[Pokémon] Dragon Ascent: A Dragon Lover's Club

[VisionofMilotic]

Dragon of the Month

Greetings lovers of dragons,

Today is Halloween in my country. So I thought on this Halloween where supernatural creatures and the dead are said to walk among us it would be nice to highlight a dragon that is dark and unusual. I chose the first dark/dragon Pokemon ever Hydreigon to be the dragon we celebrate today on All Soul's Eve. Hydreigon is a Pokemon that looks both fearsome and otherworldly, and has a typing that represents night, mystery and danger. Hydreigon's Pokédex entries are also full of scary tales that seem fit to scare children on Halloween. According to Pokemon White, "The heads on their arms do not have brains. They use all three heads to consume and destroy everything."



This well-conceived pokemon parallels the Greek mythological creature the Hydra with it's name and appearance, a magical water beast with nine serpent heads that was unleashed by the goddess Hera to battle her nemesis Hercules. If behead this dragon-like being would famously would regrow multiple new heads in it's place, making it a seemingly impossible task to defeat.



This evolutionary line is also based on a gigantic fire-breathing dragon from Japanese myth called Yamata no Orochi, a yokai that demanded human sacrifices yearly. The Orochi had 8 heads, 8 tails, a body covered in moss and carried a forest of trees that grew on it's back.



Tell us what you think of Hydreigon?

It's a really interesting Pokemon. It is a very hard-hitting special attacker and wall breaker. In it's debut generation, an era before fairies, a draco meteor from this Pokemon was a 140 base power move, and would wreck most things. It also had the dragon gems to amplify it's vicious power further. Hydreigon also remains a threatening Pokemon to bulky steel types that typically resist dragons, roasting skarmory, Jirachi or ferratorn with a fire blast/flamethrower. Nothing could safely switch into this Pokemon because of it's plethora of powerful coverage moves. It can hit anything super-effectively or for neutral damage with the right set. It's a great offensive Pokemon that is highly customizable with surf, the stab dark pulse, earth power, flash canon, U-turn.

It can do more than just hit hard with a choice scarf/specs. It can taunt stall teams, defog entry hazards out, set up tailwinds for your teammates, hide behind a substitute, get the life orb damage or weather damage all back in health thanks to roost. It laughs at sucker punches and pursuit traps due to its type resistance.

Hydreigon can also be a great partner for double battles with the always good ability levitate to avoid a partner's earthquakes, and pairs very well with water absorb Pokemon because it can flood the field with surf.

Even though it got nerfed in gen 6 with the quad fairy weakness, it is still a very good Pokemon. Steel Pokemon no longer resist it's dark type moves, it could wreak havoc with those dark, dragon and fighting type z-moves, it's move pool has also continued to get more and more fantastic over the the years--recently learning the exciting nasty plot.

I really admire trainers of this evolutionary line because it takes a lot of a work to raise a Hydreigon. It doesn't reach it's final stage of evolution until level 64, the highest of all Pokémon in the game. To train your deino to Hydreigon you must be patient and determined. This is a special Pokemon not meant for the faint of heart.



If you completed Pokemon Black and White you will remember that the final boss Ghetsis uses the powerful psuedolegendary Hydreigon as his signature Pokemon just as Cynthia commands Garchomp and Lance has Dragonite. How much trouble did this Pokemon give you?



This was actually the most difficult fight I have ever been in of the core series games. Like Cynthia, Ghetsis does not have a type speciality and has a really diverse and strong team. Also his Pokemon have interesting typngs that often leave them with just one singular weakness like Seismitoad or no weaknesses like his Elektross. His Pokemon had lots of unpredictable sets too like elektross doing acrobatics or using flamethrowers when you switch in a grass or ground Pokemon because you were expecting an electric move. His team also packed really high base power moves like buffolant's earthquake or stab head charge. Ghetsis has not only raw power, but every Pokemon he has knows moves that can inflict unpleasant secondary effects, poison, burns, crits, defense stat drops, flinches, so it's easy to get unlucky with an already difficult matchup. The placement of the battle is also difficult because you have to fight the elite 4, catch a legendary in the middle, face the champion who has the opposite cover legendary and then fight Ghetsis out of nowhere.

