Despite only having about 80 Pokemon, the Dark type (literally Evil type in Japan), has an impressive range in quality. Some Dark types are mischievous and not very powerful as you’d expect. In comparison, others manage to take this trickery to the next level by making it a massive threat. So out of all of these, which are the best? Here’s my take on the 20 best Dark type Pokemon.  

 

20. Sharpedo (Water/Dark)

Sharpedo wants a friend…. totally not to bite

If anyone starts singing that song, you know the one, I’m sending Sharpedo after them. The perfect Pokemon version of a menacing shark, Sharpedo is a glass cannon and a good one at that. And don’t even think of touching it.

Stats-wise, Sharpedo has terrible defenses and reasonable HP, but quite high Speed and Attack. With its Mega only improving on these and even heightening the defenses, it's definitely a solid Pokemon if you use it right. Its moveset is about what you’d expect with no real surprises aside from a couple Poison and Ground moves.

For Abilities, Sharpedo is very much known for Rough Skin. It may be extremely fragile, but giving sizable damage to anything that touches it (so only physical moves) is certainly a positive. It also has access to Speed Boost, which can be situationally useful. And the Mega has Strong Jaw, which…. well it does get a lot of biting moves, so not terrible. 

Sharpedo’s strengths: 

• Fast and strong
• Good Abilities 
• Decent coverage

Sharpedo’s weaknesses:

• Extremely fragile
• Rough Skin does nothing to Special Attackers
• Moveset could be better

Sharpedo details:

• Sharpedo has a unique surfing model in the Hoenn remakes, which goes faster and is impossible to fish from
• Its counterpart is Camerupt 
• Sharpedo was hunted for its fins much like real sharks
• The Ability Rough Skin, which used to be exclusive to the Sharpedo line, is exclusive to the Garchomp line in Scarlet and Violet due to Sharpedo not being in the games
• It is based on a shark, ocean sunfish, and torpedo
• Its Mega is based on a sawshark or sawfish and a motorboat
• Its name comes from shark, sharp, and torpedo

 

19. Spiritomb (Ghost/Dark)

A friendly face hiding constant torment

Awww, look at the cute little collection of tormented souls! Yeah, Spiritomb is a very messed up Pokemon that once had no weakness and still only has one. And it will forever remain a cursed trickster. 

Spiritomb is nothing special when it comes to Abilities, merely having the not too helpful Pressure normally. It can get Infiltrator, allowing it to bypass the likes of Reflect and Light Screen, which is kind of good. 

It has terrible HP and Speed, but everything else is at least good. This ghost is bulky and can hit fairly hard, which sometimes is enough. And with great typing and a reasonable moveset that contains plenty of annoying status moves, this is definitely one of those times.

Spiritomb’s strengths:

• Excellent typing gives it only one weakness
• Stats work well for what it does
• Trolly moveset

Spiritomb’s weaknesses:

• Extremely slow
• Coverage isn’t amazing
• Lackluster Abilities

Spiritomb details:

• Spiritomb is formed from 108 spirits 
• The number 108 is connected to it a lot
• Spiritomb and Sableye, being Ghost/Dark, had no weaknesses before the Fairy type was introduced
• Its name was almost Phantomb
• There are a lot of possible inspirations for it, these include: the Japanese Jibakurei (a spirit bound to a single place), the Norweigan Deildegast (a spirit that drags a stone as punishment for things it did while alive), the Buddhist tradition of ringing a bell 108 times to chase away 108 temptations, and prayer beads
• The 108 souls could also come from something similar in the Chinese novel Water Margin
• Its name comes from spirit and tomb (and possibly the Latin spiritum)

 

18. Hoopa Unbound Form (Psychic/Dark)

The bizarre creature that is Hoopa

Hoopa is an oddity, only here through an alternate form. But exceptions have to be made when that form is as broken as Hoopa’s Unbound Form. This genie is quite broken, but as it is a form of a Mythical that definitely limits its usefulness. 

Hoopa only gets one Ability in Magician, and it's a decent one. Stealing a held item with a move is very fitting for the trickster genie, and it could easily hinder an opponent’s plan.

