[GP 2/2] Pokemon Colosseum and Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness Mechanics Guide

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Introduction:

Pokemon Colosseum and Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness were the first 3-D RPG Pokemon games created for the Nintendo GameCube. Colosseum is the first in the series, while XD serves as its direct sequel. What separates the GameCube entries from the mainline handheld entries is the frequent use of double battles, the land of Orre having little to no wild Pokemon, and the existence of Shadow Pokemon, a unique type of Pokemon obtainable only in these games. Shadow Pokemon are different from standard Pokemon due to their hearts artificially being closed, which makes them battle machines. The player can snag these Shadow Pokemon away from the trainers with the use of the Snag Machine and proceed to go through the process of purification to open the Pokemon's heart.

Pokemon Colosseum's main purpose, besides being a way to battle in 3-D, was to give access to Pokemon missing from Ruby and Sapphire, mainly the Johto starters and the legendary beasts. This lead to Colosseum having a very limited pool of Pokemon to use for its main adventure.
The sequel, Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness, has more liberty in its Pokemon selection, as when it came out, Fire Red, Leaf Green, and Emerald were already released. XD made many improvements over Colosseum with nearly every aspect, as the Shadow Pokemon mechanics are much more fleshed out, wild Pokemon were added, and the animations and graphics were improved, to name a few.

Pokemon Colosseum and Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness can be rather confusing to players, as they explain their new mechanics through character dialogue post-battle or memos and not through a tutorial like most other Pokemon games. This guide will attempt to explain these mechanics in a streamlined manner.

Double Battles:

Double Battles are a battle format introduced in Generation 3. Although doubles is the main format in Pokemon VGC, they are seldom used in the traditional games' story mode. In fact, Pokemon Colosseum and XD are the first (and only) games where doubles take center stage. The doubles format is interesting, as each attack must be directed at a target. This also includes your own ally.
While the singles format tends to favor fast sweepers, bulkier Pokemon and Pokemon with status-based movepools have heightened importance in the Doubles format. Moves that were once niche options like Fake Out and Protect now become optimal choices. Abilities that were (borderline) useless like Lightning Rod now serve a purpose. You might be surprised to see a Pokemon you otherwise wouldn't consider become a major threat in doubles, and vice versa.


Double battles have a few different mechanics than single battles. Sometimes choosing an ally to target might be a good idea, such as to easily activate an ability like Water Absorb or Flash Fire. There are also a few moves like Helping Hand that can now be utilized. Unlike the handheld games, where you can avoid certain double battles if you only have one active/healthy Pokemon available, battles will still commence in the doubles format if you have only one Pokemon available in either Colosseum or XD.

Unique to Gen 3, if a Pokemon faints, the next one is immediately sent out before the next Pokemon in the turn order moves. In double battles in Gen 4 and beyond, however, the Pokemon is sent out at the end of the turn. With how Gen 3 treats double battles, this means you can potentially KO all of the opposing Pokemon in a single turn. This even plays a role in XD's Battle CD 11.

Item usage in Colosseum and XD is slightly different. Recovery items can be used for any Pokemon in the party. Using these items, however, uses up that specific Pokemon's turn. Items like X-Items or the Yellow Flute must be used on that specific Pokemon. There is a glitch with the X-Items that allows it to be used on the other Pokemon (further explained in the Glitches section). Unlike with Gen 5, where using a Poke Ball in a double battle required the use of both Pokemon's turn and for one opposing Pokemon to have fainted, no Pokemon needs to have fainted in the GameCube entries.


Certain moves in doubles have the ability to affect both opposing Pokemon, affect the opposing Pokemon and ally, or affect all Pokemon on the field. Moves such as Surf, Razor Leaf, and Icy Wind affect both foes but have their power cut in half to compensate. Moves such as Earthquake and Explosion hit all Pokemon on the field. In Gen 3, these moves did not have their power cut due to the fact that they can affect your ally as well, but in later entries, these moves were cut down to 75% of their Base Power when targeting multiple Pokemon. Moves that affect both opposing Pokemon or every Pokemon on the field such as Shadow Wave and Storm, and Shadow Half and Sky, respectively, are exclusive to XD.


Shadow Pokemon:

Shadow Pokemon are Colosseum's and XD's main gimmick. As explained above, Shadow Pokemon are Pokemon whose hearts have been artificially closed. What separates them from normal Pokemon is that Shadow Pokemon only belong to trainers, they have an exclusive Shadow type, move or moves, they cannot level up or be taught new moves until purified, they cannot access certain areas (Phenac Colosseum in Colosseum, Orre Colosseum and the Day Care in XD, and the multiplayer modes in both Colosseum and XD), they have access to an exclusive condition called Hyper Mode (Colosseum only) and Reverse Mode (XD only), they cannot use items while in Hyper or Reverse Mode (with the exception of Scents), and their experience bar is replaced by a Heart Gauge. There are a total of 48 Shadow Pokemon in Colosseum and 83 in XD.
In Colosseum and XD the mechanics of capturing Shadow Pokemon are slightly different. When a Shadow Pokemon is caught in Colosseum, it is immediately sent to the PC or your party if an open slot is available, while in XD the Pokemon is only sent to the PC or party when the battle is won.


Shadow type is a type exclusive to Colosseum and XD but has various differences. Shadow type is not a type that Pokemon can have, but it has certain attributes. All Shadow-type moves have infinite PP in both Colosseum and XD.

Shadow type in Colosseum acts as a neutral attacking type. It can hit all Pokemon in the game for neutral damage. The only Shadow move in Colosseum is Shadow Rush. Shadow Rush is a 90-Base Power physical move and the user suffers 1/16 of its maximum health as recoil damage. This also applies to NPCs using Shadow Pokemon, and thus these Pokemon have the potential to faint.

In XD, Shadow moves gain an extensive overhaul. There are now various Shadow-type moves that deal status effects, and certain Shadow moves will hit based on either Attack or Special Attack. XD actually makes the first instance of a physical/special split in the Pokemon games, and this is only apparent with Shadow moves. All other moves are physical or special based on their typing, as the standard games. What makes Shadow-types unique is that Shadow moves deal super-effective damage to all standard Pokemon while being not very effective against Shadow Pokemon. There are a total of 18 Shadow moves in XD.

Keep in mind that no Pokemon gain STAB with Shadow moves, as the Shadow-type is only available through moves, similar to Curse's pre-Gen 5 typing.


Courtesy of Zari for the research of said mechanic

Exclusive to XD, you'll notice that every Shadow Pokemon has a particular "+" next to their level. This means that (nearly) every Shadow Pokemon in the game is actually fought at a higher level than what they are encountered at.

"You may have noticed a + next to the level of the Shadow Pokemon you encounter. The meaning behind this sign refers to a small boost in all of its stats, dubbed the Shadow Boost. Almost every Shadow Pokemon has one of these Shadow Boosts, but they lose it upon capture."
*The Legendary Kanto Birds are not affected by this mechanic*

Basically, this means that every Shadow Pokemon has a hidden boost to their stats, with early-game Pokemon having a smaller boost and late- game Pokemon typically having a larger boost. Now it starts to make more sense as to why that Shadow Zangoose outsped your Pokemon when it otherwise couldn't have in a normal situation, as well as that Shadow Lunatone tanking a hit that would have otherwise OHKO it. The Shadow Boost factor can play an important role in figuring out speed IVs for the desired Shadow Pokemon.


The Heart Gauge is a bar that takes the place of the Exp. Points bar for every Shadow Pokemon obtainable. The bar is represented by 5 divisions that all represent specific aspects and ranges. Each filled bar is represented by purple, and each cleared bar is represented by white. As the Heart Gauge depletes, the Shadow Pokemon regains certain aspects, until it is fully depleted.

Important Note: In Colosseum, Shadow Pokemon do not gain experience or happiness until the first two bars of the Heart Gauge are depleted. It is recommended to deplete those two bars as fast as possible. This does not apply to XD; Shadow Pokemon can gain experience and happiness the moment they are captured.
5 bars: "The door to its heart is tightly shut." The Pokemon only has access to Shadow Rush (in Colosseum) or other Shadow-type moves.
4 bars: "The door to its heart is opening up." The Pokemon regains its first move (if applicable).
3 bars: "The door to its heart is opening wider." The Pokemon's nature is revealed. The Pokemon can now gain experience and happiness (not applicable to XD).
2 bars: "The door to its heart is nearly open." The Pokemon regains its second move (if applicable).
1 bar: "The door to its heart is almost fully open." The Pokemon regains its third move (Colosseum only). Shadow Pokemon are now more likely to enter Hyper/Reverse Mode
Empty: "The door to its heart is about to open. Undo the final lock!" The Pokemon is now eligible for the purification ceremony.

Each Pokemon has a certain amount of Heart Gauge, which in the programming is represented by a number. The values can be seen here (second tab). The numbers to the left of the "/" are related to Colosseum, while the numbers to the right are for XD.


In Colosseum, when using Pokemon in battle, they can sometimes undergo this special condition called Hyper Mode. Hyper Mode can only be accessed by using Shadow Rush. Accessing Hyper Mode is random and uses up a turn. In Hyper Mode, Shadow Rush gets a drastically increased critical hit ratio, but if they use other moves, the Pokemon may disobey the trainer and do various actions such as ignore them, use another move, fall asleep, use a held item (even if it's not holding one), go back into its ball, or even attack the player and NPC trainer. Pokemon in Hyper Mode cannot use consumable bag items from the trainer. The only three ways to exit Hyper Mode is to either have the Pokemon faint, use the Call function, or use a Scent after battle. Some like to use Hyper Mode to increase the battle viability of a Pokemon due to the increased critical hit chance, while others tend to end Hyper Mode as soon as it appears to go through purification more quickly.

In XD, what replaces Hyper Mode is Reverse Mode. Reverse Mode does have differences to Hyper Mode. Unlike Hyper Mode, Reverse Mode does not increase the Shadow moves critical hit rate, but similarly to Hyper Mode, it prevents the use of consumable bag items and can only be exited through the above three methods. Other non-Shadow type moves can be used at a greater frequency in Reverse Mode, but sometimes the Pokemon may disobey the trainer. The biggest difference of Reverse Mode is that it can activate whether or not Shadow-type moves are used; it activates at the end of the respective Shadow Pokemon's battle phase (even if the opposing trainer is defeated), and it deals recoil at the end of the turn, so it is best to exit it as soon as possible.

The Call feature in Colosseum and XD replaces the "Run" feature from the mainline games. Its main use is to call Pokemon out of Hyper/Reverse mode and lower the gauge. It can also be used to wake up a sleeping Pokemon, acting like the game's Poke Flute. In Colosseum, if Call is used on a non-Hyper Mode or sleeping Pokemon, it will do nothing, effectively wasting a turn. This can actually come in handy in some situations where you don't want to waste PP when capturing a Shadow Pokemon. In XD, it has greater use. When used on a non-Reverse Mode or sleeping Pokemon, it will instead raise the Pokemon's accuracy by one stage.


Colosseum and XD have various methods of opening the Pokemon's heart. What most people do not realize at first is that natures all affect how much or how little a Pokemon's heart opens to the methods. The values and the effects natures have on them can be seen here. The numbers to the left of the "/" are related to Colosseum, while the numbers to the right are for XD.

Battling: Battling is the most common method of lowering the Heart Gauge. This method can only be utilized once per battle, and the Pokemon has to actively participate in the battle. Switching out and then back in, or reviving it and then sending it out in the same battle again will not affect the Heart Gauge.
Calling: Calling a Pokemon, while in Hyper or Reverse Mode will also deplete the Heart Gauge. Most likely the second most common method utilized.
Massaging: Using Scents on a Shadow Pokemon will deplete the Heart Gauge.
Walking: For every 256 Steps, a certain amount of the Heart Gauge will deplete
Day Care: (Colosseum Only): For every 256 steps taken while a Shadow Pokemon is in the daycare, an amount will deplete from the Heart Gauge. Shadow Pokemon do not gain experience from the use of the daycare.
Celebi: (Colosseum Only) Celebi, via the use of the Time Flute, can instantly purify any Shadow Pokemon.
Purify Chamber: (XD Only): Through the use of a special device in the Pokemon HQ Lab, multiple Pokemon can have their hearts open as well as go through the purification ceremony.


Once all the bars of the Heart Gauge are depleted, the Pokemon can now be completely purified. In Colosseum, the only method of the purification process is to go to the Relic Stone in Agate Village. One can only access Agate Village once the Pyrite Town portion of the story is completed. This happens pretty far into the game, almost a good 1/4th of the main story. In XD, Agate Village is far earlier into the story. In XD, the Purification Chamber can also be used to purify Pokemon. Also, in XD, when Pokemon are purified, all Shadow Pokemon have access to one TM move, sometimes one egg move, and one special move they otherwise could not learn. Some examples of these special moves are Refresh, Heal Bell, and Helping Hand.


The Purify Chamber is an area exclusive to XD. The Purify Chamber acts as a facility, in a way replacing the Day Care's function to purify Shadow Pokemon in Colosseum, where Pokemon can be purified faster and more easily. There are 9 chambers that all start out empty. Four standard Pokemon in total can be placed on the outer circle of the chamber, and a Shadow Pokemon can be placed in the middle. Depending on the Pokemon put in the chamber, the tempo and flow will increase. If all the Pokemon in the circle do super-effective damage in a clockwise motion, the tempo and flow will be maxed. If every Pokemon in the chamber has no repeating types, the flow will gain a mark depending on how many chambers meet this requirement.

For example, if the Shadow Pokemon is an Ice-type and then it points to the Grass-type, in a clockwise method which goes Grass>Water>Rock>Fire and then back to Grass, the chamber will have max tempo, flow, and a mark in the flow gauge. If the chamber has a type matchup in the method of Poison/Flying>Fighting/Grass>Steel>Ice/Water and back to Poison/Flying, but the Shadow Pokemon is Bug/Flying, because there are two Flying-types in the chamber, it will still reach max tempo and flow but will not have the extra mark.

