Pokémon Team for Every Situation: Zombie Apocalypse

I'd thought about this once before—What kind of Pokémon team would I want if there was suddenly a zombie apocalypse?

And so, this list was born.

There are a lot of things to think about when deciding on a Pokémon team in any situation. For example, for a zombie apocalypse, I would probably need strategies for water, food, and shelter for sure, and also some ways to defend myself, in case of attack. It can be easy to say, "Pick any fire-type," or, "Pick a water-type," but to maximize survival, we would need to look at all aspects of a Pokémon—including abilities, physical features, and signature moves.

This list will not include any Legendary Pokémon, as I would like to make this as realistic as possible (as realistic as Pokémon and zombies can be).

Without further ado, here are the six Pokémon that I would have on my team during a zombie apocalypse. I also have some honorable mentions that I would have added, but eventually decided that they did not quite make the cut.

1. Charizard

This guy's a bit of a no-brainer for multiple reasons, and I'm not just saying that because it's the favorite dragon-like Pokémon of the series.

If I need to build a fire for shelter and warmth, I have Charizard there to make it. In common zombie lore, fire is the next best weapon against zombies. Charizard can also fly—so if I need to get out in a pinch, this Pokémon would be perfect.

2. Blastoise

The next Pokémon I would choose would be Blastoise.

Of the water-types I thought of, Blastoise is the one that can carry me across bodies of water if needed, while also having the ability to store and produce water at will. As a result, this guy would be ideal for my most-needed resource.

Its shell is also a great shield, making it a difficult Pokémon to penetrate through if there is a zombie attack.

3. Lucario

Although Lucario is a great close-range fighter with steel-type (which I would assume is good during a zombie apocalypse), neither of those are the main reasons why I would choose Lucario for my team (however, they are great bonuses).

Lucario's signature move, Aura Sphere, never misses. A move like this is perfect for headshots—the ideal attack against zombies—and it also means Lucario would be good as both a melee and a ranged fighter.

Lucarios are also good hunters, which is an added bonus to help with food.

4. Luxray

It may seem a little weird to add an electric-type to my team. After all, I wouldn't need to charge any devices, would I? Unless there were people around whom I would want to try and communicate with using a device of some kind, I don't think I'd need a Luxray for that purpose.

According to various Pokédex entries, Luxray can see through walls. There's no crazy analysis behind this—With this guy on my team, I wouldn't have to worry about being ambushed by hoards of zombies, if I can avoid it altogether.

To add, Luxray is another good hunter, and one of the stronger electric-type Pokémon in terms of attack. There are a lot of great points to having this Pokémon on my team.

5. Metagross

Metagross is the ideal supercomputer/shield duo for a zombie apocalypse. It's not actually that big of a Pokémon for a shield—in general, only reaching between 5'3" and 6'3" tall—but its steel type is still a strong defense against zombies.

Although perhaps not as quick as Alakazam when it comes to intelligence, as it cannot think in great detail, its supercomputer-like intelligence would still allow me to store information if needed, and especially if we can find new ways to take out zombies. Metagross specializes in analyzing its opponents, which means beating zombies will be an even easier task.

6. Tropius

Tropius seems like a bit of an odd choice, as I wouldn't be using it much for neither fighting, nor defense.

I would use Tropius more for support than anything else.

Tropius's design is like a shelter, which in itself, is helpful. It grows bananas under its chin that can be eaten, if I or any of my Pokémon need some food in a pinch, and it can also fly if Charizard is out of commission.

Although it fits as neither my biggest attack nor my biggest defense, its support outside of battle are why I would add this Pokémon to my zombie apocalypse team.

Honorable Mention: Venusaur

I hate picking Charizard and Blastoise while leaving Venusaur behind, but I had my reasons.

Although it could double as shelter similar to Tropius (and be an overall stronger fighter), poison would do next to nothing against the zombies. In fact, it could be dangerous to myself, if its poison started mutating to become similar to the zombie virus.

Tropius also has the added bonus of fruit, which Venusaur unfortunately lacks.

The main idea is, if I can avoid having a poison-type on my team while a virus is spreading around, I will.

Honorable Mention: Decidueye

Decidueye's aim with an arrow, coupled with the ghost/grass type, sounds like one of the ideal choices for a team, and honestly, if I didn't pick Lucario, I would have probably decided on Decidueye.

The reason I didn't pick Decidueye in the end was because I pretty much had everything it could offer already covered, plus more. Sure, it has wings, but if I needed to fly somewhere, I had Charizard. I doubt it'd miss with its arrows, but Lucario won't miss with Aura Sphere from far away, meaning it can attack from a ranged position if needed, and Lucario is also a stronger melee fighter than Decidueye.

In the end, as much as I love Decidueye, I had to leave it off the team.

Honorable Mention: Alakazam

Alakazam would be perfect for intelligence, and it's also a strong psychic fighter. Its psychic abilities are so strong, that that's how it's able to move itself, considering its muscles are weak. And that's the main point.

If we were in a tough position, I can't depend on Alakazam having two options for fighting, like Metagross would. Metagross is also an intelligent steel type, which, as I said, makes it both a shield and a supercomputer. Even if Alakazam ultimately beats Metagross in brains, I can't deny that my defenses would be weakened by choosing Alakazam rather than Metagross.

Alakazam may be a good choice, but Metagross is just better in this situation.

Honorable Mention: Aegislash

Aegislash would be a stronger shield and fighter than Metagross, but similar to Alakazam, this guy misses a key component that Metagross can offer, which is the supercomputer aspect.

Not to say that Aegislash wouldn't be smart in a fight—hell, it'd probably be smarter than I would be when it comes to attacks and parries—but other intelligence would be lost on this Pokémon, hence my decision to choose Metagross over Aegislash.