Bellsprout
Availability: Early-game (Route 32, level 6, 20% in nighttime, 30% otherwise).
Typing: Grass / Poison is all-around unhelpful, only having some use against Chuck, being a double-edged sword against Pryce, and being bad elsewhere.
Stats: The line has great offensive stats with somewhat low bulk and average Speed.
Movepool: Bellsprout is stuck with Vine Whip and Growth until it learns Solar Beam and Sludge Bomb through TMs. Sunny Day through TMs can help Victreebel sweep some fights by triggering Chlorophyll and skipping Solar Beam's charge turn. Sleep Powder at level 13 can also come in handy against more difficult opponents.
Major Battles: Victreebel has some use against Chuck and Pryce, though it will have problems sweeping the latter. It can also potentially pull off a sweep against Bruno. Victreebel is generally bad in other matchups due to bad typing and lack of coverage to make up for that.
Additional Comments: Due to its unhelpful typing and lackluster movepool, Victreebel fails to make an impact in most major battles. Furthermore, you need to spend time getting the Leaf Stone from the Pokeathlon Dome to fully evolve it.
Clefairy
Availability: Mid-game (Safari Zone (Meadow area), level 17, 10% (nighttime)).
Typing: Normal makes Clefairy weak to Chuck and Bruno and is mostly neutral elsewhere.
Stats: Clefable's stats are mostly average, capping at 95 HP and Special Attack, though it hits decently hard with Choice Specs.
Movepool: Clefable's movepool consists almost entirely of TMs, which includes Strength, Return, Fire Blast, Blizzard, Thunder, Shadow Ball, Focus Blast, Dig, and Charge Beam. The only relevant level-up move is Encore upon capture is Encore, which can turn opponents like Pryce's Piloswine and Karen's Houndoom into deadweights by locking them into status moves.
Major Battles: Clefable generally relies on super effective hits via TMs to defeat opponents. In particular, it can contribute to Will with Shadow Ball, Jasmine and Koga with Fire Blast, Pryce with Thunder, Fire Blast, or Focus Blast, and Clair's Dragonair with Blizzard. However, many of those matchups rely on inaccurate moves, so they aren't always consistent.
Additional Comments: The Meadow area appears in only five out of ten Safari Zone default area layouts, meaning you may not be able to obtain Clefairy until after three in-game hours have passed since completing Baoba's test. Clefairy is a Pokemon that can catch up quickly thanks to its Fast growth rate, but its performance is inconsistent due to its reliance on inaccurate moves. Evolve it immediately with Moon Stone, which you can obtain at Ruins of Alph instead of taking time to obtain it from the Pokeathlon Dome. Magic Guard is the preferred ability.
Dratini
Availability: Early-game (Goldenrod Game Corner, 2,100 Coins).
Typing: Pure Dragon means Dratini and Dragonair have mostly neutral matchups aside from Pryce, Clair, and Lance, who it is weak against.
Stats: Dratini and Dragonair have average stats with a slight preference for Attack. The line doesn't get to utilize Dragonite's excellent stats due to an extremely late evolution level of 55.
Movepool: Dratini starts with Dragon Rage, which will be its main source of damage until it gets the Surf HM and Choice Specs, which also allows it to utilize Fire Blast via TM effectively. Dragon Rush at level 39 is generally inferior to Specs Dragon Pulse via TM. Most of the line's other moves are either weak or unnecessary, but it can learn Whirlpool and Waterfall for HMs and Return through TM.
Major Battles: Dratini 2HKOs both of Whitney's Pokemon with Dragon Rage, but fails to make an impact against Morty due to Curse. Dragonair can take on Chuck's Primeape with Specs Surf and Jasmine with Specs Fire Blast, though Pryce and Clair are unfavorable. Dragonair will be moderately effective against Koga with Specs Fire Blast and decent with Specs Dragon Pulse everywhere else, though it won't sweep.
Additional Comments: Aside from the inefficiency of using Voltorb Flip timesink to get Dratini, the line's Slow growth rate and middling matchups keep Dratini out of the higher tiers despite having a decently diverse Special movepool aided by Choice Specs.
Ekans
Availability: Early-game (Route 32, level 4, 30% (SS); buy at Goldenrod Game Corner for 700 coins (HG)).
Typing: Poison is only useful defensively, as it doesn't hit any major opponent super effectively. It grants Ekans with a resistance to Chuck, Team Rocket, Koga, and Bruno, but leaves it with a weakness to Will.
Stats: Arbok's stats are average at best, with its highest one being 85 Attack. Its 65 Special Attack means it won't hit relatively hard with Choice Specs either.
Movepool: Ekans relies on Wrap and Poison Sting until Bite at level 9. Glare and Screech at levels 13 and 17 provide support, the latter of which pairs well with Dig through TMs and Crunch upon evolution. Sludge Bomb through TMs is the line's strongest STAB move.
Major Battles: If playing SS, Ekans can come in handy against Falkner and Bugsy. If evolved, Arbok also sees some use against Whitney and Morty. Against the rest, it typically needs to spam Screech to OHKO most opponents, though it can contribute with Intimidate and Glare as well.
