Galvantula Report

Galvantula (the EleSpider Pokémon) is an uncommon Bug/Electric-type Pokémon found around caves, forests and cities within the Unova and Galar regions and the Blueberry Academy Terarium as well as the Hoenn region on rare occasions. Though they might share the subpar defenses and physical offense found in many other Bug-types, Galvantula are agile creatures that can use their quick reflexes and electrically-charged webs to quickly immobilize and devastate unprepared opponents in battle. Bird Keepers traveling to the Unova are highly advised to stay away from these creatures at all costs, as to these beasts, a bird is nothing more than a meal waiting to be electrocuted and gift-wrapped!

Joltik and Galvantula are incredibly unique among Bug-types for their ability to generate and store electricity within themselves. This ability comes courtesy of a gelatinous organ within their abdomen capable of both absorbing electricity from power sources and generating it from the breakdown of proteins. While they might not be true spiders, these creatures share many of the same distinctions found in other spider-like Pokémon, such as Spinarak and Ariados, and thusly behave much like predatory spiders (in other words, they hunt by building webs and waiting for prey to simply walk or fly into them). There's a snag to this comparison, however, as Joltik and Galvantula are able to use stored electricity to enhance their hunting techniques considerably. The thread that Joltik and Galvantula produce from their mouths and rears is extremely efficient at conducting electricity and can maintain a polarized charge for hours; when combined with their ability to utilize electricity, this grants these creatures access to a relatively powerful and unique move: The Electroweb attack. While it might not be among the strongest of Electric-type attacks, this electrically-charged snare effectively delivers a sticky shock that always lowers the opponents Speed slightly, granting Joltik and Galvantula the opportunity to strike again before the opponent can react. This also means that Joltik and Galvantula are the only known Bug-types that successfully trap and feed on attacking birds on a regular basis. Lastly, it should be noted that these creatures are different from other spider-like Pokémon in that the thick fur covering their bodies tends to make other Pokémon feel uncomfortable, possibly for the same reasons a tarantula makes many humans nervous and fearful; as such, Joltik and Galvantula (as well as the members of the Litleo family) are the only Pokémon known to normally possess the aptly-named Unnerve Ability.

Though they are still relatively short, Galvantula are far larger than Joltik and possess an electrical organ large enough to store impressive amounts of electricity, making anything with wings a handy target. Like most spiders, Galvantula spin massive webs and remain hidden while waiting for prey to accidentally walk or fly into their trap (and are duly more gifted than Joltik in doing so as seen in the Sticky Web technique they gain access to immediately after evolving), in particular enjoying laying electrical traps beneath the nests of bird Pokemon to grab any chicks that fail to fly when they take their first flight out of the nest. In sharp comparison to regular spiders, though, Galvantula do not have any venom within their systems at all (despite the fact that they and Joltik can still utilize the nasty Gastro Acid technique, which they use to liquefy the inside of their prey) and thus cannot immobilize their prey with any sort of bite; as one might expect, Galvantula instead rely on electricity to do the work for them. Once a suitable meal has lodged itself within the strands of their electrified webs, they quickly become paralyzed and unable to move at all, leaving Galvantula to consume the live catch at their leisure; if they cannot finish the meal, they will simply wrap up the remains in an air-tight cocoon of charged thread (which protects against both other predators and the possibility of the meal escaping) and leave the package near their nest, hidden from view. If threatened, Galvantula will employ a similar technique to snare the opposition, blasting bits of electrified fur from their abdomen as a direct weapon to stun others, potentially paralyzing them for up to three days, before spewing fully-formed Electroweb attacks from their mouths in an attempt to capture the opponent for food; if the opposition is too heavily-armored to be easily hurt by such an attack, Galvantula will instead use their Electroweb attack as a shield, allowing the net to take the hit intended for the maker and in turn enabling said maker to escape unharmed. There have even been cases where Galvantula have built literal walls of charged webbing as a defense against physical assaults, though this usually only works in small areas filled with debris (which provide numerous anchor points for attaching thread).

With an unnerving appearance and impressive hunting instincts, Galvantula are dangerous creatures that can certainly hold their own against a surprising variety of opponents. Possessing a potent combination of Bug and Electric-type offenses and impressive Speed, it can definitely be said that Galvantula are perfect additions to any Bug Catcher's team and can be equally useful in the hands of ninjas, Engineers, and so on. Unless you have some strong Fire, Rock or (for the sake of resistance) Ground-type Pokémon at your disposal, you would be well-advised to keep your distance from these creepy-crawlies in combat; your Pokémon might be able to break out of their Electroweb attacks the first few times, but as good of a shot as Galvantula are, it won't be too long before your Pokémon end up wrapped tighter than a bad, electrified Christmas present!

Professor Wormwood