How do you use Volcanion in battle?

Use Volcanion as a wallbreaker. Special attacks are the main output. Speed is middling, Flamethrower is the primary attack.

What Pokemon work well with Volcanion?

Build your team around Hatterene , Ting Lu , and Zamazenta . These have the highest co-usage rates with Volcanion in competitive formats. They cover each other's weaknesses.

What is the best nature for Volcanion?

Run Modest on Volcanion. +Sp. Atk is what matters, and the -Attack cut doesn't hurt this set. Fits the wallbreaker role.

Volcanion - Weakness, Evolution, Moveset, EVs & Stats

The Steam Pokemon. Volcanion is the only Fire/Water type in the franchise. Water Absorb gives Water immunity, and Steam Eruption is a powerful signature move that can burn.

Ability 1Water Absorb

Weak to

Special

Wallbreaker

BTier

70Speed · Below Avg

Volcanion Best Moveset

Fire/Water at 130 Sp. Atk with AbilityWater Absorb granting Water immunity and healing. The typing has no 4x weaknesses and resists six types. Held ItemChoice Specs with NatureModest fires special Fire and Water TermStab that covers Steel, Ground, Rock, and Grass. MoveSteam Eruption has a 30% burn chance. 120 Defense absorbs physical hits. B-Tier through offensive power and unique typing.

★Gen VI — X & Y / ORASS

Fire/Water with Water Absorb in Gen VI (X & Y). The only Fire/Water type. Steam Eruption burned 30% of targets. Unique typing that resisted Fairy, Fire, Ice, Bug, and Steel.

Fairy type added to the gameMega Evolution became available

Best Moves

SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE

Lv 85

Steam Eruption

Water110COMMONSTAB

TM35

Flamethrower

Fire90COMMONSTAB

TM36

Sludge Bomb

Poison90COMMONCoverage

TM10

Hidden Power (Grass)

Grass60RARECoverage

Tutor

Earth Power

Ground90RARECoverage

TM6

Toxic

Poison—RAREUtility

Volcanion X & Y Moves Volcanion ORAS Moves

Best Build

Experimental

Special Sweeper

Volcanion best EVs are Sp. Atk and Speed

EVs

Def

SpA

Spe

Special Sweeper Moveset

Steam EruptionSTAB
FlamethrowerSTAB
Sludge Bomb
Hidden Power Grass

Recommended Teammates

ExcadrillGood

WeavileDecent

ZapdosDecent

↓Gen VII — Sun & Moon / USUMA

Dropped in Gen VII (Sun & Moon). Z-Moves let faster Pokemon bypass the bulk Volcanion relied on. Unique typing kept it relevant but less dominant.

Z-Moves became available

SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE

Lv 85

Steam Eruption

Water110COMMONSTAB

Tutor

Earth Power

Ground90COMMONCoverage

TM35

Flamethrower

Fire90COMMONSTAB

TM36

Sludge Bomb

Poison90RARECoverage

TM38

Fire Blast

Fire110RARESTAB

Volcanion Sun & Moon Moves Volcanion Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon Moves

Experimental

Special Tank

EVs

SpA

SpD

Special Tank Moveset

Steam EruptionSTAB
Earth Power
FlamethrowerSTAB
Sludge Bomb

Recommended Teammates

Landorus-TherianGood

Tapu KokoDecent

ChanseyDecent

↑Gen VIII — Sword & Shield / BDSPS

Back at the top in Gen VIII (Sword & Shield). Assault Vest tanked special hits, and Fire/Water coverage had almost no safe switch-ins. Two gens at the top across its career.

Gigantamax became availableDynamax became available

SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE

Lv 72

Steam Eruption

Water110COMMONSTAB

TR2

Flamethrower

Fire90COMMONSTAB

TR67

Earth Power

Ground90COMMONCoverage

TR78

Sludge Wave

Poison95COMMONCoverage

TR22

Sludge Bomb

Poison90RARECoverage

Volcanion Sword & Shield Moves

Experimental

Special Sweeper

EVs

SpA

SpD

Spe

Special Sweeper Moveset

Steam EruptionSTAB
FlamethrowerSTAB
Earth Power
Sludge Wave

Recommended Teammates

Landorus-TherianGood

FerrothornDecent

WeavileDecent

↓Gen IX — Scarlet & Violet / Legends Z-AB

Dropped again in Gen IX (Scarlet & Violet). Oscillated between tiers across four gens. The unique typing was always valuable, but the format decided whether it was enough.

