Top 5 Psychic Experts in the Pokémon Games and Anime

The Psychic-type in Pokémon can be associated with a lot of things. From the legendary and mythical duo of Mewtwo and Mew, other strong Pokémon such as Alakazam and Gardevoir, powerful moves such as Psystrike and Psycho Boost, and useful moves such as Light Screen and Hypnosis, this is a type that really tests the skill of Pokemon trainers. This is apparent in the amount of notable Psychic-type experts there are in these games, the most of any type as of the Isle of Armor expansion. Here are the top 5 Psychic experts based on their achievements, personality, and overall depictions across the anime and video games.

5. Avery

Pokemon Trainer training in the Master Dojo at the Isle of Armor

Choosing the 5th best Psychic-type expert was tough because Bede ends the story of Sword and Shield as a Fairy-type specialist, we don’t get to know Will, Olympia, and Dexio all that well, and Faba is…an option. Like Klara, Avery aspires to become a gym leader but is prone to taking shortcuts whenever possible. This contrast in styles is apparent when the player character shows up to train at the Dojo, which reignites his passion to try harder. He symbolizes an important lesson: just because someone is talented, doesn’t mean they are guaranteed to succeed. Everyone starts out somewhere and it’s up to their work ethic to reach their goals. While Avery isn’t the most popular character, he gets bonus points for using the Galarian Slowpoke line.

4. Liza and Tate

Gym Leaders of Mosdeep City

In this spot readers get two for the price of one just like when they challenged the 7th gym in the Hoenn based games. Generation 3 introduced double battles, and twins Liza and Tate are the perfect trainers to showcase the then-novel battling format. Their ace Pokemon Lunatone and Solrock are equally fitting given their cosmic designs and location near the Mossdeep Space Center. With the majority of battles in the main series games being Single Battles, this was a fun twist to encounter. Their sibling bond was put to the test in the anime as well, with their combination moves troubling Ash’s Swellow and Pikachu. Ash’s Pokémon had to resort to the infamous “Thunder Armor” strategy, which was equally intriguing to watch as it was frustrating knowing that a Swellow normally cannot survive a strong Electric-type move. Interestingly, the twins battle separately when they appear in the Pokemon World Tournament in Unova.

3. Caitlin

Frontier Brain of the Battle Castle and member of the Unova Elite Four

Caitlin is one of the more intriguing personalities in the world of Pokémon. A big reason for that is the large shift in her roles between game appearances. Caitlin is introduced to trainers in Platinum where she overlooks every battle that occurs in the Battle Castle. Though she is officially given status as a Frontier Brain by various sources, it seemed like her butler Darach was the main battler of this duo. This left fans wondering just what Caitlin was capable of as a trainer in her own right. Those wonders would be addressed in the following generation, where Caitlin is part of the Unova Elite Four as the Psychic-type master. Though she appeared to be zen when battling her, it turns out she suppresses a more aggressive side of her while maintaining her elegance. She also provides Cynthia a villa in Undella Town, allowing the player to test out their Unova team against the champion of Sinnoh. Caitlin is a complex but intriguing and powerful trainer who deserves this top 3 position.

2. Lucian

Member of the Sinnoh Elite Four

In Diamond and Pearl, the Sinnoh Elite Four was infamous for 3 of its 4 members using Pokémon outside of their specialty typing. Although this was rectified in Platinum, Lucian was consistent in his commitment to Psychic-types from the beginning. That isn’t why he’s ranked this high on the list, but rather his pragmatic approach to battling. What initially appeared to be a throwaway line about reading a book before the challenger arrives to face him eventually revealed a secret to his battling success. Reading books calm his nerves before battling, allowing him to make tough decisions under pressure. Surely that appealed to many fans who are avid readers themselves, and that analytic style suits his Psychic Pokémon such as his ace Bronzong which not only uses skillful moves such as Calm Mind but has the ability Levitate to negate one of its few weaknesses at the time. In the anime, Lucian played a crucial role in getting Dawn’s Buizel to listen to her and inspire Buizel to pursue battling.

1.Sabrina

Gym Leader of Saffron City

While it is important to guard against Kanto nostalgia in these lists, Sabrina truly is one of the most memorable gym leaders in the Pokémon franchise. Part of it can be chalked up to timing, as she benefited from wielding Psychic types in Generation 1, when game mechanics rendered them the most advantageous type due to the lack of Bug-type moves and all Ghost-type Pokemon including Gengar being part Poison-type. The closest thing to a counter trainers had available to them were Hypno to resist Sabrina’s Psychic moves and retaliate with Headbutt or using a bulky normal type such as Snorlax. Sabrina also proved to be one of Ash’s toughest challenges in the anime, displaying incredible Psychic power and the ability to make her Abra evolve into Kadabra. Ash needed an unconventional approach, in this case Haunter making Sabrina and Kadabra laugh, to obtain the Marsh Badge. Sabrina gets bonus points for potentially being a nod to Sabrina the Teenage Witch. Sabrina is almost synonymous with Psychic-type Pokemon and for that she gets the top spot in this list.

Do you agree or disagree with these selections? Let me know in the comments below or on Twitter @PokeWizardCali. Thank you for reading.