Zygarde #718: the guardian of order that gathers cell by cell

A Pokémon that assembles itself piece by piece. Zygarde is not a single creature but a multitude: Cells and Cores scattered across the world, which come together into several formes depending on how much power has been gathered. Guardian of the ecosystem, it completes the Kalos Legendary trio.

Contents

• Who Is Zygarde?
• Cells, Cores and the Three Percentage Formes
• Dragon and Ground Types, and Two Signature Abilities
• Mega Zygarde, the Cannon of Lumiose
• Z Is for Zygarde: Yggdrasil and the Children of Loki
• Zygarde Fact Sheet
• Frequently Asked Questions

Who Is Zygarde?

Listed as #718 in the National Pokédex, Zygarde is the "Order Pokémon" of the sixth generation. It is a Legendary Pokémon, not a Mythical Pokémon : it forms a trio with Xerneas to Yveltal.

Its role: to keep watch. Pokémon X explains that when the Kalos ecosystem is under threat, it appears and unleashes its mysterious power; Pokémon Y describes it lurking deep inside a cave, watching over those who destroy the ecosystem. You catch it at level 70 at the very back of Terminus Cave.

Cells, Cores and the Three Percentage Formes

Its formes are built by combining two kinds of tiny beings: the Cells and Cores. Cells make up the body, countless and without consciousness, and obey a Core; the Cores act as its brains, five at most, each with a will of its own.

With a tenth of the Cells comes the 10% Forme : 1.2 meters, 33.5 kilos and a single Core — so it can't hold this form for long. This black quadruped bites into its opponent's torso and runs at 100 km/h.

The 50% Forme, the one seen in Pokémon X and Y, gathers half of its Cells and up to three Cores: a green-and-black serpent 5 meters long and weighing 305 kilos, built on the letter Z, with scales patterned in honeycomb hexagons.

The Complete Forme brings together 100% of the Cells and five Cores — one per wing, one in the tail — for 610 kilos and a 708 base stat total. Its 216 HP is the highest of any Ground type, and Pokémon Moon says it can surpass Xerneas or Yveltal.

Everything goes through the Zygarde Cube : in Pokémon Sun and Moon, you have to collect 100 Cells and Cores across Alola, then assemble them in an Aether Foundation prefab building on Route 16.

Dragon and Ground Types, and Two Signature Abilities

Zygarde has two signature abilities, which is a rare case. Aura Break reverses Xerneas's Fairy Aura and Yveltal's Dark Aura: instead of powering up the moves they affect, these auras weaken them.

Power Construct, for its part, turns the 10% or 50% Forme into the Complete Forme as soon as it drops below half its HP, at the very end of the turn. Another catch: neither Ability Patch nor Ability Capsule works, only the Zygarde Cube changes its ability.

The Dragon and Ground pairing gives it a clear-cut profile: Ice pulverizes it with four times the damage, Dragon and Fairy deal double, while Fire, Poison and Rock are halved and Electric has no effect.

Its four exclusive moves: Land’s Wrath, Thousand Arrows, which even hits airborne Pokémon, Thousand Waves, which prevents the target from escaping, and Core Enforcer, which strips the target of its ability if it has already moved. A fifth one, reserved for its Mega Evolution, earns it a Pokédex record.

🎁 Looking to spoil a Kalos fan? The guardian of the ecosystem opens the door to our Pokémon gift ideas.

Mega Zygarde, the Cannon of Lumiose

Yes, Mega Zygarde exists: it arrived with Pokémon Legends: Z-A. Only the Complete Forme can Mega Evolve, by holding a Mega Stone called Zygardite, as long as its Trainer has a Key Stone.

The result is like nothing else: it loses its wings, whose Cells reorganize into a huge cannon carried by six small arms, a green flame lights up on its crown, and it reaches 7.7 meters.

The stat reshuffle is brutal: Attack loses 30 points, Defense 30 and Special Defense 10, Speed gains 15 — and Special Attack leaps from 91 to 216. That is the best in the Pokédex, far ahead of Mega Mewtwo Y's 194.

