By Matt
NFE is just a term I happened to see in competitive play videos, so I’m going to write about it. This acronym stands for Not Fully Evolved Pokemon, which are, in fact, not fully evolved. Players often call them baby Pokemon and brush them aside. But in rare cases, they have the potential to wipe out legends or formidable opponents.
These Pokemon are usually what happens when there isn’t an evolution item available, or a Trainer just doesn’t want to evolve that Pokemon. Sure, you may have to press the B button after every level, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Maybe it isn’t looks for some competitive battlers, but I’ve seen one that only uses NFEs to completely wipe the floor with his opponents. Of course, he just posts his winning videos for the world to see, because using NFEs is a very risky strategy, but can compoletely change the tide of battle. The pro of having NFEs is that you can keep them in your favorite form.
I should know, my favorite Pokemon is also a NFE. They will also learn moves at lower levels to make up for their weaker stats, like some people say on the road in your game. One thing that modern Trainers look at with disdain is the loss of potential base stats. Even though many are unknowing of game mechanics such as STAB, etc., they are right in saying that NFEs are weaker. Every level your NFE Pokemon goes without evolving, its stats will be weaker when (or if) you decide to evolve it. For example, we’ve seen Ash in the TV series with his Pikachu for over ten years now, but he has not yet evolved his Pikachu (or has never found a Thunderstone). He’s learned that he is friends with Pikachu through the many challenges they have faced together.
There is also a story of the gym leader, Lt. Surge, who evolved his Pikachu when he got the chance to. Pokemon that evolve with stones or certain items can be evolved at any moment, but with a huge consequence: they will not learn any moves. When they are not exposed to the stone, they can learn a variety of moves, and it is sensible to use a Pokemon site to find out their last move or when to evolve them. The trend in Pokemon evolved with a Stone is that they do not learn any moves; these moves cannot even be remembered by the Move Remember tutor, who will teach a forgotten move for a Heart Scale. There may be a consequence to early evolution, but keeping NFEs is purely a Trainer’s choice. It depends on the love shown by the Trainer for the Pokemon and proper judgment. A friend’s advice may help, but the decision that stays is your own.
Tags: Nintendo DS, Pokemon Black & White