046 - VIRULUPUS

5/6/2021 NOTE: This is an upload/update from THE FUTURE!!! If you want to check out the original upload, the reposted version of that is over here!

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The Infectious Pokémon
"The powerful germs inside its body have to be kept cool or they'll infect its brain, making it bite at everything in sight in a vicious rage. A common saying about sudden fits of violence references the symptoms of such a bite."
"VIRULUPUS freezes the saliva and mucus around its teeth into solid ice full of infectious viruses. The runnier its nose was as a MALADINU, the longer and sharper its icy fangs are, making even a light nip extremely dangerous."

Type: Ice/Poison
Height: 4'6"
Weight: 325 lbs
Ability: Contagious* (Strong Jaw)
Evolution: MALADINU --> Level 37 --> VIRULUPUS
Egg Groups: Field

Basis: A Merriam's dog (Megacyon merriami) infected with rabies. The typing for this line is a play on the common cold, as well as the phrases "three-dog night" (referring to extreme cold) and "sick as a dog".
Name Origin: VIRULent + LUPUS (as in both the generic name of the wolf, Canis lupus, and the lupus disease).

Moves Learned: Same as MALADINU, with added moves Crunch, Freezing Rain**, Rabid Gnaw**, Outrage, and relearnable starting moves Brutal Swing and Poison Fang.
Notable Other Moves: Same as MALADINU.

Base Stats:
HP: 70
Attack: 110
Defense: 70
Sp.Atk: 100
Sp.Def: 50
Speed: 110
TOTAL: 510

* Contagious: Successful attacks by this Pokémon temporarily spread this ability.
(NOTE: If this Pokémon successfully damages another Pokémon with an attacking move, the target's ability will be replaced with Contagious as in the case of Mummy, but only for three turns. After this, the target's ability returns to the one it had before it was replaced.)

** Freezing Rain
Category: Special
Type: Ice
Power: 70
PP: 20
Accuracy: 100%
The user summons a shower of frigid liquid, which may leave the target frozen. This attack deals super-effective damage against Fire-types. (Compare: Freeze-Dry.)

** Rabid Gnaw
Category: Physical
Type: Poison
Power: 65
PP: 15
Accuracy: 95%
Overcome with rage, the user bites with fangs teeming with disease. For two to four turns, the target will only be able to use attacking moves.

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And now, the most obvious joke that can be made here.

"Blastiff" is no more as of today - I'd wanted an Ice/Fire type combo and I had a good thing going of sorts with the whole cryovolcano motif I had planned, but the execution was a bit... odd, to say the least. There wasn't that much biological plausibility put into the idea of the volcano cannon on the back and anyway it seemed too similar to Camerupt, and I also didn't really manage to tie the motifs together effectively. I might revisit the concept in the future, but there are better ways to pull off this type combination and I do have one planned for my next fakemon region, so stay tuned for that in the future!

Anyway, Blastiff was actually a replacement of sorts for an older design that was basically a saber-toothed wolf - I rejected it due to being too generic and also because of Lycanroc. However, Lycanroc is literally just a wolf with rocks glued on, whose design which I've addressed at length before, so I figured it'd be worth trying something a little more exciting after all, especially since the fact that Manectric and Houndoom already existed before Lycanroc did meant that one more wolf or some other canid that invoked the idea of one couldn't hurt (there are of course other animals that could use more representatives compared to all the cats and dogs, but I digress). Ice/Poison already offers a good opportunity for a more sophisticated angle than just a doggo with an elemental power (or even a lack thereof *cough Furfrou cough*), and since Maladinu is themed around sickness... well, actually, this stage was in fact the whole reason for my going ahead with the type combo after all. Feral dogs are a real problem in much of Southeast Asia as is their tendency to carry and transmit various diseases, but it's the rabies virus that I decided to focus on with such details as a crazed look in his eyes, patterning around his mouth suggesting the foaming of rabid dogs in cartoon, an emaciated look almost akin to a dead animal preserved in ice (which makes sense given that the species he's based on was an ice-age animal), fur patterns like both chickenpox/smallpox and a ribcage to give him an even more undead-like look, and teeth now covered in frozen mucus so that true to form, his bite can transfer the virus he carries - dribbling mucus gets in your mouth a lot, I tell you! One of rabies' symptoms being chills allowed for the Ice typing to still make sense as well, and its early stage isn't that different from the common cold, albeit by proxy of both being akin to influenza. It's been a constant problem in Indonesia in the 21st century, and needless to say, you absolutely should get vaccinated for it and any other virus outbreak causing issues to humanity at large, because you never know what could happen and it's better to be prepared if you want to keep infections from spreading... and yes, that goes for that one, too. :/

Anyway, there weren't too many changes I made for Virulupus' stats and moveset, though I did reduce some of the stats so the BST wouldn't be too high - it's now closer to Stoutland's 500 than Arcanine's 555 - and rearranged them for a more physically oriented stat spread although his Special Attack isn't too far behind, with the 110 Attack being the same as Arcanine's but with the Speed being the same number so he can actually use it without dying to a single Fire Blast. The additions to the movepool weren't that complicated, either, though I did keep the Freezing Rain move as an anti-Fire technique of... mixed effectiveness, and I do plan to put it on a few other fakemon both in Sundo and in future regions. More important though is his signature move, Rabid Gnaw, which can also be passed as an egg move to Maladinu. This move acts as both a damage dealer and a built-in Taunt replicator, so you don't have to waste a moveslot for Taunt itself at the expense of physical power - except of course for when you're up against a Steel-type, though luckily he can learn a few Fire-type attacks via TM or breeding thanks to the fever he caught as a pupper. A few Dark-type moves like Strong Jaw-boosted Crunch and even the Bug-type Infestation (disease, remember?) can deal with Psychic, but only that. Taking care of Rock- and Fire-types is harder because he doesn't learn Grass, Ground, Rock, or Fighting moves and the only Water-type move he can use is Scald. Finally, he doesn't have much in the way of actual support, only getting Toxic, Quash, and Pain Split, which is arguably also his only healing option and even that is useless because his defenses aren't too great. Suppressing abilities with Contagious as I discussed in Maladinu's info is welcome and all, but honestly, he's really more of a one-trick puppy than the whole dog-and-pony show. Just sic 'im on anything weak to Ice, Poison, and whatever coverage a move of a third type can afford, maybe add in Howl as an attack buff in case you don't feel confident enough in that 110 Attack stat. Or just go for broke, use four attacking moves, and hope his excellent speed can keep him from being put down like the diseased animal he is before he takes someone down with him. You can do worse with this guy, honestly - and hey, he's got a unique type combo and a knack for spreading both chaos and illness to go with it! What more do you need?

I don't know if this'll be the very last replacement design for Sundo or if there are more but I think the rest should be just small redesigns and such, so hopefully I'll be able to finish this region at long last before the end of the year. For now, though, enjoy this mad doge, and more importantly, go get your shots. You'll need them. We'll ALL need them!  

Original versions: pokemondayandnight.tumblr.com/…

Pokémon © Nintendo
VIRULUPUS is mine!