like…

1. Elevator Girl

One of the more recent entries on this list, Elevator Girl (as I like to call her, because that makes her sound way less threatening than she probably really is), is found in one of the many buildings in Lumiose City. You go in, take the elevator up, and you come out on an empty floor. Then the screen goes black…

AND OH MY GOD SHE’S RIGHT BEHIND YOU.

That’s not even the end of it. She then moves around you with no freaking walking animation, then stares at the corner and says something along the lines of “No, you’re not the one.” Then she’s gone. She doesn’t say goodbye, which is kind of rude, but I guess that’s better than having my soul ripped out through my eyes, so I’ll take it.

Then there’s another building where you find a girl with the same character model. If for whatever reason you think it’s a good idea to go up and talk to her, she just says “Don’t talk to me…If you do, I can’t hear the elevator.”

And that’s it. Nobody knows what this girl’s story is. She’s literally (at this point) in this game solely to fill our pants with lemonade and chocolate bars. There’s some rumors that maybe she’s just waiting for someone with a specific Trainer ID (a number randomly assigned to each player), and that when she finds him or her she’ll reveal her secret. Not really sure I want to know. Excuse me for a second. I’m going to go sob in the corner…
…
…
…Alright, I think I’m good now. Sorry. Now what’s next…

2. Pokémon Tower

Oh God why. Well, it needed to be said. This is a morbid-as-hell town. It’s a town literally devoted to death. Its only purpose, its sole excuse for existing, is to be the home for a mass graveyard of dead Pokémon. You walk into town, hear that music (which I’ll get to soon…) and walk right into Pokémon Tower, which is filled with the gravestones of dead animals. Their owners and friends stand around and mourn them, and they never leave. Ever. They just stand there and cry for eternity. Then, you get attacked by an actual goddamned ghost which you are completely defenseless against at that point in time. This is almost exactly like Stephen King’s Pet Sematary, except instead of stabbing children you’re beating the crap out of adorable dead animals and their heartbroken loved ones. You monster.

Then, of course, there’s the music. The town is designed to be creepy, so it makes sense that the music would be too. But there’s a little story floating around on the internet that takes it to new heights…

3. Lavender Town Syndrome

The story goes that the original music for Lavender Town in the Japanese Red and Green Versions caused a huge increase in the amount of suicide among kids. There was a high-pitched sound that only the kids could hear due to their younger and stronger ears. 200 of those kids either hanged themselves or jumped from large heights. The rest acted irrationally for days and had severe headaches that they couldn’t shake. Supposedly, this was fixed when the game shipped to North America. The difference isn't that noticeable, but don't you get a feeling that something just isn't... right in this town?

Even knowing it’s fake, reading this story always sends chills up my spine.


4. Old Chateau

Yep, another creepy building. This place is from Gen IV, and is only accessible with Cut. You walk in and, with the cojones of an action star and look around like nothing’s wrong, even when the game tells you that the statue appears to be glaring at you and the eyes of the painting are following you. Alright, alright, maybe that’s just paranoia.

Oh Arceus, a little girl just walked across the screen. I’ll just follow her into that room, maybe talk to her and find out what she’s doing here…wait, where’d she go?

Oh look, a nice butler setting the table. Wait, how are you moving if you aren’t walking? Why aren’t your legs moving? Sir, you aren’t supposed to be able to phase through walls, only ghosts…can…do that…
Oh well, I didn’t need to sleep tonight anyway.

5. The Pokédex Entries

Oh God, the Pokédex entries…I already kind of went into some of this in my last article, but since there’s 721 Pokémon, there’s way too much to cover in one article, and a lot of it is seriously jacked up. I said before that most of these creatures, due to natural selection, wouldn’t be able to exist. Some of these things wouldn’t be allowed to exist. We’d straight up go genocidal on these pocket monsters. I compiled a few of my favorites here, in no particular order.

Gourgeist

X: Singing in eerie voices, they wander town streets on the night of the new moon. Anyone who hears their song is cursed.
Y: It enwraps its prey in its hair-like arms. It sings joyfully as it observes the suffering of its prey.

What the actual hell?

What kind of curse does it put on people? Is it something simple, like not being able to win a baseball game? Or something horrible, like not being able to eat bacon ever again? Not knowing is almost as terrifying. And do we have to be awake to be cursed? Because we still sort of hear things while we sleep – oftentimes, it’s implemented somehow into our dream, like hearing our alarm going off while you’re taking the math test in your underwear. Are we still cursed? Because that’s just not fair.

Now imagine watching this thing hunt…whatever it is it hunts. It finally catches it and begins to squeeze with its “hair-like arms,” which kind of skeeves me out, but it’s fairly normal in the animal kingdom.

Then it starts singing - a happy, joyful tune completely at odds with the murder that’s happening in front of your eyes. Imagine having those millions of tiny hairs coiling around you, blotting out the sky and slowly making it harder and harder to breathe. Then, just before you go, you hear singing. Is it angels? No, it’s the monster killing you, singing as it watches you die.

Drifloon

Pearl: It tugs on the hands of children to steal them away.

Black 2/White 2: These Pokémon are called the ‘Signpost for Wandering Spirits.’ Children holding them sometimes vanish.

