Treasures of ruin
The treasures of ruin[a] (Japanese: 災いの宝 Wazawai no Takara, "treasures of calamity"), also known as the Ruinous Pokémon[b] or Calamity Pokémon[c] (Japanese: 災厄ポケモン Saiyaku Pokemon, "Calamity Pokémon") and Ruinous Legend[d], are a quartet of Legendary Pokémon consisting of Wo-Chien, Chien-Pao, Ting-Lu, and Chi-Yu. The four Pokémon are individually referred to by the same names as their signature Abilities: the Tablets of Ruin, Sword of Ruin, Vessel of Ruin, and Beads of Ruin, respectively.[e] They originated in an unknown land, but currently reside in the Paldea region.
The four treasures of ruin share a primary type, Dark; a category, "Ruinous Pokémon"; and a signature move, Ruination. Their signature Abilities are all variations of each other, sharing the effect of lowering a certain stat by 25% for all Pokémon on the field except themselves when they are in battle. Their names are all derived from Chinese. They are the only Pokémon with a catch rate of 6.
History
Core series
The four treasures of ruin were once normal objects originating from a distant land east of Paldea. These four treasures were a set of wooden tablets, a sword, a vessel, and a set of beads. As time passed, each of the treasures were corrupted by negative human emotions: grudge, hatred, fear, and envy, respectively, gaining life and cladding themselves in dead leaves, snow and ice, dirt and rocks, and fire to create their respective bodies, becoming the Legendary Pokémon Wo-Chien, Chien-Pao, Ting-Lu, and Chi-Yu.
One day, in the ancient times of Paldea, a merchant came from the east in possession of these four treasures, traveled to the Paldea region, and presented them to the Paldean king. In excitement, the treasure-obsessed king quickly bought them all, keeping them in his castle with his other treasures. The king's greed, however, eventually caused the four treasures to awaken, transforming into their Pokémon forms. The four Legendary Pokémon went berserk and caused a disaster that completely destroyed the castle and almost the entire kingdom afterwards.
Eventually, the four were defeated and sealed away in different shrines scattered across the Paldea region by Pokémon wielders called out by the Paldean king. Wo-Chien was sealed within the Grasswither Shrine, Chien-Pao within the Icerend Shrine, Ting-Lu within the Groundblight Shrine, and Chi-Yu within the Firescourge Shrine.
Pokémon Horizons: The Series
In Pokémon Horizons: The Series, the origin of the treasures of ruin is the subject of a Paldean folktale. As narrated by Raifort in HZ154, the treasures of ruin originated as cursed artifacts sold to the king of Paldea by a merchant from a distant eastern land. That very night, a storm ravaged the castle and sucked in the artifacts, which then merged with the elements to born the Legendary Pokémon that brought calamity to the kingdom, until a Pokémon wielder succeeded in stopping them, allowing them to be sealed away.
In HZ155, the historian Hokkora revealed that the folktale actually diverged from the real story, and that the treasures of ruin were brought to life by negative human emotions, better aligning with the story told in the core series games. According to him, the artifacts belonged to a Paldean aristocrat, but were stolen in an act of treachery and passed from hand to hand in a war-torn kingdom, until they eventually were laid in the elements. The malicious feelings of the people grew and merged with the artifacts, causing them to transform into Pokémon and, moved by the aristocrat's grudge, be drawn to one another to the center of the kingdom, where the king's castle was, bringing calamity wherever they went. The king asked for help to a young girl from the East, who managed to bond with the treasures of ruin and calm them down, telling them to go to sleep and promising to wake them up once the dust had settled. However, the king thought it wasn't enough and forced the girl to seal the Pokémon away, which she did, but with a catch: the seals were to break if someone who truly loved Pokémon touched the stakes.
Moveset comparison
| Lv. |  Wo-Chien Dark Grass |
 Chien-Pao Dark Ice |
 Ting-Lu Dark Ground |
 Chi-Yu Dark Fire |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Absorb | Powder Snow | Sand Tomb | Ember |
| Spite | ||||
| Mean Look | ||||
| 5 | Tickle | Icy Wind | Spikes | Flame Wheel |
| 10 | Payback | |||
| 15 | Poison Powder | Mist | Stomp | Will-O-Wisp |
| Stun Spore | Haze | |||
| 20 | Mega Drain | Ice Shard | Bulldoze | Flame Charge |
| 25 | Leech Seed | Swords Dance | Whirlwind | Incinerate |
| 30 | Growth | Snowscape | Taunt | Confuse Ray |
| 35 | Ingrain | Night Slash | Thrash | Nasty Plot |
| 40 | Dark Pulse | |||
| 45 | Giga Drain | Icicle Crash | Stomping Tantrum | Lava Plume |
| 50 | Ruination | |||
| 55 | Foul Play | Sucker Punch | Throat Chop | Bounce |
| 60 | Power Whip | Sacred Sword | Rock Slide | Swagger |
| 65 | Grassy Terrain | Recover | Memento | Inferno |
| 70 | Knock Off | Throat Chop | Earthquake | Memento |
| 75 | Leaf Storm | Sheer Cold | Fissure | Overheat |
| Moves in bold get STAB. Moves in italics do no damage. | ||||
Base stat comparison
| Pokémon | HP | Atk | Def | Sp. Atk | Sp. Def | Spd | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
85 | 85 | 100 | 95 | 135 | 70 | 570 |
 |
80 | 120 | 80 | 90 | 65 | 135 | 570 |
 |
155 | 110 | 125 | 55 | 80 | 45 | 570 |
 |
55 | 80 | 80 | 135 | 120 | 100 | 570 |
In the core series games
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet
The four treasures of ruin are scattered across Paldea, sealed in special shrines. Wo-Chien's can be found in South Province (Area One), Chien-Pao's can be found in West Province (Area One), Ting-Lu's can be found in the Socarrat Trail, and Chi-Yu's can be found in North Province (Area Two). Their shrines are usually locked, but can be unlocked after pulling out eight different stakes scattered across their respective areas. Upon pulling out all stakes, their shrines will unlock and the respective Pokémon can be called out to battle by interacting with their shrines.
