Gen 8 Starters Evolution and Secondary Typing Predictions

[Gargoss]

The only thing I can see bad about this idea is that the base description makes it sound like an unholy combination of Donkey Kong and King K. Rool - I assure you, despite having the picture of its actual appearance in my mind, I'm in no way an artist, so I can't show what it would actually look like.

...So I'll just leave you with the King Kong Rool image in your mind, heheheh...
Someone do the mash-up, please!

 

[Dragon Pulse]

I'm unsure if this is real or not, but this image has been making rounds on my social media and it could potentially be the final evolutions of the starters.

View at your own risk: boards.4channel.org/vp/thread/37803130 (you will have to click the Pokéball to see it)

 

[ShadowForce720]

I'm unsure if this is real or not, but this image has been making rounds on my social media and it could potentially be the final evolutions of the starters.

View at your own risk: boards.4channel.org/vp/thread/37803130 (you will have to click the Pokéball to see it)

Well if these were real final evolutions of the 8th gen starters then I would be definitely picking Sobble as my starter, however weren't these confirmed fake already.

 

[DSDark]

Scorbunny is probably going to be a fast physical attacker and will either be Fire/Fighting or Fire/Fairy. But Fire/Electric and Fire/Ground would be cool!

Sobble is probably going to be a bulky special attacker (though not like Primarina) and will either be Water/Ghost or Water/Poison but Water/Psychic would be fun too

Grookey is probably going to be a strong physical attacker with decent bulk and speed and will either be Grass/Fighting or Grass/Rock but Grass/Dark would be fun!

I'd prefer a fast strong special attacker. Soccer players score from a far. Also We've had more physical fire starters then special

 

[Golden_Latias]

I'm unsure if this is real or not, but this image has been making rounds on my social media and it could potentially be the final evolutions of the starters.

View at your own risk: boards.4channel.org/vp/thread/37803130 (you will have to click the Pokéball to see it)

They're fake. The one with the Scorbunny evo by itself shows a Facebook and Twitter username next to the "Confidential" text.

Also, there's this.

Anway, regarding the starters, a Grookey evolving into a gorilla seems a little too obvious. Like, it's seemingly the first thing that comes to people's minds, and almost all fanart I've seen has Grookey going the gorilla route.

Having followed the hype cycles for every generation since Gen IV, I've learned that GF is never that obvious with the starters. What fans want or expect often ends up being completely wrong. GF seems to always find a way to throw a curveball. Like, remember last gen, when most people were expecting Popplio's evolutions to be inspired by clowns? Or the JRPG class inspiration for the Kalos starters, which I don't think was really that evident until their middle stages were revealed? Or Samurott being a thing??

With that being said, we also don't really have enough information on any of these starters to determine anything with any degree of accuracy. We haven't seen them battling or see their moves or really seen anything about them other than that one short trailer.

 

[Dragon Pulse]

They're fake. The one with the Scorbunny evo by itself shows a Facebook and Twitter username next to the "Confidential" text.

Also, there's this.

Anway, regarding the starters, a Grookey evolving into a gorilla seems a little too obvious. Like, it's seemingly the first thing that comes to people's minds, and almost all fanart I've seen has Grookey going the gorilla route.

Having followed the hype cycles for every generation since Gen IV, I've learned that GF is never that obvious with the starters. What fans want or expect often ends up being completely wrong. GF seems to always find a way to throw a curveball. Like, remember last gen, when most people were expecting Popplio's evolutions to be inspired by clowns? Or the JRPG class inspiration for the Kalos starters, which I don't think was really that evident until their middle stages were revealed? Or Samurott being a thing??

With that being said, we also don't really have enough information on any of these starters to determine anything with any degree of accuracy. We haven't seen them battling or see their moves or really seen anything about them other than that one short trailer.

Ah okay, thanks for the confirmation! I thought I'd share since I found them cool anyways (besides Scorbunny's).

 

[Gargoss]

I'm unsure if this is real or not, but this image has been making rounds on my social media and it could potentially be the final evolutions of the starters.

View at your own risk: boards.4channel.org/vp/thread/37803130 (you will have to click the Pokéball to see it)

That looks like someone just added their fake Water and Grass evolution designs onto the existing fake Fire evolution concept art, and claiming it as theirs, immediately making their designs impossibly fake.
If these were actually on the same concept art sheet, then that conclusively proves them all fake, as we know from Grookey's different international names that there is a clear musical theme in its design. Also, the bat shown in said concept art is a Baseball bat - if there were any sports-related theming for its evolutions, it would be based upon Cricket, not Baseball!

There is absolutely no chance these two extra designs are real, and they put into question the authenticity of the first one.

EDIT: Well, that solves that then - they're all fake.