The Purify Chamber decreases the Heart Gauge based on walking and battling with a combination of natures: Walking seems to have the lowest multiplier, while partaking in battles has the highest multiplier. When a Pokemon is ready to be purified, a notification will pop up on the screen. The Purify Chamber can be accessed from the PC to arrange and rearrange Pokemon, but Pokemon can only be purified by physically going to the Pokemon HQ. The Purify Chamber is a very important aspect, as having all 9 chambers have max tempo and flow is the only way to purify Shadow Lugia, which cannot be purified by no other normal means.



Items:

Scents are an exclusive item to the GameCube games and come in three varieties: Joy, Excite, and Vivid Scent. Joy, Excite, and Vivid Scents are 1x, 2x, and 3x multipliers of increasing friendship, respectively. They each go for 600, 800, and 1200 Poke Dollars. The items also lower the Heart Gauge of Shadow Pokemon. They can only be bought in Agate Village and can only be held in a Cologne Case.


The Time Flute is an item exclusive to Colosseum. This item, when used at the Relic Stone, can summon Celebi, which instantly purifies any Shadow Pokemon, no matter how much of the Heart Gauge is filled. The Time Flute is a limited item, with only three being obtainable in the entire game. One is given to you after the Mt. Battle story portion is completed, and the other two are optional finds: one being in The Under via the use of the U-Disk and one being found at the summit of Mt. Battle, right before the 100th battle. It's best to use these limited items on Pokemon that take a while to purify, such as the Beasts or pseudo legendary Pokemon.


Poke Snacks are an item exclusive to XD that allow you to attract wild Pokemon to specific landmarks in the Orre region. These snacks can be bought at any Poke Mart for 300 Poke Dollars once the Poke Spot storyline is completed and one talks to Duking.


In these games, the main character utilizes a handheld Snag Machine to steal Pokemon from trainers. In Colosseum, you have a partner named Rui who has a special power that can detect these Shadow Pokemon, while in XD, you simply use a scouter called the Aura Reader. Outside of narrative purposes, the Snag Balls do not act any differently than regular Poke Balls and can only be used on Shadow Pokemon. Only one Poke Ball can be thrown per turn.


Areas of Interest:

Like the name suggests, both Colosseum and XD contain colosseums. Each stadium/colosseum contains 4 rounds with 4 battles fought in a row with a cash prize (can be influenced by Amulet Coin) given out if the player successfully completes them, as well as a TM for the first time each round is completed
Phenac Stadium: In Colosseum, the levels range from 40-42, containing weak or first stage Pokemon. The TMs given out in order of round completion are TM18 (Rain Dance), TM11 (Sunny Day), TM19 (Giga Drain),(AC) and TM22 (Solarbeam). This stadium, in particular, is special, as it is the only story mode area where Shadow Pokemon are unable to enter.
In XD, the Phenac Stadium serves a plot-related role instead.
Pyrite Colosseum: In Colosseum (after the mandatory plot-related segment), levels range from 50-55. Most Pokemon are mid-stage or first-stage, but there are a few Pokemon that are fully evolved. The TMs rewarded are TM01 (Focus Punch), TM07 (Hail), TM05 (Roar), and TM31 (Brick Break).
In XD, the levels are a flat 20. The TMs rewarded are TM31 (Brick Break), TM12 (Taunt), TM41 (Torment), and TM05 (Roar).
Under Colosseum: In Colosseum, levels range from 55-59. Pokemon are a blend of mid-stage Pokemon and no-evolution Pokemon. The final battles of each round contain fully-evolved Pokemon. TMs rewarded are TM37 (Sandstorm), TM36 (Sludge Bomb), TM30 (Shadow Ball), and TM23 (Iron Tail).
As The Under is inaccessible in XD, Under Colosseum does not exist.
Realgam Colosseum: In Colosseum, it serves as the final area for the main storyline.
In XD, even though it is a part of the Realgam Tower, which is unlocked when the Phenac City plotline starts, the Colosseum itself doesn't unlock until the player first reaches Snagem Hideout. The trainers in the colosseum are at flat level 40. TMs rewarded are TM49 (Snatch), TM19 (Giga Drain), TM23 (Iron Tail), and TM22 (Solarbeam).,
Deep Colosseum: Deep Colosseum is a post-game area in Colosseum. This colosseum, in particular, is special, as it contains five rounds as opposed to the four rounds that all the other colosseums have. The Pokemon's levels range from 60-70. The TMs rewarded are TM 12 (Taunt), TM 48 (Skill Swap), TM 44 (Rest), and TM 02 (Dragon Claw). Round 5 does not reward you with a TM upon completion.
In XD, as Deep Colosseum is part of The Under, and said location no longer exists within XD, neither does the colosseum.



Mt. Battle is a facility in the Orre region where trainers can battle their way through 10 zones, each containing 10 trainers. Each zone can be repeated as many times as needed, but when a zone is started, the 10 trainers must be beaten. If one leaves the area, they must start the specific zone again from the very beginning. If the 10 trainers in a zone are defeated, one earns Poke Coupons (and a TM in XD on first completion), an exclusive currency to the Orre region that acts very similar to Battle Points and Festival Coins. Pokemon do gain experience and Pokemon are fully healed after every battle.
Exclusive to Colosseum's Battle Mode is the Mt. Battle Challenge, where one must take their team from either the story mode or from the game carts, and partake in 100 single or double battles in a row. Battles are done in 3v3 (singles) or 4v4 (doubles), chosen from a pool of 6. These Pokemon do not gain experience. The Pokemon in the Challenge scale to your Pokemon's max level starting at 50. Unlike the story mode Mt. Battle, Pokemon cannot be switched out, nor can you quit out and return at a later time, but the process can be suspended. One can gain continues if they beat a trainer without losing any Pokemon.
This method is also the only non-event way to obtain Ho-Oh in a Gen 3 game, but one must capture and purify all 48 shadow Pokemon as well as use a team from the Story Mode save file (this does not stop a person from trading Pokemon over from RSE or FRLG and using said Pokemon for the challenge, but that also requires the use of a GCN-GBA link cable).



Poke Spots are areas exclusive to XD that allow you to capture wild Pokemon. There are 3 Poke Spots in the game: Cave, Oasis, and Rock. The Following Pokemon can be found at each spot. Each Pokemon has a Common, Uncommon, and Rare chance of appearing, with it being 50%, 35%, and 15%, respectively.
Cave: Zubat, Aron, Wooper
Oasis: Hoppip, Phanpy, Surskit
Rock: Sandshrew, Gligar, Trapinch

The moment the Spot Monitor goes off, the species of Pokemon, its nature, and shininess are determined, but its level and IVs are determined when the battle is started so the latter can be soft-reset for.

After a certain point in the game, there is a 10% chance that a Munchlax can be encountered, but it cannot be caught. It eats Poke Snacks at a much higher frequency. If it is seen before it eats the Poke Snacks, its owner will arrive and give you 10 Poke Snacks as well as a random herbal item.


The Realgam Tower in Colosseum acts like the final dungeon for the main storyline. In XD, however, the Realgam Tower is unlocked once the player first reaches Phenac City. The area outside of the Realgam Colosseum contains two other points of interest:
Battle CDs. Special predetermined battles that test a person's knowledge of the Pokemon battle system. Some battles may require you to complete the battle in a limited amount of turns, while other battles may have something like "Legendary Beasts vs. Legendary Golems" or "All Metronome Battle." The CDs themselves are scattered all throughout the Orre region, and there are 50 in total (some CDs cannot be obtained until after the main storyline is completed). Each CD rewards you with an item when completed. such as a Full Heal or a Rare Candy. Completing all 50 CDs rewards the player with 15,000 Poke Coupons.
Battle Bingo. Battle Bingo is bingo but with a Pokemon twist. The goal is to complete a 4x4 panel while using a Pokemon predetermined on the card. Entering a panel costs one Entry Point (EP) and you start with two EP and two Master Balls. The goal is to defeat or capture the Pokemon in the panel. Some panels contain an extra Master Ball or extra EPs. One EP is earned for every line completed.
Each Pokemon only has one move available, and depending on the card, not every Pokemon will have a move corresponding to their typing. There are five difficulty settings: Beginner, Intermediate, Expert, Extra, and Special. Every card,(AC) when completed,(AC) will give you a select amount of Poke Coupons as well as an item such as an Ether for the first time completed. Extra coupons are also given depending on how much EP or Master Balls you have left. When all ten cards from Beginner to Extra are completed, one unlocks 1-Panel mode where after the first panel is chosen, the next panel must be an adjacent one. If you cannot choose a panel, the game automatically ends.
The Special panel can only be unlocked by obtaining the Bonsly Card, which is given to you when you rescue Bonsly. This marks the first time a Gen 4 Pokemon can be used in battle.



Orre Colosseum in Colosseum is exclusive to the Battle Mode. It hosts level 50 or level 100 trainers in both Singles and Doubles format. There are 8 trainers in each format and they must all be beaten in a row.

In XD, due to the lack of a Battle Mode, Orre Colosseum receives a significant overhaul. It can only be accessed in the post-game. The battles are in a 4v4 doubles format, with 7 rounds each consisting of 4 trainers. The levels start at 60 and scale with your Pokemon's max level. The facility is comparable to other post-game facilities found in the mainline games such as the Battle Frontier and the Pokemon World Tournament, and it requires extensive knowledge of Pokemon and/or EV training to successively be accomplished. It is very much possible (although very difficult) to beat the in-game portion with the Pokemon obtained in the game.


(Useful) Bugs, Glitches and Miscellaneous:

Colosseum and XD, like most games, have glitches contained in them. Some of these glitches are actually beneficial to the player.

The Master Ball Glitch is the most known of Colosseum's glitches, as it allows the usage of Poke Balls without actually depleting the count.
To utilize the glitch, one must use their first Pokemon, choose a Poke Ball from the bag and target a Shadow Pokemon. The second Pokemon must go into the bag and switch the placement of the ball using the X or Y button. For some reason, since the ball is not in the original place, it doesn't subtract from the count. Any ball can be used for the glitch, but it has the best usage with the Master Ball because of its 100% capture properties. This glitch makes snagging late-game or missed Pokemon very easy.
Warning: If your second Pokemon utilizes a two-turn move like Solar Beam, Hyper Beam, or Razor Wind, and you attempt to use the glitch on the turn the move is charging, it will consume the ball because the second turn is "skipped."


In both Colosseum and XD, if your character model walks into certain spots, it will cause the screen to shake. This actually counts as movement,(AC) unlike simply walking into a wall. The most well-known spot in both games is the left ledge near the entrance of Agate Village. If one combines this with the exploit of unplugging your Gamecube controller and replugging it with the control stick in the upward position, your character will automatically walk downward. Since the ledge is in a 6 o'clock position, the walking bug will commence without you even playing the game. This is especially useful for purifying Shadow Pokemon with a large Heart Gauge such as the legendary Pokemon and pseudo-legendary Pokemon in each game.

In Colosseum, the corner of the wall in front of the stairs in Gonzap's office is also a spot that can be used for this bug.

In XD, there is also a spot in Area 3 of Citadark Isle (the whirlpool area) between the bottom wall and the southeast room where you can trigger the shaking screen movement by walking into that corner.

In XD, it's advisable to do this without any Pokemon in the Purify Chamber, snacks at the Poke Spots, or an active Miror B. Radar as their respective prompts will pop up a message that stops all movement.


One of the most recent glitches discovered was the ability to use two X-Items on a Pokemon. If you attempt to use an item on a Pokemon that would have no effect on it (full heal on a healthy Pokemon, potions on a max health Pokemon) and then immediately use an X-Item, the game will use the item on the Pokemon last selected. This means that if you have Pokemon 1 and Pokemon 2, use a full heal on a healthy Pokemon 2 with Pokemon 1's turn, then use X-Attack, it will apply the boost on Pokemon 2. Then you can use another X-Attack on Pokemon 2 during Pokemon 2's turn. It has its greatest use in speedruns but can be utilized just as well in casual playthroughs.


Shiny Pokemon in Colosseum/XD interact rather weirdly.
In Colosseum, Shadow Pokemon can be shiny upon encounter but may become regular upon capture. Conversely, they may be regular upon encounter but become shiny upon purification. The reason for this is because when encountered, the Shadow Pokemon are generated using their opponent's ID number rather than the player's. Because the IDs get overwritten with yours upon capture, while the PID remains static, a Pokemon that was shiny in battle may become regular upon capture. It also works the other way around - if the PID is shiny with your IDs but not your opponent's, it will appear normal in battle and then become shiny when you capture it. There is a very very slim chance that it will be shiny in both cases, but that requires the PID being shiny with both your IDs and your opponent's. In addition to this, the starter Umbreon and Espeon cannot be shiny under any circumstances, and neither can the MATTLE Ho-Oh nor the DUKING Plusle.

On a bit of a tangent, the Jirachi from the Colosseum Bonus Disc can actually be shiny despite them coding in an anti-shiny mechanism - it is limited to very few natures/IV spreads.

In XD, they implemented a shiny-lock feature whereby, if the Shadow Pokemon's generated PID is shiny with the player's IDs, it's rerolled until it is not shiny. This means that Shadow Pokemon in XD can never be shiny. However, there are more Pokemon in XD than just Shadow Pokemon; there are also Poke Spot Pokemon, the DUKING trade Pokemon, the Mt. Battle Johto starters, and the starter Eevee, all of which can be shiny.


Just like in the mainline titles, Colosseum and XD have a few gift Pokemon and in-game traded Pokemon that will gain boosted experience thanks to having a different trainer ID. All of these Pokemon come with a random nature, so it is possible to soft reset for your preferred nature. The Pokemon are as follow:
Plusle (Colosseum): Plusle is gifted to you by Duking after defeating Miror B. the first time.
Ho-Oh (Colosseum): Ho-Oh is a special case of a gifted Pokemon and has a few prerequisites before being obtained.
1. Your Colosseum save file must have obtained and purified all 48 Shadow Pokemon.
2. You must complete Mt. Battle in Colosseum's Battle Mode, not Story Mode.
3. You must use the save file from the Colosseum's Story Mode for this task.

