The Basics: Breeding

Learn the essentials of Pokémon breeding in X and Y! Discover how to get Eggs, what they can inherit, and how to hatch them efficiently with our beginner-friendly guide.

Alright, so you're looking to get into breeding Pokémon in X and Y? Awesome! It might sound complicated, but it's actually a super useful way to get Pokémon with great stats and moves. This guide is for beginners, so we'll stick to the absolute basics.

First off, you'll need to reach Route 7. After some story stuff happens around there and at the Parfum Palace, you'll be able to access more of the route past the big bridge. Just past that bridge is the Pokémon Daycare. You can leave two Pokémon here, and they'll hang out until you decide to pick them up. Beginners often use the Daycare just to level up their Pokémon, as they gain 1 EXP for every step you take. Picking them up costs $100 initially, plus another $100 for each level they gained. Just a heads-up, though: you can't control which moves they learn or forget, and they won't evolve while in the Daycare, so keep that in mind!

Now, for the actual breeding part! You'll need two Pokémon, generally a male and a female. You can tell their gender by the little icon next to their name in battle: a blue arrow means male, and a pink cross means female. Pokémon without a mark have no gender and can't breed. There are some exceptions to this rule, but we'll get to those later. If you leave two Pokémon of opposite genders (or in other specific situations) at the Daycare, there's a chance you'll be able to get an Egg by talking to the man outside.

The Pokémon inside that Egg can inherit some cool stuff from its parents, like IVs (which affect stat growth), Natures (which give a 10% boost or penalty to certain stats), some moves, and even the species itself! It's pretty neat how much they can pass down.

So, how do you get that Egg to hatch? It's simple: just carry it in your party and walk around! Whether you're walking, biking, or skating, every step counts. Depending on the Pokémon species inside, an Egg can take anywhere from 5,000 to 31,000 steps to hatch. Don't stress too much about it; it's just a matter of putting in the steps. You'll know it's hatched when it eventually does!

Want to speed things up a bit? Having Pokémon with the Magma Armor or Flame Body abilities in your party will make Eggs hatch much faster. That's the core of it! If you're looking to get really strategic with breeding, though, there's a lot more to explore in other guides.