What is Forretress based on?

Question

Its evolution, Pineco, is clearly based off a pinecone, but Forretress shares no resemblance with anything I can think of.

Answer 1

Forretress is based off of a bagworm, that is possibly inhabiting a discarded shell of some kind, and with she spikes on it's shell, it could also be based on mussels, shellfish, or a giant clam. Hope this helped!

Comments

Check at species. It says on it's page that is a bagworm: http://pokemondb.net/pokedex/forretress.

Answer 2

Pineco and Forretress are both based on bagworms, a type of caterpillar that covers itself with natural materials for protection. Pineco is closer to the real thing, since bagworms look like pinecones when they’re hanging from branches. I think it’s implied that Pineco’s constructed covering turns into a hard shell when it evolves. The shell is like a protective fortress, which explains Forretress’s name.

So, Forretress is a bagworm, if a bagworm’s defensive covering was a fortress.