Pokemon Legends: ZA it's been out for a month now, and its Mega Dimension DLC is coming out in just three weeks. Although the game features a total of 26 new Mega Evolutions, only a few can be obtained and used early, the first being the Mega Absol and the chosen starter. Most of the new Mega Evolutions in Pokemon Legends: ZA they are locked to story progression, post-game content, or farming lots of money and Mega Shards, which are essentially time-limited. This is especially true of Gen 6 starter Mega Evolutions, as they were suspended as online rewards for playing back-to-back, with Greninjite in Season 1, Delphoxite in Season 2, and Chesnaughtite in Season 3.
This is especially bad for Delphox and Chesnaught since Mega Greninja was available at launch, while Mega Delphox debuted 10 days ago and Mega Chesnaught isn't coming for another few 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 that can be wielded in battles. There are several reasons:
- Pokemon Legends: ZA's Xerneas dominates online battles alongside Charizard, Delphox, Garchomp, Gyarados, Metagross and other creatures. Mega Chesnaught has incredible defensive stats that take hits from Xernease very well while also boosting 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 wall that still deals a lot of damage. Despite its weaknesses to Fire and Fairy, Chesnaught has access to incredible coverage moves such as:
- Rock Slide – can 1-hit-KO Charizard and Mega Charizard Y
- Earthquake – Great vs. Steel-type Pokémon like Metagross and Excadrill, as well as Fire-types
- Dig – awesome tool against Steel and Fire mons but also as gap closer
- Poison Jab/Iron head – potentially deadly for Xerneas, with high EV and IV in attack
- Wooden hammer/Close combat – STAB moves with 120 base power
- Dragon Claw – good against dragon type pokemon Pokemon Legends: ZA
- Thunder Punch – great for defeating flying creatures that can deal 4x damage to Chesnaught and will most likely shoot non-Mega-Evolved Gyarados
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Chesnaught has access to Curse, which means he can lower his speed to increase his attack and defense at the same time.
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Brick Break can remove Light Screen and Reflect from enemy minis, which can greatly reduce the amount of damage they take.
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Speed is a weak stat of the Mega Chesnaught, but it is not necessary for you to succeed in online battles Pokemon Legends: ZAas it reduces cooldowns rather than determining turn order.
Compared to the regular Chesnaught, his 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 to more defenses is a great trade-off, especially considering that it makes Mega Chesnaught one of the toughest creatures in the game overall. Since his special defense is already very high, it makes sense to use Curse on Mega Chesnaught like most Pokemon Legends: ZAthe best teams do it.
Pokemon Legends: ZA finally takes over all of Chesnaught
However, it's also possible to skip the Dance of Curses and Swords and use four attack moves – maybe two STAB moves and two cover moves. This would require more tuned EVs like points to defense or special defense, with a good amount in attack and the rest in HP. Either way, there are many ideal setups for 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 as speed is less effective while Aegislash is bad in the game. Pokemon Legends: ZA because real-time battles force it into long animations to change stances. It's unclear what role Mega Chesnaught will play, but it could very well be one of the best creatures around, and it's coming out very soon.
- Released
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October 16, 2025
- ESRB
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Everyone 10+ / Fantasy violence, in-game purchases
