Pokemon Black and White spotlight: Shimboraa, Purotooga, Aaken and their evolutions

Fans of fossil Pokemon, unite! This week we bring you both ofBlack and White's newfossil families: physical specialistsPurotooga and Abagoora, as well astheunusual and exoticRock/Flying types Aaken and Aakeosu.And as a bonus, we're throwing in the mesmerizing single-stage Psychic/Flying type Shimboraa.Let's take a closer look.

Kokoromori is one of our favorite designs from this generation, so it's almost a shame that Black and White introduces another Psychic/Flying type to compete with our adorable bat friend, especially sinceShimboraa really outclassesKokoromori in almost every way. Yes, Psychic/Flying is not the best typing in the world (five weaknesses), but the Psychic/Flying-types of B&W make up for it with interesting moves and abilities.

Shimboraa's most notable feature is its Magic Guard ability, which only a handful of other Pokemon can possess (only three other evolutionary families, to be exact). It's an incredible boon in so many different ways – it prevents all non-direct damage, making Shimboraa immune to Spikes, Leech Seed, and all damage from status effects and weather (it doesn't prevent the status effect, just prevents any loss of HP). This isn't just useful for preventing damage from your opponent either, since Magic Guard also allows Shimboraa to hold a Life Orb without any HP penalty, giving it a free 30% boost in power to all moves.

Next page: Sea turtle fossilsPurotooga and Abagoora

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