In a few months, gamers will get to experience the next mainline entry in the Pokemon franchise, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet. The latest trailer revealed more about the upcoming titles, letting players know they will be exploring the Paldea region as students attending one of two academies. Players even got a glimpse of a few characters including Penny, Arven, and Clavell.
Players also discovered they will be able to explore Paldea by riding the legendary Pokemon - Koraidon and Miraidon. The evolved forms of Pokemon Scarlet and Violet's starter Pokemon have yet to be seen, but there have been several leaks that give fans a rough idea of what to expect.
Introducing Quaxly, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet's Water-Type Starter
Pokemon has a history of featuring cute critters as Water-type starters, and Pokemon Scarlet and Violet do not buck the trend. Quaxly is a duck Pokemon with webbed, blue feet and a blue tuft of hair that looks a bit like a sailor's hat. Though the Pokemon appears unassuming, its evolutions could reveal hidden potential.
Fans got their first look at Quaxly during Pokemon Scarlet and Violet's reveal trailer, which also showcased Fuecoco the Fire-type starter and Sprigatito the Grass-type starter. In most Pokemon games, a player's rival will pick the starter Pokemon that is strong against theirs, so Quaxly fans should keep an eye on Sprigatito as that may be one of the first Pokemon that Quaxly goes up against often.
Fan Theories Surrounding Quaxly
There have been many theories surrounding the themes that guide starter Pokemon designs. The most prevailing theory is that Fire-type starters are based on the Chinese Zodiac, Grass-type starters are based on prehistoric animals, and Water-type starters are based on weapons. On the surface, the Water-type theory makes sense, as past starters have had final evolutions like Blastoise with its massive cannons, or Greninja with its shuriken, Empoleon who looks like a triton and Swampert has a tail that looks like a Japanese war fan, to name a few. Should the fan theory hold, people could expect Quaxly's final evolution to incorporate a weapon of some sort.
As Paldea is based on Spain, Quaxly could also be inspired by Spanish culture. One theory claims that the duck Pokemon draws inspiration from Don Quixote, a character in Miguel de Cervantes' novel The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha. In the novel, Don Quixote is a self-proclaimed knight who loses his mind and hallucinates monsters. Trailers have shown Paldea will feature windmills, which may allude to a scene in Cervantes' novel where Don Quixote fights windmills believing them to be giants. Should the link between Quaxly and Don Quixote be present, the Pokemon may take on a knightly form in its evolutions.
The Quaxly and Don Quixote theory has also fed into the idea that the Water-type starter's final evolution will be a Water/Fighting-type. This would be a fresh take, as there has never been a Water/Fighting-type starter before - usually this is left to the Fire-type starter. The theory also appears to have some support from credible leakers.
Leaks and Rumors Surrounding Quaxly
One leak comes from the Twitter account PKMNleaks, which posted images of six Gym Leaders as well as some new Pokemon. Gamers theorized one of the Pokemon is a Quaxly evolution, though it was hard to be certain because the images are blurry. Still, it appears to be the back of a bipedal, blueish-purple Pokemon with blue tail feathers that fan out. Riddler Khu, another leaker with a good track record, vouched for these images, and posted about Quaxly's evolutions too. Though the image is very blurry, it is possible to tell that the Pokemon is mostly blue with a vertical white stripe on its head. According to Khu, Quaxly's final evolution will be a Water/Fighting-type, while Sprigatito's will be Grass/Dark and Fuecoco's will be Fire/Ghost.
Leaks have also come from an account called CentroLeaks, which provided accurate information surrounding Pokemon Sword and Shield and Pokemon Legends: Arceus. The leaker has discussed Pokemon Scarlet and Violet's region name as well as the new gimmick before it was announced by The Pokemon Company, lending a lot of credibility to their leaks. They provided rough sketches of the final evolutions of the three starters, and it appears that Quaxly retains a bipedal stature with tail feathers that fan out, much like PKMNleaks' image.
As is the case with all leaks, the information should be taken with a grain of salt because it has yet to be confirmed by The Pokemon Company or Game Freak. Fortunately, gamers will not have to wait much longer, as the game's release is around the corner. Despite not showing evolutions of the starters in the latest trailer, players were shown the latest battle gimmick they can look forward to: Terastallization.
Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are scheduled to release on November 18, 2022 for Nintendo Switch.
