6th Gen Why isn't Fairy weak against Ghost?

[Pendraflare]

This is something i've wondered for quite a little while now, but as the title says, i'm not really sure why Fairy-type Pokémon aren't weak against Ghost-type attacks. I just picture Fairy-types as the kind that would get easily frightened, much like the reason Psychic is weak to Ghost (and Bug and Dark for that matter), for the fact that they're natural human fears.

I myself have also wondered why Poison is good against Fairy, I even Googled that and the only thing I was able to find was a reference to the poisonous apple in Snow White (unless that was meant as a joke). But I guess I have a little bit of understanding, although at the same time I don't think I can adequately explain it.

Back to Ghost-types. Yeah, I just wonder why Ghost doesn't get SE on Fairy, for certain reasons. Granted, that would make them even more broken than they already are now (not to mention it would make Diantha an even bigger joke than she already is, with her only "decent" Pokémon being horribly weak to it), since Steel doesn't resist them anymore, but i'm just thinking it would be more sensical. Maybe it's just me. Anyway, discuss.

 

[Howmander]

This is something i've wondered for quite a little while now, but as the title says, i'm not really sure why Fairy-type Pokémon aren't weak against Ghost-type attacks. I just picture Fairy-types as the kind that would get easily frightened, much like the reason Psychic is weak to Ghost (and Bug and Dark for that matter), for the fact that they're natural human fears.

I myself have also wondered why Poison is good against Fairy, I even Googled that and the only thing I was able to find was a reference to the poisonous apple in Snow White (unless that was meant as a joke). But I guess I have a little bit of understanding, although at the same time I don't think I can adequately explain it.

Back to Ghost-types. Yeah, I just wonder why Ghost doesn't get SE on Fairy, for certain reasons. Granted, that would make them even more broken than they already are now (not to mention it would make Diantha an even bigger joke than she already is, with her only "decent" Pokémon being horribly weak to it), since Steel doesn't resist them anymore, but i'm just thinking it would be more sensical. Maybe it's just me. Anyway, discuss.

Because you're basing it on Tinkerbell and fairy princess themed fairies in popular culture, movies, and cartoons. What you should be doing is looking up actual folklore fairies. If anything, they were just as bad as ghosts in mythology. Fairies of old killed children, poisoned people, cursed people, replaced children with changelings, all kinds of things that would put them on par with ghosts: https://villains.wikia.com/wiki/Fairies_(folklore)

 

[Incinermyn]

Unlike Psychic types, Fairies aren't considered spiritualists. Psychic-types aren't all humanlike, but they are sensitive to demonic and spectral powers, which sort of accounts for their weaknesses to Ghost and Dark type attacks (only the Bug-type weakness can be explained to by the whole phobias theory). Fairy-types, on the other hand, are considered magical creatures. In western fantasy fiction, they're typically depicted as protectors of forests, nature, and the like. Poison-types have a distinct advantage over nature because they generally represent pollution (such as the case of Koffing and Grimer), whereas Steel-types represent machinery or industry (something widely considered to destroy nature). A Ghost-type weakness would be a lot harder to justify.

 

[Banned]

I'm going to be a massive party pooper and tell it to you from my own cynical perspective: Fairy-type was only introduced to balance things out. The type match-ups solely exist to give traditionally "bad" types more of an advantage and to give traditionally "good" types less of an advantage. Poison and Steel were always terrible offensively, but Fairy makes them at least worth considering in a moveset. Fairy is only super-effective against Dragon because Dragon-types are traditionally overpowered. Why is Fairy super-effective against Fighting? Too good defensively, with only two weaknesses. Same goes for Dark. Conversely, Fire isn't that great defensively, so it resists Fairy.

But this doesn't explain why Fairy isn't weak to Ghost. Ghost is terrible offensively, as it's only super-effective against Ghost and Psychic, which are already covered by Dark. So by all means Ghost should be super-effective against Fairy. So I'm not quite sure why I said all that when it doesn't even answer your original question {XD}

 

[Aeroblast]

Ghost is terrible offensively, as it's only super-effective against Ghost and Psychic, which are already covered by Dark. So by all means Ghost should be super-effective against Fairy. So I'm not quite sure why I said all that when it doesn't even answer your original question {XD}

I disagree. Ghost types have a very wide neutral coverage in my opinion, the only ones resisting or immune to ghost being dark and normal (Normal types aren't much to worry about anyways because any other coverage moves hit them at least neutrally). On the other hand, Fighting and Fairy types resist Dark types (which don't resist Ghost) along with Dark type itself. Ghost and Fighting also provides perfect neutral coverage aside from the currently nonexistent Normal/Ghost.

But to get back on track, I agree with everything else. I just feel that Fairy types were made solely to balance types that were either overpowered or underpowered.

 

[Banned]

I disagree. Ghost types have a very wide neutral coverage in my opinion, the only ones resisting or immune to ghost being dark and normal (Normal types aren't much to worry about anyways because any other coverage moves hit them at least neutrally). On the other hand, Fighting and Fairy types resist Dark types (which don't resist Ghost) along with Dark type itself. Ghost and Fighting also provides perfect neutral coverage aside from the currently nonexistent Normal/Ghost.

