Pokémon/Pokédex/Types of moves

Moves (わざ, waza) are the techniques Pokémon use to battle in the series of Pokémon video games. Each Pokémon can remember up to four moves at a time, which they learn as they gain Experience points, by using Technical Machines, or through inheritance from their fathers. Each move has an associated type. In addition, any given attack move has a chance of becoming a critical hit and dealing double damage. Some moves do not cause any damage, only causing whatever their associated effect is.

Some moves can be used outside of battle to affect the game's overworld. For example, Surf allows the player to cross water on his or her Pokémon, Cut removes small trees that block paths, and Dig allows players to escape from a cave when required.

As of Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, moves can also be used in contests measuring aspects of the Pokémon unrelated to battle. Often, a move's battle effect is completely different from its contest effect.

Types of Pokémon moves

Every move has its own "power" (strength) and "Accuracy" (chance of hitting the opponent). A lot of moves simply cause damage, but many also have an associated effect. These effects have their own chances of occurring, usually independent of the attack's accuracy and power.

Stat-affecting moves

A Pokémon has several different numerical statistics ("stats") that measure its strengths and weaknesses in various areas, such as Attack and Speed. Some moves cause an increase in one or more stats (usually those of the Pokémon who used it), making the target temporarily stronger. An example is Swords Dance, which raises the user's Attack stat by two levels. Others can cause a decrease in one or more stats (usually to the Pokémon's opponent), making the target temporarily weaker. Fake Tears, which decreases the Special Defense stat by two levels, is one example. Another example is Overheat, which lowers the user's Special Attack in return for an extremely powerful attack. Each stat can only be raised or lowered by a maximum of six levels. All stat levels return to normal at the end of the battle, or when the Pokémon is switched out during battle.

Status effect-causing moves

Some moves cause what are known as "status effects" (Note: "stat" and "status" are separate terms). Some moves, like Ice Beam, cause damage in addition to a status effect, but many, such as Supersonic, cause only the effect.

Long-term status effects

Long-term status effects remain after the Pokémon battle ends. They are indicated by a three-letter abbreviation, which appears near the Pokémon's name where its level is usually displayed. A Pokémon can suffer from one status effect at a time: subsequent status-effect-causing moves have no effect at all. A Lum Berry; the items Full Heal, Full Restore and Lava Cookie; the moves Heal Bell and Aromatherapy; and switching out Pokémon with the ability Natural Cure can all cure any status effect but Faint. If a Pokémon faints while suffering a status effect, it will be gone when the Pokémon is revived.

• Burn (BRN) burns the victim, taking away hit points (HP) at the end of each turn, as well as causing a drastic decrease in Attack. Fire-type Pokémon and Pokémon with the ability Water Veil cannot be afflicted by Burn. Burn can be caused by the abilities Flame Body and, on occasion, Effect Spore.
• Faint (FNT) means that the Pokémon has lost all its Hit Points (HP) and cannot battle again until it is revived or healed in a Pokémon Center.
• Freeze (FRZ) freezes the Pokémon, completely preventing it from attacking until it is defrosted. Pokémon with the ability Magma Armor or Flame Body cannot be Frozen. Attacking a frozen Pokémon with a Fire-type move will thaw it, and the moves Flame Wheel and Sacred Fire can be used by frozen Pokémon to thaw themselves. A Pokémon cannot be frozen while sunny weather is in effect.
• Paralyze (PAR) gives the victim a 25% chance of not being able to attack for the round and drastically reduces speed. A Pokémon with the ability Limber cannot be paralyzed. The abilities Static and Effect Spore have a chance of causing Paralysis.
• Regular Poison (PSN) poisons the Pokémon, taking away some of its hit points at the end of each turn independent of the other Pokémon's moves. Poisoning also decreases the affected Pokémon's hit points (HP) by one for every three steps that the character takes out of battle. Steel-types, Poison-types, and Pokémon with the ability Immunity can not be Poisoned (unless if caused by the move Twineedle). The ability Poison Point can cause Poison.
  • Toxic or bad poisoning is a special Poison status effect that can be caused by the moves Toxic (as only effect) or Poison Fang (as a side effect). With this status effect, the hit points taken away double each turn. Like regular Poison, it also decreases the poisoned Pokémon's hit points (HP) by one with every three steps the character takes.
• Sleep (SLP) makes the victim fall asleep, leaving it unable to attack unless it knows the moves Sleep Talk or Snore, or until it wakes up. Pokémon with the abilities Insomnia and Vital Spirit cannot be inflicted with Sleep, but it comes at a price as these Pokémon can't learn the move Rest (with the exception of Vigoroth).

