What Happens When a Pokemon is Infatuated?
As an avid Pokemon gamer, content creator, and battle enthusiast, one question I get asked a lot is – what exactly happens when a Pokemon gets infatuated in battle? Infatuation can be unpredictable but also opens some unique strategic opportunities. In this article, I‘ll share comprehensive insights on the infatuated status, its effects, causes, and competitive usage.
Immobilized by Love! The Effects of Infatuation
In game terms, when a Pokemon is infatuated, there is a 50% chance it will become immobilized by love each turn. This means the Pokemon‘s infatuation causes it to suddenly stop listening to you!
An immobilized Pokemon skips its attack for that turn and does absolutely nothing. I can just imagine my powerful Charizard daydreaming about romance instead of incinerating opponents like I want!
Now statistically speaking, over the course of 5-7 turns of infatuation in various Pokemon games, there‘s a good chance your Pokemon will fail to attack 1-3 times. That can seriously throw off any trainer‘s strategy! See my own analysis of chances below:
Chances of Infatuation Immobilizing Over Time
| Turns Infatuated | % Chance Immobilized At Least Once |
|---|---|
| 1 Turn | 50% |
| 2 Turns | 75% |
| 3 Turns | 88% |
| 4 Turns | 94% |
| 5 Turns | 97% |
As you can see, infatuation can really ruin someone‘s day in battle by wasting precious turns. Those missed attacks give you openings to set up and sweep!
The infatuated status itself wears off automatically after 5-7 turns generally. So it is only a temporary distraction before Pokemon snap back to battling.
Causes of Infatuation in Battle
Some of the most common moves that cause infatuation include:
- Attract – Works on opposite gender targets
- Captivate – Lowers Special Attack before infatuating
- Cute Charm – Ability causing contact infatuation
Attract and Captivate won‘t work on Pokemon with no gender. And Oblivious/Own Tempo provide blanket immunity too.
I‘ll admit infatuation by Attract against my male Nidoking sweeper has ruined many online matches! So learn the common causes to watch out for them.
Competitive Strategy With Infatuation Mechanics
While unpredictable, incorporating infatuation into competitive strategy can pay dividends:
Stop Powerful Sweepers
If you can infatuate opponents‘ main Dynamax or Mega Evolutions early, you delay their onslaught several precious turns. Those missed attacks create openings for your own win conditions.
But the 50% immobilize chance means this a risky play requiring backup plans…
Baton Pass Infatuation
Use Baton Pass to position infatuated targets for teammates. For example, I‘ve passed infatuation from Ditto to Garchomp so my Dragapult can setup more easily.
Bolster With Other Effects
Captivate lowering Special Attack combines very well with infatuation support. I‘ve also used Swagger to infuriate and confuse opponents on top of preventing attacks through infatuation.
At the end of the day, infatuation strategies are about forcing opponents to waste turns while you position advantage. Turn that immobilized chance into turn advantage for your win condition!
Stay tuned here as I share more battle mechanics insights in the competitive scene. And sound off in the comments with how you leverage infatuation in your own teams!
