Ash’s Strongest Pokemon: The countdown!

[wolvie616]

Ash’s Strongest Pokemon: The countdown!

Just a prestatement. I spent about a week researching all of Ash’s battles, pokemon, strategies, and movesets. This is just my opinion on his Pokemon’s strength, in terms of rank. Many of these spots were decided by slight margins, and one could make a case for many of these pokemon to move up and down the list accordingly.

Without further ado, let’s get on with the countdown!

38) Scraggy - Having just hatched out of it’s egg, and knowing only Headbutt and Leer, it’s not very powerful to say they least. It will definately grow stronger though.

37) Larvitar - Also a baby Pokemon, it should not be powerful. It beats out Scraggy by knowing more moves, and having a rather strong Hidden Power.

36) Haunter - It’s one move, Lick, isn’t all that impressive. It’s evolved though, so we give the spot to him over Scraggy and Larvitar.

35) Sewaddle - This position might change. Great movepool so far, but his attack on Pikachu was mostly unsuccessful, putting her in this spot.

34) Pidove - Rated above Sewaddle for putting up a better fight against Pikachu, as well as her role in Snivy’s capture and battle experience.

33) Tepig - Again, Ash’s Unova team is rated lower as they are less experienced, and will possibly move up as time goes on. I put Tepig here due to it’s relatively shallow movepool. Although it is doing better in battles than the rest of the Unova team mentioned, and it has learned Nitro Charge, as of now, the other two starters are more powerful.

32) Oshawott - Due to his battle streak, as well as powerful Shell Blade and Aqua Jets, I place him as the second strongest Unova Pokemon as of now.

31) Torkoal - Despite multiple battles, it’s battle record is even worse than Torterra’s! With only 2 wins and 1 draw, it might have the worst record of all of Ash’s veterans. His movepool includes Overheat and Take Down though, and it had an impressive battle with Registeel, but that’s not enough to redeem it from all the other battles, most notably his battles with Steelix and Darkrai.

 

[wolvie616]

30) Snivy - Though it’s newer than Torkoal, I place Snivy above him for a few reasons: Her impressive defeat of Pikachu, Tepig, and Oshawott before finally succumbing to Pidove, her impressive battle against Janovy and Pururiu, and finally her powerful moves at such a low level, including Leaf Storm. Snivy earned her number 30 spot.

29) Butterfree - Ash’s first Pokemon also had a relatively good win streak for it’s short time with Ash, defeating Raticate, an army of Beedrills, and Staryu. His effective use of Stat moves like Sleep Powder over power moves also puts him a notch above Snivy and Torkoal in my book. To be honest though, these three positions are interchangeble.

28) Aipom - Focus Punch, Swift, and it’s impressive avoidance of Ash for about 3 episodes put it above the others. Also, an impressive take down of Paul’s Chimchar as well as Gardenia’s Roserade.

27) Primeape - This pokemon accomplished much in a short amount of time, including Ash vocally reconsider using it in a Gym Battle, and An impressive takedown of every G1 fighting type in the Prix, including Machamp and Hitmonlee

26) Lapras - Despite a lack of official battles, Lapras more than makes up for it with it’s Team Rocket Battles and impressive takedown of the Tentacruel gang, becoming leader of it’s herd as well as tying with Drake’s powerful Gengar earn it points as well.

25) Totodile - One of Ash’s most impressive unevolved pokemon, It’s unique battling style makes up for it’s lack of impressive moves, and has allowed to take down top tier pokemon, such as Kingdra and Charizard. For this, Totodile earns the coveted number 25 spot.

24) Buizel - Yes, this block will have a few water types in it, and that’s okay. They’re very closely tied in terms of strength, it seems. With 5 powerful moves that were all used skillfully, to being skilled in contest battles as well, Buizel’s seen it all. Large battles against Lucario, Floatzel, and Gastrodon, as well as defeating Pikachu, Piplup, and Glameow on it’s first appearance give Buizel props.

