Top 5 Pokémon Mystery Dungeon Duos

Long ago, in a different world where the influence of human intervention was nonexistent, legends of the world being saved from impending demise had risen within the rifts of time and space. For some of us who are fans of the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series, these games are both the darkest and most heartwarming games of the Pokémon franchise. But we shouldn't forget that this spin-off, created by Spike Chunsoft with Gamefreak's approval, also introduced us fans to a new realm of gameplay in the vein of Rogue and arguably one of the most popular Pokémon Spin-offs. With the recent Japanese announcement of Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon, this article celebrates the duos that saved their world and the stories that they gave to us PMD fans. To welcome the upcoming sequel, here are my top 5 favorite Pokémon Hero and Partner duos throughout the entire series.

This article will mostly focus on the duos' matchmaking through my observations of them as memorable romantic couples or best-friends-forever partners while including their performance in the dungeons they go through during the main storyline. The Wiiware version of PMD and post-game content of all three existing Pokémon Mystery Dungeon Sagas will be excluded. A big warning to all readers:

Dungeon Efficiency: Quick at finishing off enemies, lots of handy status moves, lots of type coverage from just Fire and Electric attacks, IQ skills that match their offensive capabilities, and the ability to walk on lava if you’re Vulpix.

Dungeon Weaknesses: Pikachu only learns attacks from two types naturally (Electric and Normal), Vulpix learns powerful attacks at level 24, they share a weakness to Ground-type attacks, certain weather conditions weaken one while buffing the other (notably rain and sun), and neither of them like taking very strong hits from stronger Pokémon (especially upon finishing the first arc of Explorers).

Struggles in the following locations: Foggy Forest, Steam Cave, Amp Plains, Northern Desert, Quicksand Cave, Hidden Land, and Dark Crater.

Any fans that began from the first generation will easily recognize these two non-starter Pokémon that are popular even to this day, even while other Pokémon compete for the spots of favorite Electric- and Fire-type. So why not have both as a hero and partner in this series? You bet I want to. While most players like having these two as a couple or as a bromance duo, I honestly see them as best of friends in a sisterly romance kind of way. Besides being popular for both girls and boys, these two prefer finishing off enemies in just a hit or two. A notable example is that both can learn Quick Attack. What is also notable is that both can learn a line-of-sight move and a room-range move in the forms of Flamethrower (line-of-sight) and Discharge (room-range) for Vulpix and Pikachu respectively which means the player will always have a helping hand from their partner offensively. As in the main series games, both Pokémon are fragile and dislike other hard hitting Pokémon. As such, be careful when you climb Mt. Bristle because Starly can easily pick off Pikachu before she can use Thundershock early on. Once you explore dungeons with Ground-, Dragon-, or Fire-types, or dungeons infested with Monster Houses, get ready to pack lots of items just to survive. Due to their positive traits, having these two Pokémon in Explorers is a popular classic duo that holds high popularity while being effective in exploring the numerous dungeons of the PMD universe.

Dungeon Efficiency: Skitty can learn a lot of TMs, Phanpy can possibly get any item for free, Odor Sleuth remedies the Ghost-type's immunity to Normal, Phanpy can tank lots of hits with its Electric resistance along with its immunity to sandstorms, Skitty has a decent support movepool (most notably Assist), and both belong to IQ groups with incredible IQ Skill lists (Group E and G respectively).

Dungeon Weaknesses: Skitty’s attacks won't have type coverage due to Normalize, Phanpy only has one useful attack he can learn naturally, Phanpy struggles heavily in lots of dungeons in the second arc, and Phanpy's Earthquake makes him extremely useful but comes with the potential of friendly fire.

Struggles in the following locations: Craggy Coast, Crystal Cave, Chasm Cave, Dark Hill, Sealed Ruins, Deep Dusk Forest, Brine Cave, Temporal Tower, Sky Peak (All Levels), Blizzard Island, Crevice Cave, Surrounded Sea, Miracle Sea, Dark Crater.

