Pokémon Movepool Oddities & Explanations

[CPU]

You would think that's it, but, by generation:
Charmander, Charmeleon, Charizard, Blastoise. Why do any of the Chars get it, and why Charmander but not Squirtle if we had to pick a pre-evo?
Typhlosion(and H), Feraligatr. Because screw Meganium, amirite?
Sceptile, Combusken, Blaziken, Swampert. Fighting-type justifies Combusken but no other pre-evos, sure. But Swampert breaks the trend of only bipeds getting the move, and seems...less suited than most of the other options(this is pure vibes). Sceptile is at least the first grass-type starter to get it.
Monferno, Infernape. Again, fighting makes sense. Why is Empoleon the first water-type to miss the move?
Pignite, Emboar. Again, fighting.
Chesnaught, Delphox. Psychic and fighting, fine. But the dark-type projectile-focused ninja doesn't get it?
Decidueye H(not A), Incineroar. Basically a fire/fighting, fine. Though again, both of the other starters are more focused on ranged attacks with mental powers than he is, which is odd.
Rillaboom, Cinderace. ???
And no starters in SV get it, which makes the first time the fully-evolved fire type cannot learn the move.

Like I said, I think there are various explanations for what does and doesn't get the move, I just don't think any of those explanations are consistent with each other.

Charmander and Charmeleon learning the move is new to Gen 9; a quick comparison of the move's distribution from Gen 8 to 9 shows some slightly increased availability (in addition to the littler Chars, both Gravelers and Elekid get the move for the first time in Gen 9, for example).

I think there's definitely some intention for the move to be a Ki blast; having hands (or at least arm-adjacent appendages that one can bring together) is nearly a prerequisite, though one that some Fighting types skirt around (the Swords of Justice and Falinks).

The distribution requirements, inconsistently applied though they may be, seem to me to be:

1. Hands/Arms to, well, focus the blast
2. Being fully evolved to have the mental fortitude to fire a Ki bomb
3. Being Fighting type (or Fighting-adjacent, which is my logic for Graveler/Elekid, among others) may let a Pokémon bypass the first two requirements (being a Legendary/Mythical might help too)

I don't see a Pokémon being focused around ranged/projectile attacks impacting what learns it except in some rare cases (Clawitzer, maybe Yveltal?). Addressing some of the starter anomalies you brought up:

• Swampert is capable of attacking bipedally, at least, and it learns Hammer Arm by level (I actually associate this move with Swampert for whatever reason).
• Not exactly sure why Empoleon doesn't get it; I guess GF decided its claws on its flippers weren't handsy enough.
• Greninja not learning Focus Blast does seem weird at first glance, but as a ninja it's more suited to covert attacks, not a big flashy energy shot. Its Dark type may also provide a reason why it doesn't get the move; perhaps it's not "pure of heart" enough (other Dark Pokémon can learn the move, though [again, Yveltal], so this is a flimsy conjecture).
• Immediate counterpoint: Dark-type Incineroar. But, as you mentioned, it's a Fighting type in spirit, and as it's based on a wrestling heel, it could also just be "playing the villain."
• I would assume that A-Decidueye, Inteleon, and Meowscarada don't get Focus Blast for the same logic that Greninja doesn't: they're designed around sneaky, out-of-sight attacks, despite having hands. Hard to say if H-Decidueye gets it because it's a more aggressive attacker or because it's a Fighting type.
• I have no idea on Quaquaval. Maybe it's too caught up in dancing to be able to charge a Ki blast

Just gonna close this out with my personal weirdest pick for what learns Focus Blast:

 

[pika pal]

(I wrote this post Friday but it failed to post due to an internet outage. Pardon any retreaded talk like Starter distribution)

Focus Blast has always felt like the most "for gameplay" move of the prominent lot to me, given how long it spent as a TM exclusive and remains a near-exclusive move even now, almost as if it was initially designed as a move that most mons can only learn artificially.