In its Unbound form, Hoopa has very high stats indeed, with its lowest being Defense at 60, which definitely isn’t the best. Its monstrous Attack and Special Attack do make up for this to an extent though… although with it not having good Speed, it might not get to attack. At least it has pretty good coverage.

Hoopa’s strengths:

• Insanely high offensive stats
• Good Ability 
• Solid moveset

Hoopa’s weaknesses:

• Speed and Defense aren’t the best
• Nasty 4x weakness to Bug
• Is only a form and not its own Pokemon

Hoopa details:

• Hoopa Unbound has the highest Special Attack of all Dark types
• It is tied with Mega Gyarados for the tallest Dark type
• The Legendaries in the Hoenn remakes were obtained from Hoopa’s rings
• It is based on djinn, the Hindu Shakti, the Greek Gegenees, and common depictions of demons
• It is tied to its Prison Bottle much like a genie to a lamp
• Its nature as an immortal trickster may come from the Chinese Nezha, who is very similar 
• Its name comes from hoop and hoopla 

 

17. Chien-Pao (Dark/Ice)

A cat with a sword mustache… yes

How do you make a sword-based Pokemon more insane than a ghost sword? Rage-fueled ice cat with what’s essentially a sword mustache would not have been my first pick, but I’m here for it. 

Chien-Pao has a signature Ability in Sword of Ruin, which lowers the Defense of all Pokemon aside from it by 25%. In Singles, this is very good, in Doubles you need to plan around it by pairing it with a Special Attacker or something of the like.

Chien-Pao is another glass cannon, but bulkier than most. Its moveset is about what you’d expect with no real surprises, although it does get a semi-exclusive move (all of its companions in the Treasure of Ruin have it) in Ruination. Which is…basically just Super Fang again, a move that always does 50% damage. Definitely useful, but a set damage move isn’t playing well into its high Attack the best.

Chien-Pao’s strengths:

• Great glass cannon
• Isn’t super fragile
• Ability suits it well 

Chien-Pao’s weaknesses:

• Still a little fragile
• Ability can be a hindrance in Doubles
• Signature move doesn’t play to its strengths that well

Chien-Pao details:

• It has the highest Speed of all Dark types
• It is based on extinct sabor-toothed cats, snow leopards, and bronze swords like the jian
• Its body shape may reference the tiger tally, a method of implementing troop orders in ancient China
• It and the other Treasures of Ruin reference the Four Perils of Chinese mythology
• Its name comes from jian, baojian, and bao (these are the original Chinese words before translation)

 

16. Lokix (Bug/Dark)

Super fighting bug robot Lokix!

Strange how we got a bug that very clearly references old Japanese superheroes but is Dark type. It's an incredible design, don’t get me wrong, but I’d have expected Fighting with its often heroic implications in the series. Finally getting a Bug/Dark type is cool though.

Once again we have a Bug with Swarm, yay….. At least Tinted Lens is decent. Doubling the power of not-very-effective moves means it will always do at least a reasonable amount of damage. 

Its stats are not too impressive aside from Attack and Speed, which are fairly high. It does have a very solid moveset though, covering two of its five weaknesses and weakening its Fire one with Rain Dance. 

Lokix’s strengths:

• Unique typing
• Good moveset
• Fairly powerful

Lokix’s weaknesses: 

• Some unchecked weaknesses
• Quite fragile
• Abilities could be better

Lokix details: 

• It is based on grasshoppers, locusts, pygmy mole crickets, and pocket knives
• It pulls heavily from the Japanese Kamen Rider franchise
• Its name comes from locust and kick or crickets
• Its name may be a pun on low kicks

 

15. Umbreon (Dark)

Umbreon is a very good boy

It's a pretty safe bet that the Eeveelutions will reach the top 20 of their respective types, and Umbreon is no exception. One of my favorites of the bunch (don’t ask me to pick a clear favorite….) and the always partner to Espeon, this Dark dog/cat/fox/thing has become iconic like its brethren. And there’s a very good reason for that. 

For Abilities, Umbreon gets Inner Focus and Synchronize. And chances are you’ll want the latter. Passing a burn, poison, or paralysis to the opponent is much more useful than just not flinching 

Umbreon’s stats are pretty solid, but it's clear this Pokemon is meant for one thing: to be a tank that can mess things up but not deal a ton of damage. With lackluster offenses and not the best attacking movepool, Umbreon definitely functions best as support in Doubles. That’s not to say it can’t do anything on its own, solo Umbreon can be a nuisance if set up right. It's just not its strong point.

