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Greetings everyone, Austin here. Well, today's the day -- the end of Generation VIII and the beginning of Generation IX. A lot of you who have pre-ordered Pokemon Scarlet and Violet must be quick at work to get your files started and your teams built up. If you're not too busy though, I have come forth with that one photo I have promised getting to today. Consider it a way of finishing off Generation VIII. Put your hands together for my personal favorite member of the Creation Trio and the Distortion World's sole resident -- Giratina! In this picture, my specimen in Legends: Arceus is standing within Turnback Cave at Spring Path in the Cobalt Coastlands. I'd prefer the Distortion World but it still works as Turnback Cave is Giratina's default earthly location.

If anybody's wondering, Giratina's not just my favorite Creation Trio member; it's my all-time favorite Pokemon. From my early days in the franchise to later coming to understand its canonical lore, to its unique battle characteristics, Giratina is the Legendary Pokemon that has left the most profound impact on my experiences in the franchise. For its conception, Giratina is most likely based on the biblical figure of the fallen angel. In Abrahamic religions, fallen angels are angels who were expelled from heaven because of deeds rebelling against the rule of God. Said actions got them excommunicated to Hell. Giratina's relationship to Arceus, the Pokemon God and Giratina's creator, is analogous to this idea. Its Pokedex entry in Pokemon Platinum states it was banished for its violence. Given its belligerent behavior, Giratina was excommunicated to the Distortion World, a world on the parallel of the Pokemon World. Additionally, Giratina may also see inspiration from Samael, an archangel in Talmudic lore. Samael is said to be the ruler of the Fifth Heaven and has destructive duties while being a heavenly host. Giratina is attributed with this too as it has a threatening visage and rules the Distortion World.

While all members of the Creation Trio are now known to have Origin Forms, Giratina's particular form changes resemble the two beasts described within the Book of Revelation. Giratina's Altered Form, sporting three pairs of legs and bat wings, bears a closer resemblance to the Beast from the Earth. In contrast, its Origin Form, legless and with tentacle-like wings, resembles the Beast from the Sea. Either way, both beasts oppose God and seek to persecute the "saints" worshipping the latter. While Giratina's Altered Form takes on a sauropod-like appearance, it may also be based on the Seta, a giant centipede from the Japanese fairy-tale "My Lord Bag of Rice". Dating back to around the Edo Period, the centipede in the tale was said to have preyed upon newly-hatched dragons and be as large as a mountain. Giratina's Origin Form in particular may also take inspiration from Seraphim, another archangel known for its six wings and (sometimes) serpent-like body. Tradition places seraphim in the highest rank in Christian angelology and in the fifth rank of Jewish angelic hierarchy. The exact design of the Origin Form's wings may also resemble a spider's legs or a scorpion's telson (stinger if you're wondering).

All three members of the Creation Trio have a motif that represents one of the three primary states of matter. Dialga, a Steel-type, represents the solid state of matter. Palkia, a Water-type, represents the liquid state of matter. And Giratina, being a Ghost-type, represents the gaseous state of matter. According to Junichi Masuda and Takeshi Kawachimaru, Giratina and the Distortion World were created to be personifications of antimatter, later emphasized by Cynthia in HGSS. In physics, antimatter is matter composed of antiparticles of the corresponding particles in ordinary matter. Antimatter can occur naturally, such as with lightning strikes and radioactive decay, but only a tiny fraction have been successfully acquired for experimentation. Regardless, the asymmetry of matter and antimatter in the observable universe is largely a mystery, but the idea does blend into Giratina's otherworldly lore. Its Ghost-typing may also have been chosen for this type of metaphysical nature.

Fun fact! In Pokemon Black 2 and White 2, Fantina will use an Origin Form Giratina in the Battle Between Legendary Pokemon series. However, her Giratina isn't holding a Griseous Orb and, thus, shouldn't be in its Origin Form.

