Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen Player Randomly Finds the Best Shiny in the Game

Finding shiny Pokemon in the wild in Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen is no easy task, but a player managed to find the best of them all. There are a few issues with encountering shiny Pokemon in the Gen 3 Kanto remakes. For starters, Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen don’t have a Shiny Charm, and the Masuda Method is not included in the games. Furthermore, shiny odds are very low, as they are half of those in modern mainline titles. In fact, only 1 Pokemon in 8,192 is shiny.

Instead, modern games cut that number in half, effectively doubling the odds to 1 in 4,096. Considering tools like the Shiny Charm, mass outbreaks, Sparkling Power level 3 sandwiches or donuts, and other similar effects, one can theoretically get a shiny Pokemon very easily. The highest odds available are 1 in 512 by meeting these criteria, but this doesn’t work in Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen. While the best shiny to find when it comes to battles may differ, the best-looking shiny Pokemon in terms of cool factor is Ditto, and a lucky player found one without even trying.

Best Black Shiny Pokemon

These black shiny Pokemon stand out with their eye-catching designs.

Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen’s Shiny Ditto Explained

A Pokemon trainer by the name of softbeat-la shared a post on Reddit about finding their shiny blue Ditto at level 25 without even looking for one, which is a massive achievement. Considering that some fans spent 100+ hours in Oak’s Lab looking for a shiny starter in Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen, finding one organically without expectations can be an amazing feeling and achievement. In this case, Ditto is very special because, despite having its own shiny color, it turns into the opposing Pokemon with Transform, but acquires the target’s shiny colors instead.

For example, if a shiny Ditto used Transform on a Gyarados, it would become the iconic red Gyarados from Gen 2 games in Lake of Rage. Likewise, using shiny Ditto’s Transform against a Charizard turns Ditto into a black and red Charizard, the same as its regular shiny version. The only caveat is that a shiny Ditto’s transformation will always have a slightly opaque tint to it, differentiating itself from normal shinies. Still, this is one of the rarest shiny Pokemon in FireRed and LeafGreen, and its gimmick can allow gamers to have all shiny Pokemon you want – even if just for a battle.

However, there is something to keep in mind about Ditto. While it may be the best shiny either for its base color or the fact that it turns into any Pokemon’s shiny version, Ditto is actually one of the worst Pokemon in FireRed and LeafGreen because it doesn’t have its Imposter ability. This ability, introduced in Gen 5, allows Ditto to automatically use Transform upon entering the field, whereas without it, it has to use Transform manually.

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Easy (15s)Medium (10s)Hard (5s)Permadeath (5s)

The difference here is that Transform requires a regular turn to perform, but it works based on Ditto’s very bad stats. With 48 in every stat, Ditto is slow, it has no bulk, and its HP is extremely low, meaning it’s very likely that it will either take a lot of damage or be KOed if the opponent is high level. This is not an issue only if Ditto’s level is much higher than that of the opponent’s Pokemon, which means it’s hard to justify using it in a team to beat Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen‘s Elite Four and Champion. Still, softbeat-la was very lucky to find this very rare and unique shiny Pokemon.