Arbok

It evolves from Ekans at level 22, and that is where the line ends: two forms, with no branches or evolutions added in later generations. What the evolution adds, besides three and a half meters of body, is the hood.

That fold of skin is the whole species. It carries the pattern behind almost all of its Pokédex entries: two spots that imitate a pair of eyes above a curved stripe, a false face it shows when it wants to be left alone. The entries cannot agree on how many different patterns exist—one mentions around twenty identified patterns while another lowers the figure to six variations—but they do agree on what the design is for: “weaker opponents flee at the sight of it”. If that is not enough, it puffs out its chest and expels air through its mouth, making sounds.

When hunting, it behaves like a constrictor rather than a viper. It confuses its prey with the pattern on its body, coils around it and waits for its pulse to stop; one entry claims it can squeeze a steel barrel. The 65 kilos spread across 3.5 meters make for a long, narrow animal, more compression muscle than bulk. The official category, Cobra Pokémon, describes exactly what it is.

Its 448 stat points are badly distributed. Its 95 Attack is the only figure that helps; 80 Speed comes too late against anything even mildly fast, and the defensive block—60 HP, 69 Defense, 79 Special Defense—means it can take one neutral hit and little else. Its 65 Special Attack is wasted: its best special move is Sludge Bomb, with 90 power, while the physical Gunk Shot hits for 120.

Intimidate is what keeps it standing. It lowers the opponent’s Attack every time it enters the field, so a well-timed switch gives it a free turn, and that turn goes into Coil, which raises Attack, Defense and accuracy in one move. The problem is when it gets there: level 56, with Gunk Shot still farther away at 63. With one Coil boost, Gunk Shot stops missing and starts punching holes; Earthquake from TM punishes the Steel and Poison types that laugh at its main attack, and Sucker Punch, available only through breeding, finishes off whatever survives with a sliver of HP.

Its typing holds it back. Pure Poison only hits Grass and Fairy for real damage, is resisted by Poison, Ground, Rock and Ghost, and Steel types are immune. On Smogon, its analysis sits in PU, where the Coil set works as a wallbreaker. One tier higher, it cannot take enough punishment to set up.

Its other two abilities matter less. Shed Skin randomly cures status conditions, which is useful against paralysis and burns; Unnerve, its hidden ability, stops the opponent from eating a Berry and does nothing else.

Its Egg Groups are Field and Dragon, an uncommon pairing that opens up breeding with half the terrestrial Pokédex and, along the way, with the dragon branch. The gender ratio is fifty-fifty, so setting up a breeding chain does not depend on finding a rare female or relying on Ditto.

Its 20 egg cycles come to about 5355 steps, on the shorter side. The egg gives it six moves, and two are worth the trouble: Sucker Punch, the priority move it needs to finish opponents off, and Poison Fang. The other four—Spite, Scary Face, Poison Tail and Switcheroo—are either utility or simply get in the way. It grows at a medium rate, without the delays of the slow experience curves.

The evolution has no trick to it: Ekans reaches level 22 and that is it. No stones, happiness, time of day or trading. When it evolves, it immediately learns Crunch, which will be its best move for many levels because Sludge Bomb does not appear until 39.

Its habitat is grassland and its catch rate is 90: neither the 45 of species that put up a fight nor the 255 of those that go down at the first throw. A couple of Poké Balls and a little weakening are enough. In the wild, it may be holding a Poison Barb. Defeating it awards 2 effort points in Attack.