07-10-2023, 09:57 PM
(This post was last modified: 07-17-2023, 03:04 PM by Jacky. Edited 1 time in total.)
What? You thought I forgot about the DSFL? You thought I would pass up an opportunity for a second double media article? Well, you underestimated how much I love the DSFL and also how league poor I am!
So here is a quick follow-on to my recent article entitled Rebranding of the ISFL: Pokemon Edition. Today we’re going to assign pokemon mascots and new home stadiums and head coaches (based on pokemon gyms) for the eight DSFL teams! While in the ISFL I gave preference to final evolutions, for the DSFL as the developmental league there are a number of teams who are are assigned early or intermediate forms because of fit.
To further keep you on your toes, I’m going to put the conferences/teams in the reverse order to how they appear on the forum website. Why? Because I bet the Luchadores are tired of scrolling through entire DSFL articles to get to their juicy team gossip… and because I just feel like it. Here we go!
DSFL South
Tijuana Luchadores
Pokemon mascot: Hawlucha
Stadium: Shalour Gym
Head coach: Korrina
So first up we have the Tijuana Luchadores. A team known for its brightly colored and tight fitting uniforms and its unique training regimes involving wrestling rings, the team is lucky to have a pokemon that fully embraces the Lucha culture: Hawlucha. This fighting and flying-type wrestling pokemon even has the same red and green color scheme of the Luchadores.
For their new home stadium, Tijuana will be looking for a fighting-type gym with plenty of experience with colorful characters. The options are: Cianwood Gym with leader Chuck and the Storm Badge, Dewford Gym with leader Brawly and the Knuckle Badge, Veilstone Gym with leader Maylene and the Cobble Badge, Shalour Gym with leader Korrina and the Rumble Badge, and Stow-on-Side with leader Bea and the Fighting Badge. Since the home town fans are always “Ready to Rumble!”, Tijuana will feel right at home at Shalour Gym with head coach Korrina. She has experience with training Hawlucha so she will be able to quickly get the team and their playbook on track for victory.
Norfolk Seawolves
Pokemon mascot: Sharpedo
Stadium: Hulbury Gym
Head coach: Nessa
Next up we travel to Norfolk where the Seawolves have a strong following. While there aren’t any submarine pokemon, their management is looking for a pokemon mascot that evokes the dangerous and streamlined nature of the underwater vessel. This ruled out a few of the more literal “sea wolf” options such as Suicune. But given these constraints a clear front-runner emerged in Sharpedo. This water- and dark-type pokemon has unique skin that helps them jet water over their bodies and reach speeds of up to 75 mph. Add on top of that the fact that submarines are often the launch points of torpedoes and you have a near perfect-fit.
Choosing a home stadium for the Seawolves became a bit tricky given the number of water-type ISFL teams that had already claimed their pokemon gyms. This limits the options for Norfolk’s new stadium to Pastoria Gym with leader Wake and the Fen Badge, Hulbury Gym with leader Nessa and the Water Badge, and Cascarrafa Gym with leader Kofu and (again) the Water Badge. Luckily, Hulbury Gym is a great fit for the sleek and speedy Norfolk pokemon team given leader Nessa’s nurturing of the ability Swift Swim for many of her pokemon. She will help the Sharpedos maximize their speed on and off the football field.
Dallas Birddogs
Pokemon mascot: Herdier
Stadium: Aspertia Gym
Head coach: Cheren
From Norfolk we head to Dallas Texas to meet with the head office of the Birddogs. Dallas was paralyzed with choices as there is no shortage of dog pokemon available to choose from. But what Dallas was looking for was a mutt that embodied the loyalty and gamesmanship of a birddog. The shortlist included Rockruff, Houndour - Houndoom, Lillipup - Herdier - Stoutland, and Yamper - Boltund. From this list, it was decided that Dallas would adopt Herdier as its pokemon mascot because of its extreme obedience and willingness to put in hard work, whether that’s herding livestock or joining the hunt.
Having adopted its pokemon mascot, Dallas now needed a stadium to train and host the newly branded team. Looking for a normal-type gym to best fit their players’ dispositions, the team considered Goldenrod Gym with leader Whitney and the Plain Badge, Petalburg Gym with leader Norman and the Balance Badge, Nacrene Gym with leader Lenora and the Basic Badge, Aspertia Gym with leader Cheren and the (also) Basic Badge, and Medali Gym with leader Larry and the Normal Badge. Both leaders Lenora and Cheren have proven experience developing young dogs like Lillipup into robust Herdier. Dallas decides to go with Aspertia Gym and leader Cheren as their new home because of the Gym’s co-location with the Trainers School and the nearby Floccesy Ranch, which just feels most Texas.
