Until now, each species had one or two abilities. Generation V adds a third, rarer one: the Hidden Ability. It was at the heart of the Pokémon Dream World, and some of them transformed competitive play.
🔑What is a Hidden Ability?
An ability is a passive power that works in battle or on the field. A Pokémon can only have one. The Hidden Ability is an extra ability that the species does not normally have: a Pokémon caught in the usual way cannot access it.
🌙How to get them in Black and White
- The Pokémon Dream World was the main source. Pokémon met in dreams arrived in the Entree Forest with their Hidden Ability. The service closed in January 2014: see our guide.
- A few encounters in the game offer a Hidden Ability:
- the Musharna of the Dreamyard, in the basement, every Friday after the Pokémon League, with Telepathy;
- the Darmanitan of the Desert Resort statues, woken with a Rage Candy Bar, with Zen Mode, which changes its form when its HP drops below half.
- Breeding: a female holding her Hidden Ability can pass it on to her offspring. See Day Care and Eggs.
⚔️Abilities that changed the game
Some Hidden Abilities completely change the way a Pokémon is played. Darmanitan is the most spectacular example: its regular ability, Sheer Force, boosts its moves with secondary effects, while its Hidden Ability, Zen Mode, turns it into a Fire- and Psychic-type Pokémon. The competitive scene of the time was built around these new abilities, and our Premium file Competitive strategy reviews them.
