Pokémon Top 5: Favourite Ground Type Pokémon

Island Guests! It has happened! I have a top five of typed Pokémon for you where Iridium Eye probably knows like 80% of these Pokémon! That’s like super special! That also reveals to you there is probably not a lot of Pokémon of later generations on this list! They really started the series strong with this type!  So prepare for my eight out of 18 typing lists. With the only typing that is super effective against the electric type ! The ground type!

Like Always we will follow the rules of only one pokémon per evolution line and no duplicates of previous lists to reduce redundancy. This leaves Krookodile out who already made it to my dark type list. If a pokémon’s evolution is something I strongly dislike it’s previous evolution can be given a demerit for evolving into something I dislike. Drilbur is one of these cases. It’s evolution just looks so incohesive and meshed together to me that I actually really dislike  using it. Since Drilbur on it’s owe will not be that useful in playthroughs nor does it have any other way to use it.. it gets no further than a mention here.

Pokémon also have to feel like a Ground type to me to qualify for this list. Oddly enough the Ground type is rather weak in this department. Nincada, Gligar, Gliscor, Gastrodon and of course fan favorite Flygon are all pokémon that I quite like but would not associate with the ground type just by looking at it.  Gastrodon is a sea slug, Gligar and Gliscor are flying scorpions and Nincada is just a bug… from the faintest distance I still see why they belong to that type but then there’s Flygon. A flying green dragon that gets the ground type bestowed up to him because he evolves from a Sand Trap Pokémon. I get why the first evolution gets it but there should not be ANY flying Ground types  besides for Landorus. It just doesn’t feel right to me. I guess It’s nice to have a Dragon that is not a Dragon Flying type, unlike so many before it.. but they have the same weakness. Nothing shouts to me that this is an earthquake user other than that it gets STAB boosts.. so it will not make the list.

By that same sort of standard there is yet another honourable mention i wish to mention and that is Quagsire. Which is a great Pokémon that I deeply love for how derpy and joyful it looks but teaching it ground moves is SUCH a hassle. It learns 2 in it’s natural moveset and one of them is totally worthless as it has low base power and uses it’s rather bad special-attack stats to deal damage. The second it learns at level 52, which in Gold and Silver basically is end game. It’s so hard to run this with a decent ground  type move unless you breed that you basically will be using this as a pure water type that switches out it’s electric weakness with a double weakness to grass (and Freeze Dry) that it is just a very defensive Water Typing that can feel like a ground type… but on average not so much.

Cubone has the “honour” being being the very first ground type on this list whom I have never really (actively) used during a playthrough of the main games , yet I still love the  heck out of. It doesn’t have great stats and Marowak is a bit lackluster in its ground shape. Yet Cubone made it on my list for another reasons. Cubone for example is one of the most significant lore driven pokémon of the earlier games. The whole story of Lavender Town?! Where it’s mother gets killed by team Rocket and it wears the skull of its mother as her final protection. It is so sad and it left an early impact on me! We always saw it depicted crying and in a way it is one of the very few things that have ever appeared to something I thought I would never have. Motherly instincts.  I just wanted to take care of it , hug it and tell it everything was going to be alright! It’s the exact emotion you have to feel about the pokémon as well so it really landed.  To this day it’s design is one of the most unique looking pokémon out there and I adore it.  It feels cute and cold at the same time.. cold as in..distant. Which.. again is rather as intended. 

I really enjoy Alolan Marowak as an evolution as well! It was the Alolan form I was the most excited about and felt the most clever of them all. It stayed with me! A fire dancing ghost.. worked so well. Yet Cubone and Pikachu have never changed their basic forms (Yes Pikachu is still a basic form not Pichu.. as to gain that little tyke you need some incense) which shows how great it’s design is. It made me laugh and cry .. but mostly cry.  I am not a big fan of the Let’s Go Games but their rendition of the Cubone story was so beautifully animated. How Trace accompanies it.. how Cubone sees it’s mother one more time and tries to embrace her right as she ascends to heaven.. it showed very clearly..pokémon can truly die. Pokémon have families to.. and some pokémon deserve to be taken care of , even if they aren’t always the strongest. Had Trace not taken the little Tyke I would have done so myself but it was a nice reminder that Pokémon .. isn’t always about using the strongest like Agatha says.. it’s about using the pokémon you love.  Unfortunately I have always been really unlikely when it comes to finding one and I usually only add it to my team in the actual gameplay phase.

