The Monotype Challenge

Grotle
Lv. 27
Ability: Overgrow
Nature: Rash
HP: 83
Attack: 59
Defense: 54
Sp. Attack: 44
Sp. Defense: 39
Speed: 32
Moves: Bite/Curse/Mega Drain/Razor Leaf


Onix
Lv. 27
Ability: Rock Head
Nature: Careful
HP: 62
Attack: 34
Defense: 97
Sp. Attack: 27
Sp. Defense: 34
Speed: 51
Moves: Rage/Sandstorm/Rock Throw/Screech

Gabite
Lv. 27
Ability: Sand Veil
Nature: Hardy
HP: 81
Attack: 59
Defense: 44
Sp. Attack: 40
Sp. Defense: 40
Speed: 57
Moves: Sand Tomb/Dragon Rage/Sandstorm/Take Down

• Chose Charla the Charmander as my starter.
• Lost(!!!) my first battle against Blue - this may be my first time ever losing in the initial rival battle. It's okay - this will fuel my rival hate-fire.
• Caught Pippin the level 3 Pidgey on Route 1.
• Caught Arthur the level 4 Caterpie in Viridian Forest. He soon evolved into Metapod.
• Forgot about Route 22! Backtracked to Viridian City and headed west. Exacted sweet revenge on Blue. Arthur evolved into Butterfree.
• Caught Shakespear the level 3 Spearow on Route 22.
• Had a tough time (as expected) against Brock at the Pewter Gym. Arthur took out Geodude easily enough with Confusion, but Onix required Sleep Powder, Growl, and Poison Powder to be taken care of.
• Caught Gotham the level 9 Zubat in Mount Moon. Annihilated a ton of Zubat and Team Rocket's poison types with Arthur's Confusion.
• Won a Nugget, de-Jigglypuff'd Bill, and stole the stolen TM. Charla evolved into Charmeleon on Route 25.
• Misty was tougher than expected. I had to take out Starmie slowly, with a nice dose of Poison Powder. Pippin evolved into Pidgeotto at the end of the battle.
• Eventually arrived at Vermilion City and got a Bike Voucher and an Old Rod.
• Caught Karpadia the level 5 Magikarp with the Old Rod in Vermilion City.
• Caught a wild Spearow, put Charla into Bill's PC, and traded the unnamed Spearow for a level 15 Farfetch'd named CH'DING because it's not Gen 5 yet.

Arthur (lvl 21)
Adamant Butterfree ♂ (Compound Eyes)
Confusion, Poison Powder, Sleep Powder, Supersonic

Pippin (lvl 19)
Mild Pidgeotto ♂ (Keen Eye)
Gust, Quick Attack, Tackle, Sand-Attack

Gotham (lvl 18)
Rash Zubat ♂ (Inner Focus)
Bite, Astonish, Leech Life, Supersonic

Shakespear (lvl 17)
Bold Spearow ♂ (Keen Eye)
Peck, Fury Attack, Leer, Growl

CH'DING (lvl 15)
Adamant Farfetch'd ♂ (Keen Eye)
Peck, Sand-Attack, Leer

Karpadia (lvl 7)
Quirky Magikarp ♀ (Swift Swim)
Splash

In Box:


I've yet to decide exactly what my final team looks like, and I'm hoping to catch and use all of the Flying types (Legendary Birds aside) in some of this run. My Charmeleon is hanging out in Box 1 now. I'm trying not to use her much before she evolves into Charizard and don't really feel it's fair in this run to take a non-Flying type to Lt. Surge. We'll see if I can survive without her!

