CHOOSE YOUR DESK / 68 FIELD NOTES
Players.
Find the right ruleset before choosing a move. Version-specific references, battle vocabulary and a ladder from the first adventure to competitive concepts.
Available field notes
Scarlet & Violet: why your picnic is not producing Eggs
Check the participating species and compatibility first. The official guide says Eggs can appear in the picnic basket and that Egg Power increases the likelihood; it does not promise an Egg after a fixed wait.
Read the guide Video gamesScarlet & Violet: Auto Battles or ordinary battles?
Use Auto Battles for background items and some experience. Use an ordinary encounter if you want a chance to catch that wild Pokémon; Auto Battles do not offer that catch opportunity.
Read the guide Video gamesScarlet & Violet: raid cheers share one three-use budget
A Trainer can cheer a total of three times per Tera Raid Battle, across all three cheer types. It is not three uses of each kind.
Read the guide Video gamesScarlet & Violet: choose a Meal Power for the actual task
Match the effect to the job: Egg Power for picnic Eggs, Encounter Power for wild encounters, Raid Power for raid rewards. Those benefits are not interchangeable.
Read the guide PlayersScarlet Violet: version guide & learning route
Scarlet and Violet combine open-world exploration with several story paths. Check prerequisites and area difficulty rather than assuming the next visible landmark is the next beginner objective.
Read the guide PlayersRed Blue: version guide & learning route
The original Kanto pair is built around a compact route network, type matchups and completing a collection across versions. Treat a modern remake guide as a different ruleset: older battle categories and type interactions can make a familiar-looking battle behave differently.
Read the guide PlayersYellow: version guide & learning route
Yellow revisits Kanto with Pikachu as the opening partner. The important beginner distinction is that it is a separate version, not simply Red or Blue with a different cover. Use its own gift and encounter records.
Read the guide PlayersGold Silver: version guide & learning route
Gold and Silver take the collection to Johto and introduce a world where time and breeding matter. A returning player should record the clock settings and distinguish a timed encounter from an evolution requirement.
Read the guide PlayersCrystal: version guide & learning route
Crystal is a distinct Johto release. It belongs beside Gold and Silver in a historical comparison, but the shared region does not make every scene, encounter or feature identical.
Read the guide PlayersRuby Sapphire: version guide & learning route
Ruby and Sapphire introduce Hoenn and a battle environment with Abilities and natures. For beginners, separate a species trait from the ability slot of the particular individual you caught.
Read the guide PlayersEmerald: version guide & learning route
Emerald is an expanded Hoenn release with its own progression and postgame identity. Planning around its battle facilities makes more sense than assuming the credits are the only completion goal.
Read the guide PlayersFireRed / LeafGreen: version guide & learning route
FireRed and LeafGreen revisit the Kanto journey using the Game Boy Advance generation’s systems. That makes them remakes, not interchangeable names for Red and Blue.
Read the guide PlayersDiamond Pearl: version guide & learning route
Diamond and Pearl begin the original Sinnoh pair. This generation distinguishes physical and special attacks move by move, so choosing attacks only by their elemental type can give the wrong result.
Read the guide PlayersPlatinum: version guide & learning route
Platinum is its own Sinnoh release rather than an update file for Diamond or Pearl. For a returning player, the most useful habit is to track the version label on every encounter and progression guide.
Read the guide PlayersHeartGold / SoulSilver: version guide & learning route
These remakes return to Johto under Nintendo DS-era systems. The journey connects two regions, so a single badge count is not a useful definition of complete coverage.
Read the guide PlayersBlack White: version guide & learning route
Black and White begin the Unova story. Newcomers can treat the journey as a fresh team-building exercise rather than trying to recreate a party from an older region.
Read the guide PlayersColosseum: version guide & learning route
Colosseum belongs to the Orre side-game lineage, not a standard badge-route remake. The battle format and rescue premise make its progression and team-building questions different from the handheld pair of its era.
Read the guide PlayersXD: Gale of Darkness: version guide & learning route
XD: Gale of Darkness returns to Orre with its own protagonist and campaign. It should be catalogued separately from Colosseum rather than treated as a renamed version of the same save.
Read the guide PlayersBlack 2 White 2: version guide & learning route
Black 2 and White 2 continue the Unova setting with a new starting point and progression. A guide to the first pair is useful historical context but cannot be followed as a step-by-step route here.
Read the guide PlayersX Y: version guide & learning route
X and Y explore Kalos and introduce the Fairy type and Mega Evolution to the main-series battle environment. A historical type chart must be chosen before calculating weaknesses.
Read the guide PlayersOmega Ruby Alpha Sapphire: version guide & learning route
Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire revisit Hoenn with later-generation battle systems. They are not direct substitutes for Ruby/Sapphire data even when a town or route has the same name.
