Cleffa
Cleffa is a Fairy-type Pokémon, the Star Shape Pokémon, number 173 (#0173) in the National Pokédex. It was introduced in Generation 2 and comes from the Johto region. It is 0.3 m tall and weighs 3 kg.
Cleffa is the Star Shape Pokémon, a tiny pink baby that people believe arrived on a shooting star. Wherever a meteorite has landed, a ring of dancing Cleffa tends to turn up on starry nights.
How to pronounce Cleffa
Cleffa is pronounced KLEF-uh. The capital letters show the stressed syllable.
Listen to Cleffa said out loud:
In Japanese it is ピィ (Py).
Hear every other name on the Pokémon pronunciation guide.
Lore
Biology
Cleffa is small, pink and vaguely star-shaped, with completely brown ears, two tiny black eyes and a permanent-looking blush. Its stubby arms and legs end in points. A curl sits on its forehead, and its tail is curled up. It is 0.3 m tall and weighs 3 kg.
Behaviour
On nights when many shooting stars fall, Cleffa gather in packs and dance in a ring until daybreak, then drink morning dew. The Pokédex says a sighting of this dance means something good will happen. One entry says it loves Minior.
Habitat
The Pokédex lists it as a mountain Pokémon, often found where meteorites have struck. In Legends: Z-A it turns up across Lumiose and in Wild Zone 19.
Diet
The Pokédex says it quenches its thirst on morning dew.
Powers
Cute Charm can make attackers infatuated, Magic Guard blocks damage from everything except attacks, and its hidden Ability is Friend Guard. It sings, charms and uses Pound and Disarming Voice, and it can learn Metronome by TM. With base Speed 15 and a base total of 218, it is built for evolving rather than fighting.
Name origin
Cleffa may blend 'clef', the musical symbol, with 'fa' from 'fairy' or 'fable', and it may also hint at the solfège note fa. The Japanese name is Py (ピィ), which may be shortened from 'pixie'.
Design inspiration
In the Spaceworld '97 demo, Cleffa appears to have been a star-shaped design called Py, with an antenna on its head. Its look seems to draw on fairies and pixies, and its star shape may nod to extraterrestrial life. These are fan readings.
Evolution notes
Cleffa evolves into Clefairy when it levels up with high friendship. Clefairy then becomes Clefable with a Moon Stone.
In the games
Cleffa took over Pichu's role in Pokémon Puzzle Collection Vol. 2 and appears with Igglybuff in a Pokémon Stadium 2 quiz-show mini-game. It first appeared in Generation II as a baby Pokémon. Scarlet and Violet give it only by trade or in The Teal Mask, but it is in Legends: Z-A and the Mega Dimension DLC.
In the anime
Cleffa made its series debut in 'Wish Upon a Star Shape', falling from the spaceship of the Clefairy from 'Clefairy Tales', and it evolves before the episode ends. A group living at Mt. Moon appears in 'A Real Cleffa-Hanger'.
Fun facts
- Cleffa's base stat total of 218 is shared by no other Pokémon.
- Its Japanese name Py is only one mora, which Bulbapedia says is the shortest of any Pokémon.
- In Pokémon Sleep, Bulbapedia notes, a sleeping Cleffa sways like a rocking cradle, which looks like a twinkling star.
Base stats
- HP: 50
- Attack: 25
- Defense: 28
- Sp. Atk: 45
- Sp. Def: 55
- Speed: 15
Cleffa’s base stat total is 218. Its highest stat is Sp. Def.
Type matchups
What is Cleffa weak to?
Cleffa takes extra damage from Poison (2×), Steel (2×) moves.
It resists Fighting (½×), Bug (½×), Dark (½×).
It is immune to Dragon moves.
Evolution
How does Cleffa evolve?
Cleffa evolves into Clefairy (Friendship).
The whole family: Cleffa, Clefairy, Clefable.
Abilities
- Cute Charm: Has a 30% chance of infatuating attacking Pokémon on contact.
- Magic Guard: Protects against damage not directly caused by a move.
- Friend Guard (hidden ability): Decreases all direct damage taken by friendly Pokémon to 0.75×.
