One of the best parts of modern Pokémon games is the ability to interact with other players around the world. In Pokémon Scarlet and Violet there's a Battle Stadium feature with casual battles, ranked battles, and soon there will also be online competitions. Here's what you need to know to start battling!
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet: How to unlock the Battle Stadium
You will need to complete the opening tutorial before the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Battle Stadium becomes available. You must also have a Nintendo Switch Online Membership to access this online feature.
Once you've gotten through the opening tutorial, you can open up your menu by pressing the X button and select the Poké Portal. Next, select the Battle Stadium option toward the bottom.
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet: Casual Battles
These battles are the perfect place to test out a team or strategy before you go into the ranked battles. When you do a casual battle in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet it doesn't effect your ranking and there are no limits on which Pokémon you're allowed to use. Each Pokémon on your team must be a different species and no two team members can hold the same held item.
You can choose between doing single or double battles in Casual Battles mode. Pokémon on either side will cap out at Level 50 so if your team members are higher than that in your game they will only be Level 50 during battles. You could get paired with someone who has maxed out their fighters' stats so come prepared with your best EV-trained Pokémon.
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet: Ranked battles
This is where heavy competitors will come to play. You are connected with an online player and your results affect your rank. If you win, you go up in rank for that season. The highest rank you can get is called Max Rank, where you'll go up against similarly challenging opponents. Once a new season starts, every starts back at the beginning and must work their way up the ranks again.
You will choose either a single battle where one Pokémon of yours battles one of your opponents at a time or a double where you each have two. From your saved team, current team, or rented team you choose to battle with, pick three Pokémon in single and four in double. Once you've completed your match, a prompt will appear asking if you'd like to continue battling or quit. Results will soon be visible on Pokémon HOME when compatibility with Pokémon Scarlet and Violet becomes available.
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet: Online competitions
This feature is not yet available to select in the Battle Stadium menu but is listed as an option. According to the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet website you will be able to either have official competitions with various rules to compete for rankings or friendly competitions where you can set up your own competition rules or join someone else's session.
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet: Best Rental teams
If your Pokémon aren't at the level you want them to be or if you don't have the Pokémon you'd like out of your dream team, you can always try to rent a team from another player who has made their team available! For instance, if your friend or someone you follow online has entered their team into Rental Teams and has made the code to access them known. Here are some of the best Rental teams to use.
| Team ID (Code) | Pokémon |
|---|---|
| PDP47L | Armarouge, Maushold, Indeedee, Salamence, Flamigo, Palafin |
| UQHGS9 | Ceruledge, Grimmsnarl, Garchomp, Rotom, Sylveon, Garganacl |
| FAJ1UA | Maushold, Garchomp, Rotom, Gholdengo, Gyarados, Talonflame |
| GCU0R8 | Annihilape, Meowscarada, Sylveon, Talonflame, Rotom, Grimmsnarl |
| YM43LN | Garchomp, Tinkaton, Miraidon, Mudsdale, Eelektross, Pyroar |
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet: How to use Rental Teams
Here are the steps you'll need to take to use Rental Teams.
1. From the Battle Stadium menu, select Rental Teams at the bottom.
2. Select Borrow Battle Teams from the menu
3. Choose a spot for your rental team to save, then a keyboard will pop up for you to enter your Rental Team ID.
4. Now any time you do a battle, the rental team you've entered will be saved and available for selection.
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet: Link Battles
Battling with friends is actually part of Link Battle instead of Battle Stadium. To access it, you open the Poké Portal as if you're going to the Battle Stadium but select Link Battle instead. Once you do, there will be the option to do a single or double battle just like in ranked or casual battles. There is also the Multi Battle option, where you team up with your friend to battle another pair of trainers.
What makes Link Battle fun is that you get to choose from a variety of rule sets to customize your challenge. To make sure that you're paired with your friend, enter a link code by pressing + before you select your battle format and have your friend enter the same code.
Find your teams and battle!
We love that Pokémon Scarlet and Violet is another Pokémon game that gives players a great way to connect around the world and battle together. The options available make it so players at any level of experience can try out their skills, items, and Pokémon. Now that you know how these battles work, you'll be able to get out there and start testing your teams!
