But then it would be top-heavy. I felt it would be better to give it a sub-heading this one time so that no part of the article would be bigger than the rest.

Please consider supporting my artwork on Patreon

Having a dedicated "Abilities" section could be a good idea for species with several kind-of-weird/rare abilities or one really weird/rare ability. If this was the only article that got an Abilities section, it would be a bit out of place, but that can be worked around if we use the new header. I'll probably use this on my next article though, which will be the Hippopotas Line (calling dibs~).

I've linked my original post containing my Misdreavus Line draft to the main index, what else needs to be done with it before it can be formally launched?

Here we go, guys; Cobalion has arrived. As always, feedback and constructive criticism are appreciated; lemme know what you think of it, and if there's anything which you feel should be changed.

---

Cobalion

Morphs [Oak Catalog #]

• Cobalion [#638]

Physical Descriptions

Cobalion is a majestic species of odd-toed ungulate Pokémon, notable both for the blue hue of its fur and its proud, almost noble bearing and posture. Its body is primarily covered in a thick coat of sleek, metallic hairs the colour of cobalt; from a distance, this fur coat appears to be a single solid mass akin to some organic suit of armour. Exceptions to this coverage include the creature’s feet and hooves, which are separated from the blue coat by a band of slanted blacks hairs beginning just beneath the knee and soon transitions into a mass of grey fur which encompasses the rest of the leg and the entire foot; when combined with the dark grey hue of the single large hoof which adorns each foot, the effect is something akin to the illusion of footwear.

The creature’s streamlined body has very low wind resistance, the better to help Cobalion manoeuvre when moving at great speeds; its stability when running is further improved by the yellow, wing-like protrusions which jut from its shoulders, as well as the similarly-shaped, almost rudder-like tail at its rear end. These blades, in addition to serving as manoeuvring flaps and aerodynamic stabilizers, are also incredibly sharp; when running at top speed, Cobalion will gently brush one of them against a nearby tree to leave a deep gash that reaches all the way to the plant’s core, a clear indication of its territory.

Cobalion stands just under seven feet tall at the head, not including the creature’s prodigious antlers, and as such it towers over most humans in a manner that some find both intimidating and awe-inspiring. Its long neck extends from its shoulders at almost a ninety-degree angle from its spine, giving the creature a stiff and impressive posture that many describe as noble and wise; this air of wisdom and nobility is further enhanced both by the large white mane which covers the front of its neck like a beard or ascot, and by the stiff cobalt hairs which ring the sides and back of the creature’s head like the high collar of a Renaissance-era aristocrat.

The stern, patrician features of Cobalion’s lupine face further add to this perceived majesty; being a lighter shade of blue than the surrounding fur coat, its muzzle features a pale triangular nose, a pair of curling whiskers somewhat reminiscent of a thin and neatly-trimmed moustache, and a relatively small mouth that seems locked in a permanent expression of mild disapproval. Its yellow, oval-shaped eyes stare out at the world with what has been described as both an intense weariness and an unyielding resolve; directly above these orbs sprout the creature’s antlers, which extend from the back of the creature’s head like a pair of crenelated tan lightning bolts. The top of Cobalion’s head is dominated by a dome of black fur somewhat akin to a cap or yarmulke, and its ears are not visible.

Like many other Legendary Pokémon, Cobalion is believed to be a unique creature, and its gender, if it has any, is indeterminate. It has never been observed to communicate directly with humans, either through speech or telepathy; despite this, it has demonstrated a remarkable degree of intelligence in a number of fields, and seems to have a particular knack for devising and implementing tactics on the field of battle.

Lore and History

Cobalion’s precise origins are shrouded in myth and obscure legend, with no real consensus as to how it came to be. One popular legend says that it had once been a majestic and noble Sawsbuck which had been killed by hunters in the dead of winter, sacrificing its life so that the does and fawns of its herd could escape the reckless humans; saddened and shocked to reason by the untimely death of so magnificent a creature, the hunters were overcome with remorse and implored a travelling priest to tell them how they could absolve their sins. The cleric instructed them to venture into the depths of Mistralton Cave, find a vein of a rich blue metal in its deepest depths and fashion this mineral into an effigy of the slain Pokémon, then carry it to its grave and offer hymns of supplication and forgiveness. They did so, though the sculpting took almost a full year, and they returned to the spot where it had died and prayed for seven days and seven nights; at the end of this time, a strange light infused the statue and before the hunters’ startled eyes it came to life; thus was Cobalion born.