If you get through this monumental task, your Colosseum save file will be gifted a Level 70 Ho-Oh. It might seem like simple bragging rights or Pokedex completion for your GBA games, but it can be used for the colosseums in the Battle Mode section.
Celebi (Colosseum; Japan Only): If you have access to the Japanese Bonus Disc as well as a Japanese version of Colosseum, your save file can receive a level 10 Celebi. The only requirement for this is to have all 48 Shadow Pokemon purified.
Shuckle, Meditite, and Larvitar (XD): These Pokemon can be traded to Duking for Surskit, Trapinch, and Wooper, respectively, after completing the ONBS plotline.
Togepi and Elekid (XD): Togepi is technically a gift Pokemon because it is the only Shadow Pokemon across both games that is simply gifted to you by Hordel but shares your Trainer ID. It is meant to be traded back to Hordel in exchange for an Elekid. This Elekid comes with the three elemental punches as well as Cross Chop at level 20.
Cyndaquil, Totodile, and Chikorita (XD): The three Johto starters are obtainable in XD. Like Ho-Oh, they require certain prerequisites
1. Mt. Battle 1 through 100 must be done in one sitting.
2. Your Pokemon party cannot be swapped out via the PC.
3. Only one of each starter may be chosen upon completion.

This can be achieved before completion of the main story, but in almost all situations it will be a post-game challenge, as Mt. Battle ends with Pokemon in the high 60's and low 70's and tends to make large level jumps every two areas (Areas 1-2 would be levels 9-14, Areas 3-4 would be 28-31, Areas 5-6 would be 42-45, Areas 7-8 would be 57-64, and Areas 9-10 would be 64-70).
Each Johto starter starts out at level 5, comes with one egg move, as well as their respective elemental STAB move.


E-Reader: In the Japanese version of Colosseum, there is a room to the left of the lobby in Phenac Stadium. In this room, the player can scan e-Reader cards, which unlock challenges, allowing a shadow Togepi, Mareep, and Scizor to be obtained. This room is not accessible in the NTSC-U or PAL versions of the game, though.

Japanese Bonus Disc: Exclusive to the Colosseum Japanese Bonus Disc is a Celebi that you can obtain. However, to obtain Celebi, you must obtain and purify all 48 Shadow Pokemon in Colosseum—a similar task to obtaining Ho-Oh. This only works for JPN region Colosseum games. After obtaining Colosseum, you can transfer up to 48 other Celebi to any GBA Pokemon game, with the only requirements being that the Elite Four/National Dex is obtained and the file is saved in a Pokemon Center.
 
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Shiny Pokemon and Colo/XD interact rather weirdly.
In Colosseum: Shadows can be shiny upon encounter, but may become regular upon capture. Conversely, they may be regular upon capture but become shiny upon purification. The reason for this is because when encountered, the shadows are generated using their opponent's ID number rather than the players. If their IDs mean that the PID will be shiny, then it will appear shiny in battle, but the IDs get overwritten with yours upon capture (while the PID remains static) making it regular again. It also works the other way - if the PID is shiny with your IDs but not your opponent's, it will appear regular in battle and then become shiny when you capture it. There is a very very slim chance that it will be shiny in both cases, but that requires the PID being shiny with both your IDs and your Opponents. In addition to this, the starter Umbreon and Espeon cannot be shiny under any circumstances, and neither can the MATTLE Ho-Oh nor the DUKING Plusle.
On a bit of a tangent, the Jirachi from the Colosseum Bonus Disc can actually be shiny, despite them coding in an antishiny mechanism - it is limited to very few natures/IV spreads though.

In XD: They implemented a Shiny Lock whereby if the Shadow's generated PID is shiny with the players IDs, it's rerolled until it is not shiny. This means that Shadows in XD can never be shiny. However, there are more Pokemon in XD than just shadows - there are also Pokespot pokemon, the DUKING trade pokemon, the MATTLE Johto starters, and the starter Eevee, all of which can be shiny.


In the Japanese version of Colosseum, there is a room to the left of the lobby in Phenac Stadium. In this room, the player can scan e-Reader cards, which unlock challenges, allowing a shadow Togepi, Mareep, and Scizor to be obtained. This room is not accessible in the NTSC-U or PAL versions of the game, though.


Maybe also mention Battle CDs and the games like Battle Bingo or whatever - they're a little less "Mechanics" based, but could still be cool to touch on (maybe put realgam in the areas of interest section?).
 
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Xen

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-Introduction-

"Pokemon Colosseum, besides being a way to battle in 3D, main purpose was to give access to Pokemon missing from Ruby and Sapphire" should be changed to "Pokemon Colosseum's main purpose (besides being a way to battle in 3D) was to give access to Pokemon missing from Ruby and Sapphire"

-Shadow Pokemon-

"they cannot level up or be taught new moves until purified"
"In Colosseum and XD, the mechanics of capturing Shadow Pokemon are a bit different"


As for minor tweaks:

-In the Shiny Pokemon section, "Conversely, they may be regular upon capture but become shiny upon purification." should be changed to "Conversely, they may be regular upon encounter but become shiny upon capture." Shininess is rerolled when the Pokemon is snagged, and purification has no effect on shininess (/me slap LegoFigure11). Also minor nitpick, but it's probably better to refer to the XD Johto Starters as the Mt. Battle Johto Starters, instead of MATTLE. They carry your OT, unlike the Colosseum MATTLE Ho-Oh.

-The Agate Cliff Bug doesn't work in XD iirc (Least I never could get it to work for me), but there is a corner in area 3 of Citadark Isle (the whirlpool area) between the bottom wall and the southeast room where you can trigger the shaking screen movement by walking into that corner. You might also want to mention that notifications from the Spot Monitor and Miror Radar will also halt the buggy movement.

-Minor nitpick, but it may be worth making a separate section for the XD trades, since the HORDEL trade for Togepi -> Elekid is also available in XD in addition to the DUKING trades.

-Someone correct me on this if I am wrong, but I remember reading long ago that the Colosseum Ball Glitch doesn't work in the PAL version. Can someone else confirm or disprove this?


Looks good! :blobthumbsup:
 
-Introduction-

"Pokemon Colosseum, besides being a way to battle in 3D, main purpose was to give access to Pokemon missing from Ruby and Sapphire" should be changed to "Pokemon Colosseum's main purpose (besides being a way to battle in 3D) was to give access to Pokemon missing from Ruby and Sapphire"

-Shadow Pokemon-

"they cannot level up or be taught new moves until purified"
"In Colosseum and XD, the mechanics of capturing Shadow Pokemon are a bit different"


As for minor tweaks:

-In the Shiny Pokemon section, "Conversely, they may be regular upon capture but become shiny upon purification." should be changed to "Conversely, they may be regular upon encounter but become shiny upon capture." Shininess is rerolled when the Pokemon is snagged, and purification has no effect on shininess (/me slap LegoFigure11). Also minor nitpick, but it's probably better to refer to the XD Johto Starters as the Mt. Battle Johto Starters, instead of MATTLE. They carry your OT, unlike the Colosseum MATTLE Ho-Oh.

-The Agate Cliff Bug doesn't work in XD iirc (Least I never could get it to work for me), but there is a corner in area 3 of Citadark Isle (the whirlpool area) between the bottom wall and the southeast room where you can trigger the shaking screen movement by walking into that corner. You might also want to mention that notifications from the Spot Monitor and Miror Radar will also halt the buggy movement.

-Minor nitpick, but it may be worth making a separate section for the XD trades, since the HORDEL trade for Togepi -> Elekid is also available in XD in addition to the DUKING trades.

-Someone correct me on this if I am wrong, but I remember reading long ago that the Colosseum Ball Glitch doesn't work in the PAL version. Can someone else confirm or disprove this?


Looks good! :blobthumbsup:

Thanks for your suggestions. I made a small section for ingame trades and gift Pokemon in the misc. section.

In regards to the Agate Cliff Bug, it does in fact work in XD, but has to be done in somewhat different circumstances. I was able to pull it off a few times.

I do not believe that the Master Ball Glitch is region exclusive. I'll try to test it out in the upcoming days.
 

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Hey MellowBusiness just wanted to throw my 2 cents in here, and bump to inquire of the status :P

I'd consider removing the bits about the critical reception as I think it's a bit of unnecessary detail. But if you feel like it provides you with context, it's fine.

XD actually makes the first instance of a physical/special split in the Pokemon games as prior to Gen 4, physical and special moves were divided by typing.
I'd considering rewording this sentence to specify that there's a physical/special distinction within a type in XD, which I think is the novelty you're trying to describe. As it stands, I read it as XD was the first game to show any distinction, which is contradicted by the last half of the sentence.

keep in mind that since no Pokemon are capable of being the Shadow type, no Pokemon gain STAB with Shadow moves.
I'd suggest removing the bolded part. I understand it's really hard to word since "Shadow" isn't a type in the way we normally think of it. Technically, they can have the Shadow type, but since Shadow is a classification and not a type per se, there isn't a STAB...Ow. :psyduck:

As for the spreadsheet, make sure you credit the author in the text if it's someone else's. You may also want to specify in the text (maybe around here: "The values, and the effects natures have on them can be seen here.") that the data before the / is for Colo, and after for XD. Technically the sheet says it, but I think a lot of people will struggle with knowing to hover over the info block in the bottom left.

All-in-all really minor stuff. Once you give this some consideration and are happy with how you've implemented lego's/xen's comments, feel free to move to GP. Thanks again for the article!
 
Hey MellowBusiness just wanted to throw my 2 cents in here, and bump to inquire of the status :P

I'd consider removing the bits about the critical reception as I think it's a bit of unnecessary detail. But if you feel like it provides you with context, it's fine.


I'd considering rewording this sentence to specify that there's a physical/special distinction within a type in XD, which I think is the novelty you're trying to describe. As it stands, I read it as XD was the first game to show any distinction, which is contradicted by the last half of the sentence.


I'd suggest removing the bolded part. I understand it's really hard to word since "Shadow" isn't a type in the way we normally think of it. Technically, they can have the Shadow type, but since Shadow is a classification and not a type per se, there isn't a STAB...Ow. :psyduck:

As for the spreadsheet, make sure you credit the author in the text if it's someone else's. You may also want to specify in the text (maybe around here: "The values, and the effects natures have on them can be seen here.") that the data before the / is for Colo, and after for XD. Technically the sheet says it, but I think a lot of people will struggle with knowing to hover over the info block in the bottom left.

All-in-all really minor stuff. Once you give this some consideration and are happy with how you've implemented lego's/xen's comments, feel free to move to GP. Thanks again for the article!
You're welcome. I've added in all of you suggestions. As for the spreadsheet, I was the one who created it, and double checking to see if the numbers were correct. And I've also made the edits/suggestions that Lego and Xen have pointed out. Meant to reply to you earlier but life happens.
 
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Should the guide mention the XD-exclusive Shadow Boost mechanic? If I recall correctly the + sign next to the level when an opponent has a Shadow Pokemon actually means something (their level is an invisible amount higher than the displayed level), which becomes very important when, say, soft-resetting for Speed IVs. I don't remember if exact numbers for each opponent have been documented anywhere, except that I think all 4 legendaries have a boost of 0.
 

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It's possible I missed them somewhere, but there's a few things that would be really nice to include in this guide that have come up in my mind several times while playing:

- The actual probabilities of the common, uncommon, and rare Pokemon at Poke Spots (important for expected # of encounters).
- Properties (natures, IVs, shiny) associated with trade Pokemon (important for knowing if it's possible to reset for these).
- List of Pokemon XD shadow moves and their properties (important for knowing BPs, accuracy, or other weird effects)
- How shadow boost works (important for testing IVs on Greevil's Pokemon or for Speed IVs in general).
- The mechanics behind what triggers the spot monitor (important for knowing if it's possible to reset for spot encounters in any capacity).

The moment the Spot monitor goes off, the kind of Pokemon and shinyness is determined, but level, IVs, and nature, are determined when the battle is started so the latter can be soft-reset for.
Also part of this is incorrect. The nature is not determined when the battle is started and cannot be soft-reseted. A similar phenomena occurs with traded Pokemon as well.
 
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Should the guide mention the XD-exclusive Shadow Boost mechanic? If I recall correctly the + sign next to the level when an opponent has a Shadow Pokemon actually means something (their level is an invisible amount higher than the displayed level), which becomes very important when, say, soft-resetting for Speed IVs. I don't remember if exact numbers for each opponent have been documented anywhere, except that I think all 4 legendaries have a boost of 0.
For right now, I'm going to leave out the mention of the shadow boost mechanic because I can't seem to find enough information regarding it, but I am looking into it.

It's possible I missed them somewhere, but there's a few things that would be really nice to include in this guide that have come up in my mind several times while playing:

- The actual probabilities of the common, uncommon, and rare Pokemon at Poke Spots (important for expected # of encounters).
- Properties (natures, IVs, shiny) associated with trade Pokemon (important for knowing if it's possible to reset for these).
- List of Pokemon XD shadow moves and their properties (important for knowing BPs, accuracy, or other weird effects)
- How shadow boost works (important for testing IVs on Greevil's Pokemon or for Speed IVs in general).
- The mechanics behind what triggers the spot monitor (important for knowing if it's possible to reset for spot encounters in any capacity).

