Renamon

Renamon is the tall, calm fox Digimon who became Rika Nonaka’s partner in Digimon Tamers, and one of the most recognisable Rookies ever drawn. Here is the full file: level, attribute, every confirmed evolution line by medium, attacks, game appearances from Rumble Arena to Digimon Story Time Stranger, and the trivia you only pick up after a few rewatches.

Who is Renamon

Renamon is a Data-attribute Rookie that looks nothing like the chubby mascots you expect at that level. Official profiles across the Digimon Reference Book and the Digimon World Dawn and Dusk field guides describe a Beast Man Digimon that stands unusually tall for a Rookie, with a slender, well-balanced build and a composed personality. The same profiles make the point every Tamers fan already knows in their gut: Renamon’s speed and fighting ability are closer to a Champion than to most Rookies.

In the anime, Renamon arrives as the partner of Rika Nonaka (Ruki Makino), the cool-headed card champion who chose Renamon from a crowd of Digimon that appeared to her because Renamon looked like the strongest. Their relationship starts cold. Rika treats Digimon as data to be levelled, Renamon obeys without warmth, and the show spends its first act turning that arrangement into one of the best partnerships in the franchise. Renamon is voiced by Yuka Imai in Japanese and Mari Devon in the English dub, and the dub refers to her as “she” throughout.

Evolution line

Renamon’s line is the kitsune story told in four stages: fox, nine-tailed fox, Taoist sorcerer, shrine maiden. The named forms are consistent across the anime and the games, but the conditions and the alternate branches change with the medium, so each is listed separately below.

Digimon Tamers (anime)

In Digimon Tamers, Renamon follows a single, clean line. Kyubimon is reached through normal Digivolution, Taomon through Matrix Digivolution with Rika’s Blue Card, and Sakuyamon through Biomerge Digivolution, which fuses Rika and Renamon into one Mega.

Stage	Digimon	Level	Attribute	How it happens in Tamers
Fresh	Reremon	Fresh	Data	Shown as the newborn stage of the line
In-Training	Viximon (Pokomon)	In-Training	Data	Renamon’s In-Training form
Rookie	Renamon	Rookie	Data	Rika’s partner from the start of the series
Champion	Kyubimon	Champion	Data	Standard Digivolution with Rika’s D-Power
Ultimate	Taomon	Ultimate	Data	Matrix Digivolution via the Blue Card
Mega	Sakuyamon	Mega	Data	Biomerge Digivolution of Rika and Renamon

Something the show does well: Renamon’s first Digivolution is tied directly to the relationship rather than to a card. Early on she tells Rika she can Digivolve on her own and does not need a Tamer. She then finds out, the hard way, that she cannot. Kyubimon only appears once Rika actually cares what happens to her, and that emotional gate matters more in Tamers than any item.

Digimon Story games (Cyber Sleuth, Hacker’s Memory)

The Digimon Story games keep the anime line and add the dark mirror of it. Youkomon is the Virus counterpart to Kyubimon, Doumon is the Virus counterpart to Taomon, and Kuzuhamon is the Virus counterpart to Sakuyamon. All three are in Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth and Hacker’s Memory, alongside the Kyubimon, Taomon and Sakuyamon forms from the anime.

From	To	Level	Attribute	Confirmed in
Viximon	Renamon	Rookie	Data	Cyber Sleuth, Hacker’s Memory
Renamon	Kyubimon	Champion	Data	Cyber Sleuth, Hacker’s Memory
Renamon	Youkomon	Champion	Virus	Cyber Sleuth, Hacker’s Memory
Kyubimon	Taomon	Ultimate	Data	Cyber Sleuth, Hacker’s Memory
Youkomon	Doumon	Ultimate	Virus	Cyber Sleuth, Hacker’s Memory
Taomon	Sakuyamon	Mega	Data	Cyber Sleuth, Hacker’s Memory
Doumon	Kuzuhamon	Mega	Virus	Cyber Sleuth, Hacker’s Memory

A note on numbers. Every Digimon Story game sets its own level and stat thresholds for each jump, and those figures differ between Cyber Sleuth, Hacker’s Memory and Time Stranger. Rather than print requirements that may belong to a different version, read them on the in-game Digivolution screen, which lists the exact level, stats and any extra gate for the Digimon you are holding. What stays true across the series is the shape of the build: Renamon’s line is a special-attack line, and the Taomon and Sakuyamon stages want INT and SP far more than ATK.

In Time Stranger the picture has a few more moving parts. The game attaches a Personality to each Digimon that steers stat growth, lets you convert that Personality, and gates some higher evolutions behind your Agent Rank. For Renamon that means picking a Personality that feeds INT early pays off twice, at Taomon and again at Sakuyamon. If you want the broader systems explained before you commit a team slot, our “digimon story time stranger” overview covers them.

