Third and final update! It’s been real, Red, but we must part now. This was an excellent run of the game, and I loved my team in the end!
MVP - Egghead
Solarbeam - Toxic
Psychic - Egg Bomb
Egghead was a spur of the moment choice for my team, since I didn’t have a Grass type on my team. However, after evolution, Egghead’s massive Special stat really made him the star player on my team, even being able to sweep Bruno’s entire team without hassle. Solarbeam is a must have for any Exeggutor, so naturally once I got it I didn’t even hesitate to replace Barrage. Solarbeam didn’t see much use outside of Giovanni and Bruno, however. Toxic was only used once, but it made it possible to actually defeat Lance’s Dragonite. Psychic was already on Sandman, but Egghead had the superior Special to use it better, and was Egghead’s main attack in all battles. Egg Bomb was a nifty move, and really served as a basic attack, helping out occasionally, but was not the main feature of Egghead. Egghead really earned his place as MVP, and I would gladly use him again in another play-through.
LVP - Sgt. Sting
Poison Sting - Twineedle
Pin Missile - Rage
I expected Sgt. Sting to become obsolete, but he really served his use for the first 6 gyms much better than I expected he would. With Bug type’s incredible power in the first generation, he was the wild card that took down Poison, Psychic, and Ghost types with ease. However, his low stats really shined once we got to the Elite Four, and I had counted on him to take out Agatha. However, he didn’t do really anything for the last stretch of the game, and unfortunately got placed as LVP because of it. Poison Sting was never really used, and was simply a relic of his old Weedle days. Twineedle was Sgt. Sting’s best attack, as it was both powerful, hit twice, and could poison. Because of this, Twineedle was Sgt. Sting’s main attack, and was quite useful while Sgt. Sting was helpful. Pin Missile was Sgt. Sting’s other Bug type move, and was used on bulkier Pokemon with more health, since it had the chance to hit 5 times. I had expected Rage to be useful, but being locked on one move with frail defenses did not help Sgt. Sting at all, and was rarely used. Sgt. Sting was extremely useful as an early Pokemon, but just became unusable as the late part of the game progressed. I could see using him again, but not as a permanent member of my team.
Wheeler
Thunderbolt - Mega Punch
Thunder Wave - Swift
Wheeler’s high Speed and Attack made him a good sweeper, along with his usefulness on Water and Flying types, and was definitely a fun choice. He showed his use against Misty for obvious reasons, as well as Xerxes’ Pidgeot and Gyarados. Since I was able to pick him up early, Wheeler became a key member of my team, and is highly recommended. Thunderbolt was Wheeler’s main attack, and I abused it heavily. It made light work of any Pokemon not immune or resistant to it, and the paralysis was nice too. I taught Mega Punch on a whim, since he could learn it, and it was a good choice, able to 2HKO and occasionally OHKO other Pokemon with ease before they could attack. Thunder Wave and Swift just came naturally to Pikachu, and were only ever used as last resort moves. Wheeler made an excellent member of my team, and I would gladly use him again, perhaps later in the challenge.
Sandman
Body Slam - Hypnosis
Psychic - Metronome
Sandman was my main special attacking force up until I got Egghead, and I expected him to be the MVP while I used him. His Special stat made him ultimately valuable, and his attacks complimented him nicely. Body Slam was surprisingly useful, and it’s Paralysis effect activated quite often. I found myself using Body Slam a lot, sometimes more than Psychic, and was a staple of the team. Hypnosis was only used in tough fights when I needed to heal my Pokemon, but it definitely served its use in the Champion battle. Psychic was Sandman’s main attack, and took down most Pokemon with relative ease. Metronome was an attack that I just added at random, hoping it would help at some point, though the biggest thing it ever did was cause Sandman to use Selfdestruct, which was not as fun as it might sound. Even after catching Egghead, Sandman’s early evolution made him of the utmost use to my team, and helped me fly through the game.
Rarity
Fire Blast - Tail Whip
Stomp - Growl
Rarity was a late game catch, and I didn’t expect to get too much use from her, but she showed off some impressive skills. She rivaled Wheeler with her Speed and Attack, and while Stomp was weaker than Mega Punch, its Flinch ability activated at good times, making Rarity a good attacker. Fire Blast was a useful move for closing the gap in type coverage I had, and was useful against Lorelei and Xerxes, as well as being used other times. Fire Blast’s Burn status was also quite useful, cutting the opponent’s Attack. Tail Whip and Growl were just attacks that I caught Rarity with, and never got rid of. Stomp was Rarity’s main attack, and was a lot of fun when it worked right, causing the opponent to flinch. Rarity was a good member of the team for coming in so late, and I wish I could have caught her earlier for more use. I will definitely pick up another Ponyta in the future for prolonged use.
Started Crystal and picked up the first four members of my team and my first four badges! Gotta keep going though...