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1[[quoteright:279:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pokemon_mde.png]]
2
3->''"Welcome to a grand tale! A tale that spans time... And darkness. It's the dawn of epic exploration!"''
4-->-- ''Time/Darkness'' introduction
5
6The second [[OneGameForThePriceOfTwo entries]] in the {{roguelike}} ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' SpinOff series ''VideoGame/PokemonMysteryDungeon'', ''Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness'' and ''Explorers of Time'' were released for the UsefulNotes/NintendoDS in 2008.
7
8Similar to the [[VideoGame/PokemonMysteryDungeonRescueTeam first installment]], the player wakes up in a world inhabited solely by Pokémon, this time washing ashore of a small village called Treasure Town after a storm, with no memories of what happened to them or how/why they've been transformed from a human into a Pokémon. They befriend a timid young Pokémon with a mysterious artifact and together join the local Wigglytuff Guild to train as an exploration team, exploring the strange, randomly generated "mystery dungeons" that have been showing up in various regions lately. Along the way they learn that a mysterious Pokémon has been reported stealing [[PlotCoupon very important artifacts]] called "Time Gears," and ultimately get swept up in a quest to SaveTheWorld before [[TimeStandsStill time itself grinds to a halt]].
9
10The games were followed up by an UpdatedRerelease called ''Explorers of Sky'' in 2009. Outside of some minor balance changes, ''Sky'' also features [[ADayInTheLimelight Special Episodes focusing on side characters]], the Spinda Juice Bar, and a couple new sidequests.
11----
12!!This installment provides examples of:
13
14[[foldercontrol]]
15
16[[folder:#-M]]
17* TwentyBearAsses: To get through the Aegis Cave, you need Unown Stones spelling out the words "ice", "steel", and "rock", dropped by the corresponding Unown inhabiting the dungeon. There's only a ''chance'' that they'll drop it, and only a ''chance'' that they'll actually be on that floor. You need to do this every time you visit the dungeon, even after you've beaten the mission and previously cleared the way.
18* AbsurdlyHighLevelCap:
19** The level cap for Pokémon is at Lv. 100 like in the main games. The TrueFinalBoss is at Lv. 53, and you'll likely be around Lv. 60 when you beat him.
20** Every non-story mission you complete gives you exploration points. The final level in ''Time/Darkness'' is the Master rank, which you need a full 77,777 points for (even the hardest mission gives you 1,500 points, and most failsafe ones a lot less). By the time you beat the TrueFinalBoss, you'll likely not even be halfway there. ''Sky'' added some intermediate ranks, but the final rank was pushed even further, so you need 100,000 points now.
21* AdaptationExplanationExtrication: In ''Explorers of Time'' and ''Darkness'', Luxray can see the team hiding behind a rock using his X-ray vision. He's changed to a Manectric in ''Sky'', who senses their presence... somehow.
22* AdaptationSpeciesChange: The Luxray Tribe in ''Time'' and ''Darkness'' encountered in Amp Plains are the Manectric Tribe in ''Sky'', because Shinx was made a starter in the latter game.
23* AdventurersClub: ''Sky'' adds a new location called 'Spinda's Café', a shop that is designed for the local exploration teams. In it, the player can brew drinks that increase their stats, or trade in useless items for prize tickets for a chance of winning something better. Later on you get access to new dungeons that can only be unlocked from the Café, and the NPC's that hang around in it are fellow explorers who discuss their recent explorations, or Pokémon who have mission requests.
24* AffablyEvil: Grovyle, who is attempting to steal the Time Gears, is nothing but cordial and [[ApologeticAttacker apologetic]] with his victims. [[spoiler:Of course, that's because he's not actually evil. He just doesn't bother to explain his actions.]]
25* AffectionateParody: Wigglytuff's Guild is a send-up of typical large Japanese businesses, such as the use of routine morning cheers. [[ThePollyanna Wigglytuff]] and [[MeanBoss Chatot]] serve as dead ringers for "ame to muchi" ("sweets and whips"), a common way of ensuring employee zeal: Rewards ("ame") for good results, but public castigation and demerits ("muchi") when you fall short.
26* AllInARow: The partner always follows the player outside of dungeons. Within dungeons, teammates will follow behind the player by default.
27* AmazonBrigade: Team Charm is an elite all-female exploration team, able to stand up to rival exploration teams and legendary Pokémon.
28* AndNowForSomeoneCompletelyDifferent: The special episodes of ''Sky'' make you play as various other characters from the main story, like Bidoof or Wigglytuff.
29* AndYourRewardIsParenthood:
30** Completing jobs with an unknown reward can give you a Pokémon Egg that will join your team once it hatches.
31** After completing the "Surrounded Sea" for the first time, the player will find an egg [[spoiler:that hatches into a Manaphy]].
32* AnswerCut: The night before the Amp Plains mission, your partner wonders aloud how [[spoiler:Uxie is doing. The next scene shows Uxie being attacked by Grovyle for the Time Gear.]]
33* AntiFrustrationFeatures:
34** In ''Explorers'', if you recruit a Pokémon while at the maximum party size, the recruited Pokémon is forced to teleport home. In ''Sky'', you can instead choose to send another Pokémon in your party home. Even before ''Sky'', this still qualified. Pokemon couldn't be recruited in ''Rescue Team'' if the party was full, so this allows one to recruit new Pokemon while retaining a full strength team, and doesn't risk losing the new recruit if they faint before mission completion (which was also a frustration in ''Rescue Team'').
35** If you fail to find Spoink's pearl a few times, Wigglytuff will give you a few helpful items to aid you in your next attempt.
36* ApocalypseAnarchy: Grovyle notes that the [[spoiler:darkness-plunged future caused by the paralysis of the planet has made timid Pokémon such as Spiritomb violent.]]
37* ArbitraryMissionRestriction: Some of the procedurally generated rescue missions have ridiculously specific conditions to take them on. You want to save this Pokémon in grave danger? Too bad, you can only do it with a Linoone in your team.
38* ArtificialStupidity: The AI of Pokémon is simplistic, though there are IQ Skills that improve their behavior.
39** Pokémon will use room-wide moves such as Sweet Scent in a room with sleeping and/or petrified Pokémon, instantly unfreezing them.
40** Pokémon will step on avoidable, visible traps that you just activated.
41** Pokémon will spam non-stacking status moves like Focus Energy or Mud Sport, wasting their move.
42** Pokémon need a high IQ before actively taking advantage of type weaknesses.
43** ''You'' need to increase your level before being able to tell your party members to do things such as wait, or run away if they're about to faint.
44** One of the tactics you can tell your party members to use is "Avoid the first hit", described as, "The Pokémon will try to avoid being attacked first. If an enemy comes close, however, the Pokémon will attack." In practice the party member will approach any hostile Pokémon, including sleeping Pokémon, and wait one tile away until attacked. If the enemy attacks at range instead of closing to melee, the party member will stand still and just take it until they die.
45** Party Pokémon will attempt to move over impassable terrain, ''including walls'', to follow you.
46** If you aren't in their line of sight, party members will wander off in random directions away from each other looking for you, even if they can see other party members following you. This isn't so bad once you can change their tactic to "wait there", but you can't change the tactics of anyone who isn't part of your exploration team, [[EscortMission such as clients]].
47** If a hostile Pokémon is in sight and a party member is holding throwable objects such as rocks, then that party member will do nothing else but throw items at the Pokémon. This often means blocking the way for other party members to enter the room, who will become confused and wander off if they can't see you.
48* AutoRevive: Reviver seeds automatically trigger once you or one of your teammates is defeated. It restores all HP, Belly and PP, and it nullifies all status effects.
49* AwesomeButImpractical: Some of the species 3-star exclusive items are very dissapointing for the effort and/or luck required to obtain them, but they pale in comparison to the type-specific ones. To make it clear, exclusive items in general can be grouped into four categories:
50** The species exclusives that come with in set of two 1-star items, a 2-star item and a 3-star item, for 44 evolutionary families in Time/Darkness and 46 in Sky[[labelnote:Specifically]]The starter Pokémon, Clefairy, Jigglypuff, Chansey, Mr. Mime, Scyther, Jynx, Electabuzz, Magmar, Lapras, Togepi, Marill, Sudowoodo, Wobbuffet, Sneasel, Teddiursa, Mantine, Plusle, Minun, Castform, Bidoof, Shinx, Pachirisu, Buizel, Cherubi, Drifloon, Gible, Riolu and Phione; Sky added Vulpix and Phanpy.[[/labelnote]]. These are obtained simply enough: when opening Treasure Boxes, there's a chance it might contain a 1-star item (if the enemy species has such an item, it is likely to be chosen); alternatively they can be awarded for a mission ranked at least 5 stars when the reward section has "???". All of these 1-star items simply increase stats. By having both 1-star items of a species, the player can swap them at Croagunk's Swap Shop for the 2-star item, most of which also just increase stats. If the player has 2-star item and the 1-star items together, they can be swapped for the 3-star item, which often do something different than just boosting stats. Acquiring the 3-star item can be a bit tedious given the required effort and luck to get that specific item (though it is easier in Sky given certain dungeons have special Treasure Boxes at the end that often contain one of leader's exclusive item... [[GuideDangIt assuming you know of this secret]]), especially given the usefulness of these is all over the place. Certain 3-star items are ''very'' useful (such as protection against a type weakness, better healing, PP restoration, or more frequent Boxes - which makes further items easier to acquire), some are situational but still useful (extra Movement Speed in a weather condition, inflicting status on attacker, or immunity to thrown items), but some are just really useless and not worth the effort (experience bonus is not really worth all this effort and neither is ignoring Light Screen or Reflect, given that not only are these moves really rare without using a TM, ''they only affect the user in these games''), making them fall into this.
