Shadow Pokémon
- If you were looking for the Pokémon that appear inPokémon GO, seeShadow Pokémon (GO).For the Pokémon whosecategory is "Shadow Pokémon", seeGengar.
Shadow Pokémon (Japanese:ダークポケモンDark Pokémon) arePokémon that are being used for wrongful acts because they had the doors to their hearts shut artificially, a process created and carried out byCipher in theOrre region. Collecting Shadow Pokémon throughsnagging and restoring them to normal bypurifying them is the main goal ofPokémon Colosseum andPokémon XD: Gale of Darkness.
Creation and behavior
Shadow Pokémon are created through an undisclosed process that removes the Pokémon's emotions, turning it into a soulless fighting machine.Ein, creator of the process and Cipher's head scientist at the time of Colosseum, refers to this process as "shutting the door to their hearts". In XD, Cipher's science division refines and upgrades the process, allowing many Shadow Pokémon to be produced simultaneously. The head of the science division, Cipher AdminLovrina, works on creating an "XD-series" of Shadow Pokémon, the ultimate goal being to create one that is completely impossible to purify.
While normal Pokémon are generally friendly and trusting creatures, Shadow Pokémon are not hesitant to attack with full force, usingShadow moves such asShadow Rush. Likewise, they do not attack only other Pokémon, and will actually attack Trainers. Shadow Pokémon can sometimes be overwhelmed by their emotions, indicating the relative instability of their Shadow state, and will sometimes enter a state known asHyper Mode in Colosseum andReverse Mode in XD. This state will be triggered more often the closer the Pokémon is to purification, making them generally more difficult to battle with until they are ultimately purified. A Pokémon in this state can be cured of it by calling to it in battle or using ascent, as well as several other methods, or can recover on its own.
An interesting quirk about Shadow Pokémon is their inability to be differentiated from normal Pokémon by all but those with certain abilities or tools. Shadow Pokémon emit a normally invisible dark aura that normal Pokémon do not, which so far has only been able to be detected byRui through an innate ability, andMichael with hisAura Reader. The only exception isShadow Lugia, which takes on noticeable alterations, namely having jagged silver eyefins and possessing an overall darker complexion.
Shadow Pokémon cannot level up, and any experience andeffort values they gain in battle will be held until they are purified, at which point they will be awarded en masse.
Transform will always fail if the target Pokémon is a Shadow Pokémon.
Differences between Colosseum and XD
Although the concept of Shadow Pokémon remains basically the same between the two games, there are some differences:
- The effectiveness of different purification actions in Colosseum is on average greater than the same actions in XD, but at the same time, the average magnitude of a Shadow Pokémon's fullHeart Gauge is larger in Colosseum than in XD.
- Shadow Pokémon in the first game sometimes enter Hyper Mode, but in XD they enter Reverse Mode instead.
- In Hyper Mode, a Pokémon may attack its Trainer, but in Reverse Mode, they will not.
- While in Reverse Mode, a Pokémon hurts itself after every turn, whereas a Pokémon in Hyper Mode incurs no self-damage.
- In Pokémon Colosseum, Shadow Rush is always normally effective, but in Pokémon XD, Shadow moves are super effective on non-Shadow Pokémon and not very effective on other Shadow Pokémon.
- In Colosseum, the only Shadow move that Shadow Pokémon can know isShadow Rush, but in XD, Shadow Rush is one of many Shadow moves. Also, Shadow Rush's power is weaker in XD.
Relationship with Trainers
Strangely enough, a Shadow Pokémon that isn't under the care of the player will not enter Hyper Mode / Reverse Mode or apparently reduce its Heart Gauge, although a Shadow Pokémon the player controls will purify itself just by being in the Trainer's party.
An important difference between Colosseum and XD is the number of Shadow Pokémon each Cipher member carries: in Colosseum, each NPC Trainer only carries one at a time; in XD there are many Trainers with two or more Shadow Pokémon in their team, the first one being encountered at theCipher Key Lair, and the final boss of the game has seven Shadow Pokémon under his command. This may be a result of the large number of Shadow Pokémon in XD.
