9. Strengths/Weaknesses

Master Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire type matchups! Learn which attacks are Strong (S), Weak (W), or deal No Damage (N) to understand type advantages and optimize your battles.

This guide details the strengths and weaknesses of each Pokémon type in Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire. Understanding these matchups is crucial for effective battling.

The chart below shows how attack types (listed on the left) interact with defensive types (listed across the top). The abbreviations S, W, and N indicate the damage multiplier:

• S (Strong): Deals 2x damage.
• W (Weak): Deals 0.5x damage.
• N (No Damage): Deals 0x damage.
• Blank (Neutral): Deals 1x damage.

Type Chart:

          NRM FGT POI GRD FLY BUG RCK GHO STL FIR WTR ELC GRS ICE PSY DRG DRK
---------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Normal   |   |   |   |   |   |   | W | N | W |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |
---------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fighting | S |   | W |   | W | W | S | N | S |   |   |   |   | S | W |   | S |
---------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Poison   |   |   | W | W |   |   | W | W | N |   |   |   | S |   |   |   |   |
---------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ground   |   |   | S |   | N | W | S |   | S | S |   | S | W |   |   |   |   |
---------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Flying   |   | S |   |   |   | S | W |   | W |   |   | W | S |   |   |   |   |
---------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bug      |   | W | W |   | W |   | W |   | W | W |   |   | S |   | S |   | S |
---------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Rock     |   | W |   | W | S | S |   |   | W | S |   |   |   | S |   |   |   |
---------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ghost    | N |   |   |   |   |   |   | S | W |   |   |   |   |   | S |   | W |
---------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Steel    |   |   |   |   |   |   |   | S | W | W | W | W |   | S |   |   |   |
---------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fire     |   |   |   |   |   | S | W |   | S | W | W |   | S | S |   | W |   |
---------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Water    |   |   |   | S |   |   | S |   |   | S | W |   | W |   |   | W |   |
---------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Electric |   |   |   | N | S |   |   |   |   |   | S | W | W |   |   | W |   |
---------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Grass    |   |   | W | S | W | W | S |   | W | W | S |   | W |   |   | W |   |
---------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ice      |   |   |   | S | S |   |   |   | W | W | W |   | S | W |   | S |   |
---------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Psychic  |   | S | S |   |   |   |   |   | W |   |   |   |   |   | W |   | N |
---------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Dragon   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   | W |   |   |   |   |   | S |   |
---------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Dark     |   | W |   |   |   |   |   | S | W |   |   |   |   |   | S |   | W |
---------|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
          NRM FGT POI GRD FLY BUG RCK GHO STL FIR WTR ELC GRS ICE PSY DRG DRK

Type Key:

• NRM = Normal
• FGT = Fighting
• POI = Poison
• GRD = Ground
• FLY = Flying
• BUG = Bug
• RCK = Rock
• GHO = Ghost
• STL = Steel
• FIR = Fire
• WTR = Water
• ELC = Electric
• GRS = Grass
• ICE = Ice
• PSY = Psychic
• DRG = Dragon
• DRK = Dark

Additional Battle Mechanics:

• Same Type Attack Bonus (STAB): Attacks that match the user's type gain a 50% damage bonus.
• Critical Hits: A critical hit doubles the damage dealt.
• Dual-Type Effectiveness: If an attack is super effective against both types of a dual-type Pokémon, it deals 4x damage. If this attack also benefits from STAB, it can deal up to 6x damage. A critical hit can further increase this to 12x.
• Weaknesses with Dual-Types: If an attack is weak against both types of a dual-type Pokémon, it deals only 1/4 damage. With STAB, this can be reduced to 3/8 (37.5%) damage.
• Mixed Effectiveness with Dual-Types: If an attack is strong against one type and weak against another on a dual-type Pokémon, the effects cancel out, resulting in neutral damage (before considering STAB or critical hits).