Also part of this is incorrect. The nature is not determined when the battle is started and cannot be soft-reset. A similar phenomenon occurs with traded Pokemon as well.
I added the percentage of each common, uncommon, and rare Pokemon for the Pokespots.
I added a sentence regarding traded Pokemon, that yes, it is possible to soft reset for natures and IVs in the "Shiny Pokemon" and "ingame trades and gift Pokemon" section
I made a pastebin listing the shadow moves in XD and linked it in the "Shadow Type and Shadow Moves" section
I don't know the full mechanics behind the spot monitor, but I know there is a gauge or timer of some sort that decreases when you do battles or walk. But the jist of it is that yes, you can reset for spot encounters, but it is fairly difficult and time-consuming to do so.
 
I would suggest adding a brief section on double mechanics specific to gen 3. These are extremely poorly documented on the internet since gen 3 came prior to VGC and gen 3 doubles isn't widely played on any simulator AFAIK. Colosseum/XD in-game playthroughs are thus about the only times that they are relevant.

Two things that I am aware of off the top of my head:

-In Gen 3, fainted Pokemon are immediately replaced on the battlefield by whatever comes in next. From gen 4 onwards, replacement Pokemon are only sent in after the turn ends. This means that it is possible to KO a Pokemon with your faster team member, than damage or even KO the replacement with the second.

This is something that everyone who plays Colosseum/XD will figure out by themselves pretty quickly, but it wouldn't hurt to state it upfront. XD also has a battle CD where you must KO six Shedinjas on turn one, which is only possible with gen 3 doubles mechanics.

-Spread moves that hit your ally do full damage in gen 3 doubles, while spread moves that only target the enemy do 50%. In all future generations, both types of spread moves were changed to 75% damage.

This is noted on Bulbapedia's page on double battles, but not many other places on the internet. Considering how relevant spread moves like Surf and Earthquake are in the two Orre games, this is very useful knowledge to have.
 

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Added a section at the top (before Shadow Pokemon) about a brief explanation of the double battle mechanics.
Thanks for keeping up with this. If you're happy with implementing these last few changes, I think you'll be ok to move to GP. If someone sees something worthwhile in the meantime we can of course add it. :)

One quick thing, though, you have Shadow Storm listed as 90 BP in your pastebin, but Serebii/Bulba have it as 95. I don't have any way to check, but please double-check that number.
 
Thanks for keeping up with this. If you're happy with implementing these last few changes, I think you'll be ok to move to GP. If someone sees something worthwhile in the meantime we can of course add it. :)

One quick thing, though, you have Shadow Storm listed as 90 BP in your pastebin, but Serebii/Bulba have it as 95. I don't have any way to check, but please double-check that number.
Thank you. Yes, you are right in that Shadow Storm is suppose to be 95BP. I fixed it in the pastebin. I'm pretty content with what I have listed right now. I don't believe I'll be adding anything else unless I can think of or findany substantial information, such as the Shadow Boost mechanics. Any other edits will be of the editing and formatting sort.
 

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Thank you. Yes, you are right in that Shadow Storm is suppose to be 95BP. I fixed it in the pastebin. I'm pretty content with what I have listed right now. I don't believe I'll be adding anything else unless I can think of or findany substantial information, such as the Shadow Boost mechanics. Any other edits will be of the editing and formatting sort.
If you feel like you should add something about the Shadow Boost mechanic (and if it's a big mechanic, it might be a good idea to mention it), you could also link to the info we have on-site already. Namely, this post (and the post linked in it)--if you can glean something useful out of it--and this guide.
 
Added a small explanation of the shadow boost mechanic.

Edit: Also added some more info to the regional differences, and added more gift Pokemon (Ho-oh and Celebi respectively) to the gift Pokemon and ingame trade section.
 
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-In Gen 3, fainted Pokemon are immediately replaced on the battlefield by whatever comes in next. From gen 4 onwards, replacement Pokemon are only sent in after the turn ends. This means that it is possible to KO a Pokemon with your faster team member, than damage or even KO the replacement with the second.
Looks like this happens in Singles too. If you KO an opponent with sandstorm up, the replacement will take sandstorm damage that same turn.

This is something that everyone who plays Colosseum/XD will figure out by themselves pretty quickly, but it wouldn't hurt to state it upfront. XD also has a battle CD where you must KO six Shedinjas on turn one, which is only possible with gen 3 doubles mechanics.
How does this work in Gen 4+ again? Would the remaining Shedinjas just get KO'd at the start of turn 2?
 
In later gens you can only send out 2* Pokemon per turn, so 2 of the Shedinjas will come in to die on turn 2 and the last two will die on turn 3.

*2 in doubles, 1 in singles, 3 in triples, etc.
 

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Introduction:

Pokemon Colosseum and Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness were the first 3-D (AH) RPG Pokemon games to be created for the Nintendo Gamecube GameCube. Colosseum is the first in the series, while XD serves as the direct sequel to Colosseum. What separates the Gamecube GameCube entries from the mainline handheld entries is the frequent use of double battles, the land of Orre having little to no wild Pokemon, and the existance of Shadow Pokemon, (change to comma) a unique type of Pokemon obtainable only in these games. Shadow Pokemon are different from standard Pokemon due to their hearts artificially being closed, (AC) which makes them battle machines. The player character can snag these Shadow Pokemon away from the trainers with the use of the Snag Machine (RC) and proceed to go through the process of purification (RC) to open the Pokemon's heart and restore them to their natural self. tend to avoid personification of mons

Pokemon Colosseum's, besides being a way to battle in 3D, main purpose, besides being a way to battle in 3-D (AH), was to give access to Pokemon missing from Ruby and Sapphire, mainly the Johto Starters, and the Legendary dogs gerbils Beasts bit too informal imo. This lead to Colosseum having a very limited pool of Pokemon to use for its main adventure.
The sequel, Pokemon XD, (AC) has more liberty in its Pokemon selection, (AC) as when it came out in the respective regions, FireRed, LeafGreen, remove spaces in game names and Emerald were already released. XD made many improvements on Colosseum with in nearly every aspect, (AC) as the Shadow Pokemon mechanics are much more fleshed out, the addition of wild Pokemon wild Pokemon were added for more variety, and the animations and graphics were improved, (AC) graphics and animations to name a few. parallelism

Pokemon Colosseum and Pokemon XD can be rather confusing to players, (AC) as it does they explain its their new mechanics (RC) but a lot of them are though character dialogue post-battle (AH) or memos and not through a tutorial like most other Pokemon games. This guide will attempt to explain these mechanics in a streamlined manner.

Double Battles:

Double Battles are a battle format introduced in Generation (Gen) 3. Although doubles is are the main format in Pokemon VGC, they are seldom used in the traditional game's games' story mode. In fact, Pokemon Colosseum and XD are the first (and only) time where doubles take center stage. Almost every battle across both games are double battles. The doubles format is interesting, (AC) as now each attack must be directed at a target. Pokemon has a target to choose where the attack is directed. the mons aren't doing the targeting This also includes your own ally.
Whereas the singles format tends to favor fast sweeper Pokemon, bulkier Pokemon (RC) and Pokemon with status-based movepools have heightened importance in the double format. Moves that were once niche options, (AC) like Fake Out and Protect, (AC) now become optimal choices. Abilities that were (borderline) useless, (AC) like Lightning Rod, (AC) now serve a purpose. You might be surprised to see a Pokemon you otherwise wouldn't consider become a major threat in doubles, and vice versa.


Double Battles have a few different mechanics than Single Battles. Unlike singles, doubles have the option to choose your target, (AC) including your ally. Sometimes choosing an ally to target might be a good idea, (AC) whether such as to easily activate an ability like Water Absorb or Flash Fire. There are also a few moves, (AC) like Helping Hand, (AC) that which can now be utilized, and also a few abilities like Plus and Minus (unfortunately, while Plusle does exist in Colosseum as a usable Pokemon, Minun does not, which means Plus is still a useless ability). if plus is useless, then it's not really usable. Unlike in the handheld games where you can avoid certain double battles if you only have one active/healthy Pokemon available, battles will still commence in the doubles format if you have only one Pokemon available in either Colosseum or XD.

Unique to Gen 3, if a Pokemon faints, the next one is immediately sent out before the next Pokemon in the turn order moves. This is different as in In double battles in Gen 4 and beyond, however, the Pokemon is sent out at the end of the turn. With how Gen 3 treats double battles, this means you can potentially KO all of the opposing Pokemon in a single turn. This even plays a role in XD's Battle CD 11.

Item usage in Colosseum and XD are slightly different. When recovery items like health and status healing items not really clarifying which items are used, it they can be used for any Pokemon in the party. It Using these items, however, uses up that specific Pokemon's turn. Items like X-Items or the Yellow Flute must be used on that specific Pokemon. There is a glitch with the X-Items that allow it to be used on the other Pokemon (further explained in the Glitches section). Unlike with Gen 5 where using a Pokeball Poke Ball in a situation where Pokemon can be captured in a double battle required the use of both Pokemon's turn turns and for the other Pokemon to have fainted, no Pokemon needs to have fainted in the GameCube games nor do both turns have to be used. initial clause is kinda wordy so shortened it a bit


Certain moves in doubles have the ability to affect both opposing Pokemon, affect the opposing Pokemon and ally, or affect all Pokemon on the field. Moves such as Surf, Razor Leaf, (AC) and Icy Wind affect both foes but have their power cut in half to compensate. Moves such as Earthquake and Explosion hit all other Pokemon on the field. In Gen 3, these two moves did not have their power cut due to the fact that they can affect your ally as well, but in later entries, these moves are cut down to 75% of their original power when targeting multiple Pokemon. Exclusive to XD are moves that affect both opposing or every Pokemon such as Shadow Wave and Storm, and Shadow Half and Sky, (AC) respectively.


Shadow Pokemon:

Shadow Pokemon are Colosseum's and XD's main gimmick. As explained above, Shadow Pokemon are Pokemon who's hearts have been artificially closed. What separates them from normal Pokemon is that Shadow Pokemon only belong to trainers, they have an exclusive Shadow-type (AH) move or moves, they cannot level up or be taught new moves until purified, they cannot access certain areas (Phenac Colosseum in Colosseum, Orre Colosseum and the Day Care in XD, and the multiplayer modes in both Colosseum and XD), they have access to an exclusive condition called Hyper Mode (Colosseum only) and Reverse Mode (XD only), they cannot use items while in Hyper or Reverse Mode (with the exception of Scents), and their experience bar is replaced by a Heart Gauge. There are a total of 48 Shadow Pokemon in Colosseum (RC) and 83 in XD.
In Colosseum and XD, (AC) the mechanics of capturing Shadow Pokemon are a bit different. When a Shadow Pokemon is caught in Colosseum, it is immediately sent to the PC or your party if an open slot is available, while in XD the Pokemon is only sent to the PC or party when the battle is won.


(AH)
The Shadow-type (AH) is a type exclusive to Colosseum and XD but has various differences. The Shadow-type (AH) is not a type that Pokemon can have (RC) but has certain attributes. All Shadow-type moves have infinite PP in both Colosseum and XD.

The Shadow-type (AH) in Colosseum acts as a neutral attacking type. It can hit all Pokemon in the game for neutral damage. The only Shadow move in Colosseum is Shadow Rush. Shadow Rush in Colosseum is a 90 base power physical move that deals damage, (AC) and the user suffers 1/16th of the user's its maximum health as recoil damage. This also applies to NPCs using Shadow Pokemon, and thus these Pokemon have the potential to faint.

In XD, Shadow moves gain an extensive overhaul. There are now various Shadow-type moves that deal status effects, and certain Shadow moves are divided by attack and special attack. XD actually makes the first instance of a physical/special split in the Pokemon games due to how the Shadow type moves work in said game, and this is only apparent with Shadow moves. All other moves are physical or special based on its typing, as in the standard games. What makes Shadow-types (AH) unique is that Shadow moves deal super effective damage to all standard Pokemon while dealing not very effective damage to Shadow Pokemon. There are a total of 18 Shadow moves in XD.

keep Keep in mind that no Pokemon gain STAB with Shadow moves as the Shadow-type (AH) is only available through moves, similar to Curse's pre-Gen 5 typing.


Courtesy of Zari for the research of said mechanic

Exclusive to XD, you'll notice that every Shadow Pokemon has a particular "+" next to their level. This means that (nearly) every Shadow Pokemon in the game is actually fought at a higher level than what they are encountered at.

"You may have noticed a + next to the level of the Shadow Pokemon you encounter. The meaning behind this sign refers to a small boost in all of its stats, dubbed the Shadow Boost. Almost every Shadow Pokemon has one of these Shadow Boosts, but they lose it upon capture."
*The Legendary Kanto Birds are not affected by this mechanic*

Basically, this means that every Shadow Pokemon has a hidden boost to their stats, with early-game (AH) Pokemon having a smaller boost and late-game (AH) Pokemon typically having a larger boost. Now it starts to make more sense as to why that Shadow Zangoose outsped your Pokemon when it otherwise couldn't in a normal situation, as well as that Shadow Lunatone taking a hit that would otherwise OHKO it. The Shadow Boost factor can play an important role in figuring out speed IVs for the desired Shadow Pokemon.


The Heart Gauge is a bar that takes the place of the EXP Exp. Points bar for every Shadow Pokemon obtainable. The bar is represented by 5 divisions (RC) that which all represent specific aspects and ranges. Each filled bar is represented by purple, and each cleared bar is represented by white. As the Heart Gauge depletes, the Shadow Pokemon regains certain aspects (RC) until it is fully depleted.

Important Note: In Colosseum, Shadow Pokemon do not gain experience or happiness until the first two bars of the Heart Gauge is are depleted. It is recommended to deplete those two bars as fast as possible. This does not apply to XD; Shadow Pokemon can gain experience and happiness the moment they are captured.
5 bars: "The door to its heart is tightly shut." The Pokemon only has access to Shadow Rush (in Colosseum) or other Shadow-type moves.
4 bars: "The door to its heart is opening up." The Pokemon regains its first move (if applicable).
3 bars: "The door to its heart is opening wider." The Pokemon's nature is revealed. The Pokemon can now gain experience and happiness (not applicable to XD).
2 bars: "The door to its heart is nearly open." The Pokemon regains its second move (if applicable).
1 bar: "The door to its heart is almost fully open." The Pokemon regains its third move (Colosseum only). Shadow Pokemon are now more likely to enter Hyper/Reverse Mode
Empty: "The door to its heart is about to open. Undo the final lock!" The Pokemon is now eligible for the purification ceremony.


