Type Changes

Certain Pokémon from past games have had their typing changed to better reflect either their design, origins, lore, or counterparts. As well, these type changes serve as a roundabout way to shake up the meta and present new challenges to players.

Among these are a few starters, legends and other beloved Pokémon. While some of these type changes may be controversial, a lot of thought was put into exactly which Pokémon to change and what types to change them to.

**In National Dex Order:**

*Ninetales gains the Ghost typing*
Reason: It's based on the very famous nine tailed fox yokai, who were known to place curses and be devious spirits. Its Pokédex entries also mention that this Pokémon holds "supernatural power."

*Mismagius gains the Psychic typing*
Reason: Mismagius is described as chanting incantations, causing headaches, hallucinations, and sometimes happiness. They're known for casting spells. Therefore the Psychic type was given to it.

*Swablu loses the Normal typing*
Reason: Swablu was supposedly meant to be a pure Flying type in Ruby & Sapphire before being made into a Normal/Flying type. The bird with clouds for wings has no good reason to be a Normal type, especially considering it loses that typing upon evolution.

*Milotic gains the Fairy typing*
Reason: Milotic is described as the pinnacle of beauty. It is said that it has the power to calm emotions such as anger, and even the most violent of hearts.

*Absol gains the Fairy typing*
Reason: It is not evil, rather it is a sign of imminent doom due to it being able to sense disaster. Its design is very angelic and its Mega also has an increased resemblance to an angel, with the fur on the back of its neck becoming winglike & even capable of flapping. While Absol was originally meant to be mono-Dark and Mega Absol would become Dark/Fairy, the new typing was given to Absol following the removal of Megas from the game.

*Glalie gains the Rock typing*
Reason: Glalie's Ruby dex entry states that beneath the ice that its body is made of rock.

*Braviary gains the Fighting typing and loses the Normal typing*
Reason: Braviary's Pokédex entries mention it fearing nothing, not even death, and the having the title of "hero of the sky." Giving it the Fighting type also makes it mirror its Hisuian counterpart. As well as lining it up with the reasoning to why the Sword of Justice & Desoray are also Fighting type due to their brave & strong-heartedness.

*Florges gains the Grass typing*
Reason: Flabébé and Floette merely held onto the flowers. Meanwhile, Florges's lower body structure resembles that of the hyacinth flower; which has large sturdy leaves projecting from the base of the stalk, thus giving it the impression that it had become one with the flower that its pre-evolved forms carried around. So the Grass type was given to it.

*Goomy, Sliggoo, and Goodra gain the Water typing*
Reason: Sliggoo is only able to evolve in Rain, and all three members of the line are made of liquid slime.

*Lycanroc Midday gains the Normal typing and Lycanroc Midnight gains the Dark typing*
Reason: Midday is basically an ordinary wolf. Meanwhile Midnight is a beast-like werewolf, and some of the developers were surprised it wasn't already Dark type because of that.

*Lycanroc Dusk gains the Fighting typing*
Reason: Dusk is described as having an intense fighting spirit underneath its calmness, as evidenced by its eyes turning red when it attacks. It also has a 4x type advantage against the other two Lycanroc, making it clearly stand as the most powerful one.

### Rejected Type Changes

Originally, many more Pokémon were planned to have their types changed, but were reverted back to their original typings for a variety of reasons. The list goes as follows;

* **Blastoise:**   Reason: The National Dex was originally planned for the game, but has since been cut. More info on this can be found in Devlog #2

* **Mega Blastoise/ G-Max Blastoise:**   Reason: Megas and Gigantamax forms were originally planned for the game, but have since been cut. More info on this can be found in the FAQ.

* **Golduck:**   Reason: The National Dex was originally planned for the game, but has since been cut. More info on this can be found in Devlog #2

* **Gyarados:**   Reason: The National Dex was originally planned for the game, but has since been cut. More info on this can be found in Devlog #2

* **Mega Gyarados:**   Reason: Megas were originally planned for the game, but have since been cut. More info on this can be found in the FAQ.

