"A primer on Gen 2 Pokemon, with images!"

#PokemonGO: Hello trainers!Having missed out on Red/Blue/Yellow, my first Pokemon game was Silver, so I'm pretty familiar with the Gen 2s. However, I realize that many people may not know them so well, so here's a decent comparison list!StartersChikorita -> Bayleef -> MeganiumGen 2's grass starters, comparable to Bulbasaur, Ivysaur, and Venosaur - but without that pesky Poison typing!Cyndaquil -> Quilava -> TyphlosionFire-type starters, comparable to Charmander, Charmeleon, and Charizard.Totodile -> Croconaw -> FeraligatrWater-type starters, comparable to Squirtle/Wartortle/Blastoise.Common TrashOkay, maybe "Trash" is a bit harsh, but these are probably going to be pretty common, if they're comparable to the original games.Sentret -> FurretThe Ratatta and Raticate of Gen 2. Normal types, not going to excel.Hoothoot -> NoctowlThe most common bird of Gen 2 - think of them a bit like Spearow and Fearow.Snubbull -> GranbullGen 1 had cats (Meowth -> Persian), but Gen 2 has dogs! Note that these guys are fairy type, which is great for the Fairy catching medal.StantlerIt's the Tauros of Gen 2.The Bugs of Gen 2Ledyba -> LedianSpinarak -> AriadosBecause they take 50 candies each for their single evolution, these bugs are probably more comparable to Paras -> Parasect in Gen 1, rather than to Weedle/Caterpie and their evolutions.Other bugs:YanmaShuckleBug/Rock, and known in the original game for having SUPER high defense and SUPER low offense. Probably won't be as useful in PoGo.HeracrossBug/Fighting - this is the Pinsir equivalent in Gen 2. In the original games, it was one of the few creatures that could learn Megahorn, the strongest Bug move, and had some decent functionality in matchups.The FishChinchou -> LanturnWater/Electric, an odd combination of types. They only max out at ~2k CP in PoGo, however, so probably won't be useful in gyms except as a prestiger. They are doubly strong against Steel moves.Marill -> AzumarillWater/Fairy, with good stamina but TERRIBLE max CP (Azumarill tops out at ~1480). They'll probably make good prestigers.Wooper -> QuagsireWater/Ground eliminates their weakness to Electric (not that Electric has ever held much place in the meta). Watch out for Grass, as it's doubly effective against these guys. They max out at 1900 CP.QuilfishNot much to say here. Water/Poison.CorsolaWater/Rock, super resistant to fire, but with a max 1100 CP that leaves it out of gyms.Remoraid -> OctilleryYes! A tiny fish that evolves into an OCTOPUS! Unfortunately, Octillery is missing its signature move, Octazooka. So sad. These are basically the Krabby/Kingler of Gen 2 (down to the evolved form having a special move; Crabhammer/Octazooka, neither of which is in PoGo).MantineWater/Flying. Keep away from Electric, like Gyrados (but maxes out at 2k CP, unlike Gyrados. Sad).The PlantsHoppip -> Skiploom -> JumpluffThis is the Bellsprout/Weepinbell/Victreebell of Gen 2, except they're awful. Seriously, Hoppip is known for awful stats, and even Jumpluff only maxes out at 1500 CP. These will probably be evolution churn.Sunkern -> SunfloraPure grass, just barely break 2k CP, probably won't see much use.New evolutionsSeveral of the Gen 2 'mons evolve from those in Gen 1. Everyone's talking about Blissey, but there are others:Crobat (Evolves from Golbat for 100 candies)2400 max CP, poison/flying - this isn't going to change things up much.Bellossom(Evolves from Gloom for 100 candies and 1 Sun Stone item)2k max CP, grass-type moves. Not stellar.Politoed(Evolves from Poliwhirl for 100 candies and 1 King's Rock item)Water-type, 2.3k max CP. Not much more to say here.Espeon/Umbreon (Both evolve from an Eevee that's been walked as a buddy for at least 10 KM; Espeon evolves during the day, Umbreon at night)Our new Eevee dominators! Espeon is Psychic-type and tops out at nearly 3k CP, with some very strong Psychic 1-bar moves. Umbreon, on the other hand, is Dark-type, tops out barely at 2k CP, and has no 1-bar charge moves. We'll have to see how they play into the meta.Other note: Naming tricks! Naming an Eevee to "Sakura" will evolve a guaranteed Espeon, while naming an Eevee to "Tamao" will evolve a guaranteed Umbreon. Note that this trick works