Does anyone else get an unreasonable attachment to their starter Pokemon? I'm about 99% sure I'm going to be replacing my Chesnaught with a Ferrothorn because of the crazy resistances but I feel like I'm being mean to the little dude who was with me since the beginning. Does anyone else get this weird feeling?

Maybe it's cuz I watched the anime as a kid but I just feel sad thinking of my poor Chespin in the computer :(

Yeah, I usually have an attachment to my starter.

I neither greatly like nor greatly dislike my Greninja but I feel like it's there to stay as well.

Not sure why I care to have the starter but it feels wrong to not have it in my active party. Like I wouldn't take the main character out of my party in a JRPG even if I didn't like that character much.

Also Greninja has surf, so there is that.

I never really thought about it over the years, but I guess I do too.

I haven't used my Delphox since the third gym. I've moved on. She is at peace with this.

@superwristbands: Yeah I really feel like I should keep in him there, but I haven't even really used him all that much. I've been wrecking fools with my Alakazam, Snorlax, and Tyrunt, so I haven't really needed to use Chesnaught. I've also been digging my Pangoro for my fighting so it just feels like Chesnaught doesn't have a slot on the team anymore. But goddamnit I love him;_;

I have an unreasonable attachment to the Pidgeot that was the first Pokemon I caught. Same thing happened in Fire Red.

Usually, though, I'll have an attachment to the Pokemon that I had when I stopped playing the game rather than the ones that I had when I started. I still have a sub-par Gardevoir from Gen 3 that I use and plan to transfer over when I've beaten the story.

Yeah, totally. I kinda have the opposite problem that you have, though. Where you can't seem to find a use for your starter anymore, I think I'm too reliant on my Greninja. Both he and Charizard lead my party in levels by about 10. I'm thinking of boxing both until a few others catch up, and then carrying on with a few different teams for the rest of the game. That way I don't have to have two Dark-types on the same team, they can each have their own spot on different squads.

I'm starting to have less attachment to starter Pokemon now unless they are really good late game. Greninja is cool, but I don't think it's great for battling. All my best Pokemon are my starters though. Really wish Pokemon Bank would hurry up and come out.

Yes, I'm pretty sure I'm gonna keep my Frogadier until the endgame. Probably my Charmander too, but I'll most likely breed it for egg moves and Natures and train another one later.

Yeah, especially with the original starters. I've been replaying the original Pokemon and I dropped my Charmander. I felt weirdly guilty - As if I just went back in time and drop kicked the Charmander loving kid version of me.

Yeah I always keep the starters through to the end of the game and beyond.

Always felt that the starter is your main dude and thus always kept him/her at a higher level then my other pokemon (exp share is making this slightly difficult).

@redyoshi: Yeah dude I pretty much broke that habit in Black/White. I was treating these games like Red/Blue where the starter Pokemon are orders of magnitude stronger than the stupid other stuff that's hanging out - it's crazy how good some of the other pokemon you can catch are now if you take the time to level them up. Also I had to learn to use buffing/debuffing abilities, which I never used to do in the older games. For instance, I gave my Tyrunt Hone Claws so he can buff his attack like crazy, and then lay down stealth rock and use rock tomb. Combined with his already stupidly high attack, it absolutely wrecks every trainer I've come across.

I have never once replaced my starter in all the years I've been playing Pokemon, even when replaying. The only exception is a few times during the post-game.

I knew a guy who would played Pokemon Red entirely with his starter pokemon. He didn't even bother to catch other pokemon.

It was kind of dumb, but really it's the game's fault for structuring exp to easily pool into a single pokemon efficiently.

Starters are fun to have because they evolve and change at a good pace while being easy to use, but I have no qualms these days about boxing one in order to mix up my team.

I still remember playing Pokemon Gold for the second time or so and, while thinking about what pokemon to trade out for a new recruit, realizing that I'd already used Quilava once and didn't need to keep it with me. It did feel weird to box it at first, I'd admit.

@quid_pro_bono: I think I'll also be weaning myself off that reliance pretty soon, even if the ninja frog is quite the badass. This is the first one I've been really invested in since Silver, and I wasn't exactly very strategic minded back then. I've dabbled in each new generation since then, but it all got a bit same-old, same old - so I'm trying to condition myself more towards that way of battling that you mentioned. Setting up traps, building movesets working towards your team's advantages, it's all pretty cool. I used to think anything that wasn't an attack was just useless, like why bother using them if I can just attack and end the battle faster. It's a bit overwhelming how much it's grown since then!

I ignored my starter this time because if Pidgey is in the game, then it's my main pokemon lol. I love Pidgey too much.

@redyoshi: Yeah I kind of played the last few generations in a haze, not even bothering to beat the Elite Four. But I'm chomping at the bit for Y, and a lot of my friends are playing which helps immensely.

I used to think that using Leer and then Scratch was dumber than Scratch and Scratch, but now it's a huge difference. Also they've done a much better job at balancing the game so you don't overlevel the wild Pokemon constantly and there is a lot more diversity in types. I've been having some of my Pokemon go down fighting wilds, which has really never happened to me before.

Usually I would complete the "story" with my starter before tucking it away from the post game madness, where all the fun IV breeding and EV training happens, but this generation I ended up stuffing my poor little Delphox into a box early on, as my original team ended up way too over leveled after only a couple badges. Taking advantage of the pokemon-aime exp boost, o-power exp boost, and the revamped exp share really makes the pikamons level up insanely fast.

I might just bring back Delphox when I get to the Elite Four. Just wouldn't feel right wrapping things up without her there.