Bondi Beach Buccaneers
Pokemon mascot: Dhelmise
Stadium: Sunyshore Gym
Head coach: Volkner
Last up in the DSFL South are the Bondi Beach Buccaneers. It’s a long flight to Bondi Beach, but it was critical to meat with the team management as they tried to find the most pirate-like pokemon to represent their rebrand. Because pokemon are typically not anthropomorphic, we had to think outside the box and brainstorm what symbols are most strongly associated with pirates. Ships? (no such luck, there’s only a cruise!). Parrots or other sea birds? (shortlisting Chatot, maybe Wingull - Pelliper); skull and crossbones? (shortlisting Koffing - Weezing, while Cubone - Marowak seem like too much of a stretch). Swords? (like Honedge - Doublade - Aegislash, but they feel too royal). Oh! Ship parts like anchors or a helm/wheel… the sea creepier the better. Bondi Beach selects Dhelmise as its pokemon mascot of dual-types dark and grass.
And for the stadium, Bondi Beach consider ghost-type arenas to match their pokemon mascot. With Yellowknife in the ISFL already claiming Montenevera Gym, the options for Bondi Beach include: Ecruteak Gym with leader Morty and the Fog Badge, Hearthome Gym with leader Fantina and the Relic Badge, and Stow-on-Side Stadium and leader Allister and the Ghost Badge. Sadly none of these really give the beachy vibes that the team and its players are used to. So the Bondi Beach head office take a risk and hire a gym and leader less familiar with their type of player but who they feel can help to build a welcoming and warm culture for new recruits: Sunyshore Gym with leader Volkner and the Beacon Badge.
DSFL North
Portland Pythons
Pokemon mascot: Serperior
Stadium: Artazon Gym
Head coach: Brassius
We start off the DSFL North with the Portland Pythons. Naturally, the team has no incentive to be creative because they have many snake pokemon to choose from. Fortunately, they’re creative enough to not just go with Ekans (as snake spelled backwards) and acknowledge that Arbok and Silicobra are both cobras, so the wrong family of snake. That leaves the Snivy - Servine - Serperior evolution as the best-fit, especially given their bright green appearance. Of these, Serperior is the most serpentine as it takes until the final evolution to lose its legs, so it is adopted as the Pythons’ new mascot.
Now, while the Austin Copperheads in the ISFL could consider both poison- and grass-type gyms, Pythons are not venomous but instead defeat their prey by constriction. For grass-type gyms, the options still available after the ISFL teams have picked their home stadiums include: Celadon Gym with leader Erika and the Rainbow Badge, Eterna Gym with leader Gardenia and the Forest Badge, and Artazon Gym with leader Brassius and the Grass Badge. Any of these leaders are reasonably qualified to head coach the DSFL team, so the team decides to work with the gym that matches the vibes of Portland as a city and its home-town fans. It’s decided that these stoners would resonate best with leader Brassius and his prowess for grass and so the team selects Artazon Gym as its new home stadium for its pokemon rebrand.
Minnesota Grey Ducks
Pokemon mascot: Ducklett
Stadium: Mistralton Gym
Head coach: Skyla
Next we headed to Minnesota to meet with the head office of the Grey Ducks to choose the team’s pokemon mascot. By the time we reached the offices they had already decided. There is only one true duck pokemon and that is Ducklett, a cute water and flying dual-type pokemon with a grey blue color that goes with Minnesota’s look and feel for their pokemon rebrand
When it comes to Minnesota’s new home stadium, there is also a limited choice set for flying-type gyms since the Baltimore Hawks of the ISFL claimed Violet Gym with leader Falkner and the Zephyr Badge. Minnesota considers the two remaining prospects: Foretree Gym with leader Winona and the Feather Badge and Mistralton Gym with leader Skyla and the Jet Badge. I’m going with the Violet Gym because it’s the most pure flying/normal type of the lot and its trainers and leader use the most birds of prey or their pre-evolutions. Fortunately, the limited choice set doesn’t phase the Minnesota front office as leader Skyla has significant experience training Duckletts and will be the perfect addition to the coaching staff. They adopt Mistralton Gym as their rebranded DSFL stadium.
