Meltan

Using Meltan in a Playthrough

Meltan and Melmetal have one of the most unusual evolution systems in the series: Meltan cannot evolve in any core-series game and must instead be evolved in Pokémon GO by spending 400 Meltan Candy, after which Melmetal can be transferred into compatible games. That restriction means a player using Meltan directly in Let's Go, Sword/Shield, or later compatible titles cannot simply level it into Melmetal, making external game connectivity a practical requirement rather than an optional shortcut. Meltan itself has very low overall stats and is poorly suited to normal battling, while Melmetal becomes a massive physical tank with base 135 HP, 143 Attack, and 143 Defense but only base 34 Speed and 65 Special Defense. Double Iron Bash is Melmetal's defining move: it strikes twice, each hit benefits from Iron Fist, and each hit can flinch, giving the move exceptional damage and utility despite Melmetal's low Speed; Earthquake, Thunder Punch, Ice Punch, and Superpower or similar coverage handle many Steel resists. Pure Steel supplies a Poison immunity and ten resistances while leaving only Fighting, Fire, and Ground weaknesses, but the low Special Defense means strong special attacks of those types remain dangerous even through Melmetal's huge HP. Gigantamax Melmetal was available in Sword and Shield to specimens with the Gigantamax Factor and replaced its Steel-type Max Move with G-Max Meltdown, which damages the target and inflicts Torment-like move restriction; the transformation lasts only three turns like other Dynamax states. Brave is excellent for Trick Room-oriented Melmetal, while Adamant maximizes ordinary damage without further sacrificing an already minimal Speed stat.

Meltan in Competitive Pokémon

Melmetal immediately became a major competitive force rather than following the low-tier trajectory of many newly introduced Mythical Pokémon. In Let's Go Pikachu/Eevee OU it was one of the central Pokémon in the entire metagame because its huge HP, Attack, Defense, rare Steel typing, Double Iron Bash, Earthquake, and elemental punch coverage let it check major offensive threats while threatening almost every switch-in. Sword and Shield gave Melmetal a turbulent but ultimately important OU history: it was initially quickbanned shortly after release, later retested, eventually reintroduced as the metagame developed, and spent a long period as one of OU's strongest physical tanks and wallbreakers. Double Iron Bash is the core reason the stat line is so oppressive, combining enormous Iron Fist-boosted Steel damage with two separate contact hits and flinch chances, while Thunder Punch, Ice Punch, Earthquake, and Superpower make conventional Steel resistances unreliable answers. Its huge physical bulk can survive attacks from offensive Pokémon that would destroy most wallbreakers, but base 65 Special Defense, base 34 Speed, lack of reliable recovery, and susceptibility to repeated hazards or special Fire-, Ground-, and Fighting-type damage keep it from being universally safe. Gigantamax Melmetal was not part of standard Smogon OU play and is listed separately in unrestricted formats; in official Dynamax-enabled environments, G-Max Meltdown added a unique disruptive effect but did not replace the importance of ordinary Melmetal's Double Iron Bash identity. Melmetal is unavailable in standard Scarlet and Violet, although it is again obtainable in the current Legends: Z-A environment, so its longest established traditional singles history remains centered on Let's Go and Sword/Shield.

Meltan in Nuzlockes

Melmetal is an exceptional physical Nuzlocke tank once the player has solved the external evolution requirement, but Meltan itself is weak enough that attempting to use it as though normal leveling will eventually produce Melmetal is a serious mistake. Pure Steel typing gives Melmetal a Poison immunity and a vast resistance profile, while 135 HP and 143 Defense provide enormous margin against physical neutral attacks and many resisted hits. Double Iron Bash is accurate and powerful, and because it hits twice it can break substitutes, Sturdy, Focus Sash, and similar one-hit protections before the second strike, making it unusually reliable at finishing certain opponents. The main danger is special damage: base 65 Special Defense is much weaker than the physical side, and strong Fire-, Fighting-, or Ground-type special coverage can remove large portions of Melmetal's HP before its low base 34 Speed allows it to respond. Superpower and similar defense-lowering coverage should be used cautiously in multi-Pokémon battles, while recoil-free punch coverage and Earthquake generally preserve Melmetal's excellent staying power better. Gigantamax can provide three turns of doubled HP in Sword/Shield challenge formats and G-Max Meltdown adds disruption, but the player should remember that the temporary HP increase disappears afterward and does not solve Melmetal's long-term lack of reliable recovery.

Meltan has a body of liquid metal—official concept material identifies the substance with gallium—and a hard golden hexagonal nut surrounding a floating eye-like sphere. Its liquid body can corrode and absorb other metals, which Meltan circulates internally to generate the electricity used as both metabolic energy and an offensive discharge from its eye. Meltan commonly live and forage in groups, can call one another by spinning their hexagonal heads to create sound, and have also used the same motion as an expression of affection. Their group behavior is directly connected to evolution: when the proper time comes, one especially strong Meltan absorbs the others and becomes Melmetal. The life cycle also runs in reverse on a much longer timescale, because an aging Melmetal eventually rusts and falls apart and the resulting metal shards can later be reborn as new Meltan. Ancient followers of Melmetal preserved Meltan associated with that cycle inside Mystery Boxes, connecting the species' modern reappearance with human religious or cultural practices from thousands of years earlier.