Over-training your starter at the expense of everyone else is a pretty common mistake, especially among younger gamers (like I was when I played Blue). More than a decade later I'm picking up my first Pokemon game (LeafGreen) in ages, and it takes me way longer to get through because I obsess over catching everything in each area and making sure my party is balanced.

@mewarmo990: Oh man, I'm the exact same way. 25 hours in and I just got my 3rd badge. A friend who's played 18 hours just got his 6th badge...

Once I reach the breeding center they are just all fodder for my pokemon wishes. The only thing my starter pokemon can get gratification of is they will be pleasured and making eggs for me for years to come. I'm sure they themselves will find love with another of there's of the opposite sex or a Ditto but fuck man I need to get them pokemon. GOTTA CATCH'EM ALL!

I have literally never not build my team around my starter in every Pokemon game I've ever played.

I have never taken my starter pokemon out of my party ever in any of the pokemon games, expect for when I need to breed it for poke eggs.

Pretty much this.

The wild Pokemon are a surprising nuisance this time around, and I don't mean in the old way where you couldn't take a few steps in a cave without running into Geodude or Zubat. I find myself having to do a lot of guess work on just what an unfamiliar Pokemon's weakness is, because their designs don't really betray as much anymore. Then, taking dual-typing into account, they may look like they specialize in a certain type, but they'll also be resistant to their traditional weaknesses. I could always look at a wiki, but EXP share kinda makes this game easier anyway, getting an advantage like that the first time around feels like cheating myself out of the experience.

It's getting hard for me to justify having overlapping types on my team now just because I like a design, so as I said I'm training different teams because I have too many favorites. So, I'm also 25 hours in, but with two badges and I'm just about to get my third. I definitely hit a wall against these fighting types I'm facing now, because my Kirlia came in a bit late and she isn't up to par, and Greninja, of course, has a big weakness to Fighting-types and she's the one I've been relying on. I'm hoping as I move along, I'll have a clearer idea of what my "main team" will be, 'cause I don't wanna be 40 hours in before I even get HM Fly.

Once I beat the Elite 4 I have a sense of accomplishment for it and feel fine when I stick him in a box for the rest of his life.

Just my Charazard. I have not liked any of the starter pokemon since.

@redyoshi: Oh dude, my Golett swept the fighting gym by itself. No Pokecenter stops, no nothing. Since he's ground/ghost the only enemy that could even hurt him was the Hariyama, but Golett shadow punched his ass before he could do anything.

@quid_pro_bono: It's normal. It's like getting attached to your pets. Having them for a while can really create a bond. :)

Maybe in the first game. After that I do feel a bit guilty for leaving the starter but then I don't care. Unlike some however I don't bother having the best party. Since the games are pretty easy I did enjoy catching legendary and other rare pokémon but sometimes I'd never use them because they were overpowered. I like having a party with the pokémon I want be playing at that moment for whatever reason. Of course I try to keep the party balanced.

I do feel attachment for some 1st generation monster though. I know I'll eventually have a Gengar in my team and it'll probably never leave the party :p

I don't even care if the pokémon is weak, we're all... friends. Right? lol

Honestly, that's the reason I don't like Pokemon. Or many games like it.

When I played Pokemon, I played it thinking it was going to be like other JRPGs and I was assembling a party. When my bulbasaur became outclassed by other, better pokemon, I just stopped playing because I didn't want to continue on with characters I didn't like and had no real attachment to. I know I was just playing the game wrong, but still. I don't like games like that, much. Largely because I develop STRONG ties with my characters in games where I can name and customize them.

I will probably keep Charizard in my party until the end of time, if that answers your question.

@edsone: Yeah everytime I start to think about playing competitively online and I read an IV breeding/EV training guide I decide I'd rather just battle my friends

@quid_pro_bono: Golett, huh. I knew I probably should've given that thing more of a look but the one I caught has a crappy ability and I don't wanna go back through that cave again so I can catch a different one. Welp, I'm committed to using Kirlia now anyway. Tiny dancer vs karate men and sumo dudes, get hype.

Yeah and it's an even bigger problem with this game since I have 3 starters. I have a Chesnaut and a Blastoise in my party and I kind of want to dump Chesnaut but I can't. I had the same problem with my Torchic but eventually I dropped it for a Talonflame since it covers fire needs and can use Fly.

I get attached to some starters but not others. My Blaziken, Torterra, and Feraligatr are all pretty special Pokemon to me, but I don't really care about my Emboar, Bayleef, Serperior, or Empoleon.

I used to. Now I like to take the ones that I think look really cool instead of the one they made me pick. So usually I get my starter to their final evolution and let him hang out in the box.

In a way, I almost feel more attached to my non starters now because I traveled the world to assemble a team of the baddest asses and it actually makes me want to use more than just one guy the whole time.

I should maybe breed a Chesnaught with a better Nature but maaan...

I've boxed my Greninja for now. His nature isn't ideal, and I didn't bother to max out his Super Training. I'll breed some Froakies later on and go from there.

@redyoshi: It's a huge PITA to catch one with Iron Fist instead of Klutz, but the Iron Fist ability powers up all punch based moves by 20% and he revolves around punches. Right now he has Shadow Punch for the Ghost STAB, Power-Up Punch to deal with Dark Pokemon and because it raises attack 1 stage every time you use it, Magnitude for Ground STAB and Iron Defense. He doesn't evolve until 43 so he feels a little underpowered where I am now (just got the fourth badge) but he's pretty cool so far.

@redyoshi said:

I'm breeding Adamant Goletts (with Iron Fist) as I type this, I can hook you up if you want.

Haven't played the new one but not matter what I rarely take out my starter from all the pokemon games. Blastoise is usually a staple of all my parties.

Not since Blue.