Umbreon’s strengths:

• Bulky tank
• Useful Ability 
• Excellent Doubles support

Umbreon’s weaknesses: 

• Not the best on its own
• Blocking moves that don’t deal damage would severely cripple it
• Lacks some coverage

Umbreon details:

• Umbreon is the only non-Psychic-type Pokemon to have Synchronize 
• Umbreon was voted the most popular Johto Pokemon, most popular Eeveelution, and fifth most popular Pokemon overall in 2020
• Its origins aren’t entirely clear but may be a black cat and Moon rabbit (from East Asian legends)
• The rings on its body resemble Egyptian lunar markings
• Also pulls from the Aztec deity Tezcatkipoca, a black jaguar with yellow bands who was associated with the night sky
• Its name comes from umbra and eon

 

14. Guzzlord (Dark/Dragon)

Guzzlord: No, I didn’t just eat a city, what do you mean?

Guzzlord is a terrifying menace we should all be afraid of. It eats anything in sight and leaves little but ruin in its wake…. In the lore at least. As a Pokemon, or should I say Ultra Beast, it's solid but not incredible. 

Like all Ultra Beasts, Guzzlord has Beast Boost, which boosts its highest stat when it gets a KO. For Guzzlord this is… Attack since HP doesn’t count. So it's basically Moxie then. Nice, it's broken.

Guzzlord has 223 HP…. that’s insane. And as expected, several of its other stats take a hit from this, with only its offense being not terrible. But it's still a relative tank with that monstrous HP, even with terrible defenses. Its moveset is pretty standard, nothing to write home about.

Guzzlord’s strengths:

• Insane HP 
• Basically has Moxie
• Alright coverage

Guzzlord’s weaknesses:

• Terrible defenses and Speed
• Moveset isn’t amazing
• Lots of weaknesses, including 4x to Fairy

Guzzlord details:

• It has the highest HP of all Dark types
• The heaviest Dark type
• It is called a junkivore in the Pokedex
• It is based on the abominations of H.P. Lovecraft and the Agrajag from Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
• Its coloration is based on earthmoving machinery 
• Guzzlord constantly eating without producing waste is referencing black holes
• It looks like a European dragon with crab pincers while having a very dinosaur-like tail
• Its name comes from guzzle and lord

 

13. Grimmsnarl (Dark/Fairy)

Grimmsnarl, when hair is a weapon

Hair, long beautiful hair! Grimmsnarl is a Dark/Fairy type, which should tell you just how much of a trickster this thing is. And with its disturbing full body hair and enormous Gigantmax form, it definitely lives up to that image. 

Grimmsnarl gets three Abilities, with Frisk not being too useful. Prankster in prioritizing status moves can be useful though, as well as Pickpocket to steal held items when hit by an attack. Two out of three isn’t bad.

Its stats are all pretty solid aside from Defense and Speed being a bit low, but could be worse. Having a unique typing and a very good moveset definitely offsets this though. And its signature Gigantamax move isn’t bad either, having a 50% chance of causing sleep the next turn.

Grimmsnarl’s strengths: 

• Good unique typing
• Two solid Abilities
• Good moveset
• Somewhat useful signature move

Grimmsnarl’s weaknesses: 

• Low Defense and Speed
• Frisk is not great most of the time
• Ironically can’t cover being weak to itself (Fairy)

Grimmsnarl details:

• Its counterpart is Hatterene
• It is based on ogres, trolls, oni, and goblins
• May be inspired by the bogeyman, bugbear, or coco, fictional creatures used to scare children 
• Resembles Grendel from the poem Beowulf
• Its name comes from grim (spelled Grimm to reference the Brothers Grimm) and snarl, gnarly, grimace, and grimoire 

 

12. Overqwil (Dark/Poison)

Presenting the best Pokemon name ever

I will take no arguments, this is the clear winner for the best Pokemon name of all time. It's quite a fun Pokemon too, taking often overlooked Qwilfish and turning it into this beautiful abomination. Don’t even think of touching it. 