Additional Comments: Ekans is a Pokemon that quickly falls off due to its unremarkable stats, typing, and movepool, being too slow in KOing opponents later on in the game.
Exeggcute
Availability: Early-game (Route 34 (Headbutt trees), levels 9-12, 20%).
Typing: Grass / Psychic is useful for Chuck and Bruno and is a double-edged sword against Pryce, Team Rocket, and Koga.
Stats: Save for an excellent 125 Special Attack, most of Exeggutor's stats are average, with its Speed being particularly low.
Movepool: Exeggcute's only good way of dealing damage until Confusion at level 27 is with Solar Beam through TMs. Reflect and Leech Seed at levels 7 and 11 provide support and Sunny Day through TMs combines well with Chlorophyll and Solar Beam.
Major Battles: Exeggcute has little-to-no offensive presence until it learns Confusion and evolves. It is good for Chuck and deals with most of the Team Rocket Executives, while also KOing some of Koga and Bruno's Pokemon.
Additional Comments: Exeggcute's unremarkable period until level 27, which is further worsened by its Slow growth rate, offsets most of its positive contributions. Furthermore, you need to spend time getting a Leaf Stone from the Pokeathlon Dome to evolve it. Evolve it immediately after learning Confusion.
Farfetch'd
Availability: Mid-game (Route 38, level 16, 10% (morning and daytime)).
Typing: Normal / Flying gives it an advantage against Chuck and Bruno, but is very bad against Jasmine and Pryce.
Stats: Farfetch'd's stats are mediocre and quickly fall off. It will need to use Swords Dance multiple times before it can OHKO most opponents later on.
Movepool: Farfetch'd starts out with Aerial Ace, which can be upgraded to Fly, and can be taught Return, which has immediate power if Farfetch'd is caught in a Friend Ball. Swords Dance and Agility at levels 25 and 31 are needed for Farfetch'd to sweep fights.
Major Battles: In almost every fight, Farfetch'd has to set up a few Swords Dances and (if applicable) one Agility. Due to its poor bulk, it will often have to healed to reach the needed amount of setup. This strategy is ineffective against Jasmine, Pryce, and Lance, while being unreliable against opponents whose lead Pokemon have confusion-inducing moves such as Will.
Additional Comments: Farfetch'd is a Pokemon that can have some uses, but is ultimately very inefficient, as it needs huge amounts of setup and healing to consistently take down most opponents it faces. Stick is not worth bothering with, as wild Farfetch'd hold it only 5% of the time.
Hoppip
Availability: Early-game (Route 32, level 6, 10% (morning and daytime)).
Typing: Grass / Flying is mostly terrible, as Hoppip doesn't get to use it for hitting opponents super effectively. It provides it with a resistance to Chuck and Bruno, but a weakness to Pryce, Team Rocket, and Koga.
Stats: Jumpluff is a fast Pokemon with mediocre offenses and average bulk.
Movepool: Hoppip has no damaging moves whatsoever until it learns Bullet Seed through TMs. Most of its movepool is support-based, taking advantage of Sleep Powder at level 16 and Leech Seed at level 24 after evolving. Its best STAB moves are Mega Drain upon evolving into Jumpluff and Solar Beam through TMs, with Headbutt through tutor providing some coverage.
Major Battles: Due to its lacking offenses, Hoppip generally fails to beat opponents on its own. Instead, it can put them to sleep and then infict them with Leech Seed, although this method is slow and unreliable due to imperfect accuracy. This strategy notably can be used to take down Clair's Kingdra.
Additional Comments: Hoppip is generally a bad Pokemon to use due to its inability to win major fights on its own. It is only saved by the fact its support can be significantly helpful against more difficult opponents, but Hoppip is generally not suited for efficient runs.
Horsea
Availability: Late-game (Whirl Islands (surfing), levels 10-20, 30%).
Typing: Water is resisted by Clair and Lance and is neutral elsewhere. Kingdra's Dragon typing is a double-edged sword against Lance and (if evolved at that point) Clair.
Stats: Seadra and Kingdra can hit decently hard with 95 Special Attack and Choice Specs while also being relatively fast. Seadra, however, is rather frail specially, though that's not much of an issue for Kingdra.
Movepool: Horsea can be taught Surf, Blizzard, and Rain Dance immediately, with Rain Dance pairing well with Kingdra's Swift Swim. Kingdra's only good Dragon STAB moves are Dragon Pulse through TMs and Draco Meteor through tutor. Hydro Pump at level 40 provides a stronger, but inaccurate alternative to Surf.
Major Battles: With Choice Specs, Horsea can sweep Jasmine and its evolutions perform well against most of Team Rocket. If you have a Kingdra for Clair, you can potentially defeat her own Kingdra by living a Dragon Pulse and OHKOing with Draco Meteor. At the Elite Four, Seadra and Kingdra will typically perform the same, needing rain and Hydro Pump to achieve OHKOs, though Kingdra is slightly better than Seadra against Will due to superior special bulk.