As has already been mentioned, this is but one possible origin for the creature; other variants posit that when the clashing armies of the Black and White Houses came to do battle near what is now known as Route Six, the Sawsbuck it may have once been stood in defiant protection of the forest and all the Pokémon who dwelt within against both sides of the confrontation. it never yielded to the invaders or their enslave Pokémon warriors, and did battle with them for a full year until, unable to defeat the proud and majestic creature, both factions admitted that they had lost; when the leaders of the Black and White armies laid down their swords at its feet on a cold winter’s day, a strange light engulfed the Sawsbuck, and moments later Cobalion emerged.

Countless other variations and permutations of this tale exist, but listing them all would fill a small encyclopaedia in its entirety and as such we shall not go into them any further in favour of other aspects of the creature’s mythology. In its early years, Cobalion was said to have travelled the length and breadth of Unova, taking part in many battles and searching for a purpose in life. During its sojourn, it happened upon two creatures which were quite similar to itself—the stout and strong Terrakion, and the graceful and agile Virizion. Though they had never met before that day, the three ungulate warriors are said to have behaved as if they had known each other all their lives, and after a period of butting heads and locking antlers—an encounter where most accounts agree that Cobalion emerged the victor—they became stalwart allies and fast friends.

Together they formed an inseparable band, a mighty triad of martial prowess, each one complementing the other two to form a complete whole—where Terrakion was raw power and brute force given physical form, Virizion was the very incarnation of a duellist’s practiced finesse and mobility, and Cobalion was both the unyielding defense and the keen intellect which anchored their assaults and guided their actions. During the medieval period these three Lords of War, as they came to be known, saw the devastation wrought upon the land and its inhabitants during the Succession Wars between the Black and White noble houses and were awash with disgust; it is said that after they had rescued a young Deerling—the very same creature which would become Keldeo, fourth member of their fraternity—from the inferno which had consumed his home forest and the hunters which had slain its mother, the three Lords of War swore a solemn oath that humans would never despoil and waste the lives of Pokémon again; and so, they interceded in the conflict as a faction all their own, going to war with the corrupt nobility which had ruled Unova in those times.

Historical records of those times were often biased and exaggerated by those who wrote them, and as such it is impossible for modern historians and mythologists to piece together the exact course of the so-called Human-Pokémon War. Some accounts praised Cobalion, Terrakion, Virizion and Keldeo as gallant freedom fighters bringing an end to centuries of internecine struggle and restoring peace to a beleaguered land, while others vilified the four Lords of War for their unwanted interference and likened them to harbingers of a biblical Armageddon for the chaos and devastation they wrought. Regardless of these conflicting opinions and accounts of dubious veracity, the final outcome of the War is well-known—Reshiram and Zekrom, the two dragons which had been employed by the Black and White Houses respectively to advance their conflict and enforce their right to succession, were sealed away, and the two feuding families were forced to abdicate their claims to the Unovan throne.

After this devastating conflict had at last come to an end, the four Lords of War went their separate ways. Having grown tired of war, Cobalion returned to Route Six and vanished into the depths of Mistralton Cave; it is said to linger there still, guarding its forested demesne from those who would do it harm, gathering its strength in preparation for the day when it might ride into battle once again.

Known Sightings

Since the war and chaos of the Middle Ages, Cobalion has been a rare and infrequent sight; while it is believed to dwell within Mistralton Cave, in truth the entire forest surrounding that chasm is its domain, and it rarely shows itself except in special circumstances. In particular it possesses a notable aversion towards humans, making documenting its behaviour and qualities a daunting task.

One notable sighting of the creature occurred two years ago, when a band of poachers entered Route Six illegally in search of wild Pokémon to capture, kill and sell to the highest bidder as carpets and other unsavoury forms of contraband. These men had barely been in the woods for an hour when Cobalion suddenly emerged from the underbrush, stepped onto the path before them and fixed them with a cold stare. The men sent out their own Pokémon to attack it, but Cobalion weathered their attacks without concern and defeated the creatures; when they saw that this had failed, the men drew rifles and shot Cobalion, but their bullets merely bounced off its durable coat to embed themselves harmlessly in the surrounding trees. It then charged at them, cutting their guns in half with quick and economical swipes of its antlers, destroyed their pokéballs before they could recall their Pokémon and drove the poachers running and screaming out of the woods. The authorities apprehended them shortly afterward, and the terrified criminals had been so traumatized by this experience that they told their captors everything; upon investigating the area where the poachers had been attacked, the police found a number of unconscious Pokémon and the shattered remains of several rifles, along with a number of deep hoof marks which did not correspond to any known local species.

Several weeks prior to that, an artist and his wife happened upon the majestic creature during a nature hike through Route Six; they had caught Cobalion in the act of drinking from a stream, and managed to take several photographs before it became aware of their presence and stared them down. Unlike the above-mentioned incident with the poachers, Cobalion did not pursue or attack the couple, but it did follow them from a distance for the remainder of their stroll, and under its watchful gaze they did nothing to disturb the local Pokémon or the environment. Upon reaching the edge of the forest, it fixed them with a long, solemn glance before turning around and vanishing into the underbrush.

