With the trading update live, Stardust is now more valuable than ever. So should you spend it on any of the Alolan forms or Legendary Golems? As a series wrap-up to our Alolan form previews, let's discuss.
ALOLAN RATICATE: We'll start of short and blunt; Don't waste Stardust on the weak Alolan Raticate.
ALOLAN RAICHU: Alolan Raichu is, despite the refreshing and slightly-comical design, not a great Pokémon to invest Stardust in. Once it becomes available, it will be outclassed by Raikou and Mewtwo as an Electric- and Psychic-type attacker, respectively.
ALOLAN SANDSLASH: Alolan Sandslash is the only Pokémon on this list that we cannot come to a definitive verdict on. As both an Ice-type and a Steel-type attacker, it is decent. It's not phenomenal, and it's not terrible. We plan on powering some up because 1) they can be decent back-ups in Raids, and 2) we love this Pokémon's design and just want to use it. With that said, do not recommend making this Pokémon a priority on your power-up list.
ALOLAN NINETALES: Unlike the Kantonian form we've gotten used to over the last two years, Alolan Ninetales is definitely a Pokémon worth Stardust. It may not be the most powerful Pokémon in existence, but the Fairy-typing's large resistance to Dragon-type attacks combined with the STAB-boosted Ice-type attacks (which Dragonite, Rayquaza, and Salamence are doubly weak to) make it a great attacker.
ALOLAN DUGTRIO: Absoluelty do not use Stardust on Alolan Dugtrio! While it may not be available at the time of writing this article, Dugtrio's stats are so terrible that it would be a waste of Stardust to spend it on Alolan or Kantonian Dugtrio.
ALOLAN PERSIAN: Alolan Persian is not worth your Stardust. Umbreon, Tyranitar, Houndoom, and even Gyarados are better options. And with strong Dark-types coming in the future (Darkrai, Hydreigon, Yveltal, etc), its better to save your Stardust and Rare Candy for them.
ALOLAN GOLEM: Alolan Golem is a great Pokémon to power up. It may not be the best Rock-type or Electric-type attacker, but it can certainly deal the damage needed with Rock Throw and Stone Edge or Volt Switch and Wild Charge. Do note that this Pokémon will not be available until Pokémon GO Fest 2018.
ALOLAN MUK: Alolan Muk is also a great Pokémon to power up. With only one weakness and decent defenses, it is a great Gym defender. It's also a decent Dark-type attacker, and a good Poison-type attacker (should Fairy-types ever rise in the meta).
ALOLAN EXEGGUTOR: Alolan Exeggutor is definitely a Pokémon you should invest Stardust in. It's Dragon-typing gives it some extra resistance to Grass-, Water-, and Electric-type attacks makes it a great Water-type counters. If you used it against Kyogre, this crazy palm tree would have proved this point.
ALOLAN MAROWAK: Alolan Marowak is, unfortunately, not a good Pokémon. Just like Kantonian Marowak, it has very poor stats and is easily outclassed by other Pokémon that share its typing. Do note that this Pokémon is currently unavailable.
REGIROCK: Regirock is Regice's Rock-type counterpart that will be released later in the summer. It has the exact same stats as Regice. It may not hit as hard as Tyranitar, Golem (both variants), Rhydon, or Omastar, but it is free from any double weaknesses and can survive in battle much longer. As we explain more in the Regice section, only power Regirock up if it fits your play style.
REGICE: Regice is, as you notice when Raiding it, a very defensive Pokémon. This does mean, however, that its Attack stat is lower than what would be considered ideal. That's not to say Regice is a bad Pokémon, but whether or not you power one up should come down to your play style.
If you like to use the Pokémon that will deal the maximum amount of damage, no matter how quickly they faint, you're better off investing into Articuno. If you like to use Pokémon that will stick around the longest, Regice is your best option. If you're the type of person that's hyper-conscious of future generations and worry that Stardust used now will be wasted, wait for Generation 5's Kyurem.
REGISTEEL: Unfortunately, Registeel is the Suicune of this trio. Registeel's stats from the main-series games transfer over to Pokémon GO poorly. Registeel's stats are much worse than Regirock's and Regice's, and make Metagross and Aggron better Steel-type options. Do remember that this Pokémon is currently unavailable.