Additional Comments: In order to obtain Horsea as soon as possible, you have to beat Pryce first to enable the use of Whirlpool in the overworld, which means that you may have to face him underleveled and thus make the fight harder for your team. Dragon Scale can be obtaned either at Mt. Mortar (2F) after getting the Rising Badge or through wild Horsea; the former method requires a significant backtrack, while the latter method allows you to have a Kingdra before Clair, but is time-consuming, as wild Horsea hold the item only 5% of the time. Ultimately, late evolution and the need for the inaccurate Hydro Pump to KO opponents in the end-game make the line bad compared to other Water-types, with Kingdra being slightly better at the cost of the time spent getting the Dragon Scale.
Jigglypuff
Availability: Mid-game (Safari Zone (Meadow and Swamp areas), levels 15-17 (Meadow) or levels 16-17 (Swamp), 40%).
Typing: Normal makes Wigglytuff weak to Chuck and Bruno and mostly neutral elsewhere.
Stats: Wigglytuff has an enormous 140 HP, although it's counterbalanced by somewhat average offenses and poor defenses and Speed, though Choice Specs can help it hit hard with special moves.
Movepool: Wigglytuff's movepool consists of Rollout at level 17 and Defense Curl and TMs to provide STAB moves or coverage, including Strength, Return, Fire Blast, Thunder, Charge Beam, Shadow Ball, and Blizzard.
Major Battles: Wigglytuff generally relies on super effective hits to KO opponents. In particular, it needs Fire Blast for Jasmine, Thunder for most of Pryce, and Blizzard for Clair's Dragonair. It can also claim a few KOs at the Elite Four with the same moves, but it will generally take out only a few Pokemon per member. Most of Team Rocket can be covered with Defense Curl + Rollout, though the inaccuracy may prove problematic.
Additional Comments: Jigglypuff levels up quickly and sees some use against major opponents due to its wide TM learnset and Choice Specs, but isn't very consistent, as it relies almost the entire time on inaccurate moves to KO opponents. Out of the ten Safari Zone default area layouts, only one has neither the Meadow nor the Swamp area, thus you are very likely to be able to obtain Jigglypuff on your first visit to the Safari Zone.
Jynx
Availability: Late-game (Ice Path, level 22, 10% (daytime) or 5% (morning and nighttime)).
Typing: Ice lets it hit Clair and Lance's Dragon-types super effectively, while also hitting the other opponents neutrally. Its Psychic typing serves no offensive purposes, as it learns no Psychic moves for the main game.
Stats: Jynx has a great Special Attack and is relatively fast, but is very frail physically.
Movepool: Jynx's special movepool is poor, as it consists only of Blizzard, Focus Blast, and Shadow Ball through TMs. Hail through TMs makes Blizzard accurate and Lovely Kiss through relearner can be useful against more difficult opponents.
Major Battles: Jynx can net a few KOs against Will with Choice Specs Shadow Ball, but against the rest, it simply has to rely on Choice Specs Blizzard and hope that it doesn't miss. Hail can remove the inaccuracy issues, but this means that Jynx cannot use Choice Specs and it also doesn't have the bulk to set it up safely.
Additional Comments: Jynx comes late and is reliant on the inaccurate Blizzard to achieve anything in the remaining fights, though it hits very hard when it lands a Choice Specs-boosted attack.
Kangaskhan
Availability: Mid-game (Safari Zone (Wasteland area), levels 15-17, 10% (morning and daytime)).
Typing: Normal makes Kangaskhan weak to Chuck and Bruno and neutral elsewhere.
Stats: Kangaskhan's stats, save for Special Attack, are all-around decent, giving it an edge in most neutral matchups.
Movepool: Kangaskhan mainly relies on Strength as its STAB move as it cannot be caught in a Friend Ball. Kangaskhan also has Fake Out upon capture to deal some chip damage turn one. Other useful moves include Crunch and Outrage at levels 31 and 37 and Dig, Earthquake, and Shadow Claw through TMs.
Major Battles: Kangaskhan performs reasonably well against most opponents by using its strongest move, with Will and Bruno being the only matchups that are somewhat mediocre for it. Notably, Kangsakhan can beat Chuck's Poliwrath if it has Early Bird and Clair's Dragonair with Outrage.
Additional Comments: While Kangaskhan is an excellent Pokemon, the Wasteland area appears in only six out of the ten default area layouts, thus you may not be able to get Kangaskhan until after three in-game hours have passed since completing Baoba's test. Furthermore, Kangaskhan is fairly hard to catch in a Safari Ball due to its low catch rate.
Koffing
Availability: Mid-game (Burned Tower (1F), levels 14-16, 35%).
Typing: Poison doesn't hit any major opponent super effectively and makes the Will matchup bad, though it provides a resistance against Chuck, Koga, Bruno, and most of the Team Rocket Executives.
Stats: Koffing's stats aren't very good and is stuck with them for most of the game due to its late evolution. It can deal decent damage with Choice Specs, though.