Diet (if any)

As can be inferred from the previous paragraph, Cobalion is known to drink water; whether it actually derives sustenance from the liquid or simply enjoys the taste is not clear, although the scientific community suspects the former. It can be inferred, both from its ungulate physiology and the apparent lack of sharp teeth, that Cobalion may have an herbivorous diet, but until evidence in support or contradiction of this theory can be gathered, this theory remains purely in the realm of speculation.

Abilities

While the full extent of Cobalion’s abilities remain undocumented due to the creature’s elusive nature, it is known to be a swift and powerful runner; folktales and anecdotes dating from before the Succession and Human-Pokémon Wars often praised the majestic creature for its speed and endurance, and while much of this may no doubt be hyperbole or exaggeration, careful observation has shown that Cobalion is capable of attaining speeds in excess of forty miles per hour on relatively stable ground. It can maintain these speeds for a period of several hours, after which it stopped to recuperate; furthermore, thanks to its finlike shoulder blades and tail, the ungulate can execute incredibly sharp turns without any considerable loss in speed, momentum or manoeuvrability.

That said, Cobalion is far from the most agile Pokémon in the world, and even amongst the so-called Lords of War that title falls instead to the fay Virizion; of greater interest to the biological community is its formidable endurance. The blue fur which covers the majority of Cobalion’s body are akin to steel wool, and chemical analysis of discarded hairs has revealed that they contain trace amounts of ferratite, an exceedingly rare mineral which exhibits curious properties in the presence of certain Pokémon species. Because of this, the creature’s fur functions as a protective armour of sorts, allowing it to weather and endure a wide variety of attacks without succumbing to fatigue or injury; while not as durable as the semi-mythical adamantine plating of Dialga, Cobalion’s coat, as indicated above, is certainly strong and resilient enough to deflect high-calibre bullets with little difficulty.

Hazards

As one can infer from the above paragraphs, Cobalion is a powerful and dangerous Pokémon, and facing it in battle would prove a difficult contest even for the most experienced Pokémon trainer. Should one encounter the creature while walking through Route Six or Mistralton Cave, keep this fact in mind—while it may harbour resentment and antipathy towards humans, Cobalion will never attack unless provoked and will always permit its opponents to make the first move. As such, should the beast cross one’s path, do not attempt to attack it and back away very slowly without making any sudden movements; doing so will allow it to see that you are not a threat, and Cobalion will thus not attempt to pursue you.

However, if conflict is unavoidable for whatever reason, do not panic and send out your Pokémon one at a time; having more than one Pokémon engaged at once will be seen as both a threat and a dishonourable tactic by Cobalion, and it will respond accordingly with violence. The creature’s antlers, while seemingly rounded and corrugated, are in fact incredibly sharp; it uses these weapons as a master swordsman might wield an expertly-crafted blade, attacking its opponent with swift and economical swipes that almost always strike true and are strong enough to pierce even the durable carapace of a Steelix.

In addition to its keen-edged antlers, Cobalion can attack by sprinting past an opponent at great speed in order to nick them with one of its shoulder blades, and it can rain down vicious blows on an opponent should it rear up on its hind legs and flail its hooves. Its greatest weapons, however, are its endurance and resolve—few attacks can break through the thick coat of iron hairs to inflict appreciable damage, and the creature never retreats from a foe once combat has begun; it continues to fight until either the opponent or itself has been vanquished. Though the latter outcome is rare, it is not unknown; defeating Cobalion in battle without resorting to underhanded means is considered a truly impressive feat, and any trainer capable of doing so will have earned the respect of both Cobalion itself and the Pokémon Trainer community as a whole.

That said, overcoming Cobalion is no easy feat even for the strongest of trainers, and more often than not any battle with the creature shall end in a crushing defeat for its opponent. Those who fought honourably are permitted to leave its domain unmolested, while those who resorted to underhanded methods—including, but not limited to, attacking it with multiple Pokémon at once; attacking it with the underhanded skills and techniques that are the hallmarks of Dark-type Pokémon; or attacking it oneself while it is distracted or otherwise engaged—are chased from the site of the battle with all haste, and Cobalion will not hesitate to gore or trample particularly vile and unworthy opponents should they fail to escape the wrathful creature in time.

edited 4th Apr '11 9:23:20 AM by SullenFrog

The Danse Macabre Codex

*claps*

Masterfully done Sullen, I don't think I could have done better myself with Virizion.

However I would recommend taking out that little piece saying that beating the Lords of War is a requirement of being the Champion. It conflicts with the requirements we came up with in the chat.

Sorry, I can't hear you from my FLYING METAL BOX!

