Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. Machamp, and many others, began the lifespan of this game as a total joke. This was sadly because there were no good Fighting moves in existence at the time. When the game launched, which Fighting move of the following could Machamp learn?
Answer: SubmissionMachamp had to choose between Submission and Close Combat, two incredibly bad Charged moves. Submission had a very slow, laggy animation and did little damage for being a two-barred move, while Close Combat suffered similar problems as a one-barred Charged move.
Because of these terrible moves, combined with the state of the game, Machamp and other Fighting types were useless. Even in matchups which should call for predominantly Fighting types, such as against Dark and Steel, generalists which did neutral damage like Vaporeon were stronger options.
2. It took until the second generation for Fighting types to really get rolling. This new Charged move would become the standard for several years to come for all Fighting types. What move was introduced in 2017?
Answer: Dynamic PunchDynamic Punch was finally the great move Fighters were looking for. It was strong, relatively fast and two-barred, making it flexible. In summary, if a particular Fighting type did not have Dynamic Punch, it was basically inferior automatically on principal. Machamp had the best Attack out of any Fighting type who got the move and, thus, went on to be the game's best Fighting type uncontested for about three years.
3. Embodying the journey of other Fighting types, the fan favorite Lucario started off as a pretty forgettable threat, as it simply didn't get the moves to succeed. In 2020, however, its signature move was brought to the game and it was strong enough to take Lucario from zero to hero. What move?
Answer: Aura SphereAura Sphere is an absolutely busted Charged move, being both incredibly strong and blindingly fast for a two-barred Charged move. It's basically Dynamic Punch on steroids. It was strong enough to let Lucario convincingly steal the Fighting crown away from Machamp after years of Machamp being the best Fighting type in the game.
4. In 2019, when PvP came to the game, a swath of Fighting types began to take various metagames with force. The common denominator was their access to Power-Up Punch. When used in a PvP setting, what does Power-Up Punch do?
Answer: +1 to the user's AttackTanky Fighting types, like Medicham in Great League or Poliwrath in Ultra League, could quickly get out of hand after just a couple of boosts. Power-Up Punch did fairly decent damage for little energy, on top of the guaranteed buff. The move was so extraordinarily overpowered, that it would not take Niantic long to harshly nerf it into the ground. Moving forward, Power-Up Punch would do basically no damage and would require more energy in return for this buff; still a worthwhile move, but not so ridiculous that it could dominate entire metagames as it previously had.
5. Close Combat, a weak and unviable move in PvE, gained some newfound life in PvP. In PvP, it deals incredible damage and can be used as a nuke, but not a nuke without a drawback. When using Close Combat, what happens to the user?
Answer: -1 to their DefenseThe -1 to Defense is a steep penalty, so the player must be mindful before using Close Combat. The -1 applies even if the move is shielded, so it would be best to not use Close Combat if the opponent has any shields available.
6. In May of 2024, Tsareena received a somewhat random Fighting type Charged move for its Community Day. What move?
Answer: High Jump KickThe Grass type Tsareena would have benefitted greatly, in theory, if it was given its signature, exclusive move Trop Kick with favorable parameters. Instead, it was given a weak one-barred Fighting move that has mild utility in PvP and is irrelevant completely in PvE. Such is life...
7. In the realm of random Fighting type moves for non-Fighting type Pokemon, Alakazam was the beneficiary of such a move. What is Alakazam's Community day Fast move?
Answer: CounterCounter is actually a pretty good move on Alakazam in niche, albeit reasonably possible scenarios. As a Mega, Alakazam can pair Counter with Focus Blast and output surprisingly great Fighting DPS, though its weakness to Dark makes it unusable there unlike actual Fighting types.
This still leaves the set as being quite viable, even great, against Normal, Ice and Steel types. It sadly cannot buff the damage output of allied Fighting types, however, since Mega Alakazam is not a Fighting type itself.
8. Brick Break had been a pretty terrible move for most of its existence, but a movepool overhaul Niantic underwent between 2020-2022 saw Brick Break gain a new utility in PvP. When used, what will it do apart from simply deal damage?
Answer: -1 to opponent's DefenseLike other debuff moves, Brick Break's debuff will bypass shields. This makes it great to try and bait other players into shielding it. The damage output is pretty poor, but its relatively low energy cost and debuff utility make it worth using.
9. Having a big Attack stat is clearly a great benefit. Which Fighting type of the following has the highest Attack stat?
Answer: Mega HeracrossSporting a huge Attack of a whopping 334, the only reason Mega Heracross isn't the hands-down best Fighting type in the entire game is its moveset. The best Charged move it has access to is the lowly Close Combat, hindering its potential greatly. Even with this limitation, it is an incredibly powerful choice who will ubiquitously be seen when a Fighting-weak threat pops up.
10. In 2024, High Jump Kick was introduced to the game. It is, at first glance, a simple damaging move with no side effects. However, annoyingly, it has a 5% chance to activate this self debuff when used in PvP. What is the self debuff risked by using High Jump Kick?
Answer: -2 to DefenseIn the mainline series, High Jump Kic has a 5% chance to miss- if this happens, the user loses half their HP. Moves that cause recoil damage in the mainline series instead afflict the user with Defense drops, and High Jump Kick is no exception.
Source: Author cavalier87
This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor kyleisalive before going online.
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