Caught Pokémon
Captured Pokémon are Pokémon that have been put in the control of a Pokémon Trainer by the use of a Poké Ball, Capture Styler or trading with another Trainer. The capturing process typically involves a battle in which the Pokémon is at first weakened and/or affected with a status ailment, and then the Trainer throws a Poké Ball (or upgraded version) at said Pokémon in order to catch it. Capturing Pokémon is central to all canons in the Pokémon franchise; a captured Pokémon can be used in battling and for quests to aid Trainers, whereas Pokémon in the wild cannot, except in some episodes in the anime. Pokémon that are captured, however, do not need to obey their masters; if a Pokémon is traded and the Trainer does not have the badge required, it may disobey and refuse to attack during battles. According to the anime, even with many badges or being under original ownership, many Pokémon still may refuse to battle until trust is gained between the Trainer and Pokémon.
Captured Pokémon are stronger than Pokémon in the wild in the games. At the same level, a captured Pokémon will have more points in every statistic than a wild one; this is due to the fact that captured Pokémon gain EVs from every battle they partake in, and therefore, on training, will gain points in their stats based on what they've encountered. This becomes more and more obvious at the later stages of the game, where the higher levels allow for a greater disparity of stats between captured and wild Pokémon, especially those raised from a low level, giving the Trainer a more decisive edge in wild battles. It's important to note, however, that Pokémon controlled by other Trainers are just as strong statistically (at the same level) as the player's are. Captured Pokémon can level up and learn new moves in battle, while wild Pokémon cannot, and can evolve.
Newly captured Pokémon are no stronger or weaker than their wild counterparts, with the exception of innate IV differences. Using an upgraded version of a Poké Ball may increase the happiness of the captured Pokémon upon capture, as well.
Trivia
- In the anime, Ash, May and Max show confusion when they first witness Solana use her Capture Styler. The term "capture" seems like an entirely new concept to them even though they are supposed to be familiar with the word.
- This is really just in the English dub. The Japanese may use a different phrase, or it could be they were meant to be confused by the Ranger method.
- Even so, the standard method of obtaining Pokémon in a Poké Ball is often referred to as "catching" them, rather than "capturing" them.
