The Avian Solo Runs, Episode 3: Staraptor in Pokemon Platinum

Welcome to the third episode of my Avian Solo Runs feature, dear fellows gamers! Here we are, back to the generation that started it all for me; and boy, was it delectable to go back to my Pokemon roots. On top of being treated to sweet waves of nostalgia (kinda ironic knowing that I played the gen IV games only a mere three years ago), I got to appreciate much more how splendid a game Platinum is. Exquisite graphics, perfect pacing, lovely atmosphere, that game has it all and improves on Diamond and Pearl on all fronts. Sure, Sinnoh still could be a trifle more varied and offer more types of landscape, and the design of local 'Mons could still be a tad more inspired; but overall, Platinum is such a fulfilling game that I'm not sure I can ever go back to Diamond and Pearl and their crudeness. And since I'm mentioning all three games in the same sentence, there's one thing that bugs me: why are these games' names so inconsistent? We have a gemstone, an animal by-product and a metal, all things that are seemingly unrelated. According to the prevailing version logic, Pokemon Crystal should be titled Platinum, while Platinum itself should be titled something else entirely, just like Diamond and Pearl themselves. What's the logic behind this triad of names? Are they related to jewelry somehow? Or did GameFreak run out of inspiration at the time? These incohesive names don't diminish the games' merits in any way, mind you; but they sure are puzzling, all the more so are they are the only true case of nominal incoherency in the whole series.

Ramblings about versions and names aside, the regional bird du jour is none other than online meta darling and OU tier permanent resident Starly. This is no mere Fly slave we have here, oh nooo: Starly is, as one Jubilife TV anchor neatly put it, a "mighty fine" 'Mon, blessed with such impossibly high Attack and Speed that it might as well have been tailor-made for solo runs. With that tuxedo bird, GameFreak kept slowly but surely expanding the Move pool of their regional avian 'Mons: the Starly family has access to more Move Types than the Taillow family, which itself was an visible improvement on the Pidgey family on the Move pool front. Granted, the stinginess inherent to older entries when it comes to handing out Moves prevented me from gaining access to a genuinely wide Move pool; nonetheless, I managed to put together a pool of Moves belonging to four different Types over the course of my run, and that's the first time this happens since I started tackling the Avian Runs. On top of never-missing Aerial Ace and solo run little darling Return, my Starly expertly wielded Steel Wing, the Steel Move that had proved so refreshing and useful in my Taillow Run of Emerald, as well as newcomer Close Combat, a Fighting move with few PP yet great potential. That Move involved some lowering of the user's Defense and Sp. Defense Stats, yet packed an insane 120 power, which made it the perfect finishing Move to take down a buff Legendary or a Gym Leader's overpowered ultimate 'Mon. I used it regularly to wrap up tough engagements in a neat and orderly fashion, knowing fully that the defensive Stats reduction would have virtually no effect.

Mind you, my Starly solo run would have unfolded just as fine without Close Combat: the tuxedo bird is so insanely powerful that I encountered virtually no obstructions over the course of my run. With Platinum having a Rock Gym as its very first Gym just like Emerald, I fully expected to struggle as much as I did in my Taillow run; yet low and behold, Starly's Attack is so impossibly high that I managed to take down Roark's collection of rocky roadbloacks without too much damage nor fainting. I didn't use a single Battle Item over the course of my run, and the Elite Four was a complete walk in the park. I mean, what could a Bug Trainer and a Ground Trainer possibly do against a Flying 'Mon that's immune to Ground Moves and wields a kick-ass Flying Move? Starly&evos is stellar solo run material, a 'Mon utterly perfect on all fronts. Or nearly all fronts: in my opinion, GameFreak somewhat dropped the ball when it comes to Staraptor's design. Starly's final evolution looks a bit off, with a head that's too small compared to its body size, feather tufts that look like cat ears and eyes that are disturbingly tiny and devoid of expression. The worst part is that GameFreak actually changed the Staraptor sprite for Platinum, making the poor bird visibly uglier in the process; his Diamond/Pearl sprite looked much better, with a more natural stance and a sharper eye. Had I known about this sprite change beforehand, I swear I would have picked Diamond or Pearl for my Starly run despite the fact that Platinum is the superior game.

All in all, the Starly family amply deserves its fame and permanent spot in the OU tier. That bird is much more versatile than his gen II and III predecessors thanks to his more varied Move Pool, and ends up being much more entertaining and pleasant to use, especially in a solo run. My Starly solo run was overall an incredibly smooth, mellow and soothing ride — much like Sinnoh and the gen IV games themselves, really. And with that run under my belt, I now have only two avian runs left before I achieve full Regional Bird coverage. See you soon for more thrilling feathery action, dear fellow gamers! Thanks for reading, and be my guest anytime!