The Shiny version of the treasures of ruin were encounterable in four limited Poké Portal News events as 5 Star Tera Raids. During the Tera Raid Battle event, neither of the four can be captured and said events ends on September 30, 2025 respectively. Challenge the Shiny Tablets of Ruin event lasts from Friday, August 8, 2025 to Tuesday, September 30, 2025. Challenge the Shiny Sword of Ruin event lasts from August 22, 2025 to Tuesday, September 30, 2025. Challenge the Shiny Vessel of Ruin event lasts from September 5, 2025, to September 30, 2025. Challenge the Shiny Beads of Ruin event lasts from September 19, 2025 to September 30, 2025. Defeating any of these battles one million times granted players the respective Shiny Pokémon to be obtained though Mystery Gift rewards at the following times.
In the spin-off games
Pokémon Masters EX
In Pokémon Masters EX, the treasures of ruin are the main focus of the eponymous "Treasures of Ruin" story events. The treasures themselves were originally acquired by Lear, but were subsequently stolen by Team Plasma. After assuming their forms as Pokémon, most of the treasures of ruin escaped, with each of them ultimately forming a sync pair with a villainous team leader. All of them are capable of Sync Terastallizing.
| Dex | Trainer | NDex | Pokémon | Type | Weakness | Role | EX role | Base potential | Availability | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #124 | 
|
Sygna Suit Ghetsis |
#1002 | 
|
Chien-Pao   |
Ice
|
Fighting
|
|
|
★★★★★☆EX | EX Fair Sync Pair Scout |
| #115 | 
|
Sygna Suit (Alt.) Lysandre |
#1004 | 
|
Chi-Yu  |
Fire
|
Ground
|
|
|
★★★★★☆EX | EX Fair Sync Pair Scout |
| #128 | 
|
Fall 2026 Archie |
#1001 | 
|
Wo-Chien  |
Grass
|
Bug
|
|
|
★★★★★☆EX | Seasonal Sync Pair Scout |
| #127 | 
|
Fall 2026 Maxie |
#1003 | 
|
Ting-Lu  |
Ground
|
Water
|
|
|
★★★★★☆EX | Seasonal Sync Pair Scout |
In animation
Pokémon Horizons: The Series
Wo-Chien, Chien-Pao, Ting-Lu, and Chi-Yu debuted in HZ153, after Coral and Sidian unintentionally released them from their respective shrines around Paldea. A historian named Hokkora had asked them to investigate where the stakes keeping the shrines sealed were placed, which they had misunderstood as an assignment to remove the stakes.
After learning about disasters around the shrines from Raifort, the young Rising Volt Tacklers (excluding Navie) set off to investigate them, leading to them to battle the unsealed Pokémon: Ult confronted Ting-Lu alongside Coral and Sidian, Liko confronted Chi-Yu, Roy confronted Chien-Pao, and Dot confronted Wo-Chien. Each of these encounters led to the Trainers being overwhelmed by the Ruinous Pokémon, who then proceeded to continue on their way to Mesagoza, where the castle of the king who had them sealed once stood in the past.
In the following episodes, after learning about their fable, the Rising Volt Tacklers confronted the treasures of ruin once more, but their best efforts weren't enough to keep them from gathering together. Instinctively, they begun attacking each other in an attempt to become one again, which meant they would cease to exist individually, but were ultimately calmed down once Koraidon and Miraidon showed up and defeated them. The four then went their separate ways as Raifort theorized that they merely wished to reunite with the girl they treasured in the past, who they now saw in Liko.
The term "treasures of ruin" is never used in Pokémon Horizons: The Series; they're instead exclusively referred to as "Ruinous Pokémon".
