Pokemonbattles are a dominant aspect of the experience, and any given Pokemon’s typing plays a huge role in what the creature can do and what it is naturally resistant or weak to.Generation 6 changed up this balance with the introduction of Fairy-types, adding new effectiveness to the type charts. Since its introduction, Fairy has become one of the most powerful types in the whole series thanks to its natural immunity against Dragon-type Pokemon and its offensive capabilities.Pokemon Scarlet and Violetwill release this November, three years after Gen 8, and it’s likely that they won’t make major changes to the current balance of Pokemon type combos, nor add a new type altogether.
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Gen 9, however, is likely to introduce new unused Pokemon types.Dragon remains a common type for pseudo-Legendary Pokemonand Legendaries alike, and some Mega Evolutions like Ampharos added it as a secondary typing. With a total of 18 different Pokemon types that can be combined in groups of two, some combinations haven’t been explored in the series and others have only been used either for special forms or Legendary creatures, leaving sixteen unused type combinations prior toPokemon Legends: Arceus. One of the most interesting combinations was added to the series via Hisuian Zorua and Zoroark, a Normal and Ghost-type line, and more could follow.
Updated July 18, 2025, by Andrea Trama:Pokemon Scarlet and Violet were officially revealed in February of this year, and although official information is currently lacking, multiple leakers have suggested that new unused Pokemon type combinations will be added to Gen 9. This includes a Fire and Grass-type Pokemon, which is seemingly not going to be tied to Smoliv. Also, it’s been stated in alleged leaks that Pawmi is a three-stage Pokemon that will eventually evolve into an Electric and Fighting-type critter, adding more unused Pokemon type combinations to the series. Fire/Fairy Pokemon have not been revealed via leaks yet, however, and so that particular unused type combination might have to wait.
Ice and Poison
Although not thebest unused Pokemon type combinationson the list, Ice and Poison is a peculiar combo because it deals super effective STAB damage to five powerful types: Dragon, Fairy, Flying, Ground, and Grass. This effectively counters the lack of defensive prowess of Ice and Poison Pokemon, which have five weaknesses that include Steel, Fire, and Ground, and then five resistances.
These are mostly against Pokemon types that don’t do very well, such as Bug and both Ice and Poison themselves, with the only redeeming resistances being Grass and Fairy. Regardless, the themes of an Ice and Poison Pokemon would be quite unique, possibly drawing inspiration from ancient poisonous species in the real world.
Fire and Grass
Fire and Grassis a combination that breaks the starter trifecta to a degree, as Water-type moves lose their effectiveness against Fire while Fire moves lose their effectiveness against Grass. This type combination would be nice to see both in terms of concept and actual gameplay, considering the pair would be super effective against seven types and deal reduced damage to only one.
Defensively, a Fire/Grass-type Pokemon would take double damage from Flying, Poison, andRock-type moves, but it would gain three 50 percent resistances and a 75 percent resistance as well. It’s interesting thatPokemon Scarlet and Violetmight introduce a Fire/Grass pocket monster for the first time, alongside other unused type combos.
Electric and Fighting
An Electric/Fighting Pokemon would be interesting to see in action, with a type combination capable of dealing supereffective damage against seven other types. In terms of defense, this type combination offers five 50 percent resistances to types that are frequently used in the games, including Steel, Dark, and Electric.
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However, it would also come with three weaknesses, among which there are Ground and Fairy moves. Still, having a huge Pokemon type coverage is a fantastic feature of Electric/Fighting pocket monsters, and therumored Pawmi evolutioninPokemon Scarlet&Violetwould be a great candidate for this unused type combo.
Rock and Ghost
Ghost-type Pokemonare always fun to mix with other types due to their natural immunity to Normal and Fighting, which is particularly strong when paired with types that are naturally weak to Fighting-type moves. Unfortunately, however, there are still a lot of unused Pokemon type combinations when it comes to the Ghost-type.
A Rock/Ghost Pokemon has two immunities, three 50 percent resistances, and a 75 percent resistance to Bug-type moves, but it is also weak to six different types - many of which are popular and strong. Luckily, this type combination would be powerful on the offensive side, as it packs supereffective STAB moves against six types.
Fighting and Ground
Fighting-type Pokemonare often powerful, with supereffective damage against five different types, and the same holds true for Ground. When combined, these types have one of the best STAB coverages in the series, with eight types being weak to either Fighting or Ground, and only two resisting them both: Bug and Flying.
Defensively, this combination takes super effective damage from six other types, but it still comes with three 50 percent resistances, a 75 percent resistance, and the immunity to Electric moves. With that in mind, it has the potential to be one of the best unused type combinations in the entire series.
Fighting and Fairy
No Fighting/Fairy-type Pokemon exists yet, though this type combination offers excellent coverage against seven types, with only one resisting it. In terms of defense, a Fighting/Fairy-type would be weak to five types, resist two at 50 percent, resist two more at 75 percent, and also be immune toDragon-types.
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However, among the various unused Pokemon type combos, this one could have a hard time in endgame fights, where taking double damage from Steel, Flying, and Fairy moves can break the match. Still, it would be interesting to see this unused Pokemon type combination in terms of aesthetics and themes, as Fighting and Fairy are opposites in those regards.
Poison and Steel
Despite being one of the combinations to take four-time damage from a single type, Poison and Steel can be quite pesky to deal with combined. APoison/Steel-type Pokemonwould be weak to Ground-types and Fire, but it would have six 50 percent resistances, three 75 percent resistances, and be immune to Poison-type moves.
On the offensive side, this unused Pokemon type combination would be the best to deal with Fairy Pokemon, and only Steel-type Pokemon resist its STAB moves. With that in mind, many fans will be hoping to see a Poison/Steel-type Pokemon inPokemon Scarlet&Violet.
Fire and Fairy
WithFairy-type Pokemonbeing weak to Steel, having Fire as a secondary type would make it great both defensively and offensively. This combination is only weak against four types, but it gains six 50 percent resistances, a 75 percent resistance, and one immunity to Dragon-type moves.
As for the offensive aspect, Fire and Fairy are super effective against a total of seven types, making this unused type combo a great one. Fire/Fairy Pokemon would be interesting to see because they would have super effective STAB damage against Steel, which is one of the biggest threats to Fairy-types.
Ground and Fairy
When a Pokemon gets two of the strongest types in the series combined, it becomes a force to be reckoned with. A Ground/Fairy-type Pokemon would have only four weaknesses, but also four 50 percent resistances and two immunities - one to Dragon, the other to Electric-types.
This combination is also especially nasty in terms of super effective moves against other Pokemon, considering it deals double damage withSTAB movesagainst eight types, with no uncovered resistances. Potentially, this is one of the strongest unused Pokemon types in the series because of the sheer defensive strengths of both Ground and Fairy types. Offensively speaking, being able to deal supereffective STAB damage to eight types is also amazing.
Normal and Steel
Possibly the strongest unused combination in thePokemonseries, Normal and Steel would be the ultimate type duo in terms of defense. A Normal/Steel-type Pokemon would take four times the damage from Fighting-types and twice the damage from Fire and Ground, but it would gain an impressive number of resistances. Alongside an immunity to both Poison and Ghost, Normal/Steel Pokemon would resist a total of ten types, leaving only three types in the game that deal normal damage to them.
What it packs in defense, this combination lacks in offense, as it only deals double damage against three types and is resisted by other Steel-type Pokemon. Still, outside ofNormal/Ghost, this unused type combo would probably be one of the most fascinating to see in future games
