#of all of them the final evo design i like most is probably quaquaval

[casukaga]

who was your starter??? (representing fuecoco nation)

sprigatito.

i’m not the biggest fan of its evos, but sprigatito’s a cutie and my character (unintentionally) matched it (sorta): i gave myself green eyes and pink hair, inverse of sprigatito being green and having pink eyes, and i chose the :3 mouth. i felt like i had to go with the weed cat.

[avernale]

Have You Seen ScarVi's DLC Pokémon? Have You SEEN Them?

I don't know how long its been since my last one of these. Seriously. I tried searching the #haveyouseenpokemon hashtag on Tumblr, and it looks like the last one I did was for Scarlet & Violet's final pre-release trailer? Which makes enough sense, as I remember saying in that one that I wasn't sure I'd comment on DLC Pokémon or anything I encountered in-game (Quaquaval best starter evo, BTW). But then I tried searching on my own blog and it couldn't find one after Sword & Shield? The heck? I didn't even have this hashtag back then!

Pretty sure I haven't commented on the last couple of DLC trailers (mostly because I overlooked them), so let's start with the latest one. I put the video under the "Keep Reading" link since the title alone will kinda spoil it.

So, am I the only one who laughed at "Nice tea meetcha?" No one? Okay, then...

One thing that occurs to me is that this is literally the newest Pokémon. The object itself is ancient, but the Pokémon doesn't manifest until smart phones are a thing, apparently. That's pretty recent in terms of world history.

While my first thought was "Convergent evolution of Polteageist," the thought did occur that this could be an alternate evolution for Sinistea like Dipplin for Applin and Runegrigus for Yamask. But no. According to the website, it's definitely its own Pokémon. For one thing, it's made of matcha powder instead of liquid (and hence, Grass/Ghost). Unlike Polteageist's pot, the eyes on Poltchageist's tea caddy blink. It also actively poisons people (with Old Movie Disease, apparently) rather than wait for someone to drink it before sapping their energy.

I think I like this design. It's probably not going in my party, though. (I'm making a new one because my old one got to level 100 training to take on Iron Leaves) But I will catch it. I do wonder if it has an unevolved or evolved form (the website compares it to Sinistea rather than Polteageist, though maybe just for sake of distinction) or if it's just a single-stage Pokémon.

Another thought occurs that a lack of evolutionary line would be just another thing that makes it buck the pattern set by other convolutions. Toedscool and Wiglett both get one evolution each. The other thing it bucks is the naming convention. The other ones rhyme with the Pokémon they resemble but start with different words (Toed and Wig instead of Tenta and Dig). Poltchageist still rhymes with Polteageist, but still starts with "Polt." I'm not sure what else sets it apart from other convolutions' relationships to their original, but there might be. The pattern still holds that it rhymes, and that the difference uses a single syllable. Of course, if you're making up your own convolutions, you need not be beholden to any sort of pattern at all. Meanwhile, I'm still trying to come up with a good name for a pure Fire-Type Kirlia that sings.

Okay, let's look at other DLC Pokémon introduced so far real quick...

Archaludon, evolution of Duraludon. Not bad, I think. Looks kinda like a staple remover and transforms into a bridge for its signature attack. Does the Tower Bridge get struck by lightning a lot? No plans to put it in my party, though now that I think about it...

Dipplin, a new Applin evolution. When I saw this, I thought it was a regional form of Applin specific to Kitakami (Applin's already in ScarVi, I think). Nope. Also, the website says its two worms instead of one. Weird. I'm tempted to put this in my party. I wonder if its an item-evolution like Applin's other two, and if it's a candy apple or just the coating...

Iron Crown and Iron Leaves, Future Paradox forms of Cobalion and Virizion. Not impressed. Interesting that they are Psychic types instead of Fighting, though. One can assume the same will be true for Paradox Terrakion, as well.

Raging Bolt and Walking Wake, Ancient Paradox forms of Raikou and Suicune. Most Ancient Paradox forms are cooler than Future Paradox forms, and that includes these two. I saw a Humongo Walking Wake in one of Austin John's videos and was severely disappointed mine wasn't that big. At least it wasn't as hard to get as Iron Leaves was. My first thought on seeing Raging Bolt was "Giraffe" (it's yellow, c'mon), but it's actually a dinosaur, too. I feel like I shouldn't like this design, but I think it looks pretty good. I usually shy away from putting Legendaries or Mythicals in my party (unless the game gives me a reason to, like Calyrex or Arceus saying it wants to travel with me), but I could make an exception...

What's my team look like going into The Teal Mask (Teal? Tea? Hmm...) so far? Right now, I've got Fuecoco (that I got from a trade), Sprigatito (Hidden Ability, HOME integration giveaway), Toedscool, Revavroom, Miraidon (the one you can catch), and Gardevoir (one I used in my Sapphire party). The starters are low-level, and I want them to stay that way as I understand that The Teal Mask is intended for early-game stuff (though judging from Isle of Armor, who knows) while The Indigo Disk is supposed to be post-game. I still have time to change my mind, of course, but I'm also considering putting together another new team for Indigo Disk.

Which way will I actually go? We'll find out once The Teal Mask drops on September 13. There might still be something amazing that I'll be itching to train. Until then, it remains to be seen.