Read the guide PlayersSun Moon: version guide & learning route
Sun and Moon frame Alola around island challenges and regional forms. A regional form is not merely a language difference: it can have different types, abilities and evolution context.
Read the guide PlayersUltra Sun Ultra Moon: version guide & learning route
Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon are separate releases set in Alola, not paid patches to Sun and Moon. A buyer should compare the actual feature and story goals rather than assume either pair contains the other.
Read the guide PlayersLet’s Go, Pikachu! / Let’s Go, Eevee!: version guide & learning route
The Let’s Go pair revisits Kanto with capture-focused play and partner-specific editions. A beginner should learn its own catching and training flow rather than assume the usual wild-battle loop.
Read the guide PlayersSword Shield: version guide & learning route
Sword and Shield take the journey to Galar. The Wild Area changes how exploration and encounters are organized, but its presence does not make every old species available in the base game.
Read the guide PlayersThe Isle Of Armor: version guide & learning route
The Isle of Armor is expansion content for the Sword/Shield family. Keep base software, expansion entitlement and save progress as separate fields before following an island task.
Read the guide PlayersThe Crown Tundra: version guide & learning route
The Crown Tundra is another Sword/Shield expansion grouping in the metadata. Do not use an Isle of Armor checklist as a complete plan simply because both are part of the same expansion package.
Read the guide PlayersBrilliant Diamond Shining Pearl: version guide & learning route
Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl revisit the Diamond/Pearl story on Switch. The shared region does not make a Platinum checklist a complete feature list for these games.
Read the guide PlayersLegends Arceus: version guide & learning route
Legends: Arceus approaches the Hisui setting through field research and a different flow of catching and battles. Completion is better understood through research objectives than through the usual badge checklist.
Read the guide PlayersThe Teal Mask: version guide & learning route
The Teal Mask belongs to the Scarlet/Violet expansion lineage. Record expansion ownership and story progress before using a chapter-specific guide.
Read the guide PlayersThe Indigo Disk: version guide & learning route
The Indigo Disk is a separate metadata grouping within the Scarlet/Violet expansion lineage. Think about chapter prerequisites and the actual version rather than treating all expansion features as available from the opening screen.
Read the guide PlayersRed Green Japan: version guide & learning route
Japanese Red and Green are historical release identities distinct from the international Red/Blue pair. Shared franchise history should not erase regional software differences.
Read the guide PlayersBlue Japan: version guide & learning route
Blue in Japan is represented separately from the international Red/Blue grouping. Catalog the actual release instead of assuming the word Blue uniquely identifies a worldwide ruleset.
Read the guide PlayersLegends: Z-A: version guide & learning route
Legends: Z-A is a separate Legends adventure, not a patch to Legends: Arceus. The same franchise label does not imply identical combat or progression rules.
Read the guide PlayersMega Dimension: version guide & learning route
Mega Dimension is DLC associated with Legends: Z-A. The official site describes a bundle with the Nintendo Switch 2 Edition, which should not be confused with a different underlying story title.
Read the guide PlayersChampions: version guide & learning route
The official Champions site describes a battle-focused game using types, Abilities and moves, with cross-platform play. Team construction and battle decisions are the central learning route.
Read the guide PlayersWinds & Waves: confirmed facts, not a fictional walkthrough
The official announcement names Pokémon Winds and Pokémon Waves for Nintendo Switch 2, with a simultaneous worldwide release planned for 2027. No exact day is established here.
Read the guide PlayersBase stats, IVs, EVs and natures: four different layers
Base stats describe a species/form; IVs and effort training belong to an individual; natures modify the resulting stat profile. Keep those layers separate before interpreting a stat comparison.
Read the guide PlayersType charts: why the printed multiplier is not the whole battle
A type-only chart multiplies defensive type interactions. Abilities, move effects, forms, battle transformations and historical rules can change the practical answer.
Read the guide PlayersNatures and Mints: separate a personality label from a stat effect
Natures are part of the stat-planning vocabulary. In games with Mints, changing the stat effect is not the same claim as rewriting every property associated with the original nature.
Read the guide PlayersVGC foundations: team roles before a “best team”
VGC is a regulated competition environment. Start from the current official rules, then learn how partners protect each other and create winning turns; do not import a singles ranking as a doubles team.
Read the guide PlayersTerastallization: offensive plan, defensive consequence
In Scarlet and Violet, ordinary Tera Types replace the defensive battle type. Stellar is different: original types still determine matchups, while moves gain type-by-type boosts under separate rules.
Read the guide PlayersHOME transfers: check direction, species, form and destination
Treat every transfer as a specific route from one game to another. Storage support is not a promise that every stored individual can enter every compatible game.
Read the guide PlayersTCG deck consistency: make the plan happen more often
A consistent deck can find the pieces needed for its intended turns. Count roles, access routes and recovery—not only the number of powerful attacks.