Terastallization became available

SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE

Lv 1

Steam Eruption

Water110COMMONSTAB

TM125

Flamethrower

Fire90COMMONSTAB

TM133

Earth Power

Ground90COMMONCoverage

TM148

Sludge Bomb

Poison90COMMONCoverage

Volcanion Scarlet & Violet Moves Volcanion Legends Z-A Moves

Experimental

Special Wallbreaker

EVs

SpA

SpD

Special Wallbreaker Moveset

Steam EruptionSTAB
FlamethrowerSTAB
Earth Power
Sludge Bomb

Recommended Teammates

HattereneDecent

Ting-LuDecent

ZamazentaDecent

Volcanion Weakness

Electric, Ground, and Rock moves hit Volcanion for super-effective damage. 5 resistances help offset the weaknesses. Water Absorb grants an additional Water immunity, reshaping the matchup chart. Volcanion's physical bulk (base 120 Def) helps cushion physical weakness hits, but special attackers are the bigger threat.

Volcanion Weakness and Resistance Chart
Damage	Types
2x (Weak)	Electric, Ground, Rock
0.5x (Resist)	Bug, Fairy
0.25x (Resist)	Fire, Ice, Steel

What is Volcanion Weak Against

Good

3Weak

5Resist

1Immune

Score+2

4xCritical

None

2xWeak

½xResist

¼xResist

0xImmune

What is Volcanion Strong Against

7Strong

2Resisted

0Immune

Score+5

2xStrong

Fire Grass Ice Ground Bug Rock Steel

½xResisted

Water Dragon

0xImmune

None

Best Pokemon Against Volcanion

Hippowdon deals 38-45% with Earthquake.

Torkoal	B
Recommended Build AbilityDrought ItemHeat Rock NatureBold Moves Rapid Spin Stealth Rock Lava Plume Will O Wisp Damage vs Volcanion Rapid Spin 7-8% View Torkoal builds →
Corviknight	B
Recommended Build AbilityPressure ItemRocky Helmet NatureImpish Moves RoostRecovery DefogUtility U Turn Body Press Damage vs Volcanion U Turn 5-6% View Corviknight builds →
Hippowdon	B
Recommended Build AbilitySand Stream ItemRocky Helmet NatureRelaxed Moves Slack Off Stealth Rock EarthquakeSTAB WhirlwindUtility Damage vs Volcanion Earthquake 2x 38-45% View Hippowdon builds →
Moltres	B
Recommended Build AbilityFlame Body ItemHeavy-Duty Boots NatureBold Moves RoostRecovery FlamethrowerSTAB U Turn Will O Wisp Damage vs Volcanion Flamethrower 6-7% U Turn 5-6% View Moltres builds →
Pincurchin	B
Recommended Build AbilityElectric Surge ItemTerrain Extender NatureBold Moves SpikesHazard MementoUtility Thunder Wave Scald Damage vs Volcanion Scald 16-19% View Pincurchin builds →
Bronzong	B
Recommended Build AbilityLevitate ItemLeftovers NatureSassy Moves Stealth Rock Psychic Noise Earthquake Iron Head Damage vs Volcanion Earthquake 2x 31-37% View Bronzong builds →
Forretress	C
Recommended Build AbilitySturdy ItemLeftovers NatureBold Moves Rapid Spin Stealth Rock SpikesHazard Volt Switch Damage vs Volcanion Rapid Spin 7-9% Volt Switch 2x 20-24% View Forretress builds →
Skarmory	C
Recommended Build AbilitySturdy ItemRocky Helmet NatureBold Moves RoostRecovery SpikesHazard Body Press Iron Defense View Skarmory builds →
Incineroar	C
Recommended Build AbilityIntimidate ItemHeavy-Duty Boots NatureAdamant Moves Knock Off Flare Blitz Parting Shot Fake Out Damage vs Volcanion Knock Off 17-20% Flare Blitz 8-9% View Incineroar builds →
Ninetales	C
Recommended Build AbilityDrought ItemHeat Rock NatureTimid Moves EncoreUtility Healing Wish Will O Wisp Weather Ball View Ninetales builds →
Froslass	C
Recommended Build AbilityCursedbody ItemFocus Sash NatureTimid Moves Destiny Bond SpikesHazard Ice Beam Shadow Ball Damage vs Volcanion Ice Beam 5-6% Shadow Ball 19-22% View Froslass builds →
Klefki	C
Recommended Build AbilityPrankster ItemLight Clay NatureBold Moves Thunder Wave ReflectUtility Light Screen SpikesHazard View Klefki builds →
Tinkaton	C
Recommended Build AbilityMold Breaker ItemAir Balloon NatureJolly Moves Gigaton Hammer Stealth Rock EncoreUtility Thunder Wave View Tinkaton builds →
Weezing-Galar
Recommended Build AbilityNeutralizinggas ItemHeavy-Duty Boots NatureBold Moves DefogUtility Will O Wisp Pain Split Strange Steam View Weezing-Galar builds →

Evolution

Mythical Pokemon don't breed, and Volcanion is no exception. This Fire/Water type sits at 600 stats with no chain to speak of. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.