• Went aboard the S.S. Anne and leveled up my Magikarp quite a bit.
• Had a pretty exciting fight with my revival - just down to my Pidgeotto vs. his Wartortle at the end.
• CH'DING the Farfetch'd became my Cut slave.
• Had a surprisingly easy battle with Lt. Surge. I was all ready to "cheat" and take my Charmeleon out of the Box and teach her Dig, but it wasn't necessary. Arthur the Butterfree was once again my MVP inflicting Sleep, Confuse, and Poison. Probably would have been more of a challenge if I hadn't used Paralyze Heals though. Oh well.
• Cut my way back to Viridian City and and tutored Arthur to learn Dream Eater because in a pre-Natu world, I guess Butterfree is gonna be my psuedo-Psychic type.
• Traveled again through the wall of Zubats known as Mt. Moon, got myself a Bicycle in Cerulean City and headed east.
• Shakespear and Karpadia evolved into Fearow and Gyarados on Route 9. I was all ready for Karpadia to learn a water move to get me through Rock Tunnel, and when I saw that she wouldn't for another 20 or so levels, I got over my one-use-only TM anxiety and taught her Water Pulse, which made Rock Tunnel a breeze (except that I didn't want to mar Arthur's moveset with Flash so I did it in the dark).
• Gotham evolved into Golbat in Rock Tunnel.
• Had a brain fart about needing the Silph Scope so I thought it was time for the Tower in Lavender Town. Switched out my Cut slave for Charla the Charmeleon (who I'm still trying not to really use until she's a Charizard) and made quick work of my rival. Then remembered the whole Silph Scope thing, left the Tower, and got ready to head west.

Arthur (lvl 26)
Adamant Butterfree ♂ (Compound Eyes)
Confusion, Poison Powder, Sleep Powder, Dream Eater

Karpadia (lvl 25)
Quirky Gyarados ♀ (Intimidate)
Water Pulse, Dragon Rage, Bite, Tackle

Shakespear (lvl 23)
Bold Fearow ♂ (Keen Eye)
Peck, Fury Attack, Pursuit, Leer

Gotham (lvl 23)
Rash Golbat ♂ (Inner Focus)
Wing Attack, Bite, Leech Life, Supersonic

Pippin (lvl 22)
Mild Pidgeotto ♂ (Keen Eye)
Gust, Quick Attack, Whirlwind, Sand-Attack

Charla (lvl 20)
Calm Charmeleon ♀ (Blaze)
Ember, Metal Claw, Smokescreen, Growl

In Box:


Using CH'DING really wasn't so bad. With the crits he'd get from his held Stick, plus the quick leveling and stat increases he'd get as a traded Pokemon, he was holding his own. But now that my Spearow, Zubat, and Magikarp have evolved, he statistically just can't hold up. Still thinking about what the final team will shape up to be. I don't love the idea of Charizard, Gyarados, Aerodactyl, and Dragonite all making the final cut, since that screams "Dragon" to me more than "Flying." I'm actually now considering using Zapdos over Dragonite...it will give me some defense against Electric types and, despite being Legendary, it's a little less OP.

• Headed over to Celadon City and did plenty of exploring there.
• Made it through the Rocket Hideout without too much trouble thanks to Psychic moves from Arthur the Butterfree. Giovanni wasn't too much trouble while using Karpadia the Gyarados, though his Kangaskhan was pretty tough.
• Breezed through the Gym (about time I had a type advantage at a Gym)! Erika was no big deal and I taught Gotham the Golbat Giga Drain.
• Before heading back to the Pokemon Tower, I took a detour to Route 16 and caught Sharpy the Doduo. I put her in the team and sent Shakespear to the Box, since they have similar movesets and Shakespear was already a fully-evolved Fearow.
• Basically solo'd the Pokemon Tower with Sharpy, leveling her up quite a bit. Immunity from Ghost and Ground moves made it pretty easy for her. Blue wasn't a breeze, but fights against him are definitely getting easier now that my team's shaping up.
• I had totally forgotten that at this point (after receiving the Poke Flute), the game opens up a bit. So I did some exploring of several routes, and after debating whether to go to Koga or Sabrina, I decided Saffron City.
• Breezed through the FIghting Dojo, because Flying.
• Silph Co. was a bit tougher than the Rocket Hideout, but Blue and Giovanni were manageable. Sharpy evolved into Dodrio while here, and has become an instant favorite among my party members. Got a little weary of the Psychic Gym coming up since the Drowzee, Hypno, and Blue's Alakazam were a bit tough. Thought about getting Shadow Ball from the Game Corner in Celadon, but ultimately decided to just power through with what I had and a bunch of Dark moves (all special this generation) on physical attackers.
• Made it through the Gym without a ton of strategy, mostly just using hard hitting moves like Sharpy's Tri Attack since all my Dark moves were not so great. Onto Fuchsia and the Safari Zone!