51** The species exclusive that come only with a 3-star item. In Time and Darkness there's 34 of these, all for legendaries (except Phione)... and Rotom and Spiritomb for some reason. All of these are found behind locked chambers in specific dungeons (except Manaphy, who requires a special Wonder Mail mission in Time/Darkness and has to be swapped for in Sky). Like the previous group, the usefulness varies: many of the legendary ones are awesome (like Cresselia sharing stat buffs to entire team, weather trio getting a double attack in their favored weather or Palkia just getting a universal damage multiplier) or at least useful in specific situations (like Darkrai inflicting Nightmare status or the legendary birds having chance to survive a fatal blow) but some are really not that good (Raikou and Entei get Reflect/Light Screen ignoring, while Mewtwo, Lugia and Deoxys get more PP draining... even though PP on enemies rarely matters). In Sky, all species who were missing an exclusive item were given one of this kind, though these new ones are simply acquired at Croagunk's Swap Shop for swapping 5 of ''any'' item, making them straightforward to obtain... once they show up. And of course, some have great effects, some have niche but still useful effects, and some are just not worth the effort.
52** The species-exclusive items that ignore the typical rules. These are the secret second 3-star item for baby Pokemon (except Munchlax), which are acquired when hatching that Egg, as well as Eeveelutions and the Hitmons items, where the evolved forms have only 3-star items that are acquired by swapping in items of the base form. Unlike other evolutionary family, the 3-star items only affect the particular species.
53** The final group are the type items, which are by far the worst to acquire and fully fall into this trope. There are four for each type, like with normal species items; however they are obtained differently. The first 1-star item are locked in dungeons like the legendary items and they all increase stats, even more than the species items. The other 1-star type item is very hard to obtain- if the mission would reward a 1-star exclusive item, but the client/outlaw species does not have one, the reward is changed into a Dust item of one of their types. This means getting one of these Dust items is a tedious and LuckBasedMission, let alone all 17. And then of course you have to swap these two items for the 2-star item, which grants some bonus in a specific weather condition... and then there's the 3-star items, which while having a fantastic effect of protecting against a type weakness, effectively requires the player to go through the luckfest of getting the type Dust ''twice'', making them very hard to get and often not really worth the effort.
54* BadFuture: The famous explorer Dusknoir warns that if Grovyle steals all the Time Gears, the entire planet will become "paralyzed" as time itself comes to a stop. [[spoiler:He ''came'' from that very future, and [[TheDragon is working to ''ensure'' it comes to pass]]]].
55* BagOfSharing:
56** In the story, you (the player character) receive an explorer bag where you store all items. However, if your team gets split up in a dungeon, there is absolutely nothing stopping you from giving items to your teammate on the other side of the map.
57** In the special episodes in ''Sky'', you can freely send items to or get things from your main-game storage via Kangaskhan Rocks. This is especially odd since two of them take place before the events of the game, and one takes place in the future. Any money or items you obtain during the episodes will automatically get sent to the player's bank and storage at the episode's end.
58* TheBattleDidntCount:
59** During Bidoof's special episode in ''Sky'', he is overpowered by an ambush and is defeated, though it is winnable with the right items. [[spoiler: Then Wigglytuff's ''entire guild'' [[BigDamnHeroes arrives to rescue him]] in one giant CurbStompBattle.]]
60** If you lose the Battle against the Luxray and Luxio Clan (Time And Darkness) or Manectric and Electrike Clan (Sky), you will fail and go back to the Midpoint of Amp Plains, but if you win against them, the next cutscene shows that they didn’t got affected by the attacks or that they just brushed it off like it was nothing.
61** Whether you win or lose against Grovyle, the following cutscene has you and your partner completely knocked down by him.
62* BewareTheNiceOnes: Don't expect [[spoiler:Wigglytuff's Guild]] to go soft against you when they challenge you in the post-game. Even if you're friends with them, they're still willing to fight to the fullest.
63* BewareTheSillyOnes: "The Grand Master of all things bad" and his minions, in spite of their names and behavior, absolutely live up to their role as the first post-game story boss fight.
64* BigDamnHeroes:
65** In Amp Plains, Dusknoir shows up to save the player and partner just as a powerful electric attack is about to hit them.
66** During "Bidoof's Wish", Bidoof is [[HopelessBossFight beaten down and subsequently cornered by a villainous team]]. [[spoiler:Enter Wigglytuff's Guild to tip the scales and deliver a CurbStompBattle.]]
67* BoldExplorer: The world is filled with exploration teams scouting out unexplored areas, with you playing as one of those teams.
68* BookEnds: During the opening chapter, the partner meets the player while strolling on the beach south of Treasure Town with nearby Krabby blowing bubbles into the air; right before the credits roll, they're strolling down the same beach, and the Krabby blowing bubbles reminds them how this is where they first met. [[spoiler:Only the player's not with them anymore, and the memories of all their adventures cause them to break down crying. Eventually, Dialga relents and returns the player to the world, manifesting them on the same beach they first appeared on.]]
69** The game begins with the player being separated from someone else while a storm is raging. [[spoiler:It is later revealed that the other Pokémon was Grovyle, and him and the player were attacked by Darkrai while travelling through time, resulting in the player losing their memories.]] At the end of the postgame, [[spoiler:Darkrai attempts to flee through the use of time travel, but is attacked by Palkia, causing his memories to be erased.]]
70* BorrowedCatchPhrase: Chatot uses Wigglytuff's "Yoom Tah!" shortly after Dusknoir reveals that [[spoiler:he and Grovyle are from the future.]] Complete with the dramatic flashing.
71* BrokenPedestal: The player's partner has a difficult time accepting that [[spoiler:the great explorer Dusknoir is actually an agent from the future attempting to guarantee that the flow of time stops in the past, to the point of considering turning themself in to him, even as he is trying to kill them.]]
72* BoringButPractical: If you get Eevee as the player Pokémon for the story, eventually you get so strong that Tackle, the most basic attack move in Pokémon, starts defeating Pokémon in one or two hits. Three if you're fighting types that resist Normal or tankier Pokémon. Many players opt to keep Tackle even on Pokémon other than Eevee since it has the most PP of any attacking move in the game, as well as above-average accuracy.
73* {{Bowdlerise}}:
74** When Skuntank introduces himself to the guild, several guild members comment on the smell. In the Japanese version, Bidoof denies that the smell came from him (though nobody asked). This joke is not told straight in the English or PAL versions, but he still shows a LuminescentBlush, and he talks about the incident in his diary.
75** In chapter 14, the pillars that [[spoiler:you find yourself tied to are referred to as "stockades" in English, and an "execution site" in Japanese.]]
76** ''Aku no Dai Maou'' ("Great Demon King of Evil") was localized as "Grand Master of All Things Bad" in English.
77* ButNowIMustGo: Manaphy winds up terribly sick for an unknown reason, which is later found out to be caused by [[spoiler:being out of the ocean for too long. You're then forced to let Walrein take Manaphy into the sea.]]
78* ButThouMust: In many instances in the game, you are asked for help or similar and can choose between 'Yes' and 'No'... with the latter option just making the person repeat the question. In ''Sky'', Chimecho lampshades this:
79--> '''Chimecho''': "Would you like to meet up with your team members waiting at the café?"
80--> '''Player''': No way
81--> '''Chimecho''': "What?? N-no... way? Are you making fun of me, <player name>? You are! I know it! You said "No way" to see how I'd react, didn't you? ...I understand how you feel... Even if you select a "No," you eventually have to select the "Yes,", so it always ends up the same anyway..."
82* CallForward: When exploring Crystal Cave, the player comes across several crystals that change colour when hit. Turning all the crystals a specific colour causes an entryway to rise from the floor. During "Igglybuff the Prodigy", which takes place back when Wigglytuff was a child, Igglybuff and Armaldo come across an elaborate, multi-element puzzle. One of the elements is a coloured crystal, and Armaldo speculates that the crystal changes colours when hit and makes something to rise from the floor when solved.
83* CarnivoreConfusion: "Team Tasty" is comprised of a Swellow (a large, fully-evolved bird Pokémon) and a Wurmple (a small, unevolved caterpillar Pokémon whom Swellow are said to prey on). Wurmple's greatest fear is the possibility of getting [[EatTheDog eaten by his friend]] -- he breaks out in a cold sweat any time his partner even ''thinks'' about food (which [[RunningGag happens a lot]]). Swellow, on the other hand, is completely oblivious to this, to the point that when Wurmple finally tells him, he considers himself a poor leader for his teammate to be so uncomfortable around him.
84* CaveBehindTheFalls: The [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Waterfall Cave]] is hidden behind a powerful waterfall, which requires a determined jump to get through without falling.
85* CeilingCling: The Brine Cave bosses' hide on the ceiling of the pit, ambushing any explorers by jumping down and hitting them by surprise.
86* CharacterCatchphrase: Each member of the Wigglytuff Guild seems to have one, almost to the point of being a VerbalTic.
87** Wigglytuff's "YOOMTAH!" is the most prevalent, although unlike most other examples it's not used every single time he speaks.
88** Bidoof's "Yup yup" and "By golly!" (-degesu in Japanese)
89** Sunflora's "eek"/"kyaa" and, especially, "Oh my gosh!"
90** Corphish's "Hey hey" (this is a play on his Japanese name ''Hei''gani)
91** Wynaut's "Is it not?" and Wobbuffet's "That's right!" which are ''both'' a play on their Japanese names. (Wynaut's Japanese name literally means "Is that so?" while Wobbuffet's Japanese name means "That's the way it is".)
92** Everybody in Team Skull has a distinctive EvilLaugh:
93*** Skuntaknk's "Chaw-haw-haw!"
94*** Koffing's "Whoa-ho-ho!"
95*** Zubat's "Heh heh heh!"
96** Croagunk's "Meh-heh-heh", though he's not evil in the slightest.
97** Dusknoir: "Hoo-hoo-ha!"
98** The Sableye's "Wheeh!" and "Wheh-heh-heh!." %% The plural of Sableye is Sableye. Do not change.
99** The Grand Master of All Things Bad's "Muah-hahahaha!"
