Ranked Battles Season 3 in Pokémon Legends: Z‑A is the first season built around Mega Chesnaught and the final Kalos starter Mega Stone. It also brings back the earlier Kalos stones and adds some of the strongest season‑end item rewards so far.
Pokémon Legends: Z‑A Ranked Season 3 dates and start times
| Region | Season 3 start | Season 3 end | Local time notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Global (UTC) | 27 November 2025, 06:00 UTC | 18 December 2025, 01:59 UTC | Official season window |
| North America | 26 November, 10:00 p.m. PST | 17 December, 5:59 p.m. PST | Rolls over Wednesday night |
| UK / Ireland | 27 November, 6:00 a.m. GMT | 18 December, 1:59 a.m. GMT | Morning start, overnight end |
| Central Europe | 27 November, 7:00 a.m. CET | 18 December, 2:59 a.m. CET | One hour ahead of UK |
| Japan | 27 November, 3:00 p.m. JST | 18 December, 10:59 a.m. JST | Afternoon start |
The in‑game Ranked menu also displays a countdown for the current season, so you can check how much time is left before rewards are tallied.
How Ranked Battles work in Legends: Z‑A
Ranked Battles in Legends: Z‑A use the same real‑time battle royale format as the Z‑A Royale mode, but with human players instead of AI and with a rank ladder attached.
| Setting | Value / rule |
|---|---|
| Battle format | 4‑player free‑for‑all on a single field |
| Team size | 3–6 registered Pokémon; three active per match |
| Level | All Pokémon scaled to Lv. 50 for battle |
| Rank range | Ranks Z (start) to A (highest) |
| Points and promotion | Points earned for actions (KOs, super‑effective hits, Mega Evolving, etc.); enough points promotes you to the next rank |
| Rank loss | You cannot drop to a lower rank once promoted |
| Match length | Roughly three minutes per battle |
| Online requirement | Internet + Nintendo Switch Online membership |
You gain points even in losing efforts as long as you participate: landing hits, taking KOs, picking up items on the field, or triggering Mega Evolution all contribute. The system is designed so that occasional losses do not erase rank progress.
How to start a Ranked Battle
Ranked Battles live in the Z‑A Battle Club and are accessed directly from the main menu.
| Step | Action |
|---|---|
| 1 | Launch Pokémon Legends: Z‑A on Nintendo Switch or Nintendo Switch 2. |
| 2 | Press the X Button to open the main menu. |
| 3 | Select Link Play. |
| 4 | Select Ranked Battles to enter matchmaking. |
Note: a Nintendo Switch Online membership is required for Ranked Battles. If you have not yet used it, a one‑time free trial can cover a full season window for many players.
Eligible Pokémon for Season 3 (and what’s restricted)
Season 3 continues the “Kalos base game only” approach, with a few additions.
| Category | Eligibility rule |
|---|---|
| Main Pokédex range | Lumiose Pokédex No. 001–231 are allowed |
| Regional forms | Regional variants of any Pokémon within 001–231 are allowed (for example, Alolan Raichu, Galarian Slowpoke line, Galarian Stunfisk) |
| Megas | All Mega Evolutions available in Legends: Z‑A can be used if you own their Mega Stones |
| Special legendaries | Only one of Xerneas, Yveltal, Zygarde, or Diancie per team |
| Species duplicates | No duplicate Lumiose Dex numbers on the same team |
| Item duplicates | No duplicate held items on the same team |
| Level | You can bring Pokémon from Lv. 1–100; all are set to Lv. 50 in battle |
| Banned Pokémon | No additional bans announced for Season 3 |
This is the first season where Zygarde is legal in this format, which has immediate implications for how often Ice‑type attackers and coverage moves show up in lobbies.
Free Mega Stones in Season 3 promotion rewards
Three Mega Stones sit on the Season 3 rank ladder:
| Promotion rank | Rewarded Mega Stone | Use | Availability note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank Y | Greninjite | Mega Evolve Greninja into Mega Greninja | Originally Season 1’s focus reward |
| Rank V | Delphoxite | Mega Evolve Delphox into Mega Delphox | Originally Season 2’s focus reward |
| Rank S | Chesnaughtite | Mega Evolve Chesnaught into Mega Chesnaught | Debuts in Season 3 |
These three stones do not appear in regular single‑player progression. They are tied to Ranked promotion rewards and are intended to be redistributed in future seasons as the ladder rotates.
- You can only hold one of each Mega Stone; additional copies from later seasons are not added to your bag.
- If you already have Greninjite or Delphoxite from earlier seasons, the Season 3 promotions that mention them will not grant a second copy.
