ToxicWyvern

Those who watch me may be aware that I've been doing drawing sketch requests for the /vp/ Drawthread, (along with throwing in some ideas of my own). I've decided to start doing pokemon-related sketch requests for people on DA, so feel free to comment with any ideas you'd like me to sketch

*Requests can be anything related to the Pokemon franchise

*Requests must be sfw (I'm willing to stretch "sfw" a bit, but basically nothing that would require a mature rag).

*Only requirement to make requests here is that you watch me

*There is no guarantee that I will do your request, nor it is first come first serve. I'm mainly doing this to get some fresh ideas to draw, and give back to my watchers.

Freeze is the one of the most unbalanced and frustrating battle mechanics the Pokémon games.

Firstly, Freeze can't be used as part of a strategy, because it only occur as a 10% side effect of certain offensive moves. (Before Secret Power was removed from Sword and Shield, it had a 30% freeze chance but only in snowy or icy areas in-game. Also, Blizzard had 30% freeze change in the Japanese Gen I core games ).

However, with the current state of Freeze, the 10% chance is a blessing. If it were any higher the metagame would a broken mess. Freeze completely immobilizes the Pokémon and only gives the frozen Pokémon a 20% chance of unfreezing at the end of every turn. This means that you can realistically expect to the Pokémon to be frozen for 5 turns, but there is no maximum so it could easily last even longer. If you don't have a separate Pokémon with Heal Bell/Aromatherapy, Freeze is essentially the same as a KO.

Compare this to the other statuses

• Poison and Burn don't immobilize the Pokémon so it's easier to play around those.

• Paralysis only has 25% chance of making the Pokémon lose a turn.

• Sleep has a maximum length of 3 turns, the move Sleep talk provides an opportunity attack while asleep, abilities that give immunity to sleep are widely distributed, and many metagames have a sleep clause so only one Pokémon on each team can be put to sleep at any time.

Basically, Freeze is too unreliable to use, and too broken to play around. This got me thinking about ways so balance it.

Possible Balancing Nerfs

• Freeze should have a maximum length like Sleep does. Considering how Ice is an excellent type for offense moves, Freeze should at the absolute most last 2 turns, but even that may be too long.

• Fire types should be immune to Freeze. While this would make Fire types immune to two statuses, their Stealth Rock weakness more than balanced this out. This change would require Fire types with the Magma Armor ability to get a new ability to prevent another Stunfisk/Rotom Fan situation of having a redundant ability. (Seriously why hasn't Game Freak fixed that.)

• Sunlight should thaw frozen Pokémon or at least half the amount of turns a Pokémon is frozen. (Currently Sunlight prevents Pokémon from be frozen, but doesn't thaw already frozen Pokémon).

Possible Balancing Buffs

• Moves that can cause Freeze have an increased chance of causing Freeze if used by an Ice type Pokémon. This would give people a reason to use Ice type Pokémon rather than just stick Ice-Type moves on a water type.

• Frozen Pokémon lose a small amount of HP each turn (as a refence to frost bite).

Note: my thoughts below are about Dexit not the DLC itself since I haven't played it.

Pokemon still banned from Galar (The ones not allowed are in white) https://i.imgur.com/iOVM0LG.jpeg

I've said it before and I'll say it again; Dexit is the single worst decision Game Freak/ Pokemon has ever made. Every excuse given for it either makes no sense or has been flat-out proven wrong.

Game Freak/Creatures Inc etc. had to make new models: Wrong, the models were future-proofed specifically so that they wouldn't have to create new models for a new console. It's been proven that the models of Pokémon in Sword and Shield are nearly identical to the ones in in previous games (the main difference is the textures). Besides, if the models really were new, that would make Game Freak/Creatures Inc look even worse since putting thousands of man-hours into future-proofed models just to start all over again for no reason would be an astronomical waste.

Too many Pokémon: What exactly is the hard limit for the amount of Pokémon? This would have made sense if this was a chintzy handheld from the 90's but Sword and Shield are on the Nintendo Switch Home Console. Even if the Switch somehow didn't have space for a few more Pokémon, was there really nothing else that could be removed to make room for the defining feature of the Pokémon franchise. Honestly, I'd get rid of those idiotic brothers with the stupid weapon hair. Many Pokémon were added back later anyways so space clearly wasn't the issue.

