Nuzlocke Challenge

The two basic Nuzlocke rules

The Nuzlocke Challenge is a set of rules intended to create a higher level of difficulty while playing the Pokémon games. A playthrough using these rules is often called "a Nuzlocke".

Nuzlockes are a popular way to play the games among fans. Many feel that the rules encourage greater Pokémon variety, create value for ones the player would not normally choose, and promote closer bonds with the player's team. The rules are not an in-game function, but self-imposed on the player's part, and thus subject to variation.

The challenge originates from the comic series of the same name, which features a Nuzleaf resembling Lost character John Locke as a recurring gag character.

History

The basic rules were invented by Nick Franco, a Californian screenwriter and then-university-student, in March 2010. Franco posted comics depicting his playthrough of Pokémon Ruby to 4chan's /v/ board, where they gained attention and inspired others to try the challenge. The following month, Franco launched a website for his comics and a forum for fans' challenge chronicles. Over time, the concept spread to various websites and formats such as written stories, animations and livestreams.

Franco uses "Nuzlocke" as a screen name, while his comic is titled "Pokémon: Hard-Mode". However, the word Nuzlocke eventually came to be associated with the ruleset itself.

Rules

Basic rules

The Nuzlocke Challenge has only two rules that must be followed:

• Limited Encounters: The player may only catch the first wild Pokémon encountered in each area, and no others. If the first wild Pokémon encountered faints or flees, there are no second chances.
  • If the first encounter in an area is a Double Battle or Horde Encounter, the player may choose which of the encountered Pokémon to catch, but only one of them.
• Dying: Any Pokémon that faints is considered dead and must be released. Revival methods such as Revive, Revival Blessing, etc. are forbidden. If the player runs out of living Pokémon, they've failed the challenge and must restart the game.

Near-universal rules

• Mandatory Nicknames: The player must nickname all of their Pokémon, for the sake of forming stronger emotional bonds.
• "Met in" Confirmation: If the player is unsure whether a location is a valid new encounter or not, such as multiple levels of a cave, they can look at the Pokémon's summary page to see where they were "Met" in order to confirm whether it's a new location or not.
  • Gift Pokémon: Some players consider Gift Pokémon (such as the Eevee found in the Celadon Condominiums) to be separate encounters from wild Pokémon encountered in the same area.
    • As of White: Hard-Mode, Episode 3, it is implied that the player can accept Pokémon that are received freely from NPCs.
• No Resets: The player may not voluntarily soft-reset to undo progress. Being able to do so would render all other rules pointless.
• No Cheating: Cheating devices (such as GameShark) may not be used except to make the game harder (such as cheating to disable Exp. Share in games that don't allow such an option.)
• Full Wipe: A black out/white out is considered to be 'game over' even if there are live Pokémon left in the Pokémon Storage System.
• No Outside Trading: The player may only use Pokémon obtained through in-game methods, meaning that trading with other save files, Mystery Gifts, etc. are all prohibited.
  • Trade Evolution Clause: There is no firm consensus on trading a trade Evolution Pokémon away and back to one's file to evolve it.
• Boxing: Deceased Pokémon may be permanently sent to the Pokémon Storage System rather than releasing them.

Optional rules

Though the above rules tend to stay consistent with all players, many variant rules have been created to adjust difficulty based on personal preference. Many other rules exist besides those listed here. Regardless of the optional rules used, the run is considered a Nuzlocke Challenge so long as the two basic rules are in place.

Increased difficulty

Battle restrictions

• Set Mode Clause: The battle style must be changed to "Set" in the options menu, meaning the player does not get the opportunity to switch out their Pokémon after an opponent's Pokémon faints. In Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, where there is no set mode, the player must manually decide not to switch each time.
• Equal Parties/Fair Fight Clause: During Gym Leader and rival battles, the active party must not have more Pokémon than the opponent's.
• No Items: No items may be used during battles except for held items. Limitation due to perceived power-level of X-items.
• No Heal Items: Potions and status-healing items may not be used.
• No Held Items: Held items may not be used.

