Hey all, welcome to my guide for choosing a starter in PMD.  
I will be going over which starter you should choose when you 
start the game.  These are my personal opinions, and if you 
have a problem with them please bring it to my attention at 
once.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Part One: Things You Should Know
Part Two: Basics
Part Three: Starter Guide
Part Four: Legal


There are a few basics that you should practice when you first
start playing this game, and here is a brief overview of them as
a whole.  If you want a more thorough analysis, then go to a
guide.  This will be pretty thorough though, just this isn't what
this guide was meant to do :P.  I will be listing them in steps,
so pay attention.

Step 1: KNOW YOUR POKEMON
I can't stress this enough, as if you don't know the basic type
charts, then your truly in trouble.  Let's say you have a fire
type, and you are going up against a water type.  Common sense
dictates that water beats fire right?  Then use that common sense
as it will save your hinde more often then not.

Step 2: KNOW CROWD CONTROL
In this game you will often be swarmed by several pokemon at once
and because of that it is imperative to practice something I call
crowd control.  There are two steps to crowd control, and they
are as follows:  Range and Physical.

Range basically means your pokemon using an attack that hits from
far away, and I know that may sound simple, but it isn't.  Often
the prime motive of a range move is to buy you enough time to
wittle down an opposing pokemon enough so that when it approaches
you don't get blindsided.  If you can whittle an opponent enough,
then you can take it out quickly when it approaches.  This usally
means life or death in a ton of situations, so be careful.

Physical basically means getting close.  Usually this will be
a last ditch effort in my opinion, as range is key in a ton of
situations.  Physical does happen a ton of the time though, since
it is unlikely that you can take a whole mob before they get to 
you unless you employ some sort of item.

Step 3: KNOW YOUR ITEMS
A wise man once said, you are only as good as the equipment that
you take with you.  That same saying holds true in this.  I can
tell you that it makes more sense to have items than not, as you
may just be depending on them.  Some items allow you to attack
at a range, other give you the ability to speed up or heal.  Use
them well and you'll go very far.

Step 4: BE AWARE OF YOUR SURROUNDINGS
Don't make the same mistake most make, be aware of your
surroundings.  If you are, you can avoid ambushes by mobs of 
enemies.



FORMAT
Starter Name
My Opinions
My Rating(Based on a ten point scale.)

That is how it will go, no different than any of the other 
guides that I have concocted over the months.

Bulbasaur
My Opinions: Being a grass starter gives Bulb. a nice variety 
of grass type moves to choose from when you are fighting.  
Possibly my only main concern with this guy is his weakness to 
fire, psychic to an extent, and most of all the walling that 
happens to all grass types.  Steel, although rare, can be a 
killer with these guys, and if you are like me you definitely 
should have back-up when you go face to face with anything of 
that nature.  Skarmory, one of the first bosses that you will 
meet, is definitely a great example.  You can and will most 
likely be walled by him, so picking a good support is in your 
best interest if you truly want to attain a good, solid 
team.  His later evos. can be great as back-up, but should be 
pushed aside in the long run of it all.  Attacks that he gets 
aren’t the best, and since grass is a pretty weak type that 
can be expected.

My Score: 7/10
He is sturdy, but problems prevent him from being truly great.

Charmander
My Opinions: Being fire gives Charmander an excellent 
repitoure of sweet moves that can make this game a breeze 
if you partner him with the correct type.  That is definitely 
the key, as water can seriously hurt him if it comes down to a 
brawl.  Fire takes out probably one of the fiercer tyeps in the 
form of steel, so that is always helpful.  If you do pick him, 
find a good water partner as it will help you out, trust me 
;).  Ground can hurt, and in the case of any serious boss 
battle you’ll want to sit this guy out if at all possible, 
until he becomes a Charizard and EQ can’t kill him any more, 
just rockslide :P.

My Score: 8/10
Harder later on, but great in the early stages.


Chikorita 
My Opinions:  Another grass starter, just great.  Basically 
the same as the previously mentioned starter, just hounded by 
the same weaknesses.  She does have the pleasure of being one 
of the only pokes in the game that actually evolve into 
something that isn’t used much though :P.  I have honestly 
yet to truly use this starter that much, mainly due to the 
weaknesses that plauge it.  Were it not for this, I would 
have skipped.  If at all posible, follow some of the same 
recommendations as the previous grass starter.  Shame, I 
liked this one…

My Score: 5/10
Get’s slaughtered by some early and late game enemies.


