If a move is missing, check its source, your current form, the required run level, your free move slots and any teaching member required in your League. Reaching a listed level makes a move eligible; it does not force that move to appear on the next level-up. Use the checker on this page to see which requirements apply to a target move.
Bulbasaur native move requirements
Bulbasaur has a fixed four-move native kit. The first move starts the run; the other three join the eligible pool at the listed levels.
| Move | Run-level requirement | Role in this game |
|---|---|---|
| Vine Whip | Starting move | Physical Grass strike against nearby enemies |
| Razor Leaf | Level 2 | Physical Grass projectile barrage |
| Sleep Powder | Level 4 | Special-category Grass cone with a sleep effect |
| Solar Beam | Level 7 | Special Grass beam that pierces enemies |
These are PokéBonk requirements. They are not the levels at which the same names are learned in the main Pokémon games. PokéBonk also converts moves into its own attack patterns and effects; a move described as a status move in the wider series can be implemented as a damaging special-category attack here.
The early capacity problem is important: you normally have three move slots. Vine Whip, Razor Leaf and Sleep Powder fill all three, leaving no free place for a new Solar Beam. You can plan to leave a slot open, or buy the 4th move Lab upgrade to raise capacity to four. Fourth option is a different purchase and will not solve a full move bar.
Three sources of moves
| Source | Where its moves come from | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Own kit | The selected League member’s fixed kit | Required level and a free slot for a new move |
| Evolution line | Applicable learnsets of the current species and its ancestors | Current form, converted run-level requirement and a free slot |
| Shared kit | Compatible kit moves from another League member | Donor ownership, shared typing, move type, level and a free slot |
If you have already learned a move, later cards can upgrade it without adding another move to the bar. A full bar therefore stops new learning, while upgrades to existing moves can still appear. This distinction is more useful than assuming the entire level-up system has stopped working.
Evolution-line moves and run levels
The game’s evolution-line group provides alternatives beyond the fixed kit. Bulbasaur examples include Leech Seed, eligible from run level 1; Poison Powder, from level 2; Seed Bomb, from level 4; and Power Whip, from level 9. These compete for the same finite move capacity as the native moves.
The public rules convert a source learnset level into a PokéBonk requirement with max(1, ceil((source level − 10) ÷ 2.6)). You do not need to calculate this for a covered move: the checker presents the resulting requirement. It explains why copying a standard Pokémon learnset level directly into a PokéBonk guide gives the wrong answer.
The current form matters. Venusaur’s applicable pool is not identical to Bulbasaur’s: Petal Dance and Petal Blizzard appear in the recorded Venusaur evolution-line routes. A level-10 Bulbasaur cannot use a final-form route just because its converted move requirement is low. First reach the relevant evolution stage. Those moves may also be available earlier through Oddish’s shared kit when Oddish is in your League; the checker treats the two routes as alternatives.
Shared kits and League members
For a shared-kit route, the donor must already belong to your League. The donor’s basic types must overlap with your current form’s types, and the shared move must be Normal-type or one of your current types. A shared typing is necessary, but it does not mean every move in the donor’s kit passes the move-type filter.
For example, Bulbasaur is Grass/Poison. If Weedle is in your League, its Poison Sting can be a shared candidate from level 1, subject to a free slot and the random offering process. If Weedle is still challenge-locked or waiting to be captured, that donor requirement is not met. Use the unlock guide for the missing step.
By contrast, unlocking Pidgey does not provide a Bulbasaur shared route: Normal/Flying does not overlap Grass/Poison. Form changes can alter this logic for other families. Charizard adds Flying to Charmander’s Fire typing, so inspect the current form rather than assuming the starting form’s types always remain the same.
Eligible does not mean guaranteed next card
The evolution-line panel describes a 35% candidate rule. The current shared-kit candidate rule uses 50%. These are group-selection steps before the final card offer, not measured chances that a named move will appear. The game can also fill short offers from eligible evolution/shared candidates, which is another reason not to turn either number into a named-move probability.
If Solar Beam is eligible, another eligible move, an existing-move upgrade or a different card can still be offered. A Refresh gives another offering opportunity; it does not override a missing level, donor, form or free slot. Banish and Skip have their own uses, explained with the Lab tools.
