A Ranked List: The Best Starter Pokémon From Every Generation

6 min read Post on May 14, 2025

A Ranked List: The Best Starter Pokémon From Every Generation

Generation I: Kanto - The Classic Trio

The Kanto region introduced us to the iconic original starters, each representing a core type: Grass, Fire, and Water. Choosing the best starter Pokémon here set the tone for many players' journeys.

Venusaur: The Grass-type powerhouse

High HP and Defense: Venusaur boasts impressive bulk, allowing it to withstand many early-game attacks. Its high HP stat makes it a durable tank.
Access to powerful moves: Venusaur learns powerful moves like Sludge Bomb (Poison-type) for excellent type coverage and Giga Drain (Grass-type) for both damage and HP recovery. This makes it a very effective Pokémon in battle.
Excellent type coverage: Grass-type moves are effective against many common early-game opponents, providing a significant advantage. Its diverse movepool further enhances its offensive capabilities.

Charizard: The iconic Fire-Flying type

High Attack and Speed: Charizard is a fast and powerful attacker, capable of dealing significant damage. Its high attack stat makes it a force to be reckoned with.
Learning Flamethrower and Fly early: These powerful moves provide excellent coverage and utility, allowing for both offensive pressure and strategic movement across the map.
Weaknesses: However, Charizard's dual typing makes it vulnerable to Rock and Electric-type moves, which can significantly impact its effectiveness in battle if not carefully managed.

Blastoise: The defensive Water-type

High Defense and Special Defense: Blastoise excels as a defensive wall, absorbing hits that would cripple other Pokémon. Its high defensive stats are a key advantage in strategic play.
Rapid Spin for hazard removal: This move is crucial for removing hazards like Spikes and Stealth Rock, ensuring a smoother battle experience for your team.
Offensive limitations: Compared to Charizard's raw power, Blastoise can be less offensively potent, relying more on defensive strategies and supportive roles.

Ranking Justification: While all three Kanto starters are strong and viable choices for the best starter Pokémon, Venusaur's balanced stats and effective type coverage give it the edge in Kanto. Its ability to both withstand attacks and deal significant damage makes it a consistently reliable partner.

Generation II: Johto - A Trio of Unique Strengths

Johto's starters offered a unique blend of offensive and defensive capabilities, each with its own distinct strengths and weaknesses.

Meganium: The bulky Grass-type

Excellent bulk and access to strong Grass-type moves: Meganium boasts impressive bulk, similar to Venusaur, enabling it to absorb hits and sustain prolonged battles. Its powerful Grass-type moves are effective against many opponents.
Weaknesses: Like most Grass-types, Meganium struggles against Fire and Flying types. Players need to be mindful of these matchups.

Typhlosion: The powerful Fire-type

High Special Attack and Speed: Typhlosion excels as a special attacker, boasting high Special Attack and Speed stats. This makes it a significant offensive threat.
Versatile offensive powerhouse: Typhlosion's movepool is well-rounded, allowing it to adapt to various battle situations. It's a very strong choice for those looking to control the pace of battle.

Feraligatr: The physical Water-type

High Attack and decent Speed: Feraligatr is a strong physical attacker, relying on powerful physical moves to deal significant damage. Its decent speed stat enables it to outpace many opponents.
Access to powerful physical moves: Its movepool focuses on high-power physical moves, making it a potent force on the battlefield.

Ranking Justification: Typhlosion's offensive prowess, combined with its speed, puts it slightly ahead of the others in Johto. Its ability to quickly and effectively dispatch opponents makes it a strong contender for the title of best starter Pokémon in this generation.

Generation III: Hoenn - The Weather Trio

Hoenn's starters introduced a unique "weather trio" theme, each influenced by different weather conditions.

Sceptile: The agile Grass-type

High Speed and Special Attack: Sceptile is a fast special attacker, capable of delivering powerful blows while often outspeeding opponents. Its high Speed stat is a major advantage.
Access to strong Special moves: Sceptile's movepool is focused on powerful Special attacks, allowing it to control the flow of battle with devastating strikes.

Blaziken: The fast Fire/Fighting type

High Attack and Speed: Blaziken is an incredibly fast and powerful attacker, possessing both high Attack and Speed stats. Its dual typing grants it wide-ranging type coverage.
Excellent type coverage and versatility: Blaziken's dual typing grants it excellent type coverage, making it effective against a wide range of opponents. This versatility makes it an extremely effective and powerful Pokémon.

Swampert: The bulky Water/Ground type

High HP and Defense: Swampert is an incredibly durable Pokémon with high HP and Defense stats. It can soak up attacks from many types.
Excellent defensive typing: Its Water/Ground typing grants it excellent defensive coverage, making it resistant to many common attacks.

Ranking Justification: Blaziken's impressive speed and powerful offensive capabilities make it the standout choice in Hoenn. Its speed and power combination makes it a formidable force in battle.

Generation IV: Sinnoh - Steel, Ice, and Grass

Sinnoh offered a diverse range of starters, each with distinct strengths and weaknesses.

Infernape: The fast Fire/Fighting type

High Attack and Speed, excellent coverage: Infernape’s speed and power are its greatest assets. Its dual typing grants broad offensive coverage.
Prominent competitor in the competitive scene: Infernape's powerful offensive capabilities made it a staple in competitive battling.

Torterra: The defensive Grass/Ground type

Good defenses and access to Earthquake: Torterra boasts good defensive stats and the powerful Earthquake ground-type move.
Weaknesses: Despite its bulk, Torterra struggles against Fire and Ice types.

Empoleon: The defensive Water/Steel type

Excellent defensive typing, high Special Attack: Empoleon's Water/Steel typing provides excellent defense against many common attacks. It also has a high Special Attack.
Powerful Water and Steel-type moves: Empoleon has access to several powerful Water and Steel-type moves, making it a formidable opponent.

Ranking Justification: Infernape's speed and versatility edge out the competition in Sinnoh. Its offensive capabilities make it a reliable choice for those who prefer an aggressive play style.

Generations V onwards (Brief Overview): Maintaining the Trend

Each subsequent generation offers a diverse range of starter Pokémon, with compelling options in each type. Further in-depth analyses for later generations could be explored in a future article. Many strong contenders for the "best starter Pokémon" title appear in these generations as well.

Conclusion

Choosing the "best" starter Pokémon is subjective, depending on individual playstyles and preferences. However, by analyzing their stats, movepools, and overall competitive viability, we can identify strong contenders throughout each generation. From Venusaur's balanced stats to Blaziken's incredible speed and Infernape's versatility, each generation has a compelling choice. While this list provides a ranked perspective, the ultimate decision rests with the trainer. So, embark on your Pokémon journey, and remember to choose the best starter Pokémon for you. Start your Pokémon adventure today and find your own best starter Pokémon!