Physical
Balanced
305Low
10Very Slow
DTier

While most trainers evolve Ferroseed into Ferrothorn immediately, the unevolved form has a niche with Eviolite boosting its defenses. Poison moves can't touch it, and only 2 types hit it super-effectively. Known as the Thorn Seed Pokemon.

Ferroseed's all-in on Defense at the expense of Speed. The physical lean is obvious from the bars. Yields 1 Defense EV and follows a medium-fast 1M XP curve.

Base Stats
305Avg
HP44
D
Attack50
D
Defense91
B
Sp. Atk24
F
Sp. Def86
C
Speed10
F
Total305
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Ferroseed yields +1 Def
HPAtkDef+1SpASpDSpe
Details
Catch255GuaranteedMedium Fast1M XP0.6m / 2'00"18.8kg / 41.4 lbs61Base XP
Pokedex Entries

It defends itself by launching spikes, but its aim isn’t very good at first. Only after a lot of practice will it improve.

Sword

Mossy caves are their preferred dwellings. Enzymes contained in mosses help Ferroseed’s spikes grow big and strong.

Shield

Ferroseed Weakness

Excellent

Fire and Fighting-type moves hit Ferroseed for super-effective damage. Fire hits land at 4x, so they're the biggest threat. The upside? Poison-type moves can't touch it at all. 9 resistances give it solid defensive coverage on top of that. With 44 HP and balanced defenses, Ferroseed can afford to eat a neutral hit or two.

4xCriticali
2xWeaki
¼xResisti
0xImmunei
2Weak
9Resist
1Immune
Scorei+7
SpikesGrounded — up to 25%
4x Fire — Flamethrower, Fire Blast, Lava Plume
Abilities
Iron BarbsDamages attacking Pokémon for 1/8 their max HP on contact.

Ferroseed evolves into Ferrothorn. It's a two-stage chain with the method shown below. Plenty of partners for breeding via two egg groups. Eggs are average hatch time. The evolved forms gain up to 184 total stats over Ferroseed.

How to Evolve

2 Forms
Stat Comparison 2 Stages
Ferroseed
GrassSteel
Ferrothorn
GrassSteel
HP
44
74+30
ATK
50
94+44
DEF
91
131+40
SP.ATK
24
54+30
SP.DEF
86
116+30
SPE
10
20+10
BST
305D-Tier
489B-Tier+184
ROLE
Balanced
Trick Room
TYPE
Physical
Physical
Breeding
Very Easy

Breed Ferroseed easily with 89 breeding partners from the Plant and Mineral egg groups.

Egg Groups
PlantMineral
Gender
50.0%50.0%
Hatch Time
20 cycles·5,140 steps
Quick~5 min with Flame Body
Breed With (best first)
venusaurmeganiumtorterraroseradeserperiorludicoloshiftryabomasnowwhimsicottglaliefroslasscrustle

Lead with Ferroseed, set Stealth Rock, and keep pressure on. Iron Barbs and Eviolite buy the time it needs, with max HP and Defense EVs letting it take hits while controlling the hazard game.

Best Build

Wall
Ability
Iron Barbs
Item
EvioliteBULK
Nature
Relaxed+DEF
EVs

Best Ferroseed Moveset

  • Stealth Rock
  • Leech SeedSTAB
  • Knock Off
  • EndeavorCoverage
All 7 games

Without TMs, Ferroseed's movepool is bare bones. With them, you get Normal and Bug coverage and more on top of Steel Roller and Solar Beam for STAB. The natural kit handles basics, but TMs are doing the real work.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Harden
30Normal
Lv 1
Tackle
4010035Normal
Lv 5
Metal Claw
509535Steel
Lv 10
Pin Missile
259520Bug
Lv 15
Ingrain
20Grass
Lv 20
Flash Cannon
8010010Steel
Lv 25
Iron Head
8010015Steel
Lv 30
Self-Destruct
2001005Normal
Lv 35
Iron Defense
15Steel
Lv 41
Curse
10Ghost
Lv 45
Gyro Ball
1005Steel
Lv 50
Explosion
2501005Normal

TM Moves

Src
TM58
Assurance
6010010Dark
TM31
Attract
10015Normal
TM50
Bullet Seed
2510030Grass
TR26
Endure+4
10Normal
TR65
Energy Ball
9010010Grass
TM39
Facade
7010020Normal
TR70
Flash Cannon
8010010Steel
TM28
Giga Drain
7510010Grass
TR52
Gyro Ball
1005Steel
TR46
Iron Defense
15Steel
TR74
Iron Head
8010015Steel
TM57
Payback
5010010Dark
TM07
Pin Missile
259520Bug
TR57
Poison Jab
8010020Poison
TM25
Protect+4
10Normal
TM21
Rest
10Psychic
TM42
Revenge-4
6010010Fighting
TM76
Round
6010015Normal
TR59
Seed Bomb
8010015Grass
TM20
Self-Destruct
2001005Normal
TR27
Sleep Talk
10Normal
TM24
Snore
5010015Normal
TM11
Solar Beam
12010010Grass
TR23
Spikes
20Ground
TR76
Stealth Rock
20Rock
TR20
Substitute
10Normal
TM34
Sunny Day
5Fire
TM14
Thunder Wave
9020Electric
TR08
Thunderbolt
9010015Electric

Egg Moves

Ferroseed doesn't have any Egg moves

Tutor Moves

Src
Tutor
Steel Roller
1301005Steel
All 7 games

Plenty of locations for Ferroseed with moderate rates across early-game routes. The sort toggle below swaps between best odds and earliest access, so you can approach it based on where you are in the game.