Movepool: Koffng relies on Sludge at level 24 as its STAB move, which upgrades to Sludge Bomb through TMs. Thunder and Fire Blast through TMs provide coverage, while Assurance at level 15 can be useful for Morty.
Major Battles: Koffing relies on super effective damage to OHKO most of the opponents its facing. This means that it's incredibly dependent on the inaccurate Fire Blast and Thunder to take down foes efficiently. In particular, this allows it to be potentially good against Jasmine, Pryce, and most of the Team Rocket Executives, though it can also claim a few KOs elsewhere with Choice Specs Sludge Bomb.
Additional Comments: Due to its low stat and late evolution, Koffing is forced to rely on inaccurate moves and super effective damage to contribute meaningfully, making it all-around unreliable for an efficient run. Weezing can be caught directly at the Safari Zone's Marshland area to circumvent the Koffing stage, but as the area is not guaranteed to be one of the six areas you get on your first visit, this alternative proves unreliable.
Krabby
Availability: Mid-game (Olivine City, Good Rod, level 20, 37%)
Typing: Water is resisted by Lance and Clair and is neutral elsewhere, with it making the matchup against Jasmine's Magnemite worse.
Stats: Krabby has a very high Attack stat, but a mediocre Special Attack. It is also very frail specially, though it can live some physical hits thanks to its 115 Defense.
Movepool: The line doesn't learn any physical Water moves for the Johto part, so it's stuck with Surf as its best option. Its physical coverage includes Return, Strength, Dig, and Rock Tomb through TMs. Whirlpool can also be taught for HM utility if Kingler has free moveslots.
Major Battles: Kingler can sweep Jasmine with Dig and Surf and also sweeps Archer. It can take out Pryce's Seel and Dewgong and Chuck's Primeape. Kingler is unhelpful against the Elite Four, as it struggles to take out more than one threat per opponent.
Additional Comments: Krabby is an unimpressive Pokemon as it's unable to use its Water STABs effectively due to a lackluster Special Attack, while also struggling against many opponents due to its poor special bulk. If possible, try to catch it in a Friend Ball to give it an 80 BP Return immediately.
Lickitung
Availability: Mid-game (Safari Zone (Mountain area), levels 15-17, 20% (morning and daytime)) or late-game (Route 44, levels 24-26, 15%).
Typing: Normal makes Lickitung weak to Bruno and Chuck and leaves it with mostly neutral matchups elsewhere.
Stats: The line mostly has average stats, though Lickilicky is partcularly bulky with 110 HP. However, the line's Speed is pretty low.
Movepool: Lickitung's strongest STAB move will be either Strength or Return through TMs, depending on if it was caught in a Friend Ball. It can be taught Dig for coverage, which can be upgraded to Earthquake through TMs. Lickitung caught at level 24 or lower comes with Defense Curl, which combines well with Rollout at level 33, which is needed to trigger an evolution.
Major Battles: Before evolution, the line's only positive contribution is KOing Jasmine's Magnemite with Dig. After evolving, Lickitung generally relies on Defense Curl + Rollout to defeat opponents, particularly seeing some success against Will and Koga.
Additional Comments: The Mountain area appears in only five out of the ten default area layouts you can get on your first visit, so if you do not get the Mountain area, it is better to go for the Route 44 one, in spite of the later arrival. In general, Lickitung is fairly weak until evolution and is reliant on Rollout consistently hitting to perform well, making it an unreliable Pokemon as a whole. Own Tempo is the preferred ability to improve matchups against confusion-inducing Pokemon, most notably Will's Xatu.
Marill
Availability: Mid-game (Mt. Mortar 1F (Entrance), 1%, level 15).
Typing: Pure Water means Marill is neutral to most matchups aside from Clair and Lance.
Stats: Azumarill has excellent 100 / 80 / 80 bulk and good Attack with Huge Power, though its Speed and Special Attack are low.
Movepool: Marill starts with Defense Curl and Rollout, which is what it will be using frequently until the Waterfall HM after seven badges. Otherwise, Double-Edge at level 33 or Return and Dig via TMs can be used for coverage. Azumarill can learn all three Water HMs as well as Rock Smash and Strength, though it will typically have room for only one of these endgame.
Major Battles: Azumarill is ineffective for Morty due to Curse stalling Rollout strategies. Azumarill can utilize Strength for Chuck and Choice Specs Surf for Jasmine's Steelix. Against everyone else, Defense Curl and Rollout can be used, but Azumarill will get worn down, though there is a few Pokemon League targets Azumarill can pick off with Waterfall.
Additional Comments: Huge Power is the recommended Ability, but getting Huge Power is unlikely unless you get a Marill from the Johto's Safari Zone's Meadow area later. This method is unreliable though, as the Meadow area is available in only five out of the ten default area layouts meaning you may have to wait three in-game hours after completing Baoba's first test. Regardless, Marill's rarity or late availability hold it back from the higher tiers.
Misdreavus
Availability: Mid-game (Cliff Cave, level 20, 5% (nighttime)).
