After a few weeks of subtle teasing, The Pokémon Company has officially revealed Poltchageist, a new take on the Sinistea evolution line exclusive to Pokémon Scarlet and Violet’s DLC.
Revealed in a beautiful new trailer that mixes live and animated elements, Poltchageist is Ghost/Grass-type Pokémon contained within a cursed tea caddy that holds a grudge against ill-mannered people and technology.
The reason this reveal is so important is Poltchageist will appear in SV’s The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero DLC, specifically Part 1: The Teak Mask. It is part of folklore for the Kitakami area players will explore, further emphasizing the importance of local legends and stories for this part of the DLC.
TPC lightly hinted at what Pokémon would be revealed in a short showcase during the 2023 Pokémon World Championships, where it took a handful of content creators out to a traditional tea ceremony and told them to “remember the experience.”
Right now, Poltchageist sits as a “Convergent” species to Sinistea and its evolution Polteageist, as noted by the initial description provided by TPC.
“Poltchageist has a swirl pattern similar to the one that’s known to be Sinistea’s weak point,” The Pokémon Company said. “However, one thing that sets these species apart is that Poltchageist’s swirl is not its weak point. After a target is sprinkled with some of Poltchageist’s powdery body or eats food dusted with it, Poltchageist drains their life-force and absorbs it as energy.”
Related: Pokémon Scarlet and Violet DLC will get a box release—but there are a few catches
This is the third variant of this kind, where it is not a regional take on an existing Pokémon but rather a completely new species that has a distinct resemblance. This was introduced in SV with Toedscool and Wiglett—and slightly expanded upon with Paradox Pokémon to an extent.
Poltchageist also has a new ability called Hospitality that sounds like it will be very useful in double battles, as it will heal ally Pokémon when they are swapped in. If it has decent stats or potentially evolves into another new Pokémon, this has a chance to be really good.
Published: Aug 22, 2023 08:23 am