Pokemon Legends: ZA has been out for a month now, and its Mega Dimension DLC releases in just three weeks. Although the game features 26 new Mega Evolutions in total, only a few can be obtained and used early, with the earliest being Mega Absol and the chosen starter. Most new Mega Evolutions in Pokemon Legends: ZA are locked behind story progression, post-game content or farming a lot of money and Mega Shards, essentially timed. This is especially true of the Gen 6 starters' Mega Evolutions, as they were put on hold as online game rewards one at a time, with Greninjite in Season 1, Delphoxite in Season 2, and Chesnaughtite in Season 3.
This is especially bad for Delphox and Chesnaught, as Mega Greninja became available at launch, while Mega Delphox debuted 10 days ago, and Mega Chesnaught won't arrive for another couple of weeks. Considering it was arguably the worst Gen 6 starter Pokemon when the games first came out, it might be surprising to hear that Mega Chesnaught in Pokemon Legends: ZA is actually a secret weapon to use in battles. There are several reasons for this:
- Pokemon Legends: ZA's Xerneas dominates online battles alongside Charizard, Delphox, Garchomp, Gyarados, Metagross and other beasts. Mega Chesnaught has incredible defensive stats to take hits from Xerneas very well, while boosting itself further with moves like Iron Defense and Swords Dance.
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Mega Chesnaught has a whopping 137 Attack, 172 Defense and 115 Sp. Defense, meaning it can be a walking bulwark that still deals a lot of damage. Despite his weaknesses to Fire and Fairy, Chesnaught has access to incredible cover moves, such as:
- Rock Slide – can 1-hit-KO Charizard and Mega Charizard Y
- Earthquake – amazing vs. steel-type Pokemon like Metagross and Excadrill, and Fire-types as well
- Dig – great tool against Steel and Fire mons, but also as a gap closer
- Poison Jab/Iron head – potentially lethal against Xerneas, with high EVs and IVs in Attack
- Wooden hammer/Close combat – STAB moves with 120 base powers
- Dragon claw – good to counter Dragon type Pokemon i Pokemon Legends: ZA
- Thunder Punch – great at hitting Flying critters, which can deal 4x damage to Chesnaught, and it's most likely oneshots non-mega-evolved Gyarados
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Chesnaught has access to Curse, meaning it can reduce its speed to increase its attack and defense at the same time.
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Brick Break can remove Light Screen and Reflect from opposing mons, which can greatly reduce the amount of damage they take.
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Speed is Mega Chesnaught's weak stat, but it's not necessary to succeed in online battles Pokemon Legends: ZAas it reduces cooldowns rather than determining turn order.
Compared to regular Chesnaught, its Mega Evolution gains 30 Attack, 50 Defense, and 40 Sp. Defense, and loses 20 Speed. Seeing as how Speed isn't a mandatory stat in the game at all, losing 20 points in it in favor of extra defense is a good trade-off, especially considering this makes Mega Chesnaught one of the most resilient creatures in the game overall. Since its special defense is already very high, it makes sense to use Curse on Mega Chesnaught like most Pokemon Legends: ZAthat's what the best teams do.
Pokemon Legends: ZA Finally Takes Chesnaught Full Circle
However, it's equally possible to skip Curse and Swords Dance to use four attack moves – maybe two STAB moves and two cover moves. This would need more tweaked EVs, such as points to either Defense or Special Defense, with a good amount in Attack, and the rest in HP. Either way, there are many ideal settings for the Mega Chesnaught, and it can really be an ace up its sleeve in ranked battles.
This shows an interesting trend, as Chesnaught is better in the game due to Speed being less impactful, while Aegislash is bad in Pokemon Legends: ZA as real-time combat forces it into long animations to change stance. It's unclear what role Mega Chesnaught will play, but it could very well be one of the best creatures out there, and it's coming out very soon.
- Released
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16 October 2025
- ESRB
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All 10+ / Fantasy violence, in-game purchase
