What Is Z Mega Evolution in Pokémon Champions? New Megas Explained

Pokémon Champions' Regulation Set M-C added a brand-new battle mechanic called Z Mega Evolution, giving three Pokémon — Absol, Lucario and Garchomp — a second, more powerful Mega form apiece. The format went live on September 9, 2026 and runs through December 2, 2026, which means Mega Absol Z, Mega Lucario Z and Mega Garchomp Z are legal in Ranked Battles, Casual Battles and the current Monthly Challenge Series right now.

What Is Z Mega Evolution?

Z Mega Evolution is a new variant of the Mega Evolution mechanic that The Pokémon Company introduced specifically for Pokémon Champions' Regulation Set M-C. Rather than adding an entirely new system, it gives three existing Pokémon — Absol, Lucario and Garchomp — an alternate Mega form with a different Ability than the Mega Evolutions players already know from the mainline games. The Pokémon Company revealed the three Z Mega forms, Mega Absol Z, Mega Lucario Z and Mega Garchomp Z, in a trailer shown during the closing ceremony of the 2026 Pokémon World Championships in San Francisco, and later confirmed the details in an official press release from The Pokémon Company.

Functionally, a Z Mega Evolution works the same way a standard Mega Evolution does in Pokémon Champions: the Pokémon must be holding its Mega Stone, the trainer needs the Omni Ring (the item that takes the place of the Key Stone from the mainline games), and each trainer can only Mega Evolve once per battle. What changes is the result — Absol, Lucario and Garchomp Mega Evolve into a visually distinct "Z" form with a new Ability instead of their original Mega Evolution typing and Ability.

Mega Evolution has a long history in the Pokémon franchise, dating back to Pokémon X and Y in 2013, and it's been absent from or present in different mainline games ever since depending on the generation. Pokémon Champions brought the mechanic back specifically for competitive play, tying it to the Omni Ring item rather than the Mega Ring or Mega Bracelet accessories used in the mainline series. Z Mega Evolution is the first time The Pokémon Company has given any Pokémon a second, alternate Mega Evolution rather than just adding more Pokémon to the existing list of Mega-capable species.

The reveal itself happened at a high-profile moment: The Pokémon Company showed off the first Z Mega Evolution footage during the closing ceremony of the 2026 Pokémon World Championships, the same event where Pokémon Champions made its debut as the official VGC (Pokémon Video Game Championships) title, replacing Pokémon Scarlet and Violet for that purpose.

Why Absol, Lucario and Garchomp?

The Pokémon Company hasn't published a design rationale for why Absol, Lucario and Garchomp were the first three Pokémon to receive a Z Mega Evolution, but the choice isn't random in a competitive sense. Lucario and Garchomp are both long-running fixtures of competitive Pokémon play going back well over a decade, and giving each one an alternate typing and Ability — pure Dragon with Levitate for Garchomp, Fighting/Steel with a brand-new damage-reducing Ability for Lucario — gives Regulation Set M-C two more defensively flexible builds for Pokémon that were previously easier to wall with Ice- or Fairy-type coverage. Absol is a less common sight in top-level play, and its Dark/Ghost Z form with a slicing-move boost reads as an attempt to carve out a new offensive niche for a Pokémon that's historically been a glass-cannon pick.

How Z Mega Evolution Differs From Regular Mega Evolution

Mega Evolution itself isn't new to Pokémon Champions — it's been legal since the game launched under Regulation Set M-A, and players can already Mega Evolve dozens of Pokémon using Mega Stones and the Omni Ring. Players who want a refresher on how the base mechanic works across the series, including which Pokémon can Mega Evolve and how Mega Stones are distributed, can see the Mega Evolution breakdown in Pokémon Legends: Z-A for the mainline-game version of the system.

Z Mega Evolution is different because it isn't an upgrade available to every Mega-capable Pokémon — only Absol, Lucario and Garchomp have a Z Mega form right now, and each one replaces that Pokémon's existing Mega Evolution rather than sitting alongside it. A trainer fielding Absol still only gets to pick one Mega Evolution for the match; the Z form is simply a second option with different stats, typing or Ability than the original Mega Absol.

Mega Absol Z, Explained

Mega Absol Z is Dark/Ghost-type. Its Ability, Sharpness, boosts the power of slicing moves by 50%, pushing it toward a physical attacker built around cutting-type moves rather than Absol's usual mixed-attacker role. The Ghost-typing addition also changes its defensive matchups, giving it an immunity to Normal- and Fighting-type moves that the original Mega Absol doesn't have.

Mega Lucario Z, Explained

Mega Lucario Z keeps Lucario's Fighting/Steel typing but swaps in a new Ability called Aura Guard, which halves the damage Lucario takes from any contact move. According to The Pokémon Company's official announcement, Aura Guard is making its first appearance anywhere in the Pokémon series with this release, making Mega Lucario Z the debut Pokémon for an entirely new Ability rather than a reused one.