Leveling restrictions

• Level Cap: The player may not use Pokémon above the level of the next Gym Leader/Elite Four/Champion's highest-levelled Pokémon (their "ace"). Pokémon that exceed the level limit might be left in storage until they become eligible, or they might have to be released.
• No Evolving: The player must use the B-button to cancel any evolutions under their ownership.
• No Child Support: The Day Care may not be used.
• No Exp Share: The Exp. Share may not be used. (This does not apply to games starting from Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee!, where the Exp. Share can't be disabled without third-party tools.)
• No Candy: Rare Candy and Exp. Candy may not be used.

Overworld restrictions

• No/Limited Pokémon Centers: Pokémon Centers may not be used, or only used a certain number of times per Center, or a certain number of times between each Gym.
• No Buying: No items may be purchased from NPCs; the player must rely on what they find in the overworld or receive for free.
• Limited Balls: Only a certain number of Poké Balls may be purchased per store.
• No Escape: The player may not flee from battle.
  • No Wild Encounters: Alternatively, the player must flee whenever possible, in order to limit the amount of experience gained.

Pokémon restrictions

• Random Starter: The first partner Pokémon must be randomly chosen. A common system is: if the last digit of the character's Trainer ID number is 1-3, the player must choose the Grass-type first partner Pokémon; if it is 4-6, the Fire-type; if it is 7-9, the Water-type; if it is 0, free choice. Alternatively, use the Trainer ID modulo 3: remainder 0 = Grass, remainder 1 = Fire, remainder 2 = Water.
• Caught Only: The first partner Pokémon must be released or boxed after the first wild Pokémon is caught.
• One Per Gym: The player may only catch the first Pokémon after each Gym Leader instead of in each area.
• Ban List: Certain Pokémon such as Legendaries, Pseudo-Legendaries, and/or other powerful Pokémon are banned as they excessively mitigate the difficulty of the challenge.
• Monotype/Monocolor Challenge: Only Pokémon of a certain Type or color may be used. Rather than the first Pokémon encountered in an area, the player may catch the first one which fits the category or will evolve into fitting the category. If a Pokémon would lose the category upon evolution, it may not evolve.
• Notepad Clause: No Pokémon may be kept in the PSS; in other words, the player may only own six Pokémon at a time. This was named after its inventor, user "Notepad" on the now-defunct original Nuzlocke Forum.
  • Notepad Extreme/First 6 Only: The player may only own six Pokémon throughout the entire run. If all six faint or otherwise become ineligible, then it's an instant 'game over'.
• Giftlocke: Only Gift Pokémon may be used. Catching and breeding Pokémon are banned.
• No Repels: It is forbidden to use Repels before the first encounter on a route, as this can guarantee certain appearances. Alternatively, it is forbidden to use Repels whatsoever, in order to expose the team to more danger.

Miscellaneous

• Limited Training: Quality-of-life features such as Pokémon-Amie, the DexNav and Super Training may not be used.
• Challenge Mode: (Black 2 and White 2 only) The difficulty must be set to Challenge Mode, which increases the levels of opposing Trainers' Pokémon.
• Memory Only: Online aids (walkthroughs, NPC team info, etc.) may not be used.
• Speedrun: In addition to the Nuzlocke rules, the player tries to defeat the Champion with as little "time played" on the save file counter as possible.
• Progression Sacrifice: After each Badge the player randomly selects one party member to sacrifice.

