Froakie Line
Morphs [Oak Catalog #]/[Sycamore Central Kalos Catalog #]
- Froakie [#656]/[#007]
- Frogadier [#657]/[#008]
- Greninja [#658]/[#009]
Physical Description
The Froakie line are blue-coloured Water-type Pokémon which are native to the Kalos region.Froakie is the base form of the evolutionary line. It stands roughly 30 centimetres tall and weighs 7 kilograms, making it the smallest of the Kalos starter Pokémon in both height and weight. It is an amphibian Pokémon with moist light blue skin, and two large eyes, the sclera of which are yellow, and white pupils. Its other bodily features are a dark blue stripe between its eyes and its front feet, which are white instead of being blue like its back feet. Its front feet are noticeably hand-like and have three digits, whereas its stubby hind feet have only two digits. It also emits a foamy substance from its mouth, which resembles bubbles. These bubbles, called 'Frubbles', form a mane around its neck, with two additional Frubbles on the end of its nose, which resemble either a mustache or a pair of reading spectacles. The Frubbles also serve as a method of reducing damage and injury of the individual.
Frogadier is the first evolution of the line. It stands twice as tall as Froakie, and weighs roughly 11 kilograms. Frogadier takes on a more bipedal bodily structure than Froakie, with its forelegs being much slimmer than its hind legs, its feet being noticeably flatter, and its toes being tipped with circles. A large area of dark blue skin covers its eyes, upper jaw and back. It has two horn-like protrusions behind its eyes. The toes of its hind feet are dark blue, whereas its front toes are white, and the rest of the area on its front feet is the same dark blue as its face. The rest of its skin is the same light blue colour as that of Froakie. Frogadier is also often seen wearing a scarf fashioned out of Frubbles. The Frubbles on its base form's face are absent here, but it has two small white bumps on its nose.
Greninja is the final form of the line, and gains the Dark typing upon evolution from Frogadier. It is amphibious, though it has some noticeably reptilian traits. It is roughly 150 centimetres long, though rarely stands more than a meter tall due to its crouched stance as a result of its body shape. It has a triangular tail at the base of its spine, and three triangular horns on its head, connected via light blue webbed skin. The centre horn is connected to the end of the nose and runs up the face, whereas the other two are instead joined at the back of the head. Much of its body is dark blue, though there is tan colouring on the front of its horns, on its face, neck and torso, and on the webbing between its toes. Like its pre-evolutions, its back feet have two digits and its front feet have three, though its front feet are incredibly dextrous and can function nearly identically to human hands. Additionally, its back feet are backed with small pointed protrusions. There are white, transparent orb-like protrusions at the joint of each of its four limbs. Greninja also has an incredibly long pink tongue which is usually seen wrapped around its face like a scarf. Its eyes have white sclera and pink irises, unlike its pre-evolutions, and there is a white triangular spot on either side of its central horn. Its hind thighs are fairly large and bulbous, though its forelegs and hind calves are quite slim.
There exists a rare mutation which makes the skin of Froakie and Frogadier a lighter shade of blue, with the darker areas of Frogadier being a darker shade of blue than normal. This mutation remains upon evolution into Greninja, although it turns its tongue bright red and the rest of its body almost entirely black. This rare strain is sought after by collectors.
Notable Biology
The line is of the Water typing, and as such, a plethora of abilities and techniques come naturally to them. They are all quite thin and agile, able to elude opponents with their speed. In addition, the Dark-typing possessed by Greninja brings an additional selection of techniques. The whole line can manipulate water in unique ways. Greninja is particularly adept at this; it can forge shurikens out of water and strike with them multiple times in a row before its opponent has a chance to do anything in return. It can also perform the Hydro Cannon and Water Pledge techniques typical of Water-type starters. Froakie and Frogadier manipulate Frubbles instead, in both offensive and defensive manners. Frubble-covered pebbles are a common projectile weapon used by Frogadier. The omni-sac grows as the individual evolves, to the point where Greninja are able to use a surprising variety of different techniques, including Normal, Flying, Poison, Bug, Rock, Psychic and Fighting typed techniques, just to name a few.There are two subgroups of Froakie, as is typical of Water-type starter Pokémon. The most common subgroup has the Torrent gene, which awakens a second-wind response, increasing the individual's strength as it runs low on energy, making it a more potent threat. The second, rarer subgroup appears to have rather strange genetic code which alters the individual's typing based on what technique it is currently using. This not only increases the technique's power, but alters which counter-techniques are effective against the Pokémon, and how effective they are. Dubbed the "Protean" gene, it is also notably possessed by a subgroup of Kecleon. Scientists theorise that the Froakie line may be distantly related to Kecleon, although this is disputable, as the two cannot interbreed.
There also exists an additional mutation which is rarely reported, as documented below. It is named the Battle Bond gene.
Bond Phenomenon
The additional mutation is very poorly understood, as less than a dozen trainers have reported it happening, leading scientists to believe that this strain may be on the verge of extinction. Genetic testing has proven that for whatever reason, the Battle Bond gene renders the individual sterile. Additionally, all reported cases are on male Greninja, leaving scientists to wonder if female Greninja can use the gene themselves, or even possess it at all.As the name implies, the "Bond Phenomenon" emphasises, in theory, an apparent emotional bond between the individual and its trainer. It is present in all stages of the line, but only Greninja seem to undergo any noticeable changes. When a Battle Bond Greninja knocks out a target without any help whatsoever, it undergoes an effect that is incredibly similar to the phenomenon of Mega Evolution. Its stance changes and it becomes even more bipedal, allowing it to stand its full 150 centimeters tall. Its strength and agility undergo a noticeable upgrade, though its durability does not seem to change. Battle Bond Greninja are even more adept with water shurikens, and will usually have a rather large shuriken on their backs. Once a certain amount of time has passed, usually after a typical battle, the Greninja will revert to normal. It appears that intense concentration is required for the Greninja to transform.
