Acerola & Mimikyu like to have a little bit of trickster fun by keeping opponents off their game with confusion or hiding in the shadows. Their sync grid lends itself to varied styles of play, from targeting down confused opponents with relentless Shadow Claw or taking charge at the beginning of the battle with Shadow Sneak. With only one attack using the move gauge, they can be good allies with bar-hungry Pokémon. While they may not be the most powerful, their playstyle is risky and exciting.

The best sync grid build for Acerola & Mimikyu would be to focus either Shadow Claw Power or Shadow Sneak power depending on your team.

Sync Grid Builds

Trick & Trick (2/5) is a damage-focused build that confuses enemies with Shadow Claw and strikes them down with a powerful sync move. Swift Sneak (3/5) dishes out damage at the beginning of the battle with Shadow Sneak before opponents have time to set up. Stop Hitting Yourself! (3/5) focuses all in on keeping all opponents confused and preventing damage by having opponents hit themselves in confusion.

Universal Upgrades

• HP +10
• Attack +15
• Defense +5
• Sp. Def +5
• Speed +5

Universal Lucky Skill Recommendation:
Critical Strike 2

There is only a single tile that matches across all grids: Attack +5. But the lucky skill Critical Strike 2 is best for every build because Mimikyu is able to raise his critical-hit rate reliably in his Disguised Form.

Trick & Trick Build (Sync Level 2/5)

(build link)

Total Sync Orb Cost: 750
Total Energy Used: 60
Unique Upgrades:

• Sp. Def +10
• Speed +5
• Shadow Claw Power +12
• Shadow Claw Move Gauge Refresh 3
• Shadow Sneak Power +12
• Confusion Synergy 2
• Fuzzy Strike 5
• Power Flux 5

Even if you have Mimikyu’s grid fully unlocked, this sync level 2 build picks up all needed tiles for a dizzying sync move. 

Shadow Claw gains +12 power but more important is the Move Gauge Refresh 3. Ideal teammates for Acerola & Mimikyu are high-Speed Pokémon with a one-bar attack. Power Flux 5 will increase the power of Mimikyu’s moves the fuller the move gauge is. 

Critical hits land more easily with Shadow Claw (+1) so use Boo! twice before Mimikyu changes Forms. Shadow Claw will have an effective +3 critical-hit rate, which means it will always result in a critical hit. With Mimikyu’s passive skill Criticonfuse 9, every successful attack will confuse the target. Confusion Synergy 2 will also power up moves against confused targets. Continue attacking the opponent while it is confused to lower its Defense with Mimikyu’s passive Opportunistic 9.

Trick-or-Treat Shadow Claw becomes immensely powerful because not only does it natively increase its power against confused targets, but Fuzzy Strike 5 also increases the sync move power. Combined with lowered Defense from Opportunistic 9 and foes will have a hard time staying standing.

Swift Sneak Build (Sync Level 3/5)

(build link)

Total Sync Orb Cost: 738
Total Energy Used: 59
Unique Upgrades:

• Defense +20
• Shadow Sneak Power +12
• Shadow Sneak MP Refresh 2
• Shadow Sneak Critical Strike 2
• Boo! MP Refresh 2
• HP Advantage 3
• Power Flux 5

Lashing out quickly at the beginning of the battle, this build aims to unleash all of its damage quickly with Shadow Sneak before it is battered by opponents. 

Pick up Boo! MP Refresh 2 to potentially reach +3 critical-hit rate before Mimikyu is damaged. This will guarantee a critical hit for Shadow Sneak and cause Shadow Sneak Critical Strike 2 to activate, increasing damage. Acerola & Mimikyu would be even better served with an ally that is able to raise their critical-hit rate since an opponent could damage Mimikyu before he has finished setting up. With an ally’s help, Boo!’s refresh could be replaced by a +6 power tile to Shadow Sneak on top of the +12 power it already receives.

Once set up, use all Shadow Sneaks as quickly as possible to increase the attack’s power while Mimikyu’s health is at maximum since HP Advantage 3 will power up moves the closer he is to full HP. Shadow Sneak MP Refresh 2 will grant a 30% chance with each attack to restore one use of the move. Ideally, Mimikyu is unleashing damage while other allies are still setting up and the move gauge is full because Power Flux 5 will increase a move’s power based on how many bars are in the move gauge.

Once Mimikyu has exhausted all Shadow Sneaks, Phantom Force is a good next attack, especially if HP is still high. It will deal more damage and protect Mimikyu from opponents’ attack moves.

Stop Hitting Yourself! Build (Sync Level 3/5)

(build link)

Total Sync Orb Cost: 750
Total Energy Used: 60
Unique Upgrades:

• Defense +20
• Sp. Def +10
• Shadow Claw Move Gauge Refresh 3
• Phantom Force Power +6
• Shadow Sneak Power +6
• Confusion Synergy 2
• Confusion Synergy 3
• Stop Hitting Yourself 5

If you want to create a team around confusion, Mimikyu’s role is to keep opponents confused so that allies can invest their grid energy on capitalizing on confused foes. It is even better if teammates use physical attacks because of Mimikyu’s Opportunistic 9.

Shadow Claw already has +1 critical-hit rate which means two uses of Boo! before Mimikyu is damaged is all that is needed to set up guaranteed confusion, thanks to passive skill Criticonfuse 9. Shadow Claw Move Gauge Refresh 3 will help keep the move gauge filled up by  occasionally restoring one bar after a successful attack.

Mimikyu picks up both Confusion Synergy 2 and Confusion Synergy 3 for a 50% damage boost against confused opponents. Stop Hitting Yourself 5 increases the chances for opponents to damage themselves from confusion. Not only does it damage the opponent, but it stops their attack from hitting your team. With Mimikyu’s poor defenses, avoiding damage whenever possible is best.