Pokémon: 5 Featured Pokedex (Nintendo Switch)

In the vast and ever-expanding world of Pokémon, with over a thousand creatures to catch and train, it’s easy for some fascinating and powerful Pokémon to get overlooked. While legendary dragons and popular starters often steal the spotlight, a true Pokémon Master knows that hidden potential can be found in the most unexpected places.

This guide shines a spotlight on five unique Pokémon from different generations, taking a deep dive into their strategic typings, game-changing abilities, and surprising evolutionary paths. From a classic Kanto brawler who found new life as a ghostly powerhouse, to a deceptive scorpion with a formidable final form, let’s explore the hidden depths and competitive potential of these incredible creatures.

Skorupi, the Scorpion Pokémon

First appearing in the Sinnoh region, Skorupi is a patient and cunning predator with one of the most effective defensive typings for a Bug-type Pokémon. Its unique combination gives it a surprising amount of durability and a powerful evolutionary line that has been a competitive threat for years.

Overview & Typing

Skorupi is a Poison/Bug-type, a combination that grants it an impressive set of resistances. It resists Fighting, Poison, Bug, Grass, and Fairy-type attacks, making it a sturdy opponent in many matchups. This typing leaves it with only four weaknesses: Fire, Flying, Psychic, and Rock. Its Pokedex entry notes that it burrows into the sand to wait for prey, a testament to the patient and defensive nature its typing provides.

Abilities Explained

Skorupi comes with two excellent defensive and offensive abilities. Battle Armor is a straightforward but highly effective ability that prevents Skorupi from being struck by critical hits, removing any chance of a lucky, high-damage shot from an opponent. Its other ability, Sniper, is purely offensive. It boosts the power of Skorupi’s critical hits from 1.5x damage to a massive 2.25x damage, turning it into a high-risk, high-reward attacker when paired with moves that have a high critical-hit ratio.

Evolutionary Path: The Drapion Twist

Skorupi’s true potential is unlocked when it evolves into Drapion. Upon evolution, it undergoes a dramatic and strategically brilliant type change, becoming a Poison/Dark-type. By shedding its Bug typing, Drapion loses its weaknesses to Fire, Flying, and Rock, and is left with only a single weakness: Ground-type attacks. This makes Drapion an incredibly difficult Pokémon to counter and a fantastic defensive pivot for any team. It retains its Poison typing for dealing with Fairy-types and gains the Dark typing for a powerful STAB (Same Type Attack Bonus) and an immunity to Psychic-type moves.

Mankey, the Pig Monkey Pokémon

A classic from the Kanto region, Mankey has been known for decades as a feisty and fragile glass cannon. For years, it and its evolution Primeape were largely overlooked in competitive play. However, the introduction of a powerful new third-stage evolution in the Paldea region has transformed this forgotten line into a terrifying top-tier threat.

Overview & Typing

Mankey is a pure Fighting-type, giving it a straightforward offensive presence. It hits hard and fast but often can’t take many hits in return. Its lore perfectly matches its gameplay: it lives in groups and becomes infuriated with loneliness, reflecting its aggressive and often reckless nature in battle.

Abilities Explained

Mankey’s abilities lean into its aggressive identity. Vital Spirit prevents it from being put to sleep, making it a reliable attacker against Pokémon that rely on moves like Spore or Sleep Powder. Its other ability, Anger Point, is a high-risk, high-reward option. If Mankey is hit by a critical hit, its Attack stat is instantly maximized to +6, turning it into an absolute monster capable of sweeping an entire team—if it can survive the initial blow.

Evolutionary Path: The Rise of Annihilape

For the longest time, Mankey evolved only into Primeape. But the game changed with the introduction of Annihilape, a powerful Fighting/Ghost-type evolution. This new typing is incredible both offensively and defensively, granting it immunities to Normal and Fighting-type attacks. Annihilape’s signature move, Rage Fist, starts with a modest 50 base power, but its power increases by 50 every single time Annihilape is hit by an attack, capping at a devastating 350 base power. This new evolution has single-handedly elevated the Mankey line from a forgotten classic to a dominant force in the meta.

