Mawile Report

Mawile (the Deceiver Pokémon) is an uncommon Steel/Fairy-type Pokémon found among dark caverns and arid environments within the Hoenn, Unova, Kalos, Alola and Galar regions as well as the Kanto and Sinnoh regions on rare occasions. Adored and despised alike for their deceptive ways and vicious overbite, Mawile are seemingly defenseless creatures that hold a nasty surprise for anyone foolish enough to get close to them. They might seem innocent enough at first, but getting near them and the horns on their head is a very bad idea in every sense, particularly if you want to continue keeping your limbs in one piece!

In terms of their own physical abilities, Mawile are incredibly weak despite the fact that their bodies are coated in a permanent layer of organically-grown steel, which is designed as their primary means of defense; as a result, their population numbers are less than healthy and have been effectively limited to dark caverns where predators are less common. Even so, Mawile have learned to make up for their lack of offense by transforming their otherwise frail bodies into deadly weapons. Originally, it is believed that Mawile possessed a pair of long, steel horns on the tops of their heads as a defense mechanism against large opponents; since these likely would have made it only easier for more dexterous predators to grab a hold of them and devour them, Mawile seemingly underwent a rapid and rather sudden mutation that completely changed the appearance, behavior and fate of the species. Over time, these dual horns have grown and changed into a complex, jaw-like structure armed with iron-hard teeth and the clamping power of a steel press. The jaw itself is not directly connected to the creatures' gastrointestinal systems and contains no taste buds for Mawile to use to determine whether something is palatable to them before putting it in their actual mouths, but it is nonetheless connected to their heads by a thick strand of nerve tissue (protected by 3/4-inch-thick layer of metal) that allows Mawile to operate the mutated object as if it were an actual jaw. This abnormal growth has effectively become their sole source of offense and defense in battle (especially since it enables them to learn the powerful Play Rough attack, which is their only natural source of Fairy-type offensive power they have outside of a very weak Fairy Wind attack) and is very difficult to grow back if severed, making it the only thing separating them from complete extinction in the modern day.

In practice, however, this is rarely a problem, as these once humble creatures have turned sinister to accompany their new attributes. Mawile will often use their cute, harmless appearances to bring prey and predators up close to them, sometimes even feigning injury to enhance their luring powers; once their target is within range, Mawile will quickly spin around and proceed to use the mutated horn structure on their heads to bite and tear apart their target ferociously and relentlessly. Only heavily-armored Pokémon are usually able to resist being bitten more than once before sustaining massive physical trauma from these sneak attacks, so the chances of any individual surviving an attack in one piece are fairly slim. Moreover, Mawile are able to reach out with their mutated horns surprisingly far, so the opposition does not necessarily have to be very close for them to launch a successful attack.  Once a target is either subdued or killed, Mawile will proceed to smash and crunch their prize into fragments with their horns until they are in small enough chunks that they can be ingested through their actual mouths. This in fact can prove to be more of a hazard than their actual bite strength, since Mawile have no reason to clean out their horns in order to preserve their own sanitary safety; this more often than not means that their steel horns are festering bacteria pits with whom even the slightest contact can result in eventual sepsis (this can be avoided, however, if care is taken to cleaning their horns on a regular basis). On rare occasions, Mawile have even been known to hunt members of their own species for food, though they usually must resort to more direct forms of deception (such as offering a mating opportunity) in order to succeed at the hunt.

It is lastly noted that Mawile is one of only 46 species of Pokémon known to be capable of undergoing Mega Evolution. Using a held Mawilite, Mega Evolution almost literally doubles the offensive and defensive powers of these otherwise unassuming beasts by forcing them to grow a new, separate set of jaw-horns from their head, increasing the size, mass and length of both horns in the process and increasing the height of the main body slightly in order to better counterbalance the weight of the horn complexes. This bizarre mutation increases the aggression of these creatures a considerable amount and grants them a ferocity even beyond what they are normally attributed with, though they tend to be a bit more level-headed and easier for trainers to control under stressful situations. Their mutated horns, on the other hand, are temporarily inflicted with a nervous-system overload and thrash around violently as if they had a mind of their own, making it extremely dangerous for anyone to approach them if they are not completely placid. Even so, just as they did with one horn complex, Mega Mawile are able to control both of the massive, jaw-like horn complexes on their head independently and simultaneously to a decent degree, biting and tearing apart opponents at every opportunity they have with the strength needed to reduce a boulder to dust in a single bite; said opportunities tend to be many in number, as Mega Mawile prefer to utilize direct offense over trickery to win battles in stark contrast to the normal behavior, possessing an extremely vicious disposition that leaves little room for mercy in their actions. In terms of stats, the transformation of these creatures into Mega Mawile moderately increases their base Attack stat and critically increases their base Defense and Special Defense stats, the latter being a consequence of possessing greater control over the horn complexes to the point of being able to swing them over and use them as shields. More importantly, though, this sudden mutation activates a unique gene sequence within their DNA that enables them to harness and use a special type of psychic power to heavily amplify their muscular strength, effectively giving them the Huge Power Ability. Even as Mega Mawile, these creatures do not possess extremely high Attack stats under normal conditions, but with the stat-doubling power of the Huge Power Ability on their side, their actual Attack stat has the potential to exceed the normal limit of what even current machines are capable of recording, in turn making them the worse nightmare imaginable to any opponent without incredibly strong physical defenses.

While they certainly might not be among the most powerful of Steel and Fairy-types or the most versatile, Mawile are determined fighters that can certainly take a bite out of lesser opponents even if they don't win the battle. Deceptive, brutal and utterly entrancing to trainers that like taking risks, these odd critters can definitely give beginning trainers a serious advancement in firepower even if they don't have the strength needed to fight most fully-evolved Pokémon. If you don't mind risking your own personal safety for the sake of frightening others, don't hesitate to pick up one of these odd beasts for your collection; just make sure that you realize which mouth you're supposed to give their food to, or they'll be biting off more than just the hand that feeds them!

Professor Wormwood