Typing: Ghost makes Misdreavus useful against Will, but weak to Karen's Dark-types, being mostly neutral elsewhere.
Stats: Misdreavus's special stats and Speed are mostly average with somewhat poor physical bulk, though Choice Specs helps it hit decently hard. Since you cannot obtain a Dusk Stone until after beating Lance, it is stuck with those stats for the main game.
Movepool: Misdreavus's only STAB option is Shadow Ball through TMs. Other useful TMs include Charge Beam and Thunder + Rain Dance. Perish Song at level 41 can be used on the last Pokemon of each member, if needed, assuming that Misdreavus can outspeed or live an attack from the Pokemon and Psybeam at level 23 provides some coverage against Chuck, Bruno, and Team Rocket.
Major Battles: Misdreavus is unreliable for Chuck and Jasmine and can get a KO or two against Pryce. At the Elite Four, Misdreavus can KO a few of Will's Pokemon but is unlikely to sweep due to not outspeeding everything and generally doesn't KO many Pokemon from the rest of the Elite Four.
Additional Comments: Misdreavus's somewhat unimpressive performance, coupled with its rarity and significant reliance on TMs to perform well, make it a mediocre choice for an efficient run. On the other hand, Misdreavus does level up quickly thanks to its Fast growth rate.
Mr. Mime
Availability: Mid-game (Safari Zone (Forest area), level 16 or 17, 15% (morning and daytime)).
Typing: Psychic makes Mr. Mime useful against Chuck, Koga, Bruno, and most of Team Rocket, but not so great against Jasmine and Karen's Dark-types.
Stats: Mr. Mime is relatively fast with great Special stats, but its other stats are subpar.
Movepool: Mr. Mime doesn't have a STAB move until Psybeam at level 25, which upgrades to Psychic at level 39. It learns a variety of coverage moves, most notably Charge Beam, Shadow Ball, and Focus Blast through TMs. Encore and Substitute at levels 11 and 29 can heavily assist Mr. Mime in some fights
Major Battles: Mr. Mime can win many fights just by hiding behind a Substitute and then locking the opponent into a status move with Encore; opponents that this strategy can be useful against include Chuck's Poliwrath, Pryce's Piloswine, Clair's Dragonair, and Will's Xatu and Slowbro. In addition, it crushes most of Team Rocket, Chuck, and Bruno's Pokemon with Choice Specs Psychic STAB. In addition to beating Pryce's Piloswine (by locking it into Hail), it can also use Seel as a set up fodder for Charge Beam boosts, as its Icy Wind is too weak to break Substitute.
Additional Comments: Mr. Mime's performance is excellent, but due to the Forest area appearing in only five out of the ten default area layouts you can get upon your first visit, you may not be able to get it until after three in-game hours have passed since completing Baoba's test. In addition, it is fairly hard to catch in a Safari Ball due to its low catch rate.
Oddish (Bellossom)
Availability: Early-game (Ilex Forest, level 5 or 6, 60% (nighttime)).
Typing: Bellossom's pure Grass typing is all-around unhelpful, being a double-edged sword against Pryce and being resisted by a majority of the major opponents.
Stats: Bellossom can hit decently hard with Choice Specs and 90 Special Attack. It also has good Special Defense, but it is very slow and the other stats are average.
Movepool: Oddish starts out with Absorb, which upgrades to Magical Leaf at level 23 (Bellossom) and Solar Beam through TMs, and learns Acid at level 9, which can be upgraded to Sludge Bomb through TMs. Sunny Day through TMs combines well with Solar Beam and Chlorophyll. Sleep Powder at level 17 can assist Oddish against more difficult opponents.
Major Battles: Bellossom can be helpful against Chuck with Magical Leaf ignoring Primeape's Double Team and can get a few KOs against Pryce. From then on, Bellossom's attacks will be resisted quite often and Bellossom's contributions will be restricted to the few opponents that don't resist Grass, unless it gets lucky with sleep.
Additional Comments: Bellossom's poor offensive movepool and Grass typing make it all-around ineffective against most of the main game. Furthermore, Sun Stone can be fairly difficult to obtain due to having to win the Bug-Catching Contest, but once you do obtain it, evolve Gloom immediately, as Gloom doesn't learn any useful moves by level. As a whole, it is better to evolve Gloom into Vileplume due to retaining the Poison typing and having a higher Special Attack, both of which can improve several matchups.
Onix (No Trade)
Availability: Early-game (Violet City, in-game trade for Bellsprout).
Typing: Onix begins with the Rock / Ground typing, which gives it good STAB and resists for the early Gym Leaders. After beating Whitney, though, the typing becomes mostly irrelevant, as Onix won't have the stats to take full advantage of it later on.
Stats: Onix's 45 Attack makes it relevant only for the early-game and prevents it from threatening most opponents later on. Its titanic physical bulk is counterbalanced by poor HP and Special Defense.