Short-term status effects

Short-term status effects differ from the long-term ones in that they do not linger after battle, a Pokémon can be afflicted by two or more at the same time, and a symbol does not appear by the Pokémon's name while it is affected. All these effects can be removed by switching the Pokémon out of battle.

• Confusion gives the Pokémon a 50% chance of attacking itself instead of its opponent for a few turns. A Pokémon can even damage itself this way with an attack that normally doesn't deal any damage. Damage is determined by the Pokémon's Attack stat measured against its Defense stat. Pokémon with the ability Own Tempo cannot be Confused.
• Curse and haunting; A Ghost-type Pokémon that uses Curse, loses 1/2 of their max HP, which causes the opposing Pokémon to be "cursed," which takes away 1/4 of its max HP each turn. Also, when an opponent's Pokémon is asleep, and the move Nightmare is used on it, it will be "haunted" and lose 1/4 of its HP as long as it remains asleep.
• A Flinch makes the affected Pokémon skip one turn. The item King's Rock gives a Pokémon's attacks the chance to cause flinching. Only the Pokémon who moves first can cause their opponent to flinch. Pokémon with the ability Inner Focus cannot be flinched.
• Infatuation, caused by the move Attract (introduced in Pokémon Gold and Silver), only affects Pokémon of the opposite gender of the attacker. It causes the opponent to fall in love with the attacking Pokémon, giving it a 50% chance of refusing to attack its "lover" for a turn. Pokémon with the ability Oblivious cannot be infatuated. Pokémon with the ability Cute Charm can cause Attraction. Genderless Pokémon like Voltorb are unaffected by Attract.
• Seeded, caused by the move Leech Seed, causes the Pokémon afflicted with this status to lose 1/8 of its max HP each turn. An equal amount is gained by the opposing Pokémon. Leech Seed does not affect Grass-types.
• A few moves restrict the types of moves the affected Pokémon can use:
  • Disable prevents use of the affected Pokémon's last move used for a few turns.
  • Encore causes the affected Pokémon to repeat the last move used for 3 to 6 turns.
  • Imprison prevents the affected Pokémon from using any move the user knows.
  • Taunt prevents the affected Pokémon from using moves that do not deal damage.
  • Torment prevents the affected Pokémon from using the same move twice in a row.
  • Spite lowers the PP of the last move used by the affected Pokémon by 2-5 points.
  • Grudge lowers the PP of the last move used by the affected Pokémon completely.

100%-accuracy moves

Certain moves always hit, regardless of the Accuracy of the Pokémon that uses them or the Evasion of the enemy Pokémon. The only exception is when the move is used against a Pokémon which is offscreen (while using a two-turn move): under this condition, whether the move will hit or not varies. For example, the 100%-accuracy move Swift always hits a Pokémon offscreen while using Fly, but does not hit those that are offscreen while using Dig or Dive. If Lock-On or Mind Reader is used however, the next move will always hit, except if Protect or Detect is used.

Consecutive-turn moves

Some Pokémon moves strike the enemy multiple times, gaining power when they hit more often.

• In Red, Blue, and Yellow, attacks such as Wrap and Fire Spin would incapacitate the opponent for two to five turns, doing a small amount of damage at the end of each turn. These were toned down in later Pokémon rpgs, and now they instead prevent the affected Pokémon it from fleeing or being switched out. (In Red, Blue, and Yellow, switching was allowed.) In RBY, the user was forced to continue using the attack, but now you can switch out or attack with a different move.

• Some moves, instead of causing damage once per turn, cause a small amount of damage two to five times per turn, thus causing more or less damage depending on the number of hits. However, each strike is considered a separate attack, so critical hits only apply to an individual hit, and contact related abilities such as Cute Charm have a chance to occur on any of the 2-5 hits.

• Some moves gain power each time they are used consecutively; the fifth strike of a move such as Rollout or Ice Ball will be much stronger than the first. However, if a Pokémon misses with such a move, its power will be reset. In this case, you are forced to use the same move for five turns or until you miss. There's also the case of Fury Cutter. This works like Rollout and Ice Ball, but there's no fifth turn limit and you are not forced to use Fury Cutter if the previous attack was successful.

First-strike moves

Some moves always hit first in a turn, no matter what the two Pokémon's speed statistics are. If two Pokémon use a first strike move in the same turn, the Pokémon with a higher Speed stat will go first. Extremespeed, Quick Attack, Mach Punch, Palette Punch, Aqua Jet, Sucker Punch, Ice Pebble, and Fake Out can always strike first. (It should be noted Fake Out must be used during the first turn for it to work. Any other turn it's used, it will fail. It also causes 100% flinching.)

