While most Pokémon have a use, however niche, there are some that just aren’t worth the time and resources it takes to train them any longer than it takes to evolve them into something stronger. Typically these Pokémon spend their entire lives in the storage system, are dropped off at Day Care or on rare occasions placed on the team to grow and evolve via EXP Share with a stronger Pokémon to do all the fighting.
The Pokémon that made this list did so due to mediocre stats, inability to cause damage, or because they don’t grow into anything stronger. Here are the Pokémon that you should avoid using unless you’re rounding out your Pokedex.
Updated December 13th, 2020 by Tanner Kinney: It’s obvious that not every Pokemon can be competitively viable or even casually viable. There are so many critters, especially as new generations get added, that some are truly just plain awful. However, in most cases, a fully evolved Pokemon will have its niche uses, even if it is often outclassed. Being outclassed doesn’t mean a Pokemon is useless, just that it isn’t as useful as it could be. And yet, Game Freak still feels the need to include the most embarrassing gimmick Pokemon. Sword and Shield may not have many of those, but the older titles have them and more.
15 Castform
Castform is a gimmick Pokemon designed with a purpose: showcase the effectiveness of weather in battle. This special Pokemon is obtained in Ruby and Sapphire after saving the Weather Institute, and it appropriately follows that design. Its ability, Forecast, allows it to change forms and types depending on the weather (not including Sandstorms).
However, despite a wide movepool, Castform’s disgustingly average stats across the board make it able to be replaced by literally any other Pokemon. Even in manipulating the weather, there are probably a dozen other low-tier Pokemon to consider before Castform. It’s cute, for sure, but only the most hardcore meteorologists will enjoy using it for more than one battle.
14 Ledian
Ledian, the evolution of one of Pokemon Gold and Silver‘s bug-type Pokemon that can be found early on, is a one-stat wonder. Unfortunately, that stat is Special Defense, which might as well not even be a factor with its low HP and crippling weakness to the primarily physical rock-type. It learns a lot of fun attacking moves but hits about as hard as a tumbleweed in a gentle breeze.
Ledian is likely a forgotten Pokemon because despite a cool design it has nothing to offer to any trainer. It’s depressing when its equally terrible pre-evolution, Ledyba, has more niche case uses than it. Ladybug fans will be disappointed to find that Ledian just can’t cut it in either competitive or casual play. There’s no reason to raise one beyond catching it for the Pokemon.
13 Luvdisc
When thinking of useless Pokemon, few come to mind as quickly as Luvdisc. The pink, heart-shaped fish is certainly adorable, and the Pokedex says that sharing it with people is a sign of affection. However, most trainers upon receiving this Pokemon will likely just look disgusted and not call back. Luvdisc is just that bad.
Swift Swim is an ability that increases its one not-terrible stat to levels that are decent enough. However, with no offensive stats and wafer-thin defense, this heart gets broken by everything and everyone. The only thing it’s useful for is fighting it to steal its Heart Scales, and even then that’s no longer useful in new games. Unlike what the movies say, Luvdisc never wins.
12 Unown
Gimmick Pokemon are fun to observe, and may even be neat to mess with for a while. Castform, for example, does have a wide movepool and can adapt to any of the forms it takes on. However, one of the original gimmick Pokemon is only fun in the sense it was cool in a movie unrelated to the games. That would, of course, be the alphabetic Unown.
There is no fear of the Unown in the Pokemon games. In its appearances, its only move is Hidden Power, which can only be a single type. This limitation, combined with embarrassingly low base stats for such a mythical Pokemon, make it good in no situations. The worst part of all is that Hidden Power no longer exists, so Unown is truly trapped in limbo. However, six Unown together can be used to spell out words to opponents before promptly forfeiting. If that’s an enticing prospect, then maybe the Unown isn’t so bad after all.
11 Spinda
Spinda may be one of the worst Pokemon Game Freak has ever put into the games. Its stats are terrible — an even 60 across the board. Contrary is good, but it can hardly use it. Spinda does have a wide selection of moves to use poorly, but having too many options is not a good thing. It can pretend to do everything but does less than nothing. It doesn’t even showcase any unique changes to the series.
The worst part: Spinda isn’t even a cute gimmick Pokemon. A lot of truly awful Pokemon are at least aesthetically pleasing to someone. Spinda is a bootleg cousin of any other bear in the game and isn’t even that cute. The only redeeming factor about Spinda is that its idle animation in battle is hilarious, especially when battling hordes in X&Y. Aside from that, it’s not a surprise Spinda hasn’t gotten its green card to go to Galar.
10 Ralts
Ralts is a terrible Psychic/Fairy type Pokemon with a base of 198 stats spread across everything. It starts with the move Growl meaning it can’t do any damage at the lower levels. It makes up for this at level four when it learns Confusion which allows it to hold its own in a fight and why it doesn’t rank higher.
