Pokémon Duel has invaded iOS and Android, and lots of players want to know which of the game’s monsters are the best. This tier list will reveal effective teams for beginners that don’t require much effort. Here’s how you can play well for free.
As we outlined in our beginner’s guide, figures in Pokémon Duel can be classified under three roles: sprinters, battlers and defense. Sprinters move across the board, battlers fight and defense protects your goal. Below are the top three Pokémon from each category that shouldn’t be hard to find.
WHICH POKÉMON ARE THE BEST BEGINNER SPRINTERS?
Voltorb [UC]: Voltorb is slightly hard to find, but it’s far from rare. It doesn’t miss beyond level 4. The star of its spinner, however, is Explosion. It’s a 2-star purple attack that faints all nearby Pokémon. If you’re in the mood for a rush and watch your placement, that can be super effective. Let Voltorb sprint then hopefully it can blow up a defender.
Doduo [C] : Doduo may be a common card, but it has pretty uncommon attributes. If you’re able to get it past level 4, the 4 percent Miss section of its spinner goes away completely. With that gone, its Fury Attack takes over. With Fury, there’s a base damage of 20 that multiplies every time you land on it. As a result, this little bird can potentially take down some pretty large foes. With its MP of 3, this figure can move too.
Emolga [C] : The key to Emolga’s success is its special attack, Volt Switch. If you land on it, you can swap Emolga out with any Pokémon on your bench. What that essentially means is you can have this common figure do all the movement, then swap it for a formidable battler at the end. A well-placed Emolga can end a duel very quickly.
WHICH POKÉMON ARE THE BEST BATTLERS?
Mawile [UC] : Mawile has one of the strongest attacks in all of Pokémon Duel, and it’s called Trickery. It shifts the opponent’s spinner and does 70 damage to boot. The rest of its attacks aren’t too strong, though, so you may be pressing your luck a bit. You might need a monster with Fairy Mist to give it an added buff.
Pikachu [R] : This is a rare figure, but you should have it from completing the game’s tutorial. It’s got Quick Attack and Thunder Shock that are the basis of its strength. If you level it up a bit, this guy can do 50 or 100 damage per spin. That’s nothing to sneeze at.
Tentacool [UC] : It starts with a 32 percent Poison Sting attack and a 52 percent Tentacle Barrage that applies 40 damage augmented by 10 plus the number of poison-based monsters in the field. Under the right circumstances, that means 50-55 damage per spin. That’s especially true since you can use its Form Herd ability to add more than three Tentacool to your deck.
WHICH POKÉMON ARE THE BEST DEFENSE?
Quilladin [UC] : Quilladin should probably be evolved into Chesnaught during battle, but it's still an effective defender regardless. It’s able to hold down your base with its formidable Needle Arm and Mud Shot attacks that only get stronger as it levels. Protect isn’t a bad option to land on either.
Sliggoo [UC] : The key to Sliggoo’s success is its special ability called Gooey. With it, every opponent it battles has the Wait status effect applied to them. That takes them out of the fight for a couple turns. You can also use Slippery Swap to swap Sliggoo with an opponent’s piece. If someone's getting too close to your base, just swap them out.
Grotle [C] : This list needed another common, and Grotle is a solid pick. The major reason for this is its special ability. With Cornerstone, your Pokémon can move over Grotle when it's in the field. That means you can plant the figure down and leave it be. It also has a 20 percent Protect attack that can come in handy too. With a 12 percent miss radius Grotle won’t be a top pick for long, but it’s a solid place to start.
Pokémon Duel is available now on Android and iOS. Check out our beginner’s guide for more battle tips and hints about evolution and fusion.
Do you have any of these figures in your main deck yet? Is Pokémon Duel worth investing time in? Tell us in the comments section!
