| Ability | Tier | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Intimidate | S | Lowers opposing Attack by 1 stage on switch-in. |
| Levitate | S | Immune to Ground-type moves. |
| Drought / Drizzle / Sand Stream / Snow Warning | S | Sets weather on switch-in. |
| Multiscale / Shadow Shield | S | Halves damage from attacks while at full HP. |
| Good as Gold | S | Immune to status moves. |
| Protosynthesis / Quark Drive | S | Boosts highest stat by 30% (50% for Speed) in sun / Electric Terrain / with Booster Energy. |
| Beads of Ruin / Sword of Ruin / Tablets of Ruin / Vessel of Ruin | S | Lowers all opposing Pokémon's SpDef / Def / Atk / SpA by 25%. |
| Sand Veil / Snow Cloak | B | +20% evasion in sand / snow. |
| Magic Guard | S | Immune to all indirect damage (hazards, status, weather, Life Orb). |
| Regenerator | S | Heals 33% HP on switch-out. |
| Speed Boost | S | +1 Speed at the end of each turn. |
| Adaptability | S | STAB becomes 2× instead of 1.5× (2.25× with Tera matching). |
| Tinted Lens | A | Resisted moves do 2× damage (effectively neutral). |
| Sheer Force | S | Moves with secondary effects do 30% more damage but lose the effect. |
| Strong Jaw | A | Biting moves (Crunch, Ice Fang, etc.) do 1.5× damage. |
| Mold Breaker / Turboblaze / Teravolt | A | Ignores defensive abilities like Levitate, Sturdy, Multiscale. |
| Unaware | S | Ignores opposing stat boosts when calculating damage. |
| Defiant | A | +2 Attack when any stat is lowered by opponent. |
| Supreme Overlord | S | +10% Atk/SpA per fallen ally (up to +50%). |
| Unseen Fist | A | Contact moves bypass Protect. |
How abilities work
Every Pokémon has exactly one ability active in battle. Most species have 1-2 regular abilities and 1 Hidden Ability — the slot you start with is determined at capture/hatch. You can change ability slot with an Ability Capsule (within regular slots) or Ability Patch (to/from Hidden Ability).
Abilities trigger on specific events: switch-in (Intimidate, Drizzle), being hit (Static, Rough Skin), each turn (Speed Boost), or are passive multipliers (Adaptability, Sheer Force). A few abilities (Mold Breaker, Turboblaze) ignore other abilities for their attacks — useful for bypassing Levitate, Sturdy, Filter, Magic Bounce.
Tier ratings explained
The S/A/B tier ratings above reflect competitive impact in Gen 9 OU and VGC, not flavor or PVE utility:
- S tier: Ability is a primary reason the Pokémon sees usage. Intimidate Landorus, Good as Gold Gholdengo, Multiscale Dragonite — without the ability, the Pokémon drops a tier.
- A tier: Strong supporting ability that meaningfully shapes how the Pokémon plays. Tinted Lens, Mold Breaker.
- B tier: Niche or situational. Sand Veil, Snow Cloak — useful in specific weather teams but easily worked around.
The Treasures of Ruin (Gen 9 mechanic)
Four Pokémon introduced in Scarlet/Violet share a unique ability class:
- Chi-Yu (Beads of Ruin) — lowers all opposing SpDef by 25%
- Chien-Pao (Sword of Ruin) — lowers all opposing Def by 25%
- Ting-Lu (Vessel of Ruin) — lowers all opposing SpA by 25%
- Wo-Chien (Tablets of Ruin) — lowers all opposing Atk by 25%
The effect is unsuppressable (unless Neutralizing Gas is on the field). On VGC doubles, two Treasures on the same team double-stack their effect onto opponents (each ruin ability hits both opposing Pokémon).
Related
For specific Pokémon ability recommendations, see our competitive build pages. For how abilities interact with damage math, see our damage calculator.