Mega Garchomp Z, Explained

Mega Garchomp Z is the biggest typing change of the three: where the standard Mega Garchomp is Dragon/Ground, the Z form is pure Dragon-type and gains the Ability Levitate. That makes it immune to Ground-type moves, as well as to Spikes, Toxic Spikes and Sticky Web — a notable upgrade for a Pokémon that's historically been weak to entry hazards and Ice/Dragon/Fairy coverage aimed at its Ground typing.

Regulation Set M-C: Dates and What Else Changed

Z Mega Evolution arrived as part of the broader Regulation Set M-C update, which The Pokémon Company says is active from 02:00 UTC on September 9, 2026 to 01:59 UTC on December 2, 2026. Regulation sets govern which Pokémon, items and mechanics are legal in Ranked Battles, the Monthly Challenge Series and other official competitions, and The Pokémon Company typically rotates to a new set every few months. Alongside the three Z Megas, M-C also added Rillaboom and Baxcalibur to the pool of Pokémon available in Champions, on top of everything already unlocked during Regulation Sets M-A and M-B.

M-C followed Regulation Set M-B, which ran from June 17, 2026 through early September and was the format used at the 2026 Pokémon World Championships — the first time VGC (Pokémon Video Game Championships) matches were played on Pokémon Champions instead of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. That switch made Champions the official competitive battle simulator for VGC and other Championship Series events starting in 2026, though Pokémon Scarlet and Violet remains the format used for some regional events.

Regulation Set M-A was the game's launch format, covering April 8 through June 17, 2026, and it's what first made standard Mega Evolution legal in Champions at all using the Omni Ring. Each regulation set since has kept the Pokémon and mechanics from earlier sets while adding new ones on top, so the roster available in M-C is cumulative rather than a reset — a trainer who built a team around M-A or M-B Pokémon doesn't lose access to them under M-C, they simply gain Rillaboom, Baxcalibur and the three Z Mega Evolutions as additional options.

How to Use Z Mega Evolution in a Battle

To use a Z Mega Evolution, a trainer needs the same setup as any other Mega Evolution in Pokémon Champions: the Pokémon (Absol, Lucario or Garchomp) must be holding its Mega Stone, and the trainer must have access to the Omni Ring, which every player automatically has once Mega Evolution unlocks. During Regulation Set M-C, selecting that Mega Stone and choosing to Mega Evolve during a battle will trigger the Z form rather than the Pokémon's original Mega Evolution. As with every Mega Evolution in the game, a trainer can only Mega Evolve one Pokémon, one time, per battle — so a team built around a Z Mega still has to make the same single-Mega commitment as any other Champions team.

That single-Mega rule is the main strategic wrinkle Z Mega Evolution adds. Before Regulation Set M-C, a trainer who wanted to use Absol, Lucario or Garchomp as their Mega pick only had one version of each to plan around. Now there are effectively two builds per Pokémon — the original Mega Evolution and the new Z form — with different typing, resistances and Ability, so teams have to be built (and scouted) with both possibilities in mind. A Garchomp holding a Mega Stone, for instance, could reveal either the Dragon/Ground original or the pure-Dragon, Levitate-wielding Z form once it actually Mega Evolves in battle, which changes how an opponent should play around entry hazards and Ground-type coverage moves until that reveal happens.

Where This Fits Into Pokémon Champions

Pokémon Champions is a free-to-start competitive battle game that launched on Nintendo Switch on April 8, 2026, with iOS and Android versions following on June 17, 2026. It supports cross-platform play between Switch and mobile — the kind of cross-platform play that's become standard across most live-service games — and lets players import compatible Pokémon from Pokémon HOME to build teams rather than starting entirely from scratch.

Battles come in three modes — Ranked, Casual and Private — each playable as Singles or Doubles, and progress is tracked through Victory Points (VP), which are earned by battling and used to recruit and train Pokémon rather than purchased outright. Seasonal content, including the Monthly Challenge Series, is tied to the kind of seasonal Battle Pass structure used across most competitive live-service titles. The base game is free, but Nintendo sells an optional Pokémon Champions + Starter Pack bundle for $6.99 that adds storage for 50 extra Pokémon plus Teammate and Training Tickets — it doesn't affect who can use Z Mega Evolution. None of the Z Mega Evolution Pokémon require the Starter Pack or any other real-money purchase; Absol, Lucario and Garchomp can all be recruited using VP earned through ordinary play, the same currency used to recruit every other Pokémon in the game.

What's Next

Regulation Set M-C is scheduled to run through December 2, 2026, at which point The Pokémon Company typically rotates to a new regulation set with its own roster and mechanic changes — meaning Mega Absol Z, Mega Lucario Z and Mega Garchomp Z aren't guaranteed to stay legal indefinitely once the next set takes over. Players who want to use them in Ranked Battles or the Monthly Challenge Series have through early December before the format shifts again. The Pokémon Company hasn't confirmed whether additional Z Mega Evolutions are planned for Pokémon other than Absol, Lucario and Garchomp, so any further additions would likely be announced alongside the next regulation set.

Written byJonah Reyes

Jonah Reyes leads Pandromeda's gaming coverage: console and handheld hardware, release dates, pricing changes, patch notes and the business moves behind the biggest franchises. He sources every date and price from the platform holders and publishers themselves, and says plainly when something is still only a rumour.

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