Thanks for reading, Trainers.
ALOLAN RATICATE: We'll start of short and blunt; Don't waste Stardust on the weak Alolan Raticate.
ALOLAN RAICHU: Alolan Raichu is, despite the refreshing and slightly-comical design, not a great Pokémon to invest Stardust in. Once it becomes available, it will be outclassed by Raikou and Mewtwo as an Electric- and Psychic-type attacker, respectively.
ALOLAN SANDSLASH: Alolan Sandslash is the only Pokémon on this list that we cannot come to a definitive verdict on. As both an Ice-type and a Steel-type attacker, it is decent. It's not phenomenal, and it's not terrible. We plan on powering some up because 1) they can be decent back-ups in Raids, and 2) we love this Pokémon's design and just want to use it. With that said, do not recommend making this Pokémon a priority on your power-up list.
ALOLAN NINETALES: Unlike the Kantonian form we've gotten used to over the last two years, Alolan Ninetales is definitely a Pokémon worth Stardust. It may not be the most powerful Pokémon in existence, but the Fairy-typing's large resistance to Dragon-type attacks combined with the STAB-boosted Ice-type attacks (which Dragonite, Rayquaza, and Salamence are doubly weak to) make it a great attacker.
ALOLAN DUGTRIO: Absoluelty do not use Stardust on Alolan Dugtrio! While it may not be available at the time of writing this article, Dugtrio's stats are so terrible that it would be a waste of Stardust to spend it on Alolan or Kantonian Dugtrio.
ALOLAN PERSIAN: Alolan Persian is not worth your Stardust. Umbreon, Tyranitar, Houndoom, and even Gyarados are better options. And with strong Dark-types coming in the future (Darkrai, Hydreigon, Yveltal, etc), its better to save your Stardust and Rare Candy for them.
ALOLAN GOLEM: Alolan Golem is a great Pokémon to power up. It may not be the best Rock-type or Electric-type attacker, but it can certainly deal the damage needed with Rock Throw and Stone Edge or Volt Switch and Wild Charge. Do note that this Pokémon will not be available until Pokémon GO Fest 2018.
ALOLAN MUK: Alolan Muk is also a great Pokémon to power up. With only one weakness and decent defenses, it is a great Gym defender. It's also a decent Dark-type attacker, and a good Poison-type attacker (should Fairy-types ever rise in the meta).
ALOLAN EXEGGUTOR: Alolan Exeggutor is definitely a Pokémon you should invest Stardust in. It's Dragon-typing gives it some extra resistance to Grass-, Water-, and Electric-type attacks makes it a great Water-type counters. If you used it against Kyogre, this crazy palm tree would have proved this point.
ALOLAN MAROWAK: Alolan Marowak is, unfortunately, not a good Pokémon. Just like Kantonian Marowak, it has very poor stats and is easily outclassed by other Pokémon that share its typing. Do note that this Pokémon is currently unavailable.
REGIROCK: Regirock is Regice's Rock-type counterpart that will be released later in the summer. It has the exact same stats as Regice. It may not hit as hard as Tyranitar, Golem (both variants), Rhydon, or Omastar, but it is free from any double weaknesses and can survive in battle much longer. As we explain more in the Regice section, only power Regirock up if it fits your play style.
REGICE: Regice is, as you notice when Raiding it, a very defensive Pokémon. This does mean, however, that its Attack stat is lower than what would be considered ideal. That's not to say Regice is a bad Pokémon, but whether or not you power one up should come down to your play style.
If you like to use the Pokémon that will deal the maximum amount of damage, no matter how quickly they faint, you're better off investing into Articuno. If you like to use Pokémon that will stick around the longest, Regice is your best option. If you're the type of person that's hyper-conscious of future generations and worry that Stardust used now will be wasted, wait for Generation 5's Kyurem.
REGISTEEL: Unfortunately, Registeel is the Suicune of this trio. Registeel's stats from the main-series games transfer over to Pokémon GO poorly. Registeel's stats are much worse than Regirock's and Regice's, and make Metagross and Aggron better Steel-type options. Do remember that this Pokémon is currently unavailable.
Thanks for reading, Trainers.