In the English versions of the games, it leaves it there. We never find out where they’re taken, for what purpose, or if they’re ever returned. The Japanese versions clarify a little bit of that…they take the kids to the “world of the dead.” What. First, imagine being a parent of one of these kids. You’re having an excellent day out with your child. The sun is shining, the wind is blowing, and a balloon just happens to pass by. You grab it and hand it to your kid, and smile as their face brightens at the surprise present. You notice that the balloon seems to be tugging a bit strongly, but you ignore it. It’s just a balloon, right? And look at how happy it makes your kid. It’d break their heart if you took it back now. So you let it slide. You turn around, briefly, maybe searching for your wallet or your car keys. When you look back…they're gone. You’ll never see them again. You’ll never see them grow old, or become a Pokémon Trainer…you won’t be there for their first Gym Battle, or their first kiss. You’ll never see them get married and maybe have a family of their own. And the entire time, you’ll know it’s your fault. Now, imagine being the kid. You’re out with your parents, and they hand you a balloon. Being a child, you love balloons. Something about them is just awesome and fun. It pulls at your arm a little, but you keep a tight grip. You won’t let it float away. Your parents look away for a second…and you’re someplace else. Someplace dark, and cold. Creatures float by and ghostly hands reach out of the darkness to catch a quick touch of warm, living skin. You call out, but no sound comes. It’s quiet here. It’ll always be quiet. You want your mom, your dad, anybody, but soon you realize that nobody’s coming. You’re stuck, and your only company is the dead.

Banette

FireRed/LeafGreen: Strong feelings of hatred turned a puppet into a Pokémon. If it opens its mouth, its cursed energy escapes. Diamond/Pearl/Platinum: A doll that became a Pokémon over its grudge from being junked. It seeks the child that disowned it.

Unlike some other Pokémon, this thing’s entry pretty much reiterates the same information from game to game. It never says what it would do to the child if it found it, but it’s pretty safe to assume it isn’t nice. This Pokémon is pretty much Lotso from Toy Story 3 meets Chucky from Child’s Play. This is a creature that was literally born of hatred and holds a never-ending grudge against its old friend and, in a way, creator. You’re probably saving the lives of those children by capturing these things.

And what are the other criteria for creating a Banette? Is it only puppets? If so, the solution is simple – stop freaking making puppets, you idiots. These things are coming to life and killing children.

If it can be just any doll or toy, we’re screwed. Children grow up. They lose interest in toys either out of boredom or grow out of them. Do you honestly want to tell me you still play with blocks, or you still try to put the square block into the round hole? Can those become Banette? If it needs to be a doll, kids go through those all the time, too. They might be given one when they’re four or five and lose it, or it gets stolen. Does it become a Banette then? Are some of these Banette alive solely based on a misconception? There’s pretty much an unlimited number of them, so that’s scary likely.

Phantump

X: These Pokémon are created when spirits possess rotten tree stumps. They prefer to live in abandoned forests.
Y: According to old tales, these Pokémon are stumps possessed by the spirits of children who died while lost in the forest.

That’s pretty freaking dark. This does happen in our world – more often than we’d like to think about, I’m sure – but it must happen a lot for there to be so many of the damn things. Children, for whatever reason, wander into the forest and get lost. Then, whether it’s from exposure to the elements, from a wild Pokémon attack, or starvation…they die. Their spirits can’t be at rest, so they possess a tree stump, and are stuck like that. When you capture a Phantump, you’re imprisoning the soul of a lost, scared, dead child.

Duskull

Platinum: It loves the crying of children. It startles bad kids by passing through walls and making them cry.
HeartGold/SoulSilver: If it finds bad children who won’t listen to their parents, it will spirit them away – or so it’s said.

HeartGold/SoulSilver’s entry could be chalked up to scare tactics used by parents to make their children behave, kind of like the Boogeyman of our world. Although, this is a bit more messed up because it actually happens (See Drifloon above). They’re just using the wrong Pokémon.

Its Platinum entry, though, is something it has done, and that’s fairly dark by itself. It enjoys scaring children, loves the sound of them crying, and will seek them out and intentionally make them cry.

Holy crap. This is a pretty horrible world for kids to live in. Balloons want to kidnap you and take you to the world of the dead. Your discarded toys come back with a vengeance and supernatural powers. If you get lost in a forest and die, you’re stranded inside a tree stump. If you somehow manage to avoid all that, there are still creatures that will target you and scare you solely for fun. Just for the lulz.

What are your favorite creepy Pokédex entries? Any town or building give you nightmares? Be sure to let us know!

- Azathoth

The Dark Crystal: Why Suicune Can Be A Nightmare

Type: Water

Base Stats
HP: 100
Attack: 75
Defense: 115
Sp. Attack: 90
Sp. Def: 115
Speed: 85


Abilities
Pressure: The Pokémon raises the foe’s PP usage.

The version mascot of Pokémon Crystal is not to be taken lightly. With almost unrivaled mixed defenses, a phenomenal typing both offensively and defensively, Suicune is a Pokémon one should always be prepared for. And yet, you may ask yourself, why does a Pokémon so good sit in the Underused tier? The answer is quite simple: Manaphy. Manaphy has better speed, Special Attack, a more useful ability in Hydration, and can make use of almost all of the same strategies. Since Manaphy, the King of the Seas, has fallen out of Ubers and into the Overused tier this generation, you might also ask “why use Suicune at all?” Well, I would argue that while slightly outclassed offensively, Suicune plays the role of the bulky sweeper much better than Manaphy. There is only one set that the Aurora Pokémon can pull off in Overused without being totally overshadowed, and if you choose to run this set, it should definitely be considered for a role on your team. Let's take a look.

