Status conditions
Burn, poison, paralysis, sleep and freeze: what each one does, which types are immune, and how confusion differs. Tap the status a move causes.
Five problems that stick
A status condition is a problem that stays with a Pokémon, even when it switches out, until it is cured. A Pokémon can only have one of the main ones at a time. These are the numbers for the current games (Generation 9):
- Burn: loses 1/16 of its HP at the end of every turn, and its physical moves usually do half damage.
- Poison: loses 1/8 of its HP every turn. Bad poison (from Toxic) starts at 1/16 and grows by 1/16 each turn.
- Paralysis: a 25% chance of not moving each turn, and Speed is halved.
- Sleep: cannot use moves, except Snore and Sleep Talk.
- Freeze: cannot move, but has a 20% chance to thaw each turn.
Burn used to take 1/8 of the HP (Generation 2 to 6) and paralysis used to quarter Speed. Older guides may show those numbers.
Try it: Which status does it cause?
Read the move, then tap the status it inflicts. (interactive on pokee.si)
Some types are immune
Many types simply cannot catch certain conditions:
- Fire types cannot be burned.
- Poison and Steel types are normally immune to poison.
- Electric types cannot be paralysed in recent games.
- Ice types cannot be frozen.
Berries and items help too: a Rawst Berry cures a burn and a Cheri Berry cures paralysis, while a Lum Berry cures any condition once. Safeguard and Misty Terrain stop conditions from landing at all.
Quick check
Which type can never be burned?
Answer: Fire. Fire types are immune to burn. Ice types are immune to freezing, but they can be burned.
Confusion is different
Confusion is a separate effect. It lasts 2 to 5 turns, and each turn there is a one-in-three chance (33%) that the Pokémon hurts itself instead of moving. Switching out cures it.
Other short effects work the same way: Attract (a 50% chance of not moving), flinching, and Leech Seed, which drains 1/8 of the HP every turn.
One more thing to know: Pokémon Legends: Arceus replaced freeze with frostbite, which works like a burn for special moves.
Quiz
The lesson ends with a five-question quiz built from the Pokédex data, and earns the Status Expert badge.
Sources
- pokee.si guide: Status conditions
- pokee.si move data (moves.json, from PokeAPI)
- Bulbapedia: Status condition
- Bulbapedia: Confusion (status condition)
Related
Next lesson: Weather