Giving a new Pokémon a chance to shine: Gen V did it better; Pokémon from older gens couldn't be transferred in or encountered until after the main story was completed but they could still be transferred in at some point. This allowed the new Pokémon to get exposure while still allowing the old Pokémon to exist. Also, if Sword and Shield wanted the new Pokémon to have the spotlight, then why is Leon's ace the single most overrated Pokémon in Gen I.

"Diversify the meta"/Game Balance: In what world does having less choices led to a more "diverse" meta. That's as stupid as the people who think is anyone who votes outside the two party system is a "traitor"(If you want people to support your party, pick candidates that don't suck). Gen VIII OU meta was fun for about a week until it became single most stale and lifeless meta in the history of Pokémon. Also, saying the Game Freak was concerned about balance is a complete joke when the main duo of the game is unbalanced as hell; Zacian is basically broken and Zamazenta is borderline unusable. Besides that, the old legendaries are back. What's funny is that everyone always goes on and on about how Meganium is crap, but now you're telling me that it was apparently so broken that it had to be removed, but the literal gods of Pokemon are allowed?

Wanting the Pokemon to Fit with the region: Jynx makes no sense as a Pokémon to begin with; If Jynx is allowed in Galar, then every Pokémon should be allowed. Also, once again, legendaries are back despite the fact that legendaries for the most part are defined by the legends of their home region. How does it make sense for them to be found in a random cave?

No one cares about the old Pokémon anyways: The existence of #Bringbacknationaldex proves that this isn't true. Also, Greninja (aka: Pokémon of the Year and the Number 1 most popular Pokémon in the world) didn't get in.

Some of the decisions on removing Pokémon are especially nonsensical.

Seel, Dewgong: Apparently, Pokémon based on tundra-dwelling seals can't be found in the Crown Tundra. Even though they showed in the Twilight Wings anime (which is based on Sword and Shield).

Sawsbuck: Deer are heavily featured in European myths, and its winter form would fit in perfectly in the Crown Tundra.

Stantler: Same as Sawsbuck, but it was also randomly brought up in a podcast about Sword and Shield. Also, Johto needs more representation since it got especially screwed over by Dexit.

Ducklett, Swanna: The Galar is the UK. Queen Elizabeth II Rules over the UK. QEII owns every swan in the UK. Swanna are swans. Galar has no Swanna. Do I need to explain any further why this is ridiculous?

Darkrai: It didn't get in even though Cresselia did. They're the Lunar Duo, based on the Moon Phases. Do New Moons not occur in Galar? Also don't give me nonsense about Darkrai being Mythical, because how does that explain Victini getting in? Aside from that, the distinction between Mythicals and Legendaries is arbitrary and inconsistent.

Arceus: It didn't get in even though the Creation Trio did. How does that work? If Arceus apparently doesn't exist, then who created them?

Cranidos, Rampardos, Shieldon, Bastiodon: How in the name of Arceus (oh wait) did the fossil duo based on the concept of unstoppable offense and impenetrable defense not get into Sword and Shield when every other fossil Pokémon did?

I'm not going to send death threats and false accusations at Game Freak because anyone who does that is garbage and I'm a human being. Regardless, Dexit was stupid. It was stupid then and it's even stupider now. How could anyone think that taking Pokémon out of Pokémon would be good for Pokémon?

I have mixed feelings about the Galar Fossils. Overall, I like the concept behind them and respect the references to rushed paleontology, general dinosaur misconceptions, and even mix-and match dinosaur books. It took a while for me to get used to their designs, but I think they do a great job at a communicating that something went horribly wrong when they were created (or horribly right depending on Cara Liss's intentions). I've seen redesigns that make the two halves of each fossil blend more naturally and while those designs are more appealing, the jarring transitions in the canon designs makes it clear that these are meant to be unnatural hybrids (many Pokémon are already combinations of multiple animals so the incongruity of the designs helps separate these fossils from those). Also, I like the extra detail of them not being able to breed as a refence to hybrids often being sterile.

However, it's disappointing that the properly revived versions don't exist in-game.

Firstly, seeing the fossils in their natural state would actually help emphasize how messed up Cara Liss's versions are. Aside from that, the fan-art I've seen of the proper versions shows some very promising designs that would have been interesting additions in their own right with out the mix-match gimmick. Dunkleosteus (Vish) is rarely seen in popular media and having a proper one in Pokémon would be great. An Electric Raptor (Volt) would be an instant fan favorite.

