Every Type Of Dragon Ball Explained

Key Takeaways

• Earth’s Dragon Balls grant wishes, but have limits on what can be requested and require a year to recharge.
• Namekian Dragon Balls are larger, have fewer restrictions, and reactivate after 130 days when used.
• The Super Dragon Balls, the original balls, have unlimited power and summon Super Shenron for any wish.

What would Dragon Ball be without the Dragon Balls themselves? These magical MacGuffins have been the solution to (and occasionally the source of) everyone’s problems in the franchise’s different series. They’ve been coveted by heroes and villains alike, as collecting all seven can grant the collector a wish, be it bringing the dead back to life, or granting immortality.

Or at least that’s the case for the original Dragon Balls. There are different sets of balls for different universes, let alone different planets and realms, and they come with different conditions. Keeping track of them all can be tricky, so here’s a handy list to help explain every type of Dragon Ball in the Dragon Ball series.

1 Earth Dragon Balls

Dragon Ball

• Creator: Kami
• Status: Canon
• Debut: Episode 1 – “The Secret of the Dragon Balls” (anime), Chapter 1 – “Bulma and Son Goku” (manga)

First up, Earth’s Dragon Balls are the ones the show is named after and have been in the series since Day 1. So, they likely don’t need much explanation. Created by Kami, they’re small, orange balls with 1–7-star patterns to help collectors keep track of them. Once all seven are gathered, they summon the divine dragon Shenron, who’ll grant a wish or three, depending on his power.

His power has its limits, as he can’t make others fall in love with someone or kill off enemies more powerful than the wish-maker. But eternal youth, immortality, reviving the dead, etc., are valid. People can’t make the same wish twice and once granted, they must wait a year before they can use the balls again, as they scatter and turn to stone after Shenron’s summoning.

2 Namekian Dragon Balls

Dragon Ball Z

• Creator: Grand Elder Guru
• Status: Canon
• Debut: Episode 44- “Brood of Evil” (anime), Chapter 53- “Planet Namek, Cold and Dark” (manga)

Kami was once part of a single being with King Piccolo, who was reborn as Piccolo Jr at the end of the original series. If the latter dies, so does Kami. Then, if he dies, Earth’s Dragon Balls will be rendered permanently inert. But the balls can be reactivated if someone is able to bring the two back to life, which Krillin, Bulma, and Gohan planned to do with the Namekian Dragon Balls.

They learned from the Saiyans that Piccolo and Kami’s species came from another planet, which had their own set of Dragon Balls made by their elder, Grand Elder Guru. They’re much larger, and they summon a different dragon in Porunga, who can grant three wishes by default. Provided the collector can speak Namekian, and stay on his good side. The balls still go inert once used, but they don’t scatter, and they reactivate after 130 days.

3 Black Star Dragon Balls

Dragon Ball GT

• Creator: Katatz’s Son/The Nameless Namekian
• Status: Alternate Timeline Following DBZ
• Debut: Episode 1- “A Devastating Wish”

Before Kami and King Piccolo split into two, they were a single, unnamed Namekian, known only as “Katatz’s Son.” He was more powerful than his divided halves, and it showed in his creation: the Black Star Dragon Balls. They look like Earth’s balls but have black stars, and they summon Ultimate Shenron, a larger, more powerful dragon who has fewer restrictions on his wishes.

For example, he could kill someone, no matter their power level, if the collector wished it. But if they did, they’d put their planet on a time limit. If the balls aren’t gathered back together within one year, the planet will be destroyed. The balls scatter across the galaxy when they’re used, so without a decent spaceship, the planet’s inhabitants are up the creek without a paddle. At least they don’t go inert once used, so that’s one plus.

4 Super Dragon Balls

Dragon Ball Super

• Creator: Zalama
• Status: Canon
• Debut: Episode 29- “Combat Matches Are a Go! The Captain is Someone Stronger than Goku” (anime), Chapter 6- “Tournament Preparation”

How did Kami, Grand Elder Guru, and Katatz’s son make their dragon balls? By shaving off bits from the Super Dragon Balls. These are the original balls that all others were based on, created by the dragon god Zalama. They’re each the size of planets and have no limits to their power. Whatever the collector wishes, they’ll get, even if it’s the revival of entire universes.

Once gathered, they summon Super Shenron, a dragon so large it houses multiple universes within it but can shrink to a more manageable size. They must be called forth in the Divine Language of the gods as well, which is just Japanese/English backward, with “pretty pwease/peas and carrots” at the end. The gods work in mysterious ways.

