Ansha's Donuts in Pokemon Legends ZA DLC explained

Ansha's Donuts are part of the Pokemon Legends ZA DLC, Mega Dimension, used to access the Hyperspace Distortions via Hoopla. You craft these Donuts with berries given to Ansha, and depending on what you give her, can unlock all kinds of special Donuts that grant you bonuses and extended time in those outer realms. Below I'll explain everything you need to know about the Pokemon ZA Donuts system, including the best ones, the recipes of how to make the special ones that unlock the legendary encounters, and what the different stats mean.

What are the best Donuts in Pokemon Legends ZA DLC?

Right now it seems as though the best Donuts in the Pokemon Legends: Z-A DLC that Ansha can make with the berries you give her are those with the highest possible Level Boost, Calorie Count and Flavour Score.

Otherwise, as you enter the late phase of the DLC, the best options are bespoke Donuts that match your needs. For example, if you're going into a combat area, Spicy and Bitter donuts are highly beneficial, as they boost your attack and defense. If you're going into a Wild Zone to catch Pokemon, then Fresh and Sweet Donuts will help. You can find the full list of Flavors and Powers below, so you can craft special donuts to help.

Ansha's Donut stats explained

When you give berries to Ansha, they impact several different stats that then go to inform what happens when you use them on a Distortion later on. Here are all the stats and what they mean:

• Level Boost: Temporarily increases the level of your team when you enter a Distortion. The higher the boost, the more powerful your Pokemon will be.
• Donut Energy/Calories: Increases the amount of time you can spend in the Distortion before you're forced to leave. The higher the Calorie count, the more time you can spend there.
• Flavour Score: Flavor scores are graded with 1-5 stars, and act as a multiplier to the Level Boost and Calorie count. The better the flavor score, the better both other stats become.
• Flavor Profile: A five-point graph representing the different flavors, informed by what berries you use: Spicy, Sweet, Sour, Bitter and Fresh.
• Flavor Powers: Random modifiers that impact small elements of Hyperspace gameplay. These seem to occur more on Donuts with high scores in one particular flavor (a spicy donut, a sweet donut, etc).

Donut Flavors and Powers

If your Donut has a high number attributed to certain flavors (if it's especially Sweet, Spicy, Sour, Fresh or Bitter), it can get random buffs and perks that help in your encounter. Different flavors can trigger the following kinds of powers:

• Spicy (Red)
  • Attack Power: Increases your Pokemons' Attack
  • Move Power: Increases the damage of a certain type of Move (Grass, Electric, Water, etc)
  • Sp. Atk Power: Increases your Pokemons' Special Attack
  • Speed Power: Increases your Pokemons' Speed
• Sweet (Pink)
  • Alpha Power: Increases chance of encountering Alpha Pokemon
  • Sparkling Power: Increases chance of encountering Shiny Pokemon
  • Humungo Power: Increases chance of encountering Big Pokemon
  • Teensy Power: Increases chance of encountering Small Pokemon
• Bitter (Blue)
  • Defense Power: Increases your Pokemons' Defense
  • Resistance Power: Decreases damage taken from a certain type of Move (Grass, Electric, Water, etc)
  • Sp. Defense Power: Increases your Pokemons' Special Defense
• Fresh (Green)
  • Capture Power: Increases odds of catching Pokemon
  • Encounter Power: Increases number of Wild Pokemon
• Sour (Yellow)
  • Big Haul Power: Get more items than normal
  • Item Power: Increases chance of finding certain kinds of items, depending on Power
  • Mega Charge Power: Gain Mega Power faster
  • Mega Conservation Power: Mega Evolution lasts longer when activated

Of course, what power you get is random within the flavor type. So a Fresh Donut might get either Capture or Encounter power, but you can't control which one.

All special Donut recipes

At certain times for missions and side quests in Mega Dimension, you'll have to make special Donuts from recipes. Keep in mind that you cannot make these special Donuts until the Recipe is specifically mentioned, even if you otherwise fulfil the criteria. Once you have the recipe, go to Ansha and tell her you specifically want to make a certain special recipe with the new dialogue option.

Still, if you need a refresher, here's all the special Donut recipes you'll need to know, and what encounters they unlock. They need to meet at least the following numbers, though it's fine if they exceed them.

• Bad Dreams Cruller (Darkrai)
  • 310 Sweet
  • 310 Sour
  • 100 Spicy
  • 40 Bitter
  • 40 Fresh
• Delta Old-Fashioned Donut (Rayquaza)
  • 390 Fresh
  • 340 Sour
  • 120 Sweet
  • 40 Spicy
  • 40 Bitter
• Alpha Old-Fashioned Donut (Kyogre)
  • 370 Fresh
  • 210 Sour
  • 180 Bitter
  • 50 Sweet
  • 50 Spicy
• Omega Old-Fashioned Donut (Groudon)
  • 260 Sweet
  • 260 Fresh
  • 160 Spicy
  • 160 Sour
  • 20 Bitter
• Plasma-Glazed Donut (Zeraora)
  • 400 Sour
  • 280 Bitter
  • 200 Spicy
  • 40 Sweet
  • 40 Fresh

Any combination of Berries that meets these criteria should work - as long as the stats are matched, you should successfully complete the recipe itself.

If you're still yet to start actually playing Mega Dimension, check out our guide on how to start the Pokemon Legends ZA DLC!

© GamesRadar+. Not to be reproduced without permission.