Warping Items
Warping items are one of the largest classes of items, containing multiple different seeds, orbs, and wands. Reunion Capes are actually included in this class, though since I had a lot to say on them, I gave them their own section. As for warping items themselves, most of them are useful for getting out of a tough situation, or for some, like the Switcher and Surround items, they’re excellent for taking down a tough foe. Then there’s the Escape Orb, an essential to pack on any dungeon expedition. And then there’s the conundrum that are Warp Scarves, which I’ll get into at the end of this section.
Warp Seeds are the most ubiquitous of the warping items, and a lot of them are derived from these seeds. The ring around the seed has a special compound in it that warps any Pokemon it touches away to a random location, though it only happens if the ring is damaged, as that releases the compound. The warping from Warp Seeds isn’t limitless like Reunion Capes, they only have a range of about a small town’s area, or a single floor in mystery dungeons. They’re very useful for getting a strong dungeon Pokemon out of the way that you aren’t prepared to take on, or for getting out of a sticky situation yourself if you’re going in a dungeon solo. (By the way, DO NOT DO THIS IF YOU AREN’T AN EXPERT. There’ll be no one to help you if you get taken out. There’s a reason why there’s very few solo dungeoneering teams.) Warp Seeds are also quite common! You can find them lying around in most forest mystery dungeons, and they’re cheap at most shops.
Pure Seeds are actually the exact same thing as Warp Seeds, just less than a day after sprouting. After the main shell of the seed sprouts, the compound in the ring begins changing, and for a brief period of time, they contain a compound that teleports you to where you need to go, within the range of a Warp Seed. While highly useful, they’re difficult to find, and last very little time before they stop working. They’re easy to make, though, by giving a Warp Seed sunlight and water for just a little bit.
The compound that makes Pure Seeds work is still present in minute amounts in fully-grown Warp Bushes, and are what make Guiding Wands function, which I’ll talk about later in this section.
Via Seeds are near-functionally the same as Warp Seeds as far as use as a warping item goes. They contain the same compound as Warp Seeds, just in a slightly higher amount. The only way they differ is in appearance and range outside of mystery dungeons. Via Seeds have a range of a medium sized town outside of mystery dungeons, and they look extremely similar to Vile Seeds. Where Vile Seeds have ten stripes, though, Via Seeds have eleven, and they’re a slightly lighter shade. They’re a fair bit rarer than Warp Seeds, but can be used just like one. Don’t throw them away just for being a lookalike item, keep them!
The basic warping orbs are pretty simple. Warp Orbs are practically just a warp seed in orb form, and do exactly what Warp Seeds do: Warp someone away upon impact. They have a slightly higher rate of success, due to being more fragile than Warp Seeds, but they’re also a bit harder to toss, too, though that may not matter for you. To create one, crush a Warp Seed into a fine powder (using a spoon or other implement. Not your body, unless you want to be warped away), fill a bowl with water, add the powder to the water, and soak a blank orb template in the water for five hours.
Stayaway Orbs are much the same as Warp Orbs, with the added effect of petrifying the target in place after they’ve been warped. They’re useful if you don’t want to carry separate Warp and Stun Seeds, and they’re a much more plant-friendly alternative to Stayaway Wands, which I’ll talk about soon. To create a Stayaway Orb, the process is much the same as with a Warp orb, except you will also need to crush a Stun Seed and add it to the mixture.
Spurn Orbs are a highly useful item for emergencies. They’ll warp away every Pokemon in the same room as you, aside from those you have a connection with. They’re excellent for clearing out monster houses and other rooms filled with too many dungeon Pokemon to safely handle. To create a Spurn Orb is very similar to creating a Warp Orb, only you use at least five Warp Seeds instead of just one.
Rollcall Orbs can reunite you with your teammates in a flash. If you get separated in a mystery dungeon, use one, and your teammates will warp right back to a side. Very useful for if one of you steps on a Warp Trap, or a dungeon Pokemon uses a warping item on you or one of your teammates, or some other event causes you to get separated. They can also be used outside of mystery dungeons if you all have to meet up for something, though I recommend informing your teammates in advance before using one like this.
To create one, take a Warp Orb, and keep it next to you for at least a full day. I know it sounds weird, but doing this will cause the orb to attune to your energy, and change from a Warp Orb to a Rollcall Orb.
Escape Orbs are the most useful item to have in a dungeon, even outside of Reviver Seeds. When used, they instantly teleport you, your teammates, and anyone else nearby out of a dungeon and to its entrance, excluding dungeon Pokemon.
Don’t ever go into a dungeon without one. I cannot stress this enough. This is your way out of a dungeon. This is how you get out of a monster house. This is how you live if you’re badly injured and out of healing berries and seeds. There is no shame in fleeing a dungeon with one. Your life is far, far more important. Even if you’re going on a rescue mission, you can head right back in, though you should resupply first. Please, please pack at least one every time you go into a mystery dungeon. I’ve seen too many teams who have died because they forgot to bring an Escape Orb on an expedition. Please don’t let yourself become one of them.
They’re one of the simplest orbs to make, and are very cheap at shops, so getting one is barely a hassle at all. Simply dissolve a small amount of emera dust in a bowl of water, and soak a blank orb template in it. After about two hours, you’ll have an Escape Orb!
They’re actually used in adventuring team badges, and are how you can escape dungeons after completing a mission. The technology is still being worked on, though, and until they’re able to teleport you out anytime, they’re no substitute for an Escape Orb.