Moves
Moves Cleffa learns by level up in Scarlet / Violet
| Level | Move | Type | Category | Power |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pound | Normal | Physical | 40 |
| 1 | Splash | Normal | Status | — |
| 1 | Copycat | Normal | Status | — |
| 4 | Sing | Normal | Status | — |
| 8 | Sweet Kiss | Fairy | Status | — |
| 12 | Disarming Voice | Fairy | Special | 40 |
| 16 | Encore | Normal | Status | — |
| 20 | Charm | Fairy | Status | — |
TM moves (48)
Cleffa can learn 48 moves from TMs in Scarlet / Violet: Charm, Fake Tears, Protect, Water Pulse, Psybeam, Disarming Voice, Chilling Water, Facade, Swift, Magical Leaf, Icy Wind, Draining Kiss, Stored Power, Fling, Endure, Sunny Day, Rain Dance, Psyshock, Dig, Zen Headbutt, Body Slam, Sleep Talk, Reflect, Light Screen, Dazzling Gleam, Metronome, Grass Knot, Thunder Wave, Rest, Substitute, Trick, Shadow Ball, Hyper Voice, Psychic, Encore, Flamethrower, Play Rough, Amnesia, Calm Mind, Helping Hand, Misty Terrain, Fire Blast, Solar Beam, Tera Blast, Gravity, Uproar, Endeavor, Alluring Voice.
Egg moves (4):Heal Pulse, Present, Tickle, Wish.
Breeding & training
- Gender: 25% male, 75% female.
- Egg groups: Undiscovered.
- Egg cycles: 10 (steps to hatch, Scarlet/Violet: 1,280).
- Catch rate: 150 out of 255.
- Base friendship (Gen 8 onward): 140.
- Growth rate: Fast (800,000 experience points to reach level 100).
- Defeating it gives 1 Sp. Def effort value.
- Base experience yield: 44.
Pokédex entries
In silhouette, they resemble twinkling starlight. When shooting stars rain from the night sky, Cleffa gather in numbers and dance as though they are indeed incarnations of the stars. (Legends: Arceus)
Because of its unusual, star-like silhouette, people believe that it came here on a meteor. (Gold, LeafGreen, HeartGold, X, Shield)
According to local rumors, Cleffa are often seen in places where shooting stars have fallen. (Black 2, White 2, Sword)
Said to have ridden here on a shooting star, Cleffa seem to appear in places where meteorites have struck in the past. (Ultra Moon)
On nights with many shooting stars, they gather in packs and dance in circles. If you should see them, something good will happen! (Ultra Sun)
Because of its silhouette, it's believed to be a star reborn. For some reason, it loves Minior. (Moon)
Names around the world
| Japanese | ピィ |
|---|---|
| Romaji | Py |
| French | Mélo |
| German | Pii |
| Spanish | Cleffa |
| Italian | Cleffa |
| Korean | 삐 |
| Chinese (Simplified) | 皮宝宝 |
| Chinese (Traditional) | 皮寶寶 |
Trivia
- Slowest Fairy type: 15 Speed, shared with 2 others.
- Shortest Fairy type in Gen 2: 0.3 m, shared with 2 others.
- Slowest Fairy type in Gen 2: 15 Speed, shared with 1 other.
- Taller than 4% of all Pokémon (0.3 m).
- Heavier than 10% of all Pokémon (3 kg).
- Base stat total 218, ranked #998 of 1,025.
- One of 64 Fairy-type Pokémon (counting dual types).
- One of 60 pink Pokémon.
- Number 22 of 100 Pokémon introduced in Generation 2 (Johto).
- Part of an evolution family of 3 Pokémon.
- Can learn 57 different moves in Scarlet / Violet.
- Catch rate 150: about 19.6% per Poké Ball at full health.
- Appears in 14 distinct Pokédex entries.
Sources and fact-checking
- Stats, types, abilities, moves, evolutions, forms and Pokédex entries: PokéAPI open game data.
- Lore: written by pokee.si in our own words, researched from Bulbapedia: Cleffa (Pokémon), Serebii: Cleffa (Scarlet/Violet Pokédex).
- Pronunciation (KLEF-uh): it follows how the English anime, games or official videos say it.
Last checked: . Every sentence of the lore was checked against Bulbapedia, Serebii and the game data.
Explore
Fairy-type Pokémon · Johto region guide · Cute Charm ability · Magic Guard ability · Friend Guard ability · Compare Cleffa · Full Pokédex · Type chart · All moves
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