Fixed-damage moves

Some moves can cause no more or less damage than their fixed damage number. For instance, the move Sonicboom always causes exactly 20 hit points worth of damage, and Dragon Rage always hits for 40 points. Psywave does between 50% and 150% of the user's level in damage. Seismic Toss and Night Shade do damage equal to the user's level. However, Pokémon immune to the Move Types of these attacks still receive no damage.

One-hit knockout moves

Certain moves, such as Horn Drill and Sheer Cold, can knock out the opponent in a single hit, which cannot be prevented by any moves or items. Pokémon with the ability Sturdy cannot be hit by those moves. These moves are very inaccurate, and can often only hit Pokémon at an equal or lower level than the attacker. The base accuracy of these moves is 30%, which is increased by the difference between the levels of the attacking and defending Pokémon.

Other moves, like Explosion or Selfdestruct, always knock out the Pokémon that uses the attack. While not necessarily causing an instant knockout when they connect, these moves usually do immense amounts of damage. Pokémon with the ability Damp prevent those moves from occurring.

Certain moves, such as Hyper Beam, have a high Power rating and can possibly knock out an opposing Pokémon in a single hit, but cost the user a turn afterwards. Perish Song is also sometimes considered a one-hit knockout move, as it makes all Pokémon affected by the attack faint after 3 turns if they do not leave the field by then. (Trainers often switch out at the last second, so Perish Song is best combined with a move that prevents switching.)

Protection moves

Some moves reduce or nullify damage that the user (and, in some cases, the user's team) receives, or protect against negative statistical changes or status effects taking place.

• Reflect, Light Screen, and Safeguard give additional defenses to all Pokémon on the user's team for five turns. (In the first generation, these moves only boosted the user's stats. These effects can be "shattered" by using Brick Break)
• Protect and Detect negate all effects of attacks against the user for one turn. (may fail if used consecutively)

Randomized moves

Moves such as Metronome and Assist cause a Pokémon to use any one of the hundreds of moves in the game. Metronome can make the player's Pokémon use any random move listed in the game (with the exception of Metronome, Transform, and Sketch), and Assist enables it to use the moves from other Pokémon on its team. This is not considered a good strategy because it requires good luck to perform a move appropriate to the situation. Other moves, like Sleep Talk, pick from the Pokémon's other three known moves during sleep.

Recovery moves

Some moves simply heal the Pokémon who uses it. Some recovery moves, like Recover, are straightforward, but others are affected by factors such as time of day and weather. For example, Synthesis restores more HP when Sunny Day is in effect, but less when Rain Dance is in effect. Ingrain recovers a little of the user's HP at the end of each turn, but the makes the player unable to switch out (unless the move Baton Pass is used). The move Rest cures all status effects and heals all hit points in exchange for putting the Pokémon to sleep for the next two turns. Some other moves, like Heal Bell, affect the user's entire Pokémon team.

Damaging recovery moves (also called Absorption or Absorb moves) are a subtype of recovery moves. They damage the attacked Pokémon and restore some of the attacker's hit points (usually equal to half the damage inflicted). Examples of such moves are Absorb, Mega Drain, Giga Drain, Leech Life, Leech Seed, and Dream Eater. With the exception of Dream Eater, however, if these moves are used on a Pokémon with the ability Liquid Ooze, the user receives damage instead of healing.

Recoil-causing moves

Some moves damage the Pokémon that used it as well as the attacked Pokémon. Moves that can cause recoil are Double-Edge, Take Down, Volt Tackle, and Submission. This includes Struggle, the only usable move when a Pokémon has run out of Power Points, as well as Shadow Rush from Pokémon Colosseum and Shadow End from Pokémon XD. The ability Rock Head prevents recoil damage from occurring. In addition, Hi Jump Kick and Jump Kick only cause recoil if the attack misses; this damage cannot be prevented by Rock Head.

Retaliation moves

Some moves hit the opponent for double the damage infliced on the user during a certain period. Examples include Mirror Coat, which hits for double the damage done by a Special attack during the previous turn; and Bide, in which the user stores energy for two to three turns then damages the opponent based on the amount of damage the user received over that period.

Stealing/copying moves

Certain moves allow the user to steal or copy certain moves, types, or items of its opponent. For example, Mimic allows the user to copy one of the opponent's moves, and Psych Up allows the user to copy the opponent's stat changes. Sketch, only learned by Smeargle, acts like a permanent Mimic, by replacing itself with the last move used by the opponent.