However, the hardest part about battling Ghetsis was unquestionably the Hydreigon. I thought I was holding my own against until he brought out this thing, and it completely reversed the momentum of the battle. He nearly swept my whole team with this Hydreigon. There's no hard counter to Hydreigon in the unova Dex. Whereas the dragons of previous champions were 4x weak to ice, Hydreigon is not, if you even have a water/ice Pokemon, since Unova has a limited number of good water Pokemon available before post game. I believe Ghetsis Pokemon also has maxed iv stats, which yours probably do not if it is a normal in-game playthrough. I only won because I had a max revive, and still shutter at the memory of the battle with Ghetsis. That they had to nerf Hydreigon's moveset by giving it only physical moves to suppress it's special attack, tells you what a nightmare this Pokemon was to battle against.

In edition to being a great challenge I think this Pokemon also complements Ghetsis' personality really well.

 

[DragonKing48]

All commotion suddenly stops and turns into rushed chatter and excitement as the sound of wings and roars begins to deafeningly fill the air around. The doors open flanked by Dragons of all kinds, is an armor-clad man who exudes righteousness and mite...he removes his helmet and the noise halts briefly-The King is here.

Hydreigon is to this day, in the top 10 of Pseudo-Top Final Forms of Dragons without question. Even with additions like Dragapult and Kommo-O, this monster has withstood the test of time. Hard hitting and versatile as they come, there's really not much he can't do. Swsd's addition of "TR Moves", Technical Record, which I'm still not entirely sure what the deal is there (but for those out of the know, 1 off moves with one usage like the old days, but can be found infinite times, and they're pretty much moves which previously couldn't be taught in this manner, so they've opened many opportunities. ), has given Hydreigon and others like Dragonite as well, The ability to use moves like Hydro Pump.

So if anything he's just going as much as ever and more.

In all my times...except maybe XY, because the levels are more spread out, I probably have not used him in the main game though..
Simply because he arrives so much later than others...that are chances are you're just not gonna be seeing him until the post game.

Looking at you, lv 64. So yeah, I've pretty much always kept a Zweilous in reserve and threw him in afterwards and never quite had one on the final 6 in any recent games just because there's more useful fully evolved stuff instead...like Strong Jaw Crunch Tyrantrum to fill the same spot for Ghost and Psychic coverage. Deino also can be very useful, but also isn't as versatile as other Dragons, and the same can be said for Zweilous. They really lack the wide moveset until they reach final form.

I've even done the easier way of, wait until post game, catch a Zweilous damn near level 60 or more in XY Victory Road, Transfer to SMUSUM, done lol.

So yeah, hell of a guy that will do all that's needed and more, just hard to obtain and difficult along the way.

 

[VisionofMilotic]

Hello my draconic brethren.

For a year we did a little something called Dragon of the month, highlighting a different dragon type Pokemon each month as a topic of discussion. The first dragon in the spotlight was Giratina in October 2019. The last Dragon of the month was Hydreigon October 2020.

Did you folk enjoy the Dragon of the Month series, and if so would you guys like me to renew the tradition of Dragon of the Month for thus 2021? I don't mind working on something like that if there would be participation, but I wanted to do an interest check before starting a new cycle for another year?

So, should there be more dragon of the month? If yes, should we keep the same format or change it in some way, like voting on a dragon of the month, or taking turns and each month a different member picks a dragon Pokemon?

Should we just scrap it and focus on a more general question of the month that could encompass dragons in anyway? Are there particular events you'd be interested in like watching dragon-themed movies or another shiny pokemon giveaway at some point this year? Would you guys like to revisit the Dragon's Tale series and hear more ancient myths about dragons. Maybe I could highlight fanfictions from time to time?

Just tossing around ideas and seeing what's on your radar!

 

[Nah]

I'd be ok with Dragon of the Month not being a thing

 

[Firebolt]

Dragon of the Month is definitely a cool thing, but I always feel bad because there's only a little engagement on your well-thought out posts (I'm definitely guilty of that). I don't have many ideas for similar sort of scheduled posts, but maybe mixing it up might help keep things more dynamic? Like one month it could be a Dragon of the Month spotlight, another could be about a lesser known myth/fact, another an event of some sort featuring dragons, so on. Whatever happens to feel like the inspiration at that point.