100* ChekhovsGun:
101** Bidoof takes a crystal from Crystal Cave around halfway into the main story. Later, [[spoiler:Dusknoir has the player character touch it to trigger a Dimensional Scream in order to find the location of Azelf's Time Gear.]]
102** The partner's Relic Fragment is introduced as a sentimental item that the player has to take back from Team Skull. [[spoiler:When in the hidden land, it is revealed that the Relic Fragment marks holder as having a pure heart, granting them access to the Hidden Land.]]
103* ChekhovsGunman:
104** Torkoal is first met after exploring Waterfall Cave and being launched to the Hot Spring. He later [[spoiler:reveals the nature of the Relic Fragment and how to get to the hidden land towards the end of the game.]]
105** Drowzee is the first Outlaw Pokémon you fight. He appears again in the post game where [[spoiler:he helps the main characters when Azurill gets stuck in a never-ending nightmare.]]
106* TheChessmaster:
107** The epilogue arc reveals that [[spoiler:Darkrai]] was secretly behind the events of the main story arc, including [[spoiler:wiping the player's memory and causing time to collapse in the first place.]]
108** [[spoiler:Ditto]] manipulates both Team Charm and Team AWD into fighting each other [[spoiler:to protect a Time Gear.]]
109* ChildSoldiers: Pokémon that hatch from Chansey Day Care immediately ask to join the party's team.
110* TheChooserOfTheOne: The [[spoiler:Relic Fragment]] chooses those with kind hearts to bear the key to the Hidden Land.
111* TheChosenOne: It turns out that [[spoiler:your partner]] was chosen as the one worthy of entering the Hidden Land before you even arrived, due to their pure heart.
112* ClairvoyantSecurityForce: It's nigh impossible to steal from a Kecleon shop without being noticed. Even when you use a warp seed, Kecleon will still immediately know that you were the thief. And then, dozens of Kecleons appear out of nowhere and attack you.
113* ColourCodedTimestop: Regions where time have stopped are DeliberatelyMonochrome, as seen when Crystal Crossing's Time Gear is stolen, or [[spoiler:in the BadFuture, where time has collapsed.]]
114%%* TheComplainerIsAlwaysWrong: Chatot gets elements of this at certain points. Sometimes, however, he's allowed to be right.
115* ContinuingIsPainful: Get defeated in your dungeon, and you lose all your money (In ''Time/Darkness'') or half your money (In ''Sky'') plus half the items you were carrying, which can easily contain very rare or valuable items. Get knocked out by a Kecleon, and you'll lose ''all'' your items.
116* ContractualBossImmunity: {{Averted|Trope}}, for the most part, unless they have an ability or IQ skill that makes them immune. Some bosses can be trivialized with disabling status effects like paralysis, imprison, sleep, or confusion -- not to mention that they're also vulnerable to some of the more broken seeds like hunger seeds. The one exception are orbs, which do not function during a boss fight.
117* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass:
118** Guildmaster Wigglytuff usually acts unaware and aloof, deferring his responsibilities to Chatot. When Team Skull try to rob him, however, Wigglytuff easily knocks them out, and he shows his competence when he's able to easily bypass puzzles.
119** For most of the game, Chatot plays the role of SmallNameBigEgo, and even finds himself stupefied to the point of ''rage'' that trio of Team Skull actually ''is'' a group of {{Jerkass}}es. But when push comes to shove, he proves himself as a competent explorer, sacrificing himself to block an attack intended for Wigglytuff and using his knowledge to heal Manaphy.
120* CrystalLandscape: The dungeons Crystal Cave and Crystal Crossing almost exclusively consist of big, shining gemstones. Between them is a crystal-themed puzzle.
121* CurbstompBattle:
122** Near the end of Bidoof's Wish, [[spoiler:Snover, Bagon and Gligar]] all triple team Bidoof. Just before Bidoof is knocked out, however, [[spoiler:[[TheCavalry Wigglytuff's Guild swoops in]] and fights the trio. [[BigDamnHeroes All eight members.]]]]
123** [[spoiler:After they try to attack him, Wigglytuff crushes Team Skull]]. The fight occurs offscreen, with only the pained whimpering of the losers giving insight to how easily they were defeated.
124* CuttingTheKnot: During Wigglytuff's [[ADayInTheLimelight special episode]], Armaldo observes and discusses the various puzzles and traps protecting a door on an expedition, only to watch the young Igglybuff smash the door down.
125* CueTheSun: After returning from [[spoiler:the future's eternal night]], one of the first things the partner does is take in the awe of a morning sunrise. ''Explorers of Sky'' also has [[spoiler:Grovyle's final battle set against a sunrise, indicating that the future is beginning to change.]]
126* DarkerAndEdgier:
127** While the villains of Rescue Team were mostly misguided, [[spoiler:Darkrai and Dusknoir]] are unambiguously evil, resorting to extreme measures such as murder and possession to ensure the planet's paralysis
128** After the main plot has been completed, Cresselia appears in the player's dreams and tells them that to save the world [[spoiler:they need to kill themselves.]] Turns out that [[spoiler:it's not actually Cresselia, but Darkrai, trying to get the heroes out of the way so they won't ruin his plans.]]
129* DarkIsNotEvil:
130** Dusknoir is a ghost-type Pokémon, but he is regarded as one of the best explorers in the world, devoting his life to protecting the world. [[spoiler:This is revealed to be just a ruse; Dusknoir is actually sabotaging the efforts made by Grovyle to stop the planet's paralysis. However, at the end of "In the Future of Darkness", Dusknoir eventually comes to Grovyle's side, working to restore the flow of time at the cost of his own life.]]
131** Banette and Skorupi in Igglybuff's special episode are described as bullies and somewhat mean, but they ''do'' care for Igglybuff's safety when he repeatedly goes into the Murky Forest and even follow Magnezone and Nidoking along with the rest of Igglybuff's friends and family to make sure he's safe.
132* ADayInTheLimelight: The Special Episodes in ''Sky'' lets the player control other characters for their duration. (Bidoof in "Bidoof's Wish", Igglybuff -- aka Guildmaster Wigglytuff -- in "Igglybuff the Prodigy," Sunflora in "Today's Oh My Gosh," Lopunny in "Here Comes Team Charm!" and finally Grovyle in "Into the Future of Darkness").
133* DelayedRippleEffect: After repairing Temporal Tower and saving the future, [[spoiler:the player has just enough time to say goodbye before they disappear.]] This also happens in the fifth Special Episode, where [[spoiler:Grovyle, Celebi, Dusknoir, and Primal Dialga all have enough time for a FinalBoss fight even as they begin to fade from existence.]]
134* DemotedToExtra:
135** In the postgame, only the team leader needs to stay alive to continue the progression. In those circumstances, a Pokémon recruited later can be made the leader, and both the original player Pokémon and partner can become extras.
136** In ''Time'' and ''Darkness'', you can potentially play a Meowth or Munchlax of either gender as the hero. ''Sky'' added several new choices that were gender-restricted; in order to make room for them, Meowth and Munchlax were removed as candidates. To make up for this, both were made available as potential ''partners'' instead.
137* DeniedFoodAsPunishment: Both the player and their partner are denied dinner on one occasion due to not being able to restock Wigglytuff's supply of Perfect Apples (the only food he will eat). [[OneSideOfTheStory This is due to Chatot refusing to hear out your partner’s explanation that Team Skull sabotaged their mission.]] Fortunately, a few friends of the player and partner saved parts of their dinners so the two could get a meal the next morning. Players will also receive this punishment if they do poorly in the Sentry Duty minigame with Loudred being angry with them.
138* DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment: Wigglytuff announces himself by saying, "I'm Wigglytuff! I'm the guild's Guildmaster!" The guild in question is Wigglytuff's Guild.
139* DeusExMachina:
140** The partner is ''so'' heartbroken over [[spoiler:the player's disappearance that after the credits roll, Dialga decides to return the favor for repairing Temporal Tower by summoning the player back into existence, on the same beach shore where the player and partner first met.]]
141** At the end of ''Sky'''s fifth Special Episode, [[spoiler:The Pokémon of the BadFuture survive the changes made to the timeline without being {{Ret Gone}}d due to a force that is beyond even Dialga.]]
142* DevelopersForesight:
143** Should you lose a boss battle you were supposed to beat in order to advance the story, the events leading up to it will be suitably altered during your follow-up attempt. Most of the time that means bosses skip their introduction, but it varies. [[spoiler:For example, in "Igglybuff the Prodigy", Igglybuff will think that Armaldo enjoys traps because they fall into the same trap they did before... even though they already knew it was there. Similarly, in the graduation dungeon in the post-game story, Wigglytuff is forced to shove the player and the partner into the pit since they already know about it and would logically avoid it if given the chance. This goes in tandem with everyone involved in the graduation battle ([[{{Cloudcuckoolander}} Except for Wigglytuff]]) [[VisibleSilence not saying anything if you talk to them before returning]]]].
144** If, at the Hidden Land, you go back to talk to Lapras after [[spoiler:Grovyle has returned to the future (as he's no longer in your party), you get a special conversation with Lapras as they express concern and sadness for Grovyle before offering to take you back to Treasure Town.]]
145** If you keep losing at Drenched Bluff (the second dungeon), Chatot will lampshade how you keep getting your butt kicked and will eventually bring you to Wigglytuff at the latter's request, assuming that he going to scold you for your incompetence. He is actually [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6oN2HSKyAw giving you various healing items to help you]].
146* DidYouJustFlipOffCthulhu: During the fifth special episode, [[spoiler:the Sableye try to protect Dusknoir by attacking Primal Dialga. They just get swatted aside, but Primal Dialga flees anyway as the future's history begins to change.]]
147* DieLaughing: A downplayed version happens with the Reviser Seed, a lookalike of the Reviver Seed. When a Pokémon is revived with it, they notice that the item they were revived with has an “s” instead of a “v”, and bursts into laughter before fainting again.
148* DisappearsIntoLight: After time has been fixed, [[spoiler:any Pokémon from the future, including the player, fades into a mist of light as the future was altered.]]