* **Mew:**   Reason: The National Dex was originally planned for the game, but has since been cut. More info on this can be found in Devlog #2

* **Bayleef & Meganium:**   Reason: Determined to not be as fitting as originally thought.

* **Bellossom:**   Reason: The National Dex was originally planned for the game, but has since been cut. More info on this can be found in Devlog #2

* **Snubbull & Granbull:**   Reason: We were originally going to add Normal to make it line up with the other old Pokémon who gained the fairy-typing. But after a little deliberation we decided there was just no reason to do so.

* **Lugia:**   Reason: The National Dex was originally planned for the game, but has since been cut. More info on this can be found in Devlog #2

* **Ho-oh:**   Reason: This change was meant to parallel Lugia's initial type change to Water/Psychic, but the more we looked into it the more we realized that Ho-oh's typing is perfectly fine as is.

* **Celebi:**   Reason: The National Dex was originally planned for the game, but has since been cut. More info on this can be found in Devlog #2

* **Torkoal:**   Reason: Becoming 4x weak to Water and Ground would annihilate it's competitive viability, and considering it's one of very few ability setters for the fire weathergy, that's pretty important.

* **Mega Absol:**   (Absol was going to stay Mono-Dark type) Reason: Megas were originally planned for the game, but have since been cut. More info on this can be found in the FAQ, Absol was given this type change in its base form instead because of the cut.

* **Mega Glalie:**  Technically not a type change but, normal Glalie is Ice/Rock now, but Mega Glalie was going to remain mono-Ice.

* **Luxray:**   Reason: Lockstin's feedback, alongside the original reasoning for it being dodgy. This was actually reverted pretty last second alongside Comfey.

* **Electivire:**   Reason: The National Dex was originally planned for the game, but has since been cut. More info on this can be found in Devlog #2

* **Magmortar:**   Reason: The reasoning was sketchy to begin with, but we wanted all 3 of the weird trio (Jynx, Electivire, Magmortar) to have a secondary typing.

* **Cresselia:**   Reason: The National Dex was originally planned for the game, but has since been cut. More info on this can be found in Devlog #2

* **Phione:**   Reason: The National Dex was originally planned for the game, but has since been cut. More info on this can be found in Devlog #2

* **Manaphy:**   Reason: The National Dex was originally planned for the game, but has since been cut. More info on this can be found in Devlog #2

* **Darkrai:**   Reason: The National Dex was originally planned for the game, but has since been cut. More info on this can be found in Devlog #2

* **Shaymin Land Form:**   Reason: Too many other mythical Pokémon were being given the fairy type.

* **Victini:**   Reason: Too many other mythical Pokémon were being given the fairy type.

* **Gothita Line:**   Reason: Beyond their gothic fashion, there was no real reason to go through with this change.

* **Beartic:**   Reason: It's a bear, and even though fighting and brutality are mentioned in almost all of it's dex entries, that's just something bears do.

* **Accelgor:**   Reason: The National Dex was originally planned for the game, but has since been cut. More info on this can be found in Devlog #2

* **Meloetta Aria:**   Reason: Too many other mythical Pokémon were being given the fairy type.

* **Flabébé & Floette:**   Reason: They're fairies holding onto flowers, not actually flowers. Florges, however, looks to have become one with said flower upon evolution. So Florges is Fairy/Grass, but it's two prevos remain mono Fairy type.

* **Comfey:**   Reason: It's not *actually* grass type, it's a fairy holding onto a bunch of flowers (the Pokémon isn't the flowers, it's the little sphere guy in the middle.)

* **Kommo-o:**   Reason: Fighting type is a better fit for this Pokémon and it's line specifically.

* **Zeraora:**   Reason: The National Dex was originally planned for the game, but has since been cut. More info on this can be found in Devlog #2

* **Grapploct:**   Reason: We discovered Game Freak's reasoning behind it's lack of a water-typing, and we decided to keep it as is. Not all Pokémon that live in the water are Water-type (see; Dratini, Bidoof, Stunfisk, Inkay, Galarian Corsola, etc.) In addition to this, Grapploct only fights on land. Adding the Water-type to it would defeat it's purpose.