Shiinotic Report

Shiinotic (the Illuminating Pokemon) is a relatively rare Grass/Fairy-type Pokémon found among grassy meadows and dark forests within the Alola and Galar regions. Though they might not be as resilient or powerful as some other Grass-types, Shiinotic are potentially dangerous creatures whose true power lies not within their offense but the subtle ways in which they can prove to be a menace in the wild. If you find yourself lost in the woods and see a faint glow from these creatures, just do your best to ignore it; otherwise, you might find yourself lost and unable to return from whence you came ever again!

As with their pre-evolved form, Shiinotic are parasitic by nature and feed on the nutrients and juices of tree roots while still remaining respectful of their well-being and the nutrient content of the soil around them, but because of their larger size compare to Morelull, this denies them a large part of the nutrition and energy they needed to survive. As a result, these creepy fungi have had to resort to more dastardly methods of energy retrieval in order to get the food resources they need to survive. These large, sentient mushrooms will generally stand low to the ground and hide their small central body from the sight of travelers, making them look like little more than oversized mushrooms. While this does nothing in the daytime aside from giving them the chance to sleep in peace, when night falls, they become more active and will actively discharge light from their bodies, causing their caps to glow in the dark. As a potential prey item approaches, these creatures will intensify the light they give off and in order to trick the traveler into using them as a guide marker. Once their target has passed by, they will release a chemical aroma into the air that will alert nearby Shiinotic to start doing the same, and as each one lights up and tries to direct the pathway of their target, they will subtly move from place to place in order to trick the prey into thinking that they are lost and going in circles. Eventually, the victim will become exhausted and will decide to find a place to sleep, usually near one of the Shiinotic, using it as a makeshift light so they don’t feel completely in the dark. Once the prey is asleep, these creatures will gather together and begin to drain the prey of its energy using their finger-like hyphae (a process that can be done in reverse to restore energy to a weakened member of their own species), usually to the point of killing them and ensuring that they never leave the forest again. This makes forests where these creatures dwell extremely dangerous to trek through, and should thus not be attempted at night if even a single one of these fungi are spotted. The situation is much worse if the area is inhabited by Parasect as well, as territorial fights between the two species often result in the release of so much spore material that it forms a thick haze in the air and coats the entirety of their surroundings, making it potentially life-threatening to travel through.

Because of their simple anatomy, Morelull and Shiinotic do not gain much in the way of offense or defense in their lives and can therefore be a major target if attacked, but they do have a few defensive measures at hand to assist themselves. For one thing, they, Shiinotic and Volbeat are the only Pokémon able to naturally learn the Flash technique, which can give them a serious advantage in dazzling opponents before doing their best to escape, though this does not work all that often as they are quite slow. They also have access to the unique Strength Sap technique, which can help them recover their energy and lower the physical offensive strength of the opposition at the same time, serving as a dual way of preserving their existence in a fight. Lastly and perhaps most importantly, though, these creatures have access to the Spore technique to put their enemies to sleep, but their Spore technique is notably different from that used by other Pokémon. When these creatures feel threatened, their naturally-glowing bodies will release a series of glowing spores that float slowly through the air and surround their target. While generally harmless on their own, these glowing spores flicker and glow in a dull fashion and release a puff of light every time they burst open; this has a soporific effect on all that watch this happen, making them feel suddenly drowsy before putting them to Sleep, granting these fungi the best opportunity they can get to run away or utilize an attack like Dream Eater to make the most of the situation in battle. Trainers that are looking to capture or defeat one of these organisms should take this into account, as the only real way to eliminate the usefulness of their Spore technique it to weaken these creatures for an easy capture or otherwise defeat them swiftly before they have the chance to release the spores.

Despite not being the most hard-hitting of Pokemon, Shiinotic are deceptive monsters that can more than make life miserable for anyone that dares to walk by them unguarded. With access to a unique set of moves and skills few other Grass-types can wield and an unsettling glow that can put off even the bravest of travelers, you would be best prepared to bring a Poison-type offensive storm to take them out quickly in battle. It’s unlikely that they will be able to move first anyways, but if they get the chance to put their opposition to Sleep, then there will be little capable of preventing these fiendish fungi from literally draining the life right out of your Pokemon!

Professor Wormwood