The additions are strange to me though. The monkeys might be a sort of DB reference (not even specifically to Kamehameha, DBZ and Super have multiple instances of Kiai's or focused glares with power enough behind them to launch an opponent). Yveltal I'd chalk up to legendary privilege and it draining energy just by existing near things, but I do still find it odd it was literally the only natural learner for so long (not even its counterpart Xerneas). And as for Clawitzer, it's bizarre because Aura Sphere is a superior move thanks to it always having Mega Launcher, and despite being blocked by Bulletproof, FB is not considered a Ball/Pulse move so it has neither a major gameplay benefit (the SpD proc is not worth the lower accuracy for identical BP) nor the loose theming behind it (i.e. it and Blastoise simply getting most of the non-signature Mega Launcher moves).

Meanwhile the mons that CAN'T learn it are relatively few but feel like they're excluded for reasons of Gameplay balance: Just looking over Gen 1, you have mons like Primeape, Slowbro, and Snorlax that aren't exactly depicted as bright or focused on much (unless being really angry at 1 thing or wanting only to sleep regardless of circumstance is focus), while Pidgeot is excluded from it despite the move being practically made for its Mega's kit by the time we hit Gen 6 and even the base form seeming fit to it with its sharp vision (Keen Eye and Dex entries about how it hunts). There are other oddities on top of that like the starters, with Venusaur never having the move, Blastoise being the sole recipient in its line, and Charizard initially being the sole user before Gen 9 specifically added the TM to Charmander and Charmeleon, but not to any other early stages.

Speaking of Starters: Meganium (not TOO weird since it's a less combative Mon) is left out for Johto while Typhlosion and Feraligatr get it pretty consistently via TM... except in ZA for the latter (and Feraligatr has it in SwSh as well as SV, so they had to consciously take that out regardless of when movepools and development happened). Gen 3 it's available to the whole trio, then Gens 3-7 are pretty reasonable with it only going to Fighting or Fighting-adjacent starters like Incineroar... and then we hit Galar where Cinderace and Rillaboom can learn it, but not Inteleon, the Sniper that has to be able to focus on a target so precisely they can shoot with centimeter precision at a great distance. This is another case where I question what isn't getting it more than what is, as this feels like a move you would only keep away from Inteleon for gameplay reasons (i.e. no strong Fighting Coverage in a mostly-Water, Ice, and token Ghost/Dark movepool) whilst giving it to the other two starters who have little gameplay use OR flavor claim to it comparably (a Football player and a drummer vs a Sniper).

 

[AztecCroc]

Venusaur never having the move

Venusaur doesn't have hands to make the blast with.

then we hit Galar where Cinderace and Rillaboom can learn it,

Cinderace is pretty Fighting adjacent, just look at its level up moveset. Also Cinderace is all about making balls of energy, that's literally its signature move and its GMax form's gimmick, a big fireball. Rillaboom gets it because big monkey.

but not Inteleon, the Sniper that has to be able to focus on a target so precisely they can shoot with centimeter precision at a great distance

That would be why it doesn't get Focus Miss yes.

 

[bdt2002]

This one’s going to be a two-for-one special, because I very specifically remember seeing Armaldo use the move X-Scissor, a Gen 4 move, in Ruby & Sapphire at some point. By extension, I could have sworn X-Scissor was a Gen 3 move for the longest time. I misremember things all the time but this is one of the few times I’ve actually thought a move was from the wrong generation for several years.

It’s a real shame, too. Rock/Bug is a poor typing in Hoenn’s main story with supremely lacking STAB options and that deathly Water weakness, especially in Gen 3 before various buffs made prior to the Gen 6 remakes to moves such as Rock Tomb and Fury Cutter. I found something on Pokémon Showdown’s team builder that I like to use and have started calling the “Smeargle Test”. Long story short because this isn’t competitive, checking Smeargle’s “sketched moves” can be a faster way to get a glance at what moves of various Types are “more viable” than other moves on average, and since you’re absolutely not using Hidden Power in single player especially on a Fossil Pokémon, and with Rock Slide being locked to the postgame in Gen 3 Hoenn, you want to know how many viable STAB moves Gen 3 Armaldo actually gets within reasonable use in a playthrough?

Two. It gets two. Your only “viable” STAB moves are a base 50 power, one time TM Rock Tomb and a 60 power, 5 PP AncientPower. And for Bug things are even worse, with a 10 power, 95 accuracy Fury Cutter being literally your only Bug-Type move that isn’t Hidden Power.

