One of Pokemon’s Ambrosia’s best-selling points is its selection of starters. This ROM hack features some of the coolest starters to ever exist, making the choice harder than ever.
But aesthetics aside, which is the best starter in Pokemon Ambrosia that will give you the best early game and be the leader of your team all throughout your adventure?
In this guide, we’ll rank all three starters and find out which one of them is the most efficient to use in an Ambrosia playthrough.
Also see: Pokemon Ambrosia Cheats
This tier list is based on several factors, such as the starters’ stats and typing, their usefulness against the gym leaders, the Elite Four, and Champion Lance.
Let’s get started.
Key Highlights:
- Chimchar is the best starter for an Ambrosia playthrough. Its typing and offensive capabilities give it the best kit to sweep through Johto and the Elite Four.
- Froakie is a close runner-up but is a bit more fragile.
- Treecko will struggle early and is for those who are willing to build a team around its weaknesses.
Best Starter in Pokemon Ambrosia: A Definitive Tier List
In all honesty, you really can’t go wrong with a starter in Pokemon Ambrosia because the game has such an improved move list and QoL features like the Relearnall that lets you build a synergized team and strong core members.
But if we’re gonna start off an adventure on the right foot, it all begins with your starter.
Chimchar – S Tier
Chimchar is the best starter in Pokemon Ambrosia for most players. Its final evolution, Infernape, has one of the best offensive profiles among the three starters because Fire/Fighting coverage is useful across many important battles.
Chimchar’s evolution and moveset are excellent for a full playthrough. Fire STAB helps against Bugsy, Jasmine, Pryce, and Erika in Kanto.
Fighting coverage helps against Whitney’s Normal types, Bruno’s Rock types in the Elite Four, Karen’s Dark types, Brock in Kanto, and many bulky threats throughout the game.
The move relearner item makes Infernape even better because you can adjust its set depending on the boss.
You can run Fire Punch or Flamethrower when you need Fire damage; Mach Punch for priority; Aura Sphere for reliable Fighting coverage; Close Combat for raw power; and Will-O-Wisp for support.
Infernape also has a strong mixed attacking profile, which means it can use both Physical and Special moves well. That flexibility makes Chimchar the safest yet most useful starter overall, and you’ll have the easiest early game with Chimchar up against Sprout Tower and Bugsy.
Moves Learned by Chimchar:
- Level 8: Ember
- Level 16: Karate Chop
- Level 20: Mach Punch
- Level 22: Will O Wisp
- Level 26: Flame Wheel
- Level 33: Fire Punch
- Level 36: Aura Sphere
- Level 40: Flamethrower
- Level 45: Close Combat
- Level 50: Flare Blitz
- Level 55: Draco Impact
Froakie – A Tier
Froakie is the second best starter and the best pick if you want speed, utility, and flexible coverage.
Its final evolution, Greninja, is known for being fast and offensively flexible, and Pokemon Ambrosia gives it an even better moveset than the original games.
Greninja’s biggest strength is its usefulness against Psychic and mixed teams. Dark Pulse and Night Slash give it strong tools against Sabrina’s Psychic types, while Water coverage helps against Bruno’s Rock types, Brock, Blaine, and other Fire-, Rock-, or Ground-type threats.
Its ninja frog identity was given justice by giving Greninja excellent utility options. Smokescreen, Disable, and Substitute can help in harder fights where simple attacking is not enough.
With the move relearner item, Greninja can easily switch between Water damage, Dark coverage, Psychic coverage, and utility moves depending on what the next boss requires. Pair that with its Protean ability, and every single attack deals STAB.
The main reason Froakie is not S Tier is that Greninja can be more fragile than Infernape, and the chimp is just more effective in sweeping through Johto. Still, it is a great starter for players who like fast, aggressive, and tactical gameplay.
Moves Learned by Froakie:
- Level 6: Water Gun
- Level 8: Quick Attack
- Level 10: Aqua Jet
- Level 12: Disable
- Level 20: Night Shade
- Level 25: Bubblebeam
- Level 30: Psychic
- Level 36: Night Slash
- Level 40: Dark Pulse
- Level 45: Hydro Pump
- Level 50: Substitute
Treecko: B Tier
Treecko is not bad, but compared to Chimchar and Froakie, it’s more matchup dependent. Its final evolution, Sceptile, is fast and has good offensive capabilities.
However, Grass typing is not as useful across the full Pokemon Ambrosia boss path, especially with Falkner and Bugsy as the first two gym leaders standing in your way. They will obliterate Treecko.
On the other hand, Sceptile has some great moves. Giga Drain gives it healing, Leaf Blade is a strong Grass attack, X Scissor helps against Psychic and Dark types, Night Slash gives extra coverage, and Dragon Claw gives it a tool for Lance’s Dragon team.
It does well against Rock, Water, and Ground threats, which gives it value against Bruno’s Rock team, Brock, Misty, and parts of mixed teams, but it is not as consistently useful as Infernape or Greninja.
Treecko is best for players who like fast Grass attackers and do not mind building the rest of the team around its weaknesses.
Moves Learned by Treecko:
- Level 8: Absorb
- Level 12: Quick Attack
- Level 14: Feint Attack
- Level 17: Razor Leaf
- Level 20: Mega Drain
- Level 25: Slash
- Level 32: X Scissor
- Level 36: Giga Drain
- Level 40: Leaf Blade
- Level 43: Night Slash
- Level 46: Dragon Claw
- Level 50: Solar Beam
Conclusion
All three starters are strong in their own way, but Chimchar clearly gives most players the best overall experience.
Froakie is still an excellent pick if you prefer speed, coverage, and tactical play, and its moves makes it flexible enough to handle many important fights.
Treecko, on the other hand, is the hardest starter to recommend for beginners, but Sceptile can still shine with the right team support.
Whatever starter you choose, team building and utilizing the right moves will dictate your success in Pokemon Ambrosia.
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