23) Glalie - The only reason he is this high up the list is due to his battling record and movepool. During the ever grand conference, he went undefeated, drawing and winning all his matches. This is made more impressive when you realize the only moves he knows are Double Team, Headbutt and Ice Beam! So for this untapped potential of a pokemon, Glalie tops the rest.

22) Bayleef - Character wise, Bayleef is among my favorites. Battlewise? She’s meh. She only knows a few moves, primarily Vine Whip and Razor Leaf. She proved herself in matches against Bugsy and Chuck, as well as Houndoom. Her unorthodox Battle Style also does her favors.


21) Gible - Draco Meteor. Dig. Rock Smash. Dragon Pulse. With these moves, despite being untested in battle, managed to overcome the Shuckle that gave Donphan and Noctowl much trouble, as well as hold his own against Darkrai for quite a while. Not bad, Gible. Not bad at all.

 

[wolvie616]

20) Pidgeot - Ash’s first flying type is also his weakest. This is not Pidgeot’s fault; it’s merely the product of having been unused since the days of Red and Blue. This bird was used in countless battles against team rocket, fought in Pewter and Fuschia Gyms, defeated a Rhydon with Double Edge, despite a heavy disadvantage, and defeated it’s archrival Fearow. We saulte and miss you, Pidgeot.

19) Torterra - Ah, Torterra. He’s certainly a conundrum. He was doing so well when he started out. Great moves, great speed, and so much more. He even won many battles he was in. But then what happened? He evolved. He got more powerful moves, like Rock Climb, Leaf Storm, and Synthesis. But he had trouble adjusting to being a more defensive Pokemon. Perhaps you can chalk it up to bad luck with it’s opponents, which included Drapion, Hippowdon, Rhyperior, Honchlrow, and Electivire, but our poor Torterra got showed up in close matches each and every time. Still, out of respect of his moves, the closeness of the battles, and his past record, we award Torterra the number 19 spot.

18) Muk - Muk is Ash’s most unorthodox battler. With only 3 moves, a few appearances, and a nasty smell to it’s name, one might wonder how it got up so high. The answer is in it’s battles. Defeating the infamous HAX Bellsprout, and it’s showings against Gary’s Scizor and Blastoise. He has been used solely in leagues, and it’s never outright lost a battle. Due to this, it’s defensive battle style that lets it take damage and deal it, and it’s untapped potential, Muk breaks into the top 20.

17) Corpfish - Corpfish is one hell of a battler. It’s also the most dynamic water type Ash has ever owned. Why? Because it DOESN’T USE WATER GUN (perish the thought!). Instead, Corpfish beefs up on the mid power moves, like bubblebeam, Crabhammer, and Vicegrip. It’s also Ash’s only pokemon to win a match in every battle it’s been in, including wins against Machop, Torkoal, Ludicolo, Sealeo, Seaking, Luvidisc, Swalot, Golduck, Alakazam, and Swampert. It’s not higher due to the level of the majority of these battles, and it’s meh movepool.

16) Quilava - Ash’s old Cyndaquil has sure come a long way, hasn’t it? From not being able to control it’s own flame, it’s gone on to defeat such heavyweight gym and League pokemon like Dewgong, Scyther, Nidorina, Clefairy, Armaldo, and Gastly. It also has some versatile and powerful moves, including Eruption, Aerial Ace, Flame Wheel, Swift, Agility, and Flamethrower. Don’t underestimate Quilava, because he burns. Good job, my man.

15) Kingler - Oh, Kingler. You’re unforgettable. If you were around in the mid 90’s and watched Pokemon, there was no way you forgot seeing Krabby evolve, and proceed to beat the ever-living daylights out of Golbat, Seadra, and Exeggutor, most notably shooting off the then-fabled Hyper Beam to seal the deal. After that, it proceeded to be a powerhouse in the Indigo League, before being sent back to Oak. Though we haven’t seen it in a battle for a while now, it’s sheer powerset, impressive vitcories, and size make it into Ash’s top 15, and his second most pwoerful water starter, without a doubt.