Before I talk about Warp Wands, I have to talk about wands in general. Wands are pieces of wood that have been soaked in a solution of water and emera dust. The plant that the wood comes from influences what the wand does. Wands made from the outer branches of a Warp Bush are Warp Wands, and when used, fire a ball of light that has the same effect as a warp seed.
Speaking of Warp Bushes, they are almost mushroom-like, the outer branches forming domes, and Warp Seeds dangle from the sides like fruit. In spring, they’re also covered in Warp Flowers, flowers with geometric petals and a swirling teal and indigo pattern. Warp Flowers, unfortunately, are difficult to pick, as they warp away if they are severed from the bush. A Nullify Orb or a move that negates its warping makes them easier to gather.
The inner branches of Warp Bushes have a different use when made into wands. Instead of warping something away, they create a ball of light that travels in the direction of where you need to go. Very useful for finding stairs in mystery dungeons, or if you’re lost. Or, as I found out soon after I reunited with Lidequir after the Falling Star crisis, sometimes the light goes towards the nearest therapist.
Legend says that the first Guiding Wand was created when a Spinda was lost in Primeval Forest. They ran into a Nosepass, and asked her for help in escaping the forest. The Nosepass then walked to a nearby Warp Bush, and uprooted it, before shaving off all the outer branches, leaving only the core branches. The Nosepass handed the core branches to the Spinda in the form of a wand, and told them to go wherever it led them.
The Spinda tried to follow the wand as it pointed in various directions, but no matter how far they went, they couldn’t find their way out of the forest. They walked for hours on end, but the forest seemed endless. Frustrated, they threw the wand, and an orb of light shot from it, in a direction the wand hadn’t been pointing. Curious, the Spinda followed the direction of the orb of light, and found their way out of the forest.
Switcher Wands are formed from the branches of Switcher Shrubs. When cast, it fires a ball of light, and the first Pokemon it impacts swaps positions with you, whether friend or foe. They can be useful for taking down foes in corridors. Just switch with them so you’re on the opposite side from your teammates, and then you and your teammates can take them out without getting in each others’ way as much.
Surround Wands have a similar use, but are for more open areas. They’re formed from a branch of a Surround Tree, and when cast, cause you and your teammates to surround the Pokemon it is cast at. Excellent for overwhelming a strong foe from all sides at once!
Both Switcher Wands and Surround Wands have orb versions, which can be made by soaking a blank orb template in water, crushing a Switcher Wand or Surround Wand into wood shavings, depending on the orb you want, adding that to the water, then waiting five hours. Instead of firing a ball of light, they switch or surround any Pokemon you are looking at when you activate them. They’re useful if you have trouble with wands, since all you have to do is shatter them.
Stayaway Wands are a wand that has the functions of both a Warp Wand and a Petrify Wand, the latter of which I’ll get to later in this guide. In short, they warp a Pokemon away, then petrify them in place. They are made from the branches of a Stayaway Bush, which are a crossbreed between a Warp Bush and a Petrify Bush.
Stayaway Bushes are, unfortunately, not the healthiest of plants. They don’t produce flowers or seeds, have few leaves and are simply a twisted thicket of indigo, teal, and purple. Petrify Bushes are parasitic plants, and Stayaway Bushes parasitize on themselves, their purple vines wrapping around their own branches, and leeching the life out of the same plant that they’re a part of. Stayaway Bushes are unlikely to go more than three years without dying.
As a Meganium and a lover of plants, I can’t recommend using Stayaway Wands. They aren’t worth the tiny bit of extra safety that petrifying dungeon Pokemon after warping them provides. I know there’s the saying of “A single extra item can be the difference between life or death,” but these plants are suffering. Please just pack either a Stayaway Orb, or both a Warp and Petrify Wand. Don’t combine them.
Now for quite possibly the most baffling item in this guide: Warp Scarves. They warp you away to a random location every ten seconds after you put it on. The uses are few and far between. You can use one to scout out a floor of a dungeon, but you’ll likely end up very disoriented and most certainly separated from your team. The only other known use is throwing one at a hostile dungeon Pokemon, and hoping they hold onto it and get warped away.
Nobody knows for certain why Warp Scarves exist. Various theories abound, such as them being created by a legendary in order to mess with other Pokemon, that they were an accidental creation by someone trying to make a different kind of scarf, or that they were created as a means to punish criminals in ancient times.
The most viable explanation as to why Warp Scarves exist is that they’re actually a lookalike item. Archeologists have discovered records of so-called “Ward Scarves” and “Ward Seeds” dating back to the time of the first adventure squads. These items, the records say, protect against poison, burns, paralysis and other such ailments. The theory goes that Warp Seeds are a lookalike item of these “Ward Seeds”, and that Ward Scarves are made via Warp Seeds, and have their own lookalike, Warp Scarves.
As for why you’ve never seen or heard of a Ward Seed or Ward Scarf before, it’s theorized that whatever plant Ward Seeds came from had gone extinct due to overharvesting, and with it gone, Ward Scarves could no longer be made. All that remain now are their presumed lookalikes, and with no record of what Ward Seeds and Scarves looked like, we’ll likely never truly know if Warp Seeds and Scarves truly are lookalikes.
Some Pokemon have begun planting Miracle Seeds en masse to try to revive these forgotten items, but so far, it’s to no avail. Perhaps these scarves and seeds are destined to be left to history.
And that's all I have for warping items! A wide variety of items with a wide variety of uses.
Next section, I'll be talking about the two Awakening items. Awakening Emeras, Empowerment Seeds, and why they might be connected to the origin of mystery dungeons.