Returning Player Advice for Explorers of Sky

Keep a couple blue gummis in Kanga Storage for the postgame.

Quick Attack and other priority moves are some of the best moves in the game (Quick Attack gets a mention for being learned early). You also want beam moves (flamethrower, focus blast, etc...) to kill far away foes before they get close. Rest is amazing, as you shake off status in a few irrelevant turns without a nearby enemy.

Riolu gets access to Endure. You want this move. It gives you effective immortality for a few turns (after which you just endure again). When combined with Reversal, you hit very hard and let your partner use the only needed Reviver Seeds.

Roar can be used to remove threats, as it sends whoever its used on flying. Not a lot of damage, but can get you out of a pinch. On a similar vein, confusion is great for getting enemies to fight themselves (monster houses et all, beware the room filled with goodies).

Frustration and Return are based on IQ, Frustration is an amazing move early on if you need heavy damage.

If you get into a Monster House without an out, back back into the hallway and fight them one at a time.

Reviver Seeds are a godsend. They function as full heals that also cure belly and PP and they leave behind an item that fills the belly by 5.

Petrify Orbs are great to get out of Monster Houses, as you get to fight opponents one at a time or not at all at your leisure. Be careful not to free something with a move that affects all opponents though (or do it yourself via Powder Snow or the like). Then you have the original monster house again.

Sleep Seeds are great for boss fights.

If you have no food, but you do have Oran Berries, let yourself lose the HP for working with no food until you get 1000 under, then pop a berry. It will hel you up and give you 5 belly, letting you stretch your resources further. Same goes for if you just have Plain Seeds. After all, you recover HP while moving, so letting yourself extend your food by way of your health is economical (if not particularly pleasant).

A+B makes turns pass quickly, and is useful for healing up. It lets you turn Apples and Grimy Food into healing.

We Shaymin are great on solo item grabbing adventures, as our sky form is naturally faster (twice as fast) as other Pokemon. This lets us escape from many encounters we normally would have to struggle through. In addition, we have access to the IQ skills Acute Sniffer, Nonsleeper, and Coin Watcher early. The reason we do better solo is that going so fast often leaves our allies abandoned and confused...

Status moves will help you a lot. Vulpix learn Imprison and contrary to the main games, in PMD this is really useful!

Due to having its two abilites as the same time, Riolu cannot have a speed boost while cringing, BUT, if you eat a X-Eye Seed it will have its speed boosting! On Riolu it works the same as a Speed Seed.

If you want to boost your IQ, go to the Spinda Café and give to him your gummies.

Quick Attack allows you to hit through your partner and vice versa, so that's a good move to have (and both Riolu and Vulpix learn it).

Quick Attack, Extrasensory, and Flamethrower are all great moves for Vulpix (they’ve given me a lot of success over the years). Also, make sure you have at least one move on your team that can hit multiple opponents, just in case you hit a monster house without any defense stuff.

Every time you’re choosing missions, pick a few easy ones for the same dungeon and do them all together. Stacking missions is the best way to get good items, money, and guild points quickly. It also helps you grind for tough boss fights in the future.

Orbs and seeds are your friend. I try to carry a blinker seed, an x-eye seed, and a sleep seed at all times, along with a few different orbs. Petrify Orbs and Foe Fear Orbs are lifesavers so stock up whenever you see them.

Last: the easiest way to steal from Kecleon (if you feel so inclined) is to move to the stairs and use a Trawl Orb. Pick everything up quickly and head down the stairs.

I recently started my completionist run of sky and the transition between story and post game has been rough, but it's getting better. I think it's good to know into it knowing what your long game is. It's good to invest into good pokemon, because boosting pokemon which is essential to make your life easier, takes up a lot of resources you have to fight. At any rate, make sure to pick up gummies and store them. Pick up pure seeds and trawl orbs, so you can steal from kek for unlimited money, selling them gold ribbons and stealing them back.

Also, for any dungeons that push your level back to 1: get a Smoochum. They start off with good HP and learn very useful moves like Sweet Kiss and Powder Snow fairly early in terms of levels.

don't do it