Overqwil gets three solid Abilities. Poison Point for causing poison on contact, Swift Swim to increase Speed in the rain, and Intimidate to lower the opponent’s Attack. You can’t go wrong with any of these.

Its stats are pretty solid, with only its Specials being a bit lower. But it being largely a physical attacker, low Special Attack isn’t much of an issue. Its movepool is once again solid but not remarkable. 

Overqwil’s strengths:

• Three useful Abilities 
• Its only weakness is covered quite well
• Can hit quite hard

Overqwil’s weaknesses:

• Low Special Defense
• Coverage could be better
• Low Special Attack means it can’t diversify very well

Overqwil details: 

• It is based on pufferfish or porcupinefish, lionfish or sea urchins for the spikes
• Appearance and signature move Barb Barrage (it's decent) pull from naval mines
• May be inspired by the Japanese kenzan, a plate with needles or spikes on it used for flower arranging 
• Its name comes from over or overkill, quill, and Qwilfish

 

11. Yveltal (Dark/Flying)

Why does this death bird look so friendly?

The bacon bird itself, Yveltal remains a menacing or cute presence, depending on its mood. As the counterpart of Xerneas with its life-giving powers, Yveltal is a master of death who can, according to its lore, absorb the life force of all living creatures. But it prefers to nap in a cocoon a lot, so we should be fine.

Yveltal only has one Ability in Dark Aura (signature Ability), which increases the power of all Dark moves used (not just its own) by 33%. Definitely good… as long as Zygarde isn’t there with Aura Break. That will invert it and make Dark moves weaker instead. 

As a Legendary, its not surprising Yveltal has good stats, with its lowest being Defense at 95. With surprisingly good coverage and a solid movepool overall, this death bird is quite useful. Just a shame it can’t cover some of its weaknesses, like the big one in Fairy.

Yveltal’s strengths: 

• Very good stats
• Useful Ability
• Solid movepool

Yveltal’s weaknesses:

• Can’t cover all weaknesses, including Fairy
• Coverage could be better
• Ability becomes a negative if Zygarde is present

Yveltal details:

• It was designed so its silhouette resembles the letter Y
• It resembles birds like the long-tailed widowbird, crows, and vultures
• Yvetal pulls from the Celtic death goddess Morrigan, the Norse eagle Hraesvelgr, the Norse hawk Veorfolnir or eagle who sits at the top of Yggdrasil 
• It greatly resembles the fungus devil’s fingers
• Its name comes from yvel (Middle English spelling of evil) and quetzal or talon

 

10. Hydreigon (Dark/Dragon)

Hydreigon likes to dabble in ventriloquism sometimes

If the Fairy type was never introduced, I have little doubt this Dark/Dragon type would still be a menace at the top of the competitive scene. Fairy has knocked it down quite nastily, but it's still a force to be reckoned with. And as of Violet, has a rather sad backstory for what was once considered a being of destruction. 

 Hydreigon has exactly one Ability: Levitate. I mean an immunity to Ground is helpful, but it's not like it's a major weakness for it. So a rather inoffensive Ability. 

As a pseudo-Legendary, Hydriegon is quite powerful. Its stats are all around very good, with its lowest in defenses still being 90 each. It has pretty solid type coverage as well, even having some Steel for that nasty 4x Fairy weakness. 

Hydreigon’s strengths:

• Good typing
• Solid coverage
• Two immunities is nice

Hydreigon’s weaknesses:

• Trading Ground immunity for a better Ability would help it
• 4x Fairy weakness is bad, coverage or no
• Defenses could be better

Hydreigon details:

• Hydreigon was despised in ancient Paldea for its destructive nature
• It is obtained at the highest level of any Pokemon that evolves by leveling up, at 64
• It is based on the Japanese Yamata no Orochi, a red-eyed and eight-headed dragon
• It also pulls from the Slavic dragon Zmei Gorynych, a cunning creature with three heads
• It was originally designed after tanks, with the tread-like markings still on its body reflecting this.
• Its name comes from hydra, drei (three in German), and dragon

 

9. Malamar (Dark/Psychic)

Nothing to see here, just a bunch of mind-control squids 

Malamar is exceedingly creepy from design alone, and that’s before you get into its unsettling hypnosis powers. It's really only this high on the list for having a rather broken Ability, as it's not that amazing otherwise. Now get it out of my sight! 