 

[Roni]

hello hello, i hope it isn't too late to join the draconic brethren. Dragon types are pretty darn cool, and this news i'm hearing about the Dragon of the Month sounds interesting!

i'd like to walk through the pyre to Reshiram and its white lightning-ness for an initiation pls :)

 

[Allen303]

hi I also love dragon type pokemon can I join? to do we have to fill a form?

 

[Figure]

Team Zekrom baby! Dragon is one of my favorite types, always has been!

Some of my favorites, roughly in order, are: Garchomp, Dragonite, Rayquaza, Latias, Charizard X. Some of my favorite dragons that aren't Pokemon would be: Saphira (Eragon book series), Ysera and Deathwing (World of Warcraft), King Black Dragon (Runescape <3).

I have never encountered or bred a shiny dragon unless you count my Charizard if megas ever come back! I have gotten shiny Palkia, Dialga, Giratina, and Garchomp through events back i0n the day but I lost them all when I lost my original Nintendo account.

 

[Roni]

Team Zekrom baby! Dragon is one of my favorite types, always has been!

Some of my favorites, roughly in order, are: Garchomp, Dragonite, Rayquaza, Latias, Charizard X. Some of my favorite dragons that aren't Pokemon would be: Saphira (Eragon book series), Ysera and Deathwing (World of Warcraft), King Black Dragon (Runescape <3).

I have never encountered or bred a shiny dragon unless you count my Charizard if megas ever come back! I have gotten shiny Palkia, Dialga, Giratina, and Garchomp through events back i0n the day but I lost them all when I lost my original Nintendo account.

great selection of Dragon mons there for your favorites! mine would have to be (not in order tho) - Mega Rayquaza, Kingdra, Hydreigon, Origin Forme Giratina, Garchomp, Salamence, & Latias.

if we're talking dragons outside Pokemon, my faves would be American Dragon Jake Long, Toothless from the HTTYD series, Mushu from Mulan, the mythical Lochness Monster, Slyder from Barbie & The Diamond Castle (recently watched that with the gf and loved the songs heh), and uhh does Rex from Toy Story count??

lastly, the only shiny dragons i've ever raised were ones i hacked in lmao.

 

[Figure]

great selection of Dragon mons there for your favorites! mine would have to be (not in order tho) - Mega Rayquaza, Kingdra, Hydreigon, Origin Forme Giratina, Garchomp, Salamence, & Latias.

if we're talking dragons outside Pokemon, my faves would be American Dragon Jake Long, Toothless from the HTTYD series, Mushu from Mulan, the mythical Lochness Monster, Slyder from Barbie & The Diamond Castle (recently watched that with the gf and loved the songs heh), and uhh does Rex from Toy Story count??

lastly, the only shiny dragons i've ever raised were ones i hacked in lmao.

Sure Rex counts, I'm sure he would agree with you. 😂 I totally forgot about Jake Long! Remember when they did the crossover with Danny Phantom? Mushu is another good one, should have remembered it considering that's what I name my shiny Gyarados!

 

[VisionofMilotic]

This dragoness has been at the back of the cave sleeping ontop of her treasure for for the last 171 years. Now she sleeps no more...



Greetings, dragon tamers. You are welcome at Dragon Ascent, the Isle of the Blessed.

hello hello, i hope it isn't too late to join the draconic brethren. Dragon types are pretty darn cool, and this news i'm hearing about the Dragon of the Month sounds interesting!

i'd like to walk through the pyre to Reshiram and its white lightning-ness for an initiation pls :)

Congratulations Dragon Tamer Roni! You have passed your iniation ritual with flying colors as dazzling as the wings of a dragon. Reshiram acknowledges you. Our fire burns brightly tonight!

You have earned the dragon gem as a symbol of your membership. Your name will be added to the Book of Dragons.

hi I also love dragon type pokemon can I join? to do we have to fill a form?

Welcome to the club Allen! You have great taste. Dragon Pokemon are the best! Of course you can join. Just one question, do you like Reshiram better or Zekrom?

