Legendary, Mythical and the rest

The official classes: Legendary, Mythical, Ultra Beast and Paradox, and why “pseudo-legendary” is a fan term.

Trainer lesson · 5 minutes · 6 steps and a 5-question quiz

Four official groups

The games sort their rarest Pokémon into four official groups. In the pokee.si Pokédex there are:

71 Legendary Pokémon, like Mewtwo, Lugia and Rayquaza.
23 Mythical Pokémon, like Mew, Celebi and Jirachi.
11 Ultra Beasts, like Nihilego and Buzzwole.
22 Paradox Pokémon, like Great Tusk and Iron Treads.

Legendary or Mythical?

Legendary Pokémon are rare and powerful, and often the star of a game’s story. There is no stat rule: a Pokémon is Legendary because the games themselves call it Legendary.

Mythical Pokémon are even rarer. They are usually handed out at special events rather than found in the wild, and since Generation 5 the games treat them as a separate group from Legendary Pokémon.

Ultra Beasts and Paradox Pokémon

Ultra Beasts are the eleven strange creatures from Ultra Space, first met in the Alola games. They are not Legendary.

Paradox Pokémon come from Scarlet and Violet: ancient versions of Pokémon from the distant past, and future versions from far ahead.

Two Pokémon are in two groups at once: Koraidon and Miraidon are both Legendary and Paradox.

Try it: Sort the rare ones

Which group does each Pokémon belong to? (interactive on pokee.si)

“Pseudo-legendary” is a fan term

You may hear fans call Dragonite or Garchomp pseudo-legendary. That word is not used in the games. It is a fan label for a Pokémon that:

is the last stage of a three-stage line,
has a base stat total of exactly 600,
and is not Legendary or Mythical.

Ten Pokémon fit: Dragonite, Tyranitar, Salamence, Metagross, Garchomp, Hydreigon, Goodra, Kommo-o, Dragapult and Baxcalibur. In merchandise and events The Pokémon Company has called this group “Powerhouse Pokémon”.

Quick check

Is “pseudo-legendary” an official Pokémon term?

Answer: No, it is a fan term. It is a fan term. The official groups are Legendary, Mythical, Ultra Beast and Paradox.

Quiz

The lesson ends with a five-question quiz built from the Pokédex data, and earns the Legend Keeper badge.

Sources

Next lesson: Moves: physical, special and status