(Calm) Mind Over Matter
Suicune
Hold Item: Leftovers
Nature: Bold
EVs: 252 Defense, 252 HP, 4 Special Defense
Scald
Rest
Sleep Talk
Calm Mind

The main goal of this set is to either switch into something you resist or utilize a free switch-in and begin using Calm Mind. The main appeal of Suicune - its natural mixed bulk - shows itself here. Maximum investment in Defense allows Suicune to take hits like a champion and become extremely bulky after one Calm Mind, and after a second, it becomes incredibly difficult to stop. Thundurus, one of the premier Electric-type special attackers this generation does not even score a 3KO on Suicune with Thunderbolt once Suicune has two Calm Minds. On the physical side, it is especially hard to take down as its bulk is backed by the high burn rate from Scald, which can cripple any physical attacker willing to go head-to-head with the Aurora Pokémon. However, Suicune's bulk has one fatal problem, that being it has no reliable recovery and must rely on Rest to heal itself. But, Suicune is one of the few Pokémon truly capable of relying entirely on Rest for recovery. Once it has a few Calm Minds under its belt, it can easily outlast the three turns of sleep while using Sleep Talk to gain extra boosts or deal nasty damage with Scald.

One of the lovely aspects of this set is that is does not require a lot of team support. It carries its own recovery, does not require clerical support (Rest deals with paralysis, poison and burns), and is bulky enough to ward off some of the most dangerous Pokémon once it has started to boost. However, as this is a mono attacking set, there are some Pokémon who will wall you no matter how beefy Suicune gets, regardless of boosts or circumstance - basically, anything with an immunity to Water-type attacks. Jellicent, while mostly having lost its niche in Overused as a bulky spin blocker, is still a perfectly viable Pokémon, and can block Scald with Water Absorb and Toxic you, resulting in a stalemate. The same can be said about Vaporeon. However, the most dangerous of all with its Water immunity is Gastrodon. Carrying its own reliable recovery, and receiving a Special Attack boost from every Water-type attack thanks to Storm Drain, Suicune simply cannot afford to stay in on the sea slug.

Unaware Clefable and Quagsire can use their abilities and reliable recovery to stall out Suicune, although this will be more difficult if they get burned. If using a Calm Mind-abusing Clefable, it can also ignore Suicune’s Special Defense boosts and hit back hard with STAB Moonblast. Quagsire is… not so lucky.

Additionally, while Suicune's high defensive stats and threat of burns mostly prevent this, you should also look out for powerful physical attacking Pokémon that hit Suicune for super-effective damage. While not the most dangerous of Pokémon, Conkeldurr, especially the Guts/Assault Vest set analyzed by Jayden Silver here, can cause Suicune problems. The Scald burn only serves to power it up, and the Assault Vest protects it from serious damage. Include the ability to Knock Off its Leftovers and sap Suicune's high HP stat with Drain Punch, and you’ve got yourself a pretty great Suicune counter.

Anyway, I hope this has convinced that you that the Aurora Pokémon is every bit as wonderful as the legends have told you. There are other ways to use Suicune, but they are generally outclassed by this set, as unsupported, base 85 Speed and 90 Special Attack are a bit underwhelming, and you’ll have trouble dealing any significant damage and outspeeding important threats.

- Alltheginjoints

Braviary, the Crushing Eagle: Let’s Hear It For America!

Type: Normal/Flying

Base Stats
HP: 100
Attack: 123
Defense: 75
Sp. Attack: 57
Sp. Defense: 75
Speed: 80


Abilities
Keen Eye: Prevents the Pokémon from losing accuracy.
Sheer Force: Attacks gain power, but lose their secondary effect.
Defiant (Hidden Ability): As its stats are lowered, its Attack increases.

To all of those in the United States, you know that today is Memorial Day, where we thank all of the soldiers who fought, or have fought, for the freedom we know and love today.  In celebration, we’ll be covering the Freedom Pokémon, Braviary (not really - it’s actually called the Valiant Pokémon) and give a big old shout out to ‘Murica!

Just take a look at this majestic beast.  Imagine a huge eagle soaring through the sky and tearing apart its competition with sharp, pointy claws of freedom.  That is Braviary, and it’s here to kick some democracy into the Pokémon world.

It has a couple of things going for it, but unfortunately, is outclassed by other Normal/Flying types out there, such as Staraptor and Swellow.  Staraptor hits faster and just as hard, while Swellow has blistering speed to get the jump on its foes.  Braviary, while toting an impressive 123 base Attack stat, lacks the speed necessary to really make it in the higher tiers.  However, that doesn’t mean that it isn’t viable in lower tiers.  In NeverUsed, it is one of the most fearsome sweepers available, with one of the most powerful attack stats available.  100/75/75 defensive stats aren’t terrible, either, and it has some utility as a bulky bird.

One of the biggest things Braviary has going for it is the ability to learn Superpower.  Unlike other Normal/Flying birdies, Braviary can get around Rock and Steel types by running Fighting-type coverage.  More impressively, it can back it up with its beastly Attack stat.  But, unfortunately for our flying freedom mascot, Staraptor outclasses it in almost every way in higher tiers, and will probably only see action in Underused, Rarely Used, and Never Used.  That doesn’t mean we can’t teach those punk-birds a lesson in freedom, though!

Bulky Bird
Braviary
Hold Item: Leftovers
Ability: Defiant
Nature: Careful
EVs: 252 HP, 252 Special Defense
Brave Bird
Substitute
Roost
Bulk Up

This set is all about durability. This would probably only work in lower tiers.  Set up a Substitute, then start using Bulk Up and Roosting off damage dealt to you.  Then hit back hard with Brave Bird.  Fully defensive investment allows it to take hits while setting up, but keep in mind that 75 base Special Defense will only get you so far, even with maximum investment.  It’s highly likely that something with even a respectable Special Attack stat and STAB will break through your Substitute and put a stop to Braviary’s setup.

In order to keep this from happening, you want Pokémon that can stop standard attacks that will be aimed at Braviary, such as Thunderbolt and Ice Beam.  Assault Vest Lanturn is a great choice for this, as it will take hits like that all day.  However, keep in mind it can’t really do much back, as its Special Attack stat leaves much to be desired.