Yeah, okay, I see your point. Ghost > Dark, offensively speaking. I should be looking at it the other way round; all of Dark's offensive advantages are covered by Ghost, so maybe Dark should have been super-effective against Fairy and vice versa. Regardless, I still don't think Ghost is great offensively. Neutral coverage isn't much of a positive, it's more, well, neutral :P

 

[Cerberus87]

Because Fairies are supposed to be overpowered to counterbalance Dragons and making them weak to Ghost wouldn't help them.

 

[Altair1]

Unlike Psychic types, Fairies aren't considered spiritualists. Psychic-types aren't all humanlike, but they are sensitive to demonic and spectral powers, which sort of accounts for their weaknesses to Ghost and Dark type attacks (only the Bug-type weakness can be explained to by the whole phobias theory). Fairy-types, on the other hand, are considered magical creatures. In western fantasy fiction, they're typically depicted as protectors of forests, nature, and the like. Poison-types have a distinct advantage over nature because they generally represent pollution (such as the case of Koffing and Grimer), whereas Steel-types represent machinery or industry (something widely considered to destroy nature). A Ghost-type weakness would be a lot harder to justify.

Besides balancing out types for gameplay, this explanation really does give light to the reasoning behind Fairies poison and steel weaknesses. It wouldn't make sense for fairies to be weak against Ghost types, they can be just as mysterious and mischievous.

 

[Golurks Were Meant to Fly]

My theory on the fairy type is that it's based on nature magic, and the creatures that protect nature, goodness, and the whole idea of a "fae" realm. This is why it makes sense that they're stronger than dragons, since their nature magic helps them trump monsters (not a new concept by any means). As for ghosts, fairies while often pink in color like many psychic types are based on different things. The things psychic is weak to are common phobias of the mind, which psychic embodies. Fairy though is based more on things "good and pure" so the horrors ghosts perform aren't as effective. However, both are mystical entities so they're simply normally effective on each other.

As for poison and steel being good against fairies, I see it as steel being based on industry, which is the opposite of nature, and trumps it. Poison type is less natural poison than it is sickness and decay, so it makes sense why it's good against something "good and pure." As for fire being not SE yet resisting, while fire destroys nature, it's also a natural part of it, and needed for some plants (i.e. pinecones). Plus fairies aren't nature themselves so it makes sense that they're normally effected. Yet since they use nature magic, fire resists them.

My take at least!

Edit: whoops I said basically the same thing as incinermyn, didn't see his post til now!

 

[Pendraflare]

Well I do know that fairies are said to be weak to cold iron in folklore. Maybe I didn't exactly think this more thoroughly.

As someone else may have mentioned, Ghost and Dark have the same attacking coverage as far as super-effective damage goes, and prior to XY the only difference was that Ghost can't hit Normal while Fighting resists Dark. And now Fairy resists Dark, also. But then that does make Ghost a bit less balanced when comparing them.

I guess if we're talking magical creatures, then perhaps magic would be able to dispel horror. Am I just not understanding this?

 

[Link119]

In full honesty, I would've expected either the other way around, or a both-way relationship (as in, supereffective against each other, or ineffective against each other)...

That's what I expected for Fairy vs. Dark...But that wasn't the case...no matter, though...I think Fairy-type is fine as it ended up...

 

[Puddle]

I picture ghost type being the type that was defeated by some protagonist and sentenced to have to walk the earth again as a ghost. What was the protagonist? The new bad ass fairy Pokemon that are ruling the battle center of course!

 

[Howmander]

Lol, I make this post about fairies originally being evil and mischevous and how they were originally portrayed, even provided a link and practically everyone makes posts about them being good and protectors of nature and such. Ah well. ;-) (And that wasn't a sarcastic post or link, that is actually how Fairies were originally portrayed in mythology. It's like Santa Clause, he wasn't originally something that brought rewards for good children, he was originally a demon that punished bad children. Look up Crampus (Krampus?) that was what the original Santa was once upon a time. Now they seem to have been split up into two different characters)

 

[Shrew]

I'm kind of surprised that fairy and ghost have just neutral reactions between each other, considering that they're both supernatural spirits, generalizing things. I would have liked for them to both be weak against each other. Currently, bug and fighting are the only types which have this relationship, (Tangent: which I guess is because fighting types can't hit bugs like flying and fairies, yet their focus means that bug tactics won't distract them?)

 

[dirkac]

I'm kind of surprised that fairy and ghost have just neutral reactions between each other, considering that they're both supernatural spirits, generalizing things. I would have liked for them to both be weak against each other. Currently, bug and fighting are the only types which have this relationship, (Tangent: which I guess is because fighting types can't hit bugs like flying and fairies, yet their focus means that bug tactics won't distract them?)

No two Types are weak against eachother, Bug and Poison used to back in Gen I, but Bug and Fighting just resist eachother, similar to how Ghost and Normal are immune to eachother.

 

[Cerberus87]

I hate being redundant, but there's not other way to look at it other than the fact they wanted fairies to be overpowered. This being the reason why Fairy's only weaknesses are Steel and Poison, two really crappy offensive types with very poor coverage outside of the Fairy-type. If they wanted balance, they could've made Fairy weak to something else as well, because it's still difficult to run a Poison move in a Pokémon just to deal with fairies. Not a lot of things learn Poison moves.

They wanted to boost Steel and Poison by giving them advantages against Fairy but IMO, in reality, this only made Fairy annoyingly difficult to deal with since those types still aren't the best offensively.