These Greninja have additionally been recorded undergoing cosmetic changes, as with all Mega-Evolved Pokémon. Reports vary on Greninja's exact appearance during this time, but all have reported the blue areas of skin turning a lighter shade, the tan areas of skin turning white, and additional horns and bumps in various places on the head. Said horns and bumps are positioned and coloured so that the Greninja somewhat resembles its trainer. The reason for its cosmetic change is currently not understood, but although theorised as a signal of Greninja deeply respecting its trainer, effects on the trainers range from endearment to bewilderment and even being offput somewhat by these changes. One owner of a Battle Bond Greninja noted that a short while after they changed their appearance, their Greninja had adapted to this change, and used this appearance as the basis of its own during battles.
Habitat
The Froakie line members originate from in and around freshwater bodies, these being ponds, lakes and rivers, with the occasional marsh. They are, however, often seen residing close to human settlements, as they are a slightly domesticated, though still rather wild, line of Pokémon. Despite the wide area of distribution, Froakie are relatively rare in Kalos, and most of the Froakie seen are owned by starting trainers. The Froakie line members adore rain, and are more likely to be seen on rainy days.Diet
Bug Pokémon and plants are a common feature of Froakie and Frogadier diets. Greninja are rarely seen eating, but usually target larger Bug Pokémon, supplementing their diet with the occasional small piscine Pokémon.Hazards
Froakie and Frogadier are quite placid Pokémon, and angering them is rather difficult. However, Frogadier can launch Frubble-covered pebbles, as noted above, at things it dislikes, and this can include a trainer who has annoyed it. These pebbles can sting quite a bit, but are not an immediate threat. Greninja, on the other hand, is far more dangerous, as its strength, speed, and range of techniques make it quite formidable indeed. Although a trainer that is of decent skill level and attitude is not in any danger of angering it, doing so is still ill-advised. Trainers who taught their Greninja the Gunk Shot technique may find themselves on the receiving end of a trip to hospital if they overstep the line. Also, reports of trainers fainting and experiencing the same pain as their Battle Bond Greninja have surfaced, so one must be wary of this in their own Greninja.Additionally, there are hazards which affect the individuals. The most notable danger is drying out, which can be remedied by submerging the individual in water or allowing rain to fall on them. Contact with human skin must be minimized similarly.
Courting and Childrearing
Froakie and Frogadier congregate around the edges of water bodies. Froakie and Frogadier engage in polyandry, where a dozen or so males will crowd around a female and mate with her. After a few days, the Froakie or Frogadier will lay a mass of 4-12 "Froakiespawn" eggs which are incredibly small and translucent, and then simply abandons the eggs to fend for themselves. Within a day or two, these hatch into immature creatures resembling rounded dark blue specks with long tails. These creatures are rarely more than 10 centimeters long, and are not readily classifiable as Pokémon. As tested, Poké Balls do not work on them and may even kill the creatures if enough force is used. A rather large portion of them will die off naturally - either to weather conditions or cannibalism - but the survivors will, in the space of a few weeks, mature into adult Froakie, growing longer and gaining their legs over time. Once matured, they have the ability to leave the water and migrate over land if the current conditions are not suitable for long-term living.Greninja have different mating habits. They are rather fickle and rarely mate, but once they do so, the female will lay one or two fully-formed Pokémon eggs, which hatch into mature Froakie within a few days, and will also guard the eggs until they hatch. The reason for the radically different egg-laying mechanisms is currently not understood.
Social Structure
While Greninja are nomadic and often solitary creatures, Froakie and Frogadier intermingle with each other in groups of between five and ten individuals. Separate groups rarely mix, but will do so if current conditions, such as population and weather, force them to merge.In Human Culture
As noted above, Froakie is one of the possible choices of starter Pokémon of Kalos, along with Chespin
and Fennekin. With its unique "Protean" gene, and research on the Bond Phenomenon surfacing, it has become the most popular choice of starter Pokémon in the Kalos region, and often supply and demand means that there is difficulty in gifting this particular Pokémon to starting trainers. Despite the relative rarity of Froakie, they have a sizeable cultural presence. A 1955 cartoon short depicts a man with a singing Frogadier named Michigan. The man attempts repeatedly to show this talent to his peers and the public, and earn a fortune from this, but Michigan will only sing if the man is the only other human around, leading to much frustration.
There is also a 1908 novel depicting the adventures of a snobby Frogadier, along with an eremetic, yet nice Typhlosion, a boat-loving Raticate and a quiet, ordinary Drilbur who is roped into the adventures. Along a similar vein, there are a series of children's books about a Frogadier and Politoed who are best friends. Additionally, long ago, a tale about a princess who kisses a Froakie and turns him into a prince was written, among other tales. It has become popular enough for numerous adaptations.
An entire franchise of puppets based on many things, including Pokémon like Tepig and Ursaring, exists, with the most prominent one being a Frogadier named Kermit.
A popular early video game revolves around trying to get a Froakie to cross a road and river safely numerous times.
A popular adult cartoon series features a show-within-a-show where entire episodes consist of a Frogadier hypnotizing the audience, getting viewers to praise said Frogadier, though it is implied that the parent show's protagonist is immune to the hypnotic effects.
Written by AgentParadox. If you have any ideas for revisions or edits, send me a PM. If I don't respond... Consult the thread.
