Navigating the Move Maze: Forgetting and ing TMs in Pokémon Games
Have you stared at your Pokémon’s move list, wondering if you’ll always have that useless TM move? Or maybe you deleted a powerful TM and now panic about losing it forever? You can relax! We’ll explore how to forget and TM moves while keeping your Pokémon’s move pool in check.
Forgetting TM Moves: It’s Not Always Permanent
Can you forget a TM move? Yes, you definitely can. Pokémon games do not trap you with moves. Imagine being stuck with ‘Splash’ on your strong Pokémon. Outrage!
How can you banish a TM move? The simplest way is to overwrite it. TMs are like textbooks. You can only equip four at once. When you teach a new move, a prompt appears if all slots are full. You simply choose to overwrite a TM move, and it’s gone.
If you wish to customize your Pokémon’s moves for battling or personal reasons, visit the Move Deleter. This NPC in many games specializes in removing moves. He makes unwanted moves disappear without judgment or questions.
The Move Deleter was essential for dealing with HMs (Hidden Machines). HMs were notoriously hard to overwrite. You couldn’t just remove them easily. For those, you needed his help. Trying another method was frustrating and often pointless.
Now, let’s address a common question: “Can TMs be forgotten in Black 2?” Yes! Black 2 lets you forget TM moves by overwriting or consulting the Move Deleter. In Driftveil City, he eagerly helps trainers by deleting any move, including TMs and HMs.
ing/Relearning TM Moves: Second Chances Exist
We’ve established that forgetting TM moves is easy. But what if you regret deleting one? Can a Pokémon a previously forgotten TM move?
Yes! In modern games like Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, the answer is yes! These games ensure your Pokémon have great memories for moves you taught via TMs. Forgetting TMs is not forever.
How can you help your Pokémon ? It’s very straightforward. In Scarlet and Violet, access your menu by pressing ‘X’, select the Pokémon, and go to ‘Check Summary.’ Navigate to ‘Moves and Stats’ and select ‘ moves.’ It displays all previously learned moves, including forgotten TMs. You can then choose to relearn any of these moves.
The best part? This process is free! No more hunting for Heart Scales or paying Move Tutors. Pokémon Scarlet and Violet embraces flexible move sets, making management easier.
However, there are limits. The Pokémon must have learned the move via TM in those games to it. If they learned it in a previous game or naturally leveled up, they cannot suddenly it now. You can’t create new TM histories for old moves.
Also, you can’t relearn moves your Pokémon never learned. Evolution can complicate matters too. For example, Pikachu may learn certain moves, but Raichu may not learn all of them. Relearning focuses on previously known moves, especially TM moves in the current game context.
TM Mechanics: A Generational Shift
TM mechanics have evolved significantly throughout the Pokémon series. Let’s explore these changes.
In earlier generations, TMs were rare items. From Generation I to IV, they vanished after use. This scarcity added strategy to TM usage. Trainers had to consider carefully who deserved a TM. Some powerful TMs were limited to one per playthrough, making choices crucial.
Then Generation V brought a TM revolution. TMs became reusable! Hallelujah! From Pokémon Black and White onward, TMs could be used multiple times on different Pokémon. This change increased accessibility and flexibility in team building. You no longer agonized over which Pokémon deserved that Flamethrower TM.
Despite this change, the single-use concept didn’t disappear. In Pokémon Sword and Shield and later Scarlet and Violet, TRs emerged. TRs are like single-use TMs. They function similarly but vanish after use. They teach powerful movements never offered in standard reusable TM pools.
In Scarlet and Violet, TMs undergo another twist with the introduction of the TM Machine. You no longer just find TMs worldwide; you craft them at Pokémon Centers using League Points (LP) and materials from wild Pokémon. As you progress, more recipes become available. While crafted TMs remain single-use, the ability to create them provides a sense of reusability as long as resources last.
Now let’s compare the different TMs and TRs while…
TMs and HMs differ in function. TMs teach moves, while HMs also help in navigation. HMs are harder to forget. TRs are a one-time use move item. TMs are reusable, whereas TRs are specialized items. HMs serve to guide players through the world.
