Pokemon arceus starter evolutions: what changes in Hisui
For most mainline entries in the franchise, picking a starter is a one-way commitment: the small creature you choose will grow through two confirmed stages and rarely, if ever, see a redesign that alters its type. Pokemon Legends: Arceus breaks that pattern. The three starters brought to Hisui by the Galaxy Expedition Team still evolve into Typhlosion, Samurott, and Decidueye, but the regional effects of the newly charted land have produced a new Hisuian final evolution for each line. For players, that means a familiar set of partners now ends in a creature with a different typing, a different silhouette, and a different role in battle. For developers, designers, and technical artists, the change is a useful case study in how a single design variable, the type table, can be reworked without abandoning a creature’s visual identity.
This guide walks through every confirmed and observed stage of the three Hisuian lines, the way their typings shift, the stat and move implications, and the production decisions a studio might face when asked to give an established creature a regional variant. The information is drawn from the official starter documentation released alongside the game and from general design principles for creature evolution systems.
How starters work in Pokemon Legends: Arceus
Unlike most entries in the franchise, Pokemon Legends: Arceus does not begin in a back room with a single rival and a single choice. The game opens in the Jubilife Village hub, and players are invited to meet Professor Laventon, who is studying the local ecosystem with the help of the Galaxy Team. After a brief tutorial sequence that introduces catching mechanics in the wild, the player is asked to choose between Rowlet, Cyndaquil, and Oshawott, the same three starters that were available in Pokemon Sun and Moon. The creatures are not native to Hisui. They have been brought to the region by the Galaxy Expedition Team, which gives the narrative a reason to use familiar faces in an unfamiliar environment.
From a design perspective, the choice of a returning trio is deliberate. Returning starters give veteran players a sense of continuity while the new environment gives the team room to experiment with regional variant rules. The creatures retain their early-stage typings for the first two evolutions, so the strategic feel of the early game is consistent with previous titles. The change is concentrated in the final evolution, which is where the regional effects of Hisui take over.
The full evolution chains at a glance
The table below summarizes the three lines and the type changes introduced by Hisui. All three lines preserve the unevolved and middle stages across regions. The differences appear only at the final evolution.
| Starter | Stage 1 (base) | Stage 2 (middle) | Stage 3 (standard) | Stage 3 (Hisuian) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rowlet line | Rowlet (Grass/Flying) | Dartrix (Grass/Flying) | Decidueye (Grass/Ghost) | Hisuian Decidueye (Grass/Fighting) |
| Cyndaquil line | Cyndaquil (Fire) | Quilava (Fire) | Typhlosion (Fire) | Hisuian Typhlosion (Fire/Ghost) |
| Oshawott line | Oshawott (Water) | Dewott (Water) | Samurott (Water) | Hisuian Samurott (Water/Dark) |
The pattern is consistent: the base and middle forms remain identical, while the final evolution’s secondary type shifts to one that the franchise has used in regional forms before. Grass becomes paired with Fighting, Fire with Ghost, and Water with Dark. None of the lines gains a fully new type, and the primary type of each line is preserved, which keeps the creature readable on the box art and in early promotional material.
Hisuian Typhlosion: the Fire/Ghost rework
Standard Typhlosion is a Fire-type that draws on the volcano deity imagery common to canine mammals. Its Hisuian counterpart retains the Fire typing but gains a Ghost typing that changes how the creature reads on screen and how it performs in battle. The Ghost typing brings resistances to Fighting, Poison, Bug, Steel, and Fire, and weaknesses to Ghost, Dark, Ground, Rock, and Water. The Fire weakness that affects standard Typhlosion is replaced by a Ground and Rock weakness, which gives the Hisuian form a more defensive profile in many matchups.
Visually, the Hisuian design departs from the smooth, swept-back coat of the standard form. The new silhouette is taller and more slender, with a cloak of long fur that flares around the neck and shoulders like a flame. The face mask shifts from a closed muzzle to a more pronounced jaw, and the body length increases to make room for the flowing fur effect. Conceptually, the design is leaning on the Japanese association between long white hair and ghostly folklore, which fits the Ghost typing more naturally than a simple recolor would. The animation work that supports the design is also different: the standard form’s eruption animations are replaced by longer, more drawn-out flame-trailing effects that suit a slower, more sustained combat style.
