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Weekly Article – Defining the Types (Part 1)

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Today, we shall begin with a series of articles. In this series, we analyse the Pokémon found in each type to determine how a type is defined. We see the Grass-types and see that they are mostly based on plants, while Bug-types are insect-based. Some types are easier to come to a conclusion than others. One common characteristic that might come up is the colour, which is not a bad guess, but considering how the colour is something that is not necessarily standard, it’s more of a design choice.

To start off this series, we will look at the three main types for starter Pokémon: Grass, Fire and Water. If you are ready, we shall begin after this.


 
 
 

Grass

 

We start things off with the Grass-type. So, what defines the Grass-type? Even though the name of the type is “grass”, not every member of the Grass-type have any sort of grass on them. It would seem that this type has more to do with plants, rather than grass. After all, if you look at most Grass-types, they have something plant-related to show off.

In that case, why is it called the Grass-type rather than the Plant-type? After all, some languages referred to the entire type as the Plant-type, such as French and German. It’s interesting to note that the Egg Group consisting of the plant Pokémon used to be the Plant Egg Group until they are renamed Grass, among other Egg Group renames (Indeterminate became Amorphous).

My theory is that if this type is the Plant-type, it could give some people the wrong idea that the Pokémon needed to be plants to qualify. Not to mention, it might sound more generic. Grass is also easier for people to grasp the idea that this type is plant-related since grass is one of the first things we learn about plants, so that could be the reason this name was chosen (the Japanese started it). You can say that it became a trademark for Pokémon that if you mention the Grass-type, people will know it’s Pokémon-related.

Therefore, the main characteristic for Grass-types is having something plant-related. There are Pokémon that are real plants (Vileplume, Sunflora) or are animals with something plant-related (Bulbasaur, Pansage). The former two are obvious examples that define Grass-types. There are some other examples that doesn’t seem to fit at first glance, but are under this family.

The fungi family (which mushrooms belong to) is an example of something that looks like plants, but are a completely different family. Indeed, fungi have certain different characteristics from plants, such as not needing sun to grow and the inability to generate their food. Despite this, the fungi Pokémon we have can do plant-like things, as evidenced by their ability to learn Synthesis and Solar Beam. It seems that Grass-types automatically have the ability to have the ability to take in the sun.

With that, we have most of the bases covered, save for a couple of oddities. The first is Exeggcute, whom are known as “Eggs”. It could easily be reasoned that they are fruit, or seeds. After all, Exeggutor is an actual plant. The other oddity is the family of Lileep and Cradily. Unlike other Grass-types, they are neither plant nor fungi. They may be based on sea lilies, but they are animals, despite their inability to move (thus they can only wait for food to come). Perhaps their appearance of being plants is a big factor in the decision to make them Grass-types. In that case, it seems odd that a barnacle and a coral Pokémon are not Grass-types. In that case, we will go with the reasoning that they resemble plants and move on.

It should be noted that Sudowoodo resembles a plant, but is not a Grass-type. It is explained that it is an imitator, imitating a tree for survival. With that said, here is a summary on the Grass-types’ identification:

  • Plant Pokémon
  • Fungi Pokémon
  • Animals Pokémon with Plants
  • Sea Lilies (Only for Lileep and Cradily)

 
 
 

Fire

 

The next type we will be covering is the Fire-type. As the name suggests, the Fire-type is reserved for anything that has fire. Of the three types we cover today, this is the most straightforward of them all because discerning what Fire-types are is easy.

The first thing that comes to mind when we see Fire-types are their fire abilities. It is best shown by a flame that is found on the Pokémon. The Charmander line is a classic example for their tails tipped with a fire. There are other Fire-types that have a blaze somewhere, such as the Litwick family’s burning flame and Ponyta family’s fiery mane. Despite this being a main characteristic, it’s not a common theme among Fire-types. Of the 50-something Fire-types we have now, 22 of them have fire on one of their body parts (including Slugma and Magcargo’s hot lava body).

