Pokémon/Pokédex/Abilities

A Pokémon ability is a special attribute that every species of Pokémon has in the Pokémon video games. The use of abilities first started in Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire of the Pokémon video games. Every Pokémon has an ability, and several species of Pokémon may have one of two possible abilities.

Use of abilities

Most Pokémon use their abilities in battle. Abilities can strengthen a Pokémon's own statistics or weaken a foe's, or inflict conditions such as paralysis or poisoning. For instance, an Electrike's Static ability may paralyze a foe that touches it, or a Bulbasaur may use its Overgrow ability to power up its Grass attacks when it is weak. Some Pokémon, like Lotad, can use their Rain Dish ability to restore HP whenever it is raining.

Some abilities render some Pokémon invincible against certain types of attacks. A Lunatone's ability to Levitate will prevent Ground attacks from striking it, and Shedinja's Wonder Guard ability will keep any attack that is not super effective from hitting it. A Steelix's Rock Head ability prevents it from receiving damage from the recoil of certain powerful physical attacks. A Pokémon with the Lightningrod ability, such as Marowak, will keep its partner safe from electric attacks in a double battle by drawing the electricity away from it.

Not all abilities are helpful. Slaking has the Truant ability, which allows it to attack only every other turn. This is intended to hinder Slaking's very high statistics. However, Skill Swap can be used on Slaking to switch abilities with the foe, passing it the preventative ability to the opponent, and receiving a more preferable one in exchange. This is only possible in 2 vs. 2 battles or when the opponent uses it (a good way to trick a foe is putting a Pokémon with a more desirable ability and switch to Slaking when the foe uses Skill Swap), since Slaking can't learn that move.

Some abilities come into effect outside of Pokémon battles. Pokémon with the Pickup ability, like Meowth, will sometimes retrieve rare items off of the ground, such as gold Nuggets, which can be exchanged for money. Also, since Pokémon Emerald, a handful of abilities that were once only used in battle have effects outside of battle as well. Any Pokémon with the Lightningrod ability will double as a cell phone antenna and the player character will receive more phone calls because of it. A Pokémon with the ability to Intimidate, like Arbok, for example, will cause the player to encounter lower-level Pokémon less often. Additionally, a Pokémon with the Flame Body ability will act as an incubator and cause eggs to hatch quicker.

