Getting distracted and ended up on Bulbapedia's page for League Champions and just
Why is Steven down as a Steel specialist?
His theme is just earth related, not specifically steel? Like I guess the majority of primary types are steel??? But then he has three rock types????
Gen 5 he has 4 rock types?????? 3 Primary Rock, two primary steel????
Surely by that logic he'd be a rock type trainer
@DarkOverord on the other side of this, look at Flint in gen 4. Explicitly stated to be a fire-type specialist, but only two of his pokemon are fire type
though sinnoh only *has* like two fire types before the national dex, so.
-F
@Felthry I think the thing about it is that "What pokémon associated with them the most" kind of gets stuck 'cus like, Alder's not a fire or bug type specialist just 'cus they're associated with Volcarona etc.
I feel like it's fan association 'cus there's no easy way to say "cool rocks!!!", 'cus that's absolutely his theme, he specialises in stuff that could be considered a cool rock, or is associated with a cool rock X3
@Felthry Yeah that's the thing about Flint, he was kind of, stuck with a poor lot before Platinum lol
As opposed to Steven where if they were a Steel type specialist, they could've had more steel types on team that were available in Hoenn (5, and would have to fill in a 6th)
It's kind of reiterated in his Gen 5 appearance where like I say, he's actually mostly a rock type trainer (3 Fossils and Aggron!)
very slightly too long to be un-cw'd (522 characters)
@DarkOverord I think there was a bit of a similar problem with steel type in gen 3 as there was with fire in gen 4 though--not a lack of pokemon, but a lack of moves. there are very few steel type moves in general, and they've added more recently but according to bulbapedia, as of gen 3 there were exactly seven steel-type moves, one of which is only available to jirachi
i don't think this is a good reason for steven to not have many steel types (if he is indeed a steel specialist) but it is a thing worthy of note
-F
@Felthry Yeah that's absolutely the case, Steven's RSE team only has two steel moves despite having three steel types.
ORAS his steel mons have more steel moves to pool from! That said ORAS kind of reiterates "OH MAN COOL ROCK!!!" 'cus in rematches he adds a Carbink (Rock/Fairy) mon to his team X3
@DarkOverord one thing i can say though--in every appearance he has listed on bulbapedia, at least half his pokemon are steel type. however in most cases half his pokemon are also rock type (he shows up with the two fossils and an aggron very commonly, since that was his RS champion team)
-F
@Felthry Yeyeye
I think it's great that his teams are very much "Wow what a cool rock :D" and it's a pity there's no easy way to define that as a specialisation X3c
@DarkOverord steven is one of our favorite champion characters honestly. i think he and cynthia are probably the most... champion-like champions, if that makes sense
i guess lance is too but he doesn't have a whole lot of characterization
-F
@Felthry Those two and Leon are yeah!
Unsurprisingly I agree that the champions that have the most role in a story that shows their character are favs X3c
@DarkOverord (i agree with you that steven's classification as a steel specialist is tenuous at best though. BUT also the pokemon we most associate with him are skarmory and metagross, both steel types, so i dunno! we could go either way on this if we felt strongly enough to have an opinion)
-F