There are a total of 20 known Vivillon patterns, one of which is event-exclusive.
In GenerationsVI and VII, Vivillon's wing pattern depends on the real-world geographic location set on the game the Pokémon was generated in.
In Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, Spewpa will always evolve into Fancy Pattern Vivillon, except if the Spewpa was transferred from another game via Pokémon HOME, or when the pattern Spewpa can evolve into has been changed by receiving a Postcard from Pokémon GO.
Vivillon is a butterfly-like Pokémon with wings that come in a large variety of patterns. It has a round, grayish head with large, black, pixelated eyes and a pair of skinny antennae. The tips of the antennae each have an ovoid scale that is dark gray on the upper half and beige on the lower half. Vivillon's thorax is an ovoid and divided into three segments; each segment is a different shade of gray. Its legs are also ovoid and are dark gray on the lower half, beige on the upper half, and have a black band in the middle. It has two black, circular hands and no visible arms. While Vivillon's wings come in a wide variety of colors and patterns, they always have black edges and pixelated markings. It can spread its scales to poison its opponents during battle or, as shown in the anime, to calm an opponent's fighting spirit. It is highly capable of finding sources of water, such as springs.
The patterns on a Vivillon's wings adapt to the environment. Even on the same island, you can find different Vivillon in areas with different climates.
The patterns on a Vivillon's wings adapt to the environment. Even on the same island, you can find different Vivillon in areas with different climates.
The patterns on a Vivillon's wings adapt to the environment. Even on the same island, you can find different Vivillon in areas with different climates.
Form data
Map of Vivillon locations in Generations VI and VII
Official maps describing Vivillon locations in Generations VI and VII
Official maps describing Vivillon locations in Generations VI and VII
Official map describing Vivillon locations via Postcards in Generation IX
Vivillon has 20 separate forms; each having different patterns on its wings. Scatterbug and Spewpa have the pattern of Vivillon they will evolve into already set when the Pokémon is generated; for Eggs, this means the game in which the Egg was created, regardless of parents. This form cannot be changed.
In Generation VI and Generation VII, its pattern depends on which geographic location the user specified on the Nintendo 3DS at the time the save file was created. This affects all Vivillon encountered within the game and can only be changed later by deleting the save file and creating a new one. Due to region locking, a Nintendo 3DS system can only pick from a certain subset of geographic locations, depending on which region the system is from. For a comprehensive list, see List of Nintendo 3DS country and region settings.
In Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, all wild Vivillon will have the Fancy Pattern by default (though other patterns are used by some NPCs). However, transferring a Postcard from Pokémon GO using the Mystery Gift feature in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet will change the pattern of all wild Vivillon, to match the location the Postcard came from. Wild Scatterbug and Spewpa caught after receiving the Postcard will also evolve into Vivillon matching the Postcard's pattern. Scatterbug and Spewpa caught prior to receiving the postcard will not evolve with the Postcard's pattern. After 24 hours, the wild Pokémon will revert back to Fancy Pattern unless another Postcard has been used. Changing the time and date of the Nintendo Switch system may end the effect prematurely. Only one Pokémon GO account may be linked per day, and an account cannot send more than one Postcard in a day. Furthermore, a Pokémon Scarlet and Violet save file may not receive the same Postcard more than once. All hatched Scatterbug will evolve into the Fancy Pattern regardless of Postcard effects. Using the Union Circle feature, players are able to see and catch wild Vivillon from other players' games, allowing them to catch various patterns of Vivillon regardless of whether they own a matching Postcard. Additionally, if the Scatterbug or Spewpa came from another game like Pokémon GO, it will retain the pattern it was assigned in its original game.
18 of the patterns correspond to certain regions, while the other two do not. The regions corresponding to each pattern differ somewhat between the Nintendo 3DS and Pokémon GO.
Puerto Rico, Anguilla, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, northern Venezuela, the Atlántico, La Guajira, and Magdalena Departments of Colombia, the state of Yucatán in Mexico, and the tip of South Africa.
Continental
China, Denmark, Germany, some provinces of Argentina, South Korea, and the Netherlands.
Elegant
Most areas of Japan.
Garden
United Kingdom, Ireland, and New Zealand.
High Plains
Western United States, British Columbia province of Canada, and northern Mexico.
Icy Snow
Far northern regions of Norway and Russia, all of Finland except Åland, and Canada's Northwest and Yukon Territories.