14) Staraptor- Ash’s most recent Fully Evolved Bird is quite the impressive pokemon. Close Combats, Brave Birds, and Aerial Aces earned it many a victory, including an evolution victory agaisnt Paul’s Honchkrow, which was Ash’s first win over Paul. It also defeated pokemon like Machoke, Cherubi, Weavile, Roserade, and more. Not bad for the Starly who couldn’t learn aerial ace before evolving.

13) Swellow - Considered by many to be the Best of Ash’s birds, Swellow didn’t have so swell a start (Bad pun intended). As a Tailow, it wasn’t able to win a single match, even when having the advantage, like its matches against Roselia and Machop. After evolving in a fierce battle with Jessie’s Dustox, it went on a rampage. It tore through a Shiny Swellow, destroyed Tate and Liza, Juan’s Whishcash, Venomoth and Scizor, Gligar, Hariyama, Donphan, and Arcanine. It also managed to do quite well against the likes of Latios. Nice one, Swellow.

12) Donphan - Before the Battle Frontier, poor Phanphy never really had a chance to shine. It’s only match was against Pryce’s Dewgong, and it lost that match. After Hoenn though, Donphan got a chance to shine, and shine it did! It was only used majorly against Seviper, but all it’s battles in the filler, along with it’s killer moves like Rollout, Earthquake, Take Down, and Hyper Beam, showed it to be a truly monstrous addition to Ash’s arsenal. Combine that with it’s typing, which is relatively rare for Ash, and you have a hidden weapon unlike many. unfortunately, it got jobbed in the Sinnoh League in order to develop Gible, but don’t lose faith in Donphan due to that.

11) Noctowl - Yes, I rank Noctowl above Swellow for the top bird in Ash’s Arsenal. there are a few reasons why. Despite being an abnormal Noctowl (It’s Shiny as well as about ⅔’d the size of a normal Noctowl), it proved to be a boon in the form of it’s psychic powers. It was only really used in battle against Morty, where it swept quite nicely, and against Conway, where it took down Lickilicky swiftly, and fought well against both of his other pokemon. His moves are the best for all of his birds though. Noctowl knwos Extrasensory, Air Slash, Sky Attack, Confusion, Peck, and more. This more specialized form of battle allow it to be slightly above his more agressive, physical birds (Swellow and Staraptor), and ultimately allow Noctowl to be crowned the top bird in Ash’s aviary.

 

[wolvie616]

10) Tauros - For the sake of argument, we’re going to assume the Tauros Ash uses is the some one out of his thirty. This Tauros is a power player, and is called upon for the most important of battles. It’s debut battle was a Championship match, for pete’s sake. In it, it battled fiercely against Dragonite and Gengar, and managed to topple Venusaur before being defeated. In a Johto episode, it was also considered one of the finest specimen of Tauros seen in quite a While it’s also preformed amiably against the like of Nidoqueen, and did well against Anabel, managing to take down a Metagross, which is no small feat. It’s also the owner of the OHKO wonder, Fissure, as well as strategic moves like Double Team. Combine this with it’s proven strength, and we have a senior pokemon respecably earning a spot in the top 10.

9) Gliscor - Gliscor is undoubtedly one of Ash’s top dogs now. Even without a move of it’s own type, Gliscor has proven indespensible. It’s few matches have all been heavyweight matches, and though it’s record isn’t spotless, the only time it’s been outright outclassed was against Snorver, who has a 4x advantage over him. It’s tangled with Bastiodon, Scizor, Torterra, and more. It’s most impressive victory, however, was Fire Fanging the powerhouse of Paul’s team, Drapion, into submission. Combine that with it’s plethora of moves, including X Scissor, Steel Wing, Stone Edge, and Giga Impact, as well as it’s Ground and Aerial battle capabilites, and you have the most versatile of all of Ash’s pokemon, as well as one of his most powerful. This is more than enough reason for Gliscor to take the number 9 spot.