For players, the practical implication is that Hisuian Typhlosion behaves more like a special attacker with a defensive shell than a pure damage dealer. The Ghost typing means the creature can be used to bait Normal-type opponents, which would otherwise hit a Fire-type line for neutral damage, and the movepool includes signature Ghost-type attacks that are unavailable to the standard form. The investment in the line is therefore higher, but the ceiling in competitive play is also different.
Hisuian Samurott: the Water/Dark rework
Standard Samurott is a Water-type bipedal otter with a horn that doubles as a blade. The Hisuian Samurott retains the Water typing and gains a Dark typing, which fits the narrative role of a creature that draws on the imagery of feudal Japanese armor and weapon fighting. Dark typing gives the creature immunities to Psychic-type moves and resistances to Dark, Ghost, and Fire. Weaknesses include Fighting, Bug, Grass, Electric, and Fairy, with the addition of Bug giving the line a vulnerability it did not have before.
The visual redesign keeps the otter silhouette but pushes the model toward a more armored, ronin-like aesthetic. The horn is enlarged and reshaped into a more sword-like blade, the chest plate is broadened, and the legs are wrapped in a longer mantle of fabric-like plating that resembles a samurai skirt armor. The design intent is to communicate the Dark typing through silhouette and posture rather than through color alone, which is a useful case study in how secondary types can be read on a creature without explicit visual cues.
For developers, the Hisuian Samurott’s design shows how a creature’s evolution can lean into a single cultural reference without losing the brand identity of the original. The line still reads as a Water-type otter at first glance, but the silhouette carries enough armor and blade geometry to imply a Dark or Fighting secondary type. The team reused the basic body structure from the standard form, so the rigging and animation work was concentrated on the new horns, plates, and the longer fabric pieces, which is a reasonable scope for a regional variant.
Hisuian Decidueye: the Grass/Fighting rework
Standard Decidueye is a Grass/Ghost-type that draws on the imagery of a forest archer. The Hisuian Decidueye keeps the Grass primary type but replaces the Ghost secondary type with Fighting. The shift produces a creature that fits the woodland hunter imagery of the line more tightly and gives the line a different combat profile. Grass/Fighting gives the creature resistances to Water, Grass, Electric, Ground, Rock, and Dark, with weaknesses to Fire, Ice, Flying, Poison, Psychic, and Fairy. The Ghost weakness of the standard form is replaced by a Psychic weakness, which keeps the defensive profile relatively soft against special attackers.
Visually, the Hisuian design keeps the round, leaf-constructed body but modifies the wing and bow geometries. The wings, which double as the creature’s bow in the standard form, are reshaped into a tighter, more compressed arrangement. The arrows, when drawn, appear as shorter, bladed implements that suit a closer, more aggressive combat style than the standard form’s ranged archer approach. The chest plate is also reshaped, with a more pronounced geometric pattern that fits the Fighting typing.
For players, the practical implication is that Hisuian Decidueye plays more like a mid-range physical attacker with the option to close distance than like a long-range special attacker. The Fighting typing means the creature can hit Ice, Rock, Dark, and Steel-types for super-effective damage, which opens up a different set of matchups than the Ghost-type standard form. The line still works as a Grass-type answer to Water, Ground, and Rock opponents, but the secondary coverage is focused on physical walls rather than special walls.
Why final evolutions, not base forms
A common design question for regional variants is where to apply the new typing. The Hisuian approach for the three starters is to leave the base and middle forms unchanged and to concentrate the new typing in the final evolution. There are several reasons this makes sense from a production standpoint.
- Player recognition: keeping the early forms identical means that returning players immediately recognize the creatures they chose in earlier titles. A new player still gets a familiar starter experience in the first few hours.
- Scope control: changing only one stage in each line means the art team can focus its budget on three final-form redesigns rather than nine creature redesigns. Animation, rigging, and behavior code can be reused for the early stages.
- Strategic payoff: the new typing arrives at the moment in the game where the player’s starter becomes a major combat unit. That is also the moment when the player has invested enough time and resources to care about the difference.
- Narrative timing: the regional effects of Hisui can be framed as a phenomenon that affects the creature’s growth. The player witnesses the transformation alongside the in-game discovery, which gives the change a story reason to exist.
From a content-pipeline perspective, the pattern is also useful because it isolates the redesign work to a single family of assets per line. Concept art, high-poly models, low-poly models, texture sets, rigging, animations, moves, and VFX all need to be produced or updated for the new form, but the base and middle stages can be reused as-is. The team’s burn rate is therefore concentrated in a small number of assets rather than spread across the entire line.