The real reason why I have this added to my list though is because it was the pokémon I reincarnate as in the first Mystery Dungeon game. I knew the story a tiny bit and playing through the game as a Cubone made so much sense given the story and the main character that gets turned into a pokémon by a mysterious force, then finally finds some friends in their brave little adventure club! While the game surely is not easy to run as a Cubone.. I had a blast being this little monster and seeing it’s epic journey .. growing into one of the coolest club around .. taking on other squads and solving mysterious was just so great and unique. If I ever get around to playing Pokémon Mystery Dungeon DX I am sure I want to be a Cubone again. It will ALWAYS be the mon for these type of games. In a way I really felt I could relate to Cubone. To odd for the real world but bound to friends by this mysterious thing called pokémon.. a sentiment that could have easily made it my number 1..but this week I decided to follow a bit of a different route. Because there is sentiment throughout!

This is the only pokémon on this list that does not belong to gen I. It is my favorite Pokémon typing combination being Ground and Water.. but it beats out Swampert as my favorite because I really like the way it evolves. Swampert I prefer to leave as a Mudkip.. so cute! Mudkip of course doesn’t have the ground typing yet or that would actually be on this list. Seismitoad also has such a cool name. It’s an earthquake making frog, that uses it croaks to establish it! How cool is that?! It looks pretty darn cool as well. I love it’s design and evolution line so much. This walks the perfect line between clunky and cool to me. It feels sluggish and derpy yet also something that can hit you hard and without mercy. I like frog Pokémon in general and we have a surprisingly nice variety on them as well. Most are water types of course, but we have fighting, poison , dark and ground types to boost the roster.. one frog can even change types! Woop! This Ground one is a very good addition as a warted toad. 

Seismitoad is popular with the elderly (in universe) .. while I am not that old… it’s  appeal its not lost on me. It’s warts constantly vibrate constantly which the old folks love to use for massages. I would love a massage from a big frog pet! Even if it’s vibrating Warts. It can also harness these vibrations to throw powerful punches that can turn rocks to dust or even create earthquakes. Not that’s some multi functional warts.  I wonder how I can get vibrating warts! Think about  how relaxed I would be!  ..  Maybe they can swell up really bad and they would be pink too! Seems like a win! Just kidding , of course I would not want any warts as big as this pokémon but it’s design is among the most  toad like of the whole series.. It has this uniqueness that I really love. Most other frogs are a bit streamlined. This feels like the pokémon of a Witch.. not sure why but I also really love the colouring.. it’s just a blue with a lighter blue.. but the red eyes.. the dark rings and the deep blue base tone really makes it something I love to see.

With the abilities Poison Touch and Water Absorb this Pokémon already is  though to deal with.. but it’s main Bread and Butter is the Swift Swim Ability. Due to the way that Dynamax Works setting up rain is now easier than before and if you run it on a rain team it can deal massive damage. Ground Types usually are slow but this one with a base speed of 74 is already fairly okay speed wise but can easily become blisteringly fast.  That 74 is it’s lowest stat as well. Which means that this pokémon is quite okay in everything. It’s not great at anything but you can customise it in anyway you like. It keeps your opponent  guessing. Assuming it is Swift Swim while it is actually Water Absorb.. can hurt.  Since you can run it with both special and physical set it is capable of catching your opponent of  off guard. Earthquake and Surf are great multi-target moves  Best on a rain team, this combines great with Drizzle Pokémon like Pelipper for maximum damage.  A boosting combination that  that is a landslide of earth and water that will wash your enemies away.

