"Whew, finally over!"
"With this, I've secured a spot to choose a starter Pokémon."
Hearing the referee announce the result of the battle, Ethan let out a small sigh of relief.
After his match ended, the eight winners from the winners' bracket were revealed. Only the eight from the losers' bracket remained to be decided to officially form the tournament's Top 16.
"There isn't a single easy opponent in the Top 16..."
"Now that everyone's shown their cards, the next battles are going to be insane."
Ethan looked at the list of the sixteen finalists and sighed. Still, since he'd already secured a spot to choose a starter Pokémon, he felt much more at ease.
In addition, as one of the winners from the main bracket, he had already guaranteed himself a place in the Top 8. Even if he lost the next match, he would still have another chance in the losers' bracket to fight for a spot in the Top 4.
With that in mind, he finally had the time to calmly review the list of the sixteen Pokémon chosen as starters this time.
Without a doubt, the twelve traditional starter species from the first four generations were among them: Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle, Chikorita, Cyndaquil, Totodile, Treecko, Torchic, Mudkip, Turtwig, Chimchar, and Piplup.
In addition to those twelve classic starters, four more were included: Pidgey, Shinx, Aron, and Trapinch.
Without exception, all of the Pokémon chosen by the League as potential starters had three evolutionary stages, didn't require special conditions to evolve, and possessed great potential.
"Those four extra ones aren't bad either..."
"But if possible, it'd be best to pick one of the original classic starters."
"After all, if they were chosen as regional starters in the Pokémon world, there must be a reason behind it."
"Plus, those starters have exclusive moves: Grass Pledge, Fire Pledge, and Water Pledge, as well as Frenzy Plant, Blast Burn, and Hydro Cannon. In terms of potential, they're unmatched."
Ethan thought carefully. According to the composition of his sandstorm team, the starters that best fit his lineup were Mudkip, Turtwig, and Piplup.
Mudkip, whose final form is Swampert, has the Water and Ground types. Its natural durability and well-balanced stats made it an exceptional Pokémon. The Water and Ground combination offered an overwhelming advantage, with its only weakness being a quadruple vulnerability to the Grass type.
Thanks to its excellent defenses and attributes, Swampert was ideal for a tank role. In the games, it was notorious for its annoying stall tactics using Stealth Rock and Roar—strategies that irritated countless players.
On top of that, Swampert had a Mega Evolution. Upon mega evolving, it became one of the most powerful physical attackers among Water-type starters.
Mega Swampert gained an incredible boost in physical strength, and with its Swift Swim ability, it became incredibly fast under rain. In such teams, it turned into an unstoppable attacker capable of smashing through defenses and sweeping entire teams.
In the real world, Swampert could sense changes in waves and sea winds with its fins to predict storms. Its arms were as hard as rock and could knock down opponents with a single blow. Its strength was such that it could even tow ships—a true powerhouse.
In short, Mudkip was undoubtedly one of the most suitable starters for Ethan. However, due to its popularity, it was almost certain to be chosen early. If Ethan didn't get a good position in the selection order, his chances of obtaining it would be very low.
On the other hand, Turtwig evolved into Torterra, a Grass- and Ground-type Pokémon. In the games, Torterra wasn't particularly practical: weak to Fire and Flying types, and with a quadruple weakness to Ice, which made its defensive role unreliable. In terms of utility, it was completely outclassed by Venusaur.
Finally, Piplup evolved into Empoleon, a Water- and Steel-type Pokémon. In terms of appearance, Empoleon was undoubtedly one of the most elegant and majestic. But in performance, it didn't stand out as much.
Its typing gave it resistance to ten different types and only weaknesses to Fighting, Ground, and Electric, granting it considerable defensive potential.
However, Empoleon had few defensive moves and instead learned a wide variety of offensive ones, putting it in a somewhat awkward position. Moreover, its mediocre speed made it less appealing.
Still, aside from those three starters that could fit into a sandstorm team, Ethan had another interesting option in mind.
That Pokémon was Venusaur—the old companion of Tyranitar.
Venusaur, with its Grass and Poison typing, could perfectly cover the weaknesses of Grass, Water, and Fighting types. In addition, it was immune to the move Toxic and could put heavy pressure on Water-type Pokémon. With its excellent defensive capabilities, it was an ideal support partner for Tyranitar.
Venusaur also stood out for its strong recovery abilities; even under sandstorm weather, it could hold its ground thanks to its regenerative moves.
And most importantly—Ethan still had a Toxic Orb. Neither Meltan nor Cacturne could make full use of it, but the one who could unleash its true potential was a Poison-type Pokémon.
Venusaur, being part Poison-type, could absorb the poisonous energy contained within the Toxic Orb and amplify its Poison-type moves to the fullest, drawing out their complete power.
Of course, before making a final decision, Ethan planned to review the data and characteristics of each Pokémon. If any of the others showed exceptional talent, they could also become his ultimate choice.
(End of chapter)