Rock Smash

Rock Smash removes obstacles. More specifically, it removes the large boulders and rock formations that block paths, close off areas, and generally make the island feel sealed and inaccessible. If Leafage is about adding life to the island, Rock Smash is about clearing the way for it.

How to Learn It

Rock Smash is taught by Hitmonchan — which makes intuitive sense if you know Hitmonchan's punching specialization. Befriending one, which requires placing appropriate habitats (the Exercise Resting Spot is specifically designed to attract Hitmonchan), eventually earns you this move.

Uses in the World

Beyond clearing boulders from paths, Rock Smash yields stone and other rock-based materials from the debris. This makes it one of the few moves with direct crafting implications: use it to open a new area AND gather Stone for whatever you're planning to build there. The Workbench requires Stone, so early Rock Smash use can set up later crafting capacity.

Pokémon-Side History

In the mainline games, Rock Smash (HM06 in older generations, later demoted to TM) was infamous for being the most obligatory HM — you almost always needed it, its combat effectiveness was poor, and wasting a move slot on it was a minor headache. Pokopia rehabilitates the move entirely by removing the combat context. Here, Rock Smash does exactly what it says, and that's enough.