Not using all 6 slots

[PokeFreak201306]

I always end up having six with me, despite only battling with one maybe two, the others are merly HM slaves :D

 

[infersaime]

I always have six at the end of the playtrough. But I mostly use even more then six while the playtrough.

 

[Pachireecko]

Yup! I'm currently playing through Sapphire. So far, I've made it to Victory Road with only four Pokemon.

 

[blue]

I used to when I was much younger, I'd always have between 1 and 4 Pokémon, I'd always find it too hard to train 5 or 6. Now however I always like to have a team of 6, as tedious as it can be it's rewarding and pays off in future difficult battles. You also get to have a variety of types which is an advantage when facing certain opponents specialising in different types.

 

[fenyx4]

Uh, why would I not use all 6 slots? To have a greater chance at losing to Trainers in a shorter amount of time? NO THANK YOU! XD

No, never. They give us six slots, so I'm going to take advantage of all six of them. Even if it means HMs have to be spread out over my party members... that's why they have Move Deleters after all. It simply wouldn't feel right for me not to use a full team of six.

This. Typically, my team is less than six Pokemon only when I've caught less than six different species of Pokemon. But once I'm able to have a full Pokemon party, I utilize every single one of them; why wouldn't I? At times, it's difficult to "rotate" Pokemon out into battle in order to ensure that most of the party Pokemon are well-rounded/can last more than one turn, but it pays off as one progresses through the game.

Also, early on in the game, some Pokemon (unfortunately) serve as fodder against Trainers and Gym Leaders, particularly if they're low-leveled compared to another Pokemon like my starter Pokemon (who tends to be the highest-leveled Pokemon in my party). Even if a Pokemon can't fight for long, it still gives me another chance (at least one turn, to be exact) to restore the health of my stronger Pokemon to continue the fight. Many times, a party Pokemon slot is the difference between gaining a Badge or yet another trip to the nearby Pokemon Center for healing.

And really, why would I leave empty slots during Elite 4/Champion challenges where restarting takes much longer than a standard Trainer or Gym Leader battle? :cer_laugh:

I used to when I was much younger, I'd always have between 1 and 4 Pokémon, I'd always find it too hard to train 5 or 6. Now however I always like to have a team of 6, as tedious as it can be it's rewarding and pays off in future difficult battles. You also get to have a variety of types which is an advantage when facing certain opponents specialising in different types.

This; a variety of types proves quite effective (a tip that is repeatedly stressed throughout the games).

Finally, this thread reminds me of this Pokemon video where Gold is depicted entering a battle against Champion Lance accompanied by 2 healthy Pokemon, 3 fainted Pokemon, and a Pokemon party slot left completely empty:

2 Pokemon left. He even had the balls to just leave one slot completely empty.

-- NinjaDude564

 

[Legobricks]

A larger team has potentially greater coverage of types, base stat distributions, etc., but each member's level will be lower than in smaller teams, members of which could instead capitalise on their individual strengths through higher levels. A team consisting of Dragon-types in particular might be better off kept small. The experience system of the fifth generation, unfortunately, appears to discourage overlevelling and make being underlevelled monsters less of an issue, so smaller teams have been effectively debuffed to the point that having six monsters may as well be mandatory.

Personally, I often end up with a six-team, although given conscious premediation to the matter would prefer to run four-teams.

 

[RedJ]

I've never beaten a game with less than six Pokemon in my party, but I've certainly tried. I attempted a FireRed Charmander/Charmeleon/Charizard only run...and then Misty >>;;