Pumpkaboo has four different forms: Small Variety, Medium Variety, Large Variety, and Jumbo Variety. Prior to Pokémon Legends: Z-A, these were instead named Small Size, Average Size, Large Size, and Super Size respectively.
Pumpkaboo is a ghostly pumpkin-like Pokémon that varies dramatically in size. Encasing its lower body is a pinkish pumpkin with a pair of nubby legs. Carved into the pumpkin is a pair of circular holes that glow yellow-orange. Pumpkaboo's shadowy black body pokes out of the top of the pumpkin. It has glowing yellow eyes, a pair of fangs in its upper jaw, and pointed ears that curve slightly. On top of its head is a long tuft of fur that curls tightly at the tip. A collar of furry-looking tufts hangs over the edge of the pumpkin.
Typically active at sundown, Pumpkaboo carries wandering spirits to the afterlife by storing them in its body, despite the fact that Pumpkaboo itself is borne from a pumpkin inhabited by spirit that is trapped in the material world. The holes on Pumpkaboo's body can glow and release light, allowing it to hypnotize and control humans or Pokémon. As mentioned in the Pokémon animated series episode The Bamboozling Forest!, however, this light can also illuminate the way for travelers in the dark. According to the Sleep Style Dex, Pumpkaboo occasionally emits this hypnotic light even as it sleeps. Thus, it's recommended that observers approach with caution and avoid being accidentally hypnotized. Pumpkaboo are known to sleep in the ground.
Pumpkaboo has four separate forms: Small Variety, Medium Variety, Large Variety, and Jumbo Variety. Visually, these forms differ only in their sizes, and thus they were previously named Small Size, Average Size, Large Size, and Super Size respectively. The form name change reflects the discovery that Pumpkaboo's four forms differ in ways other than their sizes alone,[1] notably in the preferences of the spirits that Pumpkaboo will carry to the afterlife. Small Variety Pumpkaboo prefer the spirits of children, while Large Size Pumpkaboo prefer those of adults. Jumbo Variety Pumpkaboo, besides having a lower-pitched cry, are very partial to the spirits of people who were of similarly superior proportions. The size of Pumpkaboo is said to be the product of the number of lost souls that lingered in the area where it was formed.
Pumpkaboo of several different sizes live in the Lentalregion. I’ve heard it said that their size depends on the number of souls they have trapped inside them.
It's said the light that Pumpkaboo emits can hypnotize people. It sometimes emits this light even as it sleeps, so if you want to observe it, approach with caution.
Pumpkaboo have four different forms, each named after their respective size: Small Variety, Medium Variety, Large Variety, and Jumbo Variety. Prior to Pokémon Legends: Z-A, these were instead named Small Size, Average Size, Large Size, and Super Size respectively. The section refers to the forms by their previously used names, in line with the games they appear in.
Its size is maintained through Evolution into Gourgeist and cannot be changed. Larger sizes of Pumpkaboo are rarer to encounter in the wild. Bred Pumpkaboo are the same size as their mother, or the same size as the Pumpkaboo or Gourgeist parent if bred with Ditto.
In the wild, Jumbo Variety Pumpkaboo will always hold a Miracle Seed, whereas other sizes will never hold an item in the wild. Jumbo Variety Pumpkaboo were also the only Pokémon to have the XXL size designation in Pokémon GO prior to the addition of XXL and XXS sizes for all species. The different sizes of Pumpkaboo do not use different menu sprites, except in Pokémon HOME.
Previously, only Medium Variety and Jumbo Variety Pumpkaboo could have their Hidden AbilityInsomnia. Medium Variety can be obtained with its Hidden Ability from the Friend Safari, and Jumbo Variety could be obtained with its Hidden Ability from events. Since Version 1.2.0 of Pokémon Sword and Shield, all sizes can be obtained with their Hidden Abilities via Ability Patches.
Each form has different base stats. With each increase in size, Pumpkaboo's base HP stat increases by 5 points, while its base Speed stat decreases by 5 points. Consequently, its base stat total does not vary with size.
A Small Size Pumpkaboo named Prince Pumpkaboo appeared in A Festival Trade! A Festival Farewell?, under the ownership of Count Pumpka. He fell in love with Jessie's Pumpkaboo and a trade was agreed on. However, when the trade caused Jessie's Pumpkaboo to evolve into Gourgeist, Prince Pumpkaboo rejected her.
Pumpkaboo appears to be based on a pumpkin, specifically the ones carved into jack-o'-lanterns for Halloween. Considering its fangs, black upper body, and affiliation with Halloween, it may also be based on bats or black cats.
Pumpkaboo's lore of being a spirit unable to move on may be a reference to Stingy Jack, a folkloric character cursed to wander the Earth as a spirit after being denied entry to both Heaven and Hell, carrying only a makeshift turnip lantern — believed to be the original jack-o'-lantern — to light his way.
Pumpkaboo's different forms are likely inspired by the large variety of sizes in pumpkins, the largest ones possibly being a reference to the agricultural tradition of growing incredibly large pumpkins.
Name origin
Pumpkaboo may be a combination of pumpkin and boo (a common word used to startle people) or peek-a-boo.
Bakeccha may be a combination of お化け obake (ghost) and 南瓜 kabocha (pumpkin).
↑Taille: "There’s been quite a stir in the Pumpkaboo fan community over the recent discovery... [...] Pumpkaboo used to be sorted based on their size: Small Size, Average Size, Large Size, or Super Size. However! It's come to light that the differences between them go beyond just size! So now they are called Small Variety, Medium Variety, Large Variety, and Jumbo Variety." (Pokémon Legends: Z-A)
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.
Miracle Seed (Jumbo Variety Pumpkaboo only, 100%)
For other sprites and images, please see Pumpkaboo images on the Bulbagarden Archives.