Season 3 season‑end rewards (Safari Balls, Bottle Caps, Nuggets)
Separate from promotion rewards, Season 3 pays out a package of items after the season ends, based on the highest rank you achieved. You only need to complete at least one Ranked match during the season (win or lose) to be eligible.
| Finish at rank… | Safari Balls | Gold Bottle Caps | Bottle Caps | Seed of Mastery | Nuggets | Big Nuggets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 3 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| B–E | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| F–K | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| L–R | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| S–Z | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
A few notes on what these items do:
- Safari Ball: One of the rarest Poké Ball types in the game, not normally sold in shops.
- Gold Bottle Cap: Hyper Trains all six IVs of a single Pokémon in one use.
- Bottle Cap: Hyper Trains a single IV, letting you tune stats for competitive play.
- Seed of Mastery: High‑end training material used in Legends: Z‑A’s stat‑tuning systems.
- Nugget / Big Nugget: Sell‑only items for fast cash injections.
Reaching Rank A is strongly rewarded: it is the only bracket that combines the maximum Safari Balls with both types of Bottle Caps, Seeds of Mastery, and a Big Nugget.
How to claim your season‑end rewards
Season rewards are not delivered automatically when the season ends; you need to re‑enter the Ranked menu after the results are processed.
| Step | Action after Season 3 ends |
|---|---|
| 1 | Launch Pokémon Legends: Z‑A after the Season 3 end time. |
| 2 | Press the X Button to open the main menu. |
| 3 | Select Link Play. |
| 4 | Select Ranked Battles; your season rewards will be calculated and distributed to your save file. |
If you skip this step, the rewards simply remain unclaimed until the next time you open the Ranked Battles menu on that save.
Chesnaughtite, Mega Chesnaught, and the Kalos Mega trio
The three Kalos starter Megas — Mega Chesnaught, Mega Delphox, and Mega Greninja — are positioned as showcase evolutions for Legends: Z‑A and its Mega Evolution system.
| Mega Pokémon | Mega Stone | Primary role in Ranked |
|---|---|---|
| Mega Chesnaught | Chesnaughtite | Bulky front‑liner with strong physical coverage and new visual form |
| Mega Delphox | Delphoxite | Ranged special attacker and support with Fire/Psychic pressure |
| Mega Greninja | Greninjite | High‑speed, high‑reach attacker well suited to sniping weakened targets |
All three Mega Stones are explicitly not part of the single‑player loot pool. They are flagged as Ranked promotion rewards and as items that can be recycled into the ladder in later seasons. Season 3 is the first moment where all three are simultaneously available, and it will be the only way to obtain Chesnaughtite until a future rotation or distribution event.
Legendaries, Mega Zygarde, and the Season 3 metagame
Season 3 continues to allow a single “special” legendary per team from a short list: Xerneas, Yveltal, Zygarde, and Diancie. With Zygarde now legal and Mega Zygarde already implemented in Legends: Z‑A, the Ranked format shifts again.
- Zygarde brings access to one of the most extreme Mega stat spreads in the game and a Mega Evolution move, Nihil Light, that functions as a wide‑area special nuke and can hit targets that would normally resist Dragon or Ground coverage.
- Teams that rely on Xerneas or other Fairy‑type walls cannot treat Mega Zygarde’s Dragon moves as ignorable in the way they would in older formats.
- Ice‑type Pokémon and Ice coverage moves rise further in importance. Glaceon, Froslass, Abomasnow, and others become natural answers that can threaten to delete Zygarde before it reaches 50% HP and unlocks its final form and Mega window.
The result is a triangle of threats at higher ranks: legendary cores (especially Xerneas and Zygarde), Steel‑types such as Metagross and Skarmory to check Fairies and Dragons, and Ice‑centric picks trying to keep Zygarde in check.
Practical checkpoints: what to aim for this season
If you are planning your time around Season 3, a few rank targets matter more than others:
| Goal | Minimum rank target | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Unlock Mega Greninja | Y | Grants Greninjite promotion reward |
| Unlock Mega Delphox | V | Grants Delphoxite promotion reward |
| Unlock Mega Chesnaught | S | Grants Chesnaughtite promotion reward |
| Secure multiple Safari Balls | E or higher | Rank B–E grant two Safari Balls; Rank A grants three |
| Maximise training items | A | Best overall mix of Bottle Caps, Seed of Mastery, and money items |
Because rank cannot decrease after promotion, it is possible to chip away at these goals over multiple short sessions during the three‑week window, rather than needing long grinding marathons. The main hard requirement is simply logging at least one match before the season ends so your season‑end reward bundle is generated.
For players who skipped earlier seasons or are picking up Legends: Z‑A around the holidays, Season 3 is the cleanest opportunity so far to catch up on the full Kalos starter Mega set while also stockpiling some of the rarest training items and Poké Balls in the game.
