The Nuzlocke Challenge is a great way to spice up your Pokemon playthroughs. It adds some challenge to the games and forces you to use Pokemon you probably tend to overlook. The best thing about Nuzlocke is how customizable their ruleset is. One fixed rule, however, is that you can only catch the first Pokemon you encounter in each route.
This is where the biggest part of the challenge of Nuzlocke kicks in. You rejoice when you get a strong, rare Pokemon, but shudder when you get a weaker one. You may be tempted to box it, but, if there’s anything Ash Ketchum taught us, it’s that all Pokemon have potential. Even Magikarp.
10 Cascoon
Finding a cocoon Pokemon often feels like a kick in the teeth. You have to switch train them at low levels, which is time consuming, so catching a Cascoon often feels like a wasted encounter. Same can be said for having a Wurmple evolve into Cascoon instead of Silcoon.
However, Dustox is a very useful Pokemon at least up to the third gym in most regions. It’s fully evolved at level ten and has great moves such as Moonlight and Light Screen, and in later gens even Venoshock and Quiver Dance. It's great when new moves are added. Dustox also has very few weaknesses, making an excellent defensive Pokemon.
9 Zubat
It’s just a meme that stepping into any cave will get you assaulted by an infinite supply of Zubats that you’ll want to just slap away. And this is reasonable, Zubats are weak, they can’t take a hit and they have poor Attack. Golbat is better, giving the bat some nice bulk and okay Attack. Take the time to friendship grind, just run about for ages with a soothe bell on it and you can have a Crobat as early as level 23. Crobat can outspeed most ‘Mons and has solid bulk and offensive capabilities, as well as a solid moveset in later gens.
8 Hoppip
Now, sure, Hoppip seems weak, and Skiploom doesn’t seem much better. But, these Pokemon get access to Mega Drain, Leech Seed, and Synthesis. This combination of moves alone makes them great for stalling out opponents. Add Toxic for more damage, Protect for more stalling, or Sunny Day for more Synthesis Healing and a Chlorophyll speed boost and you’ve got yourself a solid stall Pokemon here. Just don’t send it out against Flying or Fire types and you’ll be fine.
7 Rattata
With an okay Attack and decent Speed, combined with the Guts ability, Rattata and Raticate can be incredibly useful. They’re normal types, so their movepool is huge, and they’re immune to Ghost while naturally learning Bite.
Definitely not a Pokemon to be overlooked. Obviously, Guts is the preferred ability over Run Away, but even without Guts this little critter can still hold its own. Just give it a diverse move set and it’ll help you out in numerous situations.
6 Solrock
Solrock is a weird Pokemon for sure, but it has pretty good coverage. While it’s best stat is Attack, meaning in gen 3 it doesn’t hit that hard with Fire or Psychic attacks, its coverage is still super handy. This bad boy can learn Flamethrower, Psychic, Rockslide, and Solarbeam, meaning it can take on almost any other type pretty well. You could throw Sunny Day on it to boost its Fire attacks while defending against its Water weakness. Big brain plays.
5 Bidoof
When most people get a Bidoof they just use it for all their HMs. Every game has that early Normal type that stays at the back of the party and never sees any action. Well, don’t let this be the fate of Bidoof. In gen 4, Water-Normal is a solid typing, helping with several gyms. Also, a fully evolved Pokemon at level 15 will outclass many other ‘Mons at that level. As a Normal type it can learn almost any move, so you can adapt this to fit any situation you’ll be in. Also, it's super easy to catch, unlike these other Sinnoh Pokemon.
4 Skiddo
Skiddo is cute, but it evolves really late and is pretty weak in and of itself. Take the time to train it into a Gogoat though and you’ll have an absolute powerhouse on your team. Sap Sipper is a great ability, bait Grass type attacks then switch Gogoat in for a free Attack boost.
Use Bulldoze to counter its slow speed, and then use Horn Leech to attack and regain health. Gogoat is one of the best Grass types we’ve seen in a while, so don’t sleep on it.
3 Liepard
Liepard is a Dark type with the move diversity of a Normal type. With access to Hone Claws to boost both Accuracy and Attack, this ‘Mon can set up on others after using Taunt to prevent them setting up in return. As a pure Dark type, this is only weak to Fighting — and Fairy in later gens — so you can safely switch it in to most situations. In Black & White 2 this can even learn Gunk Shot and Seed Bomb, giving it some amazing coverage.
2 Dusclops
Dusclops got some serious love post gen 3. It may be tempting to evolve it, after all, evolved Pokemon are stronger, right? Well yes, but actually no. With eviolite, a not-fully evolved Pokemon will have its Defense and Special Defense raised. Considering Dusclops already has a whopping 130 in each stat, this just makes it unkillable. Throw on moves like Will-O-Wisp and Hex for powerful attacks, and Confuse Ray and Protect to whittle down opponents and you have a true wall on your team.
1 Bulbasaur
Everyone loves Charmander because it’s cool. And everyone who wants to be cooler than cool picks Squirtle. The true, objectively best Kanto starter, however, is the often overlooked Bulbasaur. The physical/special split makes it truly shine, as it can be used both offensively to get rid of Fairy types, or defensively to wall teams. Leech Seed is always a good move, and this little beauty gets it at level nine in Sword & Shield. This brilliant little bulb can do it all, attack, defend, or mix it up. Stop living in denial and just take Bulbasaur. It's ranked one of the most popular Pokemon in Japan.