Pokemon Scarlet and Violetintroduced an unusually high number of powerful Pokemon compared to previous games in the series. In addition to “box legendaries” Koraidon and Miraidon,Pokemon Scarlet and Violetfeatured the Ruin quartet, the pseudo-legendary Baxcalibur line, and the powerful Paradox Pokemon. Plus, several strong Pokemon from previous generations returned, many via 7-star Tera Raid events. Possibly due to the sheer amount of competition present, the four Ruin Pokemon do not stand out and can even come across as disappointing due to the difficult method of obtaining them.
TheTreasures of Ruin(Wo-Chien, Chien-Pao, Ting-Lu, and Chi-Yu) are part Dark-type Legendary Pokemon found in the Paldea region. They are inspired by the Four Perils, a group of terrible beasts from Chinese mythology who are known to bring destruction. The player learns of these beasts from Ms. Raifort, the history teacher at Naranja or Uva Academy, who is fascinated by the Treasures of Ruin and provides hints regarding their location. While the method of obtaining these Pokemon is unique and fun, their stats, abilities, and move can feel underwhelming, particularly when compared to previous groups of Legendary Pokemon.
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Pokemon Scarlet and Violet’s Legendary Quartet Can Be Frustrating to Obtain
Each of the Treasures of Ruin is trapped in a shrine. First, the player must locate eight coloredstakes hidden around Paldea. Then, they must travel to the shrine and battle and capture the Legendary Pokemon to add it to their Pokedex. With a total of 32 stakes to find across all four Pokemon, tracking them down can be quite a difficult task. Many are hidden behind rocks, on isolated mountain ledges or islands, or in other difficult-to-reach locations. Plus, the shrines themselves are not marked on the map until the player has interacted with Ms. Raifort several times.
Due to how many stakes there are to find, many players may find the four Legendaries among the last Pokemon they catch inScarlet and Violet.If a player waits until they have visited Area Zero and caught theParadox Pokemonas well as Koraidon or Miraidon, the Treasures of Ruin can feel disappointingly weak. At least there is a reward for catching all four - Raifort will give the player the TM for the stat-raising move Nasty Plot.
They Lack The Extra Power Of the Tapu
Many fans have compared the Treasures of Ruin to theTapu Guardian Deities, a quartet of Legendary Pokemon introduced inPokemon Sun and Moon.Both the Tapu and the Quartet each have a signature move, are strongly connected to the land’s mythology, and are generally caught very late in the game. In fact, the signature moves of the legendary foursomes are quite similar. Both Nature’s Madness and Ruination do 50% of the opponent’s health rounded down, although the former is Fairy-type and the latter Dark-type. However, Nature’s Madness can be upgraded to the Z-move Guardian of Alola, which does 75% of an opponent’s health, while Ruination cannot.
The Treasures of Ruin are still fairly powerful Pokemon, especially due to their unique Abilities which lower the stats of all Pokemon on the field other than themselves. However, their base stat totals are on the lower end of average for Legendary Pokemon - 570, lowered from 580 via a patch - and they can be frustrating to obtain compared to the more easily accessible Paradox Pokemon and box legendaries. With at least more legendary Pokemon scheduled to debut in the upcomingPokemon Scarlet and VioletDLC, it seems likely that the Treasures of Ruin will continue to be overshadowed unless they are given an update in future generations.
Pokemon Scarlet and Violetare currently available for the Nintendo Switch.
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