>>44379743I don't think I've ever used one at least not in Gen IV, Gyarados was usually what I'd go with if I wasn't running Empoleon and aside from that I think I usually went with Vaporeon in Platinum.
The whole thing about Staraptor being the universal Gen IV Pokemon on people's teams though is pretty accurate and I mean if you think about it, your other options are;
- Crobat - Probably most people's next pick but basically needs to be carried by the rest of your team until it evolves into Golbat
- Drifblim - Unlikely for most casual playthroughs due to the requirements to obtain
- Honchkrow - Only available in Diamond
- Chatot - Shit gimmick'mon that's late game for some fucking reason
- Noctowl - Generally inferior regional bird
- Pelipper - Good for HM coverage but requires something for Waterfall as a result
Of course Platinum gave us some new options that like Crobat would give Staraptor a run for its money in Altaria & Togekiss (and Tropius even though, why?). Due to just how useful Fly is in Gen IV it's not really surprising that something like Staraptor would be heavily favoured since it allows the player to bypass a lot of optional areas that are otherwise mandatory.