5 Dark Dragon Balls

Super Dragon Ball Heroes

• Creator: Xeno Dende
• Status: Not Canon
• Debut: Super Dragon Ball Heroes (video game), Episode 33- “New Space-Time War! The Ultimate Fierce Battle Begins!” (anime), Chapter 2- “Dark Dragon Ball” (Dark Demon Realm manga)

Another issue with Earth’s dragon balls is that multiple wishes can cause a build-up of negative energy. In GT, this causes the balls to summon the evil Black Smoke Shenron, who then splits into seven Shadow Dragons based on humanity’s different wishes over the centuries. The video game, Dragon Ball Heroes, plays on this theme with the Dark Dragon Balls.

Created by Xeno Dende, an evil counterpart to Kami’s successor, they’re red balls with black stars that can summon Dark Shenron. Only this time, since they’re based on negative energy to begin with, they can produce evil Shadow Dragons with just one wish instead of multiple ones. They also scatter through both time and space once used, making recollection a tricky task.

6 Special Dragon Balls

Super Dragon Ball Heroes

• Creator: Fu
• Status: Not Canon
• Debut: Super Dragon Ball Heroes (video game), Episode 1- “Goku vs. Goku! A Transcendent Battle Begins on the Prison Planet!” (anime), Chapter 1- “Prison Planet” (Universe Mission manga)

Super Dragon Ball Heroes also brought in the Special Dragon Balls. They’re essentially the same as Earth’s dragon balls in that they summon Shenron. But instead of being MacGuffins for treasure seekers, they act as keys to escape Prison Planet, a cluster of worlds changed together that trap anyone its creator, Fu, deems fitting for his social experiment.

The only way to escape the Prison Planet is to collect all seven of the Special Dragon Balls, with each one being held by a different prisoner. In the end, the series’ Dragon and Time Patrol teams just use their power to overcome Fu and the evil Saiyan Cumber to break Prison Planet’s seal. The balls are then just used to free everyone and restore the separated planets to their original orbits.

7 Cerealian Dragon Balls

Dragon Ball Super (manga)

• Creators: The Cerealian Namekians
• Status: Canon
• Debut: Chapter 69- “The Evolution of Planet Cereal”

The series has seen the Dragon Balls get bigger and bigger. So, it’s a little refreshing to see the Cerealian Dragon Balls go in the opposite direction. Made by Namekians on the planet Cereal, they’re the size of marbles, and there are only two of them to collect. They play a big part in the Granolah arc, where the titular character wants to use them to bring back his massacred Cerealians.

It’s a sympathetic goal, but Cereal’s last Namekian, Monaito, thinks the Cerealians’ return could spell doom for the planet’s Sugarian refugees. This might be why its dragon, Toronbo, is surprisingly polite and will advise the collector on the ramifications of their wish, and offer alternatives if they prove to be more palatable. Ultimately, if the collector is 100% sure of their wish, good or evil, Toronbo will grant it.

8 The Omnificence Crystal

Dragon Ball Legends

• Creator: Zalama (presumably)
• Status: Not Canon
• Debut: Dragon Ball Legends mobile game

Every dragon ball in the series’ existence is ultimately tied to the Super Dragon Balls. But if the mobile game Dragon Ball Legends is anything to go by, they were just Zalama’s result after working with a prototype: a singular giant orb known only as the Omnificence Crystal. It’s formed by combining a smaller blue and red crystal to form its signature yin-yang symbol.

It doesn’t summon a dragon, nor does it split or scatter. The crystal will grant as many wishes as its energy can fuel, which became a problem when the swordsman Zahha got control of it. He used its power to nullify Beerus’ Hakai power, eliminate Ki Detection as a concept in Universe 7, and make the new Saiyan Shallot’s allies forget about him and think he’s a villain instead. Good thing DBL isn’t canon…yet.

9 Demon Realm Dragon Balls

Dragon Ball Daima

• Creators: The Demon Realm Namekians
• Status: Canon
• Debut: Episode 1- “Conspiracy”

Lastly, the latest set of dragon balls to join the series are the Demon Realm Dragon Balls. While not as massive as the Super Dragon Balls, they’re still much larger than the Namekian Dragon Balls. Luckily, there are only three of them. Unluckily, they’re each owned by the Tamagami, powerful warriors created by the Demon Realm Namekian, Neva.

The Tamagami managed to keep the balls out of anyone else’s hands in the underworld, suggesting they are even more powerful than demon kings like Dabura. Still, King Kadan of the 3rd Demon World thinks Goku might be powerful enough to overcome them, even as a kid. Time can only tell what will happen when the three balls are gathered, and what they’ll summon.