In Pokémon GO, Fast and Charged TMs alter specific attacks. They do not allow a choice of move. Instead, they randomly pick from a pool. If you use a Charged TM on a Pokémon, it changes one of its Charged Moves. Elite TMs provide more control when teaching moves, even legacy ones.
HM Moves: The Ghosts of Navigation Past
HM moves are an important part of Pokémon history. They were combat and navigation tools. Surf lets you cross water, Fly gives fast travel, and Strength moves boulders.
HMs have a key trait: they are hard to forget. You can’t overwrite them easily. To forget an HM, you go to the Move Deleter. This means players can’t accidentally delete crucial HMs, like Surf.
The Move Deleter is the only NPC who could help you remove HMs. This made for cumbersome gameplay. Players used move slots for necessary HMs. This was true even if those moves were not combat effective.
If you wanted to optimize moves, you had to visit the Move Deleter. The answer to “How do you forget moves in Black 2?” is clear: the Move Deleter in Driftveil City. This goes for other games with HMs as well.
The Move Deleter also appears in Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire. Players can access him in Lilycove City for similar reasons.
Taking a step back, HMs are fading out. Recent games eliminated them entirely, starting with Pokémon Sun and Moon. Now navigation relies on ride Pokémon or key items. This has streamlined the gameplay and removed the move-slot pressure of HMs.
Move Inheritance: ing Down the Move Legacy
Move inheritance through breeding is another interesting aspect. It allows moves to from parent Pokémon to offspring.
Before Generation VI, TM and HM moves functioned in inheritance from fathers. Fathers could down TM/HM moves to their offspring. This allowed non-naturally learned moves through TM or leveling up.
In Pokémon Crystal, fathers could even share Move Tutor moves. This expanded possibilities for move inheritance.
In Generation VI and later, mechanics shifted. There was more focus on Egg Moves with female Pokémon. Egg Moves could only be learned through breeding.
From Generation VI onward, females became the primary source. If a female Pokémon knows an Egg Move, its offspring can inherit that move when bred with a compatible male.
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet introduced the Mirror Herb. It changes Egg Move inheritance entirely. Held during a picnic, it allows learning desired Egg Moves if there’s an empty slot. This simplifies acquiring Egg Moves.
The legacy of move inheritance continues through Egg Moves and tools like the Mirror Herb. They enable fine-tuning of move sets through breeding.
Move Management: Four Moves and Beyond
Every Pokémon trainer knows: only four moves can be used in battle. This limitation adds strategic depth to battles.
A Pokémon can learn infinite moves throughout its life. Modern games allow seamless switching among learned moves.
Pokémon Legends: Arceus and newer games have improved move management significantly. Outside of battle, clients can access Pokémon summaries at any time.
Moving or forgetting a learned move is easy. Just select a move and choose another from the pool. No need for trips to Move Deleters or Reminders. This flexibility allows adapting moves for diverse challenges.
This flexibility extends to Charged Attacks in Pokémon GO. Although Charged TMs add randomness, changing Charged Attacks allows dynamic adjustments during battles.
Special Cases: Shadow Pokémon, Evolution, and Smeargle
Exceptions exist in Pokémon for move management. Shadow Pokémon have unique Charged Moves like Frustration.
Frustration is weak, and trainers wish to replace it. Normally, a regular Charged TM cannot remove Frustration. Purifying Shadow Pokémon lets you change this move under specific conditions.
Generally, evolution does not cause tough choices regarding moves. Pokémon retain their moves when evolving. Even if an evolution does not naturally learn a certain move, it keeps it from its previous form.
For example, Butterfree retains Harden after evolving from Metapod, despite not learning it naturally.
Smeargle offers a distinctive move-learning method called Sketch. Smeargle can copy the last move used by opponents in battle via Sketch.
However, it faces limits as well. Smeargle cannot Sketch moves learned by leveling up or through TMs otherwise. Its move pool only consists of what can be Sketched.
Navigating forgetting and ing TM moves seems complex at first glance. Gaining insights across generations helps build strong strategies in move management.
Go forth with confidence and experiment with TMs! Build the ultimate Pokémon team one carefully chosen move at a time!
