Critical Hits

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SMACK. Critical Hits are simple in theory- they deal twice as much damage as normal. But how often do they occur? Why does one Pokémon seem to get more Critical Hits then another? There are two very different systems of Critical Hits for Red/Blue/Yellow and Gold/Silver.

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Red/Blue/Yellow

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I infinitely prefer this system to the trash they've got set up for G/S. Anyway. It's all based on SPEED. Use this formula:

(Base Speed / 2 / 256 [%])
Use this formula for 'regular' attacks.

(Base Speed x 4 / 256 [%])
Use this formula for constant-critical attacks; Slash, Crabhammer, Karate Chop and Razor Leaf.

Note that in RBY, Focus Energy brings the Crit hit rate to about 75%, which is LOWER then Slash and the rest. If Machamp uses Focus Energy, Karate Chop's Crit hit rate will actually go down. That's really all there is to it.

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Gold/Silver/Crystal

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In G/S, Critical hits are determined by a variable and a random number (from 1 to 256). If the random number is less then the variable, then the attack will hit critical.

The variable starts at zero and is determined by a few things:
If Chansey or Farfetch'd have the Lucky Punch or the Stick equipped, +2.
If the attack is Slash, Razor Leaf, Razor Wind, Karate Chop, Crabhammer, Aero Blast or Cross Chop, +2.
If the Pokémon has used Focus Energy, +1.
If the Pokémon has the Scope Lens equipped, +1.

If the variable is 0, the random number must be lower then 17 (6.6% chance).
1 = 32 (12.5%)
2 = 64 (25%)
3 = 85 (33.5%)
4 = 128 (50%)

So, using Focus Energy with Slash IS a good idea now, as it'll bring Slash's Crit hit rate from a pathetic 25% to a still sad 33%. Note that 4 is the highest it can go.

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