Pokémon BW Team + Help

[DigitalGen6]

Finally got around to posting this after being lazy and not doing that. Anyways, here’s my team.
——
Name: Pignite
Gender: Male
Level: 35
Nature: Calm
Characteristic: Sturdy body
Moves: Heat Crash, Rollout, Ember, Flame Charge
——
Name: Deerling (Nickname: Gardenia)
Gender: Male
Level: 27
Nature: Lax
Characteristic: Loves to Eat
Moves: Leech Seed, Faint Attack, Take Down, Jump Kick
——
Name: Swoobat (Nickname: Banana)
Gender: Male
Level: 16
Nature: Hasty
Characteristic: Capable of taking hits
Moves: Confusion, Fly, Gust, Heart Stamp
——
Name: Foongus (Nickname: Foonfoon)
Gender: Female
Level: 27
Nature: Mild
Characteristic: Impetuous and silly
Moves: Bide, Mega Drain, Ingrain, Faint Attack
——
Name: Stoutland
Gender: Male
Level: 49
Nature: Naive
Characteristic: Good endurance
Moves: Take Down, Strength, Rock Smash, Bite
——
Name: Patrat (Patrattish)
Gender: Female
Level: 15
Nature: Lax
Characteristic: Sturdy body
Moves: Tackle, Cure, Bide, Bite

I haven’t even discovered Opelucid City yet, nor have I at all began the Desert Resort after getting my 7th badge, a few Decembers ago.

 

[Zexy]

For help, I would suggest evolving Pignite ASAP then maybe focusing on Deerling since it is not far from evolving. Emboar should help a lot, level 49 Stoutland looks great enough to take on the Opelucid Gym. No point leveling Swoobat Foongus Patrat much, you can always catch Amoonguss on Route 10, have already enough Normal types and for BW you only need 5 mons for the League because... reasons.

That Stoutland level is super good, keep it around. Maybe give it some TMs, only Strength is really cool from the moves it already has.

 

[JamieIsBored]

I would recommend having some greater coverage on Pignite. Earthquake is a good coverage option once you get it, but even TM’s like Bulk Up would probably work better on Pignite than Ember. I would also recommend giving it a fighting type move (brick break is probably best).

As Zexy mentioned your Stoutland is really good so definitely worth keeping, if you have any heart scales, once you have access to move relearner (can’t remember where it is in Black), you should probably take Crunch over bite and Ice/Thunder Fang over take down (no need for Fire Fang as you have a better fire type).

Unless you’re willing to heavily grind them up, I would recommend changing out your team members with wild encounters due to them being higher levels. If you want to keep these specific Pokémon then ignore this part. On Route 10, you can have a straight swap of Foongus for Amoonguss (as mentioned by Zexy). You can also get a Vullaby which would be a great swap for Swoobat (just be wary of the fighting type elite 4 member as you lose resistance to him). Another option could be catching a Woobat on Victory road to replace your old Swoobat. Other notable encounters coming up are: Fraxure (Haxourus is an amazing Pokémon), Deino (If you‘re willing to grind for a Hydreigon this is an excellent encounter), Boldore/Excadrill (Very good for a specific fight after E4). Some key encounters to avoid are: Sawk (unless you have no way to give Pignite fighting moves) and Heatmor (you have pignite).

Sorry for the long post, hope this helps!

 

[Zexy]

once you have access to move relearner (can’t remember where it is in Black),

Mistralton City, house east of Pokemon Center.

On Route 10, you can have a straight swap of Foongus for Amoonguss (as mentioned by Zexy). You can also get a Vullaby which would be a great swap for Swoobat (just be wary of the fighting type elite 4 member as you lose resistance to him). Another option could be catching a Woobat on Victory road to replace your old Swoobat.

Keep in mind Vullaby evolves at level 54 which is annoyingly late. Mandibuzz is cool but on the bulky side not the fast side, have used it in Black 2, Amoonguss is also good for the bulky side and has given me great Elite Four Marshal battles in Black 2 (although I usually paired it with Zoroark to take care of the rest). So you do not really need both Mandibuzz and Amoonguss imo. I also agree it is probably better to just catch a higher level Woobat in Victory Road if you need something for Fly.

I would also recommend giving it a fighting type move (brick break is probably best).