Continuing the trend of four-legged duos, the other duo that comes to my mind would be Phanpy and Skitty, which represents the classic match of "blue for boys and pink for girls." Unlike the sisterly-love duo of Vulpix and Pikachu, these two have a higher challenge curve compared to other pairings because Skitty's Normalize is detrimental to the coverage of her attacks. The only things that make this duo function come from Phanpy learning Rollout (which is a broken move in this game), being durable to physical attacks, and having a decent Attack stat paired with his Normal- type moves. In return, however, so many dungeons in the main storyline on Explorers of Sky are unkind to the little elephant, and Skitty can only help so much as a partner. What makes it worse is that Skitty is frail and has little to separate herself from the other Normal-type starters. However, these two hold great IQ skills from start to finish of the main storyline and post-game compared to the other candidates here (only shared by Vulpix in Skitty’s case). If you give both Pokémon enough Gummis and increase their IQ a lot, Skitty becomes a surprisingly good attacker while Phanpy becomes durable enough to take on Pokémon and Monster Houses consistently. The lovely theme of these two is starting really low on the bracket and eventually becoming strong towards the end of the main arc and throughout the post-game. This lovely couple works for those who want a tough challenge on the game.

Dungeon Efficiency: Axew covers most of Snivy's type problems, both Pokémon are durable, Axew can easily deal with other Dragon-types if played correctly, and Axew, as a partner, easily conquers the last three dungeons of the main story.

Dungeon Weaknesses: Most Pokémon they'll encounter throughout the game don't favor Snivy, and both dislike facing Steel- and Ice-types.

Struggles in the following locations: Great Glacier, Glacier Underpass, Glacier Palace Eastern Spire, Glacier Palace Western Spire, Glacier Palace Great Spire, and Worldcore (If Snivy is the partner).

Though most PMD fans agree that Gates to Infinity is the game for beginners, if there is a duo that can help a gamer who is new to the Rogue-like genre, the combination of Axew and Snivy fits the bill. Just to get the little juicy stuff out of the way, the thing that I like about this duo comes from a design perspective of their evolution line. Axew’s line has themes of warrior knights in a draconian form that many will fear, while Snivy’s line has a regal, and somewhat kinky, snake princess form admired and envied by other Grass-types. In the dungeon-trekking department, Axew dominates just about everything in the main campaign. Snivy, on the other hand, has so many issues with most dungeons and Pokémon that she encounters. Keep in mind that some Pokémon from previous dungeons get recycled in the next dungeon and equipped with higher levels or an evolved form. However, her flaws get mitigated through her decent longevity with HP-restoring moves, such as Mega Drain and Leech Seed, and Defense-raising, particularly Coil. The reason her notable flaws can be set aside is because, throughout most of the main story, revolving the journey around a plot-relevant location gives this duo supporting characters to aid them within dungeons. When it comes to type match-up, Steel- and Ice-types can hold them back until Axew gets a Fighting-type move. If Snivy here is the hero, however, the challenge can be quite demanding due to her having plenty of type weaknesses, but it is manageable for a veteran player. To shorten their description, this duo offers the player a choice of beating the game easily as young draconic knight Axew or challenging themselves as royal princess Snivy.

Dungeon Efficiency: Their combination of naturally learned moves gives them great offensive and defensive utility in most dungeons, Charmander and Squirtle can walk through lava and water terrain respectively, both heroes can learn a line-of-sight attack naturally (Flamethrower and Hydro Pump), and both Pokémon can learn very valuable TM moves if TMs can be afforded early in the game.

Dungeon Weaknesses: Because Charmander learns Dragon Rage at level 43, making that move rather useless for completing the storyline, both Pokémon have few type coverage moves during the main storyline, neither can learn room-range moves to deal with monster houses (so they are reliant on Wonder Orbs for those situations), and Dragon-types make them struggle until Squirtle learns Ice Beam.