 

[Mudster]

I looked to the speculated roots of the foreign language names to give thoughts on what these may evolve into:

Grookey
Japanese name is Sarunori, which according to Bulbapedia "may be a combination of 猿 saru (monkey) and ノリ nori (excitement, rhythm)." I do like the idea of Grookey turning into a drummer of some type - this thing could basically turn into the Pokémon version of Donkey Konga! Based on that, I wouldn't mind Grass/Fighting as Chesnaught was quite slow and defensive, whereas this thing could mix up those stats to be quicker and a hard(er) hitter. Grass/Steel might be nice too, it wouldn't be the first time they've given a starter a 4x weakness to one of it's fellow starters (e.g. Swampert). Fairy as an option too maybe (stranger things have happened), but will get onto that later when discussing Sobble.

Scorbunny
Japanese name is Hibanī, which according to Bulbapedia "may be a combination of 火 hi (fire), 火花 hibana (spark), and bunny." It is the potential of the word 'spark' here that makes me really hope for a Fire/Electric type. Scorbunny seems to be a fast Pokémon, and it would be nice to see this type combo apart from Rotom's heat forme. I really don't want to see fighting, and if we remember that last generation we all feared the worst when we saw Incineroar's leaked appearance, I'm hoping the plaster across the face is misdirection. I think whatever the case, it is going to look like something that plays ball sports, perhaps it has a 'tail' made of electricity/fire that it can generate and use as a projectile in either a football or basketball fashion.

Sobble
French name is Larméléon, which according to Bulbapedia may be a combination "from larme [tear] and caméléon [chameleon]". Here I don't think the names give much away, apart from confirming that Sobble is based off a chameleon, which is something we don't get from the English name. The Japanese and German names also seem to be based from this. I'd like to see Water/Ghost or Water/Dragon here. Dragon as a type has been balanced significantly since the introduction of fairy types in generation VI so I don't see this as such a big advantage as it was in the past. We also have precedent of past games neutralising one of the starters moves against another; Torterra's grass moves being neutral against Empoleon, however in that case admittedly the ground moves Torterra gained helped it still have an advantage. Dragon as a secondary type would mitigate the effect of Scorbunny gaining electric typing, plus if Grookey did become the second strong looking Grass/Fairy type after Tapu Bulu, the trio would be relatively balanced in their advantages over each other.

 

[Danhilt]

This one was made by Chostophe in Deviantart

Water/Psychic
HP: 100
Atk: 80
Def: 75
S.Atk: 120
S.Def: 90
Spd: 70
Total: 535

 

[Kirby Dragons]

Grookey needs to become a gorilla. There are too many skinny monkeys in comparison to bulkier ones.

 

[Orphalesion]

If Grookey becomes a gorilla I'm fine with it, always wanted a gorilla Pokemon. But(!) if it happens I don't want it to be a stereotypical "angry" gorilla. Yes, gorillas will fight off outsiders, but they are very intelligent and social animals (and chimps are much more aggressive than gorillas, to outsiders and to each other)
So if Grookey becomes a gorilla I'd like for it to become a "gentle giant", Grass/Fairy would still work with that idea.

 

[WhiteBlair]

With Sobble, it is the most interesting. You wonder if it will stay as a melancholic introvert, or grow out of its personality and become a confident creature like Lapras.

Scorbunny on the other hand, has what seems to be yellow, metal plates, on its nose and feet. It swiftly runs through the cog-wheel with sparks being heard and seen, then drifts the grass to generate fire on field with magnetic friction. I cannot see any possibility, but Fire/Electric, since my first impression of it in Direct.

 

[Ulicies]

I just realized that if Scorbunny becomes Fire/Electric, then everyone else needs a secondary typing to nullify each other's secondary type.

Grookey Grass/Steel
Scorbunny Fire/Electric
Sobble Water/Dragon


Scorbunny seems to be leaning toward Electric for many reasons: the yellow all over its body, its energetic disposition, and the little coincidence that soccer anime love animating dramatic kicks with electricity. Of course, receiving an Electric type would upset the balance, so in order to be given Electric dual-typing, Sobble would need a dual-type to resist Electric.

Assuming this theory is true, Sobble would either receive Ground or Dragon. Not only would Dragon be more interesting since we already have Swampert, but also I personally believe GF would want to stick to resistances rather than immunities for the starters. Therefore, Sobble will be Water/Dragon.

Rounding out the secondary typing resistances is Grookey with Grass/Steel. Again, technically we could also be looking at a possible Grass/Fairy, but in order to stick with resistances rather than immunities, Steel is more likely. Grookey being steel would make sense if it became a silverback gorilla. The Steel type incorporates sound into some of its moves, so it would also fit with its rhythm/music theme. Plus, Grookey would literally become a metalhead, which would be hilariously punny. Another observation about Grookey is its orange accents on its limbs and face, which could change into silver to signify his Steel typing.

 

[sooterkin]

A lot of people seem to not want Grookey to become a bulky gorilla, but I wouldn't mind that as long as it wasn't too slow. I could see a Lemer since it tail looks like it will stay prevalent in the designs.

Scorbunny will probally be a hare ( maybe Mad March Hare from Alice in Wonderland?)

Sobble could go either the Nesie or Welsh Dragon route in my opinion. Though i'd like it to have a ghost ship theme in it's design.

...watch them stay Monotypes after all the insightful speculations XD.

