Trainer battles
Two trainers fight with the Pokémon in their Pokébar, one Pokémon a side at a time, for at most 10 minutes. The battle is private: only the two Pokémon out attack each other. Nobody outside can interfere, and wild Pokémon leave both trainers alone while it lasts.
There are two kinds: the plain battle, for glory only, and the bet battle, where each side stakes money and items and the winner takes it all.
How to challenge
- Stand within 10 steps of the other trainer, on the same floor.
- Right-click them and choose Challenge to Battle (or Challenge to Bet Battle).
- They have 20 seconds to Accept or Decline. If you move more than 10 steps apart before they answer, the challenge is called off.
- After the accept comes the VS screen, the 3, 2, 1 countdown and Fight!. Only then do blows count.
When you cannot challenge
The game refuses the challenge (and checks everything again at the accept) if either trainer:
- is already in a battle, against another trainer or an NPC trainer;
- is mounted (dismount first; the challenged trainer may dismount before accepting);
- is in the middle of a trade;
- is inside a Gym challenge or a Mystery Dungeon;
- is in a protection zone, such as a Pokémon Center;
- has no Pokémon in the Pokébar able to battle.
The rules
- One Pokémon a side. Your Pokémon targets the opponent's Pokémon on its own; you steer it as usual.
- Switching has a wait. After sending a Pokémon into the battle, you can only switch it again 20 seconds later. A Pokémon that fainted can be replaced at once.
- Don't stand without a Pokémon out. A trainer who spends 30 seconds with no Pokémon out, while one could still battle, loses.
- No items. During the battle you cannot use Potions, Revives, Poké Balls or any other item, change your Pokébar (reordering is fine), mount, talk to NPCs, trade, or leave the spot through portals, ladders or travel. Sending out and recalling Pokémon stay open.
- Your bonuses count just as they do against wild Pokémon: Mastery, guild buffs, critical hits.
How a battle ends
| What happens | Result |
|---|---|
| A side has no Pokémon left able to battle | That side loses (both at once: draw) |
| A trainer presses Surrender | The one who surrendered loses |
| A trainer spends 30 seconds with no Pokémon out | That trainer loses |
| A trainer logs out or disconnects | That trainer loses |
| The 10 minutes run out | Draw |
| The trainers move more than 10 steps apart, change floor, or one enters a protection zone | Battle called off, draw |
The battle screen
- At the top of the screen, a card shows the battle clock and the Surrender button (the game asks you to confirm).
- Both teams show as Poké Balls: the faded ones are fainted Pokémon.
- The Switch in Ns line shows how long until you can switch Pokémon.
- A rolling Poké Ball shows beside the names of both trainers and their Pokémon, so everyone can see who is battling.
Bet battles
In a bet battle, the accept first opens the stake window for both trainers:
- Drag items from your bag onto your side and type the money you want to stake. You see your opponent's stake beside yours.
- Press Ready. Any change to either stake takes Ready off both, so nobody is held to an offer they did not see.
- When both are ready, the game holds both stakes and the battle starts.
You have 2 minutes to agree. If time runs out, someone cancels or you walk apart, nothing is staked. If neither side puts anything in, it becomes a plain battle.
What you can stake:
- money, up to what you have in the bank;
- up to 6 kinds of item, the same ones that can be sold on the Global Trade Station.
What you cannot: Pokémon, containers, items that wear out (with charges or a timer), items equipped or bound to the character, and nothing the PokeCoin Shop sells.
Who takes it: the winner takes both stakes. In a draw, each trainer gets their own back. Items arrive in your bag (in a PC box if it is full) and money in the bank. If the server goes down mid-battle, the stakes go back to their owners.
Each trainer can play one bet battle per hour, counted from the moment the stakes are held. Plain battles have no limit.
Winning, losing and fainting
- A trainer battle gives no experience and no money: the prize is the stake, when there is one.
- Your first win completes the Duelist achievement, which grants the Duelist title. See Achievements.
- Your trainer is never hit in a battle, so nobody is carried back to a Pokémon Center because of one. Pokémon that fainted stay fainted afterwards: heal them with Nurse Joy or a Revive.
- Logging out mid-battle counts as a loss, and the stake goes to your opponent.