London Royals
Pokemon mascot: Solgaleo
Stadium: Mossdeep Gym
Head coach: Tate and Liza
Next we cross the Pond to visit the London Royals. They are looking for a regal lion pokemon to represent their team in their rebrand. They shortlist a few options, including Entei and Litleo - Pyroar. However, they just don’t quite feel royal enough. Fortunately from Pokemon Sun there is a legendary lion pokemon that outshines all others: Solgaleo. The London Royals don’t hesitate in adopting him as their pokemon mascot for their DSFL rebrand.
It’s difficult to find a stadium that can train the rebranded team now bursting with energy. So the London Royals turn to a psychic-type gym to provide their new training facility and head coach. The options include Saffron Gym with leader Sabrina and the Marsh Badge, Mossdeep Gym with leaders Tate and Liza and the Mind Badge, Anistar City with leader Olympia and the Psychic Badge, and Alfornada Gym with leader Tulip and the Psychic Badge. The Royals, who have a long history of strong general manager pairs that work hand-in-hand to develop young talent are drawn to Mossdeep Gym with its dual-leaders Tate and Liza. They have found their new home!
Kansas City Coyotes
Pokemon mascot: Lycanroc
Stadium: Cyllage Gym
Head coach: Grant
And finally we come to the Kansas City Coyotes. As they are searching for a pokemon mascot for their DSFL rebrand, they are sad to learn that there are no true coyotes. So they will have to choose among other predatory canine pokemon such as wolves (Growlithe - Arcanine, Lycanroc, Zacian / Zamazenta) and hyenas (Poochyena - Mightyena). Of these, the pokemon that most strongly resembles a coyote (sometimes referred to as prairie wolves or bush wolves) is Lycanroc, so the team adopts it as their pokemon mascot and hope to dress it up a bit with some yellow and purple garb.
Kansas City head office then turns its attention to finding a rock-type gym that will help hone the skills of their young players. They have many options to choose from, with leaders who are used to helping players early in their careers develop their skills. The choices included: Pewter Gym with leader Brock and the Boulder Badge, Rustboro Gym with leader Roxanne and the Stone Badge, Oreburgh Gym with leader Roark and the Coal Badge, Cyllage Gym with leader Grant and the Cliff Badge, and Circhester Stadium with leader Gordie and the Rock Badge. Visiting the sites there was something about Cyllage Gym that just felt like home – maybe it was the strong association in popular culture between coyotes and cliffs/rocky hills; maybe it was the beautiful cave with an underground waterfall where they could imagine their players cooling down after a long day’s workout. Whatever it was, leader Grant was immediately hired as the team’s new head coach and they started preparation to make Cyllage their new stadium.
So here is a quick follow-on to my recent article entitled Rebranding of the ISFL: Pokemon Edition. Today we’re going to assign pokemon mascots and new home stadiums and head coaches (based on pokemon gyms) for the eight DSFL teams! While in the ISFL I gave preference to final evolutions, for the DSFL as the developmental league there are a number of teams who are are assigned early or intermediate forms because of fit.
To further keep you on your toes, I’m going to put the conferences/teams in the reverse order to how they appear on the forum website. Why? Because I bet the Luchadores are tired of scrolling through entire DSFL articles to get to their juicy team gossip… and because I just feel like it. Here we go!
DSFL South
Tijuana Luchadores
Pokemon mascot: Hawlucha
Stadium: Shalour Gym
Head coach: Korrina
So first up we have the Tijuana Luchadores. A team known for its brightly colored and tight fitting uniforms and its unique training regimes involving wrestling rings, the team is lucky to have a pokemon that fully embraces the Lucha culture: Hawlucha. This fighting and flying-type wrestling pokemon even has the same red and green color scheme of the Luchadores.
For their new home stadium, Tijuana will be looking for a fighting-type gym with plenty of experience with colorful characters. The options are: Cianwood Gym with leader Chuck and the Storm Badge, Dewford Gym with leader Brawly and the Knuckle Badge, Veilstone Gym with leader Maylene and the Cobble Badge, Shalour Gym with leader Korrina and the Rumble Badge, and Stow-on-Side with leader Bea and the Fighting Badge. Since the home town fans are always “Ready to Rumble!”, Tijuana will feel right at home at Shalour Gym with head coach Korrina. She has experience with training Hawlucha so she will be able to quickly get the team and their playbook on track for victory.
Norfolk Seawolves
Pokemon mascot: Sharpedo
Stadium: Hulbury Gym
Head coach: Nessa
Next up we travel to Norfolk where the Seawolves have a strong following. While there aren’t any submarine pokemon, their management is looking for a pokemon mascot that evokes the dangerous and streamlined nature of the underwater vessel. This ruled out a few of the more literal “sea wolf” options such as Suicune. But given these constraints a clear front-runner emerged in Sharpedo. This water- and dark-type pokemon has unique skin that helps them jet water over their bodies and reach speeds of up to 75 mph. Add on top of that the fact that submarines are often the launch points of torpedoes and you have a near perfect-fit.
