Regional Variants/Alolan Forms Discussion Thread

[Wryteous]

Anyone else think we'll get Alola forms for Johto starters?

Grass/Dark Chikorita, Fire/Ground Cyndaquil, Water/Rock Feraligatr

I'd prefer to receive Mega Evo's for starter lines- just to keep them on the same level as Kanto and Hoenn Starters. Mega can still receive type changes- and their designs would better reflect the overall species line inspirations instead of being a 'tropical variant' change which won't be relevant to future games.
I feel regional variants should really be for other species without Mega touch-ups and that could potentially be found in the wild. For previous species, it keeps their inclusion in Sun/Moon new and interesting. Instead of simply being transplanted from one region to the next in each game iteration

 

[clbgolden12]

Anyone else think we'll get Alola forms for Johto starters?

Grass/Dark Chikorita, Fire/Ground Cyndaquil, Water/Rock Feraligatr

I could see it happening (it'd probably be given to us, though), but as the others said, I'd prefer them to get Megas.

 

[Inconspicuosaurus]

Oh right, I forgot about them. I just hope the dark type Rattata rumor is true. Btw whaddya think about an Alolan Scyther? Or an Alolan Golduck?

I've seen a lot of suggestions of Alolan Golduck, but mostly they're just wish-fulfillment in the form of making it Psychic. The Problem with Pokemon like Scyther and Golduck is that they seem pretty well adapted to Alola already. A semi-aquatic lifestyle seems perfect for island-hopping, and big machete-hands seem perfect for life in the thick rainforest. Then again, we do have Vulpix and Ninetales changing in a volcanic environment that you would think they'd love simply because too many things were already occupying that space. Perhaps Lurantis is a competitor to Scyther so it has to change its hunting style. And maybe Golduck is so good at what it does that it evolves into a more fearsome dominant species. Anything is possible!

 

[esquilo09]

Does anyone else wishes for an Alolan Weavile?

 

[JVLightningLover]

Does anyone else wishes for an Alolan Weavile?

Not so much. And that's not because I dislike Weavile (I actually like it a lot), but because I think that Johto Mons (and their Gen 4 Evolutions) should maybe get their Regional Variants in another game. I like the idea that each new installment could bring a new Generation of Regional Variants, giving them all their time in the limelight.

 

[Blackjack the Titan]

Does anyone else wishes for an Alolan Weavile?

I always thought it would get something like Fighting/Electric or Fighting/Fairy when I saw its shiny form.
And unless Sneasel gets an Alolan form, I don't really want a drastic-type-change case like Cubone to Alolan Marowak.

 

[esquilo09]

I always thought it would get something like Fighting/Electric or Fighting/Fairy when I saw its shiny form.
And unless Sneasel gets an Alolan form, I don't really want a drastic-type-change case like Cubone to Alolan Marowak.

I agree, I also want Sneasel to get an Alola form.

 

[Navarch]

I don't think Alola forms are going to be a Kanto exclusive thing. I think they are just showing the Kanto ones to get more attention since more people are familiar with Kanto Pokemon, especially with the release of Pokemon Go.

 

[Inconspicuosaurus]

I don't think Alola forms are going to be a Kanto exclusive thing. I think they are just showing the Kanto ones to get more attention since more people are familiar with Kanto Pokemon, especially with the release of Pokemon Go.

They might be almost entirely Kanto with a couple of exceptions. GF is never good at sticking to rules, as we saw with Megas when there were none from Gen 5 or 6, and then we randomly got Audino.

 

[Lord Godwin]

I started to wonder whether Vulpix will still evolve via Fire Stone or if they will change it something else (Dawn stone?).
What do you think?

 

[Anthea]

I started to wonder whether Vulpix will still evolve via Fire Stone or if they will change it something else (Dawn stone?).
What do you think?

Dawn stone

No wait, since it gains fairy, shiny stone

 

[Beloberto]

I started to wonder whether Vulpix will still evolve via Fire Stone or if they will change it something else (Dawn stone?).
What do you think?

Hopefully, it will evolve normally by leveling up. It could also explain why the Ice version manages to get fairy powers while the Fire didn't (the Fire one is a forced evolution since it requires a stone and it somehow doesn't allow Ninetales to develop all of its dormant powers, or something like that).

 

[Inconspicuosaurus]

I started to wonder whether Vulpix will still evolve via Fire Stone or if they will change it something else (Dawn stone?).
What do you think?

That is a very good point that I haven't seen mentioned before.

Dawn stone

No wait, since it gains fairy, shiny stone

Shiny is the one most associated with Fairy (evolving both Togetic and Floette), so that seems like a likely candidate. Sun evolves Cottonee into the now-Fairy Whimsicott, but seems unlikely. However Dawn is the only one used to evolve an Ice-Type (excluding Shellder which becomes one, but Water Stone is obviously not an option), so it's still on the cards.

Hopefully, it will evolve normally by leveling up. It could also explain why the Ice version manages to get fairy powers while the Fire didn't (the Fire one is a forced evolution since it requires a stone and it somehow doesn't allow Ninetales to develop all of its dormant powers, or something like that).