Without EXP Share it’s a tough slog to get this Pokémon up to level 20 when it’ll evolve into Kirlia and have more use in battle. Odds are this is on your team so you can get a Gardevoir or Gallade so level it up quick and move on.
9 Azurill
Many casual gamers might have this on their team because they think it’s cute, but in battle it really struggles. It has a total of 190 stats with most of it in HP, defense and special defense. It starts out with the useless move Splash, but it does also come with Water Gun so it has use against really weak fire types.
This Pokémon can evolve soon-ish if you get its friendship up quickly which why it doesn’t rank higher on the list. There’s no reason to not evolve it as quickly as possible, although an Azumarill is nothing terribly special.
8 Sunkern
Many would rank Sunkern higher on a list of useless Pokémon thanks to it having the second lowest stats of any Pokémon at 180 that are perfectly spread across the board. But it does have the move Absorb which allows it to damage enemies and recover some health which has use in limited situations, namely if the opponent is incapable of attacking due to status effects.
But ultimately this is a Pokémon you don’t want to be using, ever, as it can evolve into a Sunflora via the evolutionary Sun Stone at any level and learn better moves once it’s evolved.
7 Wurmple
Wurmple is probably the most annoying Pokémon on this list as the creature it evolves into depends on its personality value making it a gamble whether you get Silcoon or Cascoon. Until then you have a Pokémon with 195 stats, most of which is in HP and attack and next to nothing in speed. It has tackle and string shot so a patient trainer can remove an opponent’s speed and slowly chip away at their health.
You’ll be hanging onto this until level seven when it evolves. If it’s a Cascoon you’re on your way to the interesting Dustox, if it’s a Silcoon you’ll need to catch another and train again as Beautifly isn’t all that great.
6 Weedle
Weedle has a rough road ahead of it as none of its evolved forms are all that strong and is usually only used as an early Pokémon when there’s nothing else or to round out a Pokedex. It has 195 stats with decent speed and okay HP. It comes equipped with String Shot and Poison Sting.
It evolves at level seven into Kakuna where it comes with slightly better defense stats, but little else. Once again this Pokémon isn’t worth your time, but is slightly more useful then the rest on the list thanks to Poison Sting.
5 Kricketot
When a Pokémon is modeled after a cricket you know it’s not going to be great in a fight. Kricketot has 194 stats with a lot of it in HP, defense, and special defense, but with atrocious speed. It’s incapable of damage thanks to Growl and Bide and won’t do any until level six when it learns Struggle Bug.
It also takes longer to evolve than Weedle turning into the lame Kricketune at level 10. Catch one, evolve it as soon as you can and then let it rot in your storage system.
4 Caterpie
Caterpie is similar to Weedle in that it has 195 stats with okay speed and HP. The reason it ranks higher on this list is because instead of having the slightly useful Poison Sting it has Tackle. Tackling does do more damage but having the chance to poison your enemies is more useful.
It does redeem itself by being able to evolve into a Butterfree with some interesting status effect abilities like Stun Spore and Sleeping Powder, but to get there you need to level up Caterpie to level seven to evolve into Metapod and then evolve again at level 10.
3 Magikarp
This familiar floppy fish has higher stats then most on this list at 200 with an unusually high speed and decent defense stat. But with its only move being Splash until it learns Tackle at level 15 it’s utterly useless.
The only reason it doesn’t rank higher on this list of useless Pokémon is that Magikarp will evolve into a Gyarados at level 20 and in Pokémon X & Y and beyond has a Mega form which is very strong in PVE situations. But until that evolution this Pokémon is a pain to have on your team.
2 Feebas
Feebas is a fish Pokémon very similar to Magikarp, but with flipped stats. The 200 stats give it decent speed, but no defense, meager HP, and very abysmal attack. Like Magikarp it knows the useless Splash and learns Tackle at level 15.
It could rank better than Magikarp thanks to the ability to evolve sooner if it’s Beautiful condition is high and it’s holding a Prism Scale, but the evolved form Milotic is much weaker than Gyarados so it sits here on the list.
1 Wishiwashi
Wishiwashi is by far the weakest Pokémon in all of the games. This fish has the worst stats at 175 with only okay HP and speed. It does start out with Water gun and Growl, but with a horrendous special attack stat it’s practically worthless.
It also doesn’t evolve, but it does get a new School form at level 20 that dramatically improves all of it’s stats except HP and Speed and the moves it can use don’t take full advantage of the improved stats. But with such a low HP it wont take many hits anyway. There’s no reason to have this on your team or spend any time training this worthless Pokémon.
![\"IT電腦補習](\"http://itteacheritfreelance.hk/test/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/logo2-2.png\"){kind=logo}
www.itsec.hk
www.itsec.vip
www.itseceu.uk
Leave a Reply