Decreased difficulty

• Slow Start: The two basic rules are not in effect until the player has gained their first Poké Balls and thus the ability to catch Pokémon. For example, encounters starting from the Poochyena^RSORAS/Zigzagoon^E that the player has to save Professor Birch from, up to when the player can catch Pokémon, are not counted. Likewise, in the games where the first rival battle is immediately after obtaining the first partner Pokémon, the "release or permanently box a Pokémon if it faints" rule is often not enforced at that time.
• Species/Dupes Clause: The "first wild Pokémon in each area" rule does not apply in an area until a species or evolutionary line is encountered that has not been caught yet. For example, if the player's first encounter in an area is with a Caterpie and they already own a Caterpie, Metapod, or Butterfree, it wouldn't count as their first encounter in that area. This allows for increased variety in a Pokémon collection.
  • A limit may be set on how many times the player can apply the Species/Dupes Clause in an area. If this many duplicate Pokémon are encountered in an area, the Species/Dupes Clause is no longer applied for that area and the player must settle for the next Pokémon they encounter.
  • Dusty Clause/Token Clause: During a monotype or monocolor run, for each area the player passes through which has no valid encounters, they might collect one "token" which is "spent" to catch an extra valid Pokémon in the future. Named after its inventor, user "Dustox" on the Nuzlocke Forum.
• Second Chance: The player may have a small number of "second chances" or revives of fallen team members. Typically this type of ruling is done by Gym, such as getting 1 revive per Badge.
• Shiny Clause: Shiny Pokémon can be caught even if they're not a first encounter, and do not need to be released if they faint. It's up to the player whether Shinies may be used during the challenge, or merely traded away to another game/Pokémon HOME for safekeeping.
  • Shiny Replacement Clause: A compromise where Shiny Pokémon may be used in a Nuzlocke, but another Pokémon must be released in exchange.
• Checkpoints: Each Gym Badge can act as a checkpoint. If the player gets a game over, they may restart from when they won their last Badge.
• HM Helper: If the player has no Pokémon that can use a field move that is required to continue the game, they may catch another Pokémon to use the required field move. However, this Pokémon cannot be used in battle and must be released as soon as it is no longer needed or if the player catches another Pokémon that can use the same field move.
• On Safari: The "first encounter only" rule is modified for the Safari Zone. One catch may be had for each section of the Zone, rather than the more restrictive interpretation that the entire Zone is one area.
  • Similarly, the Pokémon Dens of Galar's Wild Area can be interpreted as their own "new area" each, rather than only making one catch from the entire Wild Area or from each named sub-area.
• A Little Help From My Friends: Cheating devices (such as GameShark) may be used.
  • Rare Candy Clause: Hack in infinite Rare Candies to avoid tedious grinding. It was popularized by the streamer Pokémon Challenges.
  • Master Ball Clause: Hack in infinite Master Balls to avoid wild Pokémon accidentally being knocked out, running away, or using escape moves like Teleport and Roar.

Variant rulesets

• Hardcore Nuzlocke: A general name for any Nuzlocke variant which restricts item use and over-leveling, in order to produce a more difficult run and more strategic play.
• Wonderlocke: Any Pokémon caught must immediately be traded using Wonder Trade and the received Pokémon is used instead. Typically, this comes with a level restriction where if the received Pokémon is more than a certain number of levels higher than the original Pokémon, it must be traded again until an appropriate-level Pokémon is received.
• Soul-Link: Two-player variant where both players' Pokémon are "soul-linked" based on their origin. So the first partner Pokémon are linked, the Pokémon from Route 1 are linked, and so on. If a Pokémon dies, its soulmate does too. Linked Pokémon must be in both players' parties at once, i.e., one cannot leave a Pokémon in the PSS while its soulmate is on the active team.
  • Common additional rules include restricting duplicate types between the two players. If either player is using a Pokémon of a certain type, the other player cannot use any Pokémon of that same type. If both players find the same type of Pokémon for one encounter, neither is able to use it.
• Egglocke: The player catches Pokémon, 1 per route as normal, but instead of using the Pokémon caught, they hatch a randomly generated egg. Usually this is done via trades or cheat devices, where the egg Pokémon are chosen by a third party, such as friends or a streaming audience.
• Wedlocke: Each pair of Pokémon is married/bonded based on the order they're caught in. A Pokémon can only switch out for its bondmate. If a Pokémon dies, its bondmate must be the next one sent in. If one "widow" survives a battle, they might either remarry the next catch, or get perma-boxed ("retire out of grief").
• Randomizer: Randomizer mods can be used to add more variety to Nuzlockes. However, encountering a Legendary or other powerful Pokémon early can greatly reduce difficulty. Additionally, catch rates may have to be adjusted via the Randomizer in order for Legendary Pokémon to be feasibly caught using low-tier Balls.
• Alphabetlocke: The six Pokémon in the active party must be the first six species names in alphabetical order (or reverse alphabetical). For example, if the player has a Squirtle, Pidgey, Mankey, Beedrill, Pikachu, Geodude, Clefairy, and Abra, then the player's active team is: Abra, Beedrill, Clefairy, Geodude, Mankey, Pidgey. Then if Mankey evolves into Primeape, its new name is lower in alphabetical order, so Pikachu takes its spot on the team.
• Lorelocke: A large ruleset with individual rules for each species, inspired by mythological creatures and stories.
• Ballocke: Instead of limiting Pokémon by route, this variant limits by type of Ball. Only one Pokémon may be caught in a Poké Ball, one may be caught in a Great Ball, one in a Quick Ball, etc.

