Kubfu

Using Kubfu in a Playthrough

Kubfu is received during The Isle of Armor story after completing Mustard's trials, and its evolution is unusual because the player chooses which permanent Urshifu style it becomes. In Sword and Shield, Kubfu evolves after completing either the Tower of Darkness or Tower of Waters and examining that tower's scroll; in Generation IX, exposing Kubfu directly to the Scroll of Darkness or Scroll of Waters produces Single Strike Style or Rapid Strike Style respectively. Both Urshifu forms share 100 HP, 130 Attack, 100 Defense, and 97 Speed, making either one an immediately powerful physical attacker, but their typings change the matchups substantially: Single Strike is Fighting/Dark and has a severe 4× Fairy weakness, while Rapid Strike is Fighting/Water and trades that vulnerability for weaknesses to Electric, Fairy, Flying, Grass, and Psychic. Single Strike's Wicked Blow is a perfectly accurate Dark attack that always lands a critical hit; it had 80 base power in Generation VIII and was reduced to 75 in Generation IX. Rapid Strike's Surging Strikes hits three times, each hit is a guaranteed critical hit, and each strike has 25 base power in Generation IX, giving the style a reliable way to bypass opposing Defense boosts and Attack drops. Unseen Fist lets Urshifu's contact moves hit through Protect and similar protection, making defensive stalling less reliable against either style, while Close Combat supplies extremely strong Fighting STAB at the cost of lowering both defenses. Rapid Strike also has Aqua Jet for priority, whereas Single Strike has Sucker Punch, and U-turn gives both styles a strong pivoting option. In Sword and Shield, Max Soup combined with Max Honey can unlock each style's unique Gigantamax form: G-Max One Blow for Single Strike and G-Max Rapid Flow for Rapid Strike both bypass even Max Guard, making Urshifu unusually difficult to stop with protective moves.

Kubfu in Competitive Pokémon

Urshifu has one of the clearest examples of two forms developing different but equally important competitive histories. Single Strike entered Sword/Shield OU as a devastating Choice Band and Bulk Up wallbreaker because 130 Attack, Wicked Blow's guaranteed critical hit, Close Combat, U-turn, Sucker Punch, and Unseen Fist made defensive scouting exceptionally difficult. Smogon formally suspect-tested Urshifu-Single-Strike in late 2020 and banned it from SS OU on January 10, 2021; it finished the generation in Ubers, where it remained a usable wallbreaker despite competition from stronger restricted and mythical threats. Rapid Strike, by contrast, remained legal and finished Sword/Shield in OU, where Choice Band Surging Strikes could break physically defensive targets through guaranteed critical hits while Aqua Jet and U-turn gave it excellent offensive utility. Generation IX eventually pushed both styles above OU: Single Strike began the Pokémon HOME metagame as Uber, while Rapid Strike initially remained legal but was quickbanned from SV OU on June 11, 2023 after proving too difficult to contain with Surging Strikes, Swords Dance, Terastallization, and its broad coverage. Rapid Strike also became one of the defining Pokémon of Scarlet/Violet VGC, where Surging Strikes ignores Intimidate's damage reduction through its critical hits and Unseen Fist punishes Protect, two properties that are particularly valuable in doubles. Single Strike has remained similarly dangerous in restricted and Battle Stadium environments, with Wicked Blow, Sucker Punch, Close Combat, and Tera Dark giving it enormous one-turn pressure despite its 4× Fairy weakness. Gigantamax Urshifu belongs mainly to Dynamax-legal formats rather than standard SS singles, where Dynamax was banned; its G-Max moves are notable because they can bypass Max Guard as well as ordinary protection.

Kubfu in Nuzlockes

Kubfu can be a valuable Nuzlocke encounter because it is guaranteed through The Isle of Armor story rather than dependent on random encounter luck, but the permanent choice between Urshifu styles should be made around the team's existing weaknesses rather than raw power alone. Single Strike is excellent against Psychic- and Ghost-oriented opponents but its 4× Fairy weakness is dangerous enough that even modest Fairy coverage can threaten a knockout, while Rapid Strike has more individual weaknesses but no 4× weakness and gains a useful Fire resistance. Wicked Blow is unusually safe for a high-impact attack because it is perfectly accurate and always critical, while Surging Strikes is also perfectly accurate and breaks Focus Sash, Substitute, and Sturdy-like one-hit protections through multiple hits. The drawback to Surging Strikes is contact being made three times, which can multiply damage from Rocky Helmet, Iron Barbs, Rough Skin, or similar effects and should be checked before committing to the attack. Close Combat is powerful and accurate but lowers both defenses, so repeatedly using it can turn an initially safe matchup into a dangerous one; Aqua Jet is a particularly useful emergency tool for Rapid Strike, whereas Sucker Punch can save Single Strike against faster attackers but fails if the opponent does not use an attacking move. Guaranteed critical hits also ignore defensive stat boosts that might otherwise make damage estimates unreliable, but they do not protect Urshifu from recoil, contact punishment, or faster special attackers exploiting its base 60 Special Defense. Gigantamax can provide a large temporary HP buffer in Sword and Shield, but its three-turn duration should be planned around the battle rather than treated as permanent durability.

Kubfu is a small bear-like Fighting-type that trains its body and mind intensely and treats defeat as motivation to become stronger rather than as a reason to retreat from training. It possesses a specialized organ in its lower abdomen that generates fighting energy through controlled breathing and intense concentration. Kubfu also pulls on the two long ribbons of fur behind its head to raise its fighting spirit and build power before or during training. Wild Kubfu live in remote mountainous regions outside Galar, although historical records indicate that the species once lived in Galar and traveled with humans who were exploring or trading in distant lands.