Gameplay differences between Shadow and non-Shadow Pokémon
 | This section is incomplete. Please feel free to edit this section to add missing information and complete it. Reason: Do Shadow Pokémon in Colosseum gain friendship? |
The Trainer of a Shadow Pokémon cannot do any of the following with it until it is purified:
- Level it up (through battles,Rare Candy orDaycare)
- Evolve it using anEvolution stone in Pokémon XD (in Pokémon Colosseum, Shadow Pokémon can evolve through Evolution stone but none of the Shadow Pokémon in that game evolve using a stone)
- Change the order of or delete its moves
- Use aTM on it
- Give it anickname (due to displaying anOT andID of "?????")
- Trade it
- Participate inBattle Mode orGroup Battle with it
- Gain friendship (in Pokémon XD, the purified Shadow Pokémon has the same friendship as it had in the data structure of its original Trainer, which is usually the same as its base friendship)
Being denied entry due to having Shadow Pokémon - Enter it in battles atPhenac StadiumColo orOrre ColosseumXD (Note Orre Colosseum's vague wording doesn't tell players that having Shadow Pokémon in their party is the reason they are not allowed in, which can be confusing)
When a Shadow Pokémon is purified, it gains all of the experience it accumulated as a Shadow Pokémon. In Pokémon Colosseum, the Shadow Pokémon only starts accumulating experience once it has opened at least 2 bars on the heart gauge. In Pokémon XD, the Shadow Pokémon accumulates experience right away, but only gets 80% of the usual experience.
Shadow Pokémon are also unable to gaineffort values from battling, althoughvitamins can still be used on them.
Purification
- Main article:Purification
A Shadow Pokémon's purification process will begin as soon as it has been snagged, which is directly indicated by itsHeart Gauge. Replacing theexperience bar, the Heart Gauge monitors how close the Pokémon is to being fully purified, with the dark purple fill gradually depleting.
Pokémon can be purified from their Shadow state in several ways with varying effectiveness:
- Walking around: A Shadow Pokémon carried with the player in theirparty will open its heart a bit every 256 steps.
- Battling: A Shadow Pokémon sent intobattle will open its heart a bit. Battling is also the only way a Shadow Pokémon can enter Hyper Mode or Reverse Mode.
- Calling: If a Shadow Pokémon is in Hyper Mode or Reverse Mode, calling to it will return it to its senses and open its heart somewhat.
- Massaging: Using specialScents, Shadow Pokémon can be massaged to open their heart.
- Day Care: In Colosseum only, a Shadow Pokémon put into theDay Care inAgate Village will open its heart for every 256 steps the player takes. In Pokémon XD, Shadow Pokémon are not accepted by the Day Care.
- Celebi: In Colosseum, using aTime Flute, the player can callCelebi to instantly purify a Shadow Pokémon.
- Purify Chamber: Between Pokémon Colosseum and Pokémon XD, aspecial chamber was developed in thePokémon HQ Lab that can quickly purify Shadow Pokémon.
Nature and stats
A Shadow Pokémon, when encountered, is generated in the same way that awild Pokémon is generated in theGeneration III games, with itspersonality value andindividual values generated together and noeffort values. Shadow Pokémon don't have a set Nature or a set gender, but once encountered, the personality value, Nature, and IVs are saved to the memory for the Shadow Monitor to be able to keep track of their exact status and location. This means that once a Shadow Pokémon is encountered for the first time, its Nature, IVs, and gender will remain the same for the rest of the game, even if the player fails to capture it or is forced to re-battle it later.
Shadow Boost
In Pokémon XD only, Shadow Pokémon have a hidden "shadow boost" level, which is implied by the + next to their level. This boosted level is only applied to the Shadow Pokémon before the player catches it. Most Shadow Pokémon are a few levels higher than the level shown on screen while this boost is applied. Boosted Pokémon gain between 1-3 levels while boosted, with the exact level being fixed for each Shadow Pokémon. Some Shadow Pokémon don't have any boost at all and are thus battled at their actual level. Regardless of whether or not the Pokémon actually has a boosted level, their level is always displayed with a + next to it if itcould be boosted (i.e., before it has been caught).