If that Fire-type don’t have a fire coming out from them, then that Fire-type have a body part that symbolises their fiery nature. The wings on Volcarona and the fur found in the ears of the Fennekin family look like fire, even though they are not actually fire, though it’s possible for them to make fire appear from those parts. It definitely adds to their fiery personality, I’d say.

What about some of the other Fire-types that don’t have emerging fire or a symbol of their innate abilities? There is something about Torkoal, Heatmor and Heatran that we can see the Fire-type in, yet they don’t fit with the above two characteristics. Another thing that we can see in Fire-types is something that emits heat. Torkoal has its furnace that has smoke emissions, Camerupt and Heatran are volcanic-related, while Heatmor is an interesting case of an anteater designed with elements of an engine (it has a fiery tongue, but that’s not always seen).

There are a few Fire-types that don’t fit with the above. Darumaka doesn’t have anything fiery to show, but it has a somewhat gross relation to its Fire-type in that its dropping are warm (and practical). Houndour and Houndoom doesn’t have a symbol of fire or exhibit a fire emission station, so I can see how some might not see those two as Fire-types. In truth, their designs are more biased towards the Dark-type, but like Darumaka, their characteristics define them as one, since one of Houndoom’s abilities is a fire that hurts to no end.

In short, here are the signs of a Fire-type:

  • Body parts with fire on it
  • Anatomy that resembles fire
  • Something that emits heat
  • Abilities that demonstrates innate heat

 
 
 

Water

 

The final type for today is Water. The Water-type is the most abundant type in the game, achieving the highest number of Pokémon for four Generations (Generation 5 is Grass, Generation 6 is Fairy). Because of the abundance, diversity might be expected in this type, but it’s actually quite simple to categorise them.

The first thing that comes to mind when we think of Water-types are animals that live in the water. This is most commonly seen in the amount of aquatic animals we have. Considering that the ocean encompasses the majority of the planet’s surface, there are lots of animals that thrive in water. This translates into the Pokémon world, since we have such a huge variety of them.

Fish are normally attributed as water since their mobility can only work well there. The fish would normally be elementally neutral, but we associate fish with the water element because they need the water to survive, so that’s why the fish are made to be Water-types. Fish aren’t the only Pokémon that are made to be Water-types because of this. Some other marine invertebrates, such as Staryu and Corsola, are Water-types because that is their main habitat.

Speaking of habitat, Water-types also include animals that typically live near the water, and are thus skillful swimmers. Animals that are under this group include otters (Oshawott), penguins (Piplup), frogs (Poliwhirl) and beavers (Bibarel). These animals could also be elementally neutral, though unlike fish, they are easier to understand since they are not so dependent on water. We have seen frog Pokémon that is not a Water-type (Croagunk), after all.

What about some of the bird Pokémon that don’t live in water or live near them? Based on observation, birds that you normally see at the sea or any water is designated the Water-type because that’s where they hang out the most. Swanna doesn’t have any water-related ‘Dex entries, but since swans are found in watery places, it becomes a Water-type. Wingull is another Pokémon that doesn’t live in the water, but could be found over the ocean riding the wind while in flight.

Like the other two types done before, there are a few Pokémon that doesn’t quite fit with the major groups. Keldeo, a horse, is not aquatic by nature, but it’s based on the kelpie (a mythical creature that is a water horse), so it has its roots as a Water-type. Palkia is probably the least-resembling Water-type. It has no hints of living in aquatic places or having aquatic powers as a highlight (the highlight is its space-distorting powers), and its inspiration has nothing to do with water. The most notable theory is that Palkia’s type is based on the pearl (the version its original exclusive is). It’s something to go figure.

With that said, here are the characteristics of the Water-type:

  • Water-dwelling living things
  • Animals with a habitat situated near a water body

 
 
 
 

Initially, I wanted to do six types per article, but after discovering how long each type would be, I settled for less per article because of the length. Next time, we will be looking at the next three types, which are Fighting, Psychic and Dark. I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I have writing it.

Thanks for reading.


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