Sand tile

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A sand tile is a special tile that can be found in the beach and desert areas of the Pokemon games. Normal sand does not have any wild Pokémon data in it, so it very similar to a regular tile. Walking or running over sand leaves footprints, while cycling leaves a tire track; both disappear shortly after appearing.

Deep sand

Deep sand is a special type of sand that appears in Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, Black, and White. By entering patches of deep sand, wild Pokémon may appear and battle the player, making it the desert equivalent of tall grass. In Hoenn, it is found in the desert section of Route 111. In Unova, it is found on Route 4 and in Resort Desert.

Technical mechanics

The rate of Pokémon encounter is determined from a simple mathematical formula:

1 in (187.5 / ( x )) per step

Let x equal the a value which determines how rare the Pokémon is. The higher the encounter rate, the more common the Pokémon is.

Encounter-rate table
Encounter Type Encounter Rate
Very Common 10
Common 8.5
Semi-Rare 6.75
Rare 3.33
Very Rare 1.25

In battle

050Diglett.png This section is incomplete.
Please feel free to edit this section to add missing information and complete it.
Reason: Needs Nature Power and the appearance of Secret Power in Generation V

In Generation III, sand gives Secret Power a 30% chance of lowering its target's Accuracy and gives it the appearance of Mud Shot; it causes Nature Power to become Earthquake.

In Generation IV, sand gives Secret Power a 30% chance of lowering its target's Accuracy and gives it the appearance of Mud-Slap; it causes Nature Power to become Earthquake.

In Generation V, sand gives Secret Power a 30% chance of lowering its target's Accuracy.

Camouflage makes the user Ground-type when used on sand.


Special tiles in the Pokémon games
Cave tileHoleIce tileLedgeMarsh tilePuddleSand tileSnow tile
Spin tileSoft soilTall grassTrapWarp tileWater tile
Dungeon tile


Project Games logo.png This game-related article is part of Project Games, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on the Pokémon games.