Typing implications for team building
The introduction of secondary types in the final evolution changes how each line interacts with the rest of a player’s team. The general principle is that a team with a single starter line should plan around the final evolution’s typing rather than the base form’s typing, since most of the campaign will be played after the evolution is reached. A few practical examples illustrate the point.
- Hisuian Typhlosion and Fire-type allies: because the line retains the Fire typing, pairing it with another Fire-type carries a redundancy risk. The Ghost typing of the final form gives the line a role as a Normal-type bait, which a standard Fire-type cannot fill, so the practical recommendation is to avoid stacking Fire-types and instead use Hisuian Typhlosion as the team’s only Fire-type option.
- Hisuian Samurott and Fighting-type weaknesses: the Dark secondary type introduces a new weakness to Fighting-type moves. A team that already carries a Fighting-type weak Pokemon should plan for a Fighting-type switch-in or a coverage move on the starter.
- Hisuian Decidueye and Psychic-type vulnerabilities: the switch from Ghost to Fighting as a secondary type replaces a Ghost weakness with a Psychic weakness. A team that relies on Psychic-type allies should plan for a different defensive core, or accept that the starter will trade one vulnerability for another.
The general lesson for designers is that a regional variant’s typing change has knock-on effects on team composition. A studio that introduces a regional variant in a competitive format has to think not just about the new creature’s stat line, but about the ways the new typing reshapes the team archetypes that the creature fits into.
Production notes for regional variants in creature-collecting games
Regional variants are a useful design pattern in creature-collecting games because they let a team expand the roster without inventing brand new creatures. The Hisuian starters are a clean case study in the pattern. A few production observations follow.
Reuse the silhouette, change the geometry
The Hisuian redesigns for all three lines keep the same broad silhouette as the standard forms. A player who knows the line will recognize the creature at first glance, but the geometry of the limbs, the head, and the body is sufficiently different that the new form reads as a separate design. The pattern is worth replicating: reworking geometry while keeping silhouette is cheaper than designing from scratch and produces a result that is legible to returning players.
Use cultural reference imagery to communicate secondary types
Each Hisuian redesign leans on a cultural reference that maps onto the new secondary type. Hisuian Typhlosion uses ghostly folklore imagery, Hisuian Samurott uses samurai armor, and Hisuian Decidueye uses a tighter, more aggressive archer profile. The result is that the secondary type is communicated through visual cues rather than through color or explicit type indicators. For developers, this is a useful technique because it scales to creatures that the player might meet in the field before the type is revealed in battle.
Concentrate the budget on the final evolution
As noted above, the Hisuian approach concentrates the new design on the final evolution of each line. From a content-pipeline perspective, this is a good rule of thumb for any creature-collecting game that wants to introduce a regional variant on a fixed budget. The base and middle stages can be reused, and the team’s new work is concentrated in a small number of high-value assets.
Plan the movepool alongside the new type
A regional variant’s typing change is only useful if the new moves available to the creature support the new role. Hisuian Typhlosion’s Ghost typing is reinforced by new Ghost-type moves in the learnset, and Hisuian Samurott’s Dark typing is reinforced by Dark-type coverage. For developers, the lesson is that a type change should be paired with a movepool revision that lets the creature access the new type’s coverage moves at a reasonable level threshold.
Plan animation and VFX for the new type
Each Hisuian redesign has a different animation profile. Hisuian Typhlosion’s flame animations are longer and slower, Hisuian Samurott’s horn-blade animations are more pronounced, and Hisuian Decidueye’s arrow animations are tighter. For a production team, this means the VFX and animation work for a regional variant should be planned alongside the model rework rather than as a separate stage. A creature’s new type usually implies a new visual effect set, and the budget for that work should be part of the variant’s design brief.
What remains the same across regions
For all the differences introduced by the Hisuian variants, several things remain identical. The list below summarizes the unchanged elements of the three lines.
- Base forms: Rowlet, Cyndaquil, and Oshawott are unchanged in both visual design and typing. The early-game experience of the line is identical to previous titles.
- Middle forms: Dartrix, Quilava, and Dewott are also unchanged. The middle stage of each line behaves the same way it did in earlier games.
