Nuzlocke Rules

Nick Franco’s opening Hard-Mode comic states the two original rules: only the first wild Pokémon encountered in each area may be caught, and a Pokémon that faints must be released. Nicknames are commonly added, but they are a convention rather than an original core rule.

Decide when encounter restrictions begin and when fainting starts to count. A common exception delays these restrictions until Poké Balls become available. Record the two starting points separately if the run treats an early rival battle differently from wild encounters before receiving balls.

Saving allows a session to be continued later. Loading an earlier save to undo a counted loss or a failed catch changes the result of the run. One possible rule is that recorded results still count after a console restart. If a technical interruption makes that impossible, record what happened and how the run will continue. The new result should not be presented as the outcome of the original attempt.

A common rule counts the met location in a Pokémon’s summary as one area. On different cave floors with the same recorded location, only the first encounter across those floors may then be caught. Named subareas can count separately under an alternative rule, but their boundaries need to be defined in advance.

Grass, fishing and surfing do not automatically allow three separate catches in one area. One possible rule allows the method to be chosen before the first eligible battle. That encounter then counts for the whole area, whether the catch succeeds or fails. Another rule can count each method separately, but this exception must be settled before a catch is attempted.

Dupes Clause allows a Pokémon of an already-owned species to be skipped in favour of another eligible encounter. The exact rule needs to be written down: whether it covers that species or its whole evolution family, whether skipping is mandatory and which earlier encounters count as duplicates.

For example, a rule can exclude the entire evolution family after a successful catch. Another can exclude it only while the earlier Pokémon is alive. After a loss, the second version allows the family to be caught again; the first does not. A missed encounter can leave the family available, or a stricter rule can exclude it from that point on. If no eligible species remains in an area, set a retry limit or specify what happens to that encounter.

Shiny Clause can permit catching a shiny outside the ordinary encounter limit. The rules also need to say whether it can be used in the run. Permission to catch it for a collection does not necessarily allow it to join the team.

One possible collection-only rule allows the shiny to be caught and stored in a separate box, but excludes it from the run. Another rule can allow it to be used as an additional Pokémon. Both versions need to say whether it counts as the area’s encounter and whether its species counts for Dupes Clause. Catch permission, use in the run and the effect on other encounters are separate decisions.

Gift Clause often allows Pokémon received from NPCs in addition to the ordinary encounter. That is an optional exception. A gift does not automatically become an extra catch simply because it was not found in grass.

Decide whether the starter, gifts and fixed encounters count towards the area’s ordinary encounter or are allowed separately. If a gift counts, taking it can use up the area’s encounter before any wild battle. A separate gift allowance needs a limit: all gifts, one per area or only particular story rewards. Decide separately whether fixed encounters follow the same rule.

For an egg, decide whether it counts towards the area where it is received or where it hatches. Counting the receiving location prevents the egg from being assigned to another area by carrying it there. Counting the hatch location is another possible rule. Breeding also needs to be banned or given a fixed allowance. Unlimited extra eggs would remove the limit on available Pokémon imposed by the encounter rule.

Community rules commonly exclude additions from another save, while trade evolutions do not have a single agreed policy. An in-game NPC trade, a trade solely to evolve an existing Pokémon and receiving a new Pokémon from a friend are different actions.

One possible NPC-trade rule allows a living Pokémon obtained within the rules to be exchanged. The replacement counts as the same area’s encounter, so the trade does not allow an extra catch. Record both Pokémon so the original catch remains in the history.

If trade evolutions are allowed, the rule can require the same Pokémon to return immediately, without training or extra resources from the other save. Decide in advance how the traded-away species and its replacement count for Dupes Clause. If the game offers no permitted evolution method, the Pokémon can remain unevolved. The lack of a method does not automatically grant an exception.

A fallen Pokémon can never be used again in that run, even if the game allows it to be revived. This applies to that individual Pokémon. Decide separately whether a full party defeat ends the whole attempt or whether living boxed reserves may continue. Continuing with reserves is a documented optional rule and should be recorded on the rule sheet.

Level caps and battle-item restrictions are additions. The common Hardcore format limits levels, excludes bag items during battle apart from capture balls, and uses Set battle style. A Pokémon above the chosen cap is not necessarily dead. One possible rule keeps it in the box until a later cap allows it to be used again.

For a level cap, specify the upcoming opponent, the level used as the limit and when it is checked. If the check happens before the battle, a level gained during the fight can be allowed. A cap that applies throughout the battle needs a different rule. A ban on bag items also needs to state whether held items and healing outside battle are allowed. Settle these rules before the first battle they affect.

The following checklist is a suggestion for a rule sheet, not a universal ruleset. Write a short answer beside each item. If an unforeseen case occurs, record what happened and decide how the same case will be handled in future. Keeping that decision on the sheet avoids changing exceptions after each disappointing result.