Mechanics

How the tier list score is calculated

The score is an estimate from the game’s formulas, not match data. It combines three axes, each as a percentile (0 to 100) among the 966 playable Pokémon:

• Attack (fused build)55%
• Resistance20%
• Speed25%

For attack, the site builds each Pokémon’s best build: it tries the 4-move combinations from its pool, with a buff, its physical or special side and the single-type bonus, and adds up the group’s damage per second with everything evolved. Groups with a melee move get +8% and with poison +10%.

Resistance is HP divided by the average of physical and special defense and by the average weakness against every type. Speed uses the Judgment’s soft cap (anything above 130 counts 25%).

Tiers by position: S = top 4%, A up to 15%, B up to 40%, C up to 70%, D the rest.

How damage is calculated

Damage per hit = move damage × your Pokémon’s attack × side (physical or special) × side buff × single type × type matchup × weather × target defense × critical.

There is no classic STAB. Instead, single-type Pokémon get ×1.2 with moves of that type.

A Pokémon’s attack ranges from 0.76 to 1.70. The weak side (physical or special) deals between 58% and 100% of the strong side.

The type chart is softened: super effective is ×1.6, not very effective ×0.6 and immune ×0.3. With two types the factors multiply, clamped between ×0.3 and ×2.4.

Target defense changes damage between ×0.78 and ×1.25. Critical: up to 30% chance (permanent upgrade), ×1.5, rolled on every hit.

Slots and bonds (fusions)

Only the active slot attacks. A bond fuses moves into the active group (up to 4). Every move in the group fires on its own cooldown, so the group’s damage is the sum of its moves.

The group’s first move decides targeting: if it is a shot, the whole group aims at the boss first.

Having a melee move in the active group reduces damage taken by 25%.

Bonds only come from winning a rift’s legendary arena. Rifts start appearing after 1:15 and stop 2 minutes before the Judgment; 6 to 10 per run are possible.

→ Meta builds

Buff moves

Swords Dance (physical moves) and Nasty Plot (special) multiply the damage of same-side moves in the group: ×1.65 at level 1 up to ×2.78 at level 5. Dragon Dance reaches ×2.51.

The buff never drops while the group is active. Two buffs of the same side don’t stack. That is why every strong build on this wiki has a buff in the group.

Level-up cards

Each level the game offers move cards and stat cards. Power (×1.10 damage, compounding) is the strongest and can be taken up to 40 times. Reflexes cuts cooldown by 8% per card, up to 10.

Moves evolve at level 5 if you hold at least 1 card of the required stat (each move’s page says which).

Defense and healing

Damage reduction adds up Armor cards, Assault Vest and Harden, capped at 80%. With a melee move active, the least you take is 15% of raw damage.

After each hit you are invulnerable for 0.45 s. Telegraphed ground attacks, traps and the Judgment ignore that invulnerability.

Healing: berries (30% HP), Sitrus Berry (45%), regeneration, Leftovers (1.5% HP/s), Shell Bell (up to 4 HP/s) and the map’s spring.

Status effects

Poison: up to 8 stacks, each takes about 2% of the target’s effective HP per second (8 stacks ≈ 16%/s up to 60k HP). It doesn’t depend on your attack and works on bosses and legendaries.

Burn: up to 8 stacks, flat damage that grows with your level. Slow and stun also work on bosses (stun lasts 35% on bosses).

Rifts and legendaries

Every 30 s after 1:15 a rift may open (the chance rises 20% per failed roll). It lasts 45 s. Inside, you fight a legendary for up to 120 s; the map is frozen.

Winning gives +1 bond, an item, tickets and coins. Losing doesn’t end the run.

Arceus’ Judgment (minute 30)

At minute 30 the map clears and the Judgment starts. Arceus is invincible; touching it and its attacks take % of max HP and ignore defense, type, reduction and invulnerability. Every attack is telegraphed.

A legendary spawns every 5 s, each with double the HP and damage of the previous one. The first has the larger of 6,790 HP or 3 times your single-target damage per second: more damage before minute 30 makes the Judgment harder.

Speed above 130 only counts 25% of the excess. Against the legendaries, what helps most is the Focus Sash (1 extra life every 60 s), slow (full strength) and poison. Stun lasts only 35% and pull counts 25% on them.

None of this affects Arceus. Around minute 40 one touch takes 100% of your HP and he becomes much faster than you, so in practice the run ends around then. The leaderboard accepts at most 45:00.

Weather

Multiplies damage by type, for you and for enemies.

Enemies over time

Enemies move up a band over time. HP and damage are the band’s base, before extra scaling.

Bosses

There are only 5 bosses, always at the same minutes. Each drops 1 item.