149* DoubleCaper: Initially, the player and partner help [[spoiler:Dusknoir create a plan to catch Grovyle and recover the Time Gears. After learning of Dusknoir's true intentions to paralyse the planet, both characters end up assisting Grovyle as he steals back the Time Gears in order to restore Temporal Tower.]]
150* DoWellButNotPerfect: The Sentry Duty minigame gives you better rewards if you have beaten your high score, meaning it's better to identify all 6 slower than you can, so beating your score will be as easy as possible. Additionally, the "well done" rank for achieving a good score without identifying all 6 Pokemon always gives Nectar, a hard to get, strong IQ-boosting item; the only time the game offers anything substantially better or rare for perfect play is during the very first Sentry Duty.
151* DudeWheresMyRespect: Even after [[spoiler:saving the world from becoming a dark future where time doesn't flow and Pokémon relentlessly attack one another]], you still barely get any respect from Chatot. Even after graduating from the Guild, you still have to give them most of your money.
152* EarlyBirdCameo: Groudon shows up [[spoiler:as the guardian of Fogbound Lake, but it's an illusion created by Uxie. The real deal is encountered in an S-Rank mission, and is considerably less hammy]].
153* EarnYourHappyEnding: After persisting through strenuous guild training, the sabotage of Team Skull, the betrayal by [[spoiler:Dusknoir, Dialga's madness and the attempts by Darkrai to make you lose the will to live,]] you and your partner finally manage to save the world and end [[spoiler:Darkrai's villainy, as well as getting to keep the player alive even after the future changes.]]
154* AnEconomyIsYou: All the shops in Treasure Town center around the needs of Exploration Teams, providing services that are mainly only useful to explorers, such as linking moves and opening boxes, and selling items that are commonly used in expeditions.
155%%* EldritchLocation: [[spoiler: The Hidden Land]], [[spoiler:The Nightmare]], and [[spoiler: Spacial Rift]].
156* EmptyLevels: While the level-ups are on average less terrible than they were in ''Red and Blue Rescue Team'', there are still four Pokémon that get absolutely nothing for one of the level ups: the Mr. Mime and Stunky lines get a big fat 0 across the board at Level 3.
157* EscapeRope: The Escape Orb enables the explorer team to leave any dungeon at any time (except in boss fights) without negative effects, though the game text treats it like you've been defeated.
158* EscortMission: Many optional jobs involve bringing along another Pokémon to fulfil at task. Some mandatory missions force an uncontrollable NPC into the party.
159* EurekaMoment: Sunflora has one during her Special Episode, after [[spoiler: Loudred makes a comment allowing her to realize the secret behind Haunter's so-called immortality]].
160* EvenEvilHasStandards: Chatot claims that no criminal, no matter how hardened, would ever dream of stealing a Time Gear. Indeed, even the morally-questionable Team AWD (in ''Explorers of Sky'') acknowledges that it's crossing a line (though how evil they actually are is debatable), and settle for discovering the Ditto guardian in the Time Gear's stead.
161* EverybodyLives: After the LastStand in [[spoiler:Special Episode 5 of ''Sky'']], everyone is saved from [[spoiler:being erased by the changing future by a power higher than Dialga.]]
162* EverythingExceptMostThings: Unlike other lookalike items, the "mix elixir" does exactly what its related item does and restores all of your PP! As long as you're the right kind of Pokémon, of course. Such as Linoone. In fact, ''[[JokeItem only]]'' [[JokeItem Linoone]] gets the benefits.
163* ExperienceBooster: There are multiple ways to increase the EXP received from defeated Pokémon, including certain IQ abilities and items. The easiest way is to link multiple attacks at Electivire's shop, which gives you 50% extra EXP.
164* ExtraordinaryWorldOrdinaryProblems: Even in a world inhabited entirely by Pokémon, where your job is to use your powers to defeat evil Pokémon and save/help out the good ones, taxes are still an issue, as shown when you and your partner receive a hefty reward for their first mission, only to [[TaxmanTakesTheWinnings have 90% of it taken by the guild]].
165* FakeLongevity: All shop interactions take longer than reasonably needed. You have to interact with at least four shops[[note]]Kangaskhan Storage, Xatu Appraisal, Duskull Bank, Chimecho's team service and the Spinda's Café in ''Sky' '[[/note]]. Most of these shops don't have bulk transactions ready, and for every transaction they play an overly long dialog option that is not skippable. You'll easily spend ten minutes between every real mission just interacting with the shops.
166* FetchQuest: Many jobs involve collecting a certain item from a dungeon, with the very first guild assignment requiring you to fetch a Spoink's pearl.
167* FightWoosh: Before boss battles, blue lines sweep across the screen, accompanied by a sound effect. When playing as Team Charm, the Fight Swoosh is replaced with hearts covering the screen instead.
168* FightingAShadow: The boss of Fogbound Lake, [[spoiler:"Groudon", is just a psychic illusion created by Uxie to ward off intruders]]
169* FilchingFoodForFun: Team Skull decide to amuse themselves by stealing and eating all of Wigglytuff's perfect apples. The sudden lack of said apples forces the protagonists to go and look for more, which only increases Team Skull's petty enjoyment.
170* FinalDungeonPreview: When your team is kidnapped [[spoiler: to the future, you're in a future version of the Hidden Lands, which is the penultimate dungeon, and you get a glimpse at the collapsed Temporal Tower, which will be the final dungeon.]]
171* FinalSpeech:
172** After saving Temporal Tower, [[spoiler:the player gives one of these right as the change in time starts to erase them from history, telling the partner to spread their tale far and wide to prevent the planet from being paralysed again]].
173** The ending to the final Special Episode [[spoiler:has Dusknoir and Celebi give a speech as their timeline is being erased, with Dusknoir wondering whether his heroism has immortalised him and Celebi commenting on how beautiful the morning sun is.]]
174* FirstTimeInTheSun: At the end of the fifth Special Episode, [[spoiler:Celebi sees the rising sun as she fades away, commenting on how beautiful it is.]]
175* FlunkyBoss: [[spoiler:Dusknoir]] wouldn't be much of a threat were you fighting him by himself, but you also have to contend with six [[{{Mooks}} Sableye]] at the same time.
176* FoodPorn: The descriptions of the drinks ordered at the Spinda Café go into detail about its texture and flavour.
177-->''A savory fragrance and unique bitterness come together for a mature flavor...''
178* ForbiddenChekhovsGun: The Time Gears are a set of five cog-like treasures that cannot be removed under any circumstances. If one is removed, then that area is frozen in time with anyone trapped in there. [[spoiler: Near the end of the game, the truth behind the Time Gears is revealed and they ''have'' to be removed and taken to a hidden area to save the world from a complete time freeze.]]
179* {{Foreshadowing}}:
180** Snover is TheMillstone during Bidoof's special episode; not only is he near-useless in combat, his ability damages Bidoof and prevents him from regenerating HP. [[spoiler:Guess who's the ArcVillain of that episode, and definitely does not have Bidoof's best interests at heart?]]
181** Remember how Ditto is said to be unable to change its face? Well, take a look at Special Episode 4 in Sky – [[spoiler:both "Bellossom" and "Sentret" have different face portraits than usual. It's because both are actually Ditto in disguise]].
182** At least Grovyle [[ApologeticAttacker apologizes]] to Uxie and Mesprit and urges Mesprit to take it easy as they're wounded when he takes the Time Gears and to the player and partner when knocking them out. [[spoiler: Grovyle later turns out to be a good guy on a mission to stop the planet's paralysis. He needs the Time Gears to do so, and while he doesn't want to hurt anyone, he will if he has to.]]
183** After being told your character's name, your character notices Dusknoir giving the faintest of smiles, but it's brushed off as [[ItsProbablyNothing just their imagination]]. [[spoiler: Dusknoir's absolutely ecstatic to hear that his second greatest threat is amnesiac and has no knowledge of their original mission, or their partner, who is about to be hunted down.]]
184** In the future, the player [[spoiler: notes how they feel they've been here before losing their memories. Soon after, it is revealed that they're from the future and Grovyle was their partner on their original mission, which is to stop the planet's paralysis.]]
185* ForgotAboutHisPowers: Armaldo, in a fit of panic after Igglybuff burns the map he was trying to decipher, desperately asks for some water... only to later realize he knows Water Gun.
186* GameBreakingBug: In the American version of ''Sky'', if a Pokémon with a name of ten characters (made by the player or a default one such as "Charmander") evolves, the game will freeze. As you can't rename Pokémon until they evolve, there's no way around this, except through use of a specific cheat code.
187* GameplayAndStorySegregation:
188** At one point, Grovyle blinds several opponents using a "Luminous Orb" to cover for an escape attempt. The item in question does not appear to do this in actual gameplay, and is used instead to reveal the current floor's map.
189** Pokémon in dungeons unlocked after the main story arc has been completed have considerably more IQ than Pokémon in previous dungeons, but all Pokémon recruited into the exploration team [[RedemptionDemotion have the minimum IQ level]].
190** At one point, Murkrow and Shuppet of Team Ebony have an excited discussion regarding legendary golden treasures and asks the party leader if they know anything about them. Even if you've obtained one of those treasures and have it in your inventory, they say the same thing and you can't talk about it.
191** In Sky version, a post-game dungeon gives you access to “sky gifts,” special items that are completely empty if the one who finds them open it, but contains a nice item if given to someone else. Additionally, in the Special Episodes, interesting side stories where you play as other characters and learn more about them, you can access the storage and potentially pull out a sky gift. However, even though you are playing as a completely different character, the Sky gift will still be empty.
192* GameplayAndStoryIntegration: In ''Sky'', the Special Episodes' characters' rates of leveling up reflect their proficiency at exploration. Bidoof levels up quite slowly, and Igglybuff can overtake the older and experienced Armaldo.
193* GenkiGirl: Sunflora is always bubbly and upbeat, reacting to everything with excitement. [[VerbalTic Eek!]]
194* GetOnTheBoat: Near the end of the story, the party has to ride a Lapras to the final areas of the game.