Each Pokemon has a certain amount of Heart Gauge, which in the programming, is represented by a number. The values can be seen here (second tab). the The numbers to the left of the "/" are related to Colosseum, while the numbers to the right are for XD. remove ()


In Colosseum, when using Pokemon in battle, they can sometimes undergo this special condition called Hyper Mode. Hyper Mode can only be accessed through by using Shadow Rush. Accessing Hyper Mode is random (RC) and uses up a turn. In Hyper Mode, the Pokemon's Shadow Rush gets a drastically-increased (AH) critical hit ratio, but if they use other moves, the Pokemon may disobey the trainer and do various actions such as ignore the trainer, use another move, fall asleep, use a held item (even if it's not holding one), go back into its ball, or even attack the player and NPC trainer. Pokemon in Hyper Mode cannot use consumable bag items from the trainer. The only three ways to exit Hyper Mode is are to either have the Pokemon faint, (AC) use the Call function, or use a Scent after battle. Some like to use Hyper Mode to increase the battle viability of a Pokemon due to the increased crit rate, while others tend to end Hyper Mode as soon as it appears to go through purification quicker.

In XD, what replaces Hyper Mode is Reverse Mode. Reverse Mode does have differences to Hyper Mode. Unlike Hyper Mode, Reverse Mode does not increase the Shadow moves crit rate, but similar to Hyper Mode, Reverse Mode disallows the use of consumable bag items and can only be exited through the above three methods. Other non-Shadow-type (AH) moves can be used at a greater frequency in Reverse Mode, (AC) but sometimes the Pokemon may disobey the trainer. The biggest difference from Reverse Mode to Hyper Mode is that it can activate whether or not Shadow-type moves are used, it activates at the end of the respective Shadow Pokemon's battle phase (even if the opposing trainer is defeated), (AC) and deals recoil at the end of the turn, so it is best and advisable to exit it as soon as possible.

The Call feature in Colosseum and XD replaces the "Run" feature from the mainline games. Its main use is to call Pokemon out of Hyper/Reverse mode and lower the gauge. It can also be used to wake a sleeping Pokemon, acting like the game's Pokeflute Poke Flute. In Colosseum, if Call is used on a non-Hyper Mode or sleeping Pokemon, it will do nothing, effectively wasting a turn. This can actually come in handy in some spots where you don't want to waste PP when capturing a Shadow Pokemon. In XD, it has greater use. When used on a non-Reverse Mode or sleeping Pokemon, it will instead raise the Pokemon's accuracy by one stage.


Colosseum and XD have various methods of opening the Pokemon's heart. What most people do not realize at first is that natures all affect how much or how little a Pokemon's heart opens to the methods. The values (RC) and the effects natures have on them can be seen here. the The numbers to the left of the "/" are related to Colosseum, while the numbers to the right are for XD. remove ()
Battling: Battling is the most common method of lowering the Heart Gauge. This method can only be utilized once per battle, and the Pokemon has to actively participate in the battle. Switching out and then back in, or reviving it (RC) and then sending it out in the same battle again will not affect the Heart Gauge.

Calling: Calling a Pokemon (RC) while in Hyper or Reverse Mode will also deplete the Heart Gauge. Most likely the second most common method utilized.
Massaging: Using Scents on a Shadow Pokemon will deplete the Heart Gauge.
Walking: For every 256 Steps, a certain amount of the Heart Gauge will deplete. (AP)
Day Care (RC)(Colosseum Only): For every 256 steps taken while a Shadow Pokemon is in the daycare, an amount will deplete from the Heart Gauge. Shadow Pokemon do not gain experience from the use of the daycare.
Celebi (RC) (Colosseum Only) Celebi, via the use of the Time Flute, can instantly purify any Shadow Pokemon.
Purify Chamber (RC) (XD Only): By Through the use of a special device in the Pokemon HQ Lab, multiple Pokemon can have their hearts opened as well as go through the purification ceremony.


Once all the bars of the Heart Gauge are depleted, the Pokemon can now be completely purified. In Colosseum, the only method of the purification process is to go to the Relic Stone in Agate Village. One can only access Agate Village once the Pyrite Town portion of the story is completed. This happens pretty far into the game, almost a good 1/4th into the game. In XD, reaching Agate Village is far earlier into the story. In XD, the Purification Chamber can also be used to purify Pokemon. Also in XD, when Pokemon are purified, all Shadow Pokemon have access to one TM move, sometimes one egg move, and one special move they otherwise could not learn. Some examples of these special moves are Refresh, Heal Bell, and Helping Hand.


The Purify Chamber is an area exclusive to XD. The Purify Chamber acts as a facility, in a way replacing the Day Care's function to purify Shadow Pokemon in Colosseum, to help purify Pokemon faster and easier. There are 9 chambers (RC) that which all start out empty. 4 Four standard Pokemon in total can be placed on the outer circle in the chamber, (AC) and a Shadow Pokemon can be placed in the middle. Depending on the Pokemon put in the chamber, the tempo and flow will increase. If all the Pokemon in the circle do super effective damage in a clockwise motion, the tempo and flow will be maxed. If every Pokemon in the chamber has no repeating types, the flow will gain a mark depending on how many chambers meet this requirement.

For example, if the Shadow Pokemon is an Ice-type (RC) and then it points to the grass type a Grass-type, which in a clockwise method goes Grass>Water>Rock>Fire and then back to Grass, the chamber will have max tempo, flow, and a mark in the flow gauge. If the chamber has a type matchup in the method of Poison/Flying>Fighting/Grass>Steel>Ice/Water and back to Poison/Flying, but the Shadow Pokemon is Bug/Flying, because there are two flying types Flying-types in the chamber, it will still reach max tempo and flow (RC) but will not have the extra mark.

The Purify Chamber decreases the Heart Gauge based on walking and battling with a combination of natures: Walking seems to have the lowest multiplier, (AC) while partaking in battles has the highest multiplier. When a Pokemon is ready to be purified, a notification will pop up on the screen. The Purify Chamber can be accessed from the PC to arrange and rearrange Pokemon, but Pokemon can only be purified by physically going to the Pokemon HQ. The Purify Chamber is a very important aspect, as having all 9 chambers have max tempo and flow is the only way to purify Shadow Lugia, who which cannot be purified by normal means.



Items:

Scents are an exclusive item to the Gamecube GameCube games (RC) and come in three varieties: Joy, Excite, and Vivid Scent. Joy, Excite, (AC) and Vivid Scents are respectively 1x, 2x, and 3x multipliers, (AC) respectively. They each go for 600, 800, and 1200 Pokedollars Poke Dollars. The items raise friendship as well as lower the Heart Gauge of Shadow Pokemon. They can only be bought in Agate Village and can only be held in a Cologne Case.


The Time Flute is an item exclusive to Colosseum. This item, when used at the Relic Stone, can summon Celebi, (AC) which instantly purifies any Shadow Pokemon (RC) no matter how much of the Heart Gauge is filled. The Time Flute is a limited item, being with only three in the entire game. One is given to you after the Mt. Battle story portion is completed, and the other two are optional finds: one being in The Under via the use of the U-Disk, and one being found at the summit of Mt. Battle (RC) right before the 100th battle. It's best to use these limited items on Pokemon that take a while to purify, such as the Beasts or the pseudo-legends.


Poke Snacks are an item exclusive to XD, which allows you to attract wild Pokemon to specific landmarks in the Orre region. These snacks can be bought at any PokeMart Poke Mart for 300 Pokedollars Poke Dollars once the Poke Spot storyline is completed and one talks to Duking.


In these games, the main character utilizes a handheld Snag Machine (RC) to steal Pokemon from trainers. In Colosseum, you have a partner named Rui who has a special power that which can detect these Shadow Pokemon, while in XD, you simply use a scouter called the Aura Reader that which can detect them. Outside of narrative purposes, the Snag Balls do not act any differently than regular Poke Balls (RC) and can only be used on Shadow Pokemon. Only one Poke Ball can be thrown per turn.


Areas of Interest:
remove spaces in TM names below
Like the name suggests, both Colosseum and XD contain colosseums. Each stadium/colosseum contains 4 rounds with 4 battles fought in a row with a cash prize (can be influenced by Amulet Coin) given out if the player successfully completes them (RC) as well as a TM for the first time each round is completed completed, four times. think that's what you're trying to say
Phenac Stadium:
In Colosseum, the levels range from 40-42, containing weak or first stage Pokemon. The TMs given out in order of round completion are: (AC) TM18 (Rain Dance), TM11 (Sunny Day), TM19 (Giga Drain) and TM22 (Solarbeam). This stadium is special in particular, (AC) as it is the only story mode area where Shadow Pokemon are unable to enter.
In XD, the Phenac Stadium serves as a plot-related role instead.
Pyrite Colosseum: In Colosseum (after the mandatory plot-related segment), levels range from 50-55. Most Pokemon are mid-stage or first-stage, but there are a few Pokemon that are fully evolved. The TMs rewarded are: (AC) TM01 (Focus Punch), TM07 (Hail), TM05 (Roar), and TM31 (Brick Break).
In XD, the levels are a flat 20. The TMs rewarded are: (AC) TM31 (Brick Break), TM12 (Taunt), TM41 (Torment), and TM05 (Roar).
Under Colosseum: In Colosseum, levels range from 55-59. Pokemon are a blend of mid-stage Pokemon and solid no-evolution Pokemon. The final battles of each round contain fully-evolved (AH) Pokemon. TMs rewarded are: (AC) TM37 (Sandstorm), TM36 (Sludge Bomb), TM30 (Shadow Ball), and TM23 (Iron Tail).
As The Under is inaccessible in XD, Under Colosseum does not exist.
Realgam Colosseum: In Colosseum, it serves as the final area for the storyline.
In XD, even though it is a part of the Realgam Tower, which is unlocked when the Phenac City plotline starts, the Colosseum itself doesn't unlock until the player first reaches Snagem Hideout. The trainers in the colosseum are at flat level 40. TMs rewarded are: (AC) TM49 (Snatch), TM19 (Giga Drain), TM23 (Iron Tail), and TM22 (Solarbeam).
Deep Colosseum: Deep Colosseum is a post-game (AC) area in Colosseum. This colosseum in particular is special, (AC) as it contains five rounds as opposed to the four rounds that all the other colosseums have. The Pokemon's levels range from 60-70. The TMs rewarded are: (AC) TM12 (Taunt), TM48 (Skill Swap), TM44 (Rest), and TM02 (Dragon Claw). Round 5 does not reward you with a TM upon completion.
In XD, as Deep Colosseum is part of The Under (RC) and said location no longer exists within XD, neither does the colosseum.



Mt. Battle is a facility in the Orre region where trainers can battle their way through 10 zones, each containing 10 trainers. Each zone can be repeated as many times as needed, but when a zone is started, the 10 trainers must be beaten. If one leaves the area, they must start the specific zone again at the very beginning. If the ten trainers in a zone are defeated, one earns Poke Coupons (AS)(and a TM in XD on first completion), an exclusive currency to the Orre region (RC) which acts very similar to Battle Points and Festival Coins. Pokemon do gain experience, (AC) and Pokemon are fully healed after every battle.
Exclusive to Colosseum's Battle Mode is the Mt. Battle Challenge, where one must take their team from either the story mode or from the game carts (RC) and partake in 100 Single single or Double double battles in a row. Battles are done in 3v3 (Singles singles) or 4v4 (Doubles doubles), chosen from a pool of 6. These Pokemon do not gain experience. The Pokemon in the Challenge scale to your Pokemon's max level starting at 50. Unlike the story mode Mt. Battle, Pokemon cannot be exchanged out, nor can you quit out and return at a later time, but the process can be suspended. One can gain continues if they beat a trainer without losing any Pokemon.
This method is also the only non-event way to obtain Ho-ohOh in a Gen 3 game, but one must capture and purify all 48 shadow Pokemon (RC) as well as use a team from the Story Mode save file (this does not stop a person from trading Pokemon over from RSE (RC) or FRLG and using said Pokemon for the challenge, but that also requires the use of a GCN-GBA link cable).



Poke Spots (AS) are an area areas exclusive to XD (RC) which allows allow you to capture wild Pokemon. There are 3 Poke Spots (AS) in the game: Cave, Oasis, and Rock. The Following following Pokemon can be found at each spot. Each Pokemon have a Common, Uncommon, and Rare don't capitalize these chance of appearing, with it being 50%, 35%, and 15%, (AC) respectively.
Cave: Zubat, Aron, Wooper
Oasis: Hoppip, Phanpy, Surskit
Rock: Sandshrew, Gligar, Trapinch

The moment the Spot monitor Monitor goes off, the kind of Pokemon, it's its nature, (AC) and shininess is are determined, but its level and IVs are determined when the battle is started so the latter can be soft-reset for.

After a certain point in the game, there is a 10% chance that a Munchlax can be encountered, but it cannot be caught. It eats Poke Snacks (AS) at a much higher frequency. If it is seen before it eats the Poke Snacks (AS), its owner will arrive and give you 10 Poke Snacks (AS) as well as a random herbal item.