Speaking of form changes, the Griseous Orb or Core allows it to change between its forms. With a base stat of 680, its speed stands at a base 90 (maximum of 306) and its HP at a base 150 (max of 504). The altered form is more defensive, making its physical and special defense stats at base 120 each (max of 372) while its physical and special attack stats are at base 100 each. Its Origin Form has the offensive and defensive stats are reversed. With Pressure to help it out, Altered Form Giratina can make use of Pain Split and Protect to recover HP and avoid getting hit, while also having access to Thunder Wave and Will-O-Wisp to inflict status conditions on opponents, and Dragon Tail or Roar can make an effective switching gimmick. If going special, Origin Form Giratina can learn Calm Mind to boost its two special stats for attack. Some attacks Giratina can make use of include Shadow Claw, Shadow Ball, Dragon Pulse, Dragon Claw, Thunderbolt, Energy Ball, Earthquake, Earth Power, Aura Sphere, Iron Head, Aqua Tail, Stone Edge, and its signature Shadow Force. Shadow Force, in Gen IV to BDSP, makes the user semi-invulnerable for one turn before striking on the next, even hitting if the target used Protect or Detect (Phantom Force is a weaker version of this). In LA, it's all done in one turn and obscures Giratina. My Giratina in Legends: Arceus (as well as Shining Pearl) have the same movesets -- Shadow Force and Dragon Claw for respective S.T.A.B. attacks, plus Aura Sphere and Earth Power for wide-ranging coverage (basically copies of Volo's set for it). The only difference is nature -- hasty for LA and a neutral one for SP.

Giratina was the first Pokemon I legitimately got scared by. Playing Pokemon Diamond and exploring Turnback Cave, Giratina was certainly a surprise, but it has grown on my for its strength and unique (at the time) typing. Thanks to Legends: Arceus, I now have a more complete picture of Giratina's lore. After being banished by Arceus for violence, it eventually teamed up with Volo to carry out revenge. Following a long, difficult battle -- one in which Giratina tried twice to prevail -- Rei/Akari was able to defeat Giratina and stop Volo, making the former turn tails. The experience had a bit of a conversion on Giratina's outlook, coming to see the World of Pokemon as something to defend rather than destroy. A couple of centuries later, in the climax of Platinum, it was ultimately Giratina (not Lucas, Dawn or Cynthia) who saved the Pokemon World by capturing Cyrus and allowing Dialga and Palkia to return to their dimensions. While I'm not one to assign human morals into non-anthropomorphic beings, I like to think the battle in LA gave Giratina a change of heart and inspired it to pursue heroics at a time they would be needed. It makes it a redeemed antagonist, and I love having been able to see the more-completed arc.

While I cannot predict what (if any) expansions may come to the Paldea games, I'm happy that BDSP and LA have given me a chance to reunite with my favorite Pokemon in the region I got my start in.

Description
Be sure to read the description before commenting below.

Greetings everyone, Austin here. Well, today's the day -- the end of Generation VIII and the beginning of Generation IX. A lot of you who have pre-ordered Pokemon Scarlet and Violet must be quick at work to get your files started and your teams built up. If you're not too busy though, I have come forth with that one photo I have promised getting to today. Consider it a way of finishing off Generation VIII. Put your hands together for my personal favorite member of the Creation Trio and the Distortion World's sole resident -- Giratina! In this picture, my specimen in Legends: Arceus is standing within Turnback Cave at Spring Path in the Cobalt Coastlands. I'd prefer the Distortion World but it still works as Turnback Cave is Giratina's default earthly location.

If anybody's wondering, Giratina's not just my favorite Creation Trio member; it's my all-time favorite Pokemon. From my early days in the franchise to later coming to understand its canonical lore, to its unique battle characteristics, Giratina is the Legendary Pokemon that has left the most profound impact on my experiences in the franchise. For its conception, Giratina is most likely based on the biblical figure of the fallen angel. In Abrahamic religions, fallen angels are angels who were expelled from heaven because of deeds rebelling against the rule of God. Said actions got them excommunicated to Hell. Giratina's relationship to Arceus, the Pokemon God and Giratina's creator, is analogous to this idea. Its Pokedex entry in Pokemon Platinum states it was banished for its violence. Given its belligerent behavior, Giratina was excommunicated to the Distortion World, a world on the parallel of the Pokemon World. Additionally, Giratina may also see inspiration from Samael, an archangel in Talmudic lore. Samael is said to be the ruler of the Fifth Heaven and has destructive duties while being a heavenly host. Giratina is attributed with this too as it has a threatening visage and rules the Distortion World.