Malamar’s stats are alright but not impressive. Moderate Special Attack with everything else slightly higher, it has no clear weak spots but no great strengths either. Its movepool is also alright, no great coverage but some moves it can make use of, like Trick Room.

It's Abilities where things get interesting. Infiltrator as before isn’t bad, and Suction Cups… well preventing a switch can be helpful. Contrary is the good one though, as it reverses all stat changes on it. Meaning the likes of Intimidate make it stronger, as well as moves like Superpower that would normally lower Attack when used. This can be very dangerous with the right setup and turns up its middling stats quite impressively. 

Malamar’s strengths:

• Excellent Ability
• Moves that suit it well
• Decent coverage

Malamar’s weaknesses:

• Only one good Ability makes it kind of predictable
• 4x Bug weakness is bad
• No real strong point before Contrary comes into play

Malamar details: 

• Malamar’s evolution method of holding the console upside down is unique to it
• It is based on an upside-down squid like often depicted in picture books
• Its body orientation and hypnosis are similar to the vampire squid
• Also references a stereotypical alien supervillain 
• Its name comes from mal- (Latin prefix for bad), mahalo (mollusk in Greek), calamari, and mare (sea in Latin)

 

8. Tyranitar (Rock/Dark)

Friendly monster or destructive titan? Only one way to find out

ITS GODZILLA!.... Actually no. Tyranitar is very kaiju inspired, but it doesn’t share much in common with the most recognizable giant monster. Sort of, it's complicated. But that doesn’t stop this monster from being very cool and having many Godzilla comparisons throughout the series, right down to having multiple metal versions of it.

Tyranitar gets two Abilities… and you’ll almost always only use one. Unnnerve makes the opponent unable to eat berries, which can be helpful but is a bit situational. No, you’ll more often see Sand Stream, as setting up a Sandstorm is a lot more useful, especially if you build your team around it.

Tyranitar only has one bad stat in Speed, everything else is either good or great. While it has higher Attack, mixed Tyraitars are very possible due to its excellent movepool. This thing can learn a shocking amount of moves, which is a good thing when it has seven weaknesses, including a 4x to Fighting.

Tyranitar’s strengths:

• Incredible movepool
• Very good stats
• There’s a Mega there too

Tyranitar’s weaknesses:

• Seven weaknesses are a lot, even with good coverage
• A bit slow
• Could use better Ability variety 

Tyranitar details:

• It has a unique typing
• Its Mega has the highest stats of any Dark type
• It pulls heavily from kaiju, including but not limited to Godzilla
• Other references include Armadillo girdled lizard and theropod dinosaurs
• Its name comes from tyrant or Tyrannosaurus and Tarasque (a French dragon)

 

7. Roaring Moon (Dragon/Dark)

Definitely a menace and not derpy looking

Hey look, it's not Salanence! Roaring Moon is the ancient Paradox form of Salamence, drawing heavily from its Mega design in a very cool nod. And it is exceedingly powerful… if you keep it away from Fairy types. These pesky fairies again. 

Like all the ancient Paradox Pokemon, Roaring Moon has Protosynthesis for an Ability. This gives it a 30% boost to its highest stat if sunlight is in effect, and conveniently it can learn Sunny Day. So definitely something it can make use of.

And as you’d expect, that highest stat is Attack, at a monstrous 139. Its Special Attack is quite low, but you can easily plan around that, making its only real weak stat it's somewhat low Defense. And to top it off, it gets a very impressive movepool, only limited by a good amount being Special with its lackluster Special Attack.

Roaring Moon’s strengths:

• Ability benefits it greatly
• Stats mostly work well with it
• Solid coverage

Roaring Moon’s weaknesses:

• Nasty 4x weakness to Fairy (is slightly covered)
• The Special Attacks it learns aren’t too helpful with its middling Special Attack
• Ability requires a setup move to do anything

Roaring Moon details:

• Its counterpart is Iron Valiant
• It is based on Mega Salamence, European dragons, feathered dinosaurs, and a crescent moon

 

6. Weavile (Dark/Ice)

Watch out for the bandit!