8) Squirtle - Ash’s original Water Type is also his best, hands down. Speed, power, and style all combine in the first water type pokemon ever. Knowing moves like Water Gun, Hydro Pump, and Skull Bash, Squirtle takes on the toughest of opponents. It’s managed to defeat pokemon like a Thunderbolt wielding Starmie, Onix, Electabuzz, Ninjask, and many more, as well as battling pokemon like Dragonite, Mewtwo, and other powerhouses. It’s also the leader of the Squirtle Squad, where it’s constantly trained. It’s years of experience also lend to it’s power, comfortably putting Squirtle in the Number 8 position.

7) Heracross - Ash’s second fighting Type pokemon, and his first Johto Pokemon also happens to be one of his Strongest. Despite being part of Pokemon’s greatest comedic duo alongside Bulbasaur, his jovial manner belies the true nature of this beast. It quickly proved itself a powerhouse in matches against pokemon like Donphan and Scizor, before being Oak’d. It now reappears to clean house in League matches, taking down the likes of pokemon like Magmar and Kricketune, and putting in heavyweight bouts against heavy hitters like Venusaur, Blastoise, and even Darkrai. This speaks nothing of it’s moves, which might be the best in terms of sheer power, including moves like Megahorn, Focus Punch, and Hyper Beam.

6) Infernape - Ash’s Sinnoh Powerhouse, Infernape is nothing to sneeze at. Mach Punch, Dig, Flare Blitz, and Flamethrower are some crazy powerful moves. It has an impressive history of wins as well, defeating Conway’s Heracross, Paul’s Ursaring (twice!) , Barry’s Staraptor, Two of Fantine’s Pokemon, two of Byron’s pokemon, Two of Candice’s Pokemon, Two of Volkner’s pokemon, and most impressively half of Paul’s team in the Quarter Finals, most notably his Electivire. Many of these wins were due to his hidden card; his Blaze Ability. Unfortunately, it’s this same semi-reliance on Blaze that keeps him out of the top 5.

5) Snorlax - One of Ash’s most stalwart Pokemon, He was caught all the way back in the Orange Islands. At his disposal are a variety of powerful moves, including Ice Punch, Mega Kick, Rest, Hyper Beam, and his notorious Body Slam. It’s wins include topping powerful pokemon such as Kingdra, Medicham, Hariyama, Grumpig, defeating a third of Harrison and Gary’s teams, and much, much more. Snorlax is undisputably in the top 5. Congrats to the king of the gluttons!

4) Bulbasaur - Yes, that Bulbasaur. The oldest pokemon Ash currently owns, after Pikachu, Bulbasaur is nothing to sneeze at. This is the same Bulbasaur who stood down a gang of Ivysaur and a Venusaur to defend his choice to not evolve, all while learning Solarbeam! It took down multiple pokemon it had a disadvantage against in Kanto, including the likes of Exeggutor and Scyther, and even defeating a whole team in the Pokemon Princess competition. It was used in multiple gym battles and league matches, winning against even more pokemon like Beedril, Meganium, Dusclops, and Solrock. And with moves like Vine Whip, Razor Leaf, Solar Beam, and it’s infamous Leech Seed, is it any wonder that even Charizard looks to Bulbasaur as the number 2 of Ash’s Pokemon, second only to Pikachu

3) Sceptile - Ash’s only Starter from Hoenn, Sceptile has reason to be in the Top 3. Powerful moves like Leaf Storm, Solarbeam, Agility, Bullet Seed, Pound, and it’s signature Leaf Blade allow for deadly precision and power. It also has an impressive amount of victories under it’s belt. Pokemon such as Hariyama, Slaking, Altaria, Quilava, Walrein, Steelix, Shiftry, Claydol, and even Darkrai have all fell before it’s might. It’s battled as many legendaries as Charizard, including Deoxys, Latios, and Regirock. Kudos to you, Sceptile.

