Greninja builds, evolutions & special moves in Pokemon UNITE

These Pokemon UNITE Greninja builds are what you need if you want to be the one that strikes first and comes out victorious in battle. You'll need a speedy Pokemon that packs a punch in Pokemon UNITE for that, and Greninja more than fits the bill. With high mobility, tremendous offense, and moves that boost both while healing at the same time, Greninja is a force to be reckoned with in any situation. Here's our look at some of the best Pokemon UNITE Greninja builds for success with the amphibian assassin.

Greninja evolutions, moveset & special moves

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First, let's take a look at Greninja's statistics and moveset:

Role: Attacker
Style: Ranged
Difficulty: Expert

Stats

• Offense - 8
• Endurance - 4
• Mobility - 6
• Scoring - 6
• Support - 1

Evolution levels 

Froakie Start
Frogadier at Lvl. 5 
Greninja at Lvl. 7

Special Moves

Passive Skill: Torrent - When Greninja's health is less than %0%, it gains Increased movement speed and attack damage 

Unite Move: Waterburst Shuriken - Greninja throws a giant water shuriken down to the ground from above.

Bubble - Multiple bubbles are shot at opponents, inflicting damage and lowering movement speed. Cooldown is 9 seconds. At Lvl. 5, the move upgrades to player's choice of the following: 

• Water Shuriken - Greninja attacks with multiple shurikens made of water. Greninja receives a boost in movement speed while the move is active, and every time a shuriken hits an opponent it restores some of Greninja's HP. 8 second cooldown. At Lvl. 11 more shurikens are created.
• Surf - Greninja produces a massive wave of water and rides it toward its opponents, restoring its HP in the process. If this move finishes off an opponent, it can immediately be used again. 9 second cooldown. At Lvl. 11 more HP is restored on hit.

Substitute - Quickly moves forward, leaving a small doll in its place as a decoy. Cooldown is 8 seconds. At Lvl. 7, the move upgrades to player's choice of the following:

• Double Team - A quick dash away from where Greninja is currently standing, which also creates copies of Greninja to help in battle. 11 second cooldown. At Lvl. 13 cooldown is reduced.
• Smokescreen - Dodge rolls in a straight line, making Greninja invisible and increasing speed. This move also boosts Greninja's next basic attack. 11 second cooldown. At Lvl. 13 damage output is increased after smoke disappears.

Now that we know what we're working with, here are two of the best Pokemon UNITE Greninja builds:

Greninja Build: A Downpour of Pain

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• Focus: Attack Damage
• Area: Top or Bottom Lane
• Move 1 Upgrade: Water Shuriken
• Move 2 Upgrade: Smokescreen
• Battle Item: Eject Button
• Held Items
• Muscle Band
• Scope Lens
• Shell Bell

This Pokemon UNITE Greninja build is all about getting in the opposing team's face and dealing as much damage as possible. The Muscle Band held item will increase Greninja's attack power, while the Scope Lens further boosts damage on a Critical Hit. The third item is a toss-up between the Buddy Barrier--which creates a shield for the Pokemon holding it and the ally with the lowest HP after the holding Pokemon's Unite move is used--or what we've chosen here, the Shell Bell, which not only buffs Special Attacks but also reduces their cooldown and gives Greninja health whenever they hit. Since Water Shuriken already heals Greninja on hit, Shell Bell offers more healing while dealing more damage.

The Downpour of Pain build is best used in either top or bottom lane, optimized for skirmishes with Pokemon on the opposing team. The multiple damage buffs and healing opportunities means Greninja is going to be harassing every opposing team member that comes at him, dealing massive damage along the way. You may worry that not attacking wild Pokemon means you won't be scoring many goals, but you'll be collecting dropped points from all the KOs you rack up, so there will be plenty of points to go around. 

This build does have a lack of focus on increasing speed or defense though, and while Greninja is speedy on its own its defense does leave a bit to be desired, so don't find yourself overwhelmed by multiple opponents or else this glass cannon will break. If you should find yourself in a bad situation there are a few escape routes thanks to Smokescreen and the Eject Button Battle Item, which will let Greninja retreat from a heavy disadvantage to find a healing zone and live to fight another day.

Greninja Build: A New Blue Blur

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• Focus: Speed/Jungling
• Area: Jungle/Mid Lane
• Move 1 Upgrade: Surf
• Move 2 Upgrade: Smokescreen
• Battle Item: Fluffy Tail
• Held Items
• Float Stone
• Muscle Band
• Focus Band

This is a Greninja that scores goals, plain and simple. The Fluffy Tail Battle Item focuses on wild Pokemon, dealing more damage and occasionally stunning them. The Muscle Band increases attack power and attack speed, meaning Greninja is able to dish out faster, more powerful attacks. The Focus Band adds a needed boost to Greninja's defense, making sure it can stay alive long enough to clear the jungles throughout the entire match. When Zapdos appears, a high-level Greninja in this build will be key in taking it down.

There's a decent amount of healing properties in this build too, which both Surf's built-in HP recovery and the Focus Band's three-second heal whenever Greninja drops to low HP. Remember this as you wreak havoc in the middle area, taking out wild Pokemon and getting those added buffs from Bouffalant, Ludicolo, and Drednaw. 

That said, don't get too focused on the wild Pokemon and forget about opposing team members, because doing so will get you knocked out. This is a build that deals good damage with some healing, but those buffs can be overpowered if you find yourself in a two-on-one situation with nowhere to go. Smokescreen still works as a solid escape strategy, but it's still better just not to end up in that situation at all. Luckily the increased defense from Focus Band can buy you an extra second or two to make your stealthy escape.

Now you know all the best Pokemon UNITE Greninja builds, find more of our UNITE guides below:

Pokemon UNITE best Pokemon tier list | Pokemon UNITE Physical vs Special Attacks | Pokemon UNITE Buddy Barrier | Pokemon UNITE Gengar builds