Tips

• Repel Encounter Manipulation: Having a Repel active and a Pokémon in the first position at a specific level can be used to filter out unwanted encounters and in some cases guarantee specific encounters.
• Sacking: For difficult encounters, it is wise to have at least one Pokémon you are willing to sacrifice in order to switch to a better one. Recommended Pokémon to be sacked are: ones with weak base stats, ones whose type is shared by a more powerful teammate, or ones who could have a replacement caught in an upcoming place.
• Play Around The Crit: Being aware if your Pokémon is in danger of being taken out by a critical hit is key to avoiding unnecessary deaths. Generation I has a critical hit damage multiplier between 1.5× and 1.95× depending on the level, with higher levels doing more damage. From Generations II to V, the damage dealt by a critical hit is 2× as much as a normal hit. From Generation VI onward, critical hits deal 1.5× more damage. Also, critical hits ignore stat changes, such as increased Defense with Defense Curl.
• Avoid Unnecessary Encounters: Trainers use better decision-making and have higher levels on average than wild Pokémon within the same route. Avoiding non-required trainer battles increases the chance your Pokémon will survive.
• Be Aware of Mandatory Battles: Don't trigger mandatory battles, such as rival fights, without first making sure your team is fully healed and properly leveled.
• Don't Underlevel: There is no reason to have an under-leveled Pokémon during important battles. Even if adhering to Gym Leader level restrictions, make sure to have your team at the level cap before you challenge the Leader.
• Protect the Important Ones: Be aware of which Pokémon are best suited to upcoming Gyms, and do not expose them to unnecessary risks such as fighting a strong Route trainer.
• Baiting: Trainer-owned Pokémon will choose the move that is most effective against the enemy Pokémon. As such, you can bait certain moves in order to get a free switch. A common example is having a Pokémon weak to Ground-type moves out on the field and then switch to a Pokémon that is immune to Ground moves, such as a Flying-type Pokémon or a Pokémon with Levitate.
• Generational Awareness: Be aware of changes between generations. For example: Sturdy, in Generations III and IV only, protects against one-hit knockout moves, while in Generation V onward, it protects the Pokémon from being knocked out with one hit while at full HP.
• PP Stall: Using healing moves or items (if allowed) in order to force a dangerous encounter to waste all their good moves. Typically, this is used for low-PP moves that deal large amounts of damage. If successful, this can lead to the enemy using Struggle to knock itself out.

Trivia

• So far in the original Nuzlocke comics, one first partner Pokémon of each type has been used: Treecko in Ruby, Charmander in FireRed, and Oshawott in the ongoing White challenge.
• The original Nuzlocke run through Ruby was a failure, due to the entire active team dying in the Champion battle.
• In the Nuzlocke Forums' log of successful runs, the most victorious Pokémon of all time is Gyarados, which has survived 240 recorded Champion battles at time of writing.
• The Pokémon Company strongly opposes Nuzlocking, or at least the promotion of such - former Nintendo Minute presenters Kit and Krysta claimed that when they asked for permission to make a Nuzlocke video, they were harshly reprimanded and told that Nuzlocking is "on the same level as using . . . ROM hacks".

External links

• The original Nuzlocke Comics
• The Nuzlocke Forums
• Nuzlocke discussions on Reddit

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