Pokémon Ruby Version, Sapphire Version, and Emerald Version - Friendship
Friendship is a measure of a particular Pokémon’s attachment to the player. When a Pokémon is created or traded from another player, it starts with its base friendship (normally 70 but depends on the species). A Pokémon hatched from an Egg starts with a friendship of 120 instead. Friendship ranges from 0 through 255. Here are the ways to raise or lower friendship.
| Method | Friendship 0-99 | 100-199 | 200-255 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Level Up | +5 | +3 | +2 |
| X Attack, X Defend, X Speed, X Special | +1 | +1 | +0 |
| Protein, Iron, Calcium, Carbos, Zinc, HP Up, PP Up, PP Max | +5 | +3 | +2 |
| Pomeg/Kelpsy/Qualot/Tamato/Hondew/Grepa Berry (Emerald version) | +10 | +5 | +2 |
| Daisy (in Pallet Town, after beating the game) | +3 | +3 | |
| Begin a battle against a Gym Leader, Elite Four, or the Champion with the Pokémon in party (even if it doesn’t participate or the battle ended in defeat) | +3 | +1 | |
| Every 256 steps, if the Pokémon is in party (50% chance) | +1 | ||
| Heal Powder, EnergyPowder | -5 | -5 | -10 |
| Energy Root | -10 | -10 | -15 |
| Revival Herb | -15 | -15 | -20 |
| Pokémon faints | -1 | -1 | -1 |
| Pokémon faints outside of battle because of poison | -5 | -5 | -5 |
The friendship loss from Energy Root, EnergyPowder, Heal Powder, and Revival Herb doesn’t change depending on the Pokémon’s nature, even though these items are described as having a bitter taste. For example, the Pokémon doesn’t lose more friendship if it dislikes bitter foods or lose less friendship if it likes bitter foods.
If the Pokémon is holding a Soothe Bell, each friendship gain is multiplied by 1.5. Then, if the Pokémon was caught in a Luxury Ball, each friendship gain rises by 1. Then, if the friendship gain occurs in the place where the Pokémon was caught, it’s raised by 1.
A Pokémon that evolves through friendship will do so the next time it levels up and its friendship is 220 or more (after the battle ends, if any, and after adding friendship gain because of leveling up).
Friendship can be approximated by talking to the woman at the southwestern house in Verdanturf City:
- 0: "This is a little hard for me to say... Your Pokémon simply detests you. Doesn’t that make you uncomfortable?"
- 1-49: "It’s very wary. It has scary viciousness in its eyes. It doesn’t like you much at all."
- 50-99: "It’s not very used to you yet. It neither loves nor hates you."
- 100-149 : "It’s getting used to you. It seems to believe in you."
- 150-199 : "It likes you a lot. It seems to want to be babied a little."
- 200-254 : "It seems to be very happy. It obviously likes you a whole lot."
- 255: "It adores you. It can’t possibly love you any more. I even feel happy seeing it."
Or by talking to Daisy in Pallet Town (after grooming a Pokémon, if necessary):
- 0: "...Um, it’s not easy for me to say this, but... Is there some reason why your Pokémon would hate you so much?"
- 1-49: "[Trainer], I don’t like the way it glares at you. Could you try being a little nicer to it?"
- 50-99: "It’s not quite familiar with you yet. Pokémon are all quite wary when you first get them."
- 100-149 : "It’s warming up to you. Trust must be growing between you."
- 150-199 : "It’s quite friendly with you. Keep being good to it!"
- 200-254 : "It looks very happy. I wish [Rival] could see this and learn something from it."
- 255: "It couldn’t possibly love you any more than it does now. Your Pokémon is happy beyond words."