That could also work. I do like your reasoning. I never thought of stone evolution as exactly forced though. More a shortcut I guess? To a power that needs an external catalyst to access.

 

[landipan]

I'd really love to see a ghost or flying type Ponyta/Rapidash variant as well as some type of variant for the dragonite line that has dragonite look a bit more elegant to go with Dragoniar!

 

[R_N]

Hopefully, it will evolve normally by leveling up. It could also explain why the Ice version manages to get fairy powers while the Fire didn't (the Fire one is a forced evolution since it requires a stone and it somehow doesn't allow Ninetales to develop all of its dormant powers, or something like that).

I feel like if that was the case, they probably would have mentioned it on the site.

I also don't buy the stone evolution being "forced" & preventing it from gaining Fairy powers because plenty of stone evolutions have unlocked a second type, even ones that limit your movepool. Poliwrath, Cloyster, Starmie, both nidos, Gallade & Froslass.

 

[Luthor]

Just imagine an Alolan Form Machamp that gains fairy type and becomes incredibly feminine. Unlikely I know but just imagine the concept.

 

[Disaster_Lord]

Just imagine an Alolan Form Machamp that gains fairy type and becomes incredibly feminine. Unlikely I know but just imagine the concept.

That would ruin the Machamp Cafe business. That's a thing you know.

I always thought it would get something like Fighting/Electric or Fighting/Fairy when I saw its shiny form.
And unless Sneasel gets an Alolan form, I don't really want a drastic-type-change case like Cubone to Alolan Marowak.

Kamaitachi, at best it would get flying given the original myth.

 

[storm12]

Yeah, I understand that, but I just never knew it was a gem in its head. I had always thought it was a Bindi dot this whole time to go with its middle-eastern cat theme. I always thought its name was a pun on a type of cat as well as the people 'Persian' to justify the Indian flair it was given. I had no idea, until I saw the thread today, that it was supposed to be a Carbuncle and it was actually a Gemstone on its forehead lol.

Also, I've never paid attention to 'classifications' just about the only one I remember is that Cyndaquill and Pikachu are 'mouse' pokemon. I had no ideas Persian was a Siamese pokemon either lol. Like I said, iw as going off its initial looks and ever since Gen 1, I never knew it was a gem.

So my bad on that one; I just had no idea.

I don't mean to come across as a SJW by dredging up this post, but as someone who is of Indian descent, there is some very cringey conflation of Middle Eastern/Persian/Indian going on in this post which makes me slightly uncomfortable.

I don't of cause think you are intending to, but you are seeming to use these terms synonymously when they are very much not. Specifically India is not in the Middle East and Iran (not to oversimplify myself: but modern day Persia) is on the furthest East of the Middle East. The culture of the middle East is predominantly Islamic historically whereas India where the bindi originated is overwhelmingly Hindu. The bindi has presumably only been assimilated into the fashion of Islamic parts of Greater India by proximity and as far as I know the bindi is not at all a prominent fashion in the Middle East.

Sorry for that... rant? It was just making me a little agitated seeing these conflations happening.

Personally I feel the gem aspect of Persian's design is most likely influenced by the Carbuncle than anything else. It's name seems mostly a lame pun incoporating purr but working in the same cringey way as Sandshrew, that is merely by association and approximation.

 

[JVLightningLover]

Just imagine an Alolan Form Machamp that gains fairy type and becomes incredibly feminine. Unlikely I know but just imagine the concept.

I've grown to liking the idea of a Psychic Machamp myself. I even posted my concept for a while back.

Alolan Machamp Concept: http://www.serebiiforums.com/showth...ulation-Thread/page76&p=18147315#post18147315

That would ruin the Machamp Cafe business. That's a thing you know.



Kamaitachi, at best it would get flying given the original myth.

I just read up on Machamp cafes. Fascinating stuff.

And yeah, a Flying-Type Regional Variat for Weavile would be a nice nod to its inspiration, though I could see it also keeping its Dark-Typing.

 

[storm12]

I started to wonder whether Vulpix will still evolve via Fire Stone or if they will change it something else (Dawn stone?).
What do you think?

This is definitely going to be one of the most interesting things about Alolan forms, in terms of evolution methods. Some, like those that evolve by level are naturally fine to stay the same, but in the case of things like elemental Stones where the type is no longer relevant to the stone, will they keep if for the sake of continuity, change it to make more sense i.e Vulpix evolving with a different stone; or will they outright change the method? Furthermore if some Alolan pokemon change evo method does that mean they potentially all could? Even if as speculated and Exeggute and Cubone and the like don't get Alolan forms, might their evo method then be totally different to keep continuity?


My guess is we may see different evolution methods for all Alolan forms- the seemingly different evolution sequence hints this to me anyway- the easiest way to do this would potentially be with a new set of special Alolan stones? What they would be I don't know at the moment. Perhaps they could be linked to the Island guardians in terms of colour? Then we have 4 stones and the closest matching colour/type/theme could then go to the relevant Alolan mons.