Team Zekrom baby! Dragon is one of my favorite types, always has been!

Some of my favorites, roughly in order, are: Garchomp, Dragonite, Rayquaza, Latias, Charizard X. Some of my favorite dragons that aren't Pokemon would be: Saphira (Eragon book series), Ysera and Deathwing (World of Warcraft), King Black Dragon (Runescape <3).

I have never encountered or bred a shiny dragon unless you count my Charizard if megas ever come back! I have gotten shiny Palkia, Dialga, Giratina, and Garchomp through events back i0n the day but I lost them all when I lost my original Nintendo account.

Greetings Brother Figure! I love everyone those Pokemon you've named. You have found some of my favorites. Zekrom welcomes you. His bolt of lightning whips the sky and heralds your coming! I present with your well-earned dragon gem. You are a full dragon-blooded member now!

 

[Figure]

This dragoness has been at the back of the cave sleeping ontop of her treasure for for the last 171 years. Now she sleeps no more...



Greetings, dragon tamers. You are welcome at Dragon Ascent, the Isle of the Blessed.



Congratulations Dragon Tamer Roni! You have passed your iniation ritual with flying colors as dazzling as the wings of a dragon. Reshiram acknowledges you. Our fire burns brightly tonight!

You have earned the dragon gem as a symbol of your membership. Your name will be added to the Book of Dragons.





Welcome to the club Allen! You have great taste. Dragon Pokemon are the best! Of course you can join. Just one question, do you like Reshiram better or Zekrom?



Greetings Brother Figure! I love everyone those Pokemon you've named. You have found some of my favorites. Zekrom welcomes you. His bolt of lightning whips the sky and heralds your coming! I present with your well-earned dragon gem. You are a full dragon-blooded member now!

Thank you much! Also, I bred a shiny Dragonite since I posted this so that's cool!

 

[VisionofMilotic]

it's exciting to have you Figure!
Congratulations on your shiny Dragonite! Dragonite just so happens to be my favorite Pokemon. I was fortunate enough to be gifted a shiny Japanese Dratini by a fellow club member wonderful friend Dragon King48!

Speaking of the Dragonite line, I received a message from the Pokemon center about new items that had arrived at their shop. They have added Pokemon jewelry among their apparel and accessories, and I was absolutely delighted by this silver-plated Dragonair bracelet.



It's such a lovely design, the way the tail would wrap around your wrist. The face is also very detailed, it looks just like a Dragonair! I don't wear bracelets, I'm more of an earring sorta sista, but I might have to make an exception for this one though. I will definitely bite if they make a pair earrings like this.

https://www.pokemoncenter.com/product/710-09545/pokemon-center-rock-love-dragonair-bracelet-size-19

It sold out pretty fast, but when it comes back in stock it's going to tempt me! I think they were 84 USD, or something like that. They are designed by X Rocklove, and on their website you can find not only Pokemon jewelry, but Disney themed merch, Marvel & DC comics, Star Trek etc..

My recent window shopping has got me thinking that a merch spotlight for our club, showcasing any cool dragon and reptilian memorabilia we fimd for sale might be a fun addition to Dragon Ascent. It would include Pokemon and other fandoms like Fire Emblem, Eragon, Yuugioh, Dungeons and Dragons.

If anyone has got to have the dragonair bracelet for themselves or a loved one right now there are some available on eBay too.

 

[Fairy]

Oh man! I forgot to claim a post reduction for poor Dreepy, my new VPP. Shame on this fairy.> :(

But that bracelet looks epic af. Someone is going to get married over that, I can feel it. ( ˘ ³˘)♡

 

[Nah]

oh so a thought I've had in my head for a while but also keep forgetting about

You know how the only type Dragon is super-effective against is itself, and even with all the changes to the type chart over the years that's been the case for all 8 generations of Pokemon so far? Sometimes I wonder if there's a mythological/folklore reason or something for that?

In Fire Emblem, many of the dragonslaying weapons are made from dragon materials, or made by dragons and given to humans, or both (as an example, the two Falchions in the Archanea-Valentia games were given to humanity by Naga, the leader of the Divine Dragons, and made from a pair of their own fangs). In FE: Awakening, Manaketes (this is a general term for the dragon people in some of the Fire Emblem games) get a skill called "Wyrmsbane", which grants effectiveness vs dragon enemies, and the skill is exclusive to them. In Monster Hunter, dragon element is often (but not always) an effective or even the most effective element against elder dragons.

