#preevolution

I was looking at my lineup of Poketagonists for every region so far and each team is made up of Starters or pokemon who could be considered "Starter Adjacent" but then that leaves each team with a 5 person party. Pokemon usually come in a team of 6 though, so I decided to bring in the baby Pseudo-legendries. Each of them are not as initial members of the team but characters who end up joining the team later and fill in whatever role is not already being filled on the team

Unova team has a Swashbuckler, an Alchemist, 2 Samurai, and a Spy. They are sorely lacking in Spellcasters so I decided to give them a Witch. She is a Witch of the Starless Shadow. Deino's are blind creatures of the dark, so Dark or Light hardly matters to her, but to everyone else she becomes the creature that bites in the darkness and spreads fear in the night. If you can't see what's in the dark, then ANYTHING could be in the dark. I decided to call her Sibyl.

Shiny Porglet and Shiny Subby with a Cake

Been excited to share this one for a while, so here it is! My Latias/Latios preevolution, Latyke! I've seen a few notable versions of a preevolution and I didn't want to just copy their ides, especially since they didn't quite fit with what I imagined for one.

I wanted Latyke to feel a lot like a blank slate that grows into what it's meant to be and to feel very inexperienced and...well, like a baby. It evolves at level 30 into either Latias or Latios completely at random and is actually genderless when it hatches. A friend of mine thought that would be a neat concept and I thought it fit in well with the whole 'being born a blank slate and coming into its own and finding its own identity' idea I was going for.

Fakemon disegnato dalla mia fidanzata lucy, spero vi piaccia

I was looking at my lineup of Poketagonists for every region so far and each team is made up of Starters or pokemon who could be considered "Starter Adjacent" but then that leaves each team with a 5 person party. Pokemon usually come in a team of 6 though, so I decided to bring in the baby Pseudo-legendries. Each of them are not as initial members of the team but characters who end up joining the team later and fill in whatever role is not already being filled on the team

There was no avoiding this...Hoenn actually had 2 Pseudo-legendaries, the Bagon line and the Beldum line, so I need to include them both which means Hoenn gets a team of 7 but in this case they fill the same slot because the two of them are partners and work in tandem. Beldum has a strong defensive type and they are intelligent, but as a Beldum they can only naturally learn Tackle. All Bagons innately have a powerful desire to fly, so they will run off of cliffs and hit their heads over and over again bonking their heads trying to get stronger to evolve. With Beldum, Bagon gets the means to fly, someone who can lead them, and a shield that can protect them from Fairies, Ice types, and other Dragons. With Bagon, Beldum has someone who can fight for them, and protect them from Fire Types. He is Bagon's Sword. I want to call the Bagon "Sama" Arabic for Sky and the Beldum "Sahkr" Arabic for Solid Stone

A New Challenger touches the Bacon! They are a preevolution of the Past Paradox Salamence; Roaring moon. There is actually a lot going on in this character: All of the Past Paradox pokemon incorporate tropes around a pop culture or simplified idea of prehistoric life, It's all very vibes based so they have some dinosaur and caveman-looking designs. They are hunched over, they have an underbite, a big ridged forehead, and are decorated with feathers which many therapod dinosaurs actually have. While not part of their body, the cloth looks something a caveman or Tarzan might wear, like a leopard print cloak, but also Roaring Moon has some traits of Aztec Mythology (It's like a Feathered Dragon/Serpent, but not Quetzalcoatl, with the association to the moon it could be based on the Aztec myth of the Moon Goddess who wants to eat the Sun mixed with a myth from the Philippines of a Dragon who devours the moon) and Elite Aztec Jaguar Warriors would wear Jaguar pelts or armor meant to resemble a Jaguar to strike fear in their enemies. It also shows the wearer's strength and hunting prowess being able to take down this predator. They are also carrying a sickle like the sickle toe claw on a Raptor but as a tool that they crafted themself by hand.

I was looking at my lineup of Poketagonists for every region so far and each team is made up of Starters or pokemon who could be considered "Starter Adjacent" but then that leaves each team with a 5 person party. Pokemon usually come in a team of 6 though, so I decided to bring in the baby Pseudo-legendries. Each of them are not as initial members of the team but characters who end up joining the team later and fill in whatever role is not already being filled on the team Team Johto has a good mix of skills, so I decided to give them a new member who is straight forward. The Larvatar line are based on Godzilla and generally Kaiju tropes, so I decided to lean into her Japanese culture and make her a Noble Samurai. Samurai are particularly good at not staying down for long, which also describes Godzilla fights where even if he's overpowered, he keeps getting back up and pressing his opponent till they give in. Her weapon is a Kanabo "Oni Club" made from Peach Wood which is a strong wood but also considered holy, and studded with a mix of Iron, Silver, and Bronze, which all have properties that effect or ward off different magical beings. The Hearts, the Pink Colors, and the Flowers tend to read to us in the western world is very feminine but in Japanese culture they are all symbols of a Warrior: The hearts are not Love Hearts like we see them in western culture but are meant to be a stylized depiction of a Pig's snout representing Courage, Protection, and being willing to Charge Forward with Reckless Determination!

The color Pink, especially in reference to the Sakura Cherry Blossom is meant to to represent the ideal Samurai. Their Life is Short but they should go out gloriously and without regret. Live in the moment as brilliantly and brightly as a Cherry Blossom. Kimiko is from a high-class Noble Samurai family. She knows how to behave with proper company like a noble lady, but she is immature and enjoys being a spoiled brat and messing with other pokemon and getting away with it because of her status, if she keeps messing with you then that probably means she likes you and wants to hang out more and play.

I call them Iron Spike, an Unofficial preevolution to the Paradox Tyranitar Iron Thorns. I don't know if they will be a member of the Johto team or just a Rival to Kimoko the Larvatar. Fun Fact: Samurai and Cowboys existed around the same time but they are also almost complete opposites. Samurai were hereditary warriors and retainers to a noble Lord who lived and died by their honor and service to their masters. Katana's were certainly not the only or main weapon used by actual Samurai but thematically it works as a representation of a Samurai. It's Traditional, often passed down from one generation to another, and takes time to learn and hone one's skill. Cowboys were Working men who are infamously informal and fiercely independent. Cowboys are almost universally associated with a weapon of choice as well being their revolver. A Revolver is an Industrial weapon, almost anyone can get their hands on one and use them immediately.

Though they are very different they also have some bridges that connect them. They are both emblematic of their respective cultures at a particular time and by the end of their lifespans were pushed aside to the wilderness and abandoned for progress. Also while not as prominent to Cowboys as the Samurai's Bushido code, there were codes of Honor and Manners among Cowboys like agreeing to a fair duel.