195* GiveMeYourInventoryItem: Certain rescue missions require you to enter a dungeon and track down a Pokémon, only to give them an item from your inventory. Often, the rewards from these missions are worse than the item you needed to hand over.
196* TheGodsMustBeLazy: Just where was Arceus when [[spoiler: Temporal Tower was collapsing]]? Especially considering that its entire purpose after creating the world is to fix these things.
197* GoldfishPoopGang: Team Skull reappears throughout the course of the game, harassing the player and the partner before eventually being far eclipsed by the two of them in power.
198* GoodGuyBar: Spinda's Café is a bar where explorers can have drinks, trade in useless items and generally hang out.
199* GraduateFromTheStory: After completing the main arc, the player is allowed to graduate from Wigglytuff's Guild, which is the start of the ''post''-arc plot. The catch? [[spoiler:You have to face the entire guild as a final exam]].
200* GrandTheftMe: In ''Sky'', [[spoiler:Dusknoir's]] last resort plan to stop the protagonists is to possess [[spoiler:Grovyle's body and return to the past in it.]]
201* GrowlingGut: Occurs during regular gameplay and in cutscenes. An especially noteworthy example is in the cutscene following the [[spoiler:battle with Drowzee]], where the player's thoughts are interrupted by the partner's stomach growling, and the player's chimes in as well. Cue dinner time.
202* GuestStarPartyMember: In many story missions, you are accompanied by a Pokémon from the guild or another explorer team. Examples include Bidoof at the beginning of the Big Guild Expedition, or Chatot in the mission in Brine Cave.
203* HailfirePeaks: Steam Cave contains both [[DownTheDrain water]] and [[LethalLavaLand fire]]. And it's a [[UndergroundLevel cave]].
204* HeadsIWinTailsYouLose:
205** Losing against the Luxray/Manetric tribe forces you out of the dungeon. Winning against them triggers a cutscene where the tribe attempts a last ditch attack, which almost succeeds.
206** Even after [[spoiler:Dusknoir and his Sableye]] are defeated, he has enough strength left to [[spoiler:keep on fighting, forcing Grovyle to carry him back to the future.]]
207* HelplessWithLaughter: One of the items introduced in ''Explorers of Sky'' is the Reviser Seed, which upon reviving the Pokemon leads to them laughing so hard that they faint again.
208* HeroWithBadPublicity: [[spoiler:Grovyle is stealing the Time Gears]] so that they can be placed in the Temporal Tower and repair it. [[spoiler:However, the immediate effects of the removal of a Time Gear, namely time stopping in that region, paint his actions as malicious.]]
209* TheHeroDies: [[spoiler:Temporarily, but the entire game builds up to the player character's CessationOfExistence as a result of the timeline being changed. When the BadFuture is averted, those who came from it vanish and the hero dies in front of their partner's eyes. Thankfully, a newly restored Dialga, being the lord of time itself, restores the hero in an act of gratitude.]]
210* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler: Subverted. Even though the player character is fully aware that setting the future right will cause them to be erased from time, they still continue to fight for the better future. However, since Dialga's grateful your team restored his sanity, he allows the player character to exist again.]]
211* HopeSpot: After being captured, [[spoiler:Grovyle reveals that he had a partner when he traveled to the past]], and that they're still able to save the world. What he doesn't know is that [[spoiler:his partner is right next to him, having also been captured.]]
212* HubLevel: Treasure Town. It's the main characters' residence and the main starting point for almost all story and side missions, it has all the shops you need, and it is free from any danger.
213* HumanPopsicle: Froslass keeps a frozen Scizor in her lair. Once rescued, he is quite surprised to learn that [[FishOutOfTemporalWater decades have passed since he was frozen]].
214* ImpassableDesert: While searching for Time Gears in the Northern Desert, the player and partner find multiple pools of quicksand after completing the dungeon and turn back, assuming the rest of the desert is impossible to reach. However, once your team returns to the Guild, you can go back to the same area, now called Quicksand Desert. Going back will cause the player to urge the partner to jump into the quicksand and find the Quicksand Cave. Unless the player decides to go back (or even notices the new area at all), the Quicksand Cave is considered impassable.
215* ImprobableAccessoryEffect: Not only are there multicolored bows and ribbons providing various effects, but also a wide range of "exclusive" items dropped by hostile Pokémon including claws, teeth, tails, scales, even ''tears and sweat'' of other Pokémon.
216* IncendiaryExponent: Sunflora and Loudred defeat [[spoiler:a trio of]] Haunter while on fire.
217* {{Infodump}}: Late in the game is a series of cutscenes that explain most of the plot in one go. It's so long, you're asked if you want to save your game halfway through it, and it even flashes back to the scenes immediately prior.
218* InGameBankingServices: You can store your earned money at the Duskull bank. This is quite handy, as you lose all your money (in ''Time/Darkness'') or half your money (in ''Sky'') when you're defeated, but money in the bank is safe.
219* InterfaceSpoiler: When Chatot hands out assignments to investigate different places, the player's likely to notice that one of the locations [[RainbowSpeak isn't color-coded]]. [[spoiler:That being said, it is still plot-relevant, as it's the place where Grovyle got sent after the time travel incident.]]
220* ItMayHelpYouONYourQuest: The partner has a relic fragment which they treasure despite it being a useless item, and your first quest is to take it back after it has been stolen. This later turns out to be [[spoiler: the artifact needed to allow one to enter the Hidden Land, which includes the final dungeon of the game's main story.]]
221* JerkWithAHeartOfGold:
222** Chatot always bosses around the guild apprentices, giving out harsh punishments for failure, but his actions stem from a desire to see the apprentices grow into capable explorers.
223** Loudred always shouts at people, whether it be that they wake up late or don't follow his orders, but he genuinely cares about the wellbeing of the other guild members.
224** In Igglybuff's special episode, while Skorupi and Banette are described as bullies, they're genuinely concerned about Igglybuff constantly going into Murky Forest and go after him to Fortune Ravine along with everyone else when they discover he's been hanging out with a wanted outlaw.
225** [[spoiler:Grovyle]] often coms across as cold, standoffish, and blunt, but he did [[spoiler:risk everything to save the future, even his own life]].
226* JustInTime: Just before Cresselia is able to wipe out the player character and the partner, [[spoiler:the ''real'' Cresselia arrives, and reveals that the other Cresselia is actually Darkrai.]]
227* KidnappedWhileSleeping: Palkia kidnaps you and your partner while you are sleeping and makes you go through the Spacial Rift to face him.
228* LawEnforcementInc: Wigglytuff's Guild is privately-run, and works to collect bounties on fugitive Pokémon.
229* LastStand: The final BossBattle in Special Episode 5 of ''Sky''. [[spoiler:Even as the DelayedRippleEffect starts kicking in and all four of them are slowly ceasing to exist, Grovyle, Celebi, and Dusknoir have to knock out Primal Dialga to keep him from damaging the Passage of Time with his last breath.]]
230* LethalJokeCharacter: Cresselia. If you get the treasure chest from the Spacial Rift, it has a chance to contain a Lunar Veil, her signature item that passes on any stat buffs she gains to the rest of the team. When you take her to the Dark Crater, she comes packing Double Team. Giving your whole team an evasion buff can save your life during the final boss. Though she forgets it after you recruit her, you can take her to Electivire to remember it, and can even teach her Calm Mind via TM to further benefit from the Veil. And once she reaches level 84, she learns Lunar Dance, which practically eliminates the need for Max Elixirs on any expedition she takes part in.
231* LoadBearingBoss: Averted with Dialga. [[spoiler: As he has been rendered mad by Darkrai, you have to defeat him in order to make sure that the Tower of Time and time ''itself'' won't collapse]].
232* LostInTranslation:
233** Most of the [[PoisonMushroom Lookalike items]] are puns or sight puns on the Japanese names of the items (for example Oran Berry オレンのみ becomes オレソのみ Oren Berry/Oreso Berry), and only a few of them (like the Slip Seed, the Dough Seed, or the Gone Pebble) manage to keep a pun somewhat intact (while also giving up any chance that they'd fool an English speaker).
234*** By extension, the Mix Elixer item only working on Linoone only makes sense in the Japanese version of the games, where its name roughly translates to "PP ''Straight.''"
235** Teddiursa can easily be identified by her use of feminine speech patterns in the Japanese version, even after she evolves.
236** In the Japanese version, Wobbuffet's catchphrase ("That's right!") and her own name are exactly the same.
237** Scizor's antiquated speech patterns are far more obvious in the Japanese version, and imply that he hasn't made contact with anyone in centuries.
238* TheManBehindTheMan: The BigBad of the epilogue arc: [[spoiler:Darkrai is revealed to be behind ''everything'', from the destruction of Temporal Tower to even the player's amnesia.]]
239* ManipulativeBastard: [[spoiler:Dusknoir]] effortlessly manipulates everyone for most of the main story, [[spoiler:tricking even Legendary Pokémon to attack the explorers that saved the world.]]
240* MarathonLevel:
241** Many of the dungeons unlocked after the end of the main story arc are at least 50 floors long. Zero Isle South and Destiny Tower are 99 floors.
242** While Aegis Cave is only 20 floors deep with 4 "checkpoints", you have to do it in one sitting, due to not being able to leave from the checkpoints, and the gimmick of the dungeon requires random luck for the player to advance, you're likely gonna have to go through the same four floors between checkpoints several times before you can move on.
243* MediumAwareness: Armaldo frequently references such things as {{Stock Puzzle}}s and [[BossBattle Dungeon Bosses]].
244* MessageInABottle: On the beach, bottles with jobs inside of them can be found.
245* MiniGame: Diglett's sentry duty involves guessing Pokémon species by their footprints.
246* TheMole:
247** [[spoiler:Dusknoir]] infiltrates and commands the Pokémon of Treasure Town to [[spoiler:prevent Grovyle from gathering the Time Gears and restoring time.]]
