How Special Is Your Starter To You?

[Life]

Nowadays I treat it the same as any other Pokémon on my team. Sure, it was the first thing I ever got - in that play through. Especially when I've already used the starter before, it just because less special.

When I was a kid, though, I used to treat them as gods. They were pretty much the only Pokémon I would use.

 

[Alola]

It depends on the starter. They usually stay on my team but I have boxed a couple before: namely Piplup and Mudkip. I love them but I don't hold them in high regards as compared to other Pokemon except for two--my Bulbasaur named Bruticus and my Greninja named Shurikroak. Bruticus was the first Pokemon I ever received, so he remained special until Crystal's batteries died. Shurikroak however.... that Greninja helped me win a passerby battle by 2HKOing an Yveltal. She does not leave my side, ever.

I really thought Golurk would be the only Pokemon for you aha.

 

[Hex Maniac]

I may keep them in my team or I may not but they don't tend to be my favourites, even when I like them a lot. I think the one I've stuck with longest has been Delphox.

 

[CrystaI]

Which ever version and generation of main game I chose to play, my starters will always be forever in my main team of 6, never ever deposit into the PC even after Pokemon League.

It is not like the starters Pokemon have a "special" place inside my heart, but I think it is more due to my personal playing style. I always choose to possess 6 regular Pokemon that I always carry around for the whole game (sometimes 7 or 8 if there are some Pokemon I really want to keep forever), where that 6 regular Pokemon always consist of any one of the starter Pokemon (I don't see the reason of not using it either. Fully evolved starter doesn't have such bad BST). The other 5 in the team will depends on my preference of obtainable Pokemon within that game.

BTW, I don't like HM slaves. So my regular team will each know one or two HM moves.
In any case, I am not a competitive player, so I'm fine with that even if it means take one attack slot for the useless HM.

 

[Calmasis]

For me it varies. A couple of my starter Pokémon are really important to me, but some of them don't really matter as much. My Blaziken in Ruby, my Serperior in Black 2 and my Greninja in X were important to me, but with most of my other starters I used them till I beat the Elite Four then boxed them.

 

[Muur]

I suppose they're pretty special since I always have them as one of my 6 slots, not always my main guy though, Roserade took that in Platinum for example.

I usually have them the same level too but for some reason on BW2 my Staraptor is like 7 levels over everyone else. Everyone else kept dying for Staraptor had to pick up the scraps. Also I kept abusing intimidate to lower attack so it lept getting into battles aha.

 

[Argylegasm]

Depends on the starter!

I have a hard time battling with a Pokémon if I don't like how it looks or don't just... feel into it (which is strange-sounding, I know). I was attached to my Blastoise in Blue, my Swampert in Sapphire, but Feraligatr, Empoleon, Samurott (my hatred for Samurott runs deep, though), and Greninja all went into the PC once they were fully evolved.

I usually consider a Pokémon I caught as my starter... such as my Gallade (a Ralts I caught early in X) or my Magmortar (a Magby I caught early in Black2).

 

[Vantine]

I tend to use my starters throughout the whole game. They stay on my main team while everyone else tends to be interchangeable. But I do have those pokemon that I have continued to love throughout the entire series like Rapidash, Dragonair, and Vulpix so as soon as I can catch them I tend to use them alot.

 

[s|ush]

I have always had my starter in my team. I don't think I have ever done a play through without them as to me that seems odd as they are there from the very beginning. I do have starters I like more than others but I would say that each starter has been on my team at least once. I also, do at times, consider certain Pokemon on my team to be my main (Lucario always seems to get that honer) sa they are like a signature Pokemon but overall I think starters are a vital part of my game plays.

 

[Team Gaara]

My starter is special enough to me that I would never consider boxing it. Those first few battles you have with it are some awesome moments when you're just starting out the game. Even less-than-stellar starters like Tepig, Snivy, Treecko, and Chikorita remained on the team (I'm doing a solo-run with Sceptile, matter-of-fact).