Movepool: Onix learns Rock Throw at level 9, with Dig and Earthquake through TMs being its Ground STAB options. Screech at level 6 is useful against bulky opponents and Curse at level 38 can increase its power, though it won't hit very hard even with extensive set up.
Major Battles: Onix is great for the first three Gym Leaders, though it should avoid being higher than level 10 against Falkner due to disobedience. Screech helps greatly against Whitney's Miltank, but after this, Onix becomes a deadweight, with its only useful contribution being KOing Jasmine's Magnemite. Even with Curse, its Elite Four performance is subpar, as it will struggle to OHKO opponents at +6 and has a hard time setting up that many Curses anyways.
Additional Comments: Onix is one of the best Pokemon for the early-game, but if left unevolved, is basically a deadweight for the rest of the game. The traded Onix, Rocky, comes with an IV spread of 25/20/25/15/15/15, Hasty nature, and Sturdy.
Pineco
Availability: Early-game (Route 34 (Headbutt), 30%, levels 9-10)
Typing: Bug type doesn't do Pineco any favors before evolution. Forretress's Bug / Steel type is mediocre for Jasmine, but good for Pryce and Clair to an extent. Against the Pokemon League, Forretress is decent for Will, Koga, and some of Karen's Pokemon. Elsewhere, it is average.
Stats: Pineco and Forretress have good Attack and excellent Defense with average stats elsewhere aside from Speed.
Movepool: Pineco starts with Bug Bite for STAB as well as Selfdestruct. Pineco picks up Bide at level 20, which will be its method of offense for most major battles. Payback at level 33 can serve as decent coverage, as can Dig and Return via TM. Forretress's best Steel STAB is Gyro Ball at level 45, though this may be too late to be helpful. Spikes at level 28 or Toxic Spikes via move relearner are generally irrelevant.
Major Battles: Pineco can Selfdestruct on Whitney's Miltank and potentially use Dig for Jasmine. Forretress with Bug Bite is decent for Will as well as Karen's Umbreon, but otherwise it fails to do much in major battles aside from Bide.
Additional Comments: Pineco's late evolution and situational use in major battles hold it back from being consistently useful. Consider catching Pineco in a Friend Ball to make Return powerful immediately (it usually hits harder than Bug Bite at full power).
Phanpy
Availability: Late-game (Route 45, level 20, 10%) (HG).
Typing: Ground typing is only useful against Koga and is neutral at best elsewhere, with Clair's Water moves being particularly dangerous.
Stats: Donphan has excellent physical stats (120 each), but its other stats are rather poor.
Movepool: The line mostly gets by with its starting moves of Rollout and Defense Curl with Strength through HMs providing some coverage. Phanpy's only STAB options are Earthquake through TMs and Magnitude through relearner after evolving.
Major Battles: Donphan is useful for Koga by KOing Muk with Earthquake and the Bug-types with Defense Curl and Rollout and is fairly good for Bruno, especially if you set up Defense Curl to handle their attacks better. It can also KO Karen's Houndoom but fails to do much elsewhere.
Additional Comments: Phanpy's late arrival and small amount of good matchups make it an unremarkable Pokemon.
Qwilfish
Availability: Mid-game (Route 32 (Good Rod), 5%, level 20)
Typing: Water / Poison gives Qwilfish resistances to Chuck, Bruno, and Koga. Qwilfish has shaky matchups for Jasmine and Pryce and outright loses to Will while being average elsewhere.
Stats: Qwilfish has good Attack, Defense and Speed, but is dismal on the Special side.
Movepool: Rollout is the only decent move Qwilfish has for a long time, as Surf is weak due to Qwilfish's lacking Special Attack and most other options are too situational. Qwilfish gets good STAB via the Waterfall HM later on though.
Major Battles: It can take out most of Morty and Clair with Rollout, but otherwise Qwilfish is too ineffective against most bosses due to lacking stats and moves.
Additional Comments: Due to requiring a backtrack and not having good Special-oriented stats, Qwilfish is outclassed by almost all other Water types with Rollout being its sole distinguishing trait.
Seel
Availability: Mid-game (Route 47 (surfing), levels 10-20, 30%).
Typing: Water / Ice provides it with a type advantage against Clair and Lance and mostly neutral matchups elsewhere.
Stats: Seel's stats, save for the average Special Defense, are very low and is stuck with those for most of the game due to a late evolution level. Even after evolving, Dewgong's offensive stats aren't anything to write home about either.
Movepool: Seel can be taught Surf immediately, with Aurora Beam at level 27 and Blizzard through TMs providing STAB options for Dewgong. Encore at level 13 can help Seel in some matchups by locking its opponents into status moves.
Major Battles: Seel beats Pryce's Piloswine and performs well against Team Rocket once it evolves. Its Aurora Beam, even with Choice Specs, fails to OHKO any of the notable Dragon Pokemon, so it will need Blizzard there. It's somewhat mediocre against the Elite Four, claiming a KO or two at best against each member.
Additional Comments: The line's mediocre offensive stats, coupled with Seel's late evolution level, prevent it from being very useful, as it struggles to OHKO its opponents even when hitting super effectively. Either Ability is fine for Seel, since Thick Fat doesn't see much use aside from against Pryce and Hydration is only useful when combined with Rain Dance.