Skitty, the Kitten Pokémon

Skitty is an adorable Normal-type from the Hoenn region, often found in the early routes of the game. While it and its evolution, Delcatty, may not boast the highest stats, Skitty possesses one of the most unique and strategically bizarre abilities in the entire franchise: Normalize.

Overview & Typing

As a pure Normal-type, Skitty has only one weakness (Fighting) and one immunity (Ghost). Its stats are modest, reflecting its role as an early-game companion. Its Pokedex entry describes its playful and easily distracted nature, as it’s known for chasing its own tail until it becomes dizzy.

Abilities Explained

Skitty has two possible abilities. Cute Charm is a simple ability that has a 30% chance of inflicting infatuation on any Pokémon that makes physical contact with it. Its Hidden Ability, Normalize, is where things get truly interesting. Normalize changes every single move Skitty uses into a Normal-type move and gives them a slight power boost. At first glance, this seems like a drawback, as it means Skitty can never hit for super-effective damage. However, it opens the door to some incredibly niche and clever strategies. For example, it allows Skitty to hit Ghost-type Pokémon with normally ineffective moves like Shadow Ball, or to spread paralysis to normally immune Ground-types by using a Normal-type Thunder Wave.

Evolutionary Path: The Supportive Delcatty

Skitty evolves into Delcatty using a Moon Stone. Delcatty continues the trend of having low base stats but a supportive and tricky movepool. When paired with the Normalize ability, it can become a unique utility Pokémon, disrupting opponents in ways they would never expect.

Beautifly, the Butterfly Pokémon

Beautifly is one of two possible final evolutions for the early-game Bug-type, Wurmple. Its evolution path is one of the most unique in the Pokémon world, relying not on stats or time of day, but on a hidden, predetermined value.

Overview & Typing

Beautifly is a Bug/Flying-type, a common combination for early-game butterfly Pokémon. This typing unfortunately comes with many common weaknesses, including Electric, Ice, and a devastating 4x weakness to Rock-type attacks like Stealth Rock. Its lore presents it as a gentle creature that feeds on the sweet pollen of flowers.

Abilities Explained

Beautifly’s primary ability is Swarm, a standard ability for many Bug-types. When Beautifly’s HP drops below one-third of its maximum, the power of its Bug-type moves is increased by 50%. This can allow for a surprisingly powerful comeback if it manages to survive a hit.

Evolutionary Path: The Wurmple Gamble

The most fascinating aspect of Beautifly is its evolution. It starts as a Wurmple, which evolves at level 7. However, its evolution is a gamble. Depending on a hidden, unchangeable number called a “personality value,” a Wurmple will either evolve into Silcoon (which then becomes Beautifly) or Cascoon (which becomes the Poison/Bug-type Dustox). There is no way for a player to influence this outcome, making every Wurmple evolution a small surprise.

Luxio, the Spark Pokémon

Luxio is the middle stage of the popular Shinx evolutionary line from the Sinnoh region. As the bridge between the cute Shinx and the formidable Luxray, Luxio is often overlooked, but it possesses the two powerful abilities that make its final form such a fan favorite.

Overview & Typing

Luxio is a pure Electric-type, a strong typing with only one weakness: Ground. Its design reflects its growing power, with sharp claws that course with strong electricity, capable of causing foes to faint with just a light scratch.

Abilities Explained

Luxio has two of the best abilities for a physical attacker. Rivalry is a situational but powerful ability that increases Luxio’s damage by 25% against opponents of the same gender, but decreases it by 25% against opponents of the opposite gender. However, its other ability, Intimidate, is one of the best in the entire game. Upon switching into battle, a Pokémon with Intimidate lowers the Attack stat of its opponent by one stage. This ability provides incredible utility, softening blows from physical attackers and allowing Luxray to safely enter the battlefield.

Evolutionary Path: The Mighty Luxray

Luxio evolves into Luxray, a powerful physical Electric-type with a sleek, menacing design. Luxray’s access to Intimidate makes it a staple of many in-game and competitive teams. It can serve as a defensive pivot, weakening opponents upon entry, and then follow up with powerful physical attacks like Wild Charge, making it a valuable and versatile member of any team.

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