Now, I wouldn't consider them to be on a pedestal and I hardly overuse them to the point of being 10 levels higher than the rest of the team, nor to I attempt to use them over other team members. They are equal in that sense. Hell, I don't always consider my starter "the leader". In playing X over, my Meowstic took that role on near the end of the game for his surprising ability to not faint when he should have, and after evolving, my Talonflame became that "go to" Pokemon when everyone else was down. In White, Black 2, Y, and FireRed, my starter was treated pretty much as a regular team member, while other Pokemon (Lilligant, Weavile, Florges and Noivern, Starmie and Raichu) were considerably higher leveled and more reliable. When using Meganium in SoulSilver, it quickly fell behind the other Pokes since they were just more easily usable. But yeah, I consider my starter equal to other team members, but special enough that I would never consider replacing them.

I've only played through two games without the starter, Silver (which was a Nuzlocke, i.e. He died) and Pearl (which I wasn't taking too seriously, using an AR to use a team of legendaries, and even then, I didn't deposit my starter until Byron's Gym). Silver felt especially strange at first without a starter, but my Beedrill sort of became my lead partner after that. It's just hard for me to imagine intentionally not using the starter and always strikes me as odd in the back of my mind when I see someone list their team with no mention of a starter Pokemon.

 

[Shimazu]

Not very, anymore. It used to be 'the one', now my 'main' is whoever i want it to be I have a pool of favourites. I usually try and get a growlithe, thats my favourite, not been able to get one on Y it's kind of turned out to be pikachu or doublade, in growlithes absence..

I know its the traditional formula, and its what we all know and love, but i wish we weren't so limited in starter pokemon.

 

[Storm Silverwing]

My starter is.... reasonably special, I'd say. No matter the starter, no matter the gen, it always has a spot in my party. My starters aren't higher leveled than the rest of my team, though. I'm very neurotic about keeping my team at equal levels.

 

[Supreme Leader Palpitoad]

I use them in my team but more than that, no. My Feraligatr is the only one who is really special to me since he was the first pokemon I ever got.

 

[raychuu]

Starters are always special to me, because, luckily, there is always at least one line for each game that I like. I always keep them in my party, and I level them along with the rest of the team, though I did have "super starters" of very high levels compared to the other Pokémon in the past. I usually nickname them and they have a small personality that I construct in my head according to their Nature and Trait, as well as some special battle feats that they might perform - but to be fair I do that to other Pokémon, too. I suspect that if I wanted to replay a game that had only one starter I like for whatever reason, which is the case of Platinum, I might not repeat the starter choice and thus not use the starter much, though.

 

[Rainami]

I value my starter enough to keep it on my team, but usually I hardly care for it. The only starters I care for at all are Feraligatr, Serperior, and Greninja.

 

[Lysson]

I reset my Pokemon games a lot as a child so never really kept my starter, but that didn't mean they weren't special. I knew I'd lose them but then I'd always pick the same starter again and name it the same thing, even now with competitive Pokemon I name them the same as my story team. My most special starter is probably Melia my Delphox.
It took me 20 soft resets to get a female as I couldn't stand it looking so feminine and there were rumors that there were gender differences on Delphox.
She was also my first Pokemon to ever reach level 100 legitimately, so she does hold a special place and I will never get rid of her. I also can never bring myself to box my starters no matter how many times I've used them.

 

[Achrom25tic]

I used to value my starter over other team members and it was often the leader of the team, but nowadays I usually have them in a support role through the game. They're still special, and I always keep them on my team, but oftentimes some other 'mon is my first choice. For example, while my Chesnaught is awesome, my Furfrou usually carries the weight during in-game battles.

 

[Javier952]

Even though I use them significantly less post-game, theyre still some of my most special pokemon. I still have the Torterra I started with in Platinum 5 years ago!!!

 

[Dragon Master]

Certain ones are more special to me then others. Once I have all the starters from the newest Gen or series then they lose their specialness to me except the ones I adore like charmander, treecko and totodile, if they are my starters, they will always be special unless im restarting a version to mess around with a new team, usually no starters are allowed when that happens

 

[Ravioko]

My starter is incredibly special to me.
Not my starters, as in the Pokemon I pick at the beginning of the game, but my starter. Singular. Squirtle.
After picking him in Pokemon Blue. Squirtle became my favorite Pokemon cute wise, and Blastoise became my favorite Pokemon battle wise - I was going to pick Froakie in X and Y, but when they announced the Kanto starters I changed my mind, because I knew there was no way I could resist the tiny turtle Pokemon. Blastoise is a main stay on my "competitive" team.
Squirtle was the first Pokemon I ever sent into battle, and whenever I'm in a battle I know I'll probably lose, Blastoise is always the last Pokemon to join the fray.