Stat Trainers
 | The subject of this article has no official name. The name currently in use is a fan designator; see below for more information. |
Stat Trainers, also known as theTag Trainers (タッグパートナー), is a fan term for a group of fiveGeneration IVPokémon Trainers—Cheryl,Mira,Riley,Buck, andMarley—who specialize inPokémon that excel in a certainstat.
In the core series games
The stat Trainers first appeared inPokémon Diamond and Pearl, where each is encountered at a certain point during theplayer's journey. Unlike other Trainers, the stat Trainers ask the player to help them to navigate their way through a certain area, participating inMulti Battles against other Trainers andwild Pokémon, and healing the player's Pokémon after each battle. They will follow the player until they reach the end of the area; once this happens, they cannot be encountered in the same area in future visits.
After the player has entered theHall of Fame, the stat Trainers that the player has encountered so far will be waiting in theBattle Tower to participate in Multi Battles. InGeneration IV, they act as NPC partners the player can pair with. InPokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, however, they appear in Master Class Doubles Battle as opponents.
In Diamond, Pearl, Brilliant Diamond, and Shining Pearl, only Cheryl is required to be encountered during the game's storyline; the others are optional. InPokémon Platinum, in addition to reprising their role from Diamond and Pearl, the stat Trainers the player has encountered will also appear in theBattleground in theSurvival Area as potential opponents. Buck is also now required to complete the game's storyline, with his scenario involvingTeam Galactic.
The stat Trainers also appear inPokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver as Multi Battle partners in the Battle Tower.
In animation
All five Trainers have appeared inPokémon the Series: Diamond and Pearl, doing so in the same order they can first be encountered in the games.
Cheryl was the first to appear, inSome Enchanted Sweetening! and the two episodes that followed. As in the games, she traveled withAsh andhis friends through theEterna Forest. After finding theHoney she was looking for inAn Angry Combee-nation!, she left the group.
The next to appear was Mira, inSandshrew's Locker!. Unlike in the games, she was not lost inWayward Cave, but instead needed Ash and his friends to help her, using theirWater-type Pokémon to retrieve herSandshrew from her sunken school. After this was done, she had herAbrateleport the group toHearthome City.
Riley appeared more than 50 episodes later, when Ash journeyed toIron Island inSteeling Peace of Mind!, after facingByron. Like Ash, Riley has the ability to useAura. He and hisLucario, along with Ash and his friends, stoppedTeam Galactic's plot to discover the location of theSpear Pillar onMt. Coronet. Then, they attempted to calm theSteel types that were disturbed by the beam the villainous team was sending at the mountain inSaving the World from Ruins!.
Marley appeared inKeeping in Top Forme!, where she was helping aShaymin get to a field ofGracideas.Team Rocket was after Shaymin, and Marley, along with herArcanine, helped Shaymin escape by hiding it in her basket. Marley askedBrock, along with Ash andDawn, to escort her to the garden to find the field of Gracidea flowers for Shaymin. After Shaymin had changed into itsSky Forme, it helped to defeat Team Rocket and left.
Buck appeared inBucking the Treasure Trend!, where he was looking for a hidden treasure nearLily of the Valley Island. As he parted ways with Ash and his friends at the end of the episode, he planned to head toStark Mountain.
In the manga
Pokémon Adventures
Emerald arc
Riley debuted inEpilogue, where he was seen heading towards theHoenn Battle Frontier aboard theS.S. Sinnoh.
Diamond & Pearl arc
By the request ofByron, Riley trainedDiamond onIron Island to prepare him for his upcoming confrontation withTeam Galactic.
Platinum arc
All the stat Trainers appeared at theBattle Zone.Buck tried to protectHeatran from Team Galactic, only to unwittingly unseal it and thus allowCharon tocapture it. The other stat Trainers later accompaniedPlatinum to theDistortion World for the final confrontation against Charon.
Models
Trivia
- All of the Pokémon used by the stat Trainers when they team up with the player are Pokémon that, as of Generation IV, have evolved once.
- All the stat Trainers' names are based on a variety of grains in the original Japanese and all translated versions.
- InPokémon Platinum, they are the only Pokémon Trainers to use animated sprites but have the standard Trainer battle music, though other Trainers would gain this trait inPokémon Black 2 and White 2.
Related articles
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