Summary
With another shiny-boosted outbreak popping up inPokemon Scarlet and VioletfromFebruary 6 to February 9,some of the classic regional bird Pokemon are appearing across the three maps available, with shinies to hunt down. Featuring Fletchling, Starly, and Pikipek in Paldea, Kitakami, and the Blueberry Academy respectively, players should be well aware of what to look for with these early-route flying types.
While only the first stages of the regional bird lines are available in the outbreaks, the nine shiny forms in total certainly vary in quality. Ranging from shinies that may as well be the original color palette to completely out of the box, the ongoingflying-type outbreakoffers quite the array of Pokemon to capture.
9Staravia
Underwhelming Change
One of the more unfortunate shiny forms, Staravia offers a more chocolate color over its normally dark brown tones. While this shiny worked fairly well in pixel art and with select lighting seen inLegends: Arceus,inScarlet and Violetit truly tricks the player’s eyes. With such a minor color change, shiny Staravia is not topping a shiny form list anytime soon.
Like several other Pokemon found across Paldea, Kitakami, and the Blueberry Terarium, notably the obvious missed potential withArmarouge and Ceruledge,Staravia simply fails to live up to the endless options for a shiny form.
8Starly
Strikingly Similar
Although shiny Starly is in a similar area with its middle evolution, the paler brown for this tiny, round bird easily puts it above Staravia for the simple reason that, at the very least, players can tell it’s actually shiny. Even with that bar met, the light brown colors for Starly instead of the deeper shades may be nice, but not as enticing as the final evolution in the line.
Since Starly is one of the outbreaking Pokemon, players wanting to collect thisiconic Sinnoh birddon’t have to search too hard, thanks to the clearly lighter variant. No matter the time of day, locating the shiny Starly is as simple as looking around.
7Trumbeak
Colorful Indeed
On the opposite end of the disappointing shiny spectrum, Trumbeak is certainly a clear and colorful palette swap. The only issue, however, is how noisy this tropical bird becomes, changing orange and red to purple, pink, yellow, and green. While Trumbeak’s shiny at least, very clearly, changes colors, the extreme nature of this swap makes it the oddest of its evolution line.
The wild nature of the shiny form makes it a divisive favorite or disappointment, with few opinions in between. Although the rest of the line has great shiny forms, Trumbeak remains somewhere in limbo.
6Fletchinder
A Shiny For A Fire Type
Not quite the bravest bird yet, Fletchinder captures the exact shiny players come toexpect for most fire types,with the appearance of warmer tones and more intense reds. This trend for the fire type is slightly misused for Fletchinder given how minor the hue shifts, but the fiery look still comes through.
While the color change is more saturated than Staravia, the shiny doesn’t quite capture the warmth from the rest of Fletchinder’s line.
5Fletchling
Simple Yet Effective
Fletchling’s shiny form manages to achieve two separate qualities shiny hunters love to find in their given hunts. Although the shiny isn’t as drastic as other options seen across various regional birds, the orange-yellow additions to Fletchling add just enough to make it obvious compared to the standard Fletchling, and play into the entire evolution line.
Since Fletchling is still a normal type, the addition of the gold tones to the wings hints at the upcoming addition of the fire type to its line, making it a shiny form with a touch of story to it.
4Pikipek
Great Hue Change
A simple but wonderful color shift, shiny Pikipek doesn’t change much, but it changes enough in the right ways to capture an ideal shiny form. Swapping a typical woodpecker red to a vibrant fuschia for the forehead and the simple blue eyes for green, Pikipek’s shiny palette succeeds by remaining straightforward.
While not as wild as Trumbeak, the simplicity of Pikipek better encompasses what many shiny hunters look for in several of their hunts, along with being an easy shiny Pokemon to spot.
3Staraptor
Obvious But Great Shiny Color
One of the most iconic Pokemonfound in the Sinnoh region,Staraptor is often a staple across a variety of teams and always a classic option for new playthroughs. Swapping the red feather “hair dye” for a blue, alongside slightly lighter brown feathers, shiny Staraptor may not be the most exciting shiny, but it hits all the right notes for a strong color swap.
For some players, the hue shift from red to blue may seem too basic for shiny form, but the simplicity of the shiny is what makes it work so well. The design of Staraptor is strong enough in its standard colors, and the addition of blue doesn’t ruin the Pokemon’s look in the slightest.
2Talonflame
A True Phoenix
Dubbed the bravest bird, Talonflame’s shiny form lives up to the imagery expected of a phoenix-like Pokemon, with the orange and gray of the standard form burning into soft reds. A shining example of fire-type shiny colors, Talonflame easily lands in the upper tier of shiny Pokemon.
Certainly one of the best shiny forms from the Kalos region, and assumedly an obvious shiny huntonceLegends: Z-Areleases,shiny Talonflame is a must for many shiny hunters. As a plus, having the ability Flame Body also means this shiny can make the Masuda method go by even quicker.
1Toucannon
Colorful And Controlled
An underrated shiny regional bird, Toucannon goes from an already bold and intriguing design for a normal type to a vibrant and saturated shiny form that players don’t quite expect. Swapping the warm colors of the beak, warning colors for how it heats up during a signature move, for brilliant pinks, purples, and blues.
A shiny full of pride, Toucannon may not be one of the first Pokemon players think of when the term “regional bird” is mentioned, but it is easily one of thebest shiny Pokemon from the Alola region,and definitely the strongest shiny from this current outbreak.