248** [[spoiler:Snover]] pretends to be Bidoof's friend in order to lure him into a trap so that he and his friends can steal his money.
249* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Grovyle, when [[spoiler:you reach the end of Treeshroud Forest with him]], has this kind of reaction.
250* MythologyGag: The sprites for tickets from Sky show that they are [[VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue red, green,]] [[VideoGame/PokemonGoldandSilver gold, and silver]].
251* Mystical108: Spiritomb declares that he is a fusion of 108 evil spirits, matching the species' description in the main series.
252[[/folder]]
253
254[[folder:N-Y]]
255* {{Nerf}}:
256** Castform has a [[ArbitraryHeadcountLimit body size]] of 4 in this game, for no adequately explored reason. So now you can't make an all-Castform team and spam Weather Ball all the time. However, the move itself is no less powerful than before.
257** The implementation of gender means that Attract cannot be used as freely as it could be in Rescue Team.
258** Multi-hitting moves like Fury Swipes had their base accuracy reduced, though the Concentrator IQ skill more than restores their potency.
259** Several Pokémon, including Linoone, Sableye, and Machamp, gained new abilities that do much more harm than good.
260** Sleep status is less reliable, since Hypnosis and Sleep Powder now have a chance to miss, and postgame enemies can shrug the status off with their IQ skills.
261** The set damage values dealt by Sonicboom and Dragon Rage have been toned down sharply.
262* NeverSayDie: During the post-game arc, you're repeatedly told that you have to 'disappear' [[spoiler:for the world to be saved]].
263* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Ultimately not so much of a break, but because your team and Mesprit completely exhaust each other in a pointless battle, none of you are in a state to stop Grovyle when he arrives.
264* NiceJobFixingItVillain:
265** If [[spoiler:Dusknoir had just left you and your partner in the past]], you would never have figured out that the world was already in danger, nor how to save it.
266** Because [[spoiler:the Relic Fragment]] is needed to reach Temporal Tower, [[spoiler:Darkrai could have succeeded in his plan simply by not attacking Grovyle and the player]], thus resulting in the player and partner never meeting.
267* TheNightThatNeverEnds: The BadFuture is frozen in time where the sun never rises.
268* NoGearLevel: The dungeon Zero-Isle South forbids you to bring any items, and furthermore your level is temporarily set to Lv. 1.
269* NoIndoorVoice: Dialga and Palkia always speak in all-caps.
270%%** Loudred. Especially when he wakes you up.
271%%** The Gyarados you fight in Miracle Sea. The [[spoiler:fake illusion Groudon]], too.
272* NoobCave: Beach Cave is inhabited by Pokémon of level 2-3 that most of the time only use status-inflicting attacks, and its four floors consist of 4-5 rooms max. The boss fight is likewise very easy.
273* NorthIsColdSouthIsHot: Inverted; Dark Crater is identified as being northwest of Treasure Town; by extension Icy Area consisting of Blizzard Island and a few other dungeons is southwest.
274* ObstructiveBureaucrat: Chatot, at least early on, often bogs you and your partner down with menial tasks.
275* OneSideOfTheStory: Chatot refuses to let your partner explain that Team Skull stole all the apples from the Perfect Apple tree, thus setting up you and your partner being [[DeniedFoodAsPunishment punished]] for something [[KarmicMisfire that wasn't your team's fault]].
276* OneSteveLimit:
277** Thanks to the SpeciesSurname, rarely does the player encounter more than one NPC of a given species. Averted by the Poochyena brothers, the Shaymin tribe, and [[spoiler:The Invincible Haunter, who is actually three of them.]]
278** PlayedForLaughs with Teddiursa and Ursaring once the former evolves to Ursaring as well. They comment on how confusing it is that they're both called Ursaring now, and how some people cannot differentiate them anymore.
279** DoubleSubverted with the starter/partner Pokémon: initially, no matter where you look, you won't be able to find Pokémon that you can start as, to avoid confusion between player and non-player characters. However, areas where you can fight and possibly recruit the starter Pokémon become available after beating the main game. The same goes for any Pokémon in the guild or around Treasure Town. Since you can start as Shinx in ''Sky'', they changed the fight with the Amp Plains tribe from Luxios and a Luxray (Shinx's evolved forms) into Electrikes and a Manectric.
280* OneTimeDungeon: The dungeons you explore in the future, and post-game dungeon The Nightmare, cannot be returned to. That being said, the game will make an out-of-story exception in regard to Friend Rescues, should your friend fall in one of those dungeons and need rescuing.
281* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: After being silent (for the player) during the entirety of the main game, only expressing themself in thought, the player character [[spoiler: speaks to their partner in dialogue to explain that now that the future has been changed, they're going to disappear]]. They never do it again in the post game either.
282* OrificeInvasion: When [[spoiler: Grovyle gets his ass kicked in the future]], he claims that Spiritomb took control of his body by entering through his nose.
283* PaperThinDisguise: "The Grandmaster of all things bad" and his minions [[spoiler:(actually the rest of the Explorers Guild)]] is a {{justified|Trope}} example as the fight against them was supposed to take place in the dark, and only [[spoiler:Bidoof uncovering the trap hole revealed the truth behind it. Outside of [[{{Cloudcuckoolander}} Wigglytuff]], none of the guild members manage to pretend being someone else without {{Suspiciously Specific Denial}}s after being found out - even if you lose the fight, only Wigglytuff (who has to shove the player and the partner into the trap so that you don't skip the boss fight), Bidoof (who wasn't involved in the fight) and the vendor guild members even try to talk with you, the others only showing VisibleSilence.]]
284* PeninsulaOfPowerLeveling: After completing chapter 3, you get access to the Marowak Dojo. One of the challenges is the Dragon area, which is full of Bagons ranging from level 1 to 35. Even on the first level, they already give more than 100 XP, way more than other enemies at this time in the game. And you can repeat the dungeon even upon failing, as much as you want and without penalties. A little bit of grinding and the entire first half of the story becomes a cakewalk.
285* PerpetualPoverty: Played for laughs: Once the player and partner join the Guild and start gaining money, they discover that the Guild keeps 90% of the rewards so their share after completing a mission always will be a pittance. This is justified as the Guild provides the player and partner with a place to live, daily meals, training and rewards, but after the main story ends and the player and partner graduate from the Guild to start working solo, they discover that the Guild still will keep 90% of their rewards for itself because... reasons.
286* PetTheDog: Late in the game, [[spoiler:a defeated Skuntank]] returns the partner's Relic Fragment, to which [[spoiler:his subordinate Zubat chuckles, commenting that maybe his boss "isn't so bad" after all.]]
287* PlanetOfSteves: {{Lampshaded}} in ''Sky''. When the protagonists arrive in Shaymin Village, one of the Shaymin says that they're [[ADogNamedDog all named Shaymin]].
288* PlayerPersonalityQuiz: [[https://www.gamefaqs.com/ds/955859-pokemon-mystery-dungeon-explorers-of-sky/faqs/58014 Once again given to you at the beginning of the game]] to determine what Pokémon you will become.
289* PlotCoupon: The five Time Gears must be collected in order to [[spoiler:stop the collapse of Temporal Tower.]]
290* PlotTunnel:
291** The Expedition the Guild sets out on early in the game prevents access to the previously available dungeons until the Guild returns.
292** After Dusknoir [[spoiler:sends you to the future, all the dungeons in the past cannot be accessed until you return to the present.]]
293* PointOfNoReturn: Subverted; despite Temporal Tower's impending collapse (which will take [[TimeStandsStill time itself with it]]), Lapras is able and willing to return you to Treasure Town if you ask it.
294* PoisonMushroom: ''Explorers of Sky'' specifically warns about "Lookalike" items, which have similar names to normal items but entirely different (though not always negative) effects. Like Or'''e'''n Berries which inflict damage instead of healing, like Or'''a'''n Berries do. An interesting inversion comes from the Dough Seed, which is a positive-effect lookalike of the level-decreasing Doom Seed.
295* PoliceAreUseless: Officer Magnezone and the other Magnemites are always requesting help in capturing outlaws. In some post-end jobs where he accompanies you to capture the outlaw, they're only ''[[TheLoad level 16 or even less]]''.
296* PoorCommunicationKills:
297** The Perfect Apples incident. The partner is never given a chance to explain that it was Team Skull who prevented them from retrieving any Perfect Apples for the Chatot and the Guildmaster, causing both them and the player to be punished.
298** Armaldo actually lampshades the fact that dungeon bosses always seem to be hard of hearing in addition to [[ConflictBall territorial]].
299** Out of fear of [[spoiler:Dusknoir tracking him down, Grovyle]] doesn't bother explaining his actions, and he just [[spoiler:goes around attacking the Lake Spirits and stealing their Time Gears, causing various catastrophic effects (only temporarily, but once again this is not explained until much later)]]. Naturally, everyone assumes he's the bad guy and go out of their way to stop him instead of helping him.
300* PreEndingCredits: Inverted, the credits roll after the DiscOneFinalBoss and at the end of every special episode (special episodes are AnotherSideAnotherStory missions) but NOT after the TrueFinalBoss.
301* PreSacrificeFinalGoodbye: A non-lethal example when [[spoiler: Grovyle takes Dusknoir back to the future for good]]. Despite sustaining significant injuries in battle and in the cutscene, he still has time to give the player and partner a motivational speech [[spoiler: without letting Dusknoir free]].
302* {{Psychometry}}: The player character possesses a power called the "Dimensional Scream" that enables them to see visions of the past or future by touching objects, but it isn't something they have control over.
303* QuestForAWish: In the first special episode ''Bidoof's Wish'', Bidoof goes on a quest to Star Cave to get a wish from the wish-granting Pokémon Jirachi.
304* RaceAgainstTheClock: The distortions in time and its eventual destruction are caused by the gradual collapsing of Temporal Tower. By the time you reach it for your final mission, it is already starting to physically break apart, although this has [[GameplayAndStorySegregation absolutely no effect]] on your climb through it.
