[Redew]

Originally Posted by Fat Google Knight

Miltank is not on the list. Can I do it?

Go for it.

Originally Posted by Fat TM13IceBeam

Oh well, let's just make a simple one then

NOTE: I'm not sure what exactly are the mechanics behind Shuckle's little toy. I might go on a run of GSC soon enough to check how exactly Shuckle does his little trick. If it's useful enough I might consider changing the tier recommendation to Low.


Shuckle - Bottom Tier
Availability: Earliest you can get is after Sudowoodo, by getting the TM from the guy near it on Route 36 (don't worry about being limited, they also become available from Goldenrod), and going to Burned Tower to smash some rocks for a 10% chance of a L15 Shuckle. Otherwise, you can get one for free at Cianwood, which also gets boosted experience.
Stats: It has the best defenses in the game, but it also happens to be even slower than Slowpoke and has the offenses of a Magikarp.
Movepool: There isn't much to be said when your only STAB is Rollout. Shuckle learns a variety of utility moves (as well as Earthquake/Sludge Bomb, wasted on something with Shuckle's offenses), which makes him a status abuser, so to speak.
Gyms it's good at: Considering that his awesome defenses are countered badly by his bad HP, and that he has Magikarp-level offenses, he's not going to be useful anywhere soon other than being item fodder.
Other info: Shuckle may seem useless but still has one trick up his sleeve, legs, shell, whatever: he has the ability to make infinite Rare Candies. By attaching a Berry onto Shuckle and walking around, Shuckle will be able to turn your Berry into a Berry Juice and then a Rare Candy, providing the potential for infinite Rare Candies and a gamebreaker. Unfortunately, the time invested is contradictory to efficiency, placing it in Bottom.

Will add.

Originally Posted by Fat Alice in Strings

Delibird
Bottom Tier
Stats: Dear lord, Delibird, you have the stats of a NFE Pokemon. Base 65 SpAtk is only slightly better than Ariados' and Base 45 defenses is just pitiful. The only interesting thing is having 75 Base speed...as your best stat.
Movepool: Godawful, you are completely reliant on TMs to do anything at all, because your only Level up move has a CHANCE OF HEALING YOUR FOE! As for TMs, aside from Fly, Icy Wind and Blizzard, there is nothing at all interesting. As in, you have no other STAB, the only other attacking moves you get are Headbutt and Mud Slap (and obligatory Frustration/Return)...and that's it. Nothing good at all aside from Blizzard, which got nerfed considerably in Gen 2 (90% accuracy all the way down to 70% accuracy)
Matchups: Delibird doesn't really excel anywhere thanks to its terribad stats and amazingly shallow movepool. The entire reason you'd want an Ice type is to take care of the six or so Dragons in the game, and Delibird can't even do that! He can contribute in some of the Kanto gyms if you didn't bother dumping it as soon as you could thanks to sheer level advantage, but even then, there are things that do its job way better in the same place that are far easier to find and capture.
Additional Comments: Delibird has a cool sounding cry, and a unique design. It also just so happens to have a terrible movepool consisting of Fly, Blizzard, and Icy Wind. It is completely reliant on TMs to do anything aside from healing the enemy, and even then, it can't use any TMs to make it a decent Pokemon. It's stats are also on the line between terrible and godawful. It's literally worse than Gen 3 Luvdisc, because at least it could learn some moves and have Ice Beam! Avoid at all cost.

Will add.

Originally Posted by Fat neilymon

echoing x42bn6 here: (shortened)


Totodile - Top Tier
Availability: Starter
Stats: Above Average
Movepool: Above Average
Additional Comments: Rage is surprisingly effective against the early gyms, after which TMs (Ice Punch, Headbutt/Dig) and HMs (Surf) make it an incredibly versatile Pokemon with very well-rounded stats. Throw in the excellent Bite and it's easy to see how Totodile really doesn't need any teammates to beat the game.

Nice! But, would you be willing to make this longer? It's a great entry--it really is--but we're aiming for longer entries. Other than that it's great!

Originally Posted by Fat Alice in Strings

@TM13, I never said I disagreed with Kadabra being Top. He is probably the best Pokemon in the game (Feraligatr can give him a run for his money, though~) thanks to having the Elemental Punches and the most powerful STAB Psychic in the game.

If we're counting Steelix and Scizor, I honestly don't see what Scizor has over Scyther. Scyther's fast and hits hard. Scizor is slower, but hits harder with its slightly higher Attack stat.

Scizor gets natural Metal Claw and False Swipe, both very nifty moves for in-game. On the other hand, Scyther gets Wing Attack and Slash, while also getting natural False Swipe. I'm curious as to how the added Steel typing could help Scizor get SD boosts off.

Also, the fact you're catching so many Magnemite could be considered tedious. But then, this is the same thing as "oh, lets make sure we can get to Lapras by Friday, so we're going to predict when we'll meet it". To me, that sounds like a lot of work that I wouldn't want to put in if I were playing to just beat the game. I'd rather just grab a Mantine (in GC) or Tentacool and be done with it.

Speaking of Mantine, he's actually pretty good. I'll get to writing a review of him since I use him a lot in my runs.


Mantine Mid Tier

Availability: He's a somewhat rare encounter on the sea routes between Olivine and Cianwood. You'll probably encounter at least one if you don't Repel spam.
Stats: Mantine's got a gargantuan 140 Base Special Defense and a respectable Base 80 Special Attack. Defense and HP are a little low at 70 and 65 respectively, and don't even bother with physical attacks, as it's not killing anything with Base 40 Attack. Speed's kinda mediocre as well at Base 70, but it's enough to get it by.
Movepool: Surf and Blizzard. These are the only two moves that matter, and Mantine uses them pretty darn well. Most of the things Mantine likes to hit use either Special Attacks or are slower than he is, so Mantine can afford to only have a couple of good moves. Yeah, his movepool is pretty barren...
Matchups: Mantine can beat Chuck's Primeape, but can't really harm his Poliwrath. Jasmine's Piloswine, Clair's three Dragonairs, and Pryce's Piloswine also fall to the manta ray. In the E4, Will has trouble actually hurting Mantine thanks to its Special Defense, but can't kill Slowbro. Koga's Ariados, Crobat and Venomoth also fall to Mantine, but Forretress likes to blow up and Muk likes to sit there and take Special hits all day. Bruno's Machamp has Rock Slide, but everyone else dies to Surf. Karen's Houndoom, Umbreon, and (sadly, terrible) Gengar all die to Mantine. The Dragonites outspeed Mantine, but Blizzard sorts them out, and only the Thunder Dragonite really poses a problem. In Kanto, Blaine, Janine, Brock, and part of Blue's team fall to Mantine. Red's Charizard is also no match for Mantine.

Additional Comments: Mantine's problem is a lack of moves. This is one of those things that GSC is famous for. Many Pokemon in this Generation suffer from not having a move they really want. Mantine really wants Ice Beam, but only gets it in Crystal. He's also not as diverse as some of the other Water types (looking at you, Lanturn), and he's pretty rare. All these factors plant him solidly in Mid Tier.

Will add.

Also I am posting to say that I read this every day and I keep up on things. I haven't forgotten about this!