Holy sh** this thing is terrible

Edit: Oh, my bad, it learns Rock Blast by level-up too, my bad. Have fun relying on accuracy rolls and multi-hit RNG simultaneously. It’s so bad I said “my bad” twice by accident.

 

[DrPumpkinz]

This one’s going to be a two-for-one special, because I very specifically remember seeing Armaldo use the move X-Scissor, a Gen 4 move, in Ruby & Sapphire at some point. By extension, I could have sworn X-Scissor was a Gen 3 move for the longest time. I misremember things all the time but this is one of the few times I’ve actually thought a move was from the wrong generation for several years.

It’s a real shame, too. Rock/Bug is a poor typing in Hoenn’s main story with supremely lacking STAB options and that deathly Water weakness, especially in Gen 3 before various buffs made prior to the Gen 6 remakes to moves such as Rock Tomb and Fury Cutter. I found something on Pokémon Showdown’s team builder that I like to use and have started calling the “Smeargle Test”. Long story short because this isn’t competitive, checking Smeargle’s “sketched moves” can be a faster way to get a glance at what moves of various Types are “more viable” than other moves on average, and since you’re absolutely not using Hidden Power in single player especially on a Fossil Pokémon, and with Rock Slide being locked to the postgame in Gen 3 Hoenn, you want to know how many viable STAB moves Gen 3 Armaldo actually gets within reasonable use in a playthrough?

Two. It gets two. Your only “viable” STAB moves are a base 50 power, one time TM Rock Tomb and a 60 power, 5 PP AncientPower. And for Bug things are even worse, with a 10 power, 95 accuracy Fury Cutter being literally your only Bug-Type move that isn’t Hidden Power.

Holy sh** this thing is terrible

Edit: Oh, my bad, it learns Rock Blast by level-up too, my bad. Have fun relying on accuracy rolls and multi-hit RNG simultaneously. It’s so bad I said “my bad” twice by accident.

Honestly Rock Blast is pretty good as far as Gen 3 Rock moves go. Its accuracy may have only been 80% back then, but unlike other multihit moves it's always had its 25 base power. 3 hits is as strong as Rock Slide, 4 and 5 are way stronger, and only getting 2 hits is still as strong as Rock Tomb. If Armaldo could learn it earlier than level fucking 64 it could potentially put in some work. Even if you hold off on evolution you're not getting it until level 55. Everything else that learns Rock Blast this gen learns it at ~level 35. What the fuck.

 

[Karxrida]

Due to the recent Blitzle/Zebstrika discussion going on in the "Pokémon you won't use in-game" thread I was going to make a comment over there about how the two should get Blaze Kick to help fix their coverage issues.

When I went to check the existing TR/TM compatibility for Blaze Kick I noticed that none of the horse Pokémon can learn the move. This is despite horses being known to severely injure if not kill any unlucky soul they kick (pretty sure "never stand behind a horse" is the first thing you learn when handling them) and one of the horse Pokémon lines being Fire-type.

 

[Castersvarog]

Due to the recent Blitzle/Zebstrika discussion going on in the "Pokémon you won't use in-game" thread I was going to make a comment over there about how the two should get Blaze Kick to help fix their coverage issues.

When I went to check the existing TR/TM compatibility for Blaze Kick I noticed that none of the horse Pokémon can learn the move. This is despite horses being known to severely injure if not kill any unlucky soul they kick (pretty sure "never stand behind a horse" is the first thing you learn when handling them) and one of the horse Pokémon lines being Fire-type.

Taking a look at Blaze Kicks Bulbapedia page, even the trivia section is surprised at this.

• Despite them being physically offensive Fire types that can naturally learn other kicking moves, Flareon and the Ponyta line cannot learn Blaze Kick.

Heck the movepool for Blaze Kick users is just really weird and shallow, especially vs Leaf Blade and Muddy Water. It’s more so treated as this Fighting type adjacent attack, but even then it’s almost exclusive to mons who are known for kicking.
But even then the exceptions to this so weird, we’ve got Genesect (but this was on the Shiny event from Gen 5 years back which isn’t the first time), and Talonflame and Staraptor of all things can which makes the Horse mons not having it even weirder.