Digimon Card Game (digimon tcg)

In the Digimon Card Game, Renamon is a Yellow Level 3 (the card game’s term for Rookie), and the Tamers line climbs through Yellow Level 4, Level 5 and Level 6 cards. Rika Nonaka appears as a Yellow Tamer card that supports the line. Exact card numbers vary with each printing and set, so check the set code on the card you hold before building around it; the structure below is what stays constant.

Card	Level (card game)	Colour	Anime equivalent
Viximon	Level 2	Yellow	In-Training
Renamon	Level 3	Yellow	Rookie
Kyubimon	Level 4	Yellow	Champion
Taomon	Level 5	Yellow	Ultimate
Sakuyamon	Level 6	Yellow	Mega
Rika Nonaka	Tamer	Yellow	Partner Tamer

If the card game’s evolution stacks and colour rules are new to you, our “digimon tcg” explainer walks through how a Level 3 like Renamon gets built up turn by turn.

Signature attacks

Renamon’s moves are short, sharp and named for fox folklore. The Japanese names carry the kitsune imagery; the English dub names are what you will hear in Tamers and see in most Western game menus.

Attack (English)	Attack (Japanese)	Medium	What it does
Diamond Storm	Kōyōsetsu	Anime, games, card game	Fires a spray of razor-sharp, leaf-shaped shards that glitter like diamonds
Power Paw	Kohenkyo	Anime, games	In the dub, a flurry of glowing claw strikes; in Japanese, a swap trick that exchanges Renamon’s position with a decoy

Diamond Storm is the attack. Renamon crosses her arms, the shards fan out in a crescent and shred whatever is in front of her. It is also the move most games carry over, and in the Digimon Story titles Renamon arrives with it as a learned skill. Power Paw is the melee follow-up in the dub, but the Japanese Kohenkyo is a different idea entirely: a substitution move, more ninja than brawler, which fits Renamon’s habit of vanishing mid-fight and reappearing behind the enemy.

The rest of the line keeps the folklore going:

• Kyubimon: Fox Tail Inferno (Onibidama) lights the nine tails with fox-fire and launches them; Dragon Wheel (Koenryū) wraps Kyubimon in flame and charges as a dragon shape.
• Taomon: Talisman of Light (Bonhitsusen) paints a glowing character with a giant brush and fires it as a beam; Thousand Spells unleashes a storm of talismans.
• Sakuyamon: Spirit Strike (Izuna) sends four fox spirits at the target; Amethyst Mandala (Kongōkai Mandara) throws up a purifying barrier that scorches dark Digimon caught inside.

Appearances

Renamon has been in nearly every corner of the franchise since 2001. The table lists confirmed appearances with the role Renamon plays in each.

Medium	Title	Year	Renamon’s role
Anime	Digimon Tamers	2001–2002	Rika Nonaka’s partner, main cast
Film	Digimon Tamers: Battle of Adventurers	2001	Fights alongside Rika; Kyubimon appears
Film	Digimon Tamers: Runaway Locomon	2002	Main cast; Sakuyamon appears
Virtual pet	Digivice D-Power (D-Ark)	2001	Selectable partner Digimon
Game	Digimon Tamers: Battle Spirit	2001 (WSC), 2003 (GBA)	Playable fighter
Game	Digimon Rumble Arena	2001 (JP), 2002 (NA)	Playable fighter, Digivolves to Sakuyamon
Game	Digimon World 3	2002	Selectable starter partner
Game	Digimon Rumble Arena 2	2004	Playable fighter
Game	Digimon World DS	2006	Obtainable Digimon
Game	Digimon World Dawn / Dusk	2007	Obtainable Digimon
Game	Digimon Masters Online	2011 (global)	Mercenary Digimon
Game	Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth	2015 (JP), 2016 (NA)	Obtainable, full line
Game	Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth – Hacker’s Memory	2017 (JP), 2018 (NA)	Obtainable, full line
Game	Digimon ReArise	2018 (JP), 2019 (global)	Obtainable
Game	Digimon Story Time Stranger	2025	Obtainable, Tamers line present
Card game	Digimon Card Game	2020–present	Yellow Level 3, multiple printings

Digimon Tamers

Everything about Renamon that people love was set in Digimon Tamers, which ran for 51 episodes in Japan from April 2001 and aired on Fox Kids in the United States from late 2001. Renamon is the partner of Rika, and the series uses her to tell a very different story from Takato and Guilmon’s warm friendship. Rika wants power. Renamon wants to be strong enough to deserve a Tamer. Neither of them says the word “friend” for a long time.

The early arc gives Renamon two of her best episodes. In one, IceDevimon tries to replace her as Rika’s partner, which forces Rika to admit out loud that she does not want anyone else. In another, the Deva Vajramon takes a shine to Renamon and offers her a place among the Devas, treating her almost like a goddess. Renamon strings him along just long enough for Kyubimon to finish him with Rika’s help. It is a cool, calculated piece of work that tells you exactly who Renamon is.