The Realgam Tower in Colosseum acts like the final dungeon for the main storyline. In XD, (AC) however, the Realgam Tower area is unlocked once the player first reaches Phenac City. The area (RC) outside of the Realgam Colosseum contains two other points of interest:
Battle CDs. Special predetermined battles that test a person's knowledge of the Pokemon battle system. Some battles may require you to complete the battle in a limited amount of turns, (AC) while other battles may have something like "Legendary Beasts vs. Legendary Golems" or "All Metronome Battle." The CDs themselves are scattered all throughout the Orre region, (AC) and there are 50 in total (some CDs cannot be obtained until after the main storyline is completed). Each CD rewards you with an item when completed, (AC) such as a Full Heal or a Rare Candy. Completing all 50 CDs rewards the player with 15,000 Poke Coupons (AS).
Battle Bingo. Battle Bingo is bingo but with a Pokemon twist. The goal is to complete a 4x4 panel while using a Pokemon predetermined on the card. Entering a panel cost costs one Entry Point (EP), (AC) and you start with two EP and two Master Balls. The goal is to defeat or capture the Pokemon in the panel. Some panels contain an extra Master Ball or extra EPs. one One EP is earned for every line completed.
Each Pokemon only has one move available, and, (AC) depending on the card, not every Pokemon will have a move corresponding with their typing. There are five difficulty settings: (AC) being Beginner, Intermediate, Expert, Extra, and Special. Every card when completed will give you a select amount of Poke Coupons (AS/RC) as well as an item, such as an Ether, (ACs) for the first time completed. Extra coupons are also given depending on how much EP or Master Balls you have left. When all ten cards from Beginner to Extra are completed, one unlocks 1-Panel mode where after the first panel is chosen, the next panel must be an adjacent one. If you cannot choose a panel, the game automatically ends.
The Special panel can only be unlocked by obtaining the Bonsly Card, which is given to you when you rescue Bonsly. This marks the first time a Gen 4 Pokemon can be used in battle.



Orre Colosseum, in Colosseum, (ACs) is exclusive to the Battle Mode. It hosts level 50 or level 100 trainers in both Singles and Doubles format singles and doubles formats. There are 8 trainers in each format, (AC) and they must all be beaten in a row.

In XD, due to the lack of a Battle Mode, Orre Colosseum receives a significant re-haul overhaul. It can only be accessed in the post-game (AH). The battles are in a 4v4 Doubles doubles format, with 7 rounds (RC) each consisting of 4 trainers. The levels start at 60 (RC) and scale with your Pokemon's max level. The facility is comparable to other post-game (AH) facilities found in the mainline games, (AC) such as the Battle Frontier and the Pokemon World Tournament, and require extensive knowledge of Pokemon and/or EV training to successively accomplish. It is very much possible (although very difficult) to beat the in-game (AH) portion with the Pokemon obtained in the game.


(Useful) Bugs, Glitches and Miscellaneous:

Colosseum and XD, like most games, have glitches contained in them. Some of these glitches are actually beneficial to the player.

The Master Ball Glitch is the most well known of Colosseum's glitches, (AC) as it allows the usage of Pokeballs Poke Balls without actually depleting the count.
To utilize the glitch, one must use their first Pokemon, choose a Pokeball Poke Ball from the bag and target a Shadow Pokemon. The second Pokemon must go into the bag (RC) and switch the placement of the ball using the X or Y button to do so. For some reason, since the ball is not in the original place, it doesn't subtract from the count. Any ball can be used for the glitch, but it has the best usage with the Master Ball because of its 100% capture properties. This glitch makes snagging late-game (AH) or missed Pokemon very easy.
Warning: If your second Pokemon utilizes a two-turn move like Solarbeam, Hyper Beam, or Razor Wind, and you attempt to use the glitch on the turn the move is charging, it will consume the ball because the second turn is "skipped."


In both Colosseum and XD, there are certain spots that, (AC) if your character model walks into, it will cause the screen to shake. This actually counts as movement (RC) unlike simply walking into a wall. The most well-known spot in both games is the left ledge near the entrance of Agate Village. If one combines this with the exploit of unplugging your Gamecube GameCube controller and replugging your controller with the control stick in the upward position, your character will automatically walk downward. Since the ledge is in a 6 o'clock position, the walking bug will commence without you even playing the game. This is especially useful for purifying Shadow Pokemon with a large Heart Gauge, (AC) such as the respective legendary Pokemon (RC) and pseudo-legendary Pokemon in each game.

In Colosseum, the corner of the wall in front of the stairs in Gonzap's office is also a spot that can be used for this bug.

In XD, there is also a spot in Area 3 of Citadark Isle (the whirlpool area) between the bottom wall and the southeast room where you can trigger the shaking screen movement by walking into that corner.

In XD, it's advisable to do this without any Pokemon in the Purify Chamber, snacks at the Pokespots Poke Spots, or an active Miror B. Radar, (AC) as their respective prompts will pop up a message that stops all movement.


One of the most recent glitches discovered was the ability to use two X-Items on a Pokemon. If you attempt to use an item on a Pokemon that would have no effect on it (full heal on a healthy Pokemon, potions on a max health Pokemon) and then immediately use an X-Item, the game will use the item on the Pokemon last selected. This means if you have Pokemon 1 and Pokemon 2, use a full heal on a healthy Pokemon 2 with Pokemon 1's turn, then use X-Attack, it will apply the boost on Pokemon 2. Then you can use another X-Attack on Pokemon 2 from during Pokemon 2's turn. It has it's its greatest use in speedruns (RC) but can be utilized just as well in casual playthroughs.


Shiny Pokemon and Colo/XD interact rather weirdly.
In Colosseum, (AC) Shadows Shadow Pokemon can be shiny upon encounter but may become regular upon capture. Conversely, they may be regular upon encounter but become shiny upon purification. The reason for this is because when encountered, the shadows Shadow Pokemon are generated using their opponent's ID number rather than the player's (AA). If their IDs match, that means the PID will be shiny, then it will appear shiny in battle, but the IDs get overwritten with yours upon capture (while the PID remains static) making it regular again. Because the IDs get overwritten with yours upon capture while the PID remains static, a Pokemon that was shiny for your opponent may become regular upon capture. It also works the other way - if the PID is shiny with your IDs but not your opponent's, it will appear normal in battle and then become shiny when you capture it. There is a very, (AC) very slim chance that it will be shiny in both cases, but that requires the PID being shiny with both your IDs and your Opponents opponent's. In addition to this, the starter Umbreon and Espeon cannot be shiny under any circumstances, and neither can the MATTLE Ho-Oh nor the DUKING Plusle.

On a bit of a tangent, the Jirachi from the Colosseum Bonus Disc can actually be shiny (RC) despite them coding in an anti-shiny mechanism; (AS) it is limited to very few natures/IV spreads though.

In XD, (AC) They they implemented a Shiny Lock shiny lock whereby if the Shadow's Shadow Pokemon's generated PID is shiny with the player's IDs, it's rerolled until it is not shiny. This means that Shadows Shadow Pokemon in XD can never be shiny. However, there are more Pokemon in XD than just shadows Shadow Pokemon; (AS) there are also Pokespot Poke Spot Pokemon, the DUKING trade Pokemon, the Mt. Battle Johto starters, and the starter Eevee, all of which can be shiny.


Just like in the mainline titles, Colosseum and XD have a few Gift gift Pokemon and Traded in-game traded Pokemon that will gain boosted experience thanks to having a different trainer ID. All of these Pokemon come with a random nature so it is possible to soft reset for your preferred nature. The Pokemon are as follow:
Plusle (Colosseum): Plusle is gifted to you by Duking after defeating Miror B. the first time.
Ho-ohOh (Colosseum): Ho-ohOh is a special case in terms of a gifted Pokemon and has a few prerequisites before being obtained.
1. Your Colosseum save file must have obtained and purified all 48 Shadow Pokemon.
2. You must complete Mt. Battle in Colosseum's Battle Mode, not Story Mode.
3. You must use the save file from the Colosseum's Story Mode for this task.

If you get through this monumental task, your Colosseum save file will be gifted a Level 70 Ho-ohOh. It might just seem useless in regards outside of Pokedex completion for your GBA games, but it can be used for the Colosseums colosseums in the Battle Mode section if you're into that thing.
Celebi (Colosseum; Japan Only): If you have access to the Japanese Bonus Disc (RC) as well as a Japanese version of Colosseum, your save file can receive a level 10 Celebi. The only requirement for this is to have all 48 Shadow Pokemon purified.

Shuckle, Meditite, and Larvitar (XD): These following Pokemon can be traded to Duking for Surskit, Trapinch, and Wooper, respectively, (ACs) after completing the ONBS plotline.
Togepi and Elekid (XD): Togepi is in a way a Gift gift Pokemon because it is the only Shadow Pokemon across both games that are is simply gifted to you by Hordel, but it shares your Trainer ID. It is meant to be traded back to Hordel in exchange for an Elekid. This Elekid comes with the three elemental punches as well as Cross Chop at level 20.
Cyndaquil, Totodile, and Chikorita (XD): The three Johto starters are obtainable in XD. The only way to obtain them is to beat Mt. Battle 1 through 100. It must be done in one sitting, as well as not changing your party via the PC. Something like this can be done before completion of the main story, but in almost all situations will be a post-game (AH) challenge, as Mt. Battle ends with Pokemon in the high 60's and low 70's (RC) and tends to make large level jumps every two areas (Areas 1-2 would be levels 9-14, Areas 3-4 would be 28-31, Areas 5-6 would be 42-45, Areas 7-8 would be 57-64, (AC) and Areas 9-10 would be 64-70). Each Johto starter starts out at level 5, comes with one egg move, as well as their and knows its respective elemental Hyper Beam.


E-Reader: In the Japanese version of Colosseum, there is a room to the left of the lobby in Phenac Stadium. In this room, the player can scan e-Reader cards, which unlock challenges, allowing a shadow Togepi, Mareep, and Scizor to be obtained. This room is not accessible in the NTSC-U or PAL versions of the game, though.

Japanese Bonus Disc: Exclusive to the Colosseum Japanese Bonus Disc is a Celebi that you can obtain. However, to obtain Celebi, you must obtain and purify all 48 Shadow Pokemon in Colosseum—a similar feat to obtaining Ho-ohOh. This only works for JPN region Colosseum games. After obtaining Colosseum, you can transfer up to 48 other Celebi to any GBA Pokemon game, with the only requirements being that the Elite Four/National Dex is obtained and the file is saved in a Pokemon Center.
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Introduction:

Pokemon Colosseum and Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness were the first 3-D RPG Pokemon games to be created for the Nintendo GameCube. Colosseum is the first in the series, while XD serves as the its direct sequel to Colosseum. What separates the GameCube entries from the mainline handheld entries is the frequent use of double battles, the land of Orre having little to no wild Pokemon, and the existence of Shadow Pokemon, a unique type of Pokemon obtainable only in these games. Shadow Pokemon are different from standard Pokemon due to their hearts artificially being closed, which makes them battle machines. The player can snag these Shadow Pokemon away from the trainers with the use of the Snag Machine and proceed to go through the process of purification,(RC) to open the Pokemon's heart.

Pokemon Colosseum's main purpose, besides being a way to battle in 3-D, was to give access to Pokemon missing from Ruby and Sapphire, mainly the Johto Starters,(RC) starters and the Legendary Beasts legendary beasts. This lead to Colosseum having a very limited pool of Pokemon to use for its main adventure.
The sequel, Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness,(AC) has more liberty in its Pokemon selection, as when it came out, Fire(space)Red, Leaf(space)Green, and Emerald were already released. XD made many improvements on over Colosseum with nearly every aspect,(AC) as the Shadow Pokemon mechanics are much more fleshed out, wild Pokemon were added, and the animations and graphics were improved, to name a few.

Pokemon Colosseum and Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness can be rather confusing to players, as they explain their new mechanics through character dialogue post-battle(AH) or memos and not through a tutorial like most other Pokemon games. This guide will attempt to explain these mechanics in a streamlined manner.

Double Battles:

Double Battles are a battle format introduced in Generation (Gen) 3. Although doubles are is the main format in
Pokemon VGC, they are seldom used in the traditional games' story mode. In fact, Pokemon Colosseum and XD are the first (and only) time games where doubles take center stage. The doubles format is interesting, as now each attack must be directed at a target. This also includes your own ally.
Whereas While the singles format tends to favor fast sweepers Pokemon, bulkier Pokemon and Pokemon with status-based movepools have heightened importance in the 2 vs 2 Doubles format. Moves that were once niche options,(RC) like Fake Out and Protect,(RC) now become optimal choices. Abilities that were (borderline) useless,(RC) like Lightning Rod,(RC) now serve a purpose. You might be surprised to see a Pokemon you otherwise wouldn't consider become a major threat in doubles, and vice versa.


Double Battles battles have a few different mechanics than Single Battles single battles. Unlike singles, doubles have the option to choose your target, including your ally.(RP) Sometimes choosing an ally to target might be a good idea, such as to easily activate an ability like Water Absorb or Flash Fire. There are also a few moves like Helping Hand which that can now be utilized. Unlike in the handheld games,(AC) where you can avoid certain double battles if you only have one active/healthy Pokemon available, battles will still commence in the doubles format if you have only one Pokemon available in either Colosseum or XD.

Unique to Gen 3, if a Pokemon faints, the next one is immediately sent out before the next Pokemon in the turn order moves. In double battles in Gen 4 and beyond, however, the Pokemon is sent out at the end of the turn. With how Gen 3 treats double battles, this means you can potentially KO all of the opposing Pokemon in a single turn. This even plays a role in XD's Battle CD 11.

Item usage in Colosseum and XD are is slightly different. When rRecovery items,(RC) they can be used for any Pokemon in the party. Using these items, however, uses up that specific Pokemon's turn. Items like X-Items or the Yellow Flute must be used on that specific Pokemon. There is a glitch with the X-Items that allow allows it to be used on the other Pokemon (further explained in the Glitches section). Unlike with Gen 5,(AC) where using a Poke Ball in a double battle required the use of both Pokemon's turn and for one opposing Pokemon to faint have fainted, no Pokemon needs to have fainted in the GameCube entries.