Operation Soaring Eagle
Braviary
Hold Item: Life Orb
Ability: Sheer Force
Nature: Jolly
EVs: 252 Attack, 252 Speed, 4 HP
Brave Bird
Crush Claw
Superpower
Bulk Up/Rock Slide/U-Turn

This one takes advantage of the Sheer Force/Life Orb combo that Braviary has access to.  Brave Bird is the STAB of choice, while Crush Claw is chosen over Return for the lack of Life Orb recoil while only being about five points shy of max-power Return.  Superpower nails Steel and Rock-type switch-ins hoping to avoid the sheer force of America’s wrath.

The last slot is up to you - Rock Slide also gets a Sheer Force boost, while U-Turn can be used for scouting, or you can set up with Bulk Up.  This set also probably won’t work in higher tiers due to the prevalence of faster threats that will outspeed and OHKO you.

Even at maximum Speed, Braviary is sure to get outsped by a lot of other threats.  Pokémon that can handle its weaknesses will go a long way toward keeping ‘Murica alive.  You can even use Sticky Web and Stealth Rock support from Shuckle, who can take a couple hits and ensure that you get the hazards down.  This will bring out the best in Braviary, and will let it get a couple of hits in before going down.

Land of the Free, Home of the Brave Bird
Braviary
Hold Item: Choice Scarf/Choice Band/Focus Sash
Ability: Defiant
Nature: Adamant/Jolly
EVs: 252 Attack, 252 Speed, 4 HP
Brave Bird
Return
Superpower
U-Turn

The choice between Choice Scarf and Choice Band is entirely up to you.  Do you want to hit hard or hit fast?  The same goes for the choice between Jolly and Adamant - more speed vs more power.  The Focus Sash is there for higher tiers in the event you just want a sacrificial Pokémon who can deal a ton of damage with just one attack.  Obviously, that attack here is Brave Bird, and it will hit something really hard before freedom falls to the ground.

Pokémon that can eliminate faster threats are imperative to this set’s success.  Stealth Rock and Sticky Web support are also greatly appreciated, as Braviary needs all the help it can get if it wants to impact the metagame in any significant way.

Unfortunately for our freedom-loving friend, it just lacks the speed to really function well in the higher tiers, where everything is hyper-offensive and will likely outspeed and outdamage it.  It was a valiant effort by Nintendo to make a Pokémon that was different from its other Normal/Flying brethren, but others simply have better niches in their respective metagames.  Swellow can utilize Guts and the status orbs with STAB Facade, backed by its blistering Speed to wreck faces, and Staraptor is probably the most phenomenal Normal/Flying-type to ever exist with a great balance of Speed, power, and great utility for its abilities.

Braviary, however, will always be one of my favorite HM slaves in-game, being able to use Fly, Rock Smash, and Strength, all while doing some decent damage in the event I need it to.  Give it a shot sometime, and let your opponents fear the wrath of ‘Murica (maybe)!

Assault Vest Conkeldurr: JaydenSilver's Take On the Fighting Clown

Base Stats
HP: 105
Attack: 140
Defense: 95
Special Attack: 55
Special Defense: 65
Speed: 45

Abilities
Guts: Boosts attack if there is a status problem.
Sheer Force: Attacks gain power, but lose their secondary effect.
Iron Fist (Hidden Ability): Boosts the power of punching moves.

Conkeldurr has been a beast in Overused since its release in Gen 5. It had two common sets last generation. One was a Life Orb set that used all punching moves with either Iron Fist or Sheer Force for the extra damage, depending on preference. The second one was a Bulk Up set that made use of Leftovers and a much-improved Drain Punch, which now restores much more HP than it did in previous generations. So, what has our Fighting construction worker-clown got up its sleeve in Gen 6? It’s no water-squirting flower, I’ll give you that!

Its relatively the same as last generation in terms of movepool usage, but has suffered a little due to the less dominant coverage Fighting-type attacks have this generation, thanks to those Fairy-type rascals floating around the metagame. The truth of the matter is that Conkeldurr isn’t the sweeper people want him to be, and the days of Bulking Up and sweeping with priority Mach Punch are gone. However, he comes in use as an anti-lead as well as a utility Pokémon that hits hard and can survive long enough to make an impact on the game.

Ever Been Punched By A Clown? It’s Hysterical!
Conkeldurr
Hold Item: Assault Vest
Ability: Guts
Nature: Adamant
EVs: 252 HP, 252 Attack, 4 Special Defense
Drain Punch
Mach Punch
Ice Punch/Fire Punch
Knock Off

This set is great in the current Gen 6 Smogon Overused metagame. Guts allows you to stay in on Pokémon that would otherwise scare you away with Will-o-Wisp, namely Rotom-W and Sableye, and hit back more powerfully and, to their horror, unaffected. Assault Vest may seem like a strange choice at first, especially with no investment in Special Defense, but the boost it provides gives it the ability to survive certain moves and OHKO back. For example, it survives Psychic from Sheer Force/Life Orb Landorus and OHKOs back with Ice Punch:

252 SpA Life Orb Sheer Force Landorus Psychic vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Assault Vest Conkeldurr: 148-177 (69.8 - 83.4%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

252+ Atk Conkeldurr Ice Punch vs. 4 HP / 0 Def Landorus: 220-260 (133.3 - 157.5%) -- guaranteed OHKO

However, it is important to note that there is a chance, depending on how much bulk Landorus has invested in, that it won’t OHKO, but it will leave him low enough that Mach Punch can finish him off.