only once, so use it on a high IV Eevee!Slowking (Evolves from Slowpoke with 50 candies and a King's Rock item)Exact same stats and max CP (2.4k) as Slowbro. Unlikely to dominate.Steelix (Evolves from Onix for 50 candies and a Metal Coat item)Onix is slightly less useless now! Steelix tops out at 2.4k CP and is doubly resistant to Rock and Poison. May have some use as a niche attacker.Scizor (Evolves from Scyther for 50 candies and a Metal Coat item)What's that? You wanted a 2.7k max CP Bug/Steel powerhouse that is weak only to Fire, and deals out Steel destruction? You got it! Scizor probably won't hold gyms, but he'll decimate Rock, Ice, and Fairy types with his STAB Steel moveset.Kingdra (Evolves from Seadra for 100 candies and a Dragon Scale item)Water/Dragon with some strong STAB Dragon-type moves, although hindered by a relatively low (2.3k) max CP. Might be very useful for attacking Water-types, as it is doubly resistant to Water attacks and the Dragon-type moves will hit hard. A soft Vaporeon counter?Blissey (Evolves from Chansey for 50 candies)The tank has a new form. Reports are saying that Blissey doesn't see any real HP boost over Chansey's already huge HP pool, but it's got the CP (3.1k max) and some added power and defense to force almost anyone to time out when fighting it. Blissey will lock down gyms, but keep in mind that she's nearly impossible to prestige against. Don't expect that gym to grow any bigger, and putting one on a level 3 gym may be considered a bit of a dick move.Porygon2 (Evolves from Porygon for 50(?) candies an Upgrade item)Normal, 2.5k max CP, and dammit, I haven't even seen a single Porygon yet!The (Potentially) Great 'Mons of Gen 2Note: This is almost all hypothetical, supposed, and based off of other games. Models and testing will prove whether these predictions are right or wrong - but I'd try to catch these guys!Larvitar -> Pupitar -> TyranitarThey aren't dragon-type, but these guys are almost comparable to Dratini/Dragonair/Dragonite in Gen 1. High stats, quite rare, and extremely strong (Tyranitar's CP maxes out at 3600!). Tyranitar is Rock/Dark, which means it does great against normal, fire, and psychic types (major threats in this game). It's doubly weak to Fighting, but we'll have to see if the move rebalance brings fighting moves out of the dumpster.Houndour -> HoundoomThe Growlithe/Arcanine of Gen 2, with added Dark typing. The max CP is only 2400, but given Espeon's high CP, you'll probably want a Dark-type attacker for fighting gyms. Think of Houndoom as the poor man's Tyranitar.Pineco -> ForretressLower max CP (2200), but Forretress's Bug/Steel typing means that it's resistant to a lot of types (Normal, Poison, Bug, Steel, Grass x2, Psychic, Ice, Dragon, and Fairy). It's doubly weak to Fire, but those resistances may help it survive longer.Mareep -> Flaaffy -> AmpharosA good electric-type? Is it possible? I'm hopeful - Ampharos tops out at 2600 CP, and has some great-looking STAB moves. Still unclear if water-types will continue to dominate this meta, but Ampharos may be a very useful attacker.Teddiursa -> UrsaringNot super amazing, but a 2700-CP normal-type with fighting as its only weakness might do well in less-highly-contested gyms.Others I skippedI didn't mention Phanphy/Donphan (2.9k max CP Ground-types, comparable to Rhyhorn/Rhydon), Natu/Xatu (Psychic/Flying), Murkrow (Dark/Flying), Sudowoodo (Rock-type tree), Misdreavus (pure Ghost), Unown, Wobbuffet, Girafarig, Dunsparce, Gligar, Sneasel, Slugma/Magcargo, Swinub/Piloswine, Delibird, Skarmory, Smeargle, Hitmontop, or Miltank - man, there are a lot of new Pokemon! All of these have been excluded due to mediocre stats, low max CP, and the fact that they probably aren't upgrades to many specialists in Gen 1.Still, there is always room for debate, and I'm sure I missed plenty of other Gen 1 to Gen 2 comparisons! Trainers, I hope this primer helps you on your way into our newly expanded world!Edit 1: fixed incorrect numbers for evolutions with special items; candy is also needed.Edit 2: Added Murkrow, fixed that Kingdra evolves with Dragon's Scale, not King's RockEdit 3: Added naming convention (Sakura/Tamao) for Espeon/Umbreon. via /r/pokemongo http://ift.tt/2l2xkIg