- Evolution levels: the level thresholds for the middle and final evolutions follow the same schedule as the standard forms. Players do not need to relearn the evolution timing for any of the three lines.
- Ability slots: the standard and hidden abilities available to the base and middle forms are unchanged. The Hisuian final forms gain new abilities that fit their new typings, but the early forms are not affected.
- Narrative role: the starters still play the same narrative role of being the player’s first partner in a new region. The Hisuian variants add a layer of mystery to that role, but they do not replace the basic structure of the story.
For a designer, the value of this stability is that the new typings do not break the existing player expectation of how a starter line works. The line still evolves at the same levels, the early forms still look the same, and the player’s first choice still has the same immediate feel. The change is concentrated in the part of the line where the player has already invested enough time to appreciate the new design.
Comparing the three Hisuian final forms
The table below compares the three final forms side by side, using only the typological and design information that is consistent across the official documentation. Stat details are not included because the exact stat distributions of the Hisuian forms are reported in different ways by different sources, and the precise values are best confirmed against the in-game data or the official companion app.
| Attribute | Hisuian Typhlosion | Hisuian Samurott | Hisuian Decidueye |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary type | Fire | Water | Grass |
| Secondary type | Ghost | Dark | Fighting |
| Visual reference | Ghostly folklore, long fur cloak | Samurai armor, blade horn | Aggressive archer, compressed wings |
| Combat profile | Special attacker with defensive shell | Physical attacker with coverage flexibility | Mid-range physical attacker with coverage |
| Key resistance | Fighting, Poison, Bug, Steel, Fire | Psychic (immune), Dark, Ghost, Fire | Water, Grass, Electric, Ground, Rock, Dark |
| Key weakness | Ghost, Dark, Ground, Rock, Water | Fighting, Bug, Grass, Electric, Fairy | Fire, Ice, Flying, Poison, Psychic, Fairy |
The comparison shows that each line’s secondary type was chosen to complement the primary type without creating an overlap. Ghost covers Fighting and Normal weaknesses, Dark covers Psychic and Ghost weaknesses, and Fighting covers Ice, Rock, Dark, and Steel matchups. The result is three lines that each answer a different set of threats, which is a useful design pattern for any creature-collecting game that wants to offer meaningful choice between starters.
Design lessons for creature evolution systems
The Hisuian starter rework is a useful case study for any team designing a creature-collecting game with evolution systems. The list below captures the broader lessons that a developer or designer can take from the pattern.
- Final-form regional variants are cheaper to produce than full-line variants. A team that wants to introduce regional variants on a fixed budget should concentrate the new design work on the final evolution of each line, and reuse the base and middle forms.
- Type changes should be paired with movepool revisions. A new type is only useful if the creature can access the new type’s coverage moves at a reasonable level threshold. The movepool revision is part of the regional variant’s design, not a separate stage.
- Silhouette reuse makes the variant legible. Players recognize variants faster when the silhouette is preserved and the geometry is changed. The pattern keeps the brand identity of the line intact while making the new form read as a separate creature.
- Cultural reference imagery is a useful shortcut for type communication. A new type can be communicated through a cultural reference that the target audience already associates with the new type. The pattern is cheaper than a custom animation set and scales to creatures that the player meets in the field before the type is revealed.
- Plan the team-composition knock-on effects of a type change. A type change reshapes which teams the creature fits into. A studio that introduces a regional variant in a competitive format should expect the change to affect the metagame beyond the single creature.
What to expect when picking a starter in Pokemon Legends: Arceus
For players who have not yet played the game, the practical effect of the new typings is small in the early hours and large in the mid to late game. The first few hours of the campaign will feel like any other Pokemon game. The player picks a starter, raises it through the first two evolutions, and uses the standard typing of the line to clear early content. The new typings arrive when the starter reaches its final evolution, which happens at a level high enough that the player has already invested significant time in the line.
Players who plan to use their starter as a long-term member of the team should look at the new typings of the final forms rather than the typings of the early forms. Hisuian Typhlosion’s Ghost typing is a good fit for a team that lacks a special attacker with a defensive shell, Hisuian Samurott’s Dark typing is a good fit for a team that needs Psychic coverage, and Hisuian Decidueye’s Fighting typing is a good fit for a team that needs physical coverage against Ice, Rock, Dark, and Steel opponents. The decision can be informed by the rest of the planned team rather than by the early-game feel of the line.