Cubone
My Opinions: Uncontestedly the best starter PMD has to offer, 
this guy boasts some great stats when evolved, solid moves, and 
some wicked looks.  I personally would recommend this guy to a 
begginger, as the ability to have some better stats does make it 
easier.  Two words: Bone Club.  Not only are multi-hitting 
attacks some of the most potent in the game, but they are also 
great for something that hurts a ton of players, crowd 
control.  With it, you can beat this game very easily.  Best 
part is that you get it fairly early as well, so as soon as 
you get it your practically set for a good amount of time 
before it becomes obsolete. The only visable downside that 
truly prevents this guy from being perfect is his weakness to 
water and ice.  Both kill him, and without a good, sturdy 
supporter your taking a boat up a creek that you should 
really stay away from.  If I were you, I’d pick either a good 
electric type, possibly a grass type, or something else to 
back you up.  Something to consider though before I close 
this subject, you should definitely work on getting a solid 
start to the game with this guy, as if you do that you can 
control the rest of it fairly easily.

My Score: 9/10
Weaknesses are his only real problem.


Cyndaquil
My Opinions: Unlike Charmander, Cyndaquil suffers from 
something that really kills it in the long run: the inability 
to get rid of its ground weakness.  Charmader will eventually 
get rid of it, but he won’t.  Because of that, I stongly 
recommend against this guy unfortunately, as I just can’t 
get past that.  He has no dual type to take advantage of 
like Blaziken does, and he gets pretty bad attacks as well 
for a good, long period of time before he gets good.  I think 
you can choose him though if you want some sort of difficulty 
out of this game, as if you can wing it with him you’ll be in 
a better position for future runs.  Difficulty makes you a 
veteran I suppose.

My Score: 5/10
Great for a simulated hard mode run. 

Eevee 
My Opinions: This thing has one huge asset going for it, and 
that is the fact that it gains the ability to evolve into some 
excellent pokemon.  It starts out weak, and doesn’t get much 
better, so you may or may not find yourself ditching him if 
you don’t have the nerve to stay put for a good amount of time.
There are basically no moves that I can think of that this guy 
can really excell with, so you eally are getting hurt there.  
If anything at all, he is horrible at crowd control, so be 
careful with that as well.  Still, he is extremely rewarding 
if you can stick with him for the long run and get him to 
evolve.

My Score: 8/10
Excellent for on purpose, evolution.

Machop 
My Opinions: Fighting types are generally very good in this 
game, so if I were you I’d pick this guy if you want someone 
that can be good as a main guy to stick with.  He is very close
range though, so expect to get hit up or rely on some items to 
expand your range.  Psychic is a problem, and since they rely 
on range that really hurts this guy as a whole.  Try as I 
might, the only thing I could come up with was to just use
your other partners for areas that you know will house these 
types of pokemon.  Excellent dark counter though, not that 
you’ll be seeing much of them.  Flying hurts, and since that 
is a problem as well, you could be in for it.  Since he is 
close range though, you can still benefit from it if you play 
your cards right.

My Score: 7/10
Weaknesses are plentiful and quiet common in some cases to 
come across.


Meowth 
My Opinons: The epitome of mediocre, Meowth doesn’t have much 
going fo rit other than its basically nuetral stat base.  Most 
of its moves are neutral in type, so if you want a good poke 
that can score neutral most of the time, this guy is for you.  
Ghost is a problem, and with no foresight you’re basically 
screwed.  Still, his stat base is nice, as well as pay day.

My Score: 5/10
Mediocre at best.

Mudkip 
My Opinions: Some would consider him the best water starter 
out of the whole bunch, and I agree.  That one weakness once 
he evolves is a nice bonus that I just can’t look past.  He 
has good stats, fairly good moves for crowd control, and the 
ability to axcess both ground and water moves.  That right 
there saves his tanning hide from a ton of problems that 
could surface.  I forget if he gets rockslide, but if he 
does you really are in better shape.  All in all, his only 
real problem is grass weaknesses that follow him around like 
the plauge.  Best example would be in the earlier dungeons, 
when grass is at its height.

My Score: 8/10
Virtually no weaknesses, but where he does get them it hurts.

