Pokemon Legends Z-A Ranked PvP guide— Making the perfect Pokemon, Battle tips, and more

Once you are done with the main narrative in Pokemon Legends Z-A, you are likely going to be spending a lot of time in the Battle Club as a part of your post-game grind. Apart from going for all the Legendaries, you will likely be looking to climb the Ranked ladder in PvP.

However, to have an easier time against other players, you will need to make the perfect party of Pokemon while learning some of the core combat fundamentals that will let you have the edge.

So if you are looking to make the most of Ranked PvP in Pokemon Legends Z-A, then the guide below will help you out.

How to make the perfect Pokemon for Ranked PvP in Legends Z-A

In order to have the edge in competitive matchmaking, you will need to make a party of perfect Pokemon that have maxed out values on the preferred stats that you want.

This party will need to complement each other with not only their types but also the stat values that they come with. In the sense that you will want to have one core DPS and one main tank with other supporting cast who bring heal, CC, and DoT.

So if you are looking to make the perfect Pokemon in Legends Z-A, here are a couple of things you will want to do:

1) Changing their nature with Mint

To make the perfect Pokemon, you will need to remake them from scratch. So the first step towards that is to change their nature by using Mint. You can do this rather easily by heading to the Mint market, which is down an alleyway next to Wild Zone 3.

However, do keep in mind that while you will find most types of Mints here, the Speed Mints are located near Cafe Gallant.

By changing a Pokemon’s nature, you get to dictate which stof its stats are boosted. However, Mint’s come with one downside, in the sense that while boosting one stat it will decrease annother stat.

Here is a list of all the Mints that you will get in Legends Z-A:

So if you are looking to max out the attack of a Pokemon that does not have any Special Attacks in its movesets, you will want to give it an Adamant Mint to change its nature. The Pokemon will get a 10% increase to its Attack while getting a 10% decrease to its Special Attack. You will be able to check this by inspecting the Pokemon’s summary and then looking for the Red Up and Down Blue Arrow on the stats section.

2) Making the most of EVs

EVs are Effort Values that your Pokemon naturally get when battling other Pokemon and earning XP. Any Pokemon that you catch and use while rounding out the narrative in Legends Z-A is likely going to have undesired Effort Values.

You will be able to check the EV graph by inspecting your Pokemon and then using the Right stick to change the Stat Graph. However, the game will not tell you the exact amount of EVs that you can use on a Pokemon.

You have a limit of EVs that you can use, and you can max out a stat by using 252 points while having a total of 508 points to use. So if you are making out two values like Attack and Defense, then you are using a total of 504 points. So you have an additional 4 points that you can use on other stats, like Speed.

Resetting EV on your Pokemon

For the next step, you will need to reset the EVs that your Pokemon has, so that you can allot them again in the stats that you want. There are currently two ways of going about doing it:

A) Using Berries

The most straightforward way will be to feed Pokemon berries, which will reduce their EV stats. Here is a list of all the berries that have that effect:

Berry	Effect
Grepa Berry	If a Pokemon is fed this berry, it will grow more friendly, but it will lose base points for its Sp. Def stat.
Hondew Berry	If a Pokemon is fed this berry, it will grow more friendly, but it will lose base points for its Sp. Atk stat.
Kelpsy Berry	If a Pokemon is fed this berry, it will grow more friendly, but it will lose base points for its Attack stat.
Pomeg Berry	If a Pokemon is fed this berry, it will grow more friendly, but it will lose base points for its HP stat.
Qualot Berry	If a Pokemon is fed this berry, it will grow more friendly, but it will lose base points for its Defense stat.
Tamato Berry	If a Pokemon is fed this berry, it will grow more friendly, but it will lose base points for its Speed stat.

Each berry usage will decrease the EV stat of that Pokemon by 10. The berries can be bought from one of the vendors located near Cafe Gallant.

B) Using Rust Syndicate Receptionist

While the berries are a pretty expensive process, there is another pretty cheap method (just needs 5 Mega Shards) that you can use; however, that will need to you to progress a fair bit into the story.

Once you have progressed enough that you have taken on and beaten the Rust Syndicate, you can then head over to their office building and speak to the NPC at the front desk.

She will then ask you if any of your Pokemon need a fresh start. So pick the option and then pick the Pokemon whose stats you want to completely reset, then use the confirm option, and the chosen Pokemon will lose all the additional stats that it had obtained from EVs.

Maxing the EV on your Pokemon

Once you have cleared away the EVs on your Pokemon, the next step will be to max the EVs that you want on them. There are two best ways of going about doing it:

A) Using Vitamins

While it’s the more straightforward method, it’s also a pretty expensive option. Early on, you will get Vitamins by just exploring the map, clearing side content, and obtaining them as a reward for certain missions.

However, the more reliable way of getting them is to purchase them from Nurse Joy in the Pokemon Center. However, you will need to progress a fair bit in the story to be able to unlock this option, and each of these Vitamins will go for 5,000 Poke Coins each.

Vitamin	Effect
Calcium	Giving your Pokémon this Vitamin increases their base Sp. Attack stat.
Carbos	Giving your Pokémon this Vitamin increases their base Speed stat.
HP Up	Giving your Pokémon this Vitamin increases their base HP stat.
Iron	Giving your Pokémon this Vitamin increases their base Defense stat.
Protein	Giving your Pokémon this Vitamin increases their base Attack stat.
Zinc	Giving your Pokémon this Vitamin increases their base Sp. Defense stat.