List of Pokémon Abilities & their effects

Ability	Description
Air Lock	Prevents the user from being affected by weather during battle.
Arena Trap	Prevents foe from switching Pokemon or escaping (e.g. when the user is a wild Pokemon); not effective against Flying-type Pokemon or Pokemon with Levitate ability.
Battle Armor	Blocks critical hits.
Blaze	Multiplies power of Pokemon's Fire-type attacks by 1.5 when its HP falls below 1/3 its maximum.
Chlorophyll	Doubles user's speed when sunlight is strong.
Clear Body	Prevents an opponent's moves from lowering the user's stats.
Cloud Nine	Prevents weather influence on all Pokemon in battle.
Color Change	Changes user's type to that of the foe's move that hits it.
Compoundeyes	Increases Accuracy 30% for all moves.
Cute Charm	Afflicts opponent Pokemon with an Infatuation condition 30% of the time when opponent attacks directly.
Damp	Prevents all Pokemon in battle from using Selfdestruct and Explosion.
Drizzle	Changes weather to rain at the begining of battle. Lasts till the end of the battle; unless the moves Sunny Day, Hail, or Sandstorm are used during battle.
Drought	Changes weather to sunny conditions at the begining of battle. Lasts till the end of the battle; unless the moves Rain Dance, Hail, or Sandstorm are used during battle.
Early Bird	Causes the user to wake earlier from a Sleep condition.
Effect Spore	Afflicts opponent Pokemon with either a Poison, Paralyze, or Sleep conditon 10% of the time when it attacks Pokemon directly.
Flame Body	Afflicts opponent Pokemon with a Burn condition 30% of the time when it attacks opponent directly.
Flash Fire	Prevents damage from Fire-type attacks and increases the power of user's Fire-type attacks.
Forecast	Changes the user to a form and type that's connected to weather (Strong Sunlight=Fire-type, Rain=Water-type, Hail=Ice-type, Sandstorm=No Effect).
Guts	Multiplies power of the user's attacks by 1.5 when user has a status condition.
Huge Power	Icreases power of the user's attacks, but the effect is reduced by half when the ability is changed (e.g., Skill Swap).
Hustle	Multiplies power of the user's attacks by 1.5, but the user's Accuracy is reduced to 80%.
Hyper Cutter	Prevents effects that reduce the users Attack stat.
Illuminate	Icreases the chances of meeting wild Pokemon when the user is in the lead team position.
Immunity	Prevents the user from getting a Poison condition.
Inner Focus	Prevents the user from flinching.
Insomnia	Prevents the user from getting a Sleep condition.
Intimidate	Reduces the opponent's Attack stat at the start of the battle.
Keen Eye	Protects the user from Accuracy reduction
Levitate	Prevents the user from getting struck by Ground-type attacks.
Lightningrod	Draws Electric-type attacks away from partner during two-on-two battles.
Limber	Prevents the user from getting a Paralyze condition.
Liquid Ooze	Causes damage to opponent Pokemon when its attempts to leech or absorb HP.
Magma Armor	Prevents the user from getting a Freeze condition.
Magnet Pull	Prevents Steel-type opponents from switching or escaping during battle.
Marvel Scale	Multiplies Defense stat by 1.5 when user has a status condition.
Minus	Multiplies Sp. Attack by 1.5 when a Pokemon with the Plus ability is onfield.
Natural Cure	Cures a Pokemon's status condition when the Pokemon is withdrawn from battle.
Oblivious	Prevents the user from getting an Infatuation condition.
Overgrow	Multiplies power of Pokemon's Grass-type attacks by 1.5 when its HP falls below 1/3 its maximum.
Own Tempo	Prevents the user from getting a Confuse condition.
Pickup	Picks up items from opponents while in battle; unless it is already holding an item.
Plus	Multiplies Sp. Attack by 1.5 when a Pokemon with the Minus ability is onfield.
Poison Point	Afflicts opponent Pokemon with a Poison condition 30% of the time when it attacks directly.
Pressure	Reduces opponent Pokemon's PP(Power Points) by two points every time it damages the user.
Pure Power	Icreases power of the user's attacks, but the effect is reduced by half when the ability is changed (e.g., Skill Swap).
Rain Dish	Recovers HP in every turn when it is raining during battle.
Rock Head	Prevents user from incurring recoil damage when it uses the moves: Submission, Take Down, or Double-Edge.
Rough Skin	Causes opponent's HP to decrease when opponent attacks the user directly.
Run Away	Allows the user to escape from wild Pokemon.
Sand Stream	Summons a sandstorm at the begining of battle. Lasts till the end of the battle; unless the moves Rain Dance, Sunny Day, or Hail is used during battle.
Sand Veil	Allows the user to evade moves more easily during sandstorms.
Serene Grace	Doubles the chance that any move's secondary effects will work.
Shadow Tag	Prevents foe from swapping out Pokemon.
Shed Skin	Gives Pokemon a 30% chance of curing its status conditions every turn.
Shell Armor	Blocks critical attacks.
Shield Dust	Protects user from additional effects of attacks.
Soundproof	Protects user from all sound based moves including: Grasswhistle, Growl, Heal Bell, Hyper Voice, Metal Sound, Perish Song, Roar, Screech, Sing, Snore, Supersonic, and Uproar. Pevents all damage and effects from these moves.
Speed Boost	Increases user's speed every turn.
Static	Afflicts opponent Pokemon with a Paralyze condition 30% of the time when it attacks opponent directly.
Stench	Decreases the chances of meeting wild Pokemon when the user is in the lead team position.
Sticky Hold	Prevents opponent Pokemon from stealing an item.
Sturdy	Negates all one-hit KO attacks.
Suction Cups	Prevents the user from being swapped out when an opponent Pokemon uses the moves Whirlwind and Roar.
Swarm	Multiplies power of Pokemon's Bug-type attacks by 1.5 when its HP falls below 1/3 its maximum.
Swift Swim	Doubles user's speed when it is raining in battle.
Synchronize	Causes opponent Pokemon that inflicts Poison, Paralyze, or Burn to receive the same condition.
Thick Fat	Halves damage when Pokemon is hit by Fire- or Ice-type attacks.
Torrent	Multiplies power of Pokemon's Water-type attacks by 1.5 when its HP falls below 1/3 its maximum.
Trace	Duplicates the ability that the opposing Pokemon has.
Truant	Restricts the user to making its moves every other turn.
Vital Spirit	Prevents the user from getting a Sleep condition.
Volt Absorb	Restores the user's HP when hit by Electric-type attacks.
Water Absorb	Restores the user's HP when hit by Water-type attacks.
Water Veil	Prevents the user from getting a Burn condition.
White Smoke	Prevents an opponent's moves from reducing the user's stats.
Wonder Guard	Prevents all damage except from "super effective" hits.

References

• Nintendo Power (2006-08-24), Pokemon Emerald Version: the official strategy guide from Nintendo Power, Nintendo Power
• Buchanan, B (2006-08-24), Pokemon Emerald: Official Strategy Guide, Prima Games
• "Abilities on Serebii.net". Retrieved 2006-08-24.
• "Pokémon Emerald - Ability Additions on Serebii.net". Retrieved 2006-08-24.
• "Pokémon Diamant et Perle Nouvelles capacités spéciales" (in French). Retrieved 2006-08-30.