While all members of the Creation Trio are now known to have Origin Forms, Giratina's particular form changes resemble the two beasts described within the Book of Revelation. Giratina's Altered Form, sporting three pairs of legs and bat wings, bears a closer resemblance to the Beast from the Earth. In contrast, its Origin Form, legless and with tentacle-like wings, resembles the Beast from the Sea. Either way, both beasts oppose God and seek to persecute the "saints" worshipping the latter. While Giratina's Altered Form takes on a sauropod-like appearance, it may also be based on the Seta, a giant centipede from the Japanese fairy-tale "My Lord Bag of Rice". Dating back to around the Edo Period, the centipede in the tale was said to have preyed upon newly-hatched dragons and be as large as a mountain. Giratina's Origin Form in particular may also take inspiration from Seraphim, another archangel known for its six wings and (sometimes) serpent-like body. Tradition places seraphim in the highest rank in Christian angelology and in the fifth rank of Jewish angelic hierarchy. The exact design of the Origin Form's wings may also resemble a spider's legs or a scorpion's telson (stinger if you're wondering).

All three members of the Creation Trio have a motif that represents one of the three primary states of matter. Dialga, a Steel-type, represents the solid state of matter. Palkia, a Water-type, represents the liquid state of matter. And Giratina, being a Ghost-type, represents the gaseous state of matter. According to Junichi Masuda and Takeshi Kawachimaru, Giratina and the Distortion World were created to be personifications of antimatter, later emphasized by Cynthia in HGSS. In physics, antimatter is matter composed of antiparticles of the corresponding particles in ordinary matter. Antimatter can occur naturally, such as with lightning strikes and radioactive decay, but only a tiny fraction have been successfully acquired for experimentation. Regardless, the asymmetry of matter and antimatter in the observable universe is largely a mystery, but the idea does blend into Giratina's otherworldly lore. Its Ghost-typing may also have been chosen for this type of metaphysical nature.

Fun fact! In Pokemon Black 2 and White 2, Fantina will use an Origin Form Giratina in the Battle Between Legendary Pokemon series. However, her Giratina isn't holding a Griseous Orb and, thus, shouldn't be in its Origin Form.

Speaking of form changes, the Griseous Orb or Core allows it to change between its forms. With a base stat of 680, its speed stands at a base 90 (maximum of 306) and its HP at a base 150 (max of 504). The altered form is more defensive, making its physical and special defense stats at base 120 each (max of 372) while its physical and special attack stats are at base 100 each. Its Origin Form has the offensive and defensive stats are reversed. With Pressure to help it out, Altered Form Giratina can make use of Pain Split and Protect to recover HP and avoid getting hit, while also having access to Thunder Wave and Will-O-Wisp to inflict status conditions on opponents, and Dragon Tail or Roar can make an effective switching gimmick. If going special, Origin Form Giratina can learn Calm Mind to boost its two special stats for attack. Some attacks Giratina can make use of include Shadow Claw, Shadow Ball, Dragon Pulse, Dragon Claw, Thunderbolt, Energy Ball, Earthquake, Earth Power, Aura Sphere, Iron Head, Aqua Tail, Stone Edge, and its signature Shadow Force. Shadow Force, in Gen IV to BDSP, makes the user semi-invulnerable for one turn before striking on the next, even hitting if the target used Protect or Detect (Phantom Force is a weaker version of this). In LA, it's all done in one turn and obscures Giratina. My Giratina in Legends: Arceus (as well as Shining Pearl) have the same movesets -- Shadow Force and Dragon Claw for respective S.T.A.B. attacks, plus Aura Sphere and Earth Power for wide-ranging coverage (basically copies of Volo's set for it). The only difference is nature -- hasty for LA and a neutral one for SP.

Giratina was the first Pokemon I legitimately got scared by. Playing Pokemon Diamond and exploring Turnback Cave, Giratina was certainly a surprise, but it has grown on my for its strength and unique (at the time) typing. Thanks to Legends: Arceus, I now have a more complete picture of Giratina's lore. After being banished by Arceus for violence, it eventually teamed up with Volo to carry out revenge. Following a long, difficult battle -- one in which Giratina tried twice to prevail -- Rei/Akari was able to defeat Giratina and stop Volo, making the former turn tails. The experience had a bit of a conversion on Giratina's outlook, coming to see the World of Pokemon as something to defend rather than destroy. A couple of centuries later, in the climax of Platinum, it was ultimately Giratina (not Lucas, Dawn or Cynthia) who saved the Pokemon World by capturing Cyrus and allowing Dialga and Palkia to return to their dimensions. While I'm not one to assign human morals into non-anthropomorphic beings, I like to think the battle in LA gave Giratina a change of heart and inspired it to pursue heroics at a time they would be needed. It makes it a redeemed antagonist, and I love having been able to see the more-completed arc.

While I cannot predict what (if any) expansions may come to the Paldea games, I'm happy that BDSP and LA have given me a chance to reunite with my favorite Pokemon in the region I got my start in.