Your first move is Drain Punch, which is your primary STAB. This move hits hard even when resisted, and gives Conkeldurr the recovery it needs to stick around trade blows for a while. Mach Punch is a priority STAB that gives Conkeldurr the speed it desperately needs to finish off faster prey, or get one last smack when you know it’s going to faint. This move hits hard despite its 40 base power, and can quickly get rid of troublesome Pokémon such as Greninja, Excadrill, and Bisharp.

Whether you want to use Ice Punch and Fire Punch is up to preference - Ice punch gives much better coverage and is the better move on the set, giving you many more OHKOs on a predicted switch in, like the ever-popular Dragon-types that invest the Overused tier. Fire Punch gives you the ability to not be utter setup material for Pinsir and still gives semi-good coverage for the set. Knock Off rounds the set off with its great momentum-building and utility. Thanks to the power boost it was granted in the sixth generation, it is much more viable on the set, and a great tool to cripple your opponent’s Pokémon by ridding them of their items.

I have been using this Conkeldurr for a couple of months now and found out that I lead with it almost exclusively. It counters some of the most popular leads in the metagame. It can tank attacks from Rotom-W and still win the battle with a combination of Drain Punch and Knock Off. It doesn’t need to fear Will-o-Wisp thanks to Guts. It is important to note that this is the most rewarding lead against the washing machine of doom, but also risky because if it is a rare Trick-Scarf set your Conkeldurr is neutered for the rest of the battle. However, if it isn’t, they lose their Rotom, or retreat with Volt Switch and you get a free Knock Off. The other popular leads that Conkeldurr forces out are Tyranitar, Mamoswine, and Greninja, all of which are destroyed by either Mach punch or Drain Punch. You have to use Mach Punch on Greninja - otherwise, Protean will activate and you will lose super effective coverage (though the ninja frog isn’t terribly bulky anyway).

One of the great things about this set is that even if your opponent doesn’t Will-o-Wisp right away because they afraid of Guts, after the first turn when Flame Orb doesn’t activate (they will assume you are running Flame Orb with Guts) they will assume you are using an Iron Fist variant. This is why it is important to keep it alive - to harass the enemy team for as long as possible.

Some Pokémon that are good against Conkeldurr and can cause problems for it are Azumarill and Mega Pinsir. Both of these Pokémon can switch in and resist all of its movepool while setting up on it. As a player, you have to predict this switch-in and switch out to your Azumarill/Pinsir counter, as they can potentially ruin Conkeldurr’s laughing spree.

A great teammate for our pillars-of-doom-wielding clown is physically-defensive Zapdos. Zapdos can switch into either of the two and resist all of their moves (except Azumarill’s Play Rough and and Aqua Jet, which it still survives). Zapdos will almost always force out every Pinsir and Azumarill you encounter due to their fear of Thunderbolt or Discharge. If they don’t, then no worries - you can survive and OHKO them back. Another popular counter form our friend is the legendary twins Latios and Latias, both being able to one shot our fighter with Psyshock. A good teammate that helps with this problem is Aegislash, able to tank their attacks and OHKO back with STAB Shadow Ball.
     
Conkeldurr is a great Fighting type that can provide your team with a variety of utility and a very powerful punch. If you ever end up facing me on Smogon’s Pokémon Showdown, depending on my team, I like to nickname my Conkeldurr either Bozo or Falcon Punch. Both are hopefully self-evident as to why. A large part of this set’s success is prediction and familiarity with the metagame, so if you are new to competitive Pokémon I suggest a more traditional all-out-attacker set, such as the following:

Seriously, Who Swings Pillars Around?
Conkeldurr
Hold Item: Life Orb
Ability: Guts/Sheer Force/Iron Fist
Nature: Adamant
EVs: 252 HP, 252 Attack, 4 Special Defense
Drain Punch
Earthquake
Knock Off/Stone Edge
Ice Punch/Fire Punch/ThunderPunch

This particular set just focuses on doing as much damage as possible before going down. Drain Punch is the primary STAB and allows it to compensate for Life Orb recoil. Earthquake is for standard coverage on common threats, such as Aegislash (to get around King’s Shield) and other Pokémon weak to it. Knock Off is for spectacular utility, while Stone Edge forms the famous, yet shaky, Edge-Quake combo, and allows you to hit Flying types hard. The last slot is up to preference - Ice Punch for the plethora of dragons that plague Overused (i.e. Garchomp, Dragonite), Fire Punch is for Skarmory, Scizor, and other Steel types, and ThunderPunch is almost exclusively for Gyarados (thought it does hit Azumarill and Pinsir, both common counters, super-effectively). You can choose to run any of its available abilities, but Guts is recommended in order to absorb status and boost your attacking power.

The bulletproof-vested clown Conkeldurr, if mastered, can be extremely rewarding, and can outright win games for you because your opponent just loses too much off of him. Even counters can turn into OHKOs if not executed properly. An example is if my opponent leads with Rotom-W, it Volt Switches into Latios, and I use Knock Off. Latios is now gone, along with a central figure in my opponent’s offensive presence. One down and five to go.

Another common situation I find myself in is when an opponent’s Azumarill switches into a Knock Off. It takes little damage but loses its Sitrus Berry or Choice Band. I immediately switch into Zapdos. It has either done one of two things: Belly Drummed anyway, or used Play Rough. Belly Drum is actually the best-case scenario, since then it has to use Aqua Jet if it wants to deal any damage at all. Physically-defensive Zapdos can tank the hit and OHKO back with Thunderbolt. An unboosted Play Rough will hurt, bringing a full HP Zapdos to around 30% HP. At this point they will almost always try to finish you off with Aqua Jet, but it’s simply not strong enough, and you wipe out their aqua rabbit with a nuclear-powered Thunderbolt.

