Pokemusings, week 16

Natures have negligible impact in beating the single-player modes in the Pokemon role-playing games, but they are an enormous facet of competitive play. Longtime competitive Pokemon trainers know how vital having the right nature is, but those new to the scene might not know enough about them. In this week's edition of Pokemusings, we're going to look at various natures and tell you how to use them to your advantage. To start, take a look at this nifty chart the GamesRadar artisans have constructed.

As you can see, there are 25 natures a Pokemon can have. They affect the way a Pokemon's stats are distributed as it levels up. The natures with orange boxes are neutral, which means a Pokemon's stats will develop normally. The other natures distribute more points to one stat while decreasing another. On the left-hand side of the chart you'll see the stat a nature boosts, while the stat it subtracts from is listed at the top. Out of the 25 possible natures, there are only a few that you actually want.

First off, neutral natures are rubbish - you don't want them. They don't have any detriments, but they also don't have any benefits. You also don't want any natures that take away from Speed, Defense, or Special Defense. There's absolutely no reason to make your Pokemon slower or more susceptible to damage. This leaves you with eight natures that are desirable. These eight natures help your Pokemon take full advantage of its strengths and help it become the best it can possibly be. Knowing the right nature for your Pokemon's traits and moves will give it a big edge in competitive play. Now click on the next page to find out which natures are right for your Pokemon!