Some key encounters to avoid are: Sawk (unless you have no way to give Pignite fighting moves)

The moment it evolves, it gets Hammer Arm from Move Reminder, best Fighting option you have for Black unfortunately (no tutor, so Superpower is only available from breeding in the first games).

 

[JamieIsBored]

It gets Hammer Arm from Move Reminder, best Fighting option you have I think.

Oh yeah, forgot about that thanks.

 

[DigitalGen6]

Thanks, guys! I’ll make sure to keep a note of that! I think I might have some of the Pokémon that were mentioned.

Because I don’t have the EXP Share, my Pokémon don’t level up unless they’re in battle (why else are Banana and Patrattish still teenagers? And yeah, I know, I nicknamed my Woobat “Banana” and my Patrat “Patrattish” in my first data, which is why I gave them those names again). It also explains why Stoutland is the strongest Pokémon. I think I might have given it a bunch of Rare Candies in the past, I don’t remember.

Pignite is several EXP points away from evolving, so thank Arceus! Gardenia and Foonfoon are at the same level and I have no clue when they evolve lmao.
Edit: Now Pignite’s at Level 36 (I won against a Pokémon Breeder in the Desert Resort). Yay! I replaced Ember with Assurance. And now it evolved. I’m so happy!
Another edit: Googled it, and Deerling evolves at Level 34 while Foongus at 39. Gardenia’s 7 levels away, Foonfoon at 12. Meanwhile I might replaced Patrattish since I might have some stronger Pokémon. I’m gonna grind these Pokémon more and likely replace Patrattish (and it’s still not a Watchog), even though it’s a few levels away from evolving LOL.
Another another edit: I also have a Plume Fossil that’s not restored.
Another x3 edit: I have 12 TMS and 4 HMs. The Pokémon that can learn these moves are:

• Rain Dance: Everyone except Emboar
• Sludge Bomb: Only Foonfoon
• Echoed Voice: Emboar, Gardenia
• Acrobatics: Banana
• Retaliate: Half my team (Gardenia, Stoutland, Patrattish)
• Flash: Once again, half my team (Gardenia, Banana, Foonfoon)
• Volt Switch: Nope
• Struggle Bug: Nope
• Bulldoze: Nobody except Emboar
• Frost Breath: Nope
• Work Up: Everyone except Banana and Foonfoon
• Rock Smash: Emboar and Stoutland (already knows)
• Cut: Nobody except Patrattish (already knows)
• Fly: Nobody except Banana (already knows) (“when pigs fly”, huh?)
• Surf: Nobody except Stoutland (nice)
• Strength: Nobody except Emboar

It would be a lot easier if I could also see my Pokémon list while scrolling through them (like in Gen 6/7).

 

[Zexy]

Exp Share is in Castelia City, Pokemon Center area, west of it is Battle Company, top floor, top right, battle that trainer and you can get it.

 

[DigitalGen6]

Exp Share is in Castelia City, Pokemon Center area, west of it is Battle Company, top floor, top right, battle that trainer and you can get it.

Thanks, that’s why I was in Castelia City (which is where I last saved). After I get my last badge, I’ll stop by Castelia City and get an Exp Share!
Edit: And my game froze. I guess Emboar’s a Pignite once again… (This game has failed me once again)

Another edit: Aaaaand it froze. Again. I restarted the game and after taking a single step, freeze. I think I’ll be done playing right now (likely for the day). I have a six year old new Nintendo 3DS XL and I’ve been playing this game since late 2018, and even then, it froze (which is the entire reason I stopped playing until 2021, be lucky I don’t start to ragequit again). I’m gonna play Alpha Sapphire now.

Why does my game keep freezing? Is it because of the system I’m using, or the copy (I got a used one, got it on the same day as Pearl, HeartGold, Ranger, and Guardian Signs)? I played White on my DS, and nothing happened there. If I play Black on my DS, is it not gonna freeze?

 

[JamieIsBored]

Maybe? You can never really know with technical issues.

 

[Zexy]

Could be just the cartridge and consoles being old/dusty tbh. You could try some dry cleaning of both the cartridge and the handheld consoles.

 

[DigitalGen6]

Thanks. I’ll try. Whenever I get ready to play Pokémon Black, I insert the game cartridge and the icon doesn’t show on my 3DS (my 3DS was a year and a half old when this happened), so I just blow on the yellow parts of it (on the back, I forgot the name) and the inside of the 3DS’s game card slot, then I reinsert the game and it works fine.