In the manga
Pokémon Adventures
Scarlet & Violet arc
While none of the treasures of ruin have appeared in Pokémon Adventures so far, Scarlet, who is a treasure hunter, is battling Paldea's Gym Leaders in search of information about them. In Evolve! The Second Fire Evolution!!, it was revealed that Scarlet is seeking the treasures for one of her clients. In Ruin! The Client, Raifort!!, it was revealed that her client is Uva Academy's history teacher Raifort, who wants them to be captured and brought under control so they can't spread ruin in case they're released into the world. She also revealed that to unseal the treasures, Scarlet would need another Pokémon with a special power, the Legendary Iron Serpent.
In the meantime, after Violet and Arven defeated the Titan Bombirdier in Decisive! The Battle in the Sky!!, a Musician showed them the Icerend Shrine, where Chien-Pao was sealed in. In PASV26, during a test run of Miraidon's new gliding ability at Casseroya Lake, he found and pulled out one of the stakes of the Groundblight Shrine, where Ting-Lu was sealed in, causing the shrine to react. In PASV32, Violet started traveling across Paldea with Arven, removing all stakes he came across. Later, Tulip and Dendra investigated the Icerend Shrine and notice that as a result of Violet pulling out some of its stakes, two of the four chains on the shrine's door had disappeared.
Gallery
| S V Shrines concept art |
Music
| Games | Location | Track Title (Japanese) | Track Title (English) | Composer | Arranger | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S V | When battling the treasures of ruin |
戦闘！災厄ポケモン | Battle! (Calamity Pokémon) | Gō Ichinose | Gō Ichinose | 03:39 |
| Song names marked with an asterisk are unofficial, as they have not received a soundtrack release. | ||||||
Trivia
- The treasures of ruin share similarities to the guardian deities:
- They are a quartet of Legendary Pokémon situated in a particular region.
- Both quartets share a base stat total of 570.
- Each quartet has a shared type: the treasures of ruin share the Dark type, while the guardian deities share the Fairy type.
- The respective quartets' signature moves, Ruination and Nature's Madness, are differently typed variations of each other, both being moves that deal damage equivalent to half the target's remaining HP.
- Both quartets also share variations of given Abilities: the treasures of ruin all have variations of Abilities that lower a stat of all other Pokémon on the field when they are present, while the guardian deities all share Abilities that summon a different type of terrain upon entering battle.
- Wo-Chien, Chien-Pao, Ting-Lu, and Chi-Yu all have their names romanized in the Wade–Giles format in English, Spanish, and Italian. In French and German, their names are instead romanized in the Hanyu Pinyin format, with their respective names being Chongjian, Baojian, Dinglu, and Yuyu in those languages.
- The treasures of ruin are the first Pokémon whose base stats were adjusted via a patch to the game, with each receiving a total decrease of 10 points:
- Wo-Chien lost 5 points in base Attack and Special Attack.
- Chien-Pao lost 10 points in base Attack.
- Ting-Lu lost 10 points in base HP and 5 points in base Defense, while gaining 5 points in base Special Attack.
- Chi-Yu lost 10 points of base Special Attack.
Origin
Each Pokémon appears to draw prominent inspiration from ancient Chinese artifacts originating from the era prior to the establishment of the Qin dynasty in 221 BC, particularly bamboo and wooden slips, double-edged jian sword, bronze ding cauldron, and jade ware. The appearance of the treasures of ruin may also reference early modern cultural and commercial exchanges of the West with China during the period, such as the Portuguese establishment of trading activities in southern China in the early 16th century with the founding of Macau, followed by Spanish contacts with China starting at the latter part of the century.
They may also be partly inspired by the concept of the Four Perils, four malevolent beings that exist in Chinese mythology.
In other languages
- Treasures of ruin
| Language | Title | |
|---|---|---|
| Chinese | Cantonese | 災禍之寶 Jōiwoh jī Bóu |
| Mandarin | 災禍之寶 / 灾祸之宝 Zāihuò zhī Bǎo | |
| French | Trésors du fléau | |
| German | Schätze des Unheils | |
| Italian | Tesori portatori di sciagura | |
| Korean | 재앙의 보물 Jaeang-ui Bomul | |
| Brazilian Portuguese | Tesouros da Ruína | |
| Spanish | Tesoros funestos | |
- Ruinous Legend
| Language | Title | |
|---|---|---|
| French | Légende du fléau | |
| German | Unheilvolle Legende | |
| Italian | Leggenda rovinosa | |
| Spanish | Leyenda funesta | |
Notes
- ↑ These Pokémon are consistently referred to as the treasures of ruin by Raifort in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. The term is also used in a description in Pokémon HOME: "Pokémon known as the treasures of ruin, sealed away with sacred stakes."
- ↑ The four Pokémon collectively share the category "Ruinous Pokémon".
- ↑ From the name of their battle theme in Nintendo Music, "Battle! (Calamity Pokémon)".
- ↑ From the name of their battle theme in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, "Ruinous Legend ♪".
- ↑ Referred to in-game as well as in promotional material for events, e.g. "Challenge the Shiny Tablets of Ruin!"
Related articles
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This Pokémon article is part of Project Pokédex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on each Pokémon species, as well as Pokémon groups and forms. |