Nosepass Facts

All the truest, 100% impartial facts. 200% impartial, dare I say.

  • Nosepass debuted in Ruby and Sapphire, but looked a bit different back then.
    [Image: Nosepass' Ruby and Sapphire sprite.]
    In its Gen 3 sprites, it's somewhat off-colour and a bit more rounded, smooth and slim than its official art. My theory is that its design wasn't quite finalised when the sprites were being made... or, from an in-universe perspective, Hoenn Nosepass are older and more weathered from living close to the sea.
  • Its menu sprite also had the rounded look and wasn't fixed until Gen 6. As you can imagine, the inconsistency drove me mad!
  • Nosepass is available in most main series game from Gen 3 onwards, with just three main exceptions. The first one is FireRed and LeafGreen, of which the only obtainable Gen 3 Pokemon are Deoxys (through an event), and Azurill and Wynaut (which are pre-evolutions of Gen 2 Pokemon). One other exception is Black and White, which made an effort to only have Gen 5 Pokemon available with a few outliers. And finally, the last exception is Pokémon Sword and Shield, which featured a sizable cut to the Pokédex in general. Overall, Nosepass is obtainable natively in 18/24 of the post-Gen 3 main series games as of March 2021 (not counting Colosseum/XD and the Let's Go games). From my perspective, it seems like someone at Game Freak is quite a fan of Nosepass!
  • A big pet theory I have is that Nosepass can learn to control its magnetism, with older and more experienced individuals being able to control it better. Its Pokédex entries consistently mention how they always face north and cannot face another Nosepass due to magnetic forces, however, both the anime and games show Nosepass turning around and facing other directions many times. You don't have to worry about Nosepass, I promise!
  • Nosepass could use it's magnetism to trap Steel-type Pokémon, however, I also firmly believe it can use it to attract friends. When you think about it, Magnemite and Nosepass would be pretty great pals, right? One of my very good friends, Vap (@trulyavaporeon) illustrated this below:

    Image: A short comic by Vap (@trulyavaporeon) about Nosepass.
  • Starting in Gen 6, Nosepass is able to learn Dazzling Gleam. This evidence suggests that every Nosepass is in fact a magical girl and pure of heart.
  • Nosepass' animations in Colosseum, XD, and recent 3D games show it using Electric-type attacks such as Thunderbolt and Zap Cannon via its nose. Nosepass can sneeze lightning! That's so cool!!
  • As anyone who has tried to SOS chain it knows, Nosepass in Sun and Moon love to use Rest. They're such sleepy friends!
  • Nosepass is one of the few Pokemon that learns Block via level-up. Essentially this means that they're immune to all the hate people spread about them on the internet. You're so strong, Nosepass!
  • In Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Red and Blue Rescue Team, Nosepass cannot be recruited until the postgame when its Friend Area Echo Cave becomes available to purchase. You can bet I absolutely cried.
  • In the remaster, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX, they remedied this by letting you obtain every single Friend Area before the postgame, thus letting you befriend Nosepass during the main storyline. I cried even more!
  • Prior to Gen 6, Nosepass' cry is quite fast and frantic. From Gen 6 onwards, it becomes a more gentle "oowoo" sound. Nosepass has become quite a mellow friend!
  • Nosepass in X/Y are found in hordes and in Friend Safaris, clearly meaning that Nosepass has many friends. As they should!
  • In Hoenn, they're found only by smashing rocks in Granite Cave, and with a low chance of appearing at that. Hoenn Nosepass are shy...
  • Nosepass love being petted on their nose. Try it in Amie and Refresh!
  • In HeartGold and SoulSilver, there's a customisable Safari Zone with the ability to add items ("blocks") once you hit the postgame. The blocks attract different wild Pokemon and can be upgraded to increase their value. By putting blocks of the Peak category in the Meadow area you can attract wild Nosepass, as long as the combined value of the Peak blocks is 35.

    Image: The Meadow area in HeartGold and SoulSilver's Safari Zone. It's filled with flowers.
    Image courtesy of Bulbapedia.

    Given that the Meadow is full of flowers, it's safe to assume that Nosepass like flowers! Just make sure you leave some rocks out too so they feel secure.
  • Swarms of Nosepass can be found on Route 206 in Diamond and Pearl if you're lucky, but this is also incidentally where wild Stunky can be found in Diamond. It's a good thing those Nosepass only stay for a day at the most...!
  • According to Pokémon Moon, Metang like to chase Nosepass around for their delicious magnetic minerals. Scary!! Although it presents a big danger to my favourite friend, I definitely enjoy more canon Nosepass worldbuilding.
  • In Detective Pikachu (the 3DS game), a certain Nosepass really wants to look at an interesting mask but cannot turn around to face it. Luckily, their captain buddy is kind enough to help them out and put the mask on a chair in front of them, so they can look at it all they want. It definitely warmed my heart to learn about this!
  • In Platinum, Black 2 and White 2, Nosepass is found in the same areas it evolves in (Mt. Coronet and Chargestone Cave). It's ok, they're just taking their time.
  • As seen in Amie and Refresh, Nosepass eats food through its nose. It's a living rock, so it probably doesn't have much use for breathing.
  • A surprisingly common error some fan artists make is to draw Nosepass with two nostrils, when it only actually has one. To be fair, it's the kind of thing you don't usually think about or notice.
  • Nosepass is a very patient, quiet and good friend. They're always willing to listen.
  • Nosepass trusts you a lot. They do learn Confide, after all! Please treat Nosepass with care.

Page originally published on 12th November 2017.
Page last updated on 30th March 2021 at 23:52 UTC - (updating outdated info, minor tweaks).