Item

An item (Japanese: どうぐ tool) is an object in the Pokémon games which the player can pick up, keep in their Bag, and use in some manner. They have various uses, including healing, powering up, helping one to catch Pokémon, or to access a new area.

Obtaining items

An item chest from Pokémon Colosseum

Items are obtained in several different ways. They can be given to the player by characters within the game, be bought at a Poké Mart for money, or found by the player throughout the Pokémon world. The latter form of items are contained within item balls, spherical containers resembling a Poké Ball. To obtain the item, players move next to it and press A while facing it. In Pokémon Colosseum and Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness, many items are found in treasure chests modeled after Poké Balls; in addition, items are often found in bulk from these chests, rather than only singular. Another method introduced in Generation II is picking Berries off a Berry tree. Join Avenue was introduced in Pokémon Black and White 2, allowing players to buy certain items in bulk, as well as Berries and some rare items. Pokémon encountered in the wild will sometimes be holding items, which can be obtained by catching them using a Poké Ball or by using either Trick, Thief, Switcheroo, or Covet. Also, in certain areas in Generation VI, various scenery will appear in the background during some battles. Using a move like Surf that hits all adjacent enemies can interact with the background scenery, which will cause an item to be found at the end of the battle, with the message "<player> found a <item> in the aftermath."

Item ball images

Gen	Spr	Description
I		A standard item ball from Generation I. The gray color will change depending on the game. It has the same design as a Poké Ball.
II		A standard item ball from Generation II. This is the same basic image as Generation I, but with standardized colors to make it look more like a Poké Ball.
III		A standard item ball from Generation III. The image has been further altered, making it clearly look like a Poké Ball.
IV		A standard item ball from Generation IV. The image is close to being exactly the same as Generation III, but with slightly different shading.
V		A standard item ball from Generation V. This image is slightly more compact, with a more vivid coloring than previous generations.

Hidden items

The tuft of grass (highlighted) that gives away some hidden items in FR/LG

Finding items on the ground is not always as easy as seeing it and picking it up. Many items are hidden from view, and can only be obtained by a very lucky chance or, more commonly, through the use of an item finding tool. In Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, some hidden items are revealed by a momentary flash when a player enters a room. This is caused by the light reflecting off the hidden items. In Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, some hidden items can be found in visibly different tufts of grass. These are most commonly in Berry Forest, where Berries reoccur in these spots after a certain amount of time.

Recurring items

Recurring items on the ground are quite rare within the Pokémon series. Although multiple items can be bought at Poké Marts, finding items on the ground repeatedly in the same place is almost unheard of. Generation I had no known places where there were recurring items. Generation II introduced Apricorn trees and Berry trees, on which new Apricorns and Berries would grow every day; however, there were still no known places of reoccurring items on the ground.

Generation III continued the idea of the Berry tree in Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald, as well as introducing Shoal Salts and Shoal Shells. However, in Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, the Berry tree was removed and replaced by recurring Berries hidden on the ground in Berry Forest. Berries may regenerate every 512 steps. Other areas of recurring items include Treasure Beach, south of One Island.

In Generation IV, the main recurring item is the Reaper Cloth, Rare Bone, or Stardust found in Turnback Cave after defeating or catching Giratina in Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum. Furthermore, in Generation IV, Honey will regenerate at the rate of two per day in Floaroma Meadow after the player has gathered them on the initial trip through. These may be found in any of the spots originally found, randomly generated.

In Generation V, TinyMushrooms will regrow, though they will remain invisible. Primarily, these are found on Route 6 and Route 12, but can also be found in Icirrus City in the Winter. Additionally, a Pearl and Stardust will wash up on Route 13 or at Undella Town once per day. These may either both be found beside the Black Belt on Route 13, or on the very easternmost shore of Undella Town, or one in each location. Another Pearl may be found periodically on Route 18 near the Battle Girl. It appears that the Lemonade found on the road on Route 9 will regenerate, but how often is unknown. Outside of Pinwheel Forest, there is a Challenge Rock that invites Fighting-type Pokémon to smash it. Doing so will produce a Star Piece once per day. In Black 2 and White 2, the same invitation stands, however, only a Stardust is produced.

In Black 2 and White 2, the recurring items differ slightly, as do the locations. A TinyMushroom may occasionally regrow in the fenced-in "garden" outside the Season Research Lab, and a Big Mushroom may occasionally regrow in a patch of grass in the trees to the immediate south of the Mistralton Cave entrance. A TinyMushroom may occasionally regrow behind the Celestial Tower on Route 7, and on a small rise on Route 12 as well. A Heart Scale may wash up on one of the shorelines of Undella Bay, or on a patch of sand in Humilau City, once more near the Black Belt on Route 13, or next to the rock at the bottom of the staircase immediately east of Lacunosa Town. A Pearl may wash up on the beach between the two staircases in Undella Town (in front of the Sage). A Big Pearl may wash up on the small dune/path near the Treasure Hunter on Route 13, north of the Parasol Lady. Some items (Prism Scales, Heart Scales, Pearls) may also wash up on Route 9 over time.

Many items gained recurring status in Black 2 and White 2, as they are found in Hidden Grottoes, the contents of which regenerate.

