Tapu Fini is one of those tricky Pokemon that you have to trade to fit into the Great League. Given the lack of control over our Tapu Fini’s IVs and the stardust cost of trading, you may be wondering which IVs are the goal. The Tapu Fini PvP IV Deep Dive below highlights Tapu Fini’s most relevant stat checks for both the Great League and Ultra League and goes over the probability of trading into those IVs.
Note: this guide discusses the hidden true stats of Pokemon in Pokemon GO. In order to see these true stats you need to use an IV checking app (CalcyIV, Pokegenie) or an IV checking website (GOStadium, PvPIVs.com, or PvPoke itself). To make things simple, the guide also features standard PvP IV tables.
If you’re not familiar with PvP IVs, check out this PvP IVs Simplified video.
PvP IV Tables
The tables below feature the IV spreads with a hyperlinked table that meet some of the more important stat checks highlighted in the article. It’s important to review the guide itself to make sure you’re getting what you want out of your Tapu Fini. For example, you may want a slightly higher Def weight for more consistency and you can thrift a little bit on the HP.
GL: The General Good (153.91 Def, 107 HP)
- Higher Def > Higher HP, unless the HP is 110+
- You can thrift down to 105 HP if you’re tired of trading for Tapu Fini
UL: The General Good (198.9 Def, 139 HP)
- Raid only list
- 142 HP is notably better and only available through trading
- 147.59 Atk gets Poliwrath CMP (1-2) and an Aurorus Breakpoint (0-1)
- 149.39 Atk gets an Alolan Ninetales Breakpoints, enabling the 0-1 and 1-2 vs Powder
Great League Tapu Fini
Tapu Fini’s main stat goal in the Great League is having high HP. The recommendation in this guide is 107 HP, which enables the Altaria and Umbreon 2-2 shield scenarios with Moonblast only (so you both spend 2 shields and Fini only uses Moonblast without baiting shields with Surf). This HP also enables the Jellicent 1-1 and makes the Sableye 0-0 more consistent. Achieving 107 HP could easily take ~30 trades. If you’re unable to achieve it, 106 is generally safe for the Sableye 0-0 and Noctowl 2-2, and 105 can cover the Shadow Venusaur 2-1, Walrein 2-2, and Sableye 2-2 yet. Some of these matchups can end on the Fast Move, so if your Tapu Fini is HP deficient you could make up for it with prior chip damage on the opponent.
Having at least 153.91 Def is also recommended. This not only keeps your HP consistent after Charge Move damage, but may also reduce Shadow Charizard’s Wing Attack damage making for a more consistent 1-1 & 1-2 victory. 154.65 Def will have improved consistency for that breakpoint. Higher Def beyond this can help against Azumarill, Mew, Charm Shadow Alolan Ninetales, and Pelipper, but these higher Def Breakpoints aren’t as impactful as having higher HP.
For Atk, at the moment, only 114.46 seems useful for making the Diggersby matchup more consistent. There is also a chance a higher Atk weighted Tapu Fini could get an Atk Breakpoint on a Shadow Swampert, which could help avoid it reaching extra Charge Moves, but the consistency and bulk trade off makes it more of something that’s useful to be aware of rather than seek out.
If you want a stretch goal, hitting 110 HP can enable the Medicham 1-1 without baiting and can enable Medicham wins in more dynamic scenarios too. However, the likelihood of getting an IV with this level of bulk is so low that you could easily trade Tapu Fini every day for a year and still not get it.
Ultra League Tapu Fini
In general, most Raid caught Tapu Fini are fine in the Ultra League. If your Tapu Fini has at least 139 HP, it will fare better in the mirror and could clip the Best Buddy Dubwool 0-0 (provided it doesn’t have Wild Charge). 149.39 Atk will also help the mirror by potentiating Charge Move Priority, and will also get a Breakpoint on Alolan Ninetales enabling the 0-1 and 1-2 vs Powder Snow. Finally, having at least 198.9 Def can give Tapu Fini more play against a Best Buddy Wing Attack Pidgeot, enabling the 1-0 and 1-2 shield scenarios. Meeting all 3 of these stat checks is possible with Raid only IVs, but if you’re missing any on a Tapu Fini you’ve already built, they aren’t that dire.
If you want to trade for even more bulk, 142 HP is the main thing to keep an eye out for. With this higher HP, you may overcome the Cobalion 2-2 (kind of IV dependant on Cobalion), the Trevenant 2-1, the Registeel 1-0, the Umbreon 1-2 without baiting, and it could enable you to reach an extra Surf vs Charm Shadow Alolan Ninetales. Some of these matchups can fall out of favor if you have <201 Def, so run some sims on PvPoke.com before committing.
There is also a Def BP for Shadow Machamp 2-2 consistency, starting at 202 Def vs the Rank 1. Given that the recommended Shadow Machamp has a higher Atk weight and will likely have a higher Atk weight regardless due the lack of control on Shadow Pokemon IVs, a max Def Tapu Fini could reasonably miss it.
Great League Trade Probability
Trading Legendary/Mythic Tier Pokemon to improve IVs has 2 complications: 1) You can only do 1 special trade per day 2) You’re never guaranteed to get what you want. To help better gauge your expectations, here are the amount of trades to have a 50-75% probability of getting the higher bulk weighted IVs highlighted in the Great League section:
- Good Friend: 11-23 Trades
- Great Friend: 17-35 Trades
- Ultra Friend: 33-67 Trades
- Best Friend: 230-460 Trades
Overall, it appears you should be aiming for Good Friend Trades if you can, but Great and Ultra Friend Trades aren’t too bad. Best Friend Trades will be the worst, although not impossible.
A Champion’s Tapu Fini
Talking to players who have used Tapu Fini in Regionals, it appears everyone is on the same page: Big HP is important for Tapu Fini, but not having big HP shouldn’t stop you from bringing Fini. The current 4th place World Champion, LurganRocket, brought a 105 HP Tapu Fini to the 2022 World Championships. He didn’t feel impeded by the sub-optimal HP stat at the time, but he has since retired that Tapu Fini for one with a slightly higher HP weight. The 2nd place Champion at the 2023 Peoria Regional Championship, NHoff, already has a really high HP weighted Tapu Fini to work with and wouldn’t have it any other way.
Having brought a relatively low HP Tapu Fini to the 2023 Fort Wayne Regional myself (with a Top 16 finish) it can be a little nerve wracking knowing which matchups you won’t be able to meet. At the end of the day though, Tapu Fini’s unique qualities are strong enough where you shouldn’t be too picky if you can’t get the IVs you want. Needless to say, I’m still on the hunt for Tapu Fini trades, chasing that big HP.
Closing
Tapu Fini’s Great League situation is similar to Cresselia and Registeel’s, where just having the species in the Great League is good, but having that extra level bulk is a bit better. If this author and the 4th place World Champion can do well with less on our Fini, then that suggests you shouldn’t have to worry too much. But given that we’re both trading up on HP suggests that getting that higher HP is really nice. ~26 trades is pretty steep, but it’s roughly what’s expected with these Legendary Pokemon. Good luck out there!