Now what did Conkeldurr do in this situation? He didn’t really kill the Azumarill. Shouldn’t all the credit go to Zapdos? Well in the long scheme of the battle, your Conkeldurr just tempted one of their sweepers into essentially committing suicide while staying at full HP, now with one less counter on the opposing team. That puts you in a very advantageous position for the rest of the fight. Conkeldurr excels at wearing down opponents, scaring them away, and creating momentum for your team. Are you looking for Fighting-type coverage, but already have a sweeper or two? Well look, no further - this dynamic clown has what you need.

Signing off for now,

Jayden Silver

The Inverse Sword: Aegislash Slices Up Season Four

Base Stats
Shield Forme/Blade Forme
HP: 60/60
Attack: 50/150
Defense: 150/50
Sp. Attack: 50/150
Sp. Defense: 150/50
Speed: 60/60

Abilities
Stance Change: The Pokémon changes forme depending on how it battles.

Aegislash, along with Talonflame and Greninja, remains one of the most popular new Pokémon to be released in the sixth generation, and it’s easy to see why. It’s a ghostly animated sword and shield. That’s pretty cool. Ever since I laid eyes on this thing I knew it would be great in battle, and I wasn’t disappointed.

Aegislash has the ability Stance Change, which lets it alter its form during battle. As it turns out, this form change also inverts its stats: Shield Forme has high Defense and Special Defense, while Blade Forme has crazy Attack and Special Attack. Aegislash is capable of using its great signature move, King’s Shield, to change formes at will during battle. This move not only protects it from all damaging moves during the turn, but also applies a -2 Attack drop to anything trying to hit it with a contact move. Due to its stats and ability to potentially shift formes multiple times in battle, the phantom blade has the potential for a lot of different playing styles.

By far the most common set that I used to run into was this one:

Be My Sword and Shield!
Aegislash
Hold Item: Leftovers/Air Balloon
Ability: Stance Change
Nature: Brave
EVs: 252 HP, 252 Attack, 4 Defense/Special Defense
King’s Shield
Swords Dance
Shadow Sneak
Sacred Sword

Between Ghost and Fighting-type coverage, Aegislash was able to boost up all day in Shield-forme and Slash the opponent to ribbons. This set is what most people anticipate Aegislash to be, but is stopped pretty quickly with appropriate prediction and status application. Also worth noting is that Shadow Sneak has a low base 40 power (60 after STAB), which isn’t going to do much to anything that resists it, even with Swords Dance boosts. Its item could have been just about anything - Leftovers allowed it to recover a little HP while boosting, while Air Balloon protected it from the vicious Earthquakes that were destined to be aimed at it (Earthquake isn’t a contact move, and also hits it super-effectively).

Its HP is the one thing that holds it back from being a super-tank at a paltry 60, which limits its hit-taking ability. However, don’t let that be too much of a downer, because 150 Defense and Special Defense is a lot. Backed by its phenomenal Steel/Ghost typing, Aegislash has a ton of handy resistances, including immunities to Normal, Fighting, and Poison.

At least, that would normally be the case. This, unfortunately, is not so for an Inverse Battle.

Losing out on several of its immunities hurts Aegislash’s chances of stopping various common threats in the Inverse metagame, including Talonflame and Mega Kangaskhan, while neither of them particularly enjoy taking the -2 to their Attack stat from King’s Shield. Kangaskhan generally doesn’t care about that -2, since it can just destroy the Inverse Sword from its STAB Return, now that Aegislash is no longer immune to its rage.

Ironically, the Steel type becomes the weakest type defensively in an Inverse Battle, with a whopping total of 11 weaknesses. This works spectacularly alongside the hold item Weakness Policy, which provides Aegislash with a +2 boost to both Attack and Special Attack when hit by a super-effective attack (with so many weaknesses, Aegislash is basically guaranteed to get the boost), and with huge defenses in Shield Forme, you can count on it to survive an unboosted attack at least once, barring any quad-weaknesses (Normal, Fighting) coming off of full power and STAB.

Aegislash is still a nasty threat that should be prepared for, as its versatility is something to be feared. Your opponent will be wary of it as well, and will likely edge around the playing field in order to determine what set you’re running before attacking. Here are two of my favorites:

The Ghostly Broken Mirror
Aegislash
Hold Item: Weakness Policy
Ability: Stance Change
Nature: Brave/Quiet
EVs: 252 HP, 252 Attack/252 Special Attack, 4 Sp. Attack/4 Attack
King’s Shield
Shadow Ball
Flash Cannon
Shadow Sneak

The idea of this one is pretty simple. This is a lead Aegislash. Depending on what your opponent leads with, you either need to use King’s Shield to protect yourself from getting obliterated by a quad-weakness and scout, or attack if you predict a switch. Since you are running minimum speed, you’ll go last on the next turn, probably taking a super-effective hit and activating the Weakness Policy. Then it’s a matter of sweeping via prediction, which can be tricky business, but extremely rewarding. The EVs are there for whatever you decide to do with it - if you run Brave, you want 252 Attack, while a Quiet nature would require the 252 Special Attack EVs for maximum damage output. Ultimately, it depends on what you want Aegislash to hit harder with. I recommend maximum Attack, since Shadow Sneak isn’t that strong and could use the boost, but it’ll still hit like a truck regardless of whether you invest in it or not.

Good partners for this Aegislash set consist of things that can take advantage of the holes the ghostly sword punches in the opposing team. This includes setup sweepers such as a Dragon Dancing Salamence or Gyarados, or a Choice Band wielder, like Garchomp. Talonflame is also a great wielder of the Choice Band with its priority Brave Bird.

Mega Kangaskhan is definitely the biggest counter to this Aegislash set, but with good enough prediction, you can force it to take a King’s Shield Attack drop, tank a Return, and OHKO back with Shadow Ball.