Best Locations

Ferroseed appears in 30 walking locations at Lv. 13-65 across Shield and Sword. Not all encounters show up in every version, so check which ones match your game.

Route 4
ShieldGrassLv.13-151%EarlyRouteAll Weather
HARD
Route 4
SwordGrassLv.13-151%EarlyRouteAll Weather
HARD
Motostoke Riverbank
ShieldGrassLv.26-2810%MidSnowstorm
MODERATE
Motostoke Riverbank
SwordGrassLv.26-2810%MidSnowstorm
MODERATE
Bridge Field
ShieldGrassLv.26-285%MidNormal Weather
CHALLENGING
Bridge Field
SwordGrassLv.26-285%MidIntense Sun
CHALLENGING
Bridge Field
ShieldGrassLv.26-285%MidSnowstorm
CHALLENGING
Bridge Field
SwordGrassLv.26-285%MidSnowing
CHALLENGING
Bridge Field
SwordGrassLv.26-285%MidSandstorm
CHALLENGING
Bridge Field
SwordGrassLv.26-285%MidRaining
CHALLENGING
Bridge Field
ShieldGrassLv.26-285%MidThunderstorm
CHALLENGING
Bridge Field
SwordGrassLv.26-285%MidHeavy Fog
CHALLENGING
Bridge Field
ShieldGrassLv.26-285%MidIntense Sun
CHALLENGING
Bridge Field
SwordGrassLv.26-285%MidOvercast
CHALLENGING
Bridge Field
ShieldGrassLv.26-285%MidSnowing
CHALLENGING
Bridge Field
SwordGrassLv.26-285%MidNormal Weather
CHALLENGING
Bridge Field
ShieldGrassLv.26-285%MidSandstorm
CHALLENGING
Bridge Field
SwordGrassLv.26-285%MidSnowstorm
CHALLENGING
Bridge Field
ShieldGrassLv.26-285%MidRaining
CHALLENGING
Bridge Field
ShieldGrassLv.26-285%MidHeavy Fog
CHALLENGING
Bridge Field
ShieldGrassLv.26-285%MidOvercast
CHALLENGING
Bridge Field
SwordGrassLv.26-285%MidThunderstorm
CHALLENGING
Stony Wilderness
SwordOverworldLv.28-305%MidSnowstorm
MODERATE
Stony Wilderness
ShieldOverworldLv.28-305%MidSnowstorm
MODERATE
Stony Wilderness - 2
SwordOverworldLv.28-305%MidSnowstorm
MODERATE
Stony Wilderness - 2
ShieldOverworldLv.28-305%MidSnowstorm
MODERATE
Stony Wilderness - 3
SwordOverworldLv.28-305%MidSnowstorm
MODERATE
Stony Wilderness - 3
ShieldOverworldLv.28-305%MidSnowstorm
MODERATE
Lakeside Cave
ShieldOverworldLv.60-6510%PostCaveAll Weather
MODERATE
Lakeside Cave
SwordOverworldLv.60-6510%PostCaveAll Weather
MODERATE
  • Ferroseed isn't fully evolved, so it's not built for competitive play. You'll want to evolve it into Ferrothorn to unlock its full potential. At 305 BST, it's a stepping stone rather than a team anchor.

  • Watch for Blaziken (Fire) when using Ferroseed. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Blaziken is the most dangerous since Fire moves deal 4x damage. Fighting-type attackers are also a problem. Only 2 weaknesses means fewer dedicated counters to worry about. At base 10 Speed, Ferroseed won't outrun any of these threats so switching to a resist is usually the safer play.

  • Ferroseed evolves into Ferrothorn at level 40. Ferroseed is the base form of this evolutionary line.

  • Iron Barbs damages attacking Pokémon for 1/8 their max HP on contact — that's the one you want on Ferroseed. It's the only ability Ferroseed has.

  • Ferroseed fills the balanced role. It's a physical attacker with base 50 Attack. Base 10 Speed is low. Priority moves or Trick Room are the way to go. And it's enough bulk to take a hit or two.

  • Ferroseed appears in 7 games, including Black & White, Black 2 & White 2, and X & Y.

Introduced in Black & White, Ferroseed has appeared in 7 games across 5 generations. Later debuts mean fewer total appearances, but it's been a consistent presence since its introduction.