Fossil

If you were looking for the TCG set, see Fossil (TCG).

Fossils are a trace or piece of an organism of the past, such as a skeleton, shell, or leaf, preserved in the earth.

In the Pokémon world, fossils of extinct Pokémon can be revived to life using techniques developed by the Devon Corporation, and a research laboratory on Cinnabar Island. The two processes were supposedly developed independently of each other at around the same time.

Pokémon who are revived using fossils are always part Template:Type2. It is unknown if this is because that's the way they were in the past and their Rock-type allowed them to leave behind more complete remains, or if their Rock-type status is a side effect of their origins. They and their evolutions are commonly referred to as fossil Pokémon.

In the games, relatively few Pokémon trainers possess Pokémon revived from fossils. Those that do are noted below.

Generation I

In Pokémon Red and Green, three fossils were introduced. They also appear in Pokémon Blue, Yellow, FireRed, LeafGreen, Diamond, and Pearl. They can be resurrected into these respective Pokémon:

1. Helix Fossil → Omanyte
2. Dome Fossil → Kabuto
3. Old Amber → Aerodactyl

Lance was the first trainer to be seen with a fossil Pokémon, possessing an Aerodactyl due to its Dragon-like appearance.

Generation II

No new fossils were introduced in either Gold, Silver, or Crystal. Brock, being a fossil enthusiast, has an Omastar and Kabutops in this generation's games, as well as the Pokémon Stadium games.

Generation III

In Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, two new fossils were introduced. They also appear in Pokémon Emerald, Diamond, and Pearl. They can be ressurected into these respective Pokémon:

1. Root Fossil → Lileep
2. Claw Fossil → Anorith

Steven Stone, a rock collector whose father is head of the Devon Corporation, has two fossil Pokémon, Armaldo and Cradily. In Emerald, Roxanne will eventually gain an Aerodactyl, Omastar, and Kabutops for her team. Miror B. has an Armaldo on his team in Pokémon Colosseum.

Generation IV

In Pokémon Diamond and Pearl, two new fossils were again introduced:

1. Shield Fossil → Tatetops
2. Helmet Fossil → Zugaidos

In Sinnoh, when players travel underground, they can find most of the fossils by digging, along with several other rare items, potentially.

In Pokémon Diamond and Pearl, Hyōta has a Zugaidos, while his father, Tōgan, has a Trideps.

In the anime

In the anime, most fossil Pokémon are in fact, not extinct, but have simply been hibernating underground for millions of years. However, Dr. Moroboshi and Gary have both used research to directly revive fossil Pokémon.

Hyōta, as he does in the games, has a Zugaidos.

In the manga

In the Pokémon Special manga, Lance and Brock both have fossil Pokémon, just as in the games. In addition, Red uses Blaine's laboratory to revive an Aerodactyl. And in Hoenn, Ruby fights two revived Pokémon at a house in Fallarbor Town.

This item article is part of Project ItemDex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on all items.