How to Evolve

No Evolution

#721VolcanionDoes not evolve

Breeding

Unavailable

Undiscovered egg group

Shiny Volcanion

Volcanion swaps its red-and-brown body for a slightly lighter brown with gold accents. The steam cannon on its back gets a subtle color shift too. It's decent for a Mythical, but Volcanion's design is so busy that the recolor gets a bit lost in the details.

Normal vs Shiny

Color ShiftBrowntoYellow

Shiny TierB Tier Shiny

Shiny Volcanion Evolution

Does Not Evolve

Volcanion does not evolve

Single-stage PokemonView Full Evolution Chart

Shiny Volcanion Odds & Hunting Methods

5 of 5 Verified

GameBest MethodOddsDifficulty

Shiny via transfer only

Not obtainable here — bring a shiny in from a game where it can be caught or bred.

GameUltra Sun & Ultra Moon

Method—

Odds—

Difficulty—

No shiny in these games

This Pokemon has no obtainable shiny form here.

GameX & Y

MethodShiny locked

Odds—

Difficulty—

GameOmega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire

MethodShiny locked

Odds—

Difficulty—

GameLegends: Z-A

MethodShiny lockedShiny only via event distributionShiny Volcanion is delivered to the Pokemon HOME Mystery Gift box for completing the Lumiose, Mega Evolution, and Hyperspace Pokedexes in Pokemon HOME using Pokemon from Legends: Z-A (from 27 Apr 2026). The in-game Volcanion static is shiny-locked; this is the first and only legitimate shiny Volcanion in any game, and it is compatible only with Legends: Z-A.

Odds—

Difficulty—

More dots = harder hunt1/200 Green = best verified rate

How do we research these odds?

We check every game where a shiny is possible, then rank each one by the best method available in that game, so the row at the top is the fastest route overall.

Odds marked verified are cross-checked against multiple independent sources before we publish them. Where a rate is not yet confirmed we mark the row pending rather than guess a number.

Read our full methodology

How to Get Volcanion

All 7 games

Volcanion is not available as a wild encounter in this game.

This is an event-exclusive or special distribution.

Base Stats

Sp. Atk and Defense carry most of Volcanion's stat budget. Speed's the obvious dump stat. Near-impossible to catch and yields 3 Sp. Atk EVs. Follows a slow 1.25M XP grind.

Base Stats

Legend

HP80

Attack110

Defense120

Sp. Atk130

Sp. Def90

Speed70

Total600

Details

Catch Rate

Legendary3 / 255

Growth Rate

Slow1.25M XP

Height1.7 m

Weight195.0 kg

Base XP300

Abilities

Water Absorb

Absorbs water moves, healing for 1/4 max HP.

Water Absorb grants Water immunity

EV Yield

HPAtkDefSpA+3SpDSpe

Strong Special Attack training target

Pokedex Entry

It expels its internal steam from the arms on its back. It has enough power to blow away a mountain.

Pokemon Legends: Z-A

Volcanion Event Distributions

Volcanion is a frequent Mystery Gift event target, offered again and again rather than as a one-off.

Search events by name or game

Filter by yearFilter by shiny status

Pokémon HOME GiftApr 2026Legends: Z-AAlways shiny

Lv 50 OT: HOME Cherish Ball Souvenir Ribbon 3 guaranteed max IVs

Moves: Steam Eruption, Flare Blitz, Hydro Pump, Heavy Slam

Distribution window: from Apr 2026

It's Mythical Volcanion!XYOmega RubyAlpha SapphireNot shiny

Lv 70 OT: Helen Cherish Ball Classic Ribbon 3 guaranteed max IVs

Moves: Steam Eruption, Flamethrower, Hydro Pump, Explosion

Volcanion Distribution!XYOmega RubyAlpha SapphireNot shiny

Lv 70 OT: Nebel Cherish Ball Wishing Ribbon 3 guaranteed max IVs

Moves: Steam Eruption, Overheat, Hydro Pump, Mist

Volcanion Guide

Use Volcanion as a wallbreaker. Special attacks are the main output. Speed is middling, Flamethrower is the primary attack.
Build your team around Hatterene, Ting Lu, and Zamazenta. These have the highest co-usage rates with Volcanion in competitive formats. They cover each other's weaknesses.
Run Modest on Volcanion. +Sp. Atk is what matters, and the -Attack cut doesn't hurt this set. Fits the wallbreaker role.

Game Availability

Volcanion first appeared in X & Y and has been available in 7 titles. Mythical distribution means event-only access in most games, making it one of the harder Pokemon to collect.

Click a game to view version-specific details

Explore

Where to go next after Volcanion.

Next stepPokedexBrowse the full Pokedex for every gameSee Pokedex