Certain moves in doubles have the ability to affect both opposing Pokemon, affect the opposing Pokemon and ally, or affect all Pokemon on the field. Moves such as Surf, Razor Leaf, and Icy Wind affect both foes but have their power cut in half to compensate. Moves such as Earthquake and Explosion hit all other Pokemon on the field. In Gen 3, these moves did not have their power cut due to the fact that they can affect your ally as well, but in later entries, these moves are were cut down to 75% of their original power Base Power when targeting multiple Pokemon. Exclusive to XD are moves Moves that affect both opposing Pokemon or every Pokemon on the field such as Shadow Wave and Storm, and Shadow Half and Sky, respectively,(AC) are exclusive to XD.


Shadow Pokemon:

Shadow Pokemon are Colosseum's and XD's main gimmick. As explained above, Shadow Pokemon are Pokemon who's whose hearts have been artificially closed. What separates them from normal Pokemon is that Shadow Pokemon only belong to trainers, they have an exclusive Shadow type, move or moves, they cannot level up or be taught new moves until purified, they cannot access certain areas (Phenac Colosseum in Colosseum, Orre Colosseum and the Day Care in XD, and the multiplayer modes in both Colosseum and XD), they have access to an exclusive condition called Hyper Mode (Colosseum only) and Reverse Mode (XD only), they cannot use items while in Hyper or Reverse Mode (with the exception of Scents), and their experience bar is replaced by a Heart Gauge. There are a total of 48 Shadow Pokemon in Colosseum and 83 in XD.
In Colosseum and XD the mechanics of capturing Shadow Pokemon are slightly different. When a Shadow Pokemon is caught in Colosseum, it is immediately sent to the PC or your party if an open slot is available, while in XD the Pokemon is only sent to the PC or party when the battle is won.


The Shadow type is a type exclusive to Colosseum and XD but has various differences. The Shadow type is not a type that Pokemon can have, but it has certain attributes. All Shadow-type moves have infinite PP in both Colosseum and XD.

The Shadow type in Colosseum acts as a neutral attacking type. It can hit all Pokemon in the game for neutral damage. The only Shadow move in Colosseum is Shadow Rush. Shadow Rush is a 90 base power 90-Base Power physical move that deals damage and the user suffers 1/16th of its maximum health as recoil damage. This also applies to NPCs using Shadow Pokemon, and thus these Pokemon have the potential to faint.

In XD, Shadow moves gain an extensive overhaul. There are now various Shadow-type moves that deal status effects, and certain Shadow moves are divided by attack and special attack will hit based on either Attack or Special Attack. XD actually makes the first instance of a physical/special split in the Pokemon games, and this is only apparent with Shadow moves. All other moves are physical or special based on its their typing, as the standard games. What makes Shadow-types unique is that Shadow moves deal super effective damage to all standard Pokemon while dealing being not very effective damage to against Shadow Pokemon. There are a total of 18 Shadow moves in XD.

Keep in mind that no Pokemon gain STAB with Shadow moves,(AC) as the Shadow-type is only available through moves, similar to Curse's pre-Gen 5 typing.


Courtesy of Zari for the research of said mechanic

Exclusive to XD, you'll notice that every Shadow Pokemon has a particular "+" next to their level. This means that (nearly) every Shadow Pokemon in the game is actually fought at a higher level than what they are encountered at.

"You may have noticed a + next to the level of the Shadow Pokemon you encounter. The meaning behind this sign refers to a small boost in all of its stats, dubbed the Shadow Boost. Almost every Shadow Pokemon has one of these Shadow Boosts, but they lose it upon capture."
*The Legendary Kanto Birds are not affected by this mechanic*

Basically, this means that every Shadow Pokemon has a hidden boost to their stats, with early-game(AH) Pokemon having a smaller boost and late- game(AH) Pokemon typically having a larger boost. Now it starts to make more sense as to why that Shadow Zangoose outsped your Pokemon when it otherwise couldn't have in a normal situation, as well as that Shadow Lunatone taking tanking a hit that would have otherwise OHKO it. The Shadow Boost factor can play an important role in figuring out speed IVs for the desired Shadow Pokemon.


The Heart Gauge is a bar that takes the place of the Exp. Points bar for every Shadow Pokemon obtainable. The bar is represented by 5 divisions which that all represent specific aspects and ranges. Each filled bar is represented by purple, and each cleared bar is represented by white. As the Heart Gauge depletes, the Shadow Pokemon regains certain aspects, until it is fully depleted.

Important Note: In Colosseum, Shadow Pokemon do not gain experience or happiness until the first two bars of the Heart Gauge are depleted. It is recommended to deplete those two bars as fast as possible. This does not apply to XD; Shadow Pokemon can gain experience and happiness the moment they are captured.
5 bars: "The door to its heart is tightly shut." The Pokemon only has access to Shadow Rush (in Colosseum) or other Shadow-type moves.
4 bars: "The door to its heart is opening up." The Pokemon regains its first move (if applicable).
3 bars: "The door to its heart is opening wider." The Pokemon's nature is revealed. The Pokemon can now gain experience and happiness (not applicable to XD).
2 bars: "The door to its heart is nearly open." The Pokemon regains its second move (if applicable).
1 bar: "The door to its heart is almost fully open." The Pokemon regains its third move (Colosseum only). Shadow Pokemon are now more likely to enter Hyper/Reverse Mode
Empty: "The door to its heart is about to open. Undo the final lock!" The Pokemon is now eligible for the purification ceremony.


Each Pokemon has a certain amount of Heart Gauge, which in the programming,(RC) is represented by a number. The values can be seen here (second tab). The numbers to the left of the "/" are related to Colosseum, while the numbers to the right are for XD.


In Colosseum, when using Pokemon in battle, they can sometimes undergo this special condition called Hyper Mode. Hyper Mode can only be accessed by using Shadow Rush. Accessing Hyper Mode is random and uses up a turn. In Hyper Mode, the Pokemon's Shadow Rush gets a drastically increased critical hit ratio, but if they use other moves, the Pokemon may disobey the trainer and do various actions such as ignore the trainer them, use another move, fall asleep, use a held item (even if it's not holding one), go back into its ball, or even attack the player and NPC trainer. Pokemon in Hyper Mode cannot use consumable bag items from the trainer. The only three ways to exit Hyper Mode is to either have the Pokemon faint.(RP) ,(AC) use the Call function, or use a Scent after battle. Some like to use Hyper Mode to increase the battle viability of a Pokemon due to the increased crit rate critical hit chance, while others tend to end Hyper Mode as soon as it appears to go through purification quicker more quickly.

In XD, what replaces Hyper Mode is Reverse Mode. Reverse Mode does have differences to Hyper Mode. Unlike Hyper Mode, Reverse Mode does not increase the Shadow moves crit critical hit rate, but similarly to Hyper Mode, Reverse Mode disallows it prevents the use of consumable bag items and can only be exited through the above three methods. Other non-Shadow type moves can be used at a greater frequency in Reverse Mode,(AC) but sometimes the Pokemon may disobey the trainer. The biggest difference of Reverse Mode is that it can activate whether or not Shadow-type moves are used,(RC) ;(ASC) it activates at the end of the respective Shadow Pokemon's battle phase (even if the opposing trainer is defeated), and it deals recoil at the end of the turn, so it is best to exit it as soon as possible.

The Call feature in Colosseum and XD replaces the "Run" feature from the mainline games. Its main use is to call Pokemon out of Hyper/Reverse mode and lower the gauge. It can also be used to wake up a sleeping Pokemon, acting like the game's Poke Flute. In Colosseum, if Call is used on a non-Hyper Mode or sleeping Pokemon, it will do nothing, effectively wasting a turn. This can actually come in handy in some spots situations where you don't want to waste PP when capturing a Shadow Pokemon. In XD, it has greater use. When used on a non-Reverse Mode or sleeping Pokemon, it will instead raise the Pokemon's accuracy by one stage.


Colosseum and XD have various methods of opening the Pokemon's heart. What most people do not realize at first is that natures all affect how much or how little a Pokemon's heart opens to the methods. The values,(RC) and the effects natures have on them can be seen here. The numbers to the left of the "/" are related to Colosseum, while the numbers to the right are for XD.

Battling: Battling is the most common method of lowering the Heart Gauge. This method can only be utilized once per battle, and the Pokemon has to actively participate in the battle. Switching out and then back in, or reviving it,(RC) and then sending it out in the same battle again will not affect the Heart Gauge.
Calling: Calling a Pokemon, while in Hyper or Reverse Mode will also deplete the Heart Gauge. Most likely the second most common method utilized.
Massaging: Using Scents on a Shadow Pokemon will deplete the Heart Gauge.
Walking: For every 256 Steps, a certain amount of the Heart Gauge will deplete
Day Care: (Colosseum Only): For every 256 steps taken while a Shadow Pokemon is in the daycare, an amount will deplete from the Heart Gauge. Shadow Pokemon do not gain experience from the use of the daycare.
Celebi: (Colosseum Only) Celebi, via the use of the Time Flute, can instantly purify any Shadow Pokemon.
Purify Chamber: (XD Only): Through the use of a special device in the Pokemon HQ Lab, multiple Pokemon can have their hearts open as well as go through the purification ceremony.


Once all the bars of the Heart Gauge are depleted, the Pokemon can now be completely purified. In Colosseum, the only method of the purification process is to go to the Relic Stone in Agate Village. One can only access Agate Village once the Pyrite Town portion of the story is completed. This happens pretty far into the game, almost a good 1/4th into the of the entire game. In XD, reaching Agate Village is far earlier into the story. In XD, the Purification Chamber can also be used to purify Pokemon. Also,(AC) in XD, when Pokemon are purified, all Shadow Pokemon have access to one TM move, sometimes one egg move, and one special move they otherwise could not learn. Some examples of these special moves are Refresh, Heal Bell, and Helping Hand.


The Purify Chamber is an area exclusive to XD. The Purify Chamber acts as a facility, in a way replacing the Day Care's function to purify Shadow Pokemon in Colosseum, to help purify Pokemon faster and easier where Pokemon can be purified faster and more easily. There are 9 chambers that all start out empty. Four standard Pokemon in total can be placed on the outer circle in of the chamber, and a Shadow Pokemon can be placed in the middle. Depending on the Pokemon put in the chamber, the tempo and flow will increase. If all the Pokemon in the circle do super effective damage in a clockwise motion, the tempo and flow will be maxed. If every Pokemon in the chamber has no repeating types, the flow will gain a mark depending on how many chambers meet this requirement.

For example, if the Shadow Pokemon is an Ice-type and then it points to the Grass-type, which in a clockwise method which goes Grass>Water>Rock>Fire and then back to Grass, the chamber will have max tempo, flow, and a mark in the flow gauge. If the chamber has a type matchup in the method of Poison/Flying>Fighting/Grass>Steel>Ice/Water and back to Poison/Flying, but the Shadow Pokemon is Bug/Flying, because there are two Flying-types in the chamber, it will still reach max tempo and flow but will not have the extra mark.

The Purify Chamber decreases the Heart Gauge based on walking and battling with a combination of natures: Walking seems to have the lowest multiplier, while partaking in battles has the highest multiplier. When a Pokemon is ready to be purified, a notification will pop up on the screen. The Purify Chamber can be accessed from the PC to arrange and rearrange Pokemon, but Pokemon can only be purified by physically going to the Pokemon HQ. The Purify Chamber is a very important aspect, as having all 9 chambers have max tempo and flow is the only way to purify Shadow Lugia, which cannot be purified by no other normal means.



Items:

Scents are an exclusive item to the GameCube games and come in three varieties: Joy, Excite, and Vivid Scent. Joy, Excite,(AC) and Vivid Scents are 1x, 2x, and 3x multipliers (of what? Friendship I'm assuming, if so might as well just mention it right away), respectively. They each go for 600, 800, and 1200 Poke Dollars. The items raise friendship as well as lower the Heart Gauge of Shadow Pokemon. They can only be bought in Agate Village and can only be held in a Cologne Case.


The Time Flute is an item exclusive to Colosseum. This item, when used at the Relic Stone, can summon Celebi,(AC) which instantly purifies any Shadow Pokemon, no matter how much of the Heart Gauge is filled. The Time Flute is a limited item, with only three being obtainable in the entire game. One is given to you after the Mt. Battle story portion is completed, and the other two are optional finds: one being in The Under via the use of the U-Disk,(RC) and one being found at the summit of Mt. Battle, right before the 100th battle. It's best to use these limited items on Pokemon that take a while to purify, such as the Beasts or the pseudo-legends legendary Pokemon.


Poke Snacks are an item exclusive to XD,(RC) which allows that allow you to attract wild Pokemon to specific landmarks in the Orre region. These snacks can be bought at any Poke Mart for 300 Poke Dollars once the Poke Spot storyline is completed and one talks to Duking.


In these games, the main character utilizes a handheld Snag Machine to steal Pokemon from trainers. In Colosseum, you have a partner named Rui who has a special power which that can detect these Shadow Pokemon, while in XD, you simply use a scouter called the Aura Reader. Outside of narrative purposes, the Snag Balls do not act any differently than regular Poke Balls and can only be used on Shadow Pokemon. Only one Poke Ball can be thrown per turn.