Shellder
Availability: Mid-game (New Bark Town (Good Rod), level 20, 3%).
Typing: Water / Ice is useful against Clair and Lance and is mostly neutral elsewhere, save for Chuck and Bruno, which hit it super effectively.
Stats: Cloyster has a monstrous Defense, but its offenses and Speed are average (though its Special Attack can be boosted by Choice Specs) and its HP and Special Defense are poor.
Movepool: Cloyster's only relevant moves are Surf, Blizzard, and Rain Dance through TMs. Spikes at level 28 after evolving Shellder can provide some support. Whirlpool can also be taught for HM purposes.
Major Battles: Cloyster has some success against Morty and sweeps Jasmine, while also performing somewhat well against Team Rocket. Its end-game performance is subpar due to the abudance of special attackers.
Additional Comments: Due to a mostly unimpressive performance, along with the inefficiency of obtaining a Water Stone from the Pokeathlon Dome and Slow growth rate, Shellder is all-around a mediocre Pokemon in comparion to other Water-types. Shellder doesn't learn any useful moves by level, so evolve it immediately. Shellder can also be caught on Route 41 with a Good Rod with a 10% encounter rate but at the cost of skipping Morty.
Snubbull
Availability: Mid-game (Route 38, 1%, level 13).
Typing: Pure Normal means Snubbull and Granbull are decent for Morty, bad for Chuck and Bruno, and average elsewhere.
Stats: Granbull has excellent 120 Attack and mostly average stats otherwise save for a dismal 45 Speed.
Movepool: Snubbull starts with Bite and picks up Headbutt at level 19, though Return via TM is its best STAB. Granbull can get the elemental fangs via the move relearner, with Ice Fang being the most relevant. Granbull can learn Dig and Payback via TMs, and Strength via HM can suffice until Return is powerful enough.
Major Battles: Despite having Bite for Morty, Granbull is ineffective there due to Curse whittling it down. In most major battles, Granbull will generally only take one Pokemon down due to its low Speed being detrimental to sweeps.
Additional Comments: Snubbull's Run Away Ability changes to Quick Feet on evolution. Intimidate is generally more useful, but Quick Feet can work well with the Facade TM from the Goldenrod Department Store raffle on Fridays. Regardless, Snubbull's sheer rarity and painfully low Speed normally render it unviable despite good attributes. Consider catching Snubbull in a Friend Ball to make Return powerful immediately.
Sudowoodo
Availability: Mid-game (Route 36 (Squirt Bottle), level 20).
Typing: Rock typing means Sudowoodo is neutral to Morty, but weak to Chuck and Jasmine. Sudowoodo is decent for Pryce and Will and has a favorable.matchup against Koga. Sudowoodo loses to Bruno but is okay for Karen and Lance aside from its Speed.
Stats: Sudowoodo is a decent physical tank with average HP and Special Defense, but it is very slow.
Movepool: Rock Throw eventually upgrades to Rock Slide at level 33. As for other options, Sudowoodo starts with Low Kick, gets Sucker Punch at level 41, and can relearn Wood Hammer if desired.
Major Battles: Sudowoodo loses to Morty due to his speedy use of Curse, but Sudowoodo can take on one of Jasmine's Magnemite with Dig. Sudowoodo beats Pryce's Dewgong but loses to his Pilowswine and Clair due to its Speed. Sudowoodo can hit various targets weak to Rock at the Pokemon League, but its slow Speed will be a deterrent.
Additional Comments: Sudowoodo has a decent movepool and is by no means unusable, but the Rock typing and Speed are big problems. Rock Head is the preferred ability to negate Wood Hammer recoil.
Swinub
Availability: Late-game (Ice Path, levels 21-24, 40%).
Typing: Ice / Ground is useful for Clair, Koga, and Lance, but leaves Mamoswine weak to Bruno.
Stats: Mamoswine has an excellent Attack and good HP, though its other stats are average at best.
Movepool: Mamoswine relies on Dig via TM until it learns Earthquake at level 40. Piloswine can be retaught Ice Fang and Ancient Power, the latter of which is required to evolve Piloswine. Ice Shard at level 28 provides useful priority, and Ice Fang can be substituted with Avalanche via TM for more power in exchange for negative priority.
Major Battles: Mamoswine sees success against Clair's Dragonair with Ice Fang and can typically nab a few KOs against each Elite Four member bar Bruno. It struggles to do much against Lance, as Ice Shard isn't enough to OHKO the Dragonite and they tend to outspeed Mamoswine, especially if using Avalanche.
Additional Comments: Swinub comes late and is very weak until it evolves into Mamoswine. Furthermore, in order to use Mamoswine to its full potential, you need two Heart Scales; one can be found on Route 32 with Surf (hidden), while a second one can be obtained by breaking rocks with Rock Smash at Cianwood until you get one or from the Pokeathlon Dome for 1000 points on Sunday and Wednesday.