Work through a missing-move example
Suppose you start with Bulbasaur, reach level 7 and have Vine Whip, Razor Leaf and Sleep Powder:
- Source: Solar Beam is in Bulbasaur’s own kit, so no donor Pokémon is needed.
- Level: level 7 meets its eligibility requirement.
- Capacity: three learned moves fill the default three slots. This is the blocking condition.
- This run: if you encounter Hypno, you can forget a move there to free a slot. Otherwise keep improving the kit you have.
- Next-run plan: buy the 1,500-Stardust fourth slot or keep a slot open when building toward Solar Beam.
Now suppose the target is Poison Sting. Its shared route additionally asks whether Weedle is in your League and whether the selected current form still passes the type checks. Changing only the level does not resolve an unowned donor.
The checker separates these conditions so that “not currently eligible” has a useful explanation. It checks the recorded routes for the three starter families and their forms; a move outside that coverage is a data-coverage limit, rather than a verdict that the move is impossible anywhere in the game.
Free a slot with Hypno
If you find Hypno during a run, approach and interact (default E), select the move or vitamin to give up, then choose Forget (+n ₽). On touch, use the displayed interaction control. You receive the shown PokéDollars; this is not a Stardust fee. Hypno is a map encounter, so the pause menu does not let you delete any move whenever you want.
You must keep at least one move: forgetting is disabled when only one remains. Removing another move clears that held slot, so a new eligible move can be offered again. Forgetting a vitamin removes that entire learned vitamin, including its accumulated levels and bonuses, and frees a vitamin slot rather than a move slot. The displayed payout depends on its level and the run’s stage: the recorded rule is move level × 8 × stage or vitamin level × 6 × stage PokéDollars. Read the button’s actual +n before confirming.
The change affects your current run, not League ownership, permanent Lab upgrades or the item pool. Forgetting is also different from Banish, which excludes a choice for the run. An empty slot makes learning possible; it does not guarantee that Solar Beam or another particular move is your next card. If you have not found Hypno, keep using useful existing-move upgrades and plan your next run’s three- or four-slot branch.
These actions and limits come from the original 0.7.1 runtime and English interface, reviewed 19 October 2026. They are source-derived encounter instructions, not a claim that a specific NPC location or a successful forget has been playtested here.
Inspect the source in the game
Open Play → The League → your member → See all its moves in PokéBonk. Compare the group heading, level and Taught by member with your current run. The 0.6.1 update improves that donor display with the Pokémon’s portrait and name; it also fixes incomplete card offerings when one slot remains.
If the interface is malfunctioning rather than following the requirements, see troubleshooting. If you want a practical route through the Bulbasaur choices, use the build guide.
Read move details from the pause menu
In 0.7.1, level-up cards intentionally stop opening the full move sheet on hover. Pause the run to read the full numbers. Use Esc or P on the default keyboard layout, or the game’s touch pause button, then look under Moves. The learned-move rows show their level, numbers and description; selecting a move opens its detail sheet. Use that view to inspect damage, cooldown, range and which stats improve the move before continuing.
This pause view describes moves you already hold in that run, with the current run context. To check what could be learned later, use Play → The League → your member → See all its moves, or the Still to get list. The same 0.7.1 patch fixes a purple overlay that could hide those two lists; troubleshooting gives the next steps if one is still obscured.
When an upgrade choice is open, Tab lets you inspect your team and return to the choice. That is different from holding Tab during live play for a map preview without pausing. Losing the old hover behavior does not change a move’s free-slot, donor, form or level requirement, and a displayed move-sheet number is not a measured final DPS result.
Sources and scope
Based on the original game’s move panels, public Beta 0.6.3 kit/offer rules and applicable learnset data, reviewed on 18 October 2026. Open the original game. The checker covers Bulbasaur, Charmander and Squirtle families and their recorded routes; it does not predict the next offer or read your save.
The pause-menu and move-list advice above uses the 0.7.1 announcement, runtime and current English interface, reviewed 19 October 2026; the original patch is dated 18 October. The page’s UI addition does not re-date the retained 0.6.3 numerical source check of 18 October or claim that every move effect was tested again.