Areas of Interest:
Like the name suggests, both Colosseum and XD contain colosseums. Each stadium/colosseum contains 4 rounds with 4 battles fought in a row with a cash prize (can be influenced by Amulet Coin) given out if the player successfully completes them, as well as a TM for the first time each round is completed
Phenac Stadium: In Colosseum, the levels range from 40-42, containing weak or first stage Pokemon. The TMs given out in order of round completion are TM18 (Rain Dance), TM11 (Sunny Day), TM19 (Giga Drain),(AC) and TM22 (Solarbeam). This stadium in particular is special in particular ,(AC) as it is the only story mode area where Shadow Pokemon are unable to enter.
In XD, the Phenac Stadium serves a plot-related role instead.
Pyrite Colosseum: In Colosseum (after the mandatory plot-related segment), levels range from 50-55. Most Pokemon are mid-stage or first-stage, but there are a few Pokemon that are fully evolved. The TMs rewarded are TM01 (Focus Punch), TM07 (Hail), TM05 (Roar), and TM31 (Brick Break).
In XD, the levels are a flat 20. The TMs rewarded are TM31 (Brick Break), TM12 (Taunt), TM41 (Torment), and TM05 (Roar).
Under Colosseum: In Colosseum, levels range from 55-59. Pokemon are a blend of mid-stage Pokemon and no-evolution Pokemon. The final battles of each round contain fully-evolved Pokemon. TMs rewarded are TM37 (Sandstorm), TM36 (Sludge Bomb), TM30 (Shadow Ball), and TM23 (Iron Tail).
As The Under is inaccessible in XD, Under Colosseum does not exist.
Realgam Colosseum: In Colosseum, it serves as the final area for the main storyline.
In XD, even though it is a part of the Realgam Tower, which is unlocked when the Phenac City plotline starts, the Colosseum itself doesn't unlock until the player first reaches Snagem Hideout. The trainers in the colosseum are at flat level 40. TMs rewarded are TM49 (Snatch), TM19 (Giga Drain), TM23 (Iron Tail), and TM22 (Solarbeam).,
Deep Colosseum: Deep Colosseum is a post-game area in Colosseum. This colosseum in particular is special,(AC) as it contains five rounds as opposed to the four rounds that all the other colosseums have. The Pokemon's levels range from 60-70. The TMs rewarded are TM 12 (Taunt), TM 48 (Skill Swap), TM 44 (Rest), and TM 02 (Dragon Claw). Round 5 does not reward you with a TM upon completion.
In XD, as Deep Colosseum is part of The Under, and said location no longer exists within XD, neither does the colosseum.



Mt. Battle is a facility in the Orre region where trainers can battle their way through 10 zones, each containing 10 trainers. Each zone can be repeated as many times as needed, but when a zone is started, the 10 trainers must be beaten. If one leaves the area, they must start the specific zone again at from the very beginning. If the ten 10 (consistency) trainers in a zone are defeated, one earns Poke Coupons (and a TM in XD on first completion), an exclusive currency to the Orre region which that acts very similar to Battle Points and Festival Coins. Pokemon do gain experience and Pokemon are fully healed after every battle.
Exclusive to Colosseum's Battle Mode is the Mt. Battle Challenge, where one must take their team from either the story mode or from the game carts, and partake in 100 single or double battles in a row. Battles are done in 3v3 (singles) or 4v4 (doubles), chosen from a pool of 6. These Pokemon do not gain experience. The Pokemon in the Challenge scale to your Pokemon's max level starting at 50. Unlike the story mode Mt. Battle, Pokemon cannot be exchanged switched out, nor can you quit out and return at a later time, but the process can be suspended. One can gain continues if they beat a trainer without losing any Pokemon.
This method is also the only non-event way to obtain Ho-Oh in a Gen 3 game, but one must capture and purify all 48 shadow Pokemon as well as use a team from the Story Mode save file (this does not stop a person from trading Pokemon over from RSE,(RC) or FRLG and using said Pokemon for the challenge, but that also requires the use of a GCN-GBA link cable).



Poke Spots are areas exclusive to XD,(RC) which that allow you to capture wild Pokemon. There are 3 Poke Spots in the game: Cave, Oasis, and Rock. The Following Pokemon can be found at each spot. Each Pokemon have has a Common, Uncommon, and Rare chance of appearing, with it being 50%, 35%, and 15%, respectively.
Cave: Zubat, Aron, Wooper
Oasis: Hoppip, Phanpy, Surskit
Rock: Sandshrew, Gligar, Trapinch

The moment the Spot Monitor goes off, the kind species of Pokemon, its nature, and shininess are determined, but its level and IVs are determined when the battle is started so the latter can be soft-reset for.

After a certain point in the game, there is a 10% chance that a Munchlax can be encountered, but it cannot be caught. It eats Poke Snacks at a much higher frequency. If it is seen before it eats the Poke Snacks, its owner will arrive and give you 10 Poke(space)Snacks as well as a random herbal item.


The Realgam Tower in Colosseum acts like the final dungeon for the main storyline. In XD, however, the Realgam Tower is unlocked once the player first reaches Phenac City. The area,(RC) outside of the Realgam Colosseum contains two other points of interest:
Battle CDs. Special predetermined battles that test a person's knowledge of the Pokemon battle system. Some battles may require you to complete the battle in a limited amount of turns, while other battles may have something like "Legendary Beasts vs. Legendary Golems" or "All Metronome Battle." The CDs themselves are scattered all throughout the Orre region, and there are 50 in total (some CDs cannot be obtained until after the main storyline is completed). Each CD rewards you with an item when completed. such as a Full Heal or a Rare Candy. Completing all 50 CDs rewards the player with 15,000 Poke Coupons.
Battle Bingo. Battle Bingo is bingo but with a Pokemon twist. The goal is to complete a 4x4 panel while using a Pokemon predetermined on the card. Entering a panel costs one Entry Point (EP) and you start with two EP and two Master Balls. The goal is to defeat or capture the Pokemon in the panel. Some panels contain an extra Master Ball or extra EPs. One EP is earned for every line completed.
Each Pokemon only has one move available, and depending on the card, not every Pokemon will have a move corresponding with to their typing. There are five difficulty settings: Beginner, Intermediate, Expert, Extra, and Special. Every card,(AC) when completed,(AC) will give you a select amount of Poke Coupons,(RC) as well as an item such as an Ether,(RC) for the first time completed. Extra coupons are also given depending on how much EP or Master Balls you have left. When all ten cards from Beginner to Extra are completed, one unlocks 1-Panel mode where after the first panel is chosen, the next panel must be an adjacent one. If you cannot choose a panel, the game automatically ends.
The Special panel can only be unlocked by obtaining the Bonsly Card, which is given to you when you rescue Bonsly. This marks the first time a Gen 4 Pokemon can be used in battle.



Orre Colosseum in Colosseum,(RC) is exclusive to the Battle Mode. It hosts level 50 or level 100 trainers in both Singles and Doubles format. There are 8 trainers in each format and they must all be beaten in a row.

In XD, due to the lack of a Battle Mode, Orre Colosseum receives a significant overhaul. It can only be accessed in the post-game. The battles are in a 4v4 doubles format, with 7 rounds each consisting of 4 trainers. The levels start at 60 and scale with your Pokemon's max level. The facility is comparable to other post-game(AH) facilities found in the mainline games such as the Battle Frontier and the Pokemon World Tournament, and require it requires extensive knowledge of Pokemon and/or EV training to successively be accomplished. It is very much possible (although very difficult) to beat the in-game portion with the Pokemon obtained in the game.


(Useful) Bugs, Glitches and Miscellaneous:

Colosseum and XD, like most games, have glitches contained in them. Some of these glitches are actually beneficial to the player.

The Master Ball Glitch is the most well known of Colosseum's glitches, as it allows the usage of Poke Balls without actually depleting the count.
To utilize the glitch, one must use their first Pokemon, choose a Poke Ball from the bag and target a Shadow Pokemon. The second Pokemon must go into the bag and switch the placement of the ball using the X or Y button. For some reason, since the ball is not in the original place, it doesn't subtract from the count. Any ball can be used for the glitch, but it has the best usage with the Master Ball because of its 100% capture properties. This glitch makes snagging late-game(AH) or missed Pokemon very easy.
Warning: If your second Pokemon utilizes a two-turn move like Solarbeam Solar Beam, Hyper Beam, or Razor Wind, and you attempt to use the glitch on the turn the move is charging, it will consume the ball because the second turn is "skipped."


In both Colosseum and XD, there are certain spots that,(RC) if your character model walks into certain spots, it will cause the screen to shake. This actually counts as movement,(AC) unlike simply walking into a wall. The most well-known spot in both games is the left ledge near the entrance of Agate Village. If one combines this with the exploit of unplugging your Gamecube controller and replugging your controller it with the control stick in the upward position, your character will automatically walk downward. Since the ledge is in a 6 o'clock position, the walking bug will commence without you even playing the game. This is especially useful for purifying Shadow Pokemon with a large Heart Gauge such as the legendary Pokemon,(RC) and pseudo-legendary Pokemon in each game.

In Colosseum, the corner of the wall in front of the stairs in Gonzap's office is also a spot that can be used for this bug.

In XD, there is also a spot in Area 3 of Citadark Isle (the whirlpool area) between the bottom wall and the southeast room where you can trigger the shaking screen movement by walking into that corner.

In XD, it's advisable to do this without any Pokemon in the Purify Chamber, snacks at the Poke Spots, or an active Miror B. Radar as their respective prompts will pop up a message that stops all movement.


One of the most recent glitches discovered was the ability to use two X-Items on a Pokemon. If you attempt to use an item on a Pokemon that would have no effect on it (full heal on a healthy Pokemon, potions on a max health Pokemon) and then immediately use an X-Item, the game will use the item on the Pokemon last selected. This means that if you have Pokemon 1 and Pokemon 2, use a full heal on a healthy Pokemon 2 with Pokemon 1's turn, then use X-Attack, it will apply the boost on Pokemon 2. Then you can use another X-Attack on Pokemon 2 during Pokemon 2's turn. It has its greatest use in speedruns but can be utilized just as well in casual playthroughs.


Shiny Pokemon and in Colosseum/XD interact rather weirdly.
In Colosseum, Shadow Pokemon can be shiny upon encounter but may become regular upon capture. Conversely, they may be regular upon encounter but become shiny upon purification. The reason for this is because when encountered, the Shadow Pokemon are generated using their opponent's ID number rather than the player's. Because the IDs get overwritten with yours upon capture,(AC) while the PID remains static, a Pokemon that was shiny in battle may become regular upon capture. It also works the other way around - if the PID is shiny with your IDs but not your opponent's, it will appear normal in battle and then become shiny when you capture it. There is a very very slim chance that it will be shiny in both cases, but that requires the PID being shiny with both your IDs and your opponent's. In addition to this, the starter Umbreon and Espeon cannot be shiny under any circumstances, and neither can the MATTLE Ho-Oh nor the DUKING Plusle.

On a bit of a tangent, the Jirachi from the Colosseum Bonus Disc can actually be shiny despite them coding in an anti-shiny mechanism - it is limited to very few natures/IV spreads.

In XD, they implemented a shiny-lock(AH) feature whereby,(AC) if the Shadow Pokemon's generated PID is shiny with the player's IDs, it's rerolled until it is not shiny. This means that Shadow Pokemon in XD can never be shiny. However, there are more Pokemon in XD than just Shadow Pokemon; there are also Poke Spot Pokemon, the DUKING trade Pokemon, the Mt. Battle Johto starters, and the starter Eevee, all of which can be shiny.


Just like in the mainline titles, Colosseum and XD have a few gift Pokemon and in-game traded Pokemon that will gain boosted experience thanks to having a different trainer ID. All of these Pokemon come with a random nature,(AC) so it is possible to soft reset for your preferred nature. The Pokemon are as follow:
Plusle (Colosseum): Plusle is gifted to you by Duking after defeating Miror B. the first time.
Ho-Oh (Colosseum): Ho-Oh is a special case of a gifted Pokemon and has a few prerequisites before being obtained.
1. Your Colosseum save file must have obtained and purified all 48 Shadow Pokemon.
2. You must complete Mt. Battle in Colosseum's Battle Mode, not Story Mode.
3. You must use the save file from the Colosseum's Story Mode for this task.

If you get through this monumental task, your Colosseum save file will be gifted a Level 70 Ho-Oh. It might seem like simple bragging rights or Pokedex completion for your GBA games, but it can be used for the colosseums in the Battle Mode section.
Celebi (Colosseum; Japan Only): If you have access to the Japanese Bonus Disc as well as a Japanese version of Colosseum, your save file can receive a level 10 Celebi. The only requirement for this is to have all 48 Shadow Pokemon purified.

Shuckle, Meditite, and Larvitar (XD): These Pokemon can be traded to Duking for Surskit, Trapinch, and Wooper,(AC) respectively,(AC) after completing the ONBS plotline.
Togepi and Elekid (XD): Togepi is technically a gift Pokemon because it is the only Shadow Pokemon across both games that are is simply gifted to you by Hordel,(RC) but it shares your Trainer ID. It is meant to be traded back to Hordel in exchange for an Elekid. This Elekid comes with the three elemental punches as well as Cross Chop at level 20.
Cyndaquil, Totodile, and Chikorita (XD): The three Johto starters are obtainable in XD. Like Ho-Oh, they require certain prerequisites
1. Mt. Battle 1 through 100 must be done in one sitting.
2. Your Pokemon party cannot be swapped out via the PC.
3. Only one of each starter may be chosen upon completion.

This can be achieved before completion of the main story, but in almost all situations it will be a post-game challenge, as Mt. Battle ends with Pokemon in the high 60's and low 70's and tends to make large level jumps every two areas (Areas 1-2 would be levels 9-14, Areas 3-4 would be 28-31, Areas 5-6 would be 42-45, Areas 7-8 would be 57-64, and Areas 9-10 would be 64-70).
Each Johto starter starts out at level 5, comes with one egg move, as well as their respective elemental Hyper Beam STAB move.


E-Reader: In the Japanese version of Colosseum, there is a room to the left of the lobby in Phenac Stadium. In this room, the player can scan e-Reader cards, which unlock challenges, allowing a shadow Togepi, Mareep, and Scizor to be obtained. This room is not accessible in the NTSC-U or PAL versions of the game, though.

Japanese Bonus Disc: Exclusive to the Colosseum Japanese Bonus Disc is a Celebi that you can obtain. However, to obtain Celebi, you must obtain and purify all 48 Shadow Pokemon in Colosseum—a similar feat task to obtaining Ho-Oh. This only works for JPN region Colosseum games. After obtaining Colosseum, you can transfer up to 48 other Celebi to any GBA Pokemon game, with the only requirements being that the Elite Four/National Dex is obtained and the file is saved in a Pokemon Center.

 
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