305* RainbowSpeak: Used liberally. For example, the team leader's name is displayed in dark blue, teammates' names in yellow, moves in green, and items in pale pink.
306* ReallyDeadMontage: At the end, the partner has [[spoiler:a flashback montage of all their memories with the player character. Then subverted; the player's partner is ''so'' heartbroken that Dialga asserts his DeusExMachina power over the flow of time to [[BackFromTheDead bring the player back]]]].
307* RedemptionEqualsDeath: Discussed in Special Episode 5; [[spoiler:Dusknoir's whole reason for villainy is for self-survival, so joining up with Grovyle is effectively a death sentence upon himself.]]
308* RedEyesTakeWarning: The covers depict enemy Mons with red eyes.
309* RedHerring: During the search for the forgotten past of the player, several leads end up as dead ends.
310** The intro dialogue of someone losing grip of someone else is preceded by a shot of a cliff engulfed in a storm. Later, the partner notes that the night the player appeared on the beach was a stormy one. [[spoiler:The intro dialogue happened while travelling through time, and is completely unrelated to storms.]]
311** While exploring the Fogbound Lake, the partner notes that the lake's guardian, Uxie, has the power to remove memories. [[spoiler:Uxie had never met the player before, however.]]
312* RedSkyTakeWarning: A swirling vortex of red clouds hangs above Temporal Tower, indicating how it's about to crumble.
313* ReducedManaCost: The PP Saver IQ skill occasionally allows a Pokémon to use an attack without using up PP.
314* RequiredPartyMember: Until the end of the main game, you have to send yourself and your partner to every mission. Afterwards you can arrange your exploration team as you please, although some missions still require you and your partner. Taken to a logical extreme when [[spoiler:Dusknoir kidnaps both you and drags you into the future.]] While he has a personal reason to attack you, there is no real in-universe reason to take your partner as well.
315* ReverseRelationshipReveal: [[spoiler:Grovyle is presented as a villain trying to create the BadFuture by stealing the Time Gears, while Dusknoir is trying to stop him.]] Upon entering the future, however, [[spoiler:it turns out that Dusknoir is the actual villain and Grovyle is trying to SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong, because the problems caused by removing the Time Gears are actually temporary and the true danger is the Time Gears being kept away from Temporal Tower for too long - and Grovyle is trying to return them there.]]
316* RippleEffectProofMemory: Disappearing from the timeline doesn't erase one's effects on the present day, nor others' memories of them.
317* SceneryGorn: The BadFuture often has entire splash scenes dedicated to showing the fractured, desaturated, levitating landscape.
318* SceneryPorn: Many locations in the story receive a double-screen scene showcasing them.
319* SchmuckBait: Outlaw missions are unlocked fairly early in the storyline, but attempting them early on is a recipe for a one-sided beatdown. They are ''far'' stronger than you, and worse yet, some outlaws (usually Chingling) can force you to encounter a monster house. Attempting an early outlaw mission is a mistake that most players will only make once.
320* SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong: The entire plot. The BadFuture was caused by [[spoiler:the collapse of Temporal Tower, and protagonists from the future went back in time to stop it from happening]].
321%%* ShipTease: Special Episodes 3 and 5 tease [[spoiler:Sunflora and Loudred]] and [[spoiler:Grovyle and Celebi]], respectively.
322* ShoutOut: When you receive a letter of challenge from the Pokémon Mewtwo, he states "I challenge you, Team [[HelloInsertNameHere <Team Name Here>]], to a [[Franchise/YuGiOh duel!"]]
323* SimilarItemConfusion: The 'lookalike items' in ''Sky'', meant to trick the player into using them.
324** Is that a healing Or'''a'''n berry, or a poisonous Or'''e'''n berry?
325** Will the Sleep Seed help knock out your foe, or is it a Slip Seed that will make them able to {{walk on water}}?
326** Will this Reviver Seed keep you going through this tough fight? or is it the devious Reviser Seed that [[YankTheDogsChain still revives you,]] only for you to immediately laugh yourself unconscious?
327** Is that a dangerous {{Level Drain}}ing Doom Seed, or the helpful Dough Seed?
328* SoLastSeason: On a meta level. In ''Rescue Team'', Groudon is the penultimate boss the player has to face, while their level is most likely on the late 20s or early 30s. In ''Explorers'', Groudon is fought just before halfway through the story, with your Pokémon's levels being at the early 20s at best. [[spoiler:{{Justified|Trope}}, though, as this Groudon is actually an illusion. The real one is a post-game boss.]]
329* SoundTest: ''Explorers of Sky'' added the Sky Jukebox, with all 141 songs available to play. It also lets the sound test ''keep'' playing (through headphones) while the DS is closed.
330* StartXToStopX: In order to stop time from collapsing, [[spoiler:the Time Gears must be removed from their places and brought to Temporal Tower, with the regions that the Time Gears control experiencing stopped time.]]
331* StopDrowningAndStandUp: Team Raider "rescues" Dugtrio from the watery nightmare that is getting splashed by the tide.
332* StrawMisogynist: In “Here Comes Team Charm!”, a Houndoom in that episode only has two lines: one is expressing blatant sexism towards Team Charm, and the other reveals him as a hypocritical coward.
333* SuicideMission: [[spoiler:The player character and Grovyle]] take part in the final mission to save the world, knowing that [[spoiler:they will disappear should they succeed]].
334* SurprisinglyCreepyMoment: The ''Explorers'' games mainly focuses on the colourful cast of Treasure Town until [[spoiler:the player character is brought into the future, a dystopian, sunless nightmare, where Dusknoir stages your execution.]]
335* SurprisinglyEasyMiniQuest: Most of the special missions in ''Explorers of Sky'' can be pretty daunting for the most part, but ''Igglybuff the Prodigy'' is very easy, thanks in part to Igglybuff already maintaining the badass status he carries as Guildmaster Wigglytuff. He already has pretty high stats to begin with, and on top of that, being below Level 20, he levels pretty quickly, and each level boosts his stats by ludicrous amounts as well. There are also practically no bosses to speak of in any of the dungeons he explores, either.
336* SuspendSave: The only way to save inside a dungeon if not at a Kangaskhan Rock. Your permanent save can't be loaded if a suspend save is present. If the player faints from a suspend save, turns off their console, and reloads their permanent save, they'll still have lost money and items. Particularly cruel if you didn't actually faint but your game froze.
337* SuspiciouslySpecificDenial:
338** When talked to, Celebi mentions how she wishes Grovyle would stop getting into such dangerous situations when there's people that care about him, before hastily clarifying that she doesn't care about him in ''that'' way. When talking to her again, she says, "I don't have any special feelings for him or anything!"
339** In Bidoof's Special Episode, Chatot insists he was not concerned for Bidoof's safety. Even the rest of the guild makes fun of how much he fumbles over his words.
340** After returning from your graduation trip, your partner asks Wigglytuff [[spoiler:if the Grand Master of All Things Bad wasn't just him. Wigglytuff denies this... upon which Chatot immediately volunteers, without prompting, that he wouldn't know anything about the Grand Master's minions.]]
341* TagTeamTwins: Although the exact relation between them is never explained, in ''Explorers of Sky'', the outlaw Pokémon called [[spoiler:the "Invincible Haunter" is actually a group of three; when one is KO'd, the other two use a blinding flash of light to hide the fact that they're swapping him out.]]
342* TaxmanTakesTheWinnings: When completing a task, you only get one tenth of the advertised monetary reward, with the rest going to the guild. [[JustifiedTrope Giving guild members lodging and meals isn't cheap.]] Tasks that give items as rewards are not affected by this.
343* TeamRocketWins: Team Skull manages to absolutely destroy your team with the help of their leader, taking the apples from the Perfect Apple tree and setting your team to take the fall for it by Chatot.
344* TerminatorTwosome: [[spoiler:Grovyle and the player]] were sent back in time to change history for the better, while [[spoiler:Dusknoir]] was sent back to stop them.
345* ThereIsAnother: Grovyle came back with a partner, [[spoiler:which he reveals is still back in time. Dusknoir laughs Grovyle off, and says that he's already captured his [[PlayerCharacter partner]].]]
346* ThisIsTheFinalBattle: At the end of "In the Future of Darkness", [[spoiler:Grovyle says to his teammates that the upcoming fight against Primal Dialga will be their last before time is restored.]]
347* ThisPageWillSelfDestruct: In ''Sky'', the Secret Rank jobs given by the Pokémon Exploration Team Federation will self-destruct after revealing the location of one of the Seven Treasures.
348* TimeSkip: After you defeat [[spoiler:Primal Dialga]], the game skips forward several months twice as [[spoiler:your partner deals with the aftermath of losing you,]] and [[spoiler:you and your partner finish your training and qualify for graduation.]]
349* TimeStandsStill: Removing a Time Gear stops time in the region it was in. [[spoiler:The BadFuture shows an ''entire'' world in this state, known as "Planetary Paralysis", and causes untold problems for its inhabitants. It is later revealed that it's necessary to take the Time Gears to a place where they can reserve the time freeze effect.]]
350%%* {{Tsundere}}: Loudred and [[spoiler:Celebi]] show signs of this. Loudred is definitely more of a Type A, while [[spoiler:Celebi]] seems to be more of a Type B.
351* TwoScenesOneDialogue:
352** During the player's encounter with a Groudon at Fogbound Lake, the far-away Guild members discuss just ''what'' a Groudon is, as if to highlight how screwed you are.
353** The retelling of Lapras's and Wigglytuff's first encounter is told by each of them respectively, with Lapras talking to the party and Wigglytuff addressing the guild.
354* TheUnchosenOne: [[spoiler:The player isn't the one destined to go to the Hidden Land and save the world, it's the partner. The player is essentially the sidekick-in-disguise who helps the partner fulfill their destiny.]]