Each of these items will increase the EVs on your Pokemon by 10 when used. So you will want to use 25 of these on a Pokemon to raise the EV of a particular stat to 250 (amounts to a whopping 125,000 Poke Coins if you are purchasing all of them). Now, as the max stat is 252, you can supplement the additional two by using certain feathers that are listed below:

These feathers are obtained as loot from exploration and quests, and each of them gives 1 EV when used.

B) Using Power Items

If you do not have the cash for Vitamins, the other way of obtaining max EV on your Pokemon is through the use of Power or Training Items. These items are held by the Pokemon and further increase the desired EV stat when you gain XP by knocking out another Pokemon.

Now, you will be able to either buy these from the Post Game Quasartico shop or earn them by doing a particular side quest. Here is a list of them all and their effects:

Power Item	Effect	Side Quest
Power Anklet	An item to be held by a Pokemon. The anklet reduces a Pokemon’s Speed in battle but allows its Speed stat to grow more quickly.	Side Mission 69: A Sky Battle, for Old Time’s Sake
Power Band	An item to be held by a Pokemon. The band reduces a Pokemon’s Speed in battle but allows its Sp. Def stat to grow more quickly.	Side Mission 99: Pleasing Aron’s palate
Power Belt	An item to be held by a Pokemon. The belt reduces a Pokemon’s Speed in battle but allows its Defense stat to grow more quickly.	Side Mission 39: Slowpoke for Slowpoke
Power Bracer	An item to be held by a Pokemon. This bracer reduces a Pokemon’s Speed in battle but allows its Attack stat to grow more quickly.	Side Mission 38: Chasing Status
Power Lens	An item to be held by a Pokemon. The lens reduces a Pokemon’s Speed in battle but allows its Sp. Atk stat to grow more quickly.	Side Mission 104: Abuzz About Bug Types
Power Weight	An item to be held by a Pokemon. The weight reduces a Pokemon’s Speed in battle but allows its HP stat to grow more quickly.	Side Mission 72: Find My Galarian Stunkfisk!

Now you will need to make the Pokemon hold that Power Item which provides the particular EV stat you are looking for. So if you want more attack, make your Pokemon hold the Power Bracelet and per Pokemon takedown they will receive 8 additional EVs.

Now you can further supplement this by taking on Pokemon that provide that particular EV stat boost when defeated. Each Pokemon gives a different EV value when knocked out.

So, to further max the attack stat, you can keep knocking out Victreebel, which gives 3 Attack EV, or Arbok, which gives 2 Attack EV. So you can potentially get 10-11 Attack EV per knockout, which is the same value as that of one 5,000 Poke Coin worth of Protein Vitamin. Hence, in comparison, this is a more cost efficient process.

Every Pokemon gives a different EV yield

Every Pokemon has a different EV value that it provides when knocked out. Here is a list of them all based on the particular stat that they yield:

1) Attack EV Pokemon

2) HP EV Pokemon

3) Defense EV Pokemon

4) Special Attack EV Pokemon

5) Special Defense EV Pokemon

6) Speed EV Pokemon

Combat tips and tricks to climb the Ranked Ladder fast in Pokemon Legends Z-A

Once you have a perfect party of Pokemon in Legends Z-A, you can now start Ranked matchmaking from the Battle Club and slowly make your way up the competitive ladder. Here are a few battle tips and tricks that will help make the climb comparatively more manageable:

1) Constantly Switch between your Pokemon

While in the middle of a trainer battle, don’t be shy about switching between your Pokemon. Not only is it a good strategy, but it is also an expected one. So if the enemy is chanelling an attack that your active Pokemon is weak to, you should switch out to a Pokemon that is resistant to that attack, so that they can tank through the hit and punish the enemy Pokemon in return.

2) Mega Evolution for emergency situations

MEga Evolutions are your trump card. Mega Evolved Pokemon are incredibly OP and can wipe the enemy’s hand singelhandedly when used right. With that being said, it’s best to reserve them for emergency situations and not to channel the evolution prematurely.

The Mega Evolution animation has invulnerability frames, which will let you tank any incoming hit. So if you are going through a lag after just switching out a Pokemon, you can Mega Evolve it to tank through incoming damage.

3) Bigger Pokemon have bigger Hurt Boxes

Due to the real-time combat system, size matters in Pokemon Legends Z-A. So the bigger a Pokemon, the slower its movement speed will be and the bigger its hurt box will be. A bigger hurt box means that the Pokemon will take more hits from an ability. So make sure you plan your party around it.

4) Don’t put all your eggs in one basket

Using the Mint and the EV system, you will want to have a well-rounded party that makes up for each other’s weaknesses. So don’t clutter one Pokemon with all the stats and the hardest-hitting moves, as the more powerful an ability, the longer its cooldown period.

So if you are just focusing on one party member, you will be a sitting duck if you are not able to wipe out the enemy team. Things will get even more difficult if the enemy player has Pokemon types that counter yours.

Hence, it’s important to have a party where one Pokemon focuses on DPS, one on tanking through attacks, and one on supporting the other Pokemon with buffs, heals, and DoT effects.

Additionally, Speed is also a very important stat to focus on. If you have Pokemon with really high ability cooldowns, you can focus on improving their Speed EV considerably, so that you can use their skills more often.

5) Always be on the move

Positional Moves are very important when it comes to avoiding damage in Pokemon Legends Z-A. Hence, try to make the most of moves like U-Turn and Volt Switch, which will let you keep changing your Pokemon’s position and go for a more hit-and-run strategy, which will make things very difficult for your enemy.

6) DoT Abilities are a must

Always have a Pokemon in your party that deals damage over time effects like Burn and Poison. So if you are up against a Pokemon that has stacked a lot of health, then these damage over time abilities will make