Weavile and its pre-evolution Sneasel have long been a menace. Extremely fragile, but quick as lightning and it hits much harder than you’d expect. And a staple of edgy boy teams. 

Weaviles gets two abilities. First is Pressure again…. yeah you’d want Pickpocket. Stealing items is much more useful than PP for such a fragile Pokemon. 

Weavile is one of the best glass cannons in the series, and its stats reflect that by… not being all that fragile. Its Defenses aren’t great, but for how fast and hard-hitting it is you’d expect them to be a lot lower. Its coverage is good bordering on great, being able to counter all of its weaknesses to some extent.

Weavile’s strengths: 

• A great glass cannon that isn’t super fragile
• Excellent coverage
• Ability works for it

Weavile’s weaknesses: 

• Still fairly fragile
• Weakness coverage isn’t perfect, especially with a 4x to Fighting right there
• Has terrible Special Attack, meaning those moves aren’t doing much

Weavile details:

• Its counterpart is Gliscor
• It is based on the kamaitachi, a Japanese yokai weasel demon with sickles on their front legs on were considered the cause of mysterious cuts on the skin
• Also pulls from cats, weasels, Egyptian fashion, and Native American war bonnets
• Its name comes from weasel, weave, evil, and vile

 

5. Incineroar (Fire/Dark)

Yes Incineroar, that pose looks fine

I’m kind of surprised it took them seven generations to make such a goofy wrestler Pokemon. And it isn’t even Fighting type! Incineroar is 100% a goofball, but as evidenced by it being this high, it's a powerful goof. 

Another Fire starter, another Blaze as base Ability. At least it can get Intimidate, an Attack drop is much better.

Like much of Alola, Incineroar is a bit slow. Its other stats are pretty solid though, including a respectable 115 Attack and its second lowest stat in Special Attack being still an 80. Its move coverage is alright, randomly getting one Dragon move in Outrage.

Incineroar’s strengths:

• Good Ability
• Decent stats
• Solid coverage, including what used to be its signature move in Darkest Lariat

Incineroar’s weaknesses:

• Slow
• Coverage could be better
• Only one useful Ability 

Incineroar details:

• Incineroar’s Speed is lower than its base forms in Litten and Torracat
• It is based on tiger, professional wrestlers (specifically heels and vice with its Dark-type), and domestic cats
• Its name comes from incinerate and roar

 

4. Zoroark (Dark)

Zoroark of the eternal lipstick 

This shifty fox is one of my favorite Pokemon and I don’t see that changing. Despite being a pure Dark type, it is exceedingly useful due to its unique Ability. And looking cool is a good bonus.

Zoroark only has one Ability, but it's all it will ever need. Illusion does one thing very well: it makes Zoroark appear as the Pokemon in the back of the party. It will still have its own moves, but aside from that it is impossible to tell it apart until it's been hit. Pair this Ability with a Pokemon weak to Psychic for maximum chaos. 

Zoroark’s stats are solidly alright. With middling HP and defenses, it isn’t taking much of a hit. But this fox is shockingly fast and hits hard both ways, meaning it can cause a lot of pain quickly. And with an incredibly varied movepool, that pain can come in many flavors.

Zoroark’s strengths:

• Unique Ability can be used quite effectively 
• Surprisingly fast and strong 
• Much wider movepool than you’d expect

Zoroark’s weaknesses: 

• A bit fragile
• Not perfect coverage
• Ability can be tricky to utilize properly

Zoroark details: 

• It is a counterpart of sorts to Lucario
• It is based on the kitsune, a Japanese folklore fox that tricked people for the fun of it
• Also pulls from Kabuki and Noh theater makeup and werewolves
• It has large hair due to lacking a tail
• Its name comes from zorro (fox in Spanish), dark or arch- 

 

3. Greninja (Water/Dark)

Somehow the most popular Pokemon of all time…. I mean ninjas are cool

Prior to Scarlet and Violet, this frog would have likely been number one, but having its best Ability nerfed definitely lowered its standings a bit. This popular ninja frog is still very good though, and still has a disturbing tongue scarf.