2) Charizard - There will be controversy, but in my mind, there is no doubt Charizard has always been the Number 2. Ash’s constant last resort pokemon, he knows more moves than any other one of Ash’s Pokemon, including Flamethrower, Dragon Rage, Steel Wing, Overheat, Dragonbreath, Mega Punch, and the legendary Seismic Toss. Famous wins against Half of Gary’s Team, Magmar, Claire’s Dragonite, and Articuno as well as other fierce battles such as Poliwhirl, Blaziken, Dusclops, Mewtwo, the original Legendary Birds, and Entei allow for Charizard to be number 2 over the likes of even Snorlax or Infernape.

1) Pikachu - Yes folks, was there any ever doubt? Taking down Regice as well as Latios, being Ash’s Signature Pokemon, being in nearly every battle ever? Impressive Iron Tail, Shocking Thunderbolt, Swift Quick Attack, and the Devastating Volt Tackle. Defeating Metagross and Dragonite, as well as other heavy duty pokemon like Rhydon, as well as being the one constant in the show, earn Pikachu the number 1 spot. This one’s a bit of a No Brainer, really. So congratulations Pikachu! We love the little electric rodent for a reason.

Hope you all enjoyed this countdown. Feel free to critique!

 

[KibaLG8]

Your first post has Spoilers by the way.... This Forum should be up to date by DP190. Just thought I'd point it out....Totodile seems worse actually & Sceptile does deserve a high spot for its victory over Darkrai.

 

[munchlaxboy]

I was going to do something like this with the Original Series only, primarily based on battle record. I'm going to do it when I'm done with Johto on my re-watching journey.

But good list. Top 5 was very well done.

 

[Torpoleon]

Your first post has Spoilers by the way.... This Forum should be up to date by DP190. Just thought I'd point it out....Totodile seems worse actually & Sceptile does deserve a high spot for its victory over Darkrai.

Yeah, so this thread should probably be moved and I do agree that Totodile is a lot worse! I know Totodile was caught before Snivy, but I can tell that Snivy is WAY stronger.

I don't know. Charizard & Pikachu have had their fair share of Legendary Pokémon wins, so Sceptile is fine being in the Top 3. Sceptile & Charizard have beaten the same amount of Legendary Pokémon (one, I think) and Pikachu has definitely beaten more than one.

 

[(P.O.K.E.M.O.N)]

swap sceptile with infernape'

 

[Ash-kid]

Charizard is probably Ash's strongest pokemon. It defeated many strong opponents, has many powerfull moves and starred in league battles.
So true, Pikachu may be Ash's most important pokemon, but in a one on one battle, he has no chance against Charizard.

 

[GalladeX]

I don't see why Infernape's Blaze would impair how it places in the countdown.
I mean, Charizard is only as strong as it is because it trained in the Charrific Valley, and you're not notching him down for that...

 

[randomspot555]

I don't see why Infernape's Blaze would impair how it places in the countdown.

It's not like this is some big project. It's just one guy runnning through all the Pokemon.

 

[CuriousHeartless]

Wow, I like most of this. But, Snorlac is definately stronger than Bulbasaur. Otherwise, I think that you need to take out Larvitar and Haunter because, officially, Ash didn't own them.

 

[Blaziryu]

As of now, Ash's strongest Pokemon has to be Charizard. Pikachu would've been number 1. But since its level been reset by Zekrom, it more likely Ash's 4th or 5th strongest as of now.

 

[SaveOurPokemon]

You know what, I'll take a stab at a list, too. For the sole reason they've had so little time to prove themselves, I'll leave out his BW team.

