All 22 Pokémon formations: 3-4 vs 4-3, fullback vs slot

Which formation wins the challenges

10,000 simulated 17–0 runs, 10,000 Retro runs and 2,000 151 Challenge draws per formation, with the same rolls for every formation. Best in bold.

The 17–0 and Retro runs pick like a careful player: each round, the Pokémon and open spot that beat a typical roll at that spot by the most, weighted by how much the spot counts. No rerolls are used, so real runs that spend them score a bit higher. The 151 Challenge rows place the 22 rolled Pokémon as well as they can go once all are known, which is the most any placement can get.

The best team in every formation

Team Score of the best possible lineup from each pool in each formation; the small number is the average fit of the 22 starters, which decides it when several formations reach the 1000 cap. Builder and challenge pools on the 151 or 17–0 scale as in the game; single regions on the 17–0 scale.

Johto, Hoenn and Sinnoh are the regions whose best team plays a 4-3; everywhere else the 3-4 is at least as good. The biggest gap is Kalos, 17 points between its best and worst formation. The full rosters are on best lineups and best team for every region.

What each formation changes

All 22 spots and each spot's share of its side of the Team Score. Highlighted rows change between the two choices.

Both defenses field 11. The 3-4 has one big body in the middle (the nose tackle, mostly Weight) and two inside linebackers. The 4-3 trades those for two defensive tackles, who need Attack almost as much as Weight, and a middle linebacker worth 11%, as much as an end or a corner. On offense the only new job is the eleventh player: a fullback who blocks, or a slot receiver who runs.

Who plays the spots that change

Nose tackle or defensive tackle

Nose tackle: Weight 34%, HP 24%, Defense 22%, Attack 20%; type bonus Rock +4, Ground +4, Steel +3, Fighting +2. Defensive tackle: Weight 28%, Attack 26%, HP 20%, Defense 18%, Speed 8%; type bonus Rock +3, Ground +3, Steel +3, Fighting +3. Best non-Legendary fits from all 1,025 and from the original 151:

Nose tackle, all regions

1	Iron Hands	95.7
2	Rhyperior	93.0
3	Great Tusk	92.7
4	Buzzwole	92.3
5	Ursaluna	91.4

Defensive tackle, all regions

1	Iron Hands	92.1
2	Buzzwole	91.1
3	Great Tusk	89.8
4	Rhyperior	87.4
5	Stonjourner	86.9

Nose tackle, original 151

1	Golem	83.7
2	Snorlax	81.3
3	Rhydon	81.0
4	Dragonite	74.9
5	Gyarados	72.0

Defensive tackle, original 151

1	Golem	78.4
2	Rhydon	76.7
3	Dragonite	75.1
4	Snorlax	75.0
5	Gyarados	72.2

Inside linebacker or middle linebacker

Inside linebacker: Attack 30%, Defense 28%, HP 20%, Speed 14%, Sp. Def 8%; type bonus Fighting +4, Dark +3, Ground +2. Middle linebacker: Attack 28%, Defense 24%, HP 18%, Speed 16%, Sp. Def 14%; type bonus Fighting +4, Dark +3, Ground +2. Best non-Legendary fits from all 1,025 and from the original 151:

Inside linebacker, all regions

1	Buzzwole	84.6
2	Great Tusk	83.0
3	Slaking	81.8
4	Iron Hands	81.6
5	Rhyperior	77.2

Middle linebacker, all regions

1	Buzzwole	80.0
2	Slaking	78.9
3	Great Tusk	78.8
4	Iron Hands	77.6
5	Roaring Moon	76.6

Inside linebacker, original 151

1	Rhydon	70.1
2	Dragonite	69.9
3	Golem	68.1
4	Machamp	65.1
5	Gyarados	64.7

Middle linebacker, original 151

1	Dragonite	69.5
2	Rhydon	65.3
3	Gyarados	64.9
4	Golem	64.5
5	Machamp	64.0

Fullback or slot receiver

Fullback: Attack 28%, Defense 26%, Weight 26%, HP 20%; type bonus Rock +4, Ground +4, Fighting +3, Normal +2. Slot receiver: Speed 48%, Attack 16%, Sp. Def 14%, Sp. Atk 12%, HP 10%; type bonus Electric +4, Flying +3, Fairy +2. Best non-Legendary fits from all 1,025 and from the original 151:

Fullback, all regions

1	Iron Hands	95.8
2	Buzzwole	94.9
3	Rhyperior	94.4
4	Great Tusk	93.2
5	Stonjourner	91.7

Slot receiver, all regions

1	Flutter Mane	82.3
2	Pheromosa	81.2
3	Dragapult	81.0
4	Jolteon	79.2
5	Iron Boulder	79.2

Fullback, original 151

1	Golem	84.7
2	Rhydon	83.3
3	Snorlax	78.8
4	Dragonite	75.9
5	Machamp	71.8

Slot receiver, original 151

1	Jolteon	79.2
2	Aerodactyl	77.4
3	Electrode	72.1
4	Alakazam	70.6
5	Raichu	69.7

Formations in ALL-22 Pro

The 56 opponents in the ALL-22 Pro league line up like this: 3-4 defense, fullback offense 24, 3-4 defense, slot offense 11, 4-3 defense, fullback offense 7, 4-3 defense, slot offense 14. For which plays work against them, see ALL-22 Pro strategy.

Questions

Which formation is best in All 22 Pokémon?

There is no big winner. Measured with the game's Team Score, the gap between the best and worst of the four formations is under 10 points for most pools (up to 17 for a single region). In simulated 17–0 Challenge runs 3-4 defense, slot offense averages highest, 3.3 points ahead of the worst, which is worth 0.7 percentage points of 17–0 chance. In the 151 Challenge 3-4 defense, slot offense averages 13.1 points more than the weakest choice.

What is the difference between 3-4 and 4-3 in All 22 Pokémon?

Only three defensive spots change. In the 3-4 you have a nose tackle (10% of the defense) and two inside linebackers (9% each). In the 4-3 the nose tackle and one inside linebacker become defensive tackles (8.5% each) and the other inside linebacker becomes a middle linebacker (11%). Defensive ends, outside linebackers, cornerbacks and safeties are the same in both.

Fullback or slot offense?

The slot offense swaps the fullback (4% of the offense, a heavy blocker) for a slot receiver (6%, mostly Speed), and takes half a point from each wide receiver and one from the tight end. In random draws slot usually comes out a little ahead: 3-4 with slot was the best of the four (or tied) in 72% of simulated 151 Challenge draws.

Can I change formation during a challenge?

In the builder, yes, any time: your players keep their spots on the field and only the jobs of the changed spots switch. In the 17–0 and 151 Challenges you set the formation before round 1 and it locks once the run starts. If you already have a team, paste its link into our team rater: it tries the same 22 in all four formations and tells you which scores best.