Sphere
A sphere (Japanese: タマ sphere) is a special type of currency that can be found by mining and used to trade with vendors in the UndergroundDPPt and the Grand UndergroundBDSP.
The term "Sphere" is treated as a proper noun in Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum, but is capitalized normally in Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl.
In the core series games
Spheres come in five varieties: Red, Blue, Green, Prism, and Pale. Red, Blue, and Green Spheres are more common than Prism and Pale Spheres; Prism Spheres are more common in Pokémon Diamond, while Pale Spheres are more common in Pokémon Pearl.
In Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum, they range in size from 1 to 99. Mined Spheres can range in size from 1 to 23. When mining, small Spheres take up 2×2 tiles and range in size from 1 to 13, while large Spheres take up 3×3 tiles and range in size from 11 to 23. Bigger sizes are more common if the player mines carefully and does not let the wall collapse. In Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, spheres come in two discrete sizes: S and L.
In Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum, players can only carry a total of 40 Spheres at any time. A full Sphere inventory will prevent acquiring any more Spheres, with any newly mined spheres in excess of their Bag space being automatically discarded. If a player attempts to dig up one of their buried Spheres with a full Bag, the game prevents them from doing so, saying that the player left it where it is. In Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, players can carry up to 999 of each type of sphere.
Exchange
Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum
- Main article: Underground → Vendors
Spheres can be used to exchange for goods to decorate the player's Secret Base, as well as Traps which can be set up throughout the Underground. There are three types of vendors in the Underground:
- Treasure vendors will accept the player's treasures and give them spheres in return.
- Goods vendors will trade Spheres for goods and vice-versa.
- Trap vendors will trade Spheres for Traps and vice-versa.
The price that an item is listed for is the minimum-size Sphere that the Hiker will take for it, though larger ones may be used.
Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl
- Main article: Grand Underground → Merchants
Spheres can be used to exchange for pedestals and various items, such as TMs. There are three types of vendors in the Grand Underground:
- Small-sphere vendors allow the player to purchase additional Digger Drills, small or medium pedestals, and TMs which change daily.
- Large-sphere vendors who offer large or extra-large pedestals, and a different set of TMs.
- The item exchange vendor will give spheres in exchange for items that can be dug out. Additionally, he can also be paid spheres to expand the player's Secret Base.
Burying Spheres
In Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum, the player can bury Spheres to combine or grow them, up to the maximum size of 99. A player can only bury 100 Spheres at a time; attempting to bury more causes the oldest buried Sphere to disappear. A Sphere Radar can be unlocked for a player's base, which can be used to help the player find the Spheres they have buried. Other players in the Underground cannot see or interact with buried Spheres that are not theirs.
Growing Spheres
Buried Spheres grow naturally over time, at a rate depending on their color:
- Prism and Pale: 1 to 2 sizes per day
- Red and Blue: 3 to 6 sizes per day
- Green: 5 to 9 sizes per day
Each possible growth size is equally likely.
Combining Spheres
Spheres of the same color can combined by burying them in the same spot, in order to produce a single larger Sphere.
When combined, the size of the resulting Sphere is determined by the following formula (capped at 99):
Where:
- is the current size of the Sphere buried in the spot you are burying other Spheres in, including any growth it has undergone
- are the respective sizes of the buried spheres (excluding the previously-buried or grown Sphere)
Example
Burying a Prism Sphere 15, a Prism Sphere 12, a Prism Sphere 7, and two Prism Sphere 1s yields a Prism Sphere 22.
Burying a Blue Sphere 15, Blue Sphere 3, Blue Sphere 22, on top of a Blue Sphere 3 that has grown by 2 (i.e. now a Blue Sphere 5) yields a Blue Sphere 15, which will announce that it has grown by 2 once it is dug up.
Generating Mining Spots
Once daily, at midnight, each buried Sphere will cause a mining spot to appear in a random nearby wall. This mining spot lasts until the day ends or it is mined by a player. Other players can also see mining spots created this way.
Description
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Gallery
Underground
These are sprites of the Spheres as seen in the Sinnoh Underground.
Red Sphere Small |
Blue Sphere Small |
Green Sphere Small |
Prism Sphere Small |
Pale Sphere Small |
Red Sphere Large |
Blue Sphere Large |
Green Sphere Large |
Prism Sphere Large |
Pale Sphere Large |
Grand Underground
These are sprites of the Spheres as seen in the Sinnoh Grand Underground.
Red Sphere S | Blue Sphere S | Green Sphere S | Prism Sphere S | Pale Sphere S |
Red Sphere L | Blue Sphere L | Green Sphere L | Prism Sphere L | Pale Sphere L |
This is artwork of the Spheres as seen in the Sinnoh Grand Underground.
Red Sphere S | Blue Sphere S | Green Sphere S | Prism Sphere S | Pale Sphere S |
Red Sphere L | Blue Sphere L | Green Sphere L | Prism Sphere L | Pale Sphere L |
In animation
Spheres first appeared in The Grass Menagerie! in Team Rocket's fantasy. They later found a Red Sphere and loads more Spheres of other colors, giving them money for a meal.
Trivia
- The five colors of Spheres correspond to different versions of the Pokémon games, with the first three matching the original colors of Red, Green and Blue (or perhaps Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald), and the Prism and Pale Spheres corresponding to Diamond and Pearl respectively.
In other languages
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Red Sphere
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Blue Sphere
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Green Sphere
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Prism Sphere
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Pale Sphere
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This item article is part of Project ItemDex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on all items. |