Choosing a home stadium for the Seawolves became a bit tricky given the number of water-type ISFL teams that had already claimed their pokemon gyms. This limits the options for Norfolk’s new stadium to Pastoria Gym with leader Wake and the Fen Badge, Hulbury Gym with leader Nessa and the Water Badge, and Cascarrafa Gym with leader Kofu and (again) the Water Badge. Luckily, Hulbury Gym is a great fit for the sleek and speedy Norfolk pokemon team given leader Nessa’s nurturing of the ability Swift Swim for many of her pokemon. She will help the Sharpedos maximize their speed on and off the football field.
Dallas Birddogs
Pokemon mascot: Herdier
Stadium: Aspertia Gym
Head coach: Cheren
From Norfolk we head to Dallas Texas to meet with the head office of the Birddogs. Dallas was paralyzed with choices as there is no shortage of dog pokemon available to choose from. But what Dallas was looking for was a mutt that embodied the loyalty and gamesmanship of a birddog. The shortlist included Rockruff, Houndour - Houndoom, Lillipup - Herdier - Stoutland, and Yamper - Boltund. From this list, it was decided that Dallas would adopt Herdier as its pokemon mascot because of its extreme obedience and willingness to put in hard work, whether that’s herding livestock or joining the hunt.
Having adopted its pokemon mascot, Dallas now needed a stadium to train and host the newly branded team. Looking for a normal-type gym to best fit their players’ dispositions, the team considered Goldenrod Gym with leader Whitney and the Plain Badge, Petalburg Gym with leader Norman and the Balance Badge, Nacrene Gym with leader Lenora and the Basic Badge, Aspertia Gym with leader Cheren and the (also) Basic Badge, and Medali Gym with leader Larry and the Normal Badge. Both leaders Lenora and Cheren have proven experience developing young dogs like Lillipup into robust Herdier. Dallas decides to go with Aspertia Gym and leader Cheren as their new home because of the Gym’s co-location with the Trainers School and the nearby Floccesy Ranch, which just feels most Texas.
Bondi Beach Buccaneers
Pokemon mascot: Dhelmise
Stadium: Sunyshore Gym
Head coach: Volkner
Last up in the DSFL South are the Bondi Beach Buccaneers. It’s a long flight to Bondi Beach, but it was critical to meat with the team management as they tried to find the most pirate-like pokemon to represent their rebrand. Because pokemon are typically not anthropomorphic, we had to think outside the box and brainstorm what symbols are most strongly associated with pirates. Ships? (no such luck, there’s only a cruise!). Parrots or other sea birds? (shortlisting Chatot, maybe Wingull - Pelliper); skull and crossbones? (shortlisting Koffing - Weezing, while Cubone - Marowak seem like too much of a stretch). Swords? (like Honedge - Doublade - Aegislash, but they feel too royal). Oh! Ship parts like anchors or a helm/wheel… the sea creepier the better. Bondi Beach selects Dhelmise as its pokemon mascot of dual-types dark and grass.
And for the stadium, Bondi Beach consider ghost-type arenas to match their pokemon mascot. With Yellowknife in the ISFL already claiming Montenevera Gym, the options for Bondi Beach include: Ecruteak Gym with leader Morty and the Fog Badge, Hearthome Gym with leader Fantina and the Relic Badge, and Stow-on-Side Stadium and leader Allister and the Ghost Badge. Sadly none of these really give the beachy vibes that the team and its players are used to. So the Bondi Beach head office take a risk and hire a gym and leader less familiar with their type of player but who they feel can help to build a welcoming and warm culture for new recruits: Sunyshore Gym with leader Volkner and the Beacon Badge.
DSFL North
Portland Pythons
Pokemon mascot: Serperior
Stadium: Artazon Gym
Head coach: Brassius
We start off the DSFL North with the Portland Pythons. Naturally, the team has no incentive to be creative because they have many snake pokemon to choose from. Fortunately, they’re creative enough to not just go with Ekans (as snake spelled backwards) and acknowledge that Arbok and Silicobra are both cobras, so the wrong family of snake. That leaves the Snivy - Servine - Serperior evolution as the best-fit, especially given their bright green appearance. Of these, Serperior is the most serpentine as it takes until the final evolution to lose its legs, so it is adopted as the Pythons’ new mascot.