Basic Water starter fare in Torrent again, yawn…. oh hey Protean. Before Scarlet and Violet this was broken, allowing Greninja to change type every time it attacked. Now it's just the first time. Still can be useful though. Battle Bond is also a thing but hard to get now, but buffs to Attack, Special Attack, and Speed are quite good. 

 Greninja’s stats are pretty solid, with its best easily being Speed. If you have Battle Bond it gets a significant boost comparable to a Mega but requires some setup to use. All this means there are two viable ways to use Grenina: the Battle Bond powerhouse or the Protean trickster. And with its very solid movepool, it can do both well.

Greninja’s strengths: 

• Can be used in two very different ways
• Covers weaknesses pretty well
• Good movepool

Greninja’s weaknesses:

• A bit fragile
• Lacking some coverage
• Signature move isn’t the best

Greninja details: 

• Greninja is playable in the Super Smash Bros. series
• It is based on frogs, specifically horned frogs, the splendid leaf frog, and a toad’s parotoid glands (for the bubbles)
• Also pulls from ninjas, as Japan has a folk story about a ninja who could turn into a frog (The Tale of the Gallant Jiraiya)
• Also pulls from rogues in fantasy
• Its name comes from grenouille (frog in French) and ninja

 

2. Meowscarada (Grass/Dark)

Nothing to see here, just a cat on a stroll who’s not planning anything 

Grass was the last starter type to pair with Dark, and with all three in the top five, it's clear it had good results. It was a bit tricky to decide if Greninja should take this spot, but in the end, I decided the more useful as of now should have it. And useful it is, this weed cat may be fragile but when that’s its only real weakness you know it's a good Pokemon.

Again Grass Starter, another Overgrow. At least it gets Protean. It's after the change so it's not as good, but still could be useful in changing it's easy to exploit typing. 

Meowscarada excels in Attack and Speed while not having terrible defenses. It's only taken out quickly due to having not the best typing, but at least Protean can change that. And its impressive movepool gives it a lot of options in that regard.

Meowscarada’s strengths:

• Good Ability 
• Fast and powerful
• Excellent coverage, especially with its broken signature move Flower Trick (guaranteed critical hit is a lot)

Meowscarada’s weaknesses:

• Easy to exploit typing with lots of weaknesses
• Somewhat fragile
• Could have higher Special Attack

Meowscarada details: 

• Based on cats like the Iberian lynx and magicians
• Its high Speed and Dark typing is a nod to the trickery/sleight of hand of magicians 
• Flower Trick pulls from the magic trick of making flowers appear
• Also inspired by the masquerade ball, where similar masks are worn
• Its name comes from meow and mascarada (masquerade in Spanish and Portuguese)

 

1. Krookodile (Ground/Dark)

When one pair of shades isn’t enough

Krookodile knows it's cool. And very powerful, there’s a very good reason this croc dominated Pokemon for so long. It's extremely powerful BEFORE making use of one of the series’ best Abilities. Don’t mess with this croc. 

Krookodile is three for three on good Abilities. Intimidate is good as said before, Moxie is as broken as ever by giving an Attack boost for every KO. On top of that it has access to Anger Point which does, let’s see… maximizes Attack when it's hit by a critical hit. Yeah, that’s a lot. Sure it has to survive the attack, but if it does, not much is taking hits from it anymore.

Krookodile’s stats are, as you’d expect, favoring Attack, but it's also faster than you’d think. And for some reason, it got a Defense buff in Gen 6… yeah this croc’s a menace with its only weakness being somewhat low Defenses and Special Attack, which you shouldn’t be using on it anyway. After all, all its Abilities and a large portion of its generous movepool favor Attack.

Krookodile’s strengths:

• Three very good Abilities
• Excellent movepool
• Stats to back it up
• Is a cool croc

Krookodile’s weaknesses: 

• Defenses aren’t incredible
• Most of its Abilities require some setup
• Coverage isn’t perfect

Krookodile details:

• It is based on crocodiles, specifically slender-nosed and Nile crocodiles, and likely gharial crocodiles
• Also pulls from the Baryonyx, a dinosaur that resembles crocodiles
• References gang leaders or criminals in general, especially with its eye markings that look like triangular sunglasses
• Possible reference to the Egyptian crocodile god Sobek
• Its name comes from crook and crocodile 

 

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