Obstagoon #862: The Punk Badger That Taunts Before Striking

A punk badger that sticks its tongue out and crosses its arms in an "X" just to taunt you: meet Obstagoon (called "Ixon" in French), the final evolution Galar gave to an old Hoenn line. Beneath its rocker look, it's a patient counterattacker, one that would rather let its opponent strike first.

Contents

• Who is Obstagoon?
• Evolution: a line that went 100% Galarian
• Dark/Normal type and Abilities
• Obstruct: the taunter's signature move
• No Mega Evolution, no Gigantamax
• Obstagoon at a glance
• Frequently Asked Questions

Who is Obstagoon?

Listed as #862 in the National Pokédex, Obstagoon is a Generation VIII Pokémon, revealed on August 7, 2019, in a Sword and Shield trailer alongside the Galarian forms of Weezing, Zigzagoon and Linoone as well as Morpeko. It holds the 33rd spot in the Galar Pokédex and also appears in the Pokédex of the Crown Tundra, the game's second expansion.

This long-necked, bipedal badger has a black-and-white coat, set off by patches of long gray fur. Red-eyed, it often keeps its wide mouth open, tongue sticking out and sharp teeth bared. An "X" motif shows up everywhere: white on its forelegs, black on its back — the very arms it crosses in an "X" when soaking up hits.

It's hard not to picture a concert stage: Poképédia notes that its design recalls the makeup of hard rock band Kiss, especially that of bassist Gene Simmons, and that in English slang the letter "X" can mean "kiss." No official source confirms the inspiration, however: its designer, James Turner, has never claimed it.

Evolution: a line that went 100% Galarian

The chain has two steps: Galarian Zigzagoon evolves into Galarian Linoone at level 20, then Galarian Linoone evolves into Obstagoon at level 35, but only at night. No stone, no item, no trade: all it takes is leveling up once night has fallen.

Watch out for a cross-generation trap: the regular Hoenn Linoone, around since Generation III, never evolves into Obstagoon. Only the regional form introduced in Galar goes on to this third stage, which, for its part, has no Hoenn counterpart.

This evolution has to be earned: competition among Galarian Linoone is so fierce that only the strongest reach this stage, and the Pokémon Shield Pokédex confirms that "it evolved after experiencing numerous fights." A brawling past that doesn't stop it from coming as a super soft plush.

Dark/Normal type and Abilities

The Dark/Normal combination is a defensive rarity: it grants two immunities, against the Psychic type and the Ghost type, which deal it no damage at all. Obstagoon also takes only half damage from Dark-type moves, its only resistance.

The bill comes due on the weakness side: Fairy and Bug hit it for double damage, and Fighting, which both of its types fear, deals quadruple damage. The other twelve types hit it normally.

Its Abilities sketch out an old-school bruiser: Reckless boosts the power of recoil moves, like Take Down and Double-Edge, which it learns by leveling up, while Guts raises its Attack when it's hit by a status condition. Its Hidden Ability, Defiant, raises its Attack by two stages whenever an opponent lowers one of its stats.

With a base stat total of 520, it's built for sturdiness: its best stat is its Defense, at 101, ahead of its Speed at 95 and its 93 HP. A tank's profile, perfectly in tune with its fighting style.

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Obstruct: the taunter's signature move

Obstagoon is the only Pokémon that can learn Obstruct: a Dark-type status move with 10 PP and +4 priority, which it knows as soon as it evolves.

It protects the user just like Protect, with a punishing bonus: any attacker that hits it with a contact move has its Defense drop by two stages. The only catch: status moves get right through. When Dynamaxed, Obstruct becomes Max Guard.

The move suits the character: crafty Obstagoon rarely attacks first and taunts its opponent into making a mistake, before taking the hit with its arms crossed and countering. The Pokémon Sword Pokédex adds that Obstruct is also the name of its intimidation technique: a guttural shout, backed by remarkable vocal power — a rocker vibe that works wonders as a figure.

No Mega Evolution, no Gigantamax

No special forms to report: Obstagoon has neither a Mega Evolution nor a Gigantamax form. Like most Galar Pokémon, it can Dynamax in battle, but without a dedicated appearance — Poképédia's Mega Pokémon and Gigantamax pages don't mention it anywhere.

In fact, Generation VIII has only one Mega Evolution to date: Mega Falinks, obtained by giving a Falinksite to Falinks (#870) in Pokémon Legends: Z-A. In the anime, Obstagoon prefers a different kind of transformation: it's shown playing in a band, The Maximizers.

Obstagoon at a glance

Frequently Asked Questions

• How do you evolve Galarian Linoone into Obstagoon?
  Level it up from level 35 onward, and it has to be at night: without that timing condition, nothing happens. No stone, item or trade is involved. Note that only Galarian Linoone qualifies: the regular Hoenn Linoone is a final stage and never evolves. Earlier in the line, Galarian Zigzagoon evolves into Galarian Linoone at level 20.
• What are Obstagoon's weaknesses?
  As a Dark and Normal type, it takes quadruple damage from Fighting, its most dangerous weakness, and double damage from Fairy and Bug. In return, it's completely immune to Psychic and Ghost, it takes half damage from Dark, and the other twelve types hit it normally.
• What are Obstagoon's Abilities?
  Reckless or Guts, plus Defiant as its Hidden Ability. Reckless boosts the power of moves that cause recoil, Guts raises Attack when the Pokémon has a status condition, and Defiant raises Attack by two stages whenever an opponent lowers one of its stats.
• What is Obstruct, Obstagoon's signature move?
  A Dark-type status move that only Obstagoon can learn, with 10 PP and +4 priority. It protects the user the way Protect does and lowers the Defense of any attacker that uses a contact move on it by two stages. It doesn't block status moves, and it becomes Max Guard when Obstagoon is Dynamaxed.
• Does Obstagoon have a Mega Evolution or a Gigantamax form?
  No, neither one. Generation VIII's only Mega Evolution is Mega Falinks, obtained by giving a Falinksite to Falinks in Pokémon Legends: Z-A. Obstagoon can Dynamax like most Galar Pokémon, but it has no dedicated Gigantamax form.
• Is Obstagoon's design really inspired by the band Kiss?
  Nothing official. Poképédia points out that its design recalls the makeup of hard rock band Kiss, especially that of bassist Gene Simmons, and notes that in English slang the letter X can mean kiss. Bulbapedia is more cautious and only mentions a possible influence from glam rock bands, in the absence of any official statement. Its designer, James Turner, has never confirmed the reference.

In short

Provocative, loudmouthed and unshakable behind its crossed arms, Obstagoon proves that an old Hoenn line still had a surprise up its sleeve: all it took was a detour through Galar — and a touch of hard rock.