-2 252 Atk Parental Bond Mega Kangaskhan Return vs. 252 HP / 0 Def Aegislash-Shield: 126-150 (75.4 - 89.8%) -- guaranteed 2HKO

+2 0 SpA Aegislash-Blade Shadow Ball vs. 0 HP / 0 SpD Mega Kangaskhan: 254-302 (141.1 - 167.7%) -- guaranteed OHKO

The Ghost Train Cometh
Aegislash
Hold Item: Weakness Policy
Ability: Stance Change
Nature: Naughty/Lonely, or Rash/Mild
EVs: 252 Attack/Special Attack, 252 HP, 4 Attack/Special Attack
Autotomize
Shadow Claw/Shadow Ball
Shadow Sneak
Iron Head/Sacred Sword/Flash Cannon

Rather than relying heavily on prediction, such as the prior set, this one aims to outright sweep the opposing team. This set also works best as a lead, using Autotomize right off the bat, not caring what the opponent throws at you (since Aegislash is likely to force switches, or at least tank a super-effective hit). Afterward, it can sweep with mixed attacking boosts and stats.

Out of the choices listed above, you want at least one STAB. Ghost is the better offensive one, even in an Inverse Battle, due to its impressive neutral coverage. Fighting-type Sacred Sword can be used for nearly perfect offensive coverage, or you could run a secondary STAB in Iron Head or Flash Cannon.

Even at +2, Aegislash isn’t particularly fast, so you might want to find a way to incorporate Sticky Web or Tailwind support into your team. Galvantula is a reliable setter of Sticky Web with the Focus Sash, and Talonflame can use Tailwind as a last-ditch effort to support its teammates.

This set could also work as a late-game sweeper, after faster or more deadly threats have been eliminated. Just be careful of faster priority users (cough*TALONFLAME*cough) that can hit you for super-effective damage.

The nature for this set depends largely on whether you want to invest in Attack or Special Attack, and which defense you want to be weaker.  Honestly, any neutral hit in Blade-forme will probably put an end to the sword's sweep, so defenses don't matter - especially since you're not using King's Shield to revert to Shield-forme.

The Indestructible Aegis Lives On
Aegislash
Hold Item: Leftovers/Rocky Helmet
Ability: Stance Change
Nature: Careful
EVs: 252 HP, 252 Special Defense, 4 Defense
King’s Shield
Shadow Ball/Shadow Sneak/Flash Cannon
Destiny Bond
Toxic/Iron Defense

Just like the legendary Greek shield it is named after this Aegislash set is made to tank hits as well as possible. Defensive investment isn’t necessary, as King’s Shield will lower the Attack of anything trying to hit you with contact moves. Rather than trying to deal as much damage as possible like the other sets, this one aims to whittle away at the foe as much as possible before going down itself.

Toxic is there to prevent enemies from setting up on you for too long. King’s Shield is for stalling out foes. Destiny Bond is there for a last-ditch effort of taking down a dangerous foe (such as Mega Kangaskhan - it’s probably not expecting you to run Destiny Bond!). Choose one attack to prevent you from being Taunt bait, and go to town.

This set could also probably run a Rest/Sleep Talk set with Leftovers to optimize recovery, but you might accidentally use an attack and leave yourself vulnerable in Blade Forme with pitiful defenses. Due to this, you could run full support, but you would be leaving yourself wide-open to Taunt. It should be mentioned, though, that Taunt is only really used on leads in the Battle Spot, such as Whimsicott, Talonflame, Aerodactyl, and Mandibuzz.

As for counters, you really need to know what set Aegislash is running before you can successfully counter it. Unfortunately, if it’s not setting up on you, it’s probably mixed, and will be more difficult to stop. Scout with a Pokémon that knows Protect in order to find out what set it’s using. If it Swords Dances, it’s the standard set and is far easier to deal with. Status can really ruin its day, such as a well-timed burn, or maybe even Toxic, now that it’s not immune to it.

Some Pokémon have priority attacks that are now super-effective against Aegislash. Talonflame’s Brave Bird hits it super-effectively, as well as Mega Pinsir’s Quick Attack.

Another thing you might try to use is a physically bulky Pokémon with the Assault Vest - that way, you’ll be on the offensive and defensive at the same time while fighting Aegislash. Unfortunately, counters for Aegislash are few and far between, as Ghost still retains its spectacular neutral coverage, which is augmented by its secondary STAB, Steel.

There are several Pokémon that resist both of Aegislash’s STAB attacks, such as Gardevoir, Froslass, and Chandelure, but none of them really want to take a boosted Sacred Sword. However, something they can do is slap it with a Will-o-Wisp burn to mitigate the amount of physical damage the haunted sword can inflict. This, combined with maximum physical EV investment allows them to take several hits from Aegislash.

If you can strike it while it's in Blade-forme, just about any strong neutral hit with STAB will take it out. The problem is getting it into Blade-forme without it destroying your entire team! If used well, Aegislash can rip opposing teams to shreds. All it takes is some good prediction for the Inverse Sword to be used well.

- J.

Pokémon Yellow Nuzlocke - PokéManiac Takes Kanto By Storm, Part 1

Out of all the different Pokémon challenges, none are better known than the Nuzlocke Challenge. Part of what makes this challenge so popular is the numerous ways in which you can customize the challenge to make things harder (or easier) for yourself. If you’ve played Pokémon as long as I have, then you’ve certainly tried the basic Nuzlocke challenge before. The rules are simple: (1) if a Pokémon faints you must release it, (2) you can only catch the first Pokémon you see in an area, (3) if all of your Pokémon faint in battle you must restart your game. But, did you know just how much more complicated and challenging you can make Nuzlocke? Below is a flowchart showing some of the more complex options (credit goes to whoever made this originally):

Holy options, Batman!