Struggles in the following locations: Mt. Thunder, Magma Cavern, and Sky Tower.

If Vulpix, Pikachu, and Eevee are the top of the non-starter department in terms of popularity, any Pokémon fan who began in Gen I will always remember the Kanto starters. In this spin-off’s case, Charmander and Squirtle is the duo that often gets picked in the past two installments either as bromance or a couple. But just to give the Rescue saga some love, I’ll focus on their pros and cons as a bromantic couple in the first PMD. The most notable trait this duo has is that Squirtle can cross through water while Charmander can cross lava terrain. However, Charmander can't cross water and Squirtle can't cross lava. That capability enables them to get items that are out of reach or dropped in the water. Yes, it is obvious that other pairings of the same typing can also do it too. Unlike Skitty, the TM moves they can learn will not change type, which gives them the coverage moves they might need. For Charmander, just being able to learn SmokeScreen can ease a fight against bosses. Like Phanpy and Skitty, this duo presents itself with a glass character and a tank character. Unlike the sisterly couple above, this bromance doesn't share a single type weakness and is capable of covering each other offensively, type-coverage wise. Only Dragon-types hinder this duo until Charmander gets a Rock-type move for some Dragon-type Pokémon or Squirtle learns Ice Beam. Of the many bosses in Rescue’s main storyline, only Mt. Thunder, Magma Cavern, and Sky Pillar give this duo some trouble if not handled properly. Of course, getting X-Ray Specs gives these two long distance sniping capabilities if they learn moves such as Flamethrower, Water Pulse, and Hydro Pump. However, these two hate fighting Monster Houses. If Vulpix and Pikachu often get feminine love, Charmander and Squirtle will always have their masculine fans chanting their names for both their legacy and their great dungeon adventures.

Dungeon Efficiency: Both can learn moves that give them nearly perfect type coverage, both have access to a lot of useful TMs (more so for Riolu), Eevee's Helping hand makes dungeon battling much easier, only Ghost-types bother the duo (but both have Bite from the start in Explorers of Sky), Adaptability makes Eevee a great attacker (especially with Quick Attack), and Riolu is a "jack-of-all-stats" type of hero.

Dungeon Weaknesses: Force Palm and Quick Attack are Riolu's only viable level-up moves (though Copycat and Odor Sleuth are honorable mentions), Eevee cannot tank hits, Riolu doesn't get the benefit of steadfast due to Inner Focus and struggles with some plot-relevant bosses, both strongly dislike getting burned, and Eevee makes for a terrible partner due to Run Away activating at 50% HP, giving her a high chance of getting picked off by enemies (unless you play Eevee as a heroine).

Struggles in the following locations: Chasm Cave, Dark Hill, Treeshroud Forest, Temporal Tower, Spacial Rift, and Dark Crater.

Of the many pairings in Explorers, I find this couple to be one of the best one could have in the game both as friend-to-romance couple characters and effective dungeon trekkers. If Eevee is the main heroine, she can rely on Riolu easily if things get too tough for her. Conversely, Eevee can assist Riolu greatly if Riolu is the hero as long as you don’t let her HP drop too low. Let’s keep in mind that these two non-starter Pokémon are just as popular as the starters themselves. This duo shares most of the positive traits from Vulpix + Pikachu and Skitty + Phanpy. Riolu may be a glass cannon, but in the first part of the storyline, he has decent durability with much better Attack power (contested only by Shinx for non-starter standards), and Eevee outclasses the rest of the Normal-type heroines or heroes and partners in every category. Their IQ groups can closely contend with Skitty + Phanpy in terms of efficiency and effectiveness early on. Though they only use a few moves throughout the main storyline (Force Palm + Bite + Quick attack for Riolu, and Helping Hand + Tackle + Quick attack + Bite for Eevee), those few moves are all they need. What's more, this duo can be flexible in the role that you assign to them thanks to their movepools and the IQ skills they can learn throughout the game. As such, they have an optional difficulty curve depending on who you play as the main hero or heroine, like Axew + Snivy. On the flipside, in Dark Crater, both Pokémon would hate battling there for a while due to the amount of strong Pokémon, like the middle evolution and final evolution of Fire-type starters from the first four generation, which can easily overwhelm them. And if none of the two has a special attack that it can consistently spam, burns will cripple them in lengthy dungeons with large floors. Both Pokémon rely on their physical moves most of the time throughout the main story. Thus, if you want your game experience to be touched by the game's friendship and romantic aspects while carrying great and reliable dungeon exploration skills, give these two canines a whirl.