27) Butterfree- It's the unfortunate conseqeunce of not being used enough. It hardly ever battled in its 15 or so episodes. So... it takes the bottom. Sorry, Butterfree.
26) Primeape- It only battled once, but seemed to be strong in taking down Hitmonlee; nonetheless, it suffers the same fate as Butterfree.
25) Totodile- It may have defeated a Charizard, but it's movepool is anything but varied and it's been average at best in most of its matches. If it were to evolve, it would shoot up, but since that isn't the case...
24) Torkoal- It held its own against Registeel, but has been otherwise fairly unremarkable. Going from that impressive loss to a OHKO by Darkrai doesn't help.
23) Kingler- Again, we haven't seen it nearly as much as we would have liked, but it did very well in the Indigo league and also did well against Misty in the Whirl Cup.
22) Lapras- A strong and versatile water Pokemon, didn't battle much but proved its worth by tying with a tough Gengar.
21) Pidgeot- Again, didn't battle much, but was strong on numerous occasions. I wish it would return...
20) Tauros- Very solid Pokemon on Ash's roster, made a showing in the OI League, Silver Conference, and did well at BF.
19) Donphan- Another very sturdy Pokemon which served Ash well in BF. It's quick loss in the Sinnoh league humbles those achievements, however.
18) Noctowl- It's recent victory in the Sinnoh league shot this guy up. With new moves at its disposal, if it is used, it can only continue to go up.
17) Gible- Will eventually be a major powerhouse on Ash's team. Demolished Conway and held its own against Darkrai. For an unevolved Pokemon, what more could you ask for?
16) Corphish- Until rewatching the Hoenn league, I didn't realize just how strong Corphish was, getting quite a large amount of victories through each match. Disregarding Morrison's dilemma, it took out half of his team during their battle.
15) Glalie- Also made an extremely impressive showing during the league. It hasn't been used since, but should Ash need it I'm confident it will continue to do well.
14) Quilava- Evolving shot Cyndaquil way up the latter. It may have not gotten exactly the use we were hoping for in the Sinnoh league, but it has showed considerable promise, especially considering Cyndaquil dominating most of the Johto gyms.
13) Buizel- A very stellar, Bulbasaur-like Pokemon. While it may not be on the same plateau, it has garnished an impressive list of victories, doing well even against Paul.
12) Bayleef-Actally has quite a good track record. Single handedly beat Chuck, and did well against Harrison. If only it were used more...
11) Staraptor- One of his top birds, very strong and quick.
10) Torterra- Although it may not have done so well towards the end of DP, it certainly seems poised to become a powerhouse in the future.
9) Swellow- Ash's top bird. It had quite a long time to prove itself, fighting in several Hoenn gyms, league battles, and in the BF.
8) Gliscor- Definitely a great choice for Ash. Good movepool and proven strength.
7) Squirtle- Proven time and time again to come through when needed. Demolished Macy, did well against Drake, and didn't show any signs of slipping against Brandon.
6) Heracross- One of Ash's most dependable Pokemon that never goes down without a fight. Even with losses to Darkrai and Venusaur, it still showed its formidable strength, and of course, even more so during its victories.
5) Infernape- It may have received pretty much all of DP's focus, but I can't count that against him. Very strong, with a long list of victories.
4) Bulbasaur- I'd argue Bulbasaur is the Pokemon Ash is closest with besides Pikachu. Due to that, it's easy to see why he does so well every time he is called upon. It had it's share of losses in Kanto, but since then has absolutely wrecked house in every single one of its appearances. It turned the tables on Jackson, and took out half of Brandon's team. I only wish it could stay away from the lab, and return to Ash's team for good.
3) Sceptile- Sceptile barely edges his predecessor out., largely due to his defeat of Darkrai. Even so, as a fully evolved Pokemon with a great selection of moves, it stand as one of Ash's strongest.
2) Snorlax- Originally going to but Sceptile here, but rewatching his battles, Snorlax is such a force to be reckoned with it's not even funny. For its two callbacks in Johto, it did very well, and then proceeded to take out two Pokemon each on Gary's and Harrison's teams. It single handedly beat Greta, and was shown to earn Ash a win in the Sinnoh league. I actually don't think it's ever gone a match without a win.
1) Charizard- I don't think any explanation is actually needed, but Charizard has come through time and time again with the lone exception of against Brandon. With even more time since in the Valley, it's probably even stronger now.
0) Pikachu - Pikachu is simply unrankable. It's brought down 2 legendary Pokemon, defeated a Dragonite, and so many other powerful Pokemon, only to suffer some of the most bizzare defeats following them. Without any signs of consistency it's impossible to place him accurately.

And there you have it.