355* UnexpectedKindness:
356** Throughout the game, [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Team Skull]] have been nothing but bullies and jerks to the protagonists, even going so far as [[WouldHurtAChild hurt children]] to mess with them. Near the end, they show up once more to steal the team's "Relic Fragment", which is needed to help them save the world. However, after they're beaten up by Kabutops and his partners, they lie injured on the dungeon floor, and are approached by the player and their partner. In a rare moment, Skuntank returns the Relic Fragment and tells them to be careful. The player and their partner are shocked by this and thank them, and even his partners are surprised by this, referring to him as being a "big softie" deep down.
357** If you keep getting defeated in Drenched Bluff, Chatot will take the Player and the Partner to see Wigglytuff. Chatot says Wigglytuff must be infuriated with their constant failures, but Wigglytuff's actually understanding and friendly about it. He even gives the Player some Reviver Seeds so that they have a better chance.
358* UnexpectedlyRealisticGameplay: The Guild needs to get money from somewhere for it to keep operating. Registration may be free, but that means the Guild takes a huge cut out of mission rewards. That said, they still take a cut of the money even when [[spoiler: your team graduates.]] Although this may be attributed to the fact that the Guild is still the one supplying the missions to you, even then.
359* TheUnfought: [[spoiler:Skuntank, the leader of Team Skull]], is never fought directly by the protagonists even though he was a major antagonist all along the main story.
360* UnwinnableByDesign: The Graduation Exam is an InUniverse example. There are some rumors around Treasure Town that the Exam is made in such a way no one is able to graduate. And there are good reasons to think of that - you are under a severe disadvantage in numbers, [[spoiler:the rest of the Guild has several {{Herd Hitting Attack}}s to screw you over, [[CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass Wigglytuff]] is one of the Pokémon you have to fight, and were it not for Bidoof's unwitting interference, the entire fight would have taken place in complete darkness]]. And this Exam can even be potentially taken solo (as implied by Loudred failing the previous year), making it even more difficult. It's not outright impossible, as the player and their partner show, but the fact it takes [[spoiler:two Pokémon that defeated the living embodiment of time]] for someone to pass it speaks volumes.
361* UselessUsefulSpell: Unlike in the main game, Sleep gets nerfed in the post-game, with the advent of IQ skills. Several Pokémon are suddenly immune to sleep or recover from status effects quickly. Suddenly, Spore and Sleep Powder seem a lot less useful...
362* VerbalTic: Many of the Guild members have them, save for Chimecho, Diglett and Dugtrio;
363** Loudred likes to EMPHASIZE random WORDS in his SENTENCES!
364** Chatot acts like a real bird when he's in shock, SQUAWK! But when he's happy he's positively sing-song ♪!
365** Like, oh my gosh, doesn't Sunflora talk like a ValleyGirl?!
366** Oof, Bidoof sure speaks informally and ends all his sentences positively, yup yup!
367** Meh-heh-heh, Croagunk can't help but chuckle in his dialogue.
368** Less present, but Wigglytuff's more emotional moments cause him to exclaim "Yoom-tah!"
369** Corphish's sentences always sound excited, hey hey!
370* VideoGameCrueltyPotential:
371** You can reject a defeated Pokémon's request to join the exploration team, and then steal their stuff. You can also accept them ''and'' steal their stuff.
372** Sometimes, a Pokémon in Spinda's Café will ask the party to do a job. You can accept the job, delete it from your job list, then talk to the Pokémon again about how glad they are that you accepted it.
373** You can reject any freshly hatched Pokémon from your exploration team. The game describes how this helpless, fragile Baby Pokémon walks away happily and carelessly without any family or friends around.
374** Go ahead and leave the baby Pokémon that almost nothing is known about starving and bawling with Chatot. [[NobodyCanDie It's not like he'll die]].
375* ViewersAreGoldfish: The games ''love'' repeating lines of text in a slightly different manner after something is said. Flashbacks also happen fairly often, and usually feature something that happened ten minutes ago at most.
376* VillainBall: All Darkrai has to do is [[spoiler:jump in the time portal as soon as he realizes he had no chance against the protagonists, and he would escape. But no, he has to gloat about the irony of the situation and the helplessness of the heroes, giving enough time for Palkia to arrive and destroy the time portal.]]
377* VillainExitStageLeft: After being defeated, Darkrai [[spoiler:opens a time portal to escape to, essentially, ''anywhere but there''. Palkia destroys it as he leaves, causing him to wash up somewhere in the past with no memories of his plans for [[TakeOverTheWorld World Domination]].]]
378* VillainousPlanInertia: The player and their partner manage to defeat [[spoiler:Primal Dialga, who is trying to stop them from returning the Time Gears to Temporal Tower and preventing its collapse, which would cause [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt the planet's paralysis]],]] but they never had time to actually [[spoiler: put the Time Gears back]] and have to immediately rush to do it before [[spoiler: the tower collapses. Although the tower seems to collapse just as they do so, it turns out it just barely survives.]]
379* VillainWithGoodPublicity: [[spoiler:Dusknoir]] is lauded as one of the greatest explorers of all time, all while acting in the interests of [[spoiler:preserving the paralysis of the planet.]]
380* VisibleSilence: If you lose the Graduation Exam, [[spoiler:almost all the members of the Guild will only reply with ellipses if you try to talk with them. The only exceptions are Croagunk and Chimecho (who run shops), as well as Wigglytuff, being the only one that stays in character even after the PaperThinDisguise is revealed]].
381* WakeUpCallBoss: Drowzee is the first Outlaw Pokémon you fight; his Psychic-type "Confusion" move hits relatively hard, and his "Forewarn" ability enables him to dodge roughly every other attack you throw at him. On top of that, he's immune to [[StatusEffects Sleep Seeds]] as well. Be prepared for an actual challenge.
382* WeCannotGoOnWithoutYou: Whenever the player or partner faints in a dungeon during the main StoryArc, or the current team leader faints, the team is warped out of the dungeon and defeated.
383* WeCanRuleTogether: Darkrai offers rule over [[spoiler:the paralysed world to the player character and the partner. The partner appears to submit and admit that resisting Darkrai is useless, but the player character realises that Darkrai is using an illusion to trick them, and begins to fight him.]]
384* WhamEpisode:
385** When the party is thrown into the [[spoiler:BadFuture]], they suddenly learn that [[spoiler:Dusknoir is an evil Pokémon serving Primal Dialga, and Grovyle was trying to ''prevent'' the BadFuture by using the Time Gears to repair Temporal Tower]]. And that [[spoiler:Grovyle was the player's partner before the player was turned into a Pokémon]].
386** Right before your team reaches [[spoiler: Temporal Tower]], you get hit by a big slew of plot twists. [[spoiler: Dusknoir corners you and your team, and after a fight, reveals that once you save the future, you and Grovyle will cease to exist. As a result, once the world is saved, your partner will be alone again. And if that's not enough, Grovyle gives you the time gears and sacrifices himself by dragging Dusknoir back into the future.]]
387* WhatHappenedToTheMouse:
388** In the second chapter, your partner explains about the Time Gears and where they are hidden: A forest, an underground lake, and a volcano. While you visit two of the three locations, the volcano Time Gear is never mentioned again (except in ''Darkness'', where it serves as the title screen), and you never visit such a place.
389** The player's team, Bidoof, Loudred, and Corphish head to Aegis Cave with Team Charm. After reaching the bottom, the player's team and Team Charm hastily exit the cave to escape a cave-in. And the three other guild members?
390---> '''Lopunny''': Looks like everyone's here!
391** After Brine Cave, Team Skull is never seen again, though there's no reason to believe that they didn't make it out safely.
392** It is never confirmed nor denied whether a treasure really exists in the hole at the end of Mt. Bristle.
393* WholeEpisodeFlashback: One of ''Sky's'' Special Episodes retells an important incident in Wigglytuff's childhood. Two other Special Episodes are presented as the featured character reflecting on what happened.
394* AWorldHalfFull: [[spoiler:Even though the future has been plunged into perpetual darkness, many of the Pokémon there believe that they are able to sacrifice themselves to bring upon a brighter reality.]]
395* WorldHealingWave: After placing [[spoiler:the five Time Gears]] in Temporal Tower, [[spoiler:time is repaired, with Dialga showing the player and the partner the world being restored.]]
396* WolfpackBoss: Some of the boss fights are against a number of Pokémon instead of just one. Amp Plains's Luxray/Luxio Tribe (Manectric/Electrike Tribe in ''Sky'') and the Aggron/Lairon pack in the Team Charm special episode are two particularly notable examples.
397* WoundedGazelleGambit:
398** In ''Sky'', [[spoiler:Snover]] pretends to be chased by two other Pokémon as part of [[TheCon a con act]].
399** Dusknoir pulls a downplayed example by [[spoiler:pretending to have been betrayed by Primal Dialga and the Sableye, whilst maintaining his dignity.]]
400* WrongSideAllAlong: Turns out that [[spoiler:Dusknoir isn't the BigGood but actually Primal Dialga's [[TheDragon dragon]] working to keep the planet paralyzed]], and [[spoiler:Grovyle, who the hero and partner are trying to stop from instigating the BadFuture, is actually trying to save the planet.]]
401* {{Yandere}}: Froslass encased the object of her affection in ice and held him hostage for decades.
402* YouExclamation: Dusknoir, near the beginning of the final Sub-Episode in ''Sky'', shouts at Grovyle.
403* YourMagicsNoGoodHere: The Dimensional Scream no longer works [[spoiler:in the future]] except when the player is around where a Time Gear used to be.
404* YourPrincessIsInAnotherCastle: Happens once in the main arc, then again during the epilogue arc:
405** Main story: Congratulations, you captured Grovyle, but [[spoiler:Dusknoir has dragged you into the future and now you must escape. You find out the truth behind Dusknoir's actions as a result.]]
406** Epilogue: Even though Azurill is cured of his nightmare and [[spoiler:Cresselia shows up to oust an impersonator, you must head to confront Darkrai once and for all.]]
407* YouShallNotPass: Grovyle announces he's "TakingYouWithMe" when he [[spoiler:shoves Dusknoir and himself back through the portal to the future.]]
408[[/folder]]

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