Poké Ball

A Poké Ball is a device used to capture and store Pokémon. Once a Pokémon is successfully captured, it is encapsulated into the Poké Ball, and its caught-data entry is logged on the trainer's Pokédex. Up to six Pokémon can be carried on-hand at all times; any Pokémon captured after one's on-hand lineup is full will be automatically stored into the PC's storage system.

Capturing a Pokémon

During a wild Pokémon battle, Poké Balls may be thrown in attempt to capture the wild Pokémon on the scene. As Poké Balls are expendable, any capture attempt - successful or unsuccessful - will deplete a Poké Ball, thereby reducing one of the usable Poké Balls per capture attempt. The probability of the capture attempt accounts for several factors, including:

• The Pokémon's total amount of HP, proportional to the remainder of HP points it has. Reducing the Pokémon's HP, without fainting, will formulaically improve the chances.
• The Pokémon's capture rate. The higher the capture-rate value a Pokémon has, the more probable it is to capture.
• Status-ailment afflictions that the Pokemon is ailing from — burn, poison, sleep and paralysis will all weaken a Pokémon, and thus it will improve the chances of capturing it.
• The type of Poké Ball in use. While there is one single, ordinary tier of Poké Balls available for purchase, it may eventually be upgraded using the GreatBall Upgrade; upgrading it with this item will — self-hinted from the item's name — enhance the Poké Ball's effectiveness.

Obtaining Poké Balls

Whereupon the a player completes one of the Tutorial Island's subquest, 10 Poké Balls will be rewarded to the player. If a player wishes to replenish their PokéBall supply, they may purchase more of them. A couple of post-tutorial quests also reward more Poké Balls.

Purchasing Poké Balls

Poké Balls are carried in most Pokémarts and stores, selling at a standard price of 200 per Poké Ball. The maximum amount of Poké Balls a player can carry at a time is 999—the same cap used for all backpack-carried items.

NPC vendors, situated on Route 11 and Route 34, also sell a 100-Pokéball bundle for 19,000, saving the player 1,000 from buying that amount at the standard price (200 per Pokéball, thereof).

Novice Poké Ball Quests

Main article: Kanto Pokéball Quest

Quests are available, prior to a trainer's first gym, which reward 15 PokéBalls, offering an one-off, alternative avenue for obtaining more Poké Balls without buying them. This quest can be started in Viridian City's Pokémart in Kanto, by speaking to the manager; the Johto mirror of the quest begins in Cherrygrove City's Pokémart, also by speaking to the manager therein.

Other Poké Balls

In the markets and department stores (as well as the discount vendors) you are able to buy Great Balls and Ultra balls. Other, rarer and unique Poké Balls can also be obtained through events.