For Pokémon GO information on this species, see the game's section.
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This article is about the species. For a specific instance of this species, see Wobbuffet (disambiguation).

Wobbuffet Patient Pokémon ソーナンス Sonans #202 Images on the Bulbagarden Archives
Type Psychic
Abilities Shadow Tag Telepathy Hidden Ability
Gender ratio     50% male, 50% female	Catch rate 45 (11.9%)
Breeding Egg Group Amorphous Hatch time 5140 - 5396 steps
Height 4'03" 1.3 m	Weight 62.8 lbs. 28.5 kg
Base experience yield 177 Gen. II-IV 142 V+	Leveling rate Medium Fast
EV yield Total: 2 2 HP 0 Atk 0 Def 0 Sp.Atk 0 Sp.Def 0 Speed
Shape	Footprint
Pokédex color   Blue	Base friendship 70
External Links On Smogon Pokédex: Generation II Generation III Generation IV Generation V Generation VI Generation VII Artwork on Bulbagarden Archives

Wobbuffet (Japanese: ソーナンス Sonans) is a Psychic-type Pokémon introduced in Generation II.

It evolves from Wynaut starting at level 15.

Biology

Wobbuffet is a tall, cyan Pokémon with a soft body. Its eyes usually appear scrunched, and it has a jagged upper lip. The female Wobbuffet has a red marking on its mouth that resembles lipstick, while the male does not. It has flat arms that are wider towards the tip and four stubby legs at the base of its body. There are two eyespots on its black tail. Its eyespots are revealed to be capable of blinking and looking around using its tail in the Pokémon Stadium series. Wobbuffet is very protective of its tail, to the point where it will suddenly turn uncharacteristically aggressive if the tail is attacked.

Wobbuffet is usually a docile Pokémon that will never attack first. However, when it is attacked, it will inflate its body and initiate a counter-strike. When two or more of this Pokémon meet, they will attempt to outlast each other in a battle of endurance. However, since neither is able to attack, they may compete to see which can last without food. Because of its overprotective nature regarding its tail and hatred of light, Wobbuffet lives in dark caves.

In the anime

Main series

 

Wobbuffet in the anime

 

Female Wobbuffet in the anime

Major appearances

Jessie's Wobbuffet

Jessie has a Wobbuffet that frequently emerges from his Poké Ball to shout his name or cause what Jessie considers to be trouble. Ever since she accidentally traded her Lickitung for him in Tricks of the Trade, he has appeared in almost every episode in the overall anime, excluding most of Pokémon the Series: Black & White. She rarely uses Wobbuffet in battle, but when she does, the results are generally good. On the other hand, Jessie's few attempts at using Wobbuffet in Contests have all had negative results.

During Pokémon the Series: Black & White, Wobbuffet was left at Team Rocket's headquarters prior to Jessie, James and Meowth's departure to the Unova region. He was later reunited with Jessie when the trio returned to Kanto, and he was the only one of Jessie's Pokémon to accompany her to the Kalos and Alola regions, as well as her worldwide travels in Pokémon Journeys: The Series.

Other

Wobbu-Palooza! featured a town in which everyone owned a Wobbuffet, including the local Officer Jenny.

In A Fork in the Road! A Parting of the Ways!, Dr. White's female Wobbuffet became the love interest of Jessie's own Wobbuffet.

Minor appearances

The Mirror World has a counterpart for Jessie's Wobbuffet, appearing with Mirror Jessie at the end of The Cave of Mirrors!.

A Trainer's Wobbuffet appeared in A Festival Trade! A Festival Farewell?*.

A Wobbuffet appeared in a fantasy in A Talent for Imitation!.

Pokédex entries

Pokémon: Twilight Wings

 

Wobbuffet in Pokémon: Twilight Wings

A Trainer's female Wobbuffet appeared in Buddy.

A Wobbuffet appeared in a flashback in Assistant, under the ownership of a Scientist.

In the manga

 

Wobbuffet in Pokémon Adventures

Ash & Pikachu

Main article: Jessie's Wobbuffet

Similar to the anime, Jessie owns a Wobbuffet.

Movie adaptations

Main article: Jessie's Wobbuffet

Jessie also owned a Wobbuffet in the movie adaptations.

Pokémon Journeys: The Series

Main article: Jessie's Wobbuffet

Jessie's Wobbuffet debuted in JNM04.

Pocket Monsters DP

A Wobbuffet appeared in PMDP20.

Pokémon Adventures

Gold, Silver & Crystal chapter

Wobbuffet debuted in Absolutely Azumarill, under the ownership of Mirei.

A Wobbuffet appeared in The Last Battle XIII as one of the Pokémon sent to participate in the fight in Ilex Forest.

Platinum chapter

A Trainer's Wobbuffet appeared in The Final regional Duel II.

HeartGold & SoulSilver chapter

A Wobbuffet appeared in Out-Odding Oddish, under the ownership of a Pokéathlon participant.

