Z-Move



A Z-Move (Japanese: ワザ Z-Move) is a special type of move introduced in Generation VII in which a and their Pokémon's wishes combine to unleash an attack comprising the full power of both. These moves are very powerful, but they can only be used once per, unless a Roto Boost is used.

History
The origins of Z-Power are largely shrouded in mystery. However, information by Professor Kukui indicates that Z-Power may be related to the energy produced by Ultra Wormholes. Wicke also speculates that Lusamine's losing consciousness after fusing with in Ultra Space may have been due to the Z-Power surrounding her. Alolan legends found in the Malie Library also indicate that / gifted the Tapunium Z to the guardian deities after fighting against them. In, the Ultra Recon Squad reveal that the Z-Power that surrounds the user and their Pokémon when using a Z-Move as well as the aura surrounding Totem Pokémon are a result of 's light shining down on Alola long ago.

Z-Moves
There are three different kinds of Z-Moves: Z-Moves which can be used by any, with one Z-Move for each of the 18 types; status moves that have been turned into Z-Moves by one of the 18 type-specific Z-Crystals; and Z-Moves that can only be used by specific Pokémon. The Z-Move that a Pokémon can perform depends on the Z-Crystal it holds. There are 18 different Z-Crystals that correspond to each of the 18 types, and several others that correspond to specific Pokémon. Z-Moves work by powering up one of the Pokémon's normal moves, so the Pokémon must also know an appropriate move. For the type-related Z-Crystals, the Pokémon must know a move of the same type as the Z-Crystal it is holding. For the Pokémon-specific Z-Crystals, the move required differs for each Pokémon.

A Z-Ring or Z-Power Ring is also required in order to perform Z-Moves. A Pokémon can only use a Z-Move if its Trainer is wearing a Z-Ring or Z-Power Ring and has the same Z-Crystal the Pokémon is holding. Mega Evolved and Primal Pokémon cannot use Z-Moves, even when holding an appropriate Z-Crystal (such as after ).

In battle
When using a Z-Move in the games, a special cutscene plays, first showing the Trainer performing a certain pose, before shifting to the Pokémon surrounding itself with its Z-Power and executing the Z-Move. This cutscene cannot be deactivated, even if battle animations are turned off.

Z-Moves draw upon the of the Pokémon's original moves in order to execute, requiring and consuming PP upon use. When the Z-Move option is chosen in battle, a list of Z-Moves overlays the Pokémon's original list of moves, with each compatible move of the Pokémon's original moves overlain by a Z-Move option that draws upon that move.

Damaging Z-Moves derive their category (physical or special) and power from the original move. For example, a based on  (with a power of 20) will have a power of 100 and be a physical move, while one based on  (with a power of 90) will have a power of 175 and be a special move. If the Pokémon knows more than one compatible move, it will be able to choose among different versions of the Z-Move with different stats, with the instance that has the highest power sparkling. Damaging Z-Moves do not inherit any other properties from the original move, so have neutral priority and do not have the additional effects of the base move.

Damaging Z-Moves bypass checks to always hit, unless the opponent is in the  of a move such as  or.

Z-Moves based on status moves are enhanced versions of the original moves, having a Z- prefixed to the start of the status move's name. While they have the effects of the original status move, the user also receives a Z-Power effect (Japanese: パワー Z-Power effect), which is executed before the move itself. For example, Z- also boosts the user's by 3 stages, while Z- also restores the switch-in ally's HP by 100%. These effects are not affected by, , or.

Exclusive Z-Moves can be used only by specific, and require a specific move to be upgraded. They have a fixed category and power. Exclusive Z-Moves can be used by a Pokémon ed into an appropriate species regardless of its original species, if it holds the corresponding Z-Crystal; however, if the Pokémon who the move is exclusive to is transformed, it cannot use its own species' exclusive Z-Move unless it is transformed into another Pokémon of the same species.

Damaging Z-Moves cannot be fully protected against by (such as  and ), instead dealing 25% of the original damage. Status Z-Moves can be blocked by protection moves, but will apply their Z-Power effects regardless. Like any other move, Z-Moves can be redirected by effects such as and.

Z-Moves may be used without regard to the effects of, , , , , and ; however, the Pokémon never has an opportunity to select a Z-Move if it is forced to use (e.g. if it is affected by Taunt and only knows status moves). Even if the target of Z- or Z- is affected by Heal Block, that Pokémon's HP is restored. Status Z-Moves can be used without regard to the effects of, but Gravity will still cause them to fail after applying their Z-Power effect (e.g. Z-Magnet Rise will raise the user's evasion but then fail).

Even if a status Z-Move fails, it still applies its Z-Power effect. Z-Moves are affected normally by and weather. turned into Z-Moves (except ) will disappear as usual during heavy rain, extremely harsh sunlight, and a mysterious air current, but will apply their Z-Power effects regardless.

