Pokémon Powder Moves: Mechanics and Battle Interactions
🍄 Powder Moves Overview
Powder moves are a special category of moves in the Pokémon series that various effects or status conditions, often themed around spores and powders. They were present since Gen I with moves like Sleep Powder and Stun Spore, but in Gen VI became an official mechanic. Most powder moves are Grass-type and are blocked by certain immunities. Here are all the Powder moves:
- 🌫️ Poison Powder (Since Gen 1)
Poisons the target.
- ⚡ Stun Spore (Since Gen 1)
Paralyzes the target.
- 😴 Sleep Powder (Since Gen 1)
Puts the target to sleep.
- 🍄 Spore (Since Gen 1)
100% accurate sleep-inducing move.
- 🍃 Cotton Spore (Since Gen 2)
Lowers the target’s Speed by 2 stages.
- 🍂 Rage Powder (Since Gen 5)
Redirects single-target moves to the user in Double Battles.
- 💥 Powder (Since Gen 6)
If the target uses a Fire-type move, it explodes and takes damage instead of attacking.
- ✨ Magic Powder (Since Gen 8)
Changes the target’s type to Psychic.
🌸 Powder Mechanics
Starting in Gen VI, “Powder” became a defined move category with special interactions:
- ❌ Immunities: Grass-type Pokémon, Pokémon with the ability Overcoat, and those holding the item Safety Goggles are immune to all powder and spore moves.
- 👥 Double Battle Utility: Moves like Rage Powder and Spore are staples in doubles formats for redirection and disruption.
- ⚔️ Accuracy and Risk: Some powder moves have imperfect accuracy, making them powerful but unreliable tools.