Pokémon Gotta Catch 'Em All

A Wobbuffet appeared in GDZ67, under the ownership of a monk.

In the TCG

Main article: Wobbuffet (TCG)

In the TFG

One Wobbuffet figure has been released.

• Groundbreakers: Wobbuffet

Other appearances

 

Wobbuffet in Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Super Smash Bros. Melee/Brawl

When released from a Poké Ball, Wobbuffet will stand on the stage in one place. Anyone attacking or running into it will be damaged by its Counter, apart from the player who threw the Poké Ball, who will only be knocked back.

Wobbuffet is also a Poké Float in Melee. It appears on its side and never fully reveals itself. When it first appears, it will quickly return off-screen but will then come back and remain to allow for fighting to take place on top of it.

Melee trophy information

A Patient Pokémon, Wobbuffet lives in darkness to hide its mismatched black tail. Even for a stoic Pokémon, this creature is a testament to self-control; it will not actively attack an opponent. Its Counter and Mirror Coat moves are solely used for reflecting attacks directly back at its antagonist.

Brawl trophy information

"A Patient Pokémon. A nocturnal, cave-dwelling creature, Wobbuffet is calm and collected, but it will fight back viciously if its black tail is attacked--this hints at something secretive about its tail. If Wobbuffet is put into battle, the opponent cannot run away or switch. Females have lipsticklike markings around their mouths."

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Wobbuffet appears as a Spirit.

Game data

NPC appearances

• Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Red Rescue Team and Blue Rescue Team: Wobbuffet and Wynaut send the player on a mission into the Uproar Forest. As thanks for completing it, they help to remodel the rescue base. Notably, the Wobbuffet is the only Pokémon in the entire game that doesn't speak in a way the player can understand; it only says its own name. However, this may be an oversight by the translators, since in Explorers of Sky (as mentioned below) it does not speak this way.
• Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky: Wobbuffet (confirmed to be female by its lipstick) once again joins Wynaut, only this time, they're running a shop in the Spinda's Café, called the Recycle Shop. Unlike the first game, it no longer says its name, and instead says "That's right!".

Pokédex entries

Game locations

In side games

In events

Held items

Game		Held Item(s)
Events*		Fab Mail (100%)

Stats

Base stats

Pokéathlon stats

Type effectiveness

Learnset

By leveling up

By TM/TR

Generation VIII Other generations: II - III - IV - V - VI - VII

TM   Move   Type   Cat.   Pwr.   Acc.   PP  TM19 Safeguard Normal Status — —% 25 TM29 Charm Fairy Status — 100% 20 TR17 Amnesia Psychic Status — —% 20 TR30 Encore Normal Status — 100% 5

Bold indicates a move that gets STAB when used by Wobbuffet Italic indicates a move that gets STAB only when used by an evolution of Wobbuffet Click on the generation numbers at the top to see TM moves from other generations

By breeding

By tutoring

By a prior evolution

By transfer from another generation

Anime-only moves

Side game data

Pokémon Pinball RS   Acquisition: Catch			Pokémon Trozei! Rarity: Rare
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon Red Rescue Team and Blue Rescue Team   Body size: 1 Recruit rate: Evolve Friend Area: Echo Cave Phrases 51%-100% HP I'm very shy. Please don't come up to me from behind. 26%-50% HP I think I'm in trouble. My health is down by half. 1%-25% HP I'm sorry...I can hardly wobble... Level up My level went up!
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon Explorers of Time, Explorers of Darkness, and Explorers of Sky Body size: 1 Recruit rate: -12% IQ group: E
Pokémon Ranger Group: Psychic Poké Assist: Psychic Field move: None Loops: 8 Min. exp.: 55 Max. exp.: 69 Browser entry R-170 When a Capture Line is drawn, Wobbuffet tenses up and inflates itself instantly.
Pokémon Ranger: Guardian Signs Group: Psychic Poké Assist: (present) Psychic Field move: (present) (Teleport ×-) Poké Assist: (past) Psychic Field move: (past) (Psy Power ×1) Browser entry R-104/N-189 It attacks by launching strange rings that make Pokémon Stopped.
Pokémon Rumble Blast Attack ● Defense ●● Speed ●●●
Pokémon Rumble Rush Walking Speed: 1.5 seconds Base HP: 72   Base Attack: 72 Base Defense: 50 Base Speed: 60
Pokémon Battle Trozei Psychic Attack Power: ★★★★★
Pokémon Shuffle Psychic Attack Power: 60 - 105  5 #268 Counterattack Deals even more damage the more disruptions there are. Skill Swapper: Rock Break+			Pokémon Shuffle Psychic Attack Power: 60 - 105  5 #268 Swap+ Sometimes replaces three disruptions with this Pokémon.
Pokémon GO Base Stamina: 382 Base Attack: 60 Base Defense: 106 Egg Distance: N/A Buddy Distance: 3 km Evolution Requirement: N/A Fast Attacks: Counter, Splash, Charm* Charged Attacks: Mirror Coat, Frustration‡, Return‡