Tangela
Availability: Late-game (Route 44, level 23, 30%).
Typing: Grass isn't useful for the remainder of the game due to not hitting anything super effectively. It is also particularly bad against Koga.
Stats: Tangrowth has excellent offenses and is bulky physically, but its Special Defense and Speed are poor.
Movepool: Tangela starts out with Growth and can be taught Solar Beam and Sunny Day through TMs, which combine well with Chlorophyll. Sleep Powder can be learned through the move relearner. Ancient Power is learned at level 33 and is needed to evolve Tangela.
Major Battles: Tangrowth can sweep some fights by putting the opponent to sleep, then setting up enough Growths and then sun and from there on it can attempt to sweep with Solar Beam. This strategy is particularly effective against Clair, Will if you lure in Slowbro, and Bruno but you may need to heal it if going for many Growth boosts and isn't very effective against the other opponents.
Additional Comments: Tangela comes late and is rather inefficient against the remainder of the game due to needing extensive setup to sweep. Its only saving grace is its ability to sweep Clair if given enough support.
Teddiursa
Availability: Late-game (Route 45, 10%, level 20) (SS).
Typing: Pure Normal makes Ursaring average for what is left of the game aside from a negative matchup against Bruno.
Stats: Ursaring has poor Speed. but outstanding Attack with good stats everywhere else.
Movepool: Aside from Faint Attack (which Teddiursa starts with), all of Ursaring's natural learnset is irrelevant. TM-wise, Return is Ursaring's best STAB outside of status, with Payback and Earthquake being adequate coverage. If you plan to activate Guts or Quick Feet, Facade from the Goldenrod Department Store raffle on Friday is recommended.
Major Battles: Ursaring fairs best for major battles with either of its two Abilities activated beforehand, giving it a 50% boost to Attack (Guts) or Speed (Quick Feet), preferably through being Poisoned. However, Bruno is still a bad matchup regardless.
Additional Comments: The best way to status Ursaring is through battling either gender of Nidoran on Route 35 with Poison Point, though this will require healing from walking to major battles. Teddiursa's biggest flaw is low Speed, so Pickup (which turns into Quick Feet upon evolution) is recommended.
Togepi
Availability: Early-game (Violet City, Elm's Aide (Egg)).
Typing: Togepi's pure Normal typing usually changes to Normal / Flying as Togetic around Chuck. Togepi is neutral to Bugsy and Whitney, but good for Morty on account of a Ghost immunity. Togetic is shaky for Chuck and Jasmine while being average for Clair and most of the Pokemon League aside from Koga.
Stats: Togetic has good Special stats and Defense, but its other stats are poor.
Movepool: Togepi starts with Extrasensory and picks up helpful support moves in Yawn and Encore at levels 15 and 19 respectively, with the only other relevant natural move being Ancient Power at level 33. Togetic also gets quite a few good TMs like Hyper Beam (STAB), Roost and Fire Blast.
Major Battles: Togepi loses to Bugsy and Whitney due to lacking stats, but is decent for Morty and Chuck's Poliwrath due to Extrasensory (Primeape has Rock Slide). Togetic is decent for Jasmine with Choice Specs Fire Blast if it can outspeed Magnemite. The only endgame opponent Togepi is particularly relevant for is Koga thanks to Fire Blast and Extrasensory (Bruno will wear it down).
Additional Comments: Togepi isn't a terrible Pokemon, but it is very inefficient between hatching it and requiring a friendship evolution. Serene Grace is the preferred Ability, but this is determined when you receive the Egg. Even if you can overlook its issues, low Speed and average overall stats make Togepi difficult to use effectively.
Venonat
Availability: Early-game (National Park (Bug-Catching Contest), 10%, levels 10-16).
Typing: Bug / Poison makes Venonat average for Whitney and Morty while Venomoth is favorable to Chuck and weak to Jasmine. Clair is average for Venomoth while Will is shaky. Venomoth is decent for Koga and average for Bruno, Karen and Lance.
Stats: Venomoth has average stats apart from good Special Attack and Speed.
Movepool: Venonat picks up Psybeam at level 25 and Sleep Powder at level 29, with Signal Beam at level 37 and Sludge Bomb via TM providing STAB. TM-wise, Venonat can learn Silver Wind from the Goldenrod Department Store raffle on Saturday and Roost as Venomoth.
Major Battles: Venonat will be too weak for Morty in spite of having Psybeam, but Venomoth can fare better for Chuck with Choice Specs Psybeam. Venomoth is ineffective against Jasmine and average for Pryce and Clair, though it can beat Will's Exeggutor. Venomoth is good for Koga with Choice Specs Psybeam, but doesn't have other good matchups beyond Karen's Umbreon and Vileplume (Bruno has super-effective coverage)
Additional Comments: Either ability is great: Compound Eyes makes Sleep Powder 97.5% accurate, but Tinted Lens pairs well with Choice Specs. Venonat is a decent Pokemon, but it is hard to use effectively until it evolves due to its weak stats and movepool.
