The Pokemon series is known for creating strange and wonderful creatures, and fans can find plenty of their favorites in the recently released Pokemon Legends: Arceus. However, all Pokemon are not created equal. Players want strong and balanced teams to better navigate the Pokeverse and there are plenty of aspects to consider when choosing team members. Many Pokemon have incredible designs and fantastic moves that make them special, while others tend to stand out for their incredibly high stats, which make them strong additions to any team.
One of the stats that can separate a good Pokemon from a great one is Special Defense. This stat determines the damage taken from special moves. Pokemon with especially high Special Defense are able to withstand brutally hard hits and keep fighting. This makes them incredibly valuable in building stronger teams. Let's take a look at the non-Legendary Pokemon with the highest Special Defense stats in Pokemon Legends: Arceus.
Bronzong
Bronzong starts off our list of especially strong defenders. It is a Steel/Psychic-type Pokemon with 116 points in both its Defense and Special Defense stats. However, it's not all good news, as It has average attacking stats and very poor Speed.
Steel/Psychic is a very good combination, giving Bronzong nine resistances, an immunity, and only four weaknesses. Wild Bronzor and Bronzong can be found in the Coronent Highlands rather easily in places like the Ancient Quarry and Clamberclaw Cliffs.
Tentacruel and Mr. Mime
Both of these Pokemon share a base Special Defense stat of 120.
- Tentacruel is a Water/Poison-type Pokemon with high Speed and decent HP and Special Attack. Poison is an excellent type defensively, and Water further bolsters this by only adding a singular Electric weakness to Poison's Ground and Psychic ones, in addition to Tentacruel having a hefty eight resistances. Wild Tentacool and Tentacruel can be found at Lunker's Lair, Seagrass Haven or Islespy Shore in the Cobalt Coastlands.
- Mr. Mime is a Psychic/Fairy-type Pokemon with good Special Attack and Speed alongside its great Special Defense, but bad numbers in its physical stats. This type combination only has an immunity to Dragon, and only three weaknesses in Ghost, Steel, and Poison. Mr. Mime being part Psychic, however, gives it a built-in check to some Poison-types that threaten it. Fairy is also a very good type offensively, with it only having three types that resist it in Fire, Steel, and Poison. Wild Mime Jr. and Mr. Mime can be found at Horseshoe Plains and Sandgem Flats in the Obsidian Fieldlands.
Umbreon and Sylveon
Both of these Pokemon share a base Special Defense stat of 130.
- Umbreon is the pure Dark-type member of the Eevee family. It has very high Special Defense and HP but is very much lacking in the offensive department. Being a pure Dark-type comes with an immunity to Psychic, and only three weaknesses: Bug, Fighting, and Fairy. Due to how lackluster Umbreon is on the offensive side, players should really only look to add it if they need a defensively-focused team member. Wild Umbreon can be found in Space-Time Distortions in the Crimson Mirelands. Players can also get one by leveling up an Eevee with high Happiness at night.
- Sylveon is the pure Fairy-type member of the Eevee family. In addition to its high Special Defense, Sylveon alsohas high HP and Special Attack. This is basically a much less extreme version of Umbreon, but that actually makes it more usable in a lot of ways. Pure Fairy is an excellent type, with just two weaknesses and only three types that resist it. The Special Attack is much higher and allows it to do more than just soak up damage as well. Players can acquire a Sylveon by leveling up an Eevee while it knows a Fairy-type move, which it learns rather quickly. Sylveon can also be found in Space-Time Distortions in the Obsidian Fieldlands.
Mantine
Mantine is a Water/Flying-type Pokemon with an enormous Special Defense stat of 140, on top of having decent HP and Special Attack. Water/Flying is also a good combination defensively, as it only has two weaknesses — Rock and a 4x weakness to Electric.
Players do need to be careful to keep Mantine out of the way of Electric moves (especially Physical ones), but other than that, it makes for a very good defensive Pokemon. Wild Mantyke and Mantine can be found at Tranquility Cove in the Cobalt Coastlands.
Probopass and Goodra
Both of these Pokemon share a base Special Defense stat of 150.
- Probopass is a Rock/Steel-type Pokemon with very high Defense and okay Special Attack. Rock/Steel is a bit of a weird combination. While it does boast a mighty eight resistances and an immunity, it also is 4x weak to both Ground and Fighting — very strong offensive types — which does hold it back a bit. However, due to being a Rock-type, Probopass can take advantage of the 50% Special Defense increase Rock-types get in Sandstorm, making it very difficult to KO with Special moves. Wild Nosepass and Probopass can be found at the Celestica Ruins and Primeval Grotto in the Coronet Highlands.
- Goodra gained a new regional form in Legends: Arceus, which is a Dragon/Steel-type. It has less HP and Speed than regular Goodra, but it has a much better Defense stat. Dragon/Steel is an amazing type combination. Hisuian Goodra boasts nine resistances, an immunity, and only two weaknesses in Fighting and Ground. In addition, Dragon is a very strong offensive type, as it hits every type that is not Fairy or Steel for neutral damage. Hisiuan Goodra does need to look out for other Steel-types, however, as neither Dragon nor Steel can hit other Steel-types for even neutral damage. Players looking to evolve a Goodra can find wild Goomy and Sliggoo at the Holm of Trials in the Crimson Mirelands. An Alpha Hisuian Goodra also appears on the terrain above the Ancient Quarry.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus is available now for the Nintendo Switch.