One of the aspects of thePokemonfranchise fans appreciate is the ability to customize Pokemon – to make them a little different from everybody else’s Pokemon. One of the best ways to do this is through the use of Technical Machines; also called TMs (or TRs) for short.
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TMs give Pokemon special attacks and defensive maneuvers they would not have access to normally. Many of these TMs are not that much better than a Pokemon’s natural abilities. Some of the TMs are extremely powerful and can take a Pokemon to the next level in terms of battle efficacy. The stats given for these TMs are for the current generation.
Updated on July 17, 2025, by Jeff Drake:TMs are a great method of improving a middlingPokemon. With the right TMs, a Pokemon like Golbat can destroy an opposing trainer’s Pokemon; without those TMs, a Pokemon like Golbat will probably struggle to win four or five consecutive matches. New TMs are added with every generation of the main series of Pokemon games. What was once a small selection of generic moves has become a lengthy list of powerful moves. Due to this, this article is being expanded by five entries to help make it more comprehensive. Lastly, the #s for TM have changed over the last few generations. The entries have been updated with the most recent TM numbers, which are the ones in parentheses.
15Stone Edge
Stone Edge, which is TM #71 (#150), was introduced in generation four –Diamond,Pearl, andPlatinum. This TM has a damage of 100, which is respectable, and an accuracy of 80%. The accuracy is not the best, but this is typical of high-damage attacks.
Stone Edge has the added bonus of having anincreased chance to score a critical hit; from a 1/16 chance to 1/8. The PP count is only 5 but can be increased to 8. Using Rockium Z can increase Stone Edge’s power to 180, and using Lycanium Z will increase its power to a devastating 190.
14Thunderbolt
Thunderbolt, which is TM #24 (#126), was introduced in generation one –Red,Blue,Green, andYellow. Thunderbolt is a great attack to start a battle with since ithas a 10% chance to paralyze the opposing Pokemon. Thunderbolt’s attack power is 90 and has an accuracy of 100%.
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This makes it one ofthe strongest Electric attackswith a 100% accuracy rating. When using Electrium Z, its attack power is increased to 175. This TM also has a generous 15 PP count; which can be increased to 24 - so there is no need to ration this attack for use against stronger Pokemon.
13Drain Punch
Keeping a Pokemon from fainting during battle is made more complicated by the fact that healing moves are a rarity. They are a little more common in recent games, but Pokemon that get a healing move are few and far between. That’s the beauty of this TM (#60, #63, #73) -it hurts the enemy while healing the user.
The power score of this move (75) is a bit low for this list, but this is countered by the fact that the user is healed 50% of the damage dealt. Drain Punch has an accuracy of 100, and a PP count of 10. With this move, a player can defeat opponents while keeping the user in fighting shape.
12Energy Ball
Energy Ball, which is TM #53 (#119), was introduced in generation four. This useful TM has an attack power of 90, and an accuracy of 100%. Energy Ball also lowers the opposing Pokemon’s special defense one stage (to a maximum of six stages); so itdeals respectable damagewhile simultaneously ensuring that Pokemon will takemore damage on subsequent roundsfrom special attacks.
Energy Ball has 10 PP points, but this usually is just enough PP to use it liberally between visits to the Pokemon centers for healing. If using Grassium Z, Energy Ball has an attack power of 175.
11Psychic
Psychic, which is TM #29 (#120), was introduced in generation one. This TM is very similar to Energy Ball but is slightly better due to it beinga Psychic attackrather than a Grass attack. There are fewer Pokemon with damage resistance to psychic damage than grass damage.
The attack power is 90, and the accuracy is 100%. Like Energy Ball, Psychic hasa 10% chance of lowering the opposing Pokemon’s special defense by one stage. Also like Energy Ball, this TM has a PP count of 10. If using Psychium Z, the attack power rises to 175.
10Toxic
Toxic, which is TM #06, was introduced in generation one. Toxic is often overlooked because it doesn’t do immediate damage but rather causes poison damage at the end of each round. This TMcauses the opposing Pokemon to be badly poisonedand causes the poison damage to increase each round.
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In the first round it deals 1/16 of the opponent’s maximum hit points, and in each round, this increases by an additional 1/16. This TM is devastating when used with Venoshock, which has an attack power of 120 if the enemy is poisoned. Toxic has a PP count of 10.
9Ice Beam
Ice Beam, which is TM #13 (#135), was introduced in generation one. Ice Beam has an attack power of 90, and an accuracy of 100%. Additionally, opposing Pokemon havea 10% chance of being frozenby Ice Beam. Originally this had a power of 95, but the power rating was lowered in generation six.
Blizzard is a stronger cold attack than Ice Beam, with a power of 110; however, Blizzard only has a 70% accuracy rate. This makes Ice Beam slightly better – it sacrifices 20 in power to gain 30 additional accuracy. Plus, Ice Bram has a 10 PP count compared to Blizzard’s 5 PPs.
8Poison Jab
Poison Jab, which is TM #84 (#83), was introduced in generation four. This TM has a power of 80, and an accuracy of 100%. Poison Jab also hasa 30% chance of poisoningthe opposing Pokemon.
Where this TM is better than other TMs with similar power and accuracy is the possibility to deal extra damage via poison, and because it has a PP count of 20. It is uncommon for a move with a power of 80 to have 20 uses. Much like Toxic, Poison Jab works well with Venoshock. If using Poisonium Z, this TM has a power of 160.
7Heat Wave
Due to the destructive nature of fire, it should surprise no onethat Fire-type movesare among the most damaging in the Pokemon series. There is a long list of battle-worthy Fire moves. In fact, the #1 ranked move on this list is a Fire move. Among the Fire moves, there are few as good as Heat Wave.
Heat Wave, TM #118, has an excellent power score of 95, an accuracy of 90, and a PP count of 10. Additionally, this move has a 10% chance of burning the opponent. This movecan be learned by many non-Fire types, like Necrozma and Togekiss. This will make the Pokemon that is taught Heat Wave a much more versatile fighter.
6False Swipe
Every Pokemon player has experienced the frustration of causing a wild Pokemon they were hoping to catch to faint. It’s best to weaken the wild Pokemon before throwing a Pokeball at it; however, the player runs the risk of doing too much damage and ruining the chance. This is even more frustrating when it happens witha shiny Pokemon.
False Swipe, TM #54 (#57),always leaves the target with one hit point. This takes away any chance of accidentally causing the Pokemon to faint. This move isn’t very powerful with its power score of 40. The upside is that it has an accuracy of 100 and a PP count of 40.
