Egg Move
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An Egg move is any move passed down from a Pokémon breeding pair to their offspring, which it would not normally possess at the level it hatches. The term is also frequently used specifically for moves that a Pokémon can acquire only from breeding (i.e. moves that the offspring cannot learn via level-up, TM or HM, or Move Tutor), though a Pokémon can inherit moves from its parents in other ways.
Before breeding a Pokémon, one must consider whether to use any Egg moves in that Pokémon's moveset, and breed accordingly. Sometimes, to get a certain combination of moves onto a Pokémon (such as a Spinda with both Wish and Baton Pass) several steps must be taken; this is called chain breeding.
Prior to Generation VI, all methods of learning Egg moves required the father to know the move prior to breeding, which made certain combinations of moves impossible to posess: e.g. Tentacruel can learn both Rapid Spin and Mirror Coat as Egg moves, but no Pokémon in the Water 3 Egg Group can posess both moves at the same time. (Such a combination is possible in Generation VI, if one parent knows Rapid Spin and the other knows Mirror Coat).
Rules of Egg move breeding
Level-up moves
If both parents know one or more moves that their offspring can learn by leveling up, the offspring will inherit that move. For example, Gengar and Mismagius both know Mean Look, so their child, Misdreavus (who learns the move at level 19) will know it when it hatches.
Parents | Gengar ♂ |
Mismagius ♀ |
---|---|---|
Moves | Mean Look | Magical Leaf |
Dark Pulse | Mean Look | |
Lick | Lucky Chant | |
Hex | Perish Song | |
Offspring | Misdreavus | |
Moves | Mean Look | |
Growl | ||
Psywave | ||
--- |
Note that Ditto cannot be used to pass down moves in this manner, because the only move it possesses is Transform.
TM and HM moves
Prior to Generation VI, if the male Pokémon knows a TM or HM move that the offspring can learn, the offspring will inherit that move. This applies whether or not the female Pokémon knows the move (or if Ditto was used in lieu of a female), regardless of whether a TM or HM was used to teach the move to the parent. In this example, the father, Gliscor, learns X-Scissor by level up, and his child, Joltik, can learn the same move through TM81, so it will know this move upon hatching.
In Generation VI, this is no longer the case; Pokémon will only inherit TM or HM moves if they are Egg moves.
Parents | Gliscor ♂ |
Galvantula ♀ |
---|---|---|
Moves | X-Scissor | Thunder |
Fire Fang | Bug Buzz | |
Stone Edge | Agility | |
Screech | Gastro Acid | |
Offspring | Joltik | |
Moves | X-Scissor | |
String Shot | ||
Leech Life | ||
Spider Web |
Prior to Generation V, this was the only way to "reuse" one-of-a-kind TMs, like the ones obtained from Gym Leaders.
Because TMs vary between generations, the specific moves that can be inherited in this manner also vary between generations (though the move itself may still be inheritable by other means). For example, if a male Pachirisu knowing Endure is bred with a Ditto, in Generation IV the baby will know the move upon hatching (because Endure was TM58 in that generation) but in Generation V or VI it will not.
Egg moves
If the male Pokémon knows a move that the offspring can learn only by breeding, the offspring will be born knowing the move (similar to the inheritance of TM moves described above). For example, if a male Dragonite knowing Outrage is bred with a female Charizard, the resulting Charmander will know Outrage. As of Generation VI, a female can pass down moves, too.
Parents | Dragonite ♂ |
Charizard ♀ |
---|---|---|
Moves | Outrage | Flare Blitz |
Thunder Wave | Shadow Claw | |
Surf | Dragon Claw | |
Ice Beam | Fly | |
Offspring | Charmander | |
Moves | Outrage | |
Flare Blitz | ||
Scratch | ||
Growl |
Default moves
In addition to (or in the absence of) any inherited moves, the offspring Pokémon will know at least one default move when hatched, labeled in their level up move list as either "Start" or "--" in lieu of a level number. If this would result in the offspring possessing more than four moves, the inherited moves take priority and the moves on top of their level up move list (with "Start" or "--") will be the ones that are not learned. (If desired, the player may consult a Move Reminder to acquire those moves.)
Special cases
Breeding with Incense
Incense-bred Pokémon often have a different or expanded Egg move list than their evolved forms, due to being classified in the Pokédex as a different species.
Parents | Golduck ♂ |
Azumarill ♀ |
---|---|---|
Moves | Amnesia | Superpower |
Soak | Hydro Pump | |
Psychic | Helping Hand | |
Psych Up | Rollout | |
Female Held item |
Nothing | Sea Incense |
Offspring | Marill |
Azurill |
Moves | Amnesia | Soak |
Tackle | Splash | |
Bubble | Bubble | |
--- | --- |
Volt Tackle
While not an Egg move, Pichu will know Volt Tackle if either of its parents holds a Light Ball.
Parents | Mawile ♂ |
Raichu ♀ |
---|---|---|
Moves | Crunch | Thunderbolt |
Iron Head | Feint | |
Fire Fang | Nasty Plot | |
Sweet Scent | Agility | |
Held item | Nothing | Light Ball |
Offspring | Pichu | |
Moves | Thunder Shock | |
Charm | ||
--- | Volt Tackle | |
--- |
Genderless Pokémon
Genderless Pokémon cannot inherit any Egg moves, as they can only be bred with Ditto, and always start with a fixed number of moves. Some of these, such as Beldum, are also incapable of learning moves via TM and HM.
Parents | Ditto |
Porygon-Z |
---|---|---|
Moves | Transform | Tri Attack |
--- | Thunderbolt | |
--- | Ice Beam | |
--- | Shadow Ball | |
Offspring | Porygon | |
Moves | Conversion 2 | |
Tackle | ||
Conversion | ||
Sharpen |
See also
This game mechanic article is part of Project Games, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on the Pokémon games. |