This is it guys and girls, the first pokémon that ever existed. Rhydon was the first pokémon to ever be programmed into the game. A fact that many people did not even know. Of course that already makes this Pokémon special to me! It’s one of my favorite pokémon designs ever to boot. Sure it got its evolution later  on that also is pretty great..but this look was something so special. I am normally not a fan of grey pokémon and the ground type is far from my favorite, yet this Pokémon .. was so stunning ever since I saw it come to live in 3d in Pokémon Stadium. The version in that game.. at least one of them.. that knew Surf. It was truly amazing. It was the first time I knew looks could be deceiving. The way it was depicted in the anime! Pikachu using the horn to conduct electricity to it, the whole proud face and the tough skin.. I would love a little statue of this pokémon! It’s so magnificent! Words fail me to describe why..but whenever I see it.. I just go.. that’s a good looking pokémon. It might even be my absolute favorite design wise….and it’s grey! Sylveon of course is amazing as well but that’s pink I was bound to like that.

With an armor that can withstand temperatures up to 3600 degrees fahrenheit it can swim in Lava.. or hide in it as well!  As soon as it left it’s quadruped phase of Rhyhorn it became intelligent and also the ability to punch holes into rocks by  simply jabbing it with it’s horn. When he uses the horn as a drill he can turn even uncut diamonds into dust. Suck on that Shiva! He’s a rock type ..which is super effective against ice types.. so it kinda makes sense.. though ground types lose to ice .. so it would be a 50/50 on Shiva vs Rhydon. That’s a Final Fantasy reference by the way.  The fact that it can swim in lava is a bit of an underestimation. Lava is around 1250 degrees Centigrade at its hottest.. that weird Fahrenheit thing .. means it it can withstand 1900 ish degrees centigrade.  The less confusing temperature standard. Basically this means that this Rhino could even swim into melted platinum! The only metal on Earth that would kill it in its molten form would be Osmium ..which melts at 2700 degrees centigrade. Makes sense Rhydon is quad resistant to the fire type then!

Rhydon is still quite usable in battle! It hits with a whopping 130! Base stat in attack and it’s Defence is 120. This kinda makes it a more favorable option in combat than it’s fully evolved counterpart! Who buffs the attack up to 140 and defence also goes up a notch but no longer can use Eviolite! Since Rhydon usually functions as a hazard Setter and you combine it with moves like Sword Dance, Stone Edge, Earthquake and aforementioned Stealth Rocks.. the non evolved version is actually the bulkier option of the two. This means in pvp battles it is nice as a pokémon to swap in with and take a hit as well. It’s lighting Rod ability even makes it quite nice for double battles.  With a 130 base stat in attack you also do not have to worry this pokémon is lackluster in terms of gameplay playthroughs. I can even learn surf and strength which are the two HM’s that are quite usable in battle for older generations. It gets elemental punches as well including Ice Punch. That and it’s Stab Rock moves basically make it super good against Dragon Type elite four members, because of so many dragons being quad weak to ice.. and plenty of them being flying types so also being weak to rock! In general this pokémon is really good against the elite 4. At least against the majority of them.

I was thinking of classifying this among my favorite rock types..when I realised it would not make the top of that list! So it’s actually safe to put on here! Because it is among my favorite ground types… I do not know why I favor the weaker typings in general. Fairy being a major exception. Golem is another one of those pokémon whose design I really really love. It’s that thing Indiana Jones always runs away from.. but this time it has a face! Yet another pokémon I cam to adore trough Pokémon Stadium.. and spoiler, number 1 will have that as well.  My first time meeting this pokémon however was quite an experience. I was always bullied in school  because due to my motor issues and muscle trouble I walked weird. I never had many friends.. yet Golem is a thing that got me a friend.. or sort of at least.. I was just going to middle school. Thirteen years of age and I had zero friends. To pass the time I brought my gameboy to school! It wasn’t really allowed.. but I’d find a quiet corner to crawl away and since going to the cafeteria usually meant people started throwing food to me .. and the school had to clean it up.. it was sorta allowed. One day one of the bullies snuck up to me and looked nervous.

He asked me if I played Pokémon and if I would trade his graveler with him so it could evolve it was the last pokémon needed but his little brother kept his first one and would not trade it back.I did not know about trade evolutions yet so in trade I got all 4 as he explained to me. When that Golem was send over I thought it looked so cool and I bonded with my bully! The fact that he also snuck a gameboy to school did not even occur to me .. but he saw me do it .. so should be fine.  We talked about pokémon for an entire recess.. he could let a part of him out he could not show in front of the other kids.  Every now and again .. he would return if something happened in the tv series that was cool. Because of that kid I also had the courage to go to a pokémon competition hosted on tv to meet other fans.. my first geeky community thing. He of course became an ass again as soon as he lost interest in the game after but he never really bullied again.. like he laughed as others threw tacks at me.. he  was there when people stole my lunch..but he never  was active against me anymore.. all because of a Golem!

