On beautiful tropical islands of the Alola region, new trainers seeking to begin their journey in Pokemon Sun & Moon will get the usual choice between 3 starters: a Water-type, a Grass-type, and a Fire-type. The latter is a fierce feline called Litten, who evolves into Torracat and then Incineroar.
Cat-lovers and wrestling aficionados are the demographics most likely to select Litten as their starter pokemon, however, there are many more reasons to choose them than simple aesthetics. If one trains hard enough, their partnership with Litten can allow them to become one of the most powerful trainers in the entire region.
10 Pokedex Entries
In terms of Litten's behavior and personality, trainers should read up on their Pokedex entries in order to get familiar with their new partner. This curious and chaotic cat pokemon is more complex than one initially assumes, though its encyclopedic data sheds some light on things, especially if one checks out their entries from every game where they are obtainable.
All Pokedex Entries For Litten
- Sun: While grooming itself, it builds up fur inside its stomach. It sets the fur alight and spews fiery attacks, which change based on how it coughs.
- Moon: It doesn't allow its emotions to be easily seen. Earning its trust takes time. It prefers solitude.
- Ultra Sun: If you try too hard to get close to it, it won't open up to you. Even if you do grow close, giving it too much affection is still a no-no.
- Ultra Moon: Its coat regrows twice a year. When the time comes, Litten sets its own body on fire and burns away the old fur.
- Sword: It spends even the smallest amount of downtime grooming its fur with its tongue. Loose fur gathers in its stomach and serves as fuel for fiery moves.
- Shield: Trying to pet Litten before it trusts you will result in a nasty scratch from its sharp claws. Be careful.
9 Base Stats
As one might expect from the usual trend with Fire-types, Litten and their evolutions prioritize offensive stats over defensive ones. Though, it should still be noted that this flaming kitten possesses a Speed stat higher than its other traits. They have a base stat total of 320, which is spread out in a way that lets their trainer hit hard and fast.
Litten's Base Stats
- HP: 45
- Attack: 65
- Defense: 40
- Special Attack: 60
- Special Defense: 40
- Speed: 70
8 Type Effectiveness
Being a pure Fire-type means that Litten will have the usual disadvantage against Ground, Rock, and Water-types, however, will also possess a lot of neutral match-ups as well as quite a few resistances. Fire-types are considered one of the better offensive elements, but be sure to keep track of type effectiveness when sending Litten into battle for the best results.
Neutrally Damaged By
- Normal
- Fighting
- Flying
- Poison
- Ghost
- Electric
- Psychic
- Dragon
- Dark
Weak To
- Ground
- Rock
- Water
Resistant To
- Bug
- Steel
- Grass
- Fire
- Ice
- Fairy
7 Moveset (By Leveling Up)
Like many pocket monsters, Litten can learn moves by leveling up, even past the point where they would normally evolve into Torracat (more on that later). This Fire-type starter will continue to acquire new moves until level 36, and players should know that they learn moves earlier if they don't evolve, meaning that one can potentially get a level 38 Incineroar with the most powerful moves that they would not normally obtain until almost level 60.
All Generation VIII Moves Learned By Leveling Up
- Level 1: Scratch
- Level 1: Growl
- Level 3: Ember
- Level 6: Lick
- Level 9: Roar
- Level 12: Fury Swipes
- Level 15: Bite
- Level 18: Double Kick
- Level 21: Fire Fang
- Level 24: Scary Face
- Level 27: Swagger
- Level 30: Flamethrower
- Level 33: Thrash
- Level 36: Flare Blitz
6 Moveset (By TM & TR)
There are numerous other ways to teach Litten mighty moves, and some of the most convenient methods are by Technical Machines (TM) and Technical Records (TR). This fire cat definitely learns its best Same Type Attack Bonus (STAB) moves by leveling up, however, some of the most ideal coverage and status moves from other types can only be taught by a TM or TR.
All Generation VIII Moves Learned By TM & TR
- TM02: Pay Day
- TM13: Fire Spin
- TM21: Rest
- TM24: Snore
- TM25: Protect
- TM26: Scary Face
- TM31: Attract
- TM34: Sunny Day
- TM38: Will-O-Wisp
- TM39: Facade
- TM42: Revenge
- TM56: U-turn
- TM65: Shadow Claw
- TM68: Fire Fang
- TM76: Round
- TM78: Acrobatics
- TR00: Swords Dance
- TR01: Body Slam
- TR02: Flamethrower
- TR15: Fire Blast
- TR18: Leech Life
- TR20: Substitute
- TR24: Outrage
- TR26: Endure
- TR27: Sleep Talk
- TR32: Crunch
- TR36: Heat Wave
- TR37: Taunt
- TR43: Overheat
- TR48: Bulk Up
- TR55: Flare Blitz
- TR68: Nasty Plot
- TR85: Work Up
5 Moveset (By Every Other Method)
In addition to learning moves by leveling up and via TM as well as TR, there are other means to educate one's Fire-type starter in the ways of battle. Some moves can only be passed on by breeding, while one can be tutored. On top of that, transferring Litten from a Gen VII game to a Gen VIII game will allow a trainer to acquire this feline with moves that they can't normally learn in Sword & Shield.
By Breeding
- Fake Out
- Parting Shot
- Power Trip
By Tutoring
- Fire Pledge
By Transfer From Gen VII
- Confide
- Covet
- Double Team
- Endeavor
- Flame Charge
- Frustration (cannot be used in battle)
- Hidden Power (cannot be used in battle)
- Leer
- Return (cannot be used in battle)
- Torment
- Toxic
4 Abilities
Like all Fire-type starters, Litten usually comes with the Blaze ability, which increases their Attack or Special Attack stat by 50% if a damage-dealing Fire-type move is used while the pokemon is under 33% of their max HP.
However, this species has a hidden ability that can be acquired by breeding. This other ability, Intimidate, causes foes who see Litten approaching to have their Attack stat dropped by 1 stage.
3 Breeding
Breeding one's starter with another pokemon to maybe get a Litten that is shiny and possesses a different ability and moves is not a bad idea, however, can be time-consuming. To breed a Litten, one will need to pair them with a Ditto or a pokemon from the Field egg group, as these are the only kinds of mates that will produce eggs with Litten. Get one's bicycle ready, as the hatching time for each egg will be between 3855 and 4111 steps (tiles moved).
2 Evolution
By training Litten up to level 17, they will have a chance to evolve into Torracat, though, trainers can cancel the evolution in order to keep Litten in their current form to learn level-up moves faster. Torracat evolves into Incineroar at level 34, which will give players the most physically-oriented starter final evolution in the game.
While Torracat's stats and typing (pure Fire-type) are a natural progression from Litten's, things change up a bit when they evolve into Incineroar, as they get a huge drop in Speed that is compensated by better defensive stats and HP as well as gains Dark as a secondary typing.
1 Origin
No one will be surprised when they learn that Litten is based on a real-world cat; specifically, a Mackerel Tabby Cat, as can be gleaned from this Fire-type's stripes and forehead markings. Interestingly, Mackerel Tabby Cats are sometimes called "Tiger Cats", which clearly influenced the design of Litten and their evolutions.