This is also just 3 video game series, and even could just be a coincidence, but idk
edit: it's 4 now that I remember the whole dragonborn in skyrim thing, but still

 

[VisionofMilotic]

I think what Nah said is something cool to think about. It sounds like a reasonable law of magic. Takes a weapon of the immortals to slay an immortal, or something to that effect was said in the movie Arthur and Merlin.

This is a video made by one of my favorite poketubers that I thought I would share with our club. It was part of HoopsandHiphop's 10 facts series. This video is all about dragon Pokemon. One of the things that was touched on was the curious way the type effectiveness works with Dragon Pokemon. Something I has never thought about was that in no generation could a Pokemon be quad weak or quad resistant to a dragon move.



If you any ot you dragon tamers give this video a watch, let me know if it brought any fact to your attention you didn't realize before. Which bit of info did you find most interesting?

Something I thought of as especially cool was the Japanese origin for the move outrage.

 

[Megan]

Oh hey, I haven't joined this club. Let's change it! :D

Apart from being very strong, a lot of Dragon Types have some really cool designs. Among others I like Dragalge, the Lati twins, Rayquaza and Flygon. I also beat Sword with a Flapple on my party which I found to have an interesting design and typing.

This is also just 3 video game series, and even could just be a coincidence, but idk
edit: it's 4 now that I remember the whole dragonborn in skyrim thing, but still

I think we could dig even deeper. In Japan there's a very popular genre of series around kaiju. Every episode a different type of giant monster appears to wreck havoc on what is usually a big city. Since the humans are unable to stop it, instead they are being helped by another kaiju (Godzilla being the most prominent one) who then manages to fight back the other monster and save the day.

I think we could go even deeper and consider that back when the dinosaurs where alive the only creature that could actually take on a dinosaur was another dinosaur. I know it's not mythology/folklore, but still.

 

[AMP017]

Hey! Can I join this? I love dragon types, Dragapult is definitely my favorite.

 

[VisionofMilotic]

Oh hey, I haven't joined this club. Let's change it!
:D

Apart from being very strong, a lot of Dragon Types have some really cool
designs. Among others I like Dragalge, the Lati twins, Rayquaza and Flygon.
I also beat Sword with a Flapple on my party which I found to have an
interesting design and typing.

I think we could dig even deeper. In Japan there's a very popular genre of
series around kaiju. Every episode a different type of giant monster
appears to wreck havoc on what is usually a big city. Since the humans are
unable to stop it, instead they are being helped by another kaiju (Godzilla
being the most prominent one) who then manages to fight back the other
monster and save the day.

I think we could go even deeper and consider that back when the dinosaurs
where alive the only creature that could actually take on a dinosaur was
another dinosaur. I know it's not mythology/folklore, but still.

Welcome Dragon Tamer Megan! We have saved a place for you in our sacred circle. You're a wise one indeed, dragons are extremely strong, and have some of the most striking designs in the game, at least I think so, like every single one of those Pokemon you named look especially otherworldly!

What's the title of the series you mentioned centering on Kaiju? I'd like read/watch it.

Dinosaurs are held in reverence here also, the dragons of our own world, it's beyond the time for me to post more dino content for the club. I am convinced that ancient peoples dinosaur bones and tracks that contributed to the lore of dragons passed down to us.

One question. Reshiram or Zekrom? All members choose one as their guide, then become full fledged dragon priests and priestesses.

Hey! Can I join this? I love dragon types, Dragapult
is definitely my favorite.

Yes, do join us! Dragapault is my favorite gen 8 Pokemon. A ghost dragon with tiny dragons stored in it's hornlike cheeks that launch out out at your opponent at Mach speed? Yes, please!!!

I will write your name on our guest scroll, just let me know which dragon camp you belong in. Team Reshiram, or Zekrom?

 

[AMP017]

Thats a hard decision, they are both awesome! I'm gonna say reshiram because it was my first ever champion card.