In combat the pokemon is about the opposite of Rhydon.. Physical defences and physical offence are swapped. The rest is  about the same.  Yet since this boulder does not benefit from an Eviolite.. it is the lesser choice to use in battle. I tend to run it with Rollout , explosion and earthquake .. more as a flavor team member as too seriously use it in combat. Also dig on it is quite fun because how it looked in Pokémon Stadium! Also since Gen I did not have abilities and held items yet.. Golem was a bit better in those games.  Golem’s main ability is Sturdy.. which is a good ability for it two have since it has two quad weaknesses so usually I run it with a normal gem and explosion  as a revenge killer. That’s fun and though I would of course never use it like that in a Nuzlocke because I would not  want it do die..  it is always fun to know if an opponent can do nothing to stop a normal gem boosted explosion.. as long as they don’t have a ghost type or Protect on a certain set. Using this creature is much more of a gamble but that is what makes it fun. Essentially if you do not misplay it can get rid.. or close to get rid of anything you do not want to deal with by sacrificing itself.. such a good friend! 

Hail to the king baby! While I could easily see this as a Poison Type it is because of it’s counterpart Nidoqueen that I actually both identify them more with the Ground type. She doesn’t get that much good poison moves.. in fact.. I originally planned her to take this spot and give the King the top spot in the poison list.. but Nidoqueen kinda sucks! Well not really she is okay at everything but it feels like the wrong stats have been averaged. She lacks a great offensive stat and makes it up with a bit more bulk.. but her defence isn’t that good anyway. Her special attacks a borderline bad. I love both these designs though .. but I do favor Nidoking’s more Kaiju-esque.. vibrant purple design over Nidoqueens sleaker one.  Nidoqueen if defencive where Nidoking is offensive.. yet Nidoqueen’s bulk can get her less far than King can do with his offence. I still really love them both though! They shaped pokémon! Big time!

In the lore department Nidoqueen is kinda bland She’s just hard.. that’s like rephrased seven different times or so and bam that’s all we know about Nidoqueen. she protects the nest, she has hard scales with phrasing differing just a mild bit every time.  Nidoking has at least some cool stuff like destroying radio towers, horns hard enough to break diamonds… I guess in the Pokémon Universe Jojo’s part four would be REALLY short.  Anyway it also destroys telephone poles. Now there is an entry that did not hold up all that well.. well that or there are A LOT more Nidokings than we think there are in real life. I bet some conspiracy guys would love to get their hands on a Nidoking right about now!  5 Great balls required to capture it. All in all though there isn’t all that much special about this pokémon.

Then why do I love it so much?! I do not know which seems a theme about these ground types. I love using earth power on Nidoking even if Earthquake is more effective. I love random trivia about the pokémon! For example did you know that Nidoqueen is the undefined Egg Group.. that means she can’t breed! The first gendered Pokémon.. the two species that started a trend for gold and silver and all the games onward to become the breeding game we all know and love. .and one part is sterile! This also again.. makes Nidoking factually better.. as it that can be IV bred. Also their secret ability “Sheer Force” is  their best ability.. you can get that by breeding.. so …..there is problem for one of them.. still these two pokémon are icons in the pokémon world.. they reshaped the pokémon world for generations to come.. yet they can not “play”with each other. It’s so wonderfully odd. Nidoking looks better though, learns better moves, is easier to use in combat and bascily does everything a little bit better. The fact that what they do isn’t anything special makes just all the more credible that I actually love this Pokémon! Sometimes there is no reason.. but I just have some heavy Nido in the kokoro.

What is your favourite Ground Type? Did you know Rhydon was the first pokémon?! Did you play Pokémon Stadium as a kid?! Let me know! Let’s hope next week it will be nice and hot outside, because I got another top 10 list waiting for you to cool you off as we discuss the Ice Type.
Now I have to Dig into some more writing for my DnD games so I will be off! See you next time.