List of Shadow Pokémon
- Main article:List of Shadow Pokémon
Shiny Shadow Pokémon
Because whether a Pokémon isShiny depends on its Original Trainer and personality value, and snagging a Shadow Pokémon from an NPC changes its Original Trainer but not its personality value, a Shadow Pokémon can be Shiny for the player even if it is not for its NPC Trainer (and vice versa).
InPokémon Colosseum, there is a roughly 1/8192 chance of a Shadow Pokémon being Shiny. When a Shadow Pokémon is first encountered, it is assigned a randompersonality value, but the game ensures that the personality value does not cause it to be Shiny for its NPC Trainer (using that Trainer's Trainer ID and Secret ID). When the player catches the Shadow Pokémon, because it retains that same personality value but now has a different Trainer ID and Secret ID, the Shadow Pokémon can be Shiny for the player. In subsequent encounters, the Shadow Pokémon retains the same personality value it had in the first encounter (meaning that whether it is Shiny for the player or not cannot change); however, because its NPC Trainer's Trainer ID and Secret ID can differ, it can be Shiny for its NPC Trainer in these subsequent encounters.
Purification has no effect on the Shiny status of a Pokémon: Shiny Pokémon remain Shiny, and non-Shiny Pokémon cannot become Shiny.
InPokémon XD, when the game calculates a personality value for a Shadow Pokémon, it ensures that the Pokémon will not be Shiny for the player or the NPC Trainer.
In other games
Pokkén Tournament
In November 2015, a new character calledShadow Mewtwo (Japanese:ダークミュウツーDark Mewtwo) was revealed forPokkén Tournament, notably having the same prefix as the Shadow Pokémon in Colosseum and XD in both Japanese and English. In the past,Anne was almost possessed by aShadow Synergy Stone but was saved by Mewtwo, whom the Shadow Synergy Stone took control of and merged with instead. Under the influence of the Shadow Synergy Stone, Shadow Mewtwo traveled aroundFerrum, draining Gaia power from the normal Synergy Stones and continually increasing its own power. Shadow Mewtwo is eventually defeated in battle by the player, after which Anne uses the power of the Synergy Stone contained in her brooch to separate the Shadow Synergy Stone from Mewtwo and restore it to normal.
Pokémon GO
- Main article:Shadow Pokémon (GO)
A similar mechanic appears inPokémon GO, having been introduced in July 2019. Although it shares the same prefix as Shadow Pokémon from Colosseum and XD in English, German, Spanish, French, and Italian, it has a different prefix in Japanese.
Trivia
- Shadow Pokémon are the only kind of Pokémon that can becaught from anotherTrainer.
- Suicune is the only Shadow Pokémon that can have a varying moveset. Normally knowingSurf ifsnagged inThe Under orRealgam Tower, Suicune instead knowsHydro Pump if it is snagged inDeep Colosseum.
- Internal files suggest Pokémon Colosseum was meant to include more Shadow Pokémon, including multiple mentions of a ShadowKecleon.
- The tutorial for thePurify Chamber shows a ShadowLoudred, but no Trainer has one to snag.
In other languages
| Language | Title | |
|---|---|---|
| Dutch | Schaduw Pokémon | |
| French | Pokémon Obscur | |
| German | Crypto-Pokémon | |
| Italian | Pokémon Ombra | |
| Portuguese | Brazil | Pokémon Sombra |
| Portugal | Shadow Pokémon | |
| Spanish | Pokémon Oscuro | |
Related articles
| Cipher | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cipher Lab •Realgam Tower (Tower Colosseum) •Cipher Key Lair •Citadark Isle | |||||
| Grand Master | Head | ||||
 |  | ||||
| Greevil | Evice | ||||
| Admins | |||||
| Dakim •Venus •Ein •Lovrina •Snattle •Gorigan •Ardos •Eldes | |||||
| Other members | |||||
| Exol •Cipher Peons (Verde •Rosso •Bluno •Skrub •Mirakle B. Fein •Naps •Hexagon Brothers) •Nascour •Reath •Ferma •Zook | |||||
| Former members | |||||
| Miror B. •Folly •Trudly | |||||
See also:Shadow Pokémon (Shadow Lugia) •Team Snagem | |||||
 | This article is part ofProject Sidegames, aBulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on the Pokémon Sidegames. |
