The Pokémon 20th celebration is a rare opportunity to have some Mythical Pokémon join your team. Genesect is currently available for Trainers to add to their rosters in November, so be sure to check out Pokemon.com/20 for more details on how you can team up with Genesect. Next month, the 20th celebration will continue with Meloetta, the last of the Mythical Pokémon to be distributed for Pokémon Omega Ruby and Pokémon Alpha Sapphire. And players recently received one last chance to team up with Hoopa in October, a Pokémon they may have already teamed up with during a previous distribution.

You’ll discover how powerful Mythical Pokémon are as soon as they join your team, but a dedicated Trainer can bring out their hidden potential. Read on to find some tips that will make your adventure with them even more amazing. You can find out more about each of the Mythical Pokémon distribution events at Pokemon.com/20.

But first, here is some important information from our first article about an item that is crucial to help bring out the full power of these Pokémon.

Share Your Heart

The Mythical Pokémon distributed as part of the 20th celebration are so powerful that players aren't allowed to use them in most official tournaments. Mythical Pokémon are quite effective in battle, and they are a lot of fun to use when you’re battling with your friends or against the in-game opponents you come across during your adventures. Regardless of how you plan to train your new partners, one of the first things you should do is teach them some of your favorite moves.

Each Mythical Pokémon given out during the Pokémon 20th celebration knows the moves they knew the first time they were available to Trainers. They all start at level 100, so they can’t naturally learn the moves they would normally learn by leveling up. Don’t worry—you can still teach them the moves they could have known at any stage of their training. If you find a Heart Scale, you can bring it to the Pokémon Move Maniac in Fallarbor Town in Pokémon Omega Ruby and Pokémon Alpha Sapphire, or to Madam Reminder in Dendemille Town in Pokémon X and Pokémon Y, to learn moves these Pokémon could have learned while leveling up. Each of these Pokémon can learn some special moves, so it's worth the effort to help them remember!

Cause Hoopla with Hoopa

Hoopa will join your team in its Hoopa Confined form, but you’ll want to use the Prison Bottle item to unleash its true power by helping it become Hoopa Unbound. Hoopa is a Psychic-type Pokémon in each of its forms, but Hoopa Confined is also a Ghost-type Pokémon while Hoopa Unbound adds a Dark type. Hoopa will revert to its Hoopa Confined form if you deposit it into your PC, so keep it in your active party if you want to enjoy Hoopa Unbound’s enhanced Attack, Special Attack, and Special Defense stats.

Hoopa excels at dishing out big hits. Depending on the Nature of your Hoopa, you can train it to use physical attacks, special attacks, or a mix of both and have great results. A Modest Nature is ideal for a Hoopa trained to use special attacks, while Adamant or Brave are ideal for a Hoopa focusing on physical attacks. If you’re looking for a mix of both kinds of attacks, a Hasty or Naive Nature is ideal, but almost any Nature that doesn’t reduce Attack or Special Attack can work in a pinch. You’ll probably want to train Hoopa’s Speed first (unless you decide to teach it Trick Room), and then use the rest of its training to improve Hoopa’s damage output. We suggest giving Hoopa a Life Orb to hold, regardless of its Nature.

If you’re angling Hoopa’s training toward special attacks, you can use TMs to teach it Psyshock or Psychic and Dark Pulse to match its types. After that, in a Double Battle it would be wise to use a TM to teach Hoopa Protect, while in a Single Battle it’s fine to keep the Nasty Plot move Hoopa knows when you receive it instead. Focus Blast is a great final move to take out any Dark-type Pokémon that resist Hoopa’s other attacks, but Trick Room can be a fun alternative if you’re using a Hoopa that isn’t trained in Speed.

A Hoopa trained to focus on physical attacks can take advantage of its powerful trademark moves. The move Hyperspace Hole is a Psychic-type attack with 80 power that always hits, and it can even damage an opponent that is using a move like Protect to defend itself. Hyperspace Hole can be learned only by Hoopa Confined, but Hoopa will still be able to use the move after it transforms.

Hoopa’s other trademark attack is Hyperspace Fury, which only Hoopa Unbound can learn. Hyperspace Fury also has perfect accuracy and damages Pokémon using Protect, but it is a Dark-type move and has 100 power. Unlike Hyperspace Hole, Hyperspace Fury can only be used while Hoopa is in its Hoopa Unbound form. It will fail if used by Hoopa Confined, so be mindful of that if you swap Hoopa’s form.

Protect is a much more common tactic in Double Battles than in Single Battles, so it’s in Double Battles that Hoopa’s trademark moves shine. To get the most out of Hoopa in Double Battles you may also want to teach it Protect and Trick Room. If you just want Hoopa to focus on dealing damage, it can get a lot of mileage out of a variety of other attacks including Gunk Shot, Ice Punch, Fire Punch, and Drain Punch.