 

[DigitalGen6]

Alright, guys… guess what? I booted up Black on my DS (I must say it feels so lower quality compared to my 3DS) and so far so good. I don’t think the game will freeze on my DS, so it must be my 3DS that’s the problem (Arceus no!). What I’m going to do is:

• GET THE EXP SHARE
• Do the Desert Resort thing
• Evolve Pignite
• Evolve Gardenia (who just so happens to be in Slot 2)
• Level up Banana (evolved around Level… 15/16 if I remember correctly, I must really like it considering its nickname and high friendship)
• Evolve Foonfoon
• Either evolve Pattratish or replace it (might replace it as I want to use other Pokémon but the reason I’m hesitant to do that is it’s one of the OG3 with Pignite and Stoutland sooo)

I’ll update this reply with how I went about everything.

Part 1 - EXP SHARE
I rode my bike to the Battle Company (took me 3 seconds) and entered. And then this old guy spotted me and said people working there are Pokémon battlers not opinion battlers and said please be extra careful if I go upstairs. I’m sure he meant floor 55, which is where I’m going.

I have the two strongest mons (Emboar and Stoutland), two teens, and two young adults that both haven’t evolved yet. I’m somewhat worried about it, but I should be fine if I don’t send out either of my teen Pokémon, right?

Knowing me, I’d discover every single floor in the building (the other was floor 47), but I’m on a mission. I make it to Floor 55 and walk right in front of a businessman, Ivan (aka pre-Larry).

Game: Ivan sends out Woobat, Lv20, male
Me: You’ve gotta be kidding. Lv20? That’s not so bad, right? I should be fine sending out my others. But… I’ll switch out when his Woobat’s down… Of course! He has one Pokémon. How amazing.
Pignite uses Rollout, which straight up disintegrates Woobat. I get 800 Pokédollars.

Next is Samantha (aka Fennel, which we call her in this house now because she has Munna on her team).
Game: Fennel sends out Munna, Lv20, female
Me: This shouldn’t take long, right?
Fennel used X Special.
Pignite uses Rollout…twice. I meant for it to use Heat Crash. This time, 960 Pokédollars.

Third is this one Scientist dude whose name I forgot…name Steve.
Game: Scientist dude sends out Sewaddle, Lv20, male
Me: Is every Pokémon in this Lv20? Tell me why.
Steve used Dire Hit.
Pignite uses Heat Crash…FINALLY. Yet again, I got 960 Pokédollars.

Up four, Wade (Wade’s World…anyone get the reference?).
Game: Wade’s World sends out Pansear, Lv19, male
Me: I guess I’m not switching because all them people in here have one Pokémon D:
Pignite used Ember, not very effective. Sear used a Fire attack of its own. Jokes on it. Not even close. Just 2 HP knocked off.
Pignite used Rollout, it’s super effective. I won!
…Nope. Panpour’s next. I guess I’ll get to switch after all! I’m gonna show off Gardenia’s skills!
Gardenia used Jump Kick. Panpour’s almost KO. Panpour uses an attack, didn’t even read what it was.
Gardenia uses its Feint Attack, which I think is what Panpour did. Panpour faints.
Alright, last Pokémon, who’s up next? Would you look at this? Pansage!
And who do I send out? Banana!
Banana uses Heart Stamp…of course. Less than half its HP goes down. Because Banana is Lv16 while this is Lv19. And Heart Stamp is NOT super effective. I’ll just use Gust. Finally!
(I’m so glad my Pokémon get to go first)
…And Banana is hit with Fury Swipes, then the HP low song plays.
Banana’s last attack is Confusion. It wasn’t as effective as I hoped (I guess Grass doesn’t get weak to Psychic until Gen 6, huh?).

Anyway, I won. I got 1520 Pokédollars. Alrighty then, let’s see what I need to do next. Oh look, a Hyper Potion. Let’s talk to the old guy in the top right corner…who I need to battle. He said he’s the strongest…Pfft.

