Trainer Card (game): Difference between revisions

A Trainer card in the Pokémon games is the card that displays much of the information about a Trainer. They seem to have appeared in all four generations of Pokémon games; however, they are only officially known as Trainer cards in Generation III and IV.

Several things are shared among the Trainer cards, including displaying the Trainer's name, their Trainer ID number, how much money they have on them, how many Pokémon they have in their Pokédex, and the amount of time they have been playing their game.

In Generation III, a back side was introduced that displayed such data as how many times a player had played in link battles, won and lost, traded, and even how long they had been playing when they first defeated the Elite Four and champion to enter the Hall of Fame. The Trainer card also changes colors after meeting certain conditions, such as defeating the Elite Four. In Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, a Trainer's party could be photographed in the Rocket Game Corner in Celadon City and put on the back as well.

When Generation IV was released, the ability to keep track of the precise date on which the game was begun and the date and time at which the Elite Four were defeated was added. An area for the Trainer's signature was also included. In addition, when communicating in the union room, other players can ask to view the player's Trainer card, which has a picture of a random Trainer class of the same gender as the player; this class can be changed by talking to a man in the Oreburgh City Pokémon Center. In HeartGold and SoulSilver this man is present in the Violet City Pokémon Center.

Starting Generation III, the Trainer card also changes color according to the amount of stars imprinted upon it. The color does not depend on what was done to obtain the star.

In Generation I, II, and III, the badges that had been earned were displayed on the bottom of the card. However, with the bottom screen of the Nintendo DS adding to the display area in Generation IV, a badge case was added in Diamond, Pearl and Platinum where Trainers could polish their badges using the stylus. Touching the badges makes them play a musical note.

Applications

Stars

Main article: Trainer stars

Trainer stars are stars placed on the Trainer card when specific achievements are met. They were introduced in Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, and carried through into all subsequent games as of Generations III and IV. For every star a Trainer receives, their Trainer card changes color. The methods of obtaining may be performed in any order. All games will award Trainers with a star when they defeat the Elite Four once, and complete the Pokédex, excluding any event-exclusive Pokémon, however some achievement depend on the game, for example obtaining all Gold symbols from the Battle Frontier in Pokémon Emerald, obtaining the Platinum flag in the Underground in Pokémon Diamond and Pearl, or collecting Shiny Leaves in Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver.

Score

In addition to having stars, it also carries the Trainer's score. A Trainer's score offers no specific purpose in the game, and appears to be only aesthetic. A Trainer's score begins at zero, however, score increases every time a score-altering event occurs.

Frontier Pass

In Pokémon Emerald, a player can upgrade their Trainer card to a Frontier Pass upon reaching the Battle Frontier. The Frontier Pass shows a player's symbols and Battle Points, allows players to view a map of the Battle Frontier, view a recorded match saved at a Battle Frontier facility except for the Battle Pike and Battle Pyramid, or look at the standard Trainer card.

Upon the player's first entry into Hoenn's Battle Frontier, their Trainer card will be upgraded into a Frontier Pass by a woman at the entrance. This pass holds the Trainer card, as well as a small map of the Battle Frontier and the player's records with the Frontier. Saved-up Battle Points, or BP, are listed, as are any of the seven Frontier Symbols the player has won. One battle from within one of the facilities may be recorded and stored on the Frontier Pass, which may be watched or overwritten with another at any time.

Previous games

• Trainercase RBY.png

  Red's Trainer card in Pokémon Yellow

• Trainercase GSC.png

  Trainer Case in Gold, Silver, and Crystal

• Trainercard.png

  Red's Trainer card in Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen

• Trainer card platinum.png

  A blue Trainer card in Pokémon Platinum

In the anime

Trainer cards do not appear in the anime; Trainers are instead identified via their Pokédex. Each has another license, called the Pokémon Trainer's license. Applicants must be 10 years of age or older to obtain these licenses.

In The Symbol Life, Ash obtained the Frontier Pass, although it was called the Frontierfolio, from the words frontier and portfolio.

See also

• Vs. Recorder

External links

• Create an unofficial Trainer card