Salamence is a quadrupedal, draconic Pokémon with a long, tapering tail. It is primarily blue with a gray lower jaw and thickly scaled underside. There are red markings on its throat, the underside of its tail, and stripes on the inner surface of its legs. Additionally, there are raised red ridges above its eyes. Three flat fins protrude from either side of its head, possibly acting in the same manner that a Canard would on an aircraft. It has two pairs of pointed teeth, one in the upper jaw and one in the lower. Each of its short legs has three claws. Salamence is considered an unusual Pokémon due to the circumstances of its evolution; its fervent desire to fly triggered a cellular mutation that allowed it to suddenly grow large, red wings.
Its long-held dream fulfilled at last, Salamence constantly flies around and releases intense blasts of fire as an expression of its joy. It only stops flying when it gets exhausted and needs to sleep. If enraged, it loses all sense of self and flies into an uncontrollable rampage, destroying everything around it until it tires itself out. It lives in rough terrain, and it competes with Garchomp midair for food.
As Mega Salamence, its wings meld together into a single huge, crescent-shaped wing. According to the anime, the hard, yet very flexible properties of its wings allow them to be used as blades in mid-air battles. Its face, neck, body and tail are narrower, and its tail is noticeably shorter in length. The ridges above its eyes are now far less prominent, and it no longer possesses the thick, gray scaling over its lower jaw. Instead, the smooth red flesh underneath has been left exposed, increasing its streamline appearance. The upper pair of fins resting on the sides of its head are now elongated and tapered. The lower pair has not changed much. However, the middle set now take the form of quarter-arches, spanning towards the bridge of the nose. The remnants of its shelled underbelly have been drastically transformed into a segmented, more aerodynamic, vest-like armored frame. This frame encases its chest and shoulders with the pieces interlocking whenever Mega Salamence tucks in its front forelegs. Roaring Moon bears a resemblance to Mega Salamence, though the potential connection between the two is unknown.
The stress of Salamence's vaunted wings becoming misshapen in its Mega Evolution aggravates it to the point of rampaging. This fuels its already brutal nature and makes it likely to turn against the Trainer who raised it. Because of this, Mega Salamence is feared as "the blood-soaked crescent". Anything and anyone in Salamence's path gets sliced in two by its bladelike wings, posing no interruption to its flight.
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Gates to Infinity: Salamence is a member of Munna's gang, working for Kyurem to stop any humans called upon by Hydreigon from destroying the Bittercold. He aids his companions in pursuing the player and their partner, but are outmaneuvered by Hydreigon. Salamence, along with two Chandelure, later attempt to stop the player and their allies from reaching the Glacier Palace, but are defeated.
Pokédex entries
This Pokémon was unavailable prior to Generation III.
Salamence came about as a result of a strong, long-held dream of growing wings. It is said that this powerful desire triggered a sudden mutation in this Pokémon's cells, causing it to sprout its magnificent wings.
By evolving into Salamence, this Pokémon finally realizes its long-held dream of growing wings. To express its joy, it flies and wheels all over the sky while spouting flames from its mouth.
After many long years, its cellular structure underwent a sudden mutation to grow wings. When angered, it loses all thought and rampages out of control.
Salamence came about as a result of a strong, long-held dream of growing wings. It is said that this powerful desire triggered a sudden mutation in this Pokémon's cells, causing it to sprout its magnificent wings.
By evolving into Salamence, this Pokémon finally realizes its long-held dream of growing wings. To express its joy, it flies and wheels all over the sky while spouting flames from its mouth.
Salamence debuted in Jirachi: Wish Maker, under the ownership of Butler. He used it to battle a wildFlygon that was helping Ash and Max in their effort to free Jirachi from his control. However, it and its Trainer joined Ash and Max's side after Butler wound up creating Meta Groudon that threatened the safety of Forina, Jirachi's home. It reappeared in a flashback during the opening sequence of Destiny Deoxys.
Salamence made its physical TV debut in The Search for the Legend, under the ownership of Silver. He used it to battle Moltres, but the battle was interrupted when a nearby volcano erupted.
In A Riveting Rivalry!, Sawyer's Shelgon was revealed to have evolved into a Salamence sometime before the episode. It was used in Sawyer's Lumiose Conference battle against Ash, where it went up against Noivern; the match eventually ended in a tie.
Salamence, a Dragon Pokémon. Fully evolved form of Bagon. Equipped with sharp teeth and massive claws, weighs over 200 pounds, and has the fastest flying speed of all the Flying-type Pokémon.
Salamence, the Dragon Pokémon. As a result of a powerful desire to fly, Salamence were able to trigger the cells in their body and cause them to grow wings.
A soldier's Salamence appeared in The Redemption, during a fantasy of a story from the past. It was one of the many Pokémon fighting in the great war of Kalos 3,000 years previously.
GOTCHA!
A Salamence briefly appeared in GOTCHA!, under the ownership of Drake.
When Ruby was a child, he battled a Salamence that attacked him and Sapphire while the two were playing outside. After being defeated by Ruby and having scarred his forehead with its Dragon Claw in the process, the Salamence went on a rampage and destroyed a lab, freeing Rayquaza, which was in captivity at that time, in the process. This resulted in Norman being banned from the Gym Leader test for five years. This encounter changed both Ruby and Sapphire and their views on Pokémon, as well as themselves. In Ruby's case, he felt he was too strong, and in order to keep himself back, he focused on Pokémon Contests. Sapphire, on the other hand, felt weak after the encounter and decided she had to become stronger, and spent much of her time in the wild honing her battle skills. It appeared in a flashback in The Beginning of the End with Kyogre & Groudon XIV. In the Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire arc, where Zinnia was revealed to be its owner, it had obtained a Salamencite, allowing it to Mega Evolve into Mega Salamence.
In Swanky Showdown with Swalot, Tucker is shown to be in possession of another Salamence, with which he defeats Sapphire. While Sapphire acknowledges the man's overwhelming skill, she also adds that such a Pokémon is a hard one to fight against with her phobic old experience many years back.
Salamence seems to be based on the archetypal European dragon. It may also be based on a salamander, most likely the Hida salamander or Anderson's salamander; this is backed up by Salamence featuring three prominent finlets on either side of its head, which can be interpreted as external gills. These external gills are typical for many species of amphibians. Alternatively, it might take inspiration from the mythical animal of the same name, which is often conflated with dragons or treated as a dragon, as evidenced by its ability to learn numerous Fire-type moves by leveling up, and its Pokédex entry describing its propensity for breathing fire.
Mega Salamence's wing and head shape resemble that of a fighter jet. Mega Salamence tucking in its front legs into the gaps on its belly, as well as its stiff yet flexible wings, may be based on hang gliding. Its name, "the blood-soaked crescent", could be a reference to blood moons.
Name origin
Salamence may be a combination of salamander and menace, vengeance, vehemence, violence, or immense.
Bohmander may be a combination of 暴 bō (violent) and salamander.
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.
Dragon Fang (5%)
For other sprites and images, please see Salamence images on the Bulbagarden Archives.