The types of damaging Z-Moves are unaffected by (although status Z-Moves' types are). However, their types are affected by (if the Z-Move would be Normal-type) and.

If a Pokémon uses a damaging Z-Move on a Pokémon with, that damaging Z-Move can be disabled (with no effect on the base move). However, if Cursed Body would disable a status Z-Move (such as Z-), the base status move will be disabled.

Power
With the exceptions of (120),  (160),  (160),  (180),  (220),  (170), and  (140), the powers of the type-specific damaging Z-Moves follow the following conversion table for base moves that have fixed powers. has a power of 1 as a Z-Move in the game data, which does not follow this table, but it is not possible to turn Struggle into a Z-Move.

Z-Power effects of status moves
When a status move is upgraded into a Z-Move, it may also gain a Z-Power effect in addition to its regular effect. Additionally, when used as a Z-Move, all convert the called move into its corresponding Z-Move, although status moves called this way do not get their Z-Power effect. Moves stolen by Z-, reflected by Z-, or instructed by Z- are not turned into Z-Moves.

In the TCG
In the Pokémon Trading Card Game, a mechanic similar to Z-Moves, introduced in the TCG Sun & Moon expansion, is a type of attack called TCG attack (attacks). Known exclusively by TCG Pokémon-GX (Pokémon), they are distinguished by a "" suffix following the attack's name, such as in "Pulverizing Pancake".

Like Z-Moves, attacks have very powerful effects compared to those of other attacks. However, each player may use no more than one attack per game. markers are used to denote whether a player has used his or her attack yet. When a player uses a attack, his or her  marker is flipped over to expose its reverse side.

In the anime
Similar to the, Z-Moves are powerful moves that can be executed by a Pokémon that knows an appropriate move which corresponds to the type of Z-Crystal on the Trainer's Z-Ring. Z-Moves were first featured in the in episode Alola to New Adventure!, where  and his  used, with the help of Kiawe's Z-Ring and Firium Z, to defeat Zipp's , Tupp's , and Rapp's.

According to in Alola to New Adventure!, only Trainers who are successful in the island challenge can use Z-Moves. As seen with Ash's Rowlet in Young Kiawe Had a Farm!, Z-Moves drain a lot of the Pokémon's energy, but with adequate training, the Pokémon can reduce the amount of energy necessary to execute a Z-Move. In a similar manner, in Balloons, Brionne, and Belligerence!, Lana's Popplio failed its first attempt at since it was not strong enough to execute the move.

Due to their vast blast radius and power, they can usually be used to wipe out many targets at once, like in a Battle Royal. Typically, bipedal or semi-bipedal Pokémon with arm-like forelimbs tend to mimic the poses of their Trainer during the activation. On the other hand, quadrupeds and the like, whose forelimbs show no manual dexterity, tend to stay still and wait until the activation is completed before acting.

As revealed in A Battle Hand-Off!, a Pokémon using a Z-Move can receive Z-Power from multiple other people and Pokémon provided they do the Z-Move pose as well. In SM103, helped Olivia and her  use a variation of  he named (Japanese: ワールズエンドフォーリンラブ World's End Fall in Love).

first performed a Z-Move in The Guardian's Challenge!, with his using  thanks to the Z-Ring and Electrium Z Ash had received from. After using the attack, however, the Electrium Z shattered, preventing Ash from using the move again until he obtained a new Electrium Z in Trial and Tribulation!.

In the Japanese,, , and versions, when a Z-Move is used, the name of the specific move is shown, like in the games; however, the names are removed in most other dubs.

In the movie adaptations
and his performed the  Z-Move in ICYR1 during a battle against a.

and performed the  Z-Move in ICYR2 in order to defeat Borosue.

In the Pokémon Adventures manga
Z-Moves first appeared in the. Olivia had her use  while Nanu had his Alolan  use  during an exhibition match against each other. Hala stepped in to stop both Pokémon before either could successfully use their moves.

During his battle against Gladion in an Iki Town festival tournament, inadvertently used a Z-Move with his, allowing it to defeat Gladion's  with an incomplete version of. Due to not knowing how to use Z-Moves at the time, Sun received Z-Power from a nearby Ultra Wormhole instead of building it up with a pose. Later, he was taught how to properly perform Z-Moves by Kiawe in order to battle Gladion a second time. With his newly-obtained Z-Ring, Sun and En successfully used Inferno Overdrive properly.

Trivia

 * According to a book in Malie Library, the Z in Z-Move is short for zenith (Japanese: ゼンリョク/, zenryoku "full power/force").
 * Internal data in the games also refer to Z-Move as ZenryokuWaza, which literally means "full-powered move".
 * Some cutscenes when using a Z-Move bear similarities to the cutscenes used in Pokémon Contest Spectaculars from.

In other languages
Z-Power