Now, while the Austin Copperheads in the ISFL could consider both poison- and grass-type gyms, Pythons are not venomous but instead defeat their prey by constriction. For grass-type gyms, the options still available after the ISFL teams have picked their home stadiums include: Celadon Gym with leader Erika and the Rainbow Badge, Eterna Gym with leader Gardenia and the Forest Badge, and Artazon Gym with leader Brassius and the Grass Badge. Any of these leaders are reasonably qualified to head coach the DSFL team, so the team decides to work with the gym that matches the vibes of Portland as a city and its home-town fans. It’s decided that these stoners would resonate best with leader Brassius and his prowess for grass and so the team selects Artazon Gym as its new home stadium for its pokemon rebrand.
Minnesota Grey Ducks
Pokemon mascot: Ducklett
Stadium: Mistralton Gym
Head coach: Skyla
Next we headed to Minnesota to meet with the head office of the Grey Ducks to choose the team’s pokemon mascot. By the time we reached the offices they had already decided. There is only one true duck pokemon and that is Ducklett, a cute water and flying dual-type pokemon with a grey blue color that goes with Minnesota’s look and feel for their pokemon rebrand
When it comes to Minnesota’s new home stadium, there is also a limited choice set for flying-type gyms since the Baltimore Hawks of the ISFL claimed Violet Gym with leader Falkner and the Zephyr Badge. Minnesota considers the two remaining prospects: Foretree Gym with leader Winona and the Feather Badge and Mistralton Gym with leader Skyla and the Jet Badge. I’m going with the Violet Gym because it’s the most pure flying/normal type of the lot and its trainers and leader use the most birds of prey or their pre-evolutions. Fortunately, the limited choice set doesn’t phase the Minnesota front office as leader Skyla has significant experience training Duckletts and will be the perfect addition to the coaching staff. They adopt Mistralton Gym as their rebranded DSFL stadium.
London Royals
Pokemon mascot: Solgaleo
Stadium: Mossdeep Gym
Head coach: Tate and Liza
Next we cross the Pond to visit the London Royals. They are looking for a regal lion pokemon to represent their team in their rebrand. They shortlist a few options, including Entei and Litleo - Pyroar. However, they just don’t quite feel royal enough. Fortunately from Pokemon Sun there is a legendary lion pokemon that outshines all others: Solgaleo. The London Royals don’t hesitate in adopting him as their pokemon mascot for their DSFL rebrand.
It’s difficult to find a stadium that can train the rebranded team now bursting with energy. So the London Royals turn to a psychic-type gym to provide their new training facility and head coach. The options include Saffron Gym with leader Sabrina and the Marsh Badge, Mossdeep Gym with leaders Tate and Liza and the Mind Badge, Anistar City with leader Olympia and the Psychic Badge, and Alfornada Gym with leader Tulip and the Psychic Badge. The Royals, who have a long history of strong general manager pairs that work hand-in-hand to develop young talent are drawn to Mossdeep Gym with its dual-leaders Tate and Liza. They have found their new home!
Kansas City Coyotes
Pokemon mascot: Lycanroc
Stadium: Cyllage Gym
Head coach: Grant
And finally we come to the Kansas City Coyotes. As they are searching for a pokemon mascot for their DSFL rebrand, they are sad to learn that there are no true coyotes. So they will have to choose among other predatory canine pokemon such as wolves (Growlithe - Arcanine, Lycanroc, Zacian / Zamazenta) and hyenas (Poochyena - Mightyena). Of these, the pokemon that most strongly resembles a coyote (sometimes referred to as prairie wolves or bush wolves) is Lycanroc, so the team adopts it as their pokemon mascot and hope to dress it up a bit with some yellow and purple garb.
Kansas City head office then turns its attention to finding a rock-type gym that will help hone the skills of their young players. They have many options to choose from, with leaders who are used to helping players early in their careers develop their skills. The choices included: Pewter Gym with leader Brock and the Boulder Badge, Rustboro Gym with leader Roxanne and the Stone Badge, Oreburgh Gym with leader Roark and the Coal Badge, Cyllage Gym with leader Grant and the Cliff Badge, and Circhester Stadium with leader Gordie and the Rock Badge. Visiting the sites there was something about Cyllage Gym that just felt like home – maybe it was the strong association in popular culture between coyotes and cliffs/rocky hills; maybe it was the beautiful cave with an underground waterfall where they could imagine their players cooling down after a long day’s workout. Whatever it was, leader Grant was immediately hired as the team’s new head coach and they started preparation to make Cyllage their new stadium.