Costumes in Pokémon GO

Party hat

Evolution

Baby form Wynaut  Psychic

Breed holding Lax Incense ← Level 15 →

First evolution Wobbuffet  Psychic

Sprites

This Pokémon was unavailable prior to Generation II.
Generation II   Gold   Silver   Crystal         Front Back   Front Back   Front Back
Generation III   Ruby Sapphire   Emerald   FireRed LeafGreen         Front Back   Front Back   Front Back
Generation IV   Diamond Pearl   Platinum   HeartGold SoulSilver                 Front Back   Front Back   Front Back
Generation V   Black White   Black 2 White 2         Front Back   Front Back
Generation VI   X Y   Omega Ruby Alpha Sapphire         Front Back   Front Back
Generation VII   Sun Moon   Ultra Sun Ultra Moon         Front Back   Front Back
Generation VIII   Sword Shield   HOME

 For other sprites and images, please see Wobbuffet images on the Bulbagarden Archives.

Trivia

• Wobbuffet has the highest base HP of all Psychic-type Pokémon.
• Wobbuffet is one of fourteen Pokémon that one can collect foreign Pokédex entries for in Pokémon Diamond and Pearl.
• If the opponent does not attack Wobbuffet, Wobbuffet cannot harm the opponent except with Struggle (itself unusable unless Wobbuffet has run out of moves) or through the use of a Z-Move or a Dynamax move.
• Wobbuffet was banned from many unofficial tournaments until Generation V, due to its unique moveset and Ability, Shadow Tag, making it somewhat difficult to counter.[1]
• Before Generation IV, Wobbuffet could not damage a Ghost- or Dark-type Pokémon (without the use of Struggle) that uses an attack of its own type because all Ghost moves were physical (the Ghost type is immune to Counter) and all Dark moves were special (the Dark type is immune to Mirror Coat). It is still not possible for Wobbuffet to counter the Ghost/Dark typed Sableye or Spiritomb unless another Pokémon uses Foresight, Odor Sleuth, or Miracle Eye first or the Pokémon is holding a Ring Target, or if Scrappy is passed onto Wobbuffet.
• In Generation III, if two Wobbuffet with Leftovers are facing each other in a Single Battle, the battle will become endless as all of Wobbuffet's moves do not directly damage the opponent, and the player cannot switch to their other Pokémon due to Shadow Tag. Even if the Wobbuffet use Struggle, the damage will be healed quickly by Leftovers. Shadow Tag and Struggle were both changed in Generation IV, likely as a direct response to this scenario.
• Wobbuffet was designed by Hironobu Yoshida.

Origin

Wobbuffet is likely based on a punching bag; that is, when it is hit, it bounces back. Alternatively, it may be based on the concept of Karma as it can only cause damage if it is attacked first. Wobbuffet may also be based on an Okiagari-koboshi doll, a Japanese traditional doll with squinted eyes that stands back upright when pushed over.

Given that Wobbuffet often touches its hand to its forehead, it may also be based on the late Japanese comedian 林家三平 Sanpei Hayashiya, who was famous for repeatedly touching his hand to his forehead while saying one of his trademark lines, そうなんす、奥さん sō nansu, okusan, "That's the way it is, ma'am."

Name origin

Wobbuffet is a combination of wobble and buffet (to strike repeatedly), referring to its punching-bag shape.

Sonans is homophonous with the interjection そうなんす sō na-n-su, which roughly means, "That's the way it is." It is played off by its pre-evolution, Wynaut, whose Japanese name, Sohnano, is nearly homophonous with the phrase そうなの sō na no, meaning, "Really?" Together, they make for a potential perpetual conversation of, "Really?" followed by, "That's the way it is," and so on, as seen in Camp Pikachu.

Other languages' names for the Pokémon in this family, due to the fact that they were introduced in different generations, do not feature this pun.

In other languages

Language Title Meaning  Japanese ソーナンス Sonans From そうなんす sō na-n-su  French Qulbutoké A play on Culbuto (the French trademarked name for Weebles) and okay  Spanish Wobbuffet Same as English name  German Woingenau Corrupted version of Wohin genau?  Italian Wobbuffet Same as English name  Korean 마자용 Mazayong From 맞아요 majayo; 맞아요 is more polite than 맞아  Cantonese Chinese      Mandarin Chinese 果然翁 Guǒránwēng From 果然 guǒrán and 不倒翁 bùdǎowēng

[hide]More languages  Hebrew וואבאפט Wabbaffet Transcription of English name  Russian Воббаффет Vobbaffet Transcription of English name  Thai โซนานส์ Sonan Transcription of Japanese name

Related articles

• Jessie's Wobbuffet

External links

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Pokémon

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This Pokémon article is part of Project Pokédex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on each Pokémon as a species.