Is Heracross Good in FireRed & LeafGreen Playthrough?
Bug/Fighting with AbilitySwarm or AbilityGuts. Guts turns status conditions into Attack boosts. Available in Sevii Islands postgame. Heracross would have been excellent during the story against Giovanni, Lorelei, and Bruno. The postgame timing wastes one of the best typings available.
Heracross resists most of Brock's coverage and hits back hard.
Heracross has the type edge here and should clean up Misty's team.
Heracross has the type edge here and should clean up Lt. Surge's team.
Heracross has the type edge here and should clean up Erika's team.
Koga's typing presses Heracross's defenses.
Heracross has the type edge here and should clean up Sabrina's team.
Heracross trades roughly evenly with Blaine's team.
Heracross has the type edge here and should clean up Giovanni's team.
Heracross resists most of Lorelei's coverage and hits back hard.
Heracross has the type edge here and should clean up Bruno's team.
Agatha's team hits Heracross's weaknesses hard.
Heracross trades roughly evenly with Lance's team.
Heracross trades roughly evenly with Terry's team.
Catch Heracross on Pattern Bush (walking, Lv 15-30, uncommon).
- After Misty
- TUTORNormalSwords Dance—100%20
- LV 23FightingBrick Break113100%15
- After Erika
- TM15NormalHyper Beam15090%5
- After Koga
- TM01FightingFocus Punch225100%20
- After Giovanni
- TUTORNormalDouble-Edge120100%15
- TM26GroundEarthquake100100%10
- LV 53BugMegahorn18085%10
- Post-Game
- TUTORNormalBody Slam85100%15
- TM42NormalFacade70100%20
FireRed & LeafGreen Heracross Locations
Heracross turns up at two walking locations in both versions at uncommon rarity. The map shows a thin spread, and the uncommon tag means you'll need to clear a few grass tiles before one shows.
1 location to catch Heracross
Encountered via tall grass encounters
Badge 8Best Locations to Catch Heracross in FireRed & LeafGreen
Heracross Weakness
Type-wise, Heracross takes extra damage from Flying, Fire, and Psychic. Watch out for Flying attacks, those deal 4x damage. 5 resistances help offset the weaknesses. With 80 HP and balanced defenses, Heracross can afford to eat a neutral hit or two.
| Damage | Types |
|---|---|
| 4x (Critical) | Flying |
| 2x (Weak) | Fire, Psychic |
| 0.5x (Resist) | Grass, Fighting, Ground, Bug, Dark |
- Dark and Steel types added — Fairy does not exist yet
- Moves are Physical or Special based on type, not per move
What is Heracross Weak Against
AvgBest Pokemon Against Heracross
 Pidgey Normal | D | |
 Charmander Fire | C | |
Obtain MethodPallet Town Gift | ||
 Butterfree Bug | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Butterfree builds →Aerial Ace 4x71-86% Confusion 2x27-32% | ||
 Zubat Poison | D | |
 Spearow Normal | C | |
 Charmeleon Fire | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Charmander (Pallet Town Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Charmeleon builds →Aerial Ace 4x61-71% Ember 2x30-38% | ||
 Kadabra Psychic | C | |
Butterfree Bug | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Butterfree builds →Aerial Ace 4x71-86% Confusion 2x27-32% | ||
Zubat Poison | D | |
Spearow Normal | C | |
Charmeleon Fire | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Charmander (Pallet Town Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Charmeleon builds →Aerial Ace 4x61-71% Ember 2x30-38% | ||
Kadabra Psychic | C | |
 Golbat Poison | C | |
 Fearow Normal | C | |
 Flareon Fire | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Eevee (Celadon City Gift) | ||
Charmeleon Fire | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Charmander (Pallet Town Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Charmeleon builds →Flamethrower 2x62-73% Aerial Ace 4x54-64% | ||
Kadabra Psychic | C | |
 Dodrio Normal | B | |
 Charizard Fire | B | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Charmander (Pallet Town Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Charizard builds →Overheat 2x113-134%KO Fly 4x112-132%KO | ||
Kadabra Psychic | C | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Kadabra builds →Future Sight 2x105-123%KO | ||
Golbat Poison | C | |
 Aerodactyl Rock | A | |
Obtain MethodCinnabar Island Gift Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Aerodactyl builds →Fly 4x132-156%KO Fire Blast 2x40-48% | ||
 Moltres Fire | B | |
Obtain MethodMt Ember Interact Encounter Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Moltres builds →Overheat 2x130-153%KO Fly 4x132-155%KO | ||
 Zapdos Electric | A | |
Obtain MethodPower Plant Interact Encounter | ||
Dodrio Normal | B | |
Charizard Fire | B | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Charmander (Pallet Town Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Charizard builds →Overheat 2x117-137%KO Fly 4x115-135%KO | ||
Kadabra Psychic | C | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Kadabra builds →Future Sight 2x108-128%KO | ||
 Ho-oh Fire | S | |
Obtain MethodNavel Rock Interact Encounter Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Ho-oh builds →Fly 4x162-192%KO Overheat 2x116-137%KO Psychic 2x50-59% | ||
 Deoxys Psychic | A | |
Obtain MethodBirth Island Interact Encounter Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Deoxys builds →Psycho Boost 2x151-177%KO Aerial Ace 4x105-124%KO | ||
 Dragonite Dragon | B | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Dragonair (Safari Zone Super Rod) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Dragonite builds →Fly 4x168-197%KO Fire Blast 2x61-72% | ||
 Lugia Psychic | S | |
Obtain MethodNavel Rock Interact Encounter Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Lugia builds →Fly 4x120-141%KO Psychic 2x63-75% | ||
Moltres Fire | B | |
Obtain MethodMt Ember Interact Encounter Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Moltres builds →Overheat 2x129-152%KO Fly 4x131-155%KO | ||
In FireRed & LeafGreen, Claydol deals 81-95% with Explosion.
