scientificpokedex:

Answering these questions together because let’s tackle abilities!

There’s something very innately difficult about answering questions on game mechanics. It’s hard to say anything scientifically about something that we can’t really define in our world, such as leveling up, PP, or having specific stats and that’s our real obstacle here. Translating what is essentially just mathematics into something physical is really just a matter of headcannons and opinions, but here we go!

Pressure

When a Pokémon with Pressure is targeted by a foe’s move, one additional PP is deducted upon execution.

I guess for this one we need to figure out what PP translates to in a physical sense. It could be exhaustion level, it could be willpower, but I think our biggest clue here is in the Ability’s name: Pressure. I like to imagine facing off against a legendary as a very high-pressure situation. Your poor pokémon really doesn’t want to mess up – the pressure is on. Because of this, it is trying very hard and giving it all its got. As you put it, putting extra effort into every move. Because the last thing it wants is to give a Legendary a free shot.

Air Lock

When a Pokémon with Air Lock is in battle, all effects of weather are negated (though the weather itself does not disappear).

So Rayquaza is one of my favorites, but this one is really hard to try to explain. Especially with this particular description. Air Lock doesn’t make the weather go away, but makes the “effects” of the weather disappear. What does that mean? Do you not feel wet when it’s raining on you?

If we go by something that makes a little more sense, Rayquaza just turns the weather to clear. This just means Rayquaza has the ability to control the weather, or more specifically the atmosphere, and everything is just meteorology from there. If he can manipulate pressure in the atmosphere, he could move or evaporate rain/hail clouds quickly, shield out the harmful parts of the sun with ozone, and so on. Controlling the weather is definitely not easy and totally out of our league but hey, Rayquaza’s basically a god anyways. If anyone can control the atmosphere, it would be him.

Blaze

When a Pokémon with Blaze uses a Fire-type move, the power will increase by 1.5× if the user has less than or equal to ⅓ of its maximum HP remaining.

This one, to me, sounds like an adrenaline rush kind of thing. The pokémon is in trouble, it’s hurt, and it’s going to start giving it everything it possibly can. I talked a little more about the specifics in the Mega Evolution post if you’re interested. Instead of powering up physical strength, their rush powers up their fire moves.

Synchronize

When a Pokémon with Synchronize is burned, paralyzed, or poisoned by another Pokémon, that Pokémon will be inflicted with the same status condition.

This one is really interesting too, but given that it’s exclusively a psychic ability (+umbreon), it’s got to be a mental thing. My idea is that the pokémon isn’t actually, physically burned/paralyzed/poisoned, but the psychic pokémon does some Vulcan mind-meld kind of stuff and so the opposing pokémon legitimately thinks and feels what the psychic pokémon is feeling from the burn/paralyze/poison. And thus takes damage from it. Think of a really dramatic version of the placebo effect.

This post isn’t really science so much as it game mechanic interpretation, but I hope you enjoyed it anyways.

Thanks for your question!

-Professor Julie