It's a wonder how Game Freak designed these fossils; did they design the fossils as mismatched creatures from the start or did they come up with four amazing Pokémon then butcher them into monstrosities to work with the gimmick. (Once again, I like the fossils, but not getting proper versions is a major disappointment. Did the proper forms get Dexited before getting a chance to be in a single game?)

Aside from that the Galar fossils don't really make sense in-universe. Why does each individual fossil only revive half the creature? Being broken shouldn't matter since previous fossils were able to revive full Pokémon from a single piece. Why do these fossils have to be revived in paired with a seemingly unrelated fossil for Cara Liss's machine to work?

It could have been an interesting story development if the fossils were part of a conspiracy by Cara Liss to invent new Pokémon and get famous for discovering them, but this is never explored in-game. From what I've seen of Sword and Shield's story, the villains that were focused on were disappointing (Chairman Rose was incompetent and his plan made no sense, and the Sword/Shield hair guys were just plain dumb). Cara Liss would have been a much more interesting villain; exploring the ideas of scientific honesty and ethics. As a bonus, Professor Magnolia could have played a role in uncovering Cara Liss's plot (It's a shame how Magnolia barely got to do anything before being sidelined).

(Also, the sprites for the Fossilized Drake and Fossilized Fish are clearly swapped. I don't now if it was an intentional mistake to confuse the player, or if it's another example of how rushed Sword and Shield's development was.)

After seeing various fanart of how properly versions of the Galar fossils would look like, I've been thinking about what the Galar Fossil's stats and abilities would be. I made a spreadsheet with the info on the canon fossils, color-coded information based on which fossil it most likely came from, then filled in the blanks based on trends I've noticed.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Bps1q9Qealwajg2qlmnJs55EaeiR-yXBsSylJt4WG8A/edit?usp=sharing

It seems that the front halves determine HP, Attack, Defense, while the back halves determine the Speed. It's hard to say what determine the special stats; the numerical values seem to be based on the back half but I couldn't see the pattern of how those values distributed between Special Attack and Special Defense.

For Base Stat Totals, I think that they would be slightly higher due to being properly revived (and healthier as a result), though I doubt they would be higher than Aerodactyl's 515.

For abilities, the front halves clearly determined Ability 1 and the back halves clearly determined their Hidden Ability. Ability 2 seemed to vary so I made educated guesses: Volt Absorb, Water Absorb, and Ice Body clearly belong to the Electric Volt, the Water Vish and the Ice Arcto respectively. Process of elimination left Draco with Hustle.

Also, the fossils tend to have one ability that prevents damage, one ability that hurts the opponent in some way, and a hidden ability that increases speed. I added in another ability for each on based on what would be most appropriate due to typing/animal basis.

Since Volt and Vish have mouth based signature moves with some sort of word I gave some to Draco and Arcto.

As for possible secondary typing, Volt "soared through the sky" so it likely would have been part Flying. I gave Draco the secondary type of Ground since I figured that Ground was a good counterpart for flying, and fit it well with Draco being a bulky land-dwelling beast. Also, it would fit well with Sand Rush. I couldn't figure out what to give Vish and Arcto for second types but there's no reason they had to have one.

(Note, I wanted to add pictures of the fossils like I normally due with my Pokémon-related journals, but Eclipse made adding photos a complicated chore).

One of the excuses often given for Dexit is "game balance". This got me thinking about issues I have with how Game Freak/Creatures Inc/etc decides movesets/mechanics/ etc.

(Note the following could end up being fixed in the Crown Tundra, or later Generations).

Pokemon Not Getting Certain Moves

Fearow not getting Brave Bird. Every other flying bird Pokemon gets it. Even Blakizen gets it and it's not even a Flying type, nor can it canonically fly.

Wigglytuff not getting Boomburst. Boomburst is a powerful Normal type move that involves the user making a huge sound wave. The Igglybuff family is basically singing balloons and they already learn Hyper Voice, so why not a stronger version of it. The name even fits with the balloon theme.

Aerodactyl not getting Brave Bird or Head Smash. Aerodactyl's Rock Head ability is currently useless because it doesn't learn any powerful Rock or Flying moves that deliver recoil.

Typhlosion not getting Earth Power. It literally makes the ground erupt with power and would give it some much needed special type-coverage and help it stand out more from Charizard.

