Some of those wrapping up their playthroughs of Pokemon Scarlet & Violet are looking for the next challenge. For some players, that next step is VGC-ranked multiplayer.
However, seriously interacting with Pokemon Scarlet and Violet’s multiplayer involves a bit of prep work to get your Pokemon up to reasonable stat levels.
But for those ready to go with a couple of boxes full of top-notch Pokemon, you may need to return to the drawing table as the VGC has announced its rules for ranked matches, including banned Pokemon.
What Are the VGC Rules in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet?
The VGC rules for Pokemon Scarlet & Violet include the number of allowed Pokemon in battles, bans, and match timers. All Pokemon are set to Level 50, and no Pokemon on the team can have the same Held items.
However, these are the Series 1 rules and might change. A Series is a period of regulations for Ranked Battles and Competitions that evolve with the game.
- “Double Battle” allows you to choose four Pokemon from a team of six for 2v2.
- “Single Battle” allows you to choose three Pokmon from a team of six for 1v1.
- There are four match timers
- Total Time: 20 minutes for the match and setup
- Player Time: Seven minutes total for all your turns
- Preview Time: 90 seconds to pick out your team
- Turn Time: 45 seconds per each turn
- All Pokemon are set to Level 50.
- No two Pokemon in a team can hold the same Held item.
- Notable Pokemon like the legendary Pokemon Koraidon and Miraidon are banned, as well as some Pokemon found in endgame locations like Area Zero (all the list of banned Pokemon in the section below).
- The four legendary Pokemon earned by pulling up the ominous stakes around Paldea are also banned.
- Only Pokemon normally available in Pokemon Scarlet or Violet are allowed in VGC battles.
- So you can utilize the Pokemon Home app when it launches in Spring 2023, and if a stored Pokemon is also found in the Paldea region, you can use it in VGC battles. However, you cannot bring to battle any other mons that are not native to Paldea.
Each season runs for about a month, with Season 1 beginning Dec. 2, 2022, to Jan. 4, 2023.
Banned Pokemon in VGC Ranked Matches
- Brute Bonnet
- Chi-Yu
- Chien-Pao
- Flutter Mane
- Great Tusk
- Iron Bundle
- Iron Hands
- Iron Jugulis
- Iron Moth
- Iron Thorns
- Iron Treads
- Iron Valiant
- Koraidon
- Miraidon
- Roaring Moon
- Sandy Shocks
- Scream Tail
- Slither Wing
- Ting-Lu
- Wo-Chien
- Black Tera Charizard
To What Battle Modes Do VGC Rules Apply
VGC rules only apply to the “Ranked Battles” and “Online Competition” multiplayer modes in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet.
If you don’t want to follow the VGC rules, play the “Casual Battles” mode or play “Link Battles” with friends or in unofficial competitive play.
Link battles are accessed through the Poke Portal by sharing or receiving a link code to play together with a friend.
How To Play VGC Matches in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet
To play VGC Ranked Battles and Competitions, go to the Poke Portal and open up “Battle Stadium” to select one or the other.
“Online Competitions” are currently unavailable, and Nintendo has not announced when they will be or what exact requirements are necessary to join.
If you want to play VGC Ranked Battles, follow the steps below.
- Open your menu with the “X” button.
- Then with the “Left Stick” navigate the menu to highlight “Poke Portal.” To confirm, press “A”
- From here, scroll down to “Battle Stadium” and select this option.
- Once you are online, agree to the notice and confirm.
- If it does not automatically connect to the internet, press the “L” button.
- Select “Ranked Battles.”
- Choose “Single Battle” or “Double Battle.”
- Select your “Battle Team.”
- Then enter the four Pokemon for a Double Battle or three for a Single Battle in the order you want them to fight.
- Select “Done” when you are finished and get ready to battle.
What Are VGC Ranked Rewards in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet?
The VGC-ranked rewards In Pokemon Scarlet & Violet include in-game items, TMs, and League Points, earned depending on your tier at the end of Season 1.
In VGC Ranked Battles, the tiers you are placed in depend on your win-loss ratio.
GameFreak does not detail the system in-depth, but it requires you to finish at least one game in “Single Battles” or “Double Battles” to qualify.
“Single Battles” and “Double Battles” have separate ranks but have the same rewards. So you could earn double rewards by qualifying in both ranked modes.
All VGC Ranked Tier Rewards
VGC Ranked Rewards are split into the Beginner, Poke Ball, Great Ball, Ultra Ball, and Master Ball Tier. Each tier has its own rewards.
The lowest Beginner Tier has the least valuable rewards, while the highest Master Ball tier has the most valuable ones.
- Master Ball Tier
- TM171 (Tera Blast) x1
- Gold Bottle Cap x1
- Bottle Cap x3
- Ability Capsule x1
- 100,000 League Points
- Ultra Ball Tier
- TM171 (Tera Blast) x1
- Gold Bottle Cap x1
- Bottle Cap x1
- Ability Capsule x1
- 60000 League Points
- Great Ball Tier
- TM171 (Tera Blast) x1
- Bottle Cap x1
- 30000 League Points
- Poke Ball Tier
- 10,000 League Points
- Beginner Tier
- 5,000 League Points
Bottle Caps and the Ability Capsules are two expensive but helpful items to help build a great Pokemon team via Hyper Training.
To learn how to EV train and how to Hyper Train your Pokemon to get your Pokemon ready for ranked multiplayer, follow our guides.
What Is the VGC
The VGC, the Video Game Championship, is the umbrella term and organization that The Pokemon Company International uses to conduct Ranked Battles and championships in each mainline game.
The VGC is the official competitive scene for the Pokemon series and has its own rulesets that change over a mainline game’s lifespan.
There are other unofficial competitive scenes with their own rulesets, like Smogon.
Smogon holds matches and tournaments either in the Pokemon Showdown battle simulator game or through Link Battles and has different bans and limits per match.
What Are VGC Matches
VGC matches are in-game matches held through the “Ranked Battles” or “Online Competition” modes in the Pokemon Scarlet and Violet’s Battle Stadium.
A player must knock out all the opponent’s Pokemon to win. Or, after 20 minutes, whoever has the most amount of HP per Pokemon wins.
The matches are either 2v2 “Double Battles” with 4 Pokemon per player or 1v1 “Single Battles” with 3 Pokemon per player.
Official VGC Regional or World Championships might have additional requirements like the signature best out of three matches, where a player must win twice against an opponent.
