Shadow move: Difference between revisions

'''Shadow moves''' (Japanese: '''ダークわざ''' ''Dark moves'') are special [[move]]s known only by [[Shadow Pokémon]] in the [[Nintendo GameCube|GameCube]] Pokémon RPG games (not even {{p|Smeargle}} can learn them through {{m|Sketch}}). They have no [[type]] and are noted in the games with ------ in the type bar.

In [[Pokémon Colosseum]], there is only one Shadow move, {{m|Shadow Rush}}, which has regular effectiveness against any type.  In [[Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness]], Shadow moves are [[super effective]] against any non-Shadow {{OBP|Pokémon|species}}, and are not very effective against other Shadow Pokémon. Since Shadow Pokémon cannot be [[trade]]d, these moves are all exclusive to the two GameCube games, with all but {{m|Shadow Rush}} exclusive to Pokémon XD. This also excludes them from use in {{pkmn|Contests}} as there are no Contests in [[Orre]].

Many of the Shadow moves are dark, corrupted counterparts of a [[move]] that the Shadow Pokémon would normally learn, such as [[Shadow Lugia]]'s {{m|Shadow Blast}}, which, like the move {{m|Aeroblast}}, sends a high-powered stream of air at the foe, and can only be learned by Lugia. These moves often have lower [[power]] than their non-shadow counterparts, but still inflict more damage due to being super effective. Their usefulness is also increased by their lack of {{PP}}, they can be used as often as needed within a single Battle.

Although only available in Generation III, damage-dealing Shadow moves can be either [[Physical moves|Physical]] or [[Special moves|Special]]. This distinction appears to be based on the types of the moves they are most similar to. For example, {{m|Shadow Blast}} is a Physical move because {{m|Aeroblast|its counterpart}} is a {{t|Flying|Flying-type}} move, which are all Physical in [[Generation III|this generation]]. Other moves would not be changed until [[Generation IV|the following generation]].