Crobat not getting Crunch. What are those fangs for if it can't crunch things. It can learn Bite so why not Crunch. Also, the Dark type coverage would be useful.

Electivire and Tauros not getting Bulk Up. They both need decent Physical set up moves. Taurois is a bulky bull and Electivire literally bulks up when it evolved from Electabuzz.

Elelektross not getting Parabolic Charge. Why doesn't an electric lamprey get the Electric move that drains energy from foes? It even learns other draining moves so why not the Electric type one?

Heatmor not getting Flame Charge. An attack that increases speed would be a great way for it to compensate for its low speed. Also, its lower half is basically an engine with a muffler. Why can't a Pokemon based on a combustion engine make itself go faster?

Aurorus not getting Power Gem or Aurora Veil. Why doesn't a Special Attacking Rock Type get one of the only Special Rock type moves. What are those crystal things on its body for if not for using Power Gem. (Before anyone says that those are ice crystals and not gems, please explain to me how Zubat uses Mean Look ). Also, there is no excuse for it to not have Aurora Veil because it literally has a permanent aurora on its body.

Zamazenta not getting Body Press or King's Shield. As I've mentioned before, Body Press would be the perfect attack for Zamazenta due to using the Defense Stat, STAB, and Dauntless Shield. As for King's Shield, Zacian gets nearly every blade/sword move including Sacred Sword, so why shouldn't Zamazenta get King's Shield. Zamazenta is literally based on a king's shield (King Arthur's Shield, Wynebgwrthucher).

Pokemon Not Getting Megas

Kantonian Raichu not getting a Mega. Pikachu has had light ball since Gen II, surely its evolved form deserves something. Mega K. Raichu could have taken inspiration from Gorochu. Alolan Raichu had an exclusive Z move so K. Raichu should have gotten something.

The Johto Starters not getting Megas despite needing them more than any other set of starters due to their single typing and limited movepools. Also, they're literally sandwiched between two sets of starters that did get Megas.

Slowking and Froslass not getting Megas when their counterparts did.

Milotic not getting a Mega even though Gyarados got one. Mega Milotic would have fit well with the Gen III remakes, and would have been a great way to highlight the newly released fairy typing.

Flygon not getting a Mega when literally every other fully evolved dragon in its generation got one. If artist's block was the reason, they should have at least boosted Flygon's base stats as compensation (Sp.Attack and Speed both getting 10+ would actually help differentiate it Garchomp by making Flygon work better as a speedy mixed attacker.).

Type Interactions

Fairy types resisting Bug. All of Fairy's other resistances/immunities make sense to balance the metagame. Bug moves are literally resisted by one third of all types, they doesn't need to be resisted by more types.

Ice types having no resistance aside from itself. At least have it resist Water. If Water types can resist Ice moves because ice is just solid water, then Ice should resist Water moves because water is just liquid ice.

Specific Move Mechanics

Present doing random damage and having a chance to heal the foe. Delibird is based on Santa. Santa gives gifts to children and punishes bad children with coal; he doesn't give them out randomly. Ironically, Pollen Puff works the way Present should (healing allies and hurting enemies).

Stealth Rock taking type weaknesses into consideration instead of just doing extra damage to flying types, doing normal damage to other types, and less damage to types that resist it. Flying types need a hazard that hits them for balance, but Fire, Ice, Bug types already have enough weakness and poor defenses. No Pokemon should lose 50% of its health to a single hazard just for entering the field.

Nerfing Dark Void to 55% accuracy. I agree with keeping it exclusive to Darkrai but what's even the point of Darkrai having a Signature Move if it's literally a coin flip. Darkrai is still an excellent Pokémon, but Dark Void was part of its identity. Why is Jynx of all things a better sleep user than the Pokémon literally designed around nightmares?

Behemoth Bash not using the user's Defense to attack. As is, it's just a clone of of Behemoth Blade and doesn't synergize with Zamazenta.

Other

Politoed and Dustox not getting 10 extra Base Stat points like their counterparts did in Gen VI

Ledian not getting 10 Extra base points like Ariados did in Gen VII. Aside from that; Ledian's design, moveset, and hidden ability (Iron Fist) suggest that it's a strong physical attacker, but its Attack is an atrocious 35 and its Special Attack isn't much better.

Bellossom losing the Poison type when it evolves from Gloom and not getting any new typing to replace it (Fairy would thematically fit the best).