Jungle
Malaysia, all of Colombia except the Atlántico, La Guajira, and Magdalena Departments, central and southern Venezuela, northern Peru, Panama, Costa Rica, Singapore, some states in northern Brazil (namely Acre, Amapá, Amazonas, Rondônia, and Roraima), French Guiana, and the state of Kerala in southwest India.
Marine
All of Chile except the Magallanes region, all of Spain except the Catalonia region, Portugal, and Italy.
Meadow
Large sections of France and the Catalonia region of Spain.
Modern
Central and southeastern United States.
Monsoon
India, Hong Kong, Okinawa, Tibet, and Taiwan.
Ocean
Hawaii and Réunion.
Polar
Alaska, the region of Magallanes in Chile, the provinces of Tierra del Fuego and Santa Cruz in Argentina, the northeastern United States, large sections of Canada, and areas of Sweden.
River
Most regions of Australia, the Canary Islands of Spain, and several African countries.
Sandstorm
Throughout the Middle East and parts of Turkey.
Savanna
Various provinces of Argentina, all of Brazil except some northern states, southern Peru, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Bolivia.
Sun
Throughout southern Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Belize, Zimbabwe, and the Northern Territory of Australia.
Tundra
Norway, Iceland, and the Hokkaido region of Japan.
By default, all Vivillon in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet have the Fancy Pattern, regardless of the set geographic location of the Nintendo Switch system; however, receiving a Postcard changes the pattern of wild Vivillon for 24 hours.
Poké Ball
This event-exclusive pattern resembles a standard Poké Ball. It was first distributed in Paris, France to promote the temporary Pokémon Center store.
Multiple Vivillon appeared in To Catch a Pokémon Smuggler!. They debuted in their Continental, Elegant, Garden, Icy Snow, Savanna, and Sun Pattern forms in this episode, having evolved from a group of Spewpa that had been targeted by Dolan.
Vivillon, the Scale Pokémon. Vivillon are skillfully able to find a source of water. It has been said that you'll find a spring if you follow a Vivillon.
In Dancing Vivillon and Burning Fletchinder, fifteen Sky Trainers were hypnotized by Malva and used fifteen Vivillon, each with a different Pattern. The Vivillon Patterns which debuted were the Archipelago, Continental, Elegant, Garden, High Plains, Icy Snow, Jungle, Modern, Monsoon, Polar, River, Sandstorm, Savanna, Sun, and Tundra Patterns. The leader of these Sky Trainers, Yvette, has mentioned that she has 18 of the Vivillon Patterns, including the Poké Ball and Fancy Patterns. After their defeat and no longer being hypnotized the Vivillon safely land the Sky Trainers down in Shooting Frogadier. Yvette later uses a Marine Pattern Vivillon with her other Vivillon and in conjunction with Viola's Meadow Pattern Vivillon.
Archipelago, Continental, Elegant, Polar and Icy Snow Pattern Vivillon in Pokémon Adventures
Archipelago, Sun, Savanna, Monsoon, Modern, High Plains, Icy Snow, River, Tundra, Polar, Sandstorm, Modern, Marine, Garden and Elegant Pattern Vivillon in Pokémon Adventures
In Pokémon HOME, each of Vivillon's forms are listed under distinct color groupings based on the color of their wings.
Since the release of Pokémon HOME, Vivillon is listed under the most Pokédexcolor groupings, with a total of nine.
Meadow Pattern and Fancy Pattern Vivillon are the only pinkBug-type Pokémon.
There currently exists a Vivillon form for every Pokédex color group, except black.
Until Generation IX, Vivillon could not learn Iron Defense directly, even though its pre-evolution, Spewpa, was able to learn this move from a Move Tutor.
As of Generation IX, Vivillon has the most Pokédex entries for a single Pokémon, with 20 per game (one for each form).
Prior to Version 1.2.0, only some of these 20 entries were accessible, as Spewpa could only evolve into Fancy Pattern Vivillon in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, and only a few other entries could be gained from NPC encounters.
Origin
Considering the many different varieties of Vivillon that differ depending on the player's geographic location, Vivillon may have been based on Papilio dardanus, which is known for having over 14 known morphs, each of which mimics a different distasteful species of butterfly. Its block-like wing patterns may be based on pixel art. Modern Pattern Vivillon in particular may be based on modern art, specifically the De Stijl movement.
Name origin
Vivillon and Viviyon may be a combination of vivid and papillon (French for butterfly). It may also involve 美 bi (Japanese for beauty) or brillant (French for brilliant).
For other sprites and images, please see Vivillon images on the Bulbagarden Archives.