 

[shadowF]

I just realized that if Scorbunny becomes Fire/Electric, then everyone else needs a secondary typing to nullify each other's secondary type.

Grookey Grass/Steel
Scorbunny Fire/Electric
Sobble Water/Dragon


Scorbunny seems to be leaning toward Electric for many reasons: the yellow all over its body, its energetic disposition, and the little coincidence that soccer anime love animating dramatic kicks with electricity. Of course, receiving an Electric type would upset the balance, so in order to be given Electric dual-typing, Sobble would need a dual-type to resist Electric.

Assuming this theory is true, Sobble would either receive Ground or Dragon. Not only would Dragon be more interesting since we already have Swampert, but also I personally believe GF would want to stick to resistances rather than immunities for the starters. Therefore, Sobble will be Water/Dragon.

Rounding out the secondary typing resistances is Grookey with Grass/Steel. Again, technically we could also be looking at a possible Grass/Fairy, but in order to stick with resistances rather than immunities, Steel is more likely. Grookey being steel would make sense if it became a silverback gorilla. The Steel type incorporates sound into some of its moves, so it would also fit with its rhythm/music theme. Plus, Grookey would literally become a metalhead, which would be hilariously punny. Another observation about Grookey is its orange accents on its limbs and face, which could change into silver to signify his Steel typing.

That seems badass! I have also heard it could be like this:


Grookey Grass/Fairy
Scorbunny Fire/Steel
Sobble Water/Dragon

All of those seem cool to me! I keep thinking Sobble will have the most popular evolution by being Water/Dragon so kinda like Charizard while Scorbunny will be a mix of Blaziken and Greninja in terms of looks and Grookey may get something else completely different. Either way it seems all three starters will get awesome final evolutions!

 

[aerial_ace]

The music theme is such a cool concept for Grookey. When it was first released i never thought its name consists of groove and monkey i always thought it was root and monkey.
Music theme makes sense though as we see it using a stick to make a noise. I really hope its final evo is grass/rock as this combination is currently only used by lileep line and would be quite unique since we never had rock type starter before. Plus grass and rock cover each other weaknesses nicely. The concept i would like them to go with is bulky physical attacker using rock as a drum and tree branches as sticks .Hidden ability could be grass version of pixilate further utilizing sound base moves(to make it work they would need to introduce new physical sound base moves)

For Scorbunny i cant see them going for fire fighting (this would be an instant no from me) i could see electric or steel but im leaning more towards electric. I think it will be very fast and frail special attacker.

Sobble in my opinion has the biggest potential of all 3 when it comes to its final evolution. They ho estly could take so many directions with it. It could go into chameleon with comuflaging moves or more into loch ness type of monster or even some sort of water dragon. I am very excited about this one cus some of the fanarts show how cool this thing can be. It would be cool to see moody as its hidden ability to emphasize the emotions. As most people said i see poison or maybe dragon as a final evo. I think this one will be more defensive than the other two

 

[RileyXY1]

My predictions are still Grass/Rock, Fire/Electric, and Water/Ghost.

 

[Achernar]

Grass/Fighting
Fire/Fairy
Water/Dragon

 

[Ulicies]

That seems badass! I have also heard it could be like this:


Grookey Grass/Fairy
Scorbunny Fire/Steel
Sobble Water/Dragon

This matchup would fit the theory that Grookey (Grass) is next in line to be more feminine after Delphox (Fire) and Primarina (Water). It would also match up with GF's tradition to maintain the Fire Starter > Grass Starter > Water Starter triangle regardless of their secondary typings, essentially a principle to preserve the original triangle matchup. This is evidenced by Gen 6's secondary typings. GF clearly had a chance to rotate the secondary typings Dark/Psychic/Fighting to create a reverse triangle, but they were very intentional with this in order to preserve the original triangle's type matchup.

Game Freak very well might want to maintain this principle for the sake of simplicity surrounding the starters. Perhaps they worry about beginners becoming confused about the reverse triangle matchup midway through their journey. With that said, a Dragon secondary typing seems more unlikely since it would disrupt the original triangle.

Following this theory, any secondary typing that would reverse the original type matchup would be unlikely.

 

[RileyXY1]

This matchup would fit the theory that Grookey (Grass) is next in line to be more feminine after Delphox (Fire) and Primarina (Water). It would also match up with GF's tradition to maintain the Fire Starter > Grass Starter > Water Starter triangle regardless of their secondary typings, essentially a principle to preserve the original triangle matchup. This is evidenced by Gen 6's secondary typings. GF clearly had a chance to rotate the secondary typings Dark/Psychic/Fighting to create a reverse triangle, but they were very intentional with this in order to preserve the original triangle's type matchup.

Game Freak very well might want to maintain this principle for the sake of simplicity surrounding the starters. Perhaps they worry about beginners becoming confused about the reverse triangle matchup midway through their journey. With that said, a Dragon secondary typing seems more unlikely since it would disrupt the original triangle.

Following this theory, any secondary typing that would reverse the original type matchup would be unlikely.

Empoleon's Steel typing technically made it weak to Infernape's Fighting-type and its Grass resistance was cancelled out.