That number powers Nihil Light : if Zygarde knows Core Enforcer when it Mega Evolves, that move becomes Nihil Light for as long as the transformation lasts. With 200 power, it is the strongest Dragon-type move, and it even hits Fairy-type Pokémon.

The Z-A Pokédex sums up the scene: it Mega Evolves in response to the emotions of people facing an unprecedented danger. Since that game does without abilities, any 10% or 50% Zygarde switches forms there at half HP, without Power Construct.

Z Is for Zygarde: Yggdrasil and the Children of Loki

Its name stacks up references — the letter Z, the burnet moth (Zygaena), whose caterpillar is green and black, the Greek ζυγωτός that gave us "zygote," the Norse Yggdrasil and the word "guard" — and the same mythology inspired its three formes, each linked to one of the children of Loki : the wolf Fenrir, the world serpent Jörmungandr and the goddess Hel, half life, half death.

One last curiosity: it is the only Pokémon with two idle animations in battle. As a Shiny, its black turns white and its green becomes turquoise blue : enough to win over fans of Pokémon figures and Pokémon plushies.

Zygarde Fact Sheet

Frequently Asked Questions

• How many formes does Zygarde have?
  Three formes assembled from its Cells and Cores: the 10% Forme (1.2 m, 33.5 kg), the 50% Forme (5 m, 305 kg, its default forme) and the Complete Forme (4.5 m, 610 kg). Mega Zygarde joined them with Pokémon Legends: Z-A, but it is not an assembled forme: it is a temporary Mega Evolution, available only to the Complete Forme.
• How do you get Zygarde's Complete Forme?
  In battle, thanks to its Power Construct ability: as soon as the 10% Forme or the 50% Forme drops below half its HP, it transforms into the Complete Forme at the very end of the turn and stays that way until the battle ends. In Pokémon Sun and Moon, you first have to gather Cells and Cores, then assemble them in the Aether Foundation prefab building to the right of the Pokémon Center on Route 16. In Pokémon Legends: Z-A, where abilities do not exist, the switch at half HP happens anyway.
• What are Zygarde Cells and Zygarde Cores?
  They are the tiny organisms Zygarde is made of. Cells make up most of its body: very numerous, without consciousness and unable to use moves, they follow a Core's orders. Cores are much rarer, five at most, and act as brains: each one has its own consciousness and can act on its own. In the French games they are indeed called Cœurs ("hearts"), not Noyaux ("nuclei").
• Does Mega Zygarde really exist?
  Yes. Mega Zygarde was introduced in Pokémon Legends: Z-A. It keeps the Dragon and Ground types, stands 7.7 meters tall, weighs 610 kilos and boasts 216 Special Attack, the highest value in the entire Pokédex. You get it by having Zygarde in its Complete Forme hold a Zygardite, and the Trainer must have a Key Stone. Its exclusive move Nihil Light replaces Core Enforcer for as long as the Mega Evolution lasts. It has no ability, quite simply because Pokémon Legends: Z-A has no abilities.
• What are Zygarde's weaknesses?
  As a Dragon and Ground type, it fears Ice above all, which deals four times the normal damage, followed by Dragon and Fairy, which are twice as effective. It takes half damage from Fire, Poison and Rock, and it is completely immune to Electric. The other eleven types deal normal damage.
• Is Zygarde a Legendary or a Mythical Pokémon?
  Legendary. It is not classified among the Mythical Pokémon and forms a Legendary trio with Xerneas, the Life Pokémon, and Yveltal, the Destruction Pokémon. Where those two embody life and destruction, Zygarde watches over the balance of the ecosystem, which is reflected in its Aura Break ability: it reverses the auras of the other two.

In short

A living puzzle, a guardian of balance and the holder of the Pokédex's best Special Attack: Zygarde has never lived up to its name so well. We thought Kalos had two Legendaries: the third one was scattered everywhere.