Is there a "meta" in this game?

[SenMithrarin85]

Like in pokemon where some monsters are great and others are useless?

[Zagaran]

There are no bad monsters, so much as some are more specialized than others in terms of stats. But the specialized ones tend to have something keeping it from being op.

The real meta comes down to how you build said monsters, as the typing influences what move stickers you can place on. There are broken builds, yes, but you will not be able to do that until post game- if not close to it.

That said, even the broken builds have weaknesses that keep them from being all powerful- if not completely backfiring on you against certain typing. So never forget to experiment and expand your horizons.

[SenMithrarin85]

Originally posted by Zagaran:

There are no bad monsters, so much as some are more specialized than others in terms of stats. But the specialized ones tend to have something keeping it from being op.

The real meta comes down to how you build said monsters, as the typing influences what move stickers you can place on. There are broken builds, yes, but you will not be able to do that until post game- if not close to it.

That said, even the broken builds have weaknesses that keep them from being all powerful- if not completely backfiring on you against certain typing. So never forget to experiment and expand your horizons. :winter2019happyyul:

thanks, man. Any tips for early captures?

[Zagaran]

Originally posted by SenMithrarin85:

Originally posted by Zagaran:

There are no bad monsters, so much as some are more specialized than others in terms of stats. But the specialized ones tend to have something keeping it from being op.

The real meta comes down to how you build said monsters, as the typing influences what move stickers you can place on. There are broken builds, yes, but you will not be able to do that until post game- if not close to it.

That said, even the broken builds have weaknesses that keep them from being all powerful- if not completely backfiring on you against certain typing. So never forget to experiment and expand your horizons.

thanks, man. Any tips for early captures?

Just have fun, take your time, and go with what you like in terms of appearance.

That said, save the special cassette tapes for the bootlegs (this games shiny,) as they tend to be harder to catch than regular- and generally offer a much higher chance at getting better quality stickers you could use as is, or with others.

If you need more specifics from getting overworld abilities or evolution via certain moves being equipped to certain monsters, Gym Leader Ed on youtube can explain that better than i ever could.

[Renoehe]

Some monsters have really specific gimmicks but most are viable in some way once fully evolved. Probably if there was competitive play you'd see some of the more needlessly complex mons (like Fungogh) drop off or be completely built around, but even then you could make it work. Right now it's PvE only so there's no need for tiers. Plus, rare moves/bootleg typings can also vastly buff a mon's playstyle and make it way more useful. You just gotta keep your eyes peeled for mons who you can optimize to their fullest with the moves you got.

[dingobean]

The community hasn't bothered to make a fully fleshed out tier list because the lack of a pvp mode creates little incentive to. I'm not bored enough to make a tier list, but I do have some rules of thumb I use to filter out monsters for my team that I don't mind sharing. I generally only have fully evolved mons taking an active role in battles, because they have higher stats, the maximum number of skill slots for passives, and bigger move pools than their pre-evolved forms. There are four standout skills that I look out for, and if a monster has none of them, then they better have a very good gimmick to make up for it.

The first skill is echolocation, which is a self-buff that grants multi-target status and it auto-casts for free at the start of or upon switching in. Being able to cast two shields, heal the party, debuff all enemies, or attack all enemies in a single turn is insanely useful and AP efficient. Some notable characters that can use Echolocate are Cat-5, Arkidd, Mothmanic, Sirenade, Khepri, Khufo, and Smogmamog. Broadcast is the same thing as Echolocate but worse because it doesn't self cast at the start of battle, but it's still better than nothing and you can make it auto cast with the custom starter passive.

The second skill is Mind Meld. Passives are KING in this game, and being able to share moves and passives between monsters with the press of a button allows for some crazy strategies. Here's an example, give Khufo mind meld, the anti-ghost passive, echolocate, breathing technique (defense against berserk debuff), and two high damage moves paired with automation so that they have the chance to cast for free at the end of each turn. If Khufo uses mind meld on turn 1, then both he and his ally will have two chances to cast high damage moves for free at the end of every turn, and they will be able to target ghosts and be protected from berserk status. Khufo will share his ability to cast echolocate to his ally, even if they ordinarily can't, and in exchange Khufo can use any damage or support moves his ally has since he has none. Casting AoE Headshot/gear shear twice in a row each turn is beyond busted.

Third skill is Hypnotise. Sleep is the nastiest status effect in the game because it makes the target useless for three turns. 50% chance to proc and a measily 2 AP to use makes it worth having a monster just spam this move every turn, doubly so if they have echolocate/broadcast because now they can target all enemies.

Fourth skill is AP boost. not having the AP to cast the moves you want when you need them is incredibly frustrating. This move not only grants you an extra AP each turn, but it can also be used to dispell AP drain status with a turn count of 3 or less, assuming your AP boost sticker is stock and doesn't have +1 turn duration.