There we go; fixed it so that beating Cobalion simply gains you its respect and the respect of your peers.

The Danse Macabre Codex

Seems good to me. There are a couple of grammar errors in the beginning, but those can be overlooked. Also, I'm not entirely sure if 'fey' is the right descriptive word for Virizion, since I looked it up and it meant either 'slightly insane' or 'elvish'.

Please consider supporting my artwork on Patreon

That was a typo on my part; I meant 'fay' rather than 'fey'.

The Danse Macabre Codex

So Virizion's more like a fairy?

Please consider supporting my artwork on Patreon

Fay's roughly synonymous with 'effeminate'. Alternatively, it means that it resembles an elf.

edited 4th Apr '11 9:30:31 AM by SullenFrog

The Danse Macabre Codex

Hmmm... I guess I'm not as thoroughly versed in vocabulary as I thought.

Please consider supporting my artwork on Patreon

Virizion definitely has some Fair Folk vibes to it. I wonder if I can put that in my article somehow.

Sorry, I can't hear you from my FLYING METAL BOX!

Perhaps it's a nature spirit, but instead of the pacifistic Bambification of it, it's the more violent aspects of nature? As in, Nature, Red in Tooth and Claw?

Please consider supporting my artwork on Patreon

In my skeleton of an article I have it that Virizion was once a Sawsbuck that swore to protect Pinwheel Forest and its inhabitants against Humans that would try to destroy them. Its resolve was so great that not even Death itself could take it away from its mission. After hundreds of years of faithful service, the forest itself gave its blessing to Virizion. Turning it into an immortal guardian of the Forest.

So yes exactly that.

Sorry, I can't hear you from my FLYING METAL BOX!

Why all the reincarnated Sawsbuck? It's not that it's a bad idea or anything, I'm just genuinely curious.

Please consider supporting my artwork on Patreon

They're all ungulates right? Since Stantler aren't native to Unova the best candidate is Sawsbuck. Keldeo might be an empowered Deerling. Though you could argue that Terrakion is an empowered Bouffalant.

Sorry, I can't hear you from my FLYING METAL BOX!

Well, when I first began working on my article for Cobalion, I noticed that there was a very slight resemblance between it and Winter mode Sawsbuck. Since I wanted an origin story that would highlight its resolve in standing firm in the face of adversity, I figured that something like this would be the way to go.

Neo Crimson reached his similar idea independently, I believe.

The Danse Macabre Codex

I see that, but my question is about the whole reincarnation idea. I guess I would personally think that they'd be inanimate objects given the ability to move and think.

Please consider supporting my artwork on Patreon

Me, I like the Sawsbuck thing although yeah, I find it somewhat weird. Perhaps (three of) the four different seasons and form[e]s Sawsbuck take iconize different traits that heppen to correspond to the three Legendaries somehow, thus feeding some belief into the myth. That leaves one to wonder about Keldeo of course but something can be worked out, myth-wise.

I have to say, of the Legendaries articles written so far, Cobalion is quickly becoming my second favouritest. The parts detailing combat reek of Sullen Frog Seal of Quality.

Also, moving to another subject, it came about in the chatroom that it would make sense that the PEFE acronym existed as-is in-universe as well as out-of-universe. Linkify to the conversation. After some time I brought Pokédex Encyclopedia Framework Extension for a naming attempt. It avoids RAS Syndrome nicely yet still allows to add "project" at the end for when you want the palyndrom acronym "PEFEP". Opinions?

edited 4th Apr '11 10:18:37 AM by SilentReverence

Fanfic Recs orwellianretcon'd: cutlocked for committee or for Google?

I think you should replace 'Pokedex' with 'Pokemon', since the Pokedex is a uniquely formatted digital encyclopedia, and having this say 'Pokedex Encyclopedia' feels redundant.

Please consider supporting my artwork on Patreon

Nice, although your war stories are a bit off.

The Sucession Wars between the Black and White houses (a great play on the two warring brothers btw) ended with the construction of the Dragon Sky Pillar to seal them. The pillar is canonicaly the oldest building in Unova, which puts it past the milinea old structure in the desert, and since the war between the houses wiped out there whole civilization(making them double precursors) the war would be prehistoric (assuming the desert corresponds to Aztec-Egypt) not midevil times.

Otherwise good though.

Let's make a TCG!

Dragonspiral Tower, not Dragon Sky Pillar.

Please consider supporting my artwork on Patreon

Interesting choice of backstory - I guess in this case because not a lot is given in canon, there's many directions you could have gone. The entry looks very good.

Cobalion article=WIN.

Dunsparce didn't stop being a thing or anything.

-whistles-

Nice work there Sullen!

You got some dirt on you. Here's some more!

Cobalion entry is fantastic.