Pokémon Legends: Arceus Starter Evolutions - Pros & Cons Of Decidueye
With Pokémon Legends: Arceus out now, a question on many players' minds is which starter they should choose. The starters in Legends: Arceus all come from past generations, but their final forms are Hisuian regional variants that alter the Pokémon's designs and change their typing. Knowing which final evolution is best goes a long way in choosing a starter, so how does Hisuian Decidueye compare to the rest?
When the final evolutionary forms of Legends: Arceus' starters leaked, their designs made a lot of waves in the community. Many fans were upset by the way Hisuian Decidueye was such a drastic departure from its original Alolan form. And while many players may choose not to use Hisuian Decidueye because of its looks, others may be interested in its Flying/Fighting dual typing.
The new Hisiuian Decidueye's design gives it a more traditional hat of feathers (rather than the hood that usually goes over its head) and changes its colors. Whereas the Alolan Decidueye's feathers made it seem like it was wearing a cloak, the Hisuian form looks more like a poncho. Its face is also hidden quite a bit more, though animations and zooming in on its face in the game can reveal more. So, what are the pros and cons of using Hisuian Decidueye in Pokémon Legends: Arceus?
Rowlet was a starter in Pokémon Sun and Moon and was a Flying/Grass-type while its final evolution, Decidueye, was a Grass/Ghost-type. This gave it a somewhat rare (but powerful) combination that made it incredibly useful. However, Hisuian Decidueye in Legends: Arceus is now Flying/Fighting. This gives it an advantage over Hisuian Samurott's Water/Dark typing, but it is susceptible to Hisuian Typhlosion's Ghost moves.
Besides being weak to Hisuian Typhlosion's Ghost moves, Hisuian Decidueye is weak to other types that are super effective against Flying or Fighting. There are also a lot of Flying Pokémon readily available in Legends: Arceus, so it won't give players a real edge there. Fighting-types like Machop and Machoke are also catchable before players are likely to evolve a Hisuian Decidueye, so there's no shortage there, either.
Overall, players will likely choose Hisuian Decidueye because they like the Pokémon or have nostalgia from the Alola region. If players decide to go with a different starter than Rowlet, then they can still catch one in Pokémon Legends: Arceus later on. However, out of the three final starter evolutions, Hisuian Decidueye may be the weakest - or, rather, the least necessary.