Okay, so I decided to tackle the whole “HM slave” thing in Pokemon White. Basically, I wanted a Pokemon that could learn a bunch of those annoying HM moves like Cut, Surf, Strength, and Fly, so I wouldn’t have to keep switching Pokemon around in my main party. Total pain, you know?
I started by doing a little research. I looked up which Pokemon could learn the most HMs. I ignored the legendary Pokemon, no way am I using those strong guys for these tasks. Some people suggested Bibarel, which seemed okay, but I wanted to see what I could catch early on.
I ended up grabbing a Patrat. It’s that little chipmunk-looking guy you find right at the beginning of the game. I know, not the coolest Pokemon, but hear me out. It can learn Cut, Strength and Surf, Which is a pretty good start. I named him “HMHelper”. I know I know, so creative.
- Caught a Patrat (Route 1).
- Immediately taught it Cut when I got the HM.
- Leveled it up alongside my main team.
As I progressed, I got to the point where I needed Surf. “HMHelper” could learn that as well. Sweet! This was working out perfectly, two of the most common HMs were handled by one little guy. I beat the first few gyms, and now my “HMHelper” could help me to explore the game better.
Finding the “Fly” Guy
Fly, though… that was a different story. Patrat couldn’t learn Fly. I checked many flying Pokemon in my PC, I had to find another Pokemon to take on that role. I needed something that could learn Fly and was relatively easy to find.
Eventually, I went with an Archen. Seemed like a decent choice, and I could get it from the fossil I got earlier. Archen is pretty decent for being a normal member of the team. And also can learn Fly. Now I am fully prepared.
So, my final setup? Patrat as my “HMHelper” for Cut, Strength, and Surf, and Archen for Fly. It’s not the most glamorous solution, but it gets the job done, and I don’t have to waste slots on my main fighting team. It’s way more convenient, trust me.
I’d recommend trying something similar if you’re playing through Pokemon White (or Black) and are getting annoyed with the HMs. It might seem silly to dedicate two Pokemon to just carrying HMs, but it really streamlined my gameplay. I just swap them in when needed and continue my journey.