Before beginning, I chose my Nuzlocke options. Excluding the three rules listed above they are: (1) No items except for HMs and TMs, (2) battle style set, and (3) no Exp. Share or Day Care.

Look at this dude.  Coolest ten-year old I know.

I came close to losing the opening battle with my rival’s Eevee due to it landing a critical hit, but since then it’s been smooth sailing.

That's right, Eevee.  You were only a speed bump in Pikachu's world conquest!

By not limiting the number of times I can use a Pokémon Center, training can proceed as usual. Thanks to the storyline set up of Gen 1 games, you don’t have any Pokéballs when you embark for Viridian City and cannot catch any Pokémon on Route 1. I was lucky enough to catch a Nidoran♂ and a Caterpie before facing Brock. Nidoran learns Double Kick at level 11 which, after evolving into Nidorino at 16, allowed me to handily defeat the first gym without ever having to use another Pokémon.

I’ll note it here that this is the farthest I’ve ever gotten in a Yellow Nuzlocke. Usually my luck goes the other way and I run into Pidgey and Spearow in the wild, Pikachu easily KO’s them, and I have to face Brock with just Pikachu (and maybe a Butterfree if I'm lucky). Now it’s onto Route 3, Mt. Moon, and another enjoyable challenge in the world of Pokémon.

Until next time,

- PokéManiac

Don't Drop That Mega Stone! JaydenSilver's Thoughts on Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire

So, the news is out. The Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire remakes are on their way. Everyone’s favorite giant whale and fat dinosaur are making a comeback with a new design. Or are they? Among my playgroup, the topic of the box art has been a hot point of conversation, as I assume it is among many other fans. After all, it's all that we have to go on right now. All we can really do is speculate at this point due to lack of information. However I feel that, given a couple different facts, we can make a logical guess as to what’s up with our newly equipped LITE-BRITE legendary friends.

If you remember a couple months back, following the release of X/Y, you might recall those Pokémon that were found in the code, namely the three event legendaries (Diancie, Hoopa, and Volcanion), the first of which is coming out in Japan with the release of a new movie. Along with those three little guys were everyone’s favorite twins, Latios and Latias, with a drastic makeover. We were wondering when the nasty duo would make an appearance, and now it’s safe to assume that they will be getting their Mega Evolutions in the games they originally appeared in. What can we infer from this information? The first is that these new games will have a trade feature with X/Y, not a migration feature. Why? Because the original information for the mega twins came out in X/Y, and if they do make their appearance in the new remakes, how do they make it into X/Y if there is a migration system? They don’t that’s how.  I think we all can let out a sigh of relief about that one, migration is one of those annoying features that we kind of just put up with because it’s better than nothing.

Now, to the meat of our Mega-filled discussion.  Are these new designs for Kyogre and Groudon just stylized box art, or nice new Mega-Evolved goodness? In my opinion, we are looking at either Mega Evolutions or forme changes (similar to Giratina-O, or Kyurem-B/W), and I have a couple of different reasons why. First we have the artwork itself. If you look closely at their designs, their physical body makeup is the same, but the new neon attachments are what stand out. Some who don’t think they are Mega or Forme changes are quick to point out that these lights are just their markings glowing. Pessimists will say that the insignias glowing are simply stylistic choices. Now, I will take a stab at how wrong they are:

• Each legendary has its respective Alpha and Omega symbol lit up. These designs are not a part of their original markings.

• From the short clips we have seen of the games, they use the same sprites as X/Y. In X/Y, Groudon and Kyogre don’t look like that.

• These legendary Pokémon are supposed to be mortal enemies that fight to a standstill. One critique that has always stood against them is how ill-equipped Groudon is in actual game play to fight Kyogre. This Mega Evolution/Forme change could even the odds.

People like to use Mega as the argument, “Kyogre would be too broken with a Mega” is a phrase I have been hearing a lot lately. Competitively, it wouldn’t. The beauty of Mega Evolutions is that you are limited to one. It’s this reason Mega Mewtwo-X/Y, who is by far the most powerful Pokémon in the game at this point, has not broken Smogon's Ubers tier to little, teeny, tiny pieces. The same will happen if Kyogre and Groudon get Mega Evolutions. At the end of the day, they are still in Ubers where they belong, and you can still only have one.

My last piece of evidence is my strongest. The Pokémon channel on YouTube released a sneak peek of what is to come in Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire. In the video, we see Kyogre and Groudon emerge and get ready for their showdown. This is an iconic scene from the original games. If you watch this video which is from Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, the two legendary behemoths are not glowing, nor do they have the Alpha or Omega signs on them that would match their box covers. This proves that they will not normally look the way they do on the box art, and that form, whether a Forme change or a Mega Evolution, will be what gives them that neon-bright design.

Signing off for now,

- Jayden Silver

Battle Spot Season Five and Six Rules Announced

The Season Five and Season Six rules were announced last week for the Special Battles on the Battle Spot.

Season Five: Season Five is built to look like the battle system as seen in the first generation of games.  These will be single battle style with restrictions placed on hold items.  Which ones?  All of them!  This season is all about your skill at team building and synergy without the disruption caused by hold items.  You may use all six of your Pokémon in this season, and starts on July 15th 2014.

Season Six: Season Six is a standard double battle, but the Battle Spot will block the top 12 Pokémon used in the Double Battle Seasons 1-4, and from the first half of Season Five.  Without the top tier threats, what will you use to secure victory in this limited metagame?

Stay tuned for more information regarding The Battle Spot via SplashAttack's Battle Spot page!

- J.