Arthur (lvl 39)
Adamant Butterfree ♂ (Compound Eyes)
Psybeam, Poison Powder, Sleep Powder, Dream Eater

Charla (lvl 35)
Calm Charmeleon ♀ (Blaze)
Flamethrower, Brick Break, Smokescreen, Scary Face

Pippin (lvl 35)
Mild Pidgeotto ♂ (Keen Eye)
Fly, Wing Attack, Whirlwind, Feather Dance

Gotham (lvl 35)
Rash Golbat ♂ (Inner Focus)
Air Cutter, Bite, Giga Drain, Confuse Ray

Sharpy (lvl 35)
Serious Dodrio ♀ (Run Away)
Tri Attack, Peck, Pursuit, Growl

Karpadia (lvl 33)
Quirky Gyarados ♀ (Intimidate)
Water Pulse, Dragon Rage, Bite, Leer

In Box:


This could be my final team...Arthur, Charla, and Sharpy are locks (I think). Pippin is paling in comparison to Sharpy, but maybe that'll change when he evolves into Pidgeot? It seems like he could be replaced with Aerodactyl, but looking at Aerodactyl's moveset, I'm not sure if having one on my team would really change things up that much. Same thing with Scyther...no Bug moves and isn't getting the Normal STAB like my Normal/Flying types are. I understand that Gyarados is a powerhouse and all, but with pre-physical/special specifications for moves...she really doesn't seem that great anymore. She has awful Special Attack and only learns special moves. I still haven't decided how cheap it would feel to use Dragonite instead.

Ken the Hasty Blaziken Lv. 56
Blaze
- Flamethrower
- Brick Break
- Rock Tomb
- Rock Smash

Copper the Lonely Medicham Lv. 57
Pure Power
- Hi Jump Kick
- Shadow Ball
- Psychic
- Ice Punch

Judith the Mild Machamp Lv. 53
Guts
- Cross Chop
- Submission
- Earthquake
- Strength

Steve the Bashful Breloom Lv. 50
Effect Spore
- Giga Drain
- Sky Uppercut
- Mach Punch
- Stun Spore

Darunia the Hasty Hariyama Lv. 50
Thick Fat
- Vital Throw
- Fake Out
- Smellingsalt
- Surf

Torterra
Lv. 36
Ability: Overgrow
Nature: Rash
HP: 123
Attack: 94
Defense: 84
Sp. Attack: 75
Sp. Defense: 64
Speed: 57
Moves: Bite/Curse/Earthquake/Razor Leaf


Onix
Lv. 35
Ability: Rock Head
Nature: Careful
HP: 78
Attack: 45
Defense: 126
Sp. Attack: 35
Sp. Defense: 44
Speed: 68
Moves: DragonBreath/Sandstorm/Rock Throw/Rock Polish


Gabite
Lv. 35
Ability: Sand Veil
Nature: Hardy
HP: 104
Attack: 78
Defense: 56
Sp. Attack: 52
Sp. Defense: 51
Speed: 75
Moves: Sand Tomb/Dragon Claw/Sandstorm/Slash


Rhyhorn
Lv. 35
Ability: Lightningrod
Nature: Naughty
HP: 105
Attack: 82
Defense: 82
Sp. Attack: 35
Sp. Defense: 27
Speed: 31
Moves: Tail Whip/Stomp/Rock Blast/Scary Face


Hippowdon
Lv. 35
Ability: Sand Stream
Nature: Rash
HP: 131
Attack: 98
Defense: 93
Sp. Attack: 63
Sp. Defense: 55
Speed: 44
Moves: Sand-Attack/Crunch/Sand Tomb/Take Down