Later, the Blue Card gives Kyubimon her Matrix Digivolution to Taomon, and the final act brings Sakuyamon, the Biomerged form of Rika and Renamon. Sakuyamon is a shrine maiden in golden armour with fox spirits as her weapons, and her barrier attack is one of the few things in the series that visibly hurts the D-Reaper’s agents. Streaming rights for Tamers have moved around over the years; our “digimon hulu” guide tracks where the series is currently available.

Films

Both Tamers films feature Renamon. Digimon Tamers: Battle of Adventurers (2001) sends Rika and Renamon into the fight against Mephistomon’s plot, with Kyubimon in action. Digimon Tamers: Runaway Locomon (2002) is set after the series and gives Sakuyamon a full battle on Locomon’s back against Parasimon swarms, which is as good as it sounds.

Games

Renamon has been playable or raisable in Digimon games for more than two decades. On the original PlayStation she was a fighter in Digimon Rumble Arena, where she goes directly from Rookie to Sakuyamon with the Digivolution meter, and one of the eight starter partners you could pick in Digimon World 3. Rumble Arena 2 brought her back as a fighter on PS2, GameCube and Xbox.

The DS era (Digimon World DS, Dawn and Dusk) made her a collectable with a full line, and the Digimon Story games from Cyber Sleuth onward gave her the two-branch line in the table above. In Digimon Story Time Stranger she is one of the most searched Digimon in the roster, partly because the Tamers line is iconic and partly because a Data-attribute special attacker with Sakuyamon at the end slots into many teams.

Card games

Renamon was in Bandai’s original Digi-Battle card game during the Tamers era, in Japan’s Hyper Colosseum, and has been a Yellow Level 3 in the Digimon Card Game since the line was introduced. Yellow is the colour of Data-leaning, recovery and security-focused play, which fits a line that ends in a healer-shaman.

Trivia

• The name is French. Renamon’s name points to renard, the French word for fox, which is why it survives unchanged between Japanese and English releases.
• She is taller than her Tamer. Renamon is one of the few Rookies that stands head and shoulders over the human she partners with. Her official profile calls the height out as unusual for her level.
• The yin-yang gloves are canon. The purple arm guards carry yin-yang symbols, a nod to the Taoist and shamanic forms waiting higher in the line.
• Rika chose her for looking strong. In the anime, Rika recalls picking Renamon from a crowd of Digimon because she looked the most powerful. That choice is the seed of the whole relationship arc.
• Three dark mirrors. Youkomon, Doumon and Kuzuhamon are the Virus counterparts of Kyubimon, Taomon and Sakuyamon, and the Digimon Story games let one Renamon reach either Mega.
• Sakuyamon’s name is mythological. Sakuyamon is named for Konohanasakuya-hime, the Shinto blossom goddess, which is why her golden armour is finished with flower and shrine motifs.
• A fan-art giant. Renamon is among the most drawn Digimon in the fandom, a status that has kept her at or near the top of popularity polls for over twenty years.
• Nine tails, four forms. The line retells the kitsune legend in order: a young fox (Renamon), a nine-tailed fox (Kyubimon), a fox that has learned human sorcery (Taomon), and a fox spirit serving as a shrine maiden (Sakuyamon).

FAQ

What level and attribute is Renamon?

Renamon is a Rookie-level, Data-attribute Beast Man Digimon. That is consistent across the anime, the Digimon Story games and the Digimon Card Game, where Rookie is written as Level 3.

What does Renamon Digivolve into?

In Digimon Tamers, Renamon Digivolves to Kyubimon, Matrix Digivolves to Taomon and Biomerges with Rika into Sakuyamon. In Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth and Hacker’s Memory the line can also branch into Youkomon, Doumon and Kuzuhamon, the Virus counterparts.

Is Renamon in Digimon Story Time Stranger?

Yes. Renamon, Kyubimon, Taomon and Sakuyamon are all in Time Stranger. The exact level and stat requirements are shown on the in-game Digivolution screen, and Personality and Agent Rank can affect the later stages.

Is Renamon a boy or a girl?

The English dub of Digimon Tamers refers to Renamon as “she”, and the English voice is Mari Devon. Japanese Digimon are not formally assigned a gender, but Renamon is voiced by Yuka Imai and is generally treated as female by fans.

What is Renamon’s main attack?

Diamond Storm (Kōyōsetsu in Japanese), a spray of leaf-shaped shards that glint like diamonds. Power Paw (Kohenkyo) is her second attack; the Japanese version is a substitution trick rather than a strike.

Who is Renamon’s partner?

Rika Nonaka, known as Ruki Makino in Japan. Rika is the Digimon card tournament champion of Digimon Tamers and one of the three lead Tamers alongside Takato Matsuki and Henry Wong.