POKEMON MYSTERY DUNGEON BASIC GUIDE TO DUNGEONS

New to Mystery Dungeon? As implied by the name of the game, the core focus of the game is the dungeons. You'll spend more gameplay time in dungeons than anywhere else. This guide will cover some of the basic mechanics and features of trawling through dungeons. See the Advanced Dungeon Mechanics guide for some further information.

Dungeon Layouts

The unique aspect of the games' dungeons is that their layout is randomly generated upon each entry. As such, each dungeon will change each time you enter, in terms of the layout, item distribution, Pokemon distribution, etc. However, the Pokemon species which you can find on each floor will always remain the same. In addition, the items you can find in each dungeon and the total number of floors do not change as well.

To clear a dungeon, you have to navigate your way past all the levels of the dungeon. Dungeons can be as small as Tiny Woods, which has only 4 floors, or they can be as big as Wish Cave, which has 99 floors. To progress, you have to find the stairs in each floor so that you may access the next floor. When you reach the end of a dungeon, you will be automatically return to your base.

The basic layout of each floor is always the same - large rooms inter-connected by narrow, one-spaced corridors. On the screen, you can view the layout of the floor you're on since it is superimposed on your main screen. Here is a key of the icons used in the dungeon layout:

To view a clearer image of the dungeon layout, simply press select to toggle between the dungeon layout image and the superimposed image.

Equipping an X-Ray Specs on your lead Pokemon will allow you to see all items and enemy Pokemon, even in unexplored regions. You will still be unable to see the full layout of the dungeon though.

As you travel in dungeons, you can pick up and discard items and battle wild Pokemon, possibly recruiting them in the process.

Turn-Based Mechanics

The game adopts a turn-based mechanic. This means that as you make a move, all enemy Pokemon will similarly make a move. A "move" is made either by taking a step, using a move (including the regular attack), or using an item. After you make a move, all enemy Pokemon will each make a move as well. Think of it as playing a game of chess, with each dungeon as the chessboard and the Pokemon as chess pieces. As such, in between moves, feel free to take as much time to think and ponder about what moves to make.

As you make moves, your HP will heal itself while your Belly does the opposite and decreases in value. If your Belly decrease to zero, however, your HP will decrease instead as you make moves. For an overview of Hunger, Belly and the associated mechanics, use the Hunger Guide.

Navigation

You can use the direction pad to move either up, down, left or right. However, unlike the main Pokemon RPG games, Mystery Dungeon allows you to move diagonally. Do so by holding the R button and the associated buttons on the direction pad. For instance, hold R and press Up and Right to move diagonally to the top-right.

Sometimes, it might be important to change the direction you are facing without taking a step (and therefore not using up a turn). To do so, press Start. A grid will appear, with the tiles in your direct line of sight highlighted red. To change the direction you are facing, use the direction pad.

Battle

Enemies in the same room will always head towards you via the shortest possible route, and as you navigate through each floor of each dungeon, you will inevitably face enemy Pokemon. Most often than not, you have to defeat these Pokemon to prevent getting knocked out by them, or simply because they are blocking your way in a narrow corridor.

There are several ways to attack an enemy. The first is to execute a simple tackle on the enemy by pressing A. This regular attack can be performed an indefinite number of times and is not constrained by PP, but its main drawback is its low damage. Also note that Shedinja is immune to this regular attack.

The second way to attack an enemy is to use a move which your Pokemon knows. To access your Pokemon's moves, press B to access the menu, and choose a move to use from the list of moves which your Pokemon knows. You can also choose to set a move as the default move to use. When you do so, you can execute that move easily by pressing A while holding L.

The third way is to throw items at the opponent, such as Gravelerocks and Spikes. Note that Shedinja does take damage from such thrown items, and therefore a well placed thrown item is a useful way to take Shedinja out quickly. To use a throw item, press B to access the menu, then go to items, and choose to throw the item. Note that any item can be thrown, but items such as TMs and Orbs deal very meagre damage, while any item other than throw items can actually be caught by and/or utilised by the enemy Pokemon. As such, it is advisable for you to only attack with throw items. You can also select a throw item as the default item to use, and thereafter you will only need to hold L and press R to throw the item.

Note that the direction you are facing while attacking is important. The move will simply miss if you are not facing the foe. For ranged moves, they will travel in a straight line, so the enemy has to be in your line of sight. To check if your ranged move would hit the enemy, press Start to check if the enemy is in your direct line of sight.

Another thing you should take note of is that you can only control your lead Pokemon in battle. Your partner Pokemon are automatically controlled, and will attack on their own. However, you can choose to limit your partner Pokemon to certain moves by disabling certain moves. To disable or enable a move, access the menu, access the moves of the partner Pokemon, and choose to switch on or off the move. Moves with stars beside them will be used by the Pokemon, while moves without the stars will not be utilised.

This feature can be useful as some Pokemon continually carry out pointless attacks, such as Illumise using Moonlight with each step it takes.

You can also exert some control over what your partner Pokemon do by altering their IQ Skills, or by changing Tactics. For more information on IQ Skills, use the IQ Skills Guide.