Get Down with Genesect

High Attack and Special Attack stats, a reliable combination of Steel and Bug types, and a barrage of powerful attacks make Genesect a very powerful Pokémon. Most Trainers train their Genesect to attack as quickly as possible using both special and physical attacks, so you might want to try to track down a Genesect with a Naive or Hasty Nature. Both Natures avoid reducing Genesect’s damage output while maximizing its Speed.

One reason why so many Trainers choose to teach their Genesect both special and physical attacks is because of its Download Ability, which increases its Attack or Special Attack by 1 based on which of its foe’s defensive stats is lower. If Genesect can take advantage of the boost from Download regardless of which of its stats is raised, it becomes a very tricky Pokémon to battle against.

Genesect is a little slower than some Pokémon popular in battles, such as Mega Kangaskhan, so many Trainers choose to give Genesect a speed boost with a Choice Scarf. Using a TM to teach Genesect U-turn is a great fit with Choice Scarf: it plays well off Genesect’s high Attack and Speed, normally allowing Genesect to deal solid damage and then switch to a teammate with a type advantage before being attacked. Iron Head is also a great fit for strategies involving Choice Scarf by dealing more than just solid Steel-type damage—it also takes advantage of Genesect’s increased Speed by sometimes causing Genesect’s target to flinch if Genesect moves before it.

Regardless of Genesect’s held item, you can teach it other attacks that help it take advantage of its foes’ weaknesses with the help of TMs. Ice Beam is a great attack for dealing with Pokémon that are weak to Ice-type attacks, such as the popular Landorus and Rayquaza. At the other end of the thermometer, Genesect can also learn Flamethrower, which can be useful to take down the Steel-type Pokémon that resist U-turn and Iron Head. Genesect can even learn Explosion to deal some hefty damage once it’s low on HP.

Genesect’s trademark move is Techno Blast. By default, Techno Blast is a Normal-type attack with 120 base power that deals special damage and has 100% accuracy. But if you have Genesect hold one of four special items, such as Burn Drive, Techno Blast will instead become a different type. Burn Drive causes Techno Blast to become a Fire-type attack; there are similar items that allow it to become a Water-, Electric-, or Ice-type attack. We typically don’t see Trainers teach Genesect Techno Blast because Genesect needs to hold a specialized item to leverage any type advantage, but playing with Techno Blast can be a lot of fun.

Match Melodies with Meloetta

Meloetta may not have the same brute strength Hoopa or Genesect have, but it is certainly a rare Pokémon with unique flair. Meloetta starts battles in its Aria Forme as a Normal- and Psychic-type Pokémon. When it uses its trademark Relic Song move in battle, it immediately enters its Pirouette Forme and becomes a Normal- and Fighting-type Pokémon instead. In Pirouette Forme, Meloetta’s Attack and Speed are drastically increased, but its Special Attack and Special Defense are drastically decreased at the same time.

Fortunately, Relic Song is a Normal-type attack, so Meloetta will gain a same-type attack bonus when it uses the move regardless of the form it is currently in. If you plan to have Meloetta battle in its Pirouette Forme, you’ll probably want to support Relic Song with some physical attacks, and use Protect in a Double Battle. Meloetta can learn the powerful Close Combat move to take advantage of its Fighting type, but its options for other physical attacks are limited: Return, Stone Edge, and Shadow Claw stand out as the best choices. We suggest a Meloetta with a Jolly Nature for strategies based around this form.

Playing around with Relic Song can be complicated, so most Trainers battling with Meloetta prefer to focus their strategies around its Aria Forme instead. In Aria Forme, Meloetta has solid HP and excellent Special Attack and Special Defense. Instead of Relic Song, attacks such as Psyshock, Focus Blast, and Hyper Voice provide reliable options to go on the offense. Some Trainers like to combine these attacks with a move like Trick, Energy Ball, or Shadow Ball and have their Meloetta hold a Choice Specs to maximize its immediate damage output, or Choice Scarf to help it outrun the many Pokémon that are faster.

Other Trainers prefer to play defensively with Meloetta’s Aria Forme and use the popular combination of Substitute and Calm Mind instead. With this strategy, Trainers have Meloetta hold a Life Orb or Leftovers and have Meloetta try to power-up against opponents that can’t break through its impressive Special Defense. A Life Orb is great in a Double Battle, as well, where Trainers could consider having Meloetta hold a Life Orb and learn Protect. We suggest a Timid Nature for any strategy based around Meloetta’s Aria Forme.

Meloetta is also able to learn some useful support moves, most of which are particularly helpful in Double Battles. The classic Thunder Wave can help Meloetta support its team by slowing down its opponents. And even if you don’t decide to let Meloetta sing with Relic Song, it can still dance to disrupt both of its opponents—and its ally—with its confusing Teeter Dance move. Light Screen, Reflect, Safeguard, and Trick Room are all useful if you put the Pokémon in a more traditional support role in Single or Double Battles.

We hope you’ve enjoyed our series of Pokémon 20th celebration Mythical Pokémon distribution strategy articles. Don’t forget to take this chance to team up with Genesect and Meloetta! And return to Pokemon.com/Strategy soon for Pokémon Sun and Pokémon Moon strategy, tips, and tournament analysis.