S | ||
Recommended Build AbilityNatural Cure ItemLeftovers NatureModest Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Blissey builds →Ice Beam26-31% | ||
B | ||
Recommended Build AbilitySynchronize ItemLeftovers NatureCareful Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Umbreon builds →Pursuit3-4% | ||
B | ||
Recommended Build AbilityLevitate ItemLeftovers NatureAdamant Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Claydol builds →Rapid Spin17-20% Earthquake16-19% Explosion81-95% Psychic 2x32-37% | ||
C | ||
Recommended Build AbilityInnerfocus ItemSalacberry NatureTimid Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Glalie builds →Explosion56-66% Ice Beam19-22% | ||
C | ||
Recommended Build AbilitySuctioncups ItemLeftovers NatureAdamant Moves
Damage vs Heracross View Cradily builds →Earthquake17-20% | ||
Heracross Evolutions
What you see is what you get. Heracross sits outside any evolution chain, so focus on the egg moves and a decent partner pool from one egg group. Eggs are average hatch time. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
FRLG Heracross Best Moveset
125 Attack fires Bug and Fighting TermStab from the physical side where both types land hard. AbilityGuts boosts Attack 50%% when statused, making burns a power source. MoveMegahorn for Bug and MoveBrick Break for Fighting plus MoveRock Slide for Flying coverage. The moveset hits devastatingly hard with Guts active.
Best Build
Heracross best EVs are Attack and Speed
Physical Setup Sweeper Moveset
- Megahorn
- Rock Slide
- Swords Dance
- Substitute
Recommended Teammates
Moves List
Breeding's the move. Bide and False Swipe give Heracross options it can't learn any other way, and Normal and Ground coverage and more already covers a decent range on top of Focus Punch and Megahorn. The egg moves push it further.
How to Read the Moves Table
Tabs
- Level-Up
- Learned by leveling up.
- TM
- Taught by a Technical Machine.
- Egg
- Inherited via breeding.
- Tutor
- NPC tutor (cost: items, BP, money).
- Reminder
- An NPC reteaches any move this Pokemon could have learned by leveling up.
- Transfer
- Carried over from an older game using Pokemon HOME.
- Event
- Given out through Mystery Gift events.
Visual Signals
CAT (Category)
How the move deals damage and which stats it uses.
A small dot on the icon's corner marks the move as contact. That triggers abilities like Static, Flame Body, Rough Skin, or Iron Barbs, plus items like Rocky Helmet and Sticky Barb.
Tier (S to D)
Each move's competitive rank in RankedBoost's system. TM, Egg, and Tutor sort by tier by default (best first). On Level-Up, click the Tier header to do the same.
PWR (Power)
Base damage. Numbers shown in a type color include STAB (base × 1.5). Hover any colored number to see the math.
— means no power (status moves) or variable power.
Sorting & Filter
Click any column header to sort. Level-Up opens with Lv 1 at the top. TM, Egg, and Tutor open with the highest-tier moves at the top.
Search filters by move name or type. The Filter button limits the list to STAB, Physical, Special, or Status moves.
Level-Up Moves
TM Moves
Egg Moves
Tutor Moves
Base Stats
Usually docile, but if disturbed while sipping honey, it chases off the intruder with its horn.
This powerful POKéMON thrusts its prized horn under its enemies’ bellies, then lifts and throws them.
Heracross FireRed & LeafGreen Guide
Yes. Heracross is not available during the main story. It can only be obtained after entering the Hall of Fame. Heracross is found on the Sevii Islands. Sevii Islands 1-3 unlock after defeating Lt. Surge in Vermilion City; Sevii Islands 4-7 unlock after entering the Hall of Fame and showing 60+ species in your Pokedex (talk to Celio on One Island to get the Rainbow Pass).
Game Availability
Since debuting in Gold & Silver, Heracross has appeared in 19 titles over 9 generations. Along the way, it received a Mega form in Generation 6, keeping it relevant across different competitive metas.
Click a game to view version-specific details
- Gen 1RB
Red & Blue - Gen 1Y
Yellow - Gen 2GSDebut
Gold & Silver - Gen 2C
Crystal - Gen 3RS
Ruby & Sapphire - Gen 3E
Emerald - Gen 3FRLG
FireRed & LeafGreen - Gen 4DP
Diamond & Pearl - Gen 4Pt
Platinum - Gen 4HGSS
HeartGold & SoulSilver - Gen 5BW
Black & White - Gen 5B2W2
Black 2 & White 2 - Gen 6XY
X & Y - Gen 6ORASMega
Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire - Gen 7SM
Sun & Moon - Gen 7USUM
Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon - Gen 7LGPE
Let's Go Pikachu & Eevee - Gen 8SwSh
Sword & Shield - Gen 8BDSP
Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl - Gen 8PLA
Legends: Arceus - Gen 9SV
Scarlet & Violet - Gen 9LZA
Legends: Z-A - Gen 10WW
Winds & Waves