Niche Pokémon Play

Niche Starter Pokemon

All 27 starters are listed here by the mechanic that makes the line niche, not by a usage chart. The clearest examples are Torchic with Speed Boost, Snivy with Contrary, Froakie with Protean, and Fuecoco with Unaware.

Crop of the original cliff illustration, sky and castle

What “niche starter” means here

There are nine generations and three starters in each, so the table is 27 rows. Every row’s base form, final form, final types, hidden ability, and base stat total comes from the shared entity file, which was filled from Pokemon Database and checked on Serebii. I do not have a per-starter search volume, so I do not pretend one starter is “the” search. The cluster people type is the phrase niche starter pokemon.

Hidden abilities are the main niche signal. Torchic’s Speed Boost raises Speed each turn. Snivy’s Contrary turns Leaf Storm’s Special Attack drop into a boost on Serperior. Froakie’s Protean changes the user’s type to the move it just used. Scorbunny’s Libero is the same idea on a Fire line. Sprigatito also gets Protean. Fuecoco’s Unaware ignores the opponent’s stat boosts. Quaxly’s Moxie raises Attack after a knockout. Those are ability texts, not win rates.

Final types that leave the starter box

A few finals stop looking like a standard starter triangle. Rowlet’s line ends Grass/Ghost. Litten’s ends Fire/Dark. Popplio’s ends Water/Fairy. Fuecoco’s ends Fire/Ghost. Quaxly’s ends Water/Fighting. I list those because both dex sources agree on the final types. I am not ranking them by how “rare” the combination feels.

Piplup is the row I will not clean up. Pokemon Database lists its hidden ability as Competitive. Serebii lists Defiant. Empoleon’s hidden ability is Competitive on both. The table keeps the disagreement as two sources that do not match, and I do not pick a winner.

GenStarterTypeEvolution lineNicheStatus
1BulbasaurGrass / PoisonBase form → middle form → VenusaurBulbasaur is the only Gen 1 starter that gains a secondary Poison typing; Chlorophyll doubles its Speed in sun.3 sources
1CharmanderFireBase form → middle form → CharizardCharmander's line gains Flying at Charizard; Solar Power trades sun damage for Special Attack.3 sources
1SquirtleWaterBase form → middle form → BlastoiseSquirtle stays pure Water all the way to Blastoise; Rain Dish gives it passive rain recovery.3 sources
2ChikoritaGrassBase form → middle form → MeganiumChikorita stays pure Grass; Leaf Guard prevents status in sun.3 sources
2CyndaquilFireBase form → middle form → TyphlosionCyndaquil stays pure Fire; Flash Fire gives it an immunity to Fire attacks.3 sources
2TotodileWaterBase form → middle form → FeraligatrTotodile stays pure Water; Sheer Force boosts moves with secondary effects.3 sources
3TreeckoGrassBase form → middle form → SceptileTreecko stays pure Grass; Unburden doubles Speed after its held item is consumed.3 sources
3TorchicFireBase form → middle form → BlazikenTorchic becomes Fire/Fighting at Combusken; Speed Boost raises Speed every turn.3 sources
3MudkipWaterBase form → middle form → SwampertMudkip becomes Water/Ground at Marshtomp, trading its Electric weakness for a Grass one.3 sources
4TurtwigGrassBase form → middle form → TorterraTurtwig becomes Grass/Ground at Grotle; Shell Armor blocks critical hits.3 sources
4ChimcharFireBase form → middle form → InfernapeChimchar becomes Fire/Fighting at Monferno; Iron Fist boosts punching moves.3 sources
4PiplupWaterBase form → middle form → EmpoleonPiplup becomes Water/Steel at Prinplup; Defiant raises Attack when a stat is lowered. Sources disagree on the hidden ability: PokemonDB lists Competitive, Serebii lists Defiant; Empoleon is Competitive.3 sources
5SnivyGrassBase form → middle form → SerperiorSnivy stays pure Grass; Contrary turns Leaf Storm's Special Attack drops into boosts.3 sources
5TepigFireBase form → middle form → EmboarTepig becomes Fire/Fighting at Pignite; Thick Fat halves Fire and Ice damage.3 sources
5OshawottWaterBase form → middle form → SamurottOshawott stays pure Water; Shell Armor blocks critical hits.3 sources
6ChespinGrassBase form → middle form → ChesnaughtChespin becomes Grass/Fighting at Quilladin; Bulletproof blocks ball and bomb moves.3 sources
6FennekinFireBase form → middle form → DelphoxFennekin becomes Fire/Psychic at Braixen; Magician steals the target's item on attack.3 sources
6FroakieWaterBase form → middle form → GreninjaFroakie becomes Water/Dark at Frogadier; Protean changes its type to each move it uses.3 sources
7RowletGrass / FlyingBase form → middle form → DecidueyeRowlet is Grass/Flying, then becomes Grass/Ghost at Decidueye; Long Reach avoids contact effects.3 sources
7LittenFireBase form → middle form → IncineroarLitten becomes Fire/Dark at Torracat; Intimidate lowers the opponent's Attack on switch-in.3 sources
7PopplioWaterBase form → middle form → PrimarinaPopplio becomes Water/Fairy at Brionne; Liquid Voice turns sound moves into Water-type.3 sources
8GrookeyGrassBase form → middle form → RillaboomGrookey stays pure Grass; Grassy Surge sets Grassy Terrain on switch-in.3 sources
8ScorbunnyFireBase form → middle form → CinderaceScorbunny stays pure Fire; Libero changes its type to each move it uses.3 sources
8SobbleWaterBase form → middle form → InteleonSobble stays pure Water; Sniper boosts critical-hit damage.3 sources
9SprigatitoGrassBase form → middle form → MeowscaradaSprigatito becomes Grass/Dark at Floragato; Protean changes its type to each move it uses.3 sources
9FuecocoFireBase form → middle form → SkeledirgeFuecoco becomes Fire/Ghost at Crocalor; Unaware ignores the opponent's stat boosts.3 sources
9QuaxlyWaterBase form → middle form → QuaquavalQuaxly becomes Water/Fighting at Quaxwell; Moxie raises Attack after each KO.3 sources
Crop of the original cliff illustration, lightning mouse and type badges

FAQ

What is the nichest starter Pokemon?

Under a mechanic reading, Torchic, Snivy, Froakie, and Fuecoco are the four I would name first. There is no usage percentage on this page to crown a single winner.

How many starter Pokemon are there?

27 base forms: three in each of nine generations. The table is those 27, not the middle stages or Mega forms.

Why do two sites disagree on Piplup?

Pokemon Database says Competitive and Serebii says Defiant for Piplup’s hidden ability. Both are cited. Empoleon is Competitive on both.

Related

Sources

Sources for individual table entries

Page updated 2026-11-05. Published by Niche Pokemon.