Recurring gift items

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Certain items may be given to the player once per day by non-player characters, often for fulfilling a certain task. In Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald, some non-player characters in Hoenn will give various Berries once per day when spoken to.

In Pokémon Platinum, the manager of the Pokémon News Press will give the player three specialty Poké Balls and one Heart Scale for showing him the Pokémon he's requested for his expose. There is a man on Route 221 who will give the player a Black Belt, Expert Belt, or Focus Sash, once per day, in the aforementioned order, for showing him a Pokémon of the requested level. An Ace Trainer immediately inside the Great Marsh gate will give the player one random Shard per day when spoken to.

There are a range of recurring gift items in all Generation V games. There is a woman in Driftveil City who will give the player a Heart Scale if she is shown a Pokémon knowing the requested move. There is a Fisherman in the "Hip Waders" club on the Village Bridge who will give the player Dive Balls once per day for showing him the requested Water-type Pokémon, with the condition that it must have been caught that day. A Parasol Lady outside of the Tubeline Bridge gate on Route 8 will give the player one rock depending on the time of day; a Damp Rock in the morning, Heat Rock during the day, Smooth Rock in the evening and Icy Rock at night. The player may take Aha's Pep Quiz once per day in Icirrus City. If correct, the player receives an Antidote. If incorrect, the player receives a Parlyz Heal. Lastly, the player may receive a Soda Pop once per Wednesday by speaking to the Waitress inside the door of the Café Warehouse in Nacrene City.

In Black and White, a businessman in Lacunosa Town will give the player one of a selection of Berries on Sunday night. This changes to Monday and Thursday nights in Black 2 and White 2.

In Black 2 and White 2, there are two scientists in the Castelia Sewers that will give the player one healing item, randomly selected, per day if spoken to. The female, accessible in all seasons, will give the player either a Potion, Super Potion or Revive and the male scientist, accessible only in Spring and Summer, will give the player an Antidote, Full Heal or Full Restore. Finally, once per day the player may volunteer to walk the Socialite's Mienfoo in Humilau City and will be rewarded with a Pearl for their troubles.

Fake items

In some indoor areas such as the Power Plant, item balls may in fact turn out to be Voltorb or Electrode, in which case interacting with them will instead initiate a battle with said Pokémon. In Generation V, within forested areas, item balls may be Foongus or Amoonguss.

Item types

Main article: List of items by type

Throughout the Pokémon world, the Bag is used to carry items. Since Generation II, Items have been separated into categories to help with overall organization. These categories are altered slightly with each game. Some of the common categories consist of:

• General items - Escape Ropes, Repels, Battle Enhancers, Mail, etc.
• Medicine - Potions, Status ailment healing items, Stat-boosting items, etc. While originally part of the general Items Bag section, it has had its own since Generation IV.
• TMs & HMs - All move teaching devices, by which Pokémon can learn moves such as Surf, DynamicPunch, and Psychic. HMs cannot be discarded; in Gen V, TMs have this trait as well, as they are reusable.
• Poké Balls - Different type of balls are all used for capturing Pokémon.*
• Key items - Special items that players can only obtain once, that either aid the progression of the storyline or traveling. They rarely have anything to do with the player's Pokémon and are mostly specific to the game. These types of item include Tickets, Keys, and the popular Bicycle. Key items can never be discarded, however, certain items will disappear from the player's Bag during storyline events.
• Held items - Items that can be held by a Pokémon, then used by them in some way. There are many varieties of these.
• Berries - The items were introduced in Generation II, and expanded upon in Generation III with the creation of many different types of Berries, as well as adding a separate Bag slot for them.

The preceding basic classification holds mostly true for Generations II and III. However, in Generation IV, items have been arranged into further categories. New categories include Medicine, Battle Items, and Mail. Generation I did not have any form of categories in the Bag (as it held a very limited number of items), though the categories can still apply.

Item storage

Items that are obtained are stored in different places. Initially, when an item is obtained, it is placed in the player's Bag, and from Generation II onwards, into a specific pocket of that Bag. When a section of the Bag becomes full, players will not be able to pick up any other items of that type. To make space, players must store their items within their PC, accessed at a Pokémon Center as <Player>'s PC. In Generation IV, this problem is eliminated by having no limit on items in the Bag, and the player's PC is used for other purposes. The player also has the ability to toss items away: this will delete them from the Bag. Key items, HMs, and, in Generation V, TMs cannot be tossed.

Held items

Main article: Held item

Since Generation II, certain items have been able to be held by Pokémon to heal or to enhance their power. Healing items can be used in battle without taking up a turn, but must be natural for them to work. Artificial items such as Potions and Full Heals cannot be used by Pokémon during battle. Held items also have other uses, such as an aid to evolve during trading or battle. Mail was also introduced as a hold item, in which players could send customizable messages with their Pokémon upon trading.

In the TCG

Main article: Item card (TCG)

In the Pokémon Trading Card Game, items from the games were originally Trainer cards. However, starting with the HeartGold & SoulSilver Collections at the start of the LEGEND era in Japanese, and Black & White in international releases, they are classified in their own category, Item cards.

This item article is part of Project ItemDex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on all items.