Island Guardians
Morphs [Oak Catalog #]
- Tapu Koko [785]
- Tapu Lele [786]
- Tapu Bulu [787]
- Tapu Fini [788]
Physical Descriptions
The Island Guardians aka the Guardian Deities aka the Tapus all share a similar body structure. The four of them have a thin black body and a black head of varying shapes and sizes. The Guardians all have a shell of some form that, when closed, heavily resembles a head.
Tapu Koko has a very thin body that is covered by white markings. It has an orange plume of sorts on its head with a little bit of yellow at the top. Instead of legs Tapu Koko has an orange spike-like protrusion with three more spikes attached to the front. Its arms end in two halves of a large yellow shell. Each half has a pattern on it that, when the two halves are put together, resembles a bird head.
Tapu Lele's body is similar to Tapu Koko's but it is much more traditionally feminine in appearance. It appears to be wearing a pink hat, actually the top half of its shell, with white markings, covering what appears to be long, pink hair. Instead of legs it has the bottom half of its shell which vaguely resembles a teacup.
Tapu Bulu is much… beefier than the other Tapus. It's upper body is rounder, with a large nose in which a nose ring is attached. It's lower body tapers into a sort of bell and its arms end in golden hooves. It's shell takes the appearance of a hat that is primarily colored with red and white with dashes of yellow and black. Atop the "hat" is a pair of horns, partly colored yellow.
Tapu Fini is similar to Tapu Lele in body shape in that it is rather thin and traditionally feminine. It is possibly the most human-looking of the four, its facial structure being rather close to that of a human woman's, the curvature of its lower body being similar to a dress, and it possessing what appears to be long hair 1 . It has two long, thin arms that end in what appear to be three-clawed, webbed hands. Running along the front of its lower body is a fin resembling the back fins of many aquatic Pokemon. Its shell is possibly the most shell-like of the four Pokemon, appearing similar to a large, blue clam shell with white markings, a dorsal fin, and a horn-like appendage on the end of the top half.
Lore and History
According to Alolan legend, the Island Guardians have protected Alola since ancient times, with each Guardian protecting a different island. Tapu Koko protects Melemele Island, Tapu Lele protects Akala Island, Tapu Bulu protects Ula'ula Island, and Tapu Fini protects Poni Island. There are many stories of them defending the Region from "Invaders" 2 . Of note, two particular incidents were described. The first was a battle between the Legendary Pokémon Solgaleo and Lunala and the Island Guardians. The two Legendaries defeated the Guardians in battle and as a reward the Guardians bestowed upon them Tapunium Z 3 .
The second incident was a battle against an entity referred to as a "pillager of light" 4 that stole all the light in Alola and somehow kidnapped Solgaleo and Lunala 5 , hence its name. With the help of a youth, the Island Guardians succeeded in repelling the entity, returning light to Alola and freeing Solgaleo and Lunala.
The Island Guardians also once participated in a war against each other. The resulting destruction and chaos resulted in them withdrawing from human affairs (barring selecting the Kahunas of their respective islands) until recent times.
Known Sightings
The Island Guardians are among the most commonly sighted legendary Pokèmon in the world. The residents of Alola (and the occasional tourist) frequently report seeing the Guardians hanging around festivals honoring them, taking offerings from shrines to them, and occasionally making mischief. These sightings have been consistent throughout most of Alola's history.
In recent times, the number of sightings of Tapu Koko in particular have spiked. According to reports, the Island Guardian appears to have taken a vested interest in the recently crowned Champion of Alola. Supposedly, their final challenge before becoming Alola's first Champion was to battle and defeat the Legendary Pokémon in the Ruins of Conflict. However nobody knows for certain as the only people to enter the ruins around that time were the region's local Professor, Kukui, and the Champion themselves.
Abilities
All four Island Guardians are able to levitate by their own power. They also, as mentioned before, possess the ability to close their shells around themselves like a defensive shield. Despite being revered as gods by Alolans even to this day, they are still Pokemon and thus display attributes resembling at least one of the 18 known types. All four display abilities typical of Fairy-types. However, each Pokemon also has its own primary typing in addition to the Fairy abilities.
Tapu Koko displays abilities resembling that of Electric-types. From ancient texts and the accounts of a few Alolan natives who claim to have seen Tapu Koko in combat, it has used attacks resembling moves like Thunder Shock, Discharge, and others. It also has been reported to have an ever present electric field, similar to the move Electric Terrain. Researchers have dubbed this ability Electric Surge.
Tapu Lele displays abilities resembling that of Psychic-types. From ancient texts and the accounts of a few Alolan natives who claim to have seen Tapu Lele in combat, it has used attacks resembling moves like Psybeam, Psyshock, and others. It also has been reported to have an ever present field of psychic energy, similar to the move Psychic Terrain. Researchers have dubbed this ability Psychic Surge.
Tapu Bulu displays abilities resembling that of Grass-types. From ancient texts and the accounts of a few Alolan natives who claim to have seen Tapu Bulu in combat, it has used attacks resembling moves like Leech Seed, Wood Hammer, and others. It also has been reported to have an ever-present field of pollen, grass, and leaves similar to the move Grassy Terrain. Researchers have dubbed this ability Grassy Surge.
Tapu Fini displays abilities resembling that of Water-types. From ancient texts and the accounts of a few Alolan natives who claim to have seen Tapu Fini in combat, it has used attacks resembling moves like Hydro Pump, Water Pulse, and others. It also has been reported to constantly be surrounded by mist, similar to the move Misty Terrain. Researchers have dubbed this ability Misty Surge 6 .
According to ancient texts, all four Island Guardians have a signature move called Nature's Madness which, when combined with a Z-Ring and Crystal, can become a Z-Move known as Guardian of Alola 7 .
Hazards
According to legend, the Island Guardians are rather docile Pokemon, something that local and tourist accounts back up. They reportedly enjoy playing with humans and have a mischievous side. That said, DO NOT, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, DO ANYTHING TO PROVOKE THE ISLAND GUARDIANS IN ANY WAY OR FORM! ESPECIALLY DO NOT MAKE ANY ATTEMPT TO HARM THE REGION OF ALOLA IN ANY SIGNIFICANT WAY!
All four Pokémon are extremely powerful. Tapu Koko has control of high voltage electricity and moves faster than most eyes can perceive. Tapu Lele has extremely potent psychic abilities and is known for distracting and confusing opponents using mists and scents. Tapu Bulu is strong enough to rip trees from the ground and use them as weapons. It's main tactic is immobilizing its targets and then attacking them while they are unable to fight back, usually using its extremely sharp horns. Tapu Fini lives in mist and attacks with powerful blasts of water and crashing waves.
All four Guardian Deities know the move Nature's Madness, the effects of which are largely undocumented.
BackSet1 put quadruple the effort in to write this article.