Honorable Mentions

A. Chimchar and Piplup (Explorers)
B. Oshawott and Pikachu (Gates to Infinity)
C. Chikorita and Squirtle (Rescue Team and Explorers)

I give these three pairings a special mention due to their presence in trailers and short anime specials. Chimchar and Piplup are known from their two-episode Pokémon Mystery Dungeon anime special for their contrasting personalities during battles. It’s even shown during their quest to get a Gabite Scale from Gabite himself just to help Shinx's younger sister. Amidst the bromance, if one gets to use them in an actual PMD game, one can find a duo that can compete with the other Fire and Water duos. Because Chimchar can learn Fury Swipes (multi-hit moves are very powerful in the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series), having him as the lead hero makes the game much easier than it would be otherwise. For Piplup, however, the niche he has over Squirtle is his natural ability to learn Drill Peck; he also has Fury Attack, and can learn line-of-sight range moves a few levels earlier than Squirtle.

For Oshawott and Pikachu, their short moment of popularity during the trailer of the game attracted some shippers for this pair before the US release removed female partners. So, we will look at it from the Japanese version's perspective, where we can at least have our female Pikachu here date Oshawott. If one attempts to use this pair in Gates to Infinity, this duo ends up in the middle of the pack in terms of difficulty for new players. If one looks carefully at the enemies one will encounter throughout the story, there aren't a lot of Water- or Flying-types for Pikachu to deal with. Moreover, about 80% of the time, one will find Grass-type Pokémon throughout the main campaign save for certain dungeons; Grass is a troublesome type for these two. A neat thing about these two is that being under rain vastly boosts their performance while sun greatly hampers their attacks. While Pikachu is still the same as it was with Vulpix in Explorers, Oshawott’s toolkit makes the other Water-type candidates jealous. It also has a colorful movepool, including long-range STAB attacks in Water Pulse, Hydro Pump, and Aqua Jet, strong coverage moves in Fury Cutter and Revenge, and a powerful Attack-boosting move in Swords Dance. Oshawott is Gates' best example of a strong offensive and defensive utility Pokémon that contests Axew's and Tepig's movepools in terms of raw power and type coverage, respectively.

If you are wondering why I have paired Squirtle with Chikorita this time, it is because the very first PMD anime special showed this rescue team as a trio instead of a duo. Originally, Chikorita and Charmander were the founders of their team before Squirtle joined the crew to save Pichu's big brother, Pikachu. So if you ask me, I always love Chikorita as a female character, so why not pair her with Squirtle instead? Well, the results are interesting so far. If you are to have these two in Rescue Team, you’re playing a very defensive adventure. Chikorita herself is a natural support character throughout the game with Squirtle acting as the bulky attacker. If you are playing as Chikorita, however, players who love to recruit every Pokémon they can get will love her a lot due to her access to the "Fast Friend" IQ Skill. So be sure to give her lots of Gummis. The notable flaw of this duo however is their lack of power in their attacks. This duo struggles in Rescue Team, while they hold their ground better in Explorers, save for a few dungeons.

