Learning how to change Pokemon is quick and easy at first glance.
However, there’s lots of different ways to change Pokemon and it’s good to have a decent understanding of all the methods as you play.
To help you keep your team in good shape and improve your chances of winning a battle, here’s a quick and easy guide on how to change Pokemon in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet.
How to Change Pokemon in Battle
To change Pokemon in battle, you have to choose the ‘Pokemon’ button during the battle. Here, you can choose a Pokemon from your team and swap it with your current Pokemon.
There are other ways you can change Pokemon in battle.
For example, if you use the move U-turn, your Pokemon will attack, and then you can change your Pokemon in the same turn. This move is useful if your Pokemon has more speed than the enemy. You can easily hit-and-run and swap to a Pokemon that can tank the attack.
Another way you can change Pokemon is through a Pokemon fainting, whether it is yours or your enemies.
If your Pokemon faints, you can switch out to another Pokemon.
If your opponent’s Pokemon faints, you have the option to switch to another Pokemon or keep fighting with your current one.
How to Change Your Pokemon in the Lineup
To change Pokemon in your lineup, you can press ‘Y’ and choose the option ‘box’. From this window, you can look at your different boxes (where all your Pokemon are stored) and swap them into your lineup.
Choose a Pokemon you want to insert from the boxes you have and switch it with a Pokemon in your lineup.
Remember that the first one in your team will be your default starting Pokemon in battles.
If your lineup is already full and you capture a new Pokemon, you have the option to swap the newly acquired Pokemon with another in your team. If you don’t want to swap anything, the newly captured Pokemon will be sent to a box.
You can do this if you see a Pokemon that you want to level up and evolve for your team. They will gain experience if they are in your lineup, and you can level them up this way.
Tips & Tricks
Change Pokemon to Level Them Up Faster
As you may know, switching a Pokemon into battle will give them more experience points.
For example, if you are trying to level up a specific Pokemon, you can always have it as your default Pokemon and immediately switch to your strongest Pokemon so that you get more experience.
This is one of the fastest ways to level up a Pokemon, but it does require you to have a strong Pokemon to finish the battle.
Switch Pokemons to Tank a Move
Switching Pokemons is a natural strategy in competitive battles. You will need to decipher what the opponent is going to do in their next move and counter it with a Pokemon switch.
Some Pokemon types cancel each other out, so this can be a useful strategy.
For example, a Normal or Fighting move will do no damage to a Ghost Pokemon. Switching to a Ghost Pokemon when you are expecting a Normal or Fighting move can give you a serious advantage.
Switch Pokemon to Activate Abilities
Abilities are innate skills that Pokemon can use with varying conditions. For example, Gyarados’s Intimidate ability lowers the opposing Pokemon’s attack by one level when they switch into a battle.
If you have status effects on an opponent that is about to faint, you can switch in Gyarados to make use of its Intimidate ability.
There are a ton of abilities available in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet. The same Pokemon can have different abilities as well. It’s worth spending some time reading up on the different abilities in the game, especially if you’re a competitive player.
Switch to a Pokemon With More Speed
The speed stat is a big factor when it comes to battling. The highest speed stat in a battle will determine who gets to act first. There are moves that can increase or reduce speed stats, too.
It gives you an edge when you know you have a Pokemon that will always act first in battle.
What to Do Next
Now you know how to change your Pokemon, it’s worth checking out how to change your Tera type too. The Tera function is an incredibly interesting part of the Pokemon Scarlet & Violet games, and getting a handle on it can help you succeed in battles.
In order to learn how to change Tera types, though, you’ll need to understand where to get Tera shards from too. Tera shards are hard to come across but they’re worth the effort, as they can make all the difference for a competitive team.
