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In the first three generations, some types (fire, water, grass, etc.) are Special, and others (fighting, rock, normal, etc.) are Physical.
Special attacks go off of your Special stat (later SpAtk and SpDef), which means they'll determine how much damage you deal or take from a special attack.
The same applies to regular Attack and Defense with regards to physical attacks.
A more specific bit of advice: catch a Nidoran (males become Nidorino, and then Nidoking after being exposed to a Moon Stone; females get Nidorina and Nidoqueen). Raise Nidorino/a to level 22 at most, as King/Queen learn a useful move at 23. You'll be set with one of the best Pokemon in the game really early on. If you can catch an Abra too, you'll be in even better shape.
