Critical hits in Pokemon

Critical hits boost damage and can ignore certain stat changes. A crit can swing damage through a defensive setup.

How critical hits work

A critical hit multiplies the final damage after the base formula. In modern games, the common multiplier is 1.5x. From Generation III onward, critical hits ignore the attacker's negative stat stages, the defender's positive stat stages, and the damage reduction from Reflect or Light Screen.

How crit rate is raised

High-crit moves like Slash, Night Slash, Leaf Blade, and Stone Edge start from a higher crit stage. Focus Energy, Scope Lens, Razor Claw, Super Luck, Lansat Berry, Dragon Cheer, and some signature moves raise the crit stage. The game uses stages for crit chance, so most boosts raise the odds instead of guaranteeing every hit.

What crits do not solve

Critical hits still use the normal damage formula, still respect type resistance, and still lose to abilities and effects that block crits such as Battle Armor, Shell Armor, and Lucky Chant. Burn still reduces physical damage in modern games.

FAQ

Can every move land a critical hit?

Most damaging moves can crit, but some moves and effects are flagged to never land critical hits.

Do some moves have a higher chance of landing a critical hit?

Yes. Some moves are designed with a higher critical hit rate than normal, which makes them more useful on fast or offensive Pokemon.

Do some items or abilities increase critical hit chances?

Yes. Some items increase crit odds, and some abilities do the same. Those effects stack with move selection and battle setup.

Do critical hits stack with STAB?

Yes. STAB, type effectiveness, and critical hits all stack as separate multipliers in the final damage.