Game: Geoff sends out Trubbish, Lv20, Male
Me: See? I’m gonna win.
Pignite uses Heat Crash, it’s almost down. One more attack to go!
(It’s amazing what can be accomplished when your game doesn’t freeze.)
Pignite uses Heat Crash AGAIN. Trubbish just fainted. One more Pokémon!
Game: Geoff sends out Minccino.
Me: Awww, do I have to fight it?! /(>o<)\ I don’t want to, though!! I’m sorry, I have to.
Pignite uses Flame Charge. Minccino faints.
And what did I earn? 4000 Pokédollars!

Alright, everyone~ I got the EXP Share! …And I need to give it to a Pokémon…not try and turn it on (because this isn’t Gen 6, now is it?). But, the question lies here. What Pokémon should I give it to? I normally use Pignite and Stoutland is already hella strong… I know! Gardenia! And then after it evolves, Foonfoon! Then, my entire team will be level up aside from Pattratish, and like I said, I’ll likely replace it (I can’t even get a Zorua in this game lmao I really want one*).

*To clarify, I had one in UM and it evolved and is a main on there.

 

[DigitalGen6]

Part 2 - Desert Resort (and likely evolve Pignite)

After getting the EXP Share, I’m leaving Castelia to go to the Desert Resort (surprise surprise, I’m using a walkthrough to get me past it… what do you expect?)

I use Banana to fly me to Nimbasa (quicker way to go to Desort Resort), one of my favorite cities in the region for several reasons.

At Route 4, I avoid the deep pastel red sandy stuff and there’s two people I passed by and battled before, then the moment in step into some red sandy stuff, there’s a Sandile. Lv22. Male. I don’t want to fight this, so I leave.

(It feels interesting playing this on my DS when I usually use my 3DS for Black and DS for White. I wonder what’s gonna happen when I get one of the sequels…)

At the Desert Resort… Aaaaah! Too much sandy wind! I can hardly see what I’m doing! Aaaand I need to battle a Backpacker.

Game: Liz sends out Watchog, Lv23, Female
Me: So we’re just stealing Gym Leaders’ mons?
This shouldn’t take too long. Especially with the wind.
Pignite uses Heat Crash. Instant win…Nope.
Watchog uses Hypnosis…only to fail. Haha!
Pignite uses Flame Charge. Now it’s instant win.
And hey, hey! Pignite’s at Lv36! It’s gonna evolve soon! Oh, I need to replace a move… I’m gonna replace… Ember (even though, that’s literally its childhood move) with Assurance!
552 Pokédollars? What a card!

Game: What? Pignite is evolving!
Me: Of course. I knew it was gonna evolve. That is literally the entire point of this mission.
(As it evolves…)
Me: Its molecules are getting mixed!
(Evolution done)
Me: Haha! It evolved!

Anyways, back to the Desert Resort! Let’s go to Relic Castle! Hey, why didn’t Gardenia also get more EXP? It’s holding the EXP Share! No fair!

Well, that was easy! Hi, Cheren. Now I’m there…oh, this means I’m gonna get bombarded with wild Pokémon, huh?

I’m gonna use a walkthrough to get me through this. I don’t care.

Three steps. Sandile. Lv21. Female. Run.
Three more steps. Yamask. Lv19. Male. Run.
Seven steps (running). Psychic. Oh hey, a Lv23 female Woobat...die! (Even though it’s stronger than my Swoobat.) Munna. Lv23 female…you next! That didn’t take long.

(I’m far too lazy to type all this out and navigate it at the same time, sooo)

After battling The Shining Team Plasma, I fell through a hole, then Cheren did. There’s Alder and Ghetsis, guys. Ghetsis says the Light Stone isn’t here. I’m literally only here to grind my team and address issues…and I guess the storyline.

Ghetsis: Hilda (yes), you were chosen by our king.

Nobody wants to release their Pokémon, dude, like we’re never gonna do that just for you…just for Team Plasma…N is brainwashed. And then I remembered Alder’s Volcarona is quite ill.
“Trainers, don’t release your Pokémon” more like ^^
Well hey, at least Emboar evolved and the Desert Resort thing is fixed! Mission 2 finished!

And now we’re outside. The Xtransceiver is ringing. Who could it be? Mom? Hilbert? Bianca? Oh, Professor Juniper, what a pleasant surprise! And on a Friday! (Dude, I swear her mouth moves so weirdly…)

And now we’re off to the museum!