Umamusume Pretty Derby Complete Beginner’s Training Guide!

If you’re just starting out in Umamusume Pretty Derby, one of the first things you need to understand is how the training system works. Success in races depends heavily on how well you train your characters, especially in the early game when only the URA Finals scenario is available. In this guide, we’ll break down everything you need to know to train your characters—or “horse girls”—effectively, from choosing your character to completing training. Check out our Reroll Guide for Umamusume Pretty Derby!

Getting Started: Choose Your Character and Scenario

Once you hit the Train button, the game will ask you to pick a character. For beginners, Sakura Bakushin O is a solid choice. She performs best in short-distance races and has a simple “runner” (front-runner) strategy, making her easy to train.

After selecting your horse girl, you’ll need to pick two parent characters. These influence your inherited stats and skills. If you’re not sure who to choose, use the Auto Select option or rent parents from friends.

Building Your Support Deck

You’ll then select six support cards to assist during training. Since Sakura focuses on speed, a typical beginner-friendly deck might include:

• 2 Speed cards – for faster sprint performance
• 1 Power card – improves acceleration
• 1 Wisdom (Wit) card – helps with stamina management
• 2 flexible cards – usually more Speed or Power depending on needs

Look at the Friendship Bonus, Motivation Bonus, and Hint Level on each card. Try to pick cards that match your character’s race distance and strategy. For Sakura, cards that support short-distance racing and the “runner” style are ideal.

The Training Phase: Boost Motivation & Bond

Once you’re in the training session, your focus should be on:

• Motivation – This affects how many stats you gain from each workout. Use the Outing option to boost it if it’s not maxed.
• Bond Levels – Each support card has a bond meter. When it reaches 80, you unlock Friendship Training, which gives much higher stat gains.

Your main goal in the early game is to raise the bond level of all your support cards to at least 80 as soon as possible.

Picking the Right Training Options

Each training option increases different stats: Speed, Stamina, Power, Guts, and Wisdom. To decide which one to choose, check:

• How many support characters appear in a training spot (more is better)
• If Friendship Training is active (rainbow effect)
• If a Hint is active (yellow lightbulb), offering discounted skills

Also, note that the more you use a facility, the higher its level becomes—leading to better stat gains.

Managing Energy and Avoiding Failed Training

Training consumes energy. When your energy is low, you’re more likely to fail workouts, which can lower motivation and give debuffs.

To avoid this:

• Use Rest or Wisdom training to recover
• Pay attention to events that offer energy recovery or buffs

Character Goals and Race Strategy

Each horse girl has unique race goals. Common objectives include:

• Participating in specific races
• Finishing in the top 5, 3, or 1
• Gaining a certain number of fans

If you need more fans, enter extra races that match your character’s ideal distance and strategy. Sakura works best on turf, in short or mile races.

Important Timing: Beach Training Event

Around July, a special Beach Training event happens where all training facilities get a boost. Make sure your energy is full going into this event to take full advantage of the stat gains.

Buying Skills: Wait Until the End

During training, you’ll earn Skill Points and unlock discounted skills from the Hint system. It’s better to save your points until the end of training so you can buy the most useful skills at the best prices.

Finishing Training and What Comes Next

At the end of your training run, you’ll see:

• Final stats (Speed, Power, Wisdom, etc.)
• A list of learned skills
• Factors – traits passed on when this character is used as a parent
• A grade/rank for your overall training results

These factors are crucial for making future training runs more effective. Keep in mind, different characters need different support setups. For example:

• Daiwa Scarlet (mid-distance) benefits from 1 Stamina card
• Gold Ship (long-distance) might need 2 Stamina cards instead of Power

Training characters in Umamusume Pretty Derby isn’t just about clicking through menus. It’s about understanding how to manage motivation, energy, support cards, and timing. By following this guide, you’ll be able to train your horse girls more effectively—starting with the URA Finals and expanding to more advanced scenarios as you progress. Stick with it, experiment with card setups, and soon you’ll be creating powerful racers ready to dominate the track.