Players who are not interested in the new typings can still use the standard forms of the lines by transferring creatures from earlier titles, but the in-game experience of the three starters is now anchored in the Hisuian final forms. The starter experience is no longer a single creature from base to final evolution. It is a journey from a familiar form to a regional variant, and the player who picks a starter in Pokemon Legends: Arceus is choosing to commit to that journey rather than to a specific final design.
Verifying the new typings against the official documentation
The new typings of the three Hisuian final forms are documented in the official starter page released alongside the game. The page confirms that the three starters are Rowlet, Cyndaquil, and Oshawott, and that each line has gained a new Hisuian final evolution. The page also confirms the type changes for the final forms: Hisuian Typhlosion is Fire/Ghost, Hisuian Samurott is Water/Dark, and Hisuian Decidueye is Grass/Fighting. For players who want a confirmed reference, the official starter page is the cleanest source. The page is also useful for developers who want to study the type and visual design decisions in context, since it includes the recommended team-building approach for the new lines.
For developers building creature-collecting systems of their own, the same pattern of keeping a public reference page that documents the new design decisions is worth replicating. A clean reference page that lists the new typings, the new abilities, the new moves, and the new visual design is a useful artifact for both the player community and the development team.
Frequently asked questions
Do the three starters have the same typings as in previous games?
The base and middle forms are unchanged. Rowlet, Cyndaquil, and Oshawott keep their original typings, and Dartrix, Quilava, and Dewott also keep their original typings. The change is concentrated in the final evolution, which gains a new secondary type in the Hisuian form.
What are the new typings of the three Hisuian final forms?
Hisuian Typhlosion is Fire/Ghost, Hisuian Samurott is Water/Dark, and Hisuian Decidueye is Grass/Fighting. The three lines together cover three different secondary types, which gives players a meaningful choice in the new typings.
Do the Hisuian forms replace the standard forms in Pokemon Legends: Arceus?
The Hisuian forms are the only final evolution available in Pokemon Legends: Arceus for the three starter lines. Players who want the standard final forms can transfer a fully evolved creature from earlier titles, but the in-game experience of the starters is anchored in the Hisuian variants.
At what level does each starter reach its final evolution?
The level thresholds for the middle and final evolutions follow the same schedule as the standard forms. Players do not need to relearn the evolution timing for any of the three lines. The middle evolution happens at the level it has always happened at, and the final evolution happens at the level it has always happened at, in both the standard and Hisuian regions.
Do the Hisuian forms have different abilities from the standard forms?
The Hisuian final forms have a different ability set that fits their new typings. The base and middle forms keep the abilities they had in earlier titles, but the final evolution has new ability options that match the new secondary type.
Can the Hisuian forms be obtained outside of Pokemon Legends: Arceus?
The Hisuian forms can be obtained in other titles that include them in the regional roster, but the original unlock for each Hisuian form is in Pokemon Legends: Arceus. Players who want the Hisuian forms in later titles will need to either transfer them from Pokemon Legends: Arceus or obtain them through the normal encounter mechanics of the later title.
Do the Hisuian forms change the recommended team composition for the three starters?
Yes. The new secondary types change the role of each line in a team composition. Hisuian Typhlosion’s Ghost typing gives the line a Normal-type bait role, Hisuian Samurott’s Dark typing gives the line a Psychic coverage role, and Hisuian Decidueye’s Fighting typing gives the line a physical coverage role. Players who build a team around a starter should plan for the new typing rather than the original typing.
What is the design reason for changing only the final evolution?
Concentrating the new typing in the final evolution keeps the early-game experience stable for returning players, controls the production cost of the regional variant, and gives the new typing a strategic payoff at the moment in the game where the player has invested enough time to care about the difference. The pattern is also a useful rule of thumb for any creature-collecting game that wants to introduce regional variants on a fixed budget.
Are the Hisuian forms considered stronger or weaker than the standard forms in competitive play?
The competitive strength of the Hisuian forms depends on the metagame and the player’s team composition. The new typings open up different matchups and coverage options, which makes the Hisuian forms stronger in some teams and weaker in others. A direct comparison of stat totals is not informative without context, since the role of each line in a team composition is different from the standard forms.
Where can I find the official documentation for the new typings?
The official starter page for Pokemon Legends: Arceus documents the three starters and the new typings of the Hisuian final forms. The page is the cleanest source for the type and design decisions, and it is also useful for developers who want to study the new design in context.
