For your first Nuzlocke, choose a game you know well. Pokémon FireRed/LeafGreen and HeartGold/SoulSilver are popular first choices because they have straightforward difficulty curves and you likely already know the map and type matchups.
Keeping track of encounters, deaths, and your current team in your head is a recipe for mistakes. Use a Nuzlocke tracker to log every encounter and mark statuses. This prevents accidentally revisiting routes or forgetting which Pokémon are dead.
In a Nuzlocke, you cannot afford to walk into a gym with no answer to the leader's type. Always aim for a team that covers as many types as possible. A balanced team with Water, Fire, Grass, Flying, and Ground coverage will get you through most situations.
Pokémon you would never use in a normal playthrough can become MVPs in a Nuzlocke. Tentacool, Geodude, Zubat — these common encounters have great stats and movepools. Give everything a chance.
Keep at least one bulky Pokémon that can take a hit and let you safely switch. Pokémon with high HP and Defense like Snorlax, Steelix, or Quagsire can save runs by absorbing unexpected crits.
This is the golden rule of Nuzlockes. If you are not sure you can survive a hit, switch out. If a fight looks dangerous, heal first. The number one cause of Nuzlocke deaths is overconfidence — thinking "it probably won't crit" right before it crits.
In a normal playthrough, being a few levels under the gym leader is fine. In a Nuzlocke, those missing levels can mean the difference between life and death. Always grind your team to the level cap before major battles.
Before every gym leader and rival fight, look up their exact team, movesets, and abilities. Knowing that a gym leader's Pokémon has a specific coverage move can save your best team member from an unexpected knockout.
In older Pokémon games, poison damages your Pokémon while walking. Many Nuzlocke deaths happen because players forget about the poison ticking away between battles. Always carry Antidotes early on.
Even with a type advantage, a critical hit can knock out a Pokémon you thought was safe. Always calculate worst-case scenarios: assume the enemy will crit and check if your Pokémon survives.
Your starter is important, but do not sacrifice the run trying to keep it alive. If the smartest play is to let your starter faint to save a more important team member, make the tough call. Sentiment loses Nuzlockes.
Start tracking your encounters and never lose another Pokémon to a mistake.
Open Nuzlocke Tracker