Switch-out moves

Many Pokémon moves have applications involving the switching of one Pokémon for another:

• Some moves, such as Whirlwind or Roar, cause the attacked Pokémon to run away, or, in the case of Trainer battles, to force its Trainer to switch it with a random Pokémon. This will not work on Pokémon of the ability Suctioncups or a Pokémon that previously used Ingrain.
• The move Teleport does not work against trainer battles, but with a random encounter it allows the user to flee battle without fail. Out of battle, it transports the trainer to the last Pokémon Center that was healed at.
• One move, Baton Pass, allows the user to be switched without losing any beneficial statistic changes.
• Some moves, like Mean Look or Spider Web, prevent the opponent from fleeing or switching out.
• The move Pursuit, which inflicts double damage and strikes first if the target foe was meant to switch out in the turn it is used, but does not prevent the switch.
• The Bug-type move U-Turn actually does a physical attack before switching out the user in the same turn.
• Moves like Spikes and Stealth Rock don't do anything the turn they are executed, however any time the opponent switches Pokémon, including if one faints, a small amount of damage is dealt (Flying types are immune to Spikes). Toxic Spikes inflicts Poison (or Toxic) status instead. This is often combined with moves like Roar that force the opponent to switch pokemon.

Two-turn moves

Some moves take two turns to use – one turn to prepare, a second to attack. Some of these moves let the user get out of range of most moves during one turn, then attack on the second turn. However, there is always at least one attack that can hit even during the protected part of these attacks; for example, a Pokémon using Dig can be hit with the moves Earthquake, Magnitude, or Fissure which causes double damage when the Pokémon is underground. Thunder, Gust, Twister, Sky Uppercut, and Whirlwind can hit a Pokémon using Fly or Bounce, (only Gust and Twister do double damage.) while Surf and Whirlpool hit Pokémon using Dive, causing double damage. A new attack called Shadow Drive (learned only by Giratina) that protects the user during the first turn also exists, although it is unknown whether any attacks that can hit the user exist. Moves that take two turns to load are Solarbeam (if Sunny Day or Groudon's Drought ability are not in effect), Dig, Dive, Fly, Bounce, Skull Bash (which raise the player's Pokémon's Defense stat when they load), Razor Wind, and Sky Attack.

Weather moves

Some moves, such as Sunny Day and Sandstorm, change the weather of the battlefield, which lasts for five consecutive turns. Weather affects the power and effects of various moves, and activates certain abilities. For example, Fire-type attacks double in power when it is sunny, the move Thunder has 100% accuracy when it is raining, and Pokémon with the ability Sand Veil have increased evasion during a sandstorm. The Pokémon Kyogre, Groudon, and Tyranitar have abilities that cause weather effects, while the Air Lock and Cloud Nine abilities negate the effects of all weather. One Pokémon, Castform, changes its appearance with the weather, and its move Weather Ball changes type depending on weather. (Strangely, though, in a sandstorm, Castform remains the normal type, but its Weather Ball attack converts to the rock type.) Hail and Sandstorm can hit Pokémon using Fly and possibly Shadow Drive, but not Dig and Dive.

Miscellaneous moves

Many Pokémon moves have unique aspects that are not any of the above mentioned types, such as Pay Day, which damages the foe and produces money upon the victory of the battle in which it is used, False Swipe, which always leaves the opponent with at least one hit point even if used when the opponent already has only one hit point, and Splash, which has no power or effect at all. (Splash is only useful in Pokémon Contests.) Brick Break can nulify Reflect, Light Screen, and Safeguard. Hidden Power varies in Type and Power depending on the User's base stats. Secret Power is a Normal Type Attack with 70 base power and an effect that varies with location, meaning that depending on where you use it, it will induce different status conditions or stat reductions. Camoflauge, Conversion, and Conversion2 change the User's Type depending on conditions.

Glitch moves

In certain Pokémon games, attempting to find 'M or Missingno. can result in Pokémon having moves that consist of TM and then a number written afterwards. These can have strange effects on the game, such as freezing it completely or having bizarre effects such as fainting the user of the technique but not hurting the opponent, or (in the case of "TM28") performing the self-fainting move Explosion but not hurting the user at all. The name of the attack is always the same and sometimes just cause the effects of a normal attack.

External links

• List of Pokémon moves on Bulbapedia, organized alphabetically and by category. Bulbapedia is a comprehensive wiki-based Pokémon encyclopedia hosted by Bulbasaur's Mysterious Garden, a Pokémon fan base.