Pokémon Unite: Best Snorlax Build to Become a Brick Wall Defender

Coming into Pokémon Unite as one of the starter Pokémon, Snorlax has instant appeal among long-time fans of the franchise, being a prominent figure since Generation I.

In the latest Pokémon game, Snorlax embodies the Defender class, utilising melee attacks and its colossal health pool to stop foes in their tracks. This Snorlax build shows you how best to utilise its kit.

Everything that you need to know about the build is detailed below, but first, here’s a quick look at how to make the best Snorlax build in Pokémon Unite:

• Role: Defender
• First Move: Flail
• Second Move: Yawn
• Battle Item: Slow Smoke
• Held Items: Focus Band, Leftovers, Rocky Helmet

Optimum role of Snorlax in Pokémon Unite

To adjust your Snorlax build, you can either rearrange its battle and held items via the Battle Prep page from the main screen or press ZL before a match, where you can also map its move learning path.

Snorlax is, perhaps, the highlight of the Defender class, which boasts a tremendous amount of endurance across its members. As such, the Pokémon is designed to eat up attacks and stop enemies while teammates deal more damage to them.

A Defender can perform well in either the top or bottom lane, but preference would go to the top lane alongside an Attacker class Pokémon that deals a lot of damage from range. That said, given its preferred abilities, this Snorlax build could also find success with a Support class Pokémon pumping it up.

Snorlax’s parameters lend it only, but very well to the Defender role. Its five-star endurance means that the Sleeping Pokémon can take a tremendous amount of punishment before going down, while its abilities allow it to stop and hinder foes for longer.

Optimum moveset of the Snorlax build in Pokémon Unite

Snorlax’s moveset is fairly basic, with the exception of its Unite Move, which both heals it and hinders foes. Other than that, the basic attack decreases a foe’s movement speed, and the ability enhances berry consumption – meaning that it can heal a bit quicker when defending a Goal Zone.

• Basic Attack: “Becomes a boosted attack with every third attack. When this boosted attack hits, it deals damage to nearby opposing Pokémon and decreases their movement speed for a short time.”
• Passive Ability, Gluttony: “Increases the effects gained from eating Berries.”
• Unite Move, Power Nap: “Has the user go to sleep and begin snoring, dealing damage over time to opposing Pokémon in the area of effect and throwing them. While sleeping, the user becomes immune to hindrances and its HP is continually restored.”

Once Snorlax hits Level 6, it’ll have the chance to upgrade Tackle to either Heavy Slam or Flail. While Heavy Slam offers a direct offensive upgrade on Tackle, Flail would be the pick for the best Snorlax build.

When activated, the hindrance move ups your basic attack based on how low your HP is, and as Defender, Snorlax will often find itself at the lower end of the HP bar. So, Flail can quickly give you the edge needed to oust your foe in a close scrap.

Flail upgrades to Flail+ at Level 12, which increases the damage dealt by the move and makes subsequent basic attacks that hit an enemy heal Snorlax should its HP be low when Flail+ is triggered.

At Level 8, the best Snorlax build would benefit the most from selecting Yawn over Block. While Block stops Pokémon from advancing through Snorlax’s zone of terror, you’ll still take damage. Yawn, on the other hand, completely neutralises all Pokémon that it hits for a short spell.

The hindrance move lulls enemies into a sleepy haze, leaving them wide open to be attacked by Snorlax or, preferably, a more offence-minded ally. At Level 14, the move becomes Yawn+ to also decrease the movement speed of enemy Pokémon.

Best battle item for the Snorlax build in Pokémon Unite

Official Description: “Creates a cloud of smoke that greatly decreases the movement speed of opposing Pokémon for a short time.”

The best Snorlax build has one job: stop opposing Pokémon from going any further. Its size and abilities help with this, but so too can the 40-second cooldown item Slow Smoke.

You can throw this item down to slow incoming Pokémon and give your teammates a bit more time to get in and assist. Or, of course, Slow Smoke can be used to stop a surge and give you and your allies lots of time to get back, heal, and prepare for another scrap – essentially drawing foes into a trap.

Best held items for the Snorlax build in Pokémon Unite

Official Description: “When the Pokémon drops to low HP, then each second for three seconds, it recovers 14% of the HP it had lost.”

The job of the best Snorlax build is to brick wall opponents and cause them as much of a hindrance as possible, and the held item Focus Band certainly helps to achieve this goal.

You will take a lot of damage, especially when outnumbered. So, getting a little reprieve when your HP drops can make a lot of difference. It’s particularly useful in combination with Slow Smoke, granting you more time to heal further if you fall back quickly enough.

Official Description: “When the Pokémon is not in combat, it recovers 2% of its max HP every second.”

Whether you’re falling back to heal and re-establish your blocking zone or awaiting the next wave, you’ll want your Snorlax to fill up its tremendous health pool as quickly as possible. As such, Leftovers is an essential held item – especially as it also increases your base HP and HP recovery rate.  

Official Description: “When the Pokémon receives a certain amount of damage, damage is dealt to nearby opposing Pokémon equal to 5% of those Pokémon’s max HP.”

It’s nice that Rocky Helmet increases the HP of the best Snorlax build, but what makes it particularly useful is its ability to deal more damage.

When your health bar drops too low, five per cent of each nearby Pokémon’s HP will be wiped out – once Rocky Helmet is at Level 20. So, as a Defender, it’s inevitable that this damage output will be triggered.

How to use the best Snorlax build in Pokémon Unite

This Snorlax build makes the most of its role as an absorber of damage and enhances its ability to be a hindrance to all in its vicinity. The held items will help it to stay on the frontlines while Flail and Yawn make the Sleeping Pokémon quite the adversary, even if its purpose is to get in the way.

To make the most of what the Snorlax build has to offer, be sure to use Yawn early and often, stopping enemies in their tracks. Around that, keep firing basic attacks until your HP drops a bit past the halfway mark. Then, unleash a Flail and follow it up with more basic attacks.

If you’re vastly outnumbered, and an Attacker or Support hasn’t arrived to help you yet, throw down the Slow Smoke and retreat, allowing you to reset yourself while healing. That said, Snorlax’s Unite Move, Rocky Helmet, and Focus Band will all help it to keep blocking for longer than it should.