But at the same time, there’s very little overlap with Mons that can’t learn Blaze Kick and the Blaze Kick TM/TR not being available.
So here’s hoping someone on the dev team has Zebstrika and Blaze Kick in the same room. Same with Rapidash again because that would do a lot of good for it.

 

[DrPumpkinz]

Speaking of horses, why does Rapidash not learn Earthquake?

If you've ever wondered why Poseidon seemed to have two random side gigs as the god of earthquakes and horses, it's because earthquakes were his original domain and horses quake the earth when they run so they got roped in by association.

 

[Castersvarog]

Speaking of horses, why does Rapidash not learn Earthquake?

If you've ever wondered why Poseidon seemed to have two random side gigs as the god of earthquakes and horses, it's because earthquakes were his original domain and horses quake the earth when they run so they got roped in by association.

I’m guessing it’s because gamefreak doesn’t see Rapidash as a Pokemon physically strong enough to cause an earthquake, mythological reference be darned. Plus, it does have High Horsepower, which does the job just as well.
Maybe if they made a Hippocampus Mon then maybe it would get it?

(Also times like this makes we wish we got a like an Ursaluna :thinking: reaction)

 

[DrPumpkinz]

I’m guessing it’s because gamefreak doesn’t see Rapidash as a Pokemon physically strong enough to cause an earthquake, mythological reference be darned. Plus, it does have High Horsepower, which does the job just as well.
Maybe if they made a Hippocampus Mon then maybe it would get it?

(Also times like this makes we wish we got a like an Ursaluna reaction)

bro have you seen a rapidash they're fucking ripped

give earthquake to ALL the horse mons and throw high horsepower in the garbage. fuckin' real life horses can use earthquake.

 

[Omastar68]

Due to the recent Blitzle/Zebstrika discussion going on in the "Pokémon you won't use in-game" thread I was going to make a comment over there about how the two should get Blaze Kick to help fix their coverage issues.

When I went to check the existing TR/TM compatibility for Blaze Kick I noticed that none of the horse Pokémon can learn the move. This is despite horses being known to severely injure if not kill any unlucky soul they kick (pretty sure "never stand behind a horse" is the first thing you learn when handling them) and one of the horse Pokémon lines being Fire-type.

That's a great point. My instinctual reaction was from a mechanics point blitzle line obviously has flame charge that is fire, but that's weaker than kick and doesn't gel esp well with a thing fast already, but with nothing much else. Plus ofc flame charge isn't on mudsdale or g ponyta line I'm quite sure, nor would the former use it well. Yea they teach to keep a hand on a horse if you need to go directly behind, so that they don't kick you. Meaning they can kick but...I guess maybe they see it as a slippery slope? Horses can jump a little, maybe they think itd make them need to give jump kick? Imo that might be ok too though...

 

[Karxrida]

I’m guessing it’s because gamefreak doesn’t see Rapidash as a Pokemon physically strong enough to cause an earthquake, mythological reference be darned.

Chansey with its fat ass and 5 Base Attack can learn Earthquake.

give earthquake to ALL the horse mons and throw high horsepower in the garbage.

High Horsepower has notable mechanical differences from Earthquake (single target, unaffected by Grassy Terrain) to at least justify its existence. I agree horses should get Earthquake, though.

 

[Castersvarog]

Chansey with its fat ass and 5 Base Attack can learn Earthquake.

Huh. Til Chansey can use earthquake. Alright Gamefreak where’s the earthquake causing Horse

 

[AztecCroc]

and Talonflame and Staraptor of all things

Falcon Kick.

 

[CPU]

Chansey with its fat ass and 5 Base Attack can learn Earthquake.

I actually really love when base stats are completely incongruous with learnable moves. Poliwhirl being able to learn Earthquake is a similar one.

One of my favorite instances is Nihilego's final level up move (at least, I believe it was in Gen 7) being Head Smash. If Nihilego was a physical attacker, it would be great, but it's a special attacker and it should never really use it. But I adore the idea of a glass jellyfish ramming into opponents with its head to deal damage (and then shattering into countless shards).