Read the guide PlayersTCG Prize mapping: count the route to winning, not just damage
Prize mapping means planning which knockouts could complete your win condition and how many turns that route might require. The biggest possible damage number is not always the best turn.
Read the guide PlayersPokémon Snap: what to play and what to learn
Photography replaces the usual badge journey. Think about subject behavior, timing and composition rather than training a battle team.
Read the guide PlayersNew Pokémon Snap: what to play and what to learn
Observation and repeat visits to courses create the progression loop. A player looking for a calm discovery game should judge its photography tasks rather than its lack of a traditional competitive ladder.
Read the guide PlayersPokémon Stadium: what to play and what to learn
Stadium emphasizes structured battles and side activities on a home console rather than a handheld-style catch-and-route adventure.
Read the guide PlayersPokémon Stadium 2: what to play and what to learn
The sequel extends the console battle setting into the Gold/Silver-era roster and systems. Treat cup restrictions as part of the task, not an afterthought.
Read the guide PlayersPokémon Battle Revolution: what to play and what to learn
This console entry is organized around battles rather than a conventional regional story. The interesting beginner question is how to build a usable battle plan under its own format.
Read the guide PlayersMystery Dungeon: Rescue Team lineage: what to play and what to learn
Dungeon exploration changes the resource problem: positioning, supplies and survival across a route matter alongside moves. It is a different genre from a mainline badge journey.
Read the guide PlayersMystery Dungeon: Explorers lineage: what to play and what to learn
Explorers turns the dungeon format into a story-and-team expedition. Spoiler-aware guidance should distinguish navigation help from major character and ending revelations.
Read the guide PlayersPokémon Ranger lineage: what to play and what to learn
Ranger uses a capture/assistance interaction distinct from the main-series battle-and-collection loop. Its controls and local mission state should drive a tutorial.
Read the guide PlayersPokémon Conquest: what to play and what to learn
Conquest applies a tactical battlefield structure to the franchise. Positioning, map constraints and army development are more useful organizing concepts than a standard four-move story team.
Read the guide PlayersPokkén Tournament lineage: what to play and what to learn
Pokkén is a fighting-game interpretation. Spacing, timing and matchup practice matter more than building an RPG party or consulting a wild-encounter chart.
Read the guide PlayersPokémon UNITE: what to play and what to learn
UNITE is a team-based battle game with role and objective timing questions. Learning the map objective and team responsibilities is more useful than treating it like a turn-based RPG.
Read the guide PlayersPokémon GO: what to play and what to learn
GO connects collection and battles with real-world movement and event windows. Check safety, locality and official event conditions before making a plan.
Read the guide PlayersPokémon Masters EX: what to play and what to learn
Masters EX organizes its battles around Trainer-and-partner units. Team composition and the game’s own resource systems are different from owning a species in a mainline save.
Read the guide PlayersPokémon Café ReMix: what to play and what to learn
Café ReMix is a puzzle-oriented service with its own progression and team vocabulary. A beginner tutorial should explain the puzzle objective before discussing collection optimization.
Read the guide PlayersPokémon Sleep: what to play and what to learn
Sleep combines a rest-oriented routine with a collection game. Its records and game incentives should not be confused with a medical diagnosis or treatment plan.
Read the guide PlayersPokémon Quest: what to play and what to learn
Quest uses expedition and team-building systems distinct from a main-series regional journey. The useful learning route starts with the expedition loop and available team resources.
Read the guide PlayersPokémon Pinball lineage: what to play and what to learn
Pinball adapts collection to table play, where ball control and table objectives replace the usual RPG exploration loop. Practice a small objective before chasing a complete collection.
Read the guide PlayersPokémon Trading Card Game for Game Boy: what to play and what to learn
The Game Boy card RPG teaches through a historical card environment and a video-game progression structure. It is not the current paper Standard format.
Read the guide PlayersPokémon Champions: platform, VGC transition and HOME boundaries
Champions launched for Nintendo Switch on April 8, 2026. An official announcement moved Premier VGC competition to Champions beginning with Indianapolis in late May; that is not a permanent regulation list.
Read the guide PlayersChampions VGC: your first documented practice cycle
Start with the actual event rules and one testable team plan. The Champions platform change is confirmed; a current regulation, legality check and reproducible battle notes still do the work.
Read the guide PlayersPokémon Pokopia: a building-first game, not a battle walkthrough
Pokopia centers on rebuilding a world through crafting, building, gardening and cooperation. The official schedule gives March 5, 2026; battle-team assumptions are the wrong starting point.
Read the guide PlayersBefore using an old team guide, identify which rules changed
Three separate layers can make old battle advice misleading: the type chart, the Special-stat model and how each move is classified. Start with the game, not a modern species table.
Read the guide PlayersChoose a historical type chart
Calculate ordinary single- or dual-type factors with separate Generation I, II–V and VI–IX charts. This is conventional turn-based chart arithmetic, not full damage or Legends-title rules.
Read the guide