Pokémon Leveling

Pokémon can level up in different ways depending on how your group wants to run the game. Some recommended ways include:

Experience Points

Gain experience from defeating other Pokémon

Milestones

Level up when hitting significant story beats

Matching Trainer

Level always matches the trainer's level

When a Pokémon levels up, it gains benefits outlined in the table below. Additionally, each time a Pokémon levels up, it gains HP equal to a roll of its hit dice + CON, retroactive with increased CON scores.

Features

Starting Moves

At its minimum level, a Pokémon may know up to four of its Starting Moves.

New Moves

Pokémon cannot know more than 4 moves at one time. Every time your Pokémon levels up, you may replace any one move it knows with any of the moves listed on its stat block at its level or lower. At levels 2, 6, 10, 14, and 18, your Pokémon gains access to new moves.

After evolving, a Pokémon retains all the moves it currently knows, even if its known moves are no longer listed on the evolved form's stat block. However, when switching a move upon level up, it may not learn a move from its previous evolutionary forms; only moves from its current form may be learned.

Ability Score Improvement

Your Pokémon gains a number of points to allocate to any of its ability scores, to a maximum of 20. The number of points to allocate depends on the number of evolutionary stages in that Pokémon's line:

• 1 stage: 4 points
• 2 stages: 3 points
• 3 stages: 2 points

Up to 2 of these points may be used to acquire a Feat instead.

This happens at levels 4, 8, 12, and 16.

Damage Increase

The damage of each damaging move increases at levels 5, 10, and 17, as shown in the move description.

Peak Power

At level 20 your Pokémon is at its pinnacle. This Pokémon receives another Ability Score Improvement, but the points can be used to increase its ability scores up to a maximum of 22 instead of a maximum of 20. Up to 2 of these points may be used to acquire a Feat instead, as usual.

If the Pokémon's SR is 15 or more, then it may increase its ability scores up to a maximum of 30 instead with this Ability Score Improvement.

Experience

Experience points are rewarded to Pokémon for successfully defeating other Pokémon, or given out at the DM’s discretion when the players complete a particularly difficult challenge or trainer battle. Catching a Pokémon also gives experience, but at 1/5 the normal amount.

XP can be distributed to a player’s Pokémon in any amount, but only Pokémon that took an action in the fight can be rewarded. Fainted Pokémon can also be given XP as long as they were in the fight. If two or more people battle against a single Pokémon, the XP given to each player to distribute is determined by the DM.

The following is a table containing the total experience a Pokémon needs at each level to level up:

Awarding Experience

Defeating a Pokémon confers experience according to its Level and Species Rating (SR). Use the tool below to determine how much experience a Pokémon should award.

The formula used for this is below:

Evolution

Pokémon can evolve into a new form once they meet the condition detailed in their stat block. When a Pokémon evolves, the following occurs:

1. It keeps its current ability scores, but gains points to distribute towards any of those scores. No more than 4 of these points may be put into a single stat and no stat may be increased above 20. The number of points to distribute is provided on its stat block. These points cannot be used to acquire feats, unless specified otherwise.
2. It gains an HP bonus of double its level.
3. It acquires the hit dice of its evolved form to increase HP this level and for future rolls. Additionally, the pokémon's existing hit dice become that of the evolved form for the sake of rolling for short rests and other activites.
4. It acquires the base AC of its evolved form, all new proficiencies, and vulnerabilities/resistances/immunities.
5. If it loses its current ability by evolving, it should exchange its current known ability for any one of its evolved form's abilities.
6. It keeps the known moves it had before evolution, but must learn all future moves from its new move list. For example, Pikachu evolving into Raichu at level 10 cannot learn any of Pikachu's level 10 moves.
7. If the Pokémon would receive other benefits at this level (such as gaining ASI), it receives the benefits after it has evolved.

Evolution can be delayed at the player’s discretion, but once the decision has been made, the Pokémon cannot evolve until gaining an additional level.

Example Evolution

Here, an Eevee has just reached level 8 during the day, meaning it can evolve into an Espeon.

Step 1: Allocate ASI

When Eevee evolves, according to the stat block, it gains 14 ASI to allocate to its ability scores. Let's say that at level 7, Eevee's stats were this:

When we allocate points to Eevee's ability scores, we can allocate them however we like, as long as we do not add more than 4 points to any one ability score. The following is a valid way to distribute the ASI:

Step 2: Increase HP

The Eevee is evolving at level 8, so add 16 to its total HP.

Step 3: Improve Hit Dice

Eevee's hit dice size is d6, and Espeon's hit dice size is d10. All of Eevee's existing hit dice become d10s, and when it gains HP for leveling to level 8 (see Step 7), it will use the d10 to determine the amount.

Note Eevee does not gain HP as a result of increasing the size of its previous hit dice. This is accounted for already by Step 2.

Step 4: AC and Proficiencies

A few things happen here:

• Espeon's AC is 16 in its stat block, so its AC now becomes 16.
• Espeon's type is Psychic, so its type becomes Psychic and it takes on all resistances and vulnerabilities of the new type.
• Espeon has WIS and CHA saving throw proficiencies, so it gains those now if it did not have them already.
• Espeon has proficiency in Insight and Persuasion, so it gains those now if it did not have them already.

Step 5: Exchange Ability

Eevee could have had either Run Away or Adaptability as an ability. Espeon, however, has neither. Therefore, Eevee will lose its current ability and gain the ability Synchronize as indicated on Espeon's stat block.

If Eevee also had the Hidden Ability Feat, then its hidden ability would change from Anticipation to Magic Bounce.

Step 6: New Move Pool

From now on, the Eevee (now Espeon) can only learn moves from Espeon's stat block. For example, compare the moves Eevee can learn at level 6 versus the moves Espeon learns at level 6.

• Eevee: Bite, Swift
• Espeon: Psybeam, Swift

Starting now, Espeon will be able to change one of its moves for Psybeam, but it will not be allowed to learn Bite. Note, however, that if Eevee already knew Bite, it gets to keep Bite as one of its known moves up until it is forgotten for a different move.

Step 7: Normal Level Up

Once Espeon has completed evolving, it can now gain the other benefits of reaching level 8:

• HP increase, now using a d10.
• 3 more ASI, since level 8 confers that as a benefit.

Before and After

Here is a snapshot of Eevee to Espeon, before and after reaching level 8 and evolving!

A Note on Armor Class

A Pokémon's AC is not necessarily tied to their Dexterity. This is intended. AC was assigned with a more formulaic approach, blending each Pokémon's DEF, SP. DEF, and SPEED stats from the core games into a single number on a scale that fits the normal D&D AC range. Think of it as if each Pokémon gets its own unique "Natural Armor". Any ties to Dexterity are purely coincidental.