Pokemon Scarlet and Violet were the introduction to the newest gen of Pokemon mainline video games, and as with all new Pokemon titles, new Starter Pokemon also came into play. The signature trio of Grass, Water and Fire Type Pokemon to give players the first choice of their first partner Pokemon is one of the most beloved and essential aspects of Pokemon, as it is one of the defining things of a Pokemon game. With Sprigatito, Quaxly and Fuecoco The Paldean starter line paved the way to a unique Type Matchup for the starters which wasn’t straightforwardly the case with older starter Pokemon and their types. Each of the final evolutions of the Paldean Starter lineup was made so the normal Type Matchup could easily be reversed, and with other editions of new mechanics of Scarlet and Violet, it is an aspect that players could notice and learn a few things from.
The Dual Type Pokemon Matchup:
For any Pokemon fan, it is easy thing to see and notice the Type of any Pokemon, and through so learning which other type it would be weak and strong against. It is fairly simple with single-type Pokemon but for dual types, such as the Paldean starters’ final evolutions, the formula changes. Some types are completely average against others, some are strong against others due to taking less damage and dishing out double in return, as easily vice versa, and for Meowscarada, Quaquaval and Skeledirge, their types play the unique aspect of working against their normal counter type starter.
Basically, the normal Starter Matchup would be Grass Type Meowscarada being strong against Water Type Quaquaval and weak against Fire Type Skeledirge, similarly Quaquaval being strong against Skeledirge and weak against Meowscarada, and Skeledirge being strong against Meowscarada and weak against Quaquaval. It would be the signature rock-paper-scissors kind of Matchup we all know of. However, the alternate Types of each of these, Dark Type for Meowscarada, Ghost Type for Skeledirge and Fighting Type for Quaquaval, are as easily completely reversed. This makes the Type Matchup play strong in reverse, which plays an even more potent effect when taking the Terastalisation mechanic of Paldea. Hence now Meowscarada can beat Skeledirge, Skeledirge can beat Quaquaval and Quaquaval can give Meowscarada a run for its money.
This looks to be an intentional choice taken for the new Starter Lineup of Pokemon Scarlet and Violet Starters, and one that could hint about how future Starter Pokemon would be. This aspect gives more layers of strategy and is intriguing at the same time and has certainly impacted the competitive part of Pokemon.
Meowscarada:
Sprigatito’s final evolution lands players a Grass/Dark Type Feline Pokemon that has a knack for tricks and illusions. It comes with a really strong signature Grass Type move, with a big array of Dark Type Moves also in its arsenal. Hence this Pokemon comes through to stand its own against Pokemon that would be weak to its Dark Type. This includes Skeledirge, which is a half Ghost Type, hence it could take double the damage from Meowscarada’s Dark type attacks despite being a Fire Type that would be strong against a Grass Type. Similarly, Dark Type’s weakness to Fighting Type would put it in a difficult situation if Quaquaval used its Fighting Type moves.
This is how the Type Matchup makes a variable gameplay aspect, and by adding the Terastalisation aspect, there could be two outcomes. If the normal Terastalisation Type would be the main type of a starter, it would give some room to even the odds and make things simpler, the Grass Type singularity being strong against Water Type and working normally against a Fighting Type. However, if it adopted the secondary Type of the Pokemon, it would completely make it reversed. Meowscarada with a Dark Terastal Type Transformation would now be super strong against Skeledirge, instead becoming weak to Quaquaval.
Quaquaval:
Quaxly’s final dancing evolutions come with a Water/Fighting Type matchup that makes it stand up to other types which are weak to Fighting, and similarly to how Meowscarada works, it is a strong contender against Meowscarada which is partly a Dark Type Pokemon. This makes Quaquaval do super effective damage to Meowscarada despite its Water Type weakness against Meowscarada’s Grass Type.
The Terastalisation gives it room for effectiveness as well, completely mitigating Quaquaval’s vulnerability to Grass Type Attacks if it becomes its secondary type of Fighting through Terastalising. It can either become normal if the Terastal Type is Water, or it can completely reverse the Matchup if Quaquaval becomes a pure Fighting Type. It will then manage to take a normal amount of damage from Grass Type Attacks and do super effective damage to Dark Type Pokemon, like Meowscarada.
This Skeledirge:
The Fire-breathing and song-singing final evolution of Fuecoco has a Fire/Ghost-type matchup giving way to strength against types weak to Ghost. This means a Fighting Type Pokemon such as Quaquaval would have no effect with its Fighting Type moves against Skeledirge. At the same time, however, Meowscarada’s Dark Type attacks would do super effective damage to it despite it being partly a Fire Type that is strong against Grass Type Pokemon like Meowscarada.
The Terastalisation again does the similar role of either doubling down to reverse the Type Matchup or simplifying things based on what the Terastal type is. If it is the main Fire Terastal Type, It will make Skeledirge lose its Ghost Type vulnerability, and if it is a Ghost Terastal Type, it will change the formula and make it super strong against Quaquaval and its Water and Fighting type moveset.
This is how the Pokemon Company is consistently making unique ways to use the signature gameplay formula of Pokemon that has been almost the same as it was since the very first Pokemon game. The matter of starters being the three same Types for all this time, Grass, Water and Fire, has not changed, it has simply gained the added benefit of dual-type matchups. Since there is a very unique way how the Type Matchup works in Pokemon, this gives ample room for strategy and usability in Battles and it will continue to be so ahead.
There are many fans and players out there who are highly interested in the competitive edge of Pokemon, and this is one aspect that plays to their favour giving them room to learn and use the new mechanics and the Type Matchup in new ways. It is yet to be seen if there will be a complete overhaul of what Starter Pokemon Types are and how they work, but till then, the current manner of how Types work is fun and interesting and that’s enough for fans to love Pokemon video games.
If interested in more content for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, check out our website for all the guides and news we’ve covered for the games. We’ve covered the Epilogue Mystery Gift of the game, the Overview of Area Zero and much more so viewers could find a topic they’d like to read about. For all else about Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, check out the official Pokemon website.