Pikachu
My Opinions: The electric rodent that just won’t seem to die, 
Pickachu is a hideous little rodent that I wish I could send 
on a rocket to some distant planet.  Anyway…….:P.  I typically 
find this guy hard to use later on in the game, partially 
because ground is prevelent and it basically shuts him out 
very easily.  If you can use him ealier though against the 
plentiful flying type, you’re in better shape.  Remember, 
support is your best friend in a case such as this.  Grass 
is excellent in a case such as this, as is water or ice.  
Ice is rare though, so grass is you best friend.

My Score: 0/10
I hate rodents, and this is no different.

My Real Score: 5/10
To many things that resist him later on to use him on a 
consistent basis.

Psyduck 
My Opinions: Any one who uses this guy in favor of kip is 
plain out stupid, unless you are going for a hard run.  He
gets a dual type, but it does nil for him in the long run.  
Range is okay, but it could be better on both sides of the 
spectrum.  Darkness weaknesses hurt him though if you aren’t 
careful.  Good support can be found in ground, fire, and in 
some cases fighting for dark.

My Score: 3/10
Way to many problems that stem early on in this poke’s 
carrer.


Skitty 
My Opinions: Another junky normal type that doesn’t even have 
average stats to back itself up.  Attacks are BASICALLY 
useless.  He can be a tad bit usefull in some situations, but 
still has problems.  Weakness’ to fighting and other normal 
problems give him a hard time later on.

My Score: 4/10
Stats aren’t that good, basically no good attacks, just has 
problems.

Squirtle
My Opinions: A defensive water type that definitely is good 
in a pinch.  I would definitely recommend this guy for one 
reason alone, he can defend himself.  Unlike other pokemon 
that have problems with this and are dragged down because of 
it, he isn’t.  Solid moves, great stats, nice range, and an 
overall quality expereince made this guy a joy to play with.  
Excellent for begginners that are still getting used to the 
basics.  Taking hits and keep on ticking is something.  
New players that have a hard time with this definitely will 
benefit from him.

My Score: 9/10
Excellent for begginers, I defintiely like this guy in a ton of 
areas.



Torchic
My Opinions: Being a dual type when it evolves, Torchic gets 
the best of both the fighting and fire types.  Not only is 
this a great asset to it, but it also affords him one of the
widest forms of offense that the game can prvide.  Close range 
fighting moves, long range fire moves, you name it, he has it.  
This definitely helps him in the long run, as it guarantees 
that he won’t get shut out by a water that will be hurting 
him.  He does gain that weakness to psychic though, so watch 
for that along with possibly one of the worst weaknesses ever, 
ground.  Support is definitely in order for something such as 
this, as without it you will get shut down very quickly.  If 
you want to get yourself going quickly, start off with a nice 
Torchic as well as a very fast water type.  Excellent 
coverage on both premises.

My Score: 8/10
Weaknesses prevent him from being one of the best pokemon in 
the game.


Totodile
My Opinions: In the main games, being an offensive water type 
kills this guy.  In this game, it’s a blessing that just keeps 
on giving.  If it weren’t for the elec. types out there that 
really kill him, he’d be the best poke in the game.  Getting 
up close, and then getting shocked is definitely not fun.  
If I were you, I’d get a good ground type to lead the charge 
if you encounter one of those situations.  Being water 
gives him some moves that afford range, while also allowing 
him to inherit some nice normal moves as well.  That’s other 
pokes one main problem, the lack of other moves.  It kills 
them, and if you are strapped for Tms you are definitely in 
troubel.

My Score: 7/10
What can I say, he gets a ton of stuff that makes him good.  
He can get hurt though, and pretty badly if you know what 
I mean.

Treecko
My Opinions: Unfortunately for Treecko, his nice speed from the 
other games doesn’t translate into this.  That leaves him with 
his best grass move, leaf blade.  Excellent killing move that 
can truly hurt other pokes if they leave themselves open for 
attacks.  If I were you, I’d whatch for shut-outs by steel 
types, as well as fire since he doesn’t get that dual type that 
the other do.  Without it, he misses out in the long run on 
some good moves.

My Score: 5/10
Hate to say it, but he is better in the main games.

I hope you enjoyed this, and I really hope you learned :P.



LEGAL
This faq is owned by me, EJR, and may not be copied or reproduced
in any matter without my personal permission.

Sites That Can Use This Guide
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Thanks.
Works Cited: Pokemon List from Wiki.
Copyright 2007 @EJR