Potential Hero and Partner combinations for Kalos Starters in Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon

With just about all of the non-starters (save Pikachu and Riolu) from Rescue Team, Gates to Infinity, and Explorers of Sky out of the list, the Kalos starters take their place. While I know it is sad for me and others who love Eevee, Shinx, Phanpy, Skitty, Vulpix, Axew, Psyduck, Cubone, Meowth, Muchlax, and Machop, let us look on the good side. At least the choices are not just five characters from Gates to Infinity (Chunsoft finally learned from their mistakes). So let us look first at the Kalos Pokémon and their possible dates and see how each of the three can perform individually. Note that the movesets suggested here are not guaranteed ways to win the main game. Consider these thoughts with a grain of salt.

Chespin — From what we know so far in the Pokédex, he can actually dish out damage while tanking physical attacks quite nicely. Because he can learn two multi-hitting moves in Rollout and Pin Missile, veterans will pick Chespin the most for this reason, in addition to the inherent challenges of being a Grass-type. Don't forget that he learns very good physical attacks such as Seed Bomb and Wood Hammer. Add Bulk Up and Pain Split to the list, and towards the end of the main storyline, he can become very durable and hard-hitting in long dungeons and boss battles. But there is also the option of using him as a tank with Leech Seed, Bulk Up, Pain Split, and a Grass-type move. I can see him becoming the most flexible hero or partner of the Kalos starters. Players who love hard-hitting duos without having two glass cannons may appreciate him. Water-type starters such as Totodile appreciate his skills and survivability. Powerful, frail partners or heroes such as Pikachu, Charmander, Cyndaquil, and Riolu, and a few others would love him on their side. A theoretical bonus would be Chespin having Quick Guard or Synthesis if the player picked him as a hero or heroine if unique egg moves from the main series games get implemented.

Fennekin — For any Smogon RU players who remember Delphox, she was S Rank in X and Y before other Pokémon took over her place as the best Fire-type in RU. But let’s try to see how her baby form, Fennekin, might fare in the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon environment. She can learn a line-of-sight attack in the form of Psybeam early on, and then she learns Flamethrower later on. With most of her level-up attacks giving her plenty of type coverage offensively, she's glass cannon material. While she can learn support moves, other Pokémon are better clerics than her. You may consider having a bulky Grass-type such as Turtwig, Chikorita, or Snivy to deal with the Rock-, Water-, and Ground-types that hinder her progress. In return, Fennekin can stop the Ice-, Bug-, Grass-, and Steel-types that hamper her partner. Water-types can also work if you want your partner to be both offensive and durable. If you hate Dark-types, Riolu is a decent option. Unlike the other Fire-type starters, her Psychic-type attacks can easily beat many Dragon-types, save for a few such as the Hydreigon line. Theoretically, she might get Mystical Flare or Dazzling Gleam as a bonus move if you pick her as the heroine from the start.

Froakie — Finally, we have ninja apprentice Froakie on the roster. Do I need to say more just how amazing her final evolution is, both in the main series and in Super Smash Bros 4? Just about all of us know it already. Being the most iconic starter of the current generation, she is a glass cannon like Fennekin. However, she has much more coverage in her movepool than her fiery starter sister does. Also, there are so many TM moves that you can add onto her moveset throughout the game. Although I want to suggest movesets for her, it will take me nearly forever to do so. It’s all up to you to build her dungeon-trekking set when the new PMD is released. While she can end fights quickly, she cannot last long in dungeons. Hence, you want bulky Grass-types to aid her such as Chespin, Turtwig, and Bulbasaur. If you want partners that can hit quickly, Treecko or Pikachu may be your best bet as her dating and dungeon partner. If we are to follow the precedent of Explorers of Sky, Froakie may even get a special move, possibly Icy Wind.

Conclusion

With a new Pokémon Mystery Dungeon game coming out next year, we may look forward to a new adventure in a new world with a new story. Even if a lot of us question whether this upcoming game can contest Explorers, we can only wait to see if the next adventure will be just as memorable, romantic, and satisfying as possible.

If you could become one of the Pokémon shown on the trailer, what Pokémon would you be? And who will be your dating dungeon partner?