Mixed
Trick Room
DTier
35Speed · Very Slow

Stats & Training

Attack and Sp. Atk carry most of Cacnea's stat budget. Speed's the obvious dump stat. Common in the wild and yields 1 Sp. Atk EV. Follows a 1.06M XP medium-slow curve.

Base Stats
Avg
HP50
D
Attack85
C
Defense40
D
Sp. Atk85
C
Sp. Def40
D
Speed35
F
Total335
Details
Catch Rate
Easy190 / 255
Growth Rate
Medium Slow1.06M XP
Height0.4 m
1'04"Tiny
Weight51.3 kg
113.1 lbsStandard
Base XP67
Low Yield
Abilities
Sand Veil
Increases evasion to 1.25× during a sandstorm. Protects against sandstorm damage.
Water AbsorbHANot in game
Absorbs water moves, healing for 1/4 max HP.
Water Absorb grants Water immunity
EV Yield
HPAtkDefSpA+1SpDSpe
Special Attack training source
Pokedex Entries

It lives in arid locations. Its yellow flowers bloom once a year.

Cacnea Weakness

Cacnea's Grass typing leaves it vulnerable to Fire, Ice, Poison, Flying, and Bug. 4 resistances help offset the weaknesses. Water Absorb grants an additional Water immunity, reshaping the matchup chart.

Cacnea Weakness and Resistance Chart
DamageTypes
2x (Weak)Fire, Ice, Poison, Flying, Bug
0.5x (Resist)Water, Electric, Grass, Ground
Type ChartFragile
5Weak
4Resist
1Immune
Score-6
Gen IV Type Chart
  • Fairy type does not exist — Dragon has fewer checks
  • Physical / Special split now per-move (introduced Gen IV)
4xCritical
None
2xWeak
FireIcePoisonFlyingBug
½xResist
WaterElectricGrassGround
¼xResist
None
0xImmune
Water
STAB (3)
WaterGroundRock
How to Beat Cacnea in HeartGold & SoulSilver (Best Counters)

In HeartGold & SoulSilver, Gliscor's Ice Fang hits Cacnea for 76-90%. Forretress's Explosion also KOs at 139-163%.

Roserade
Roserade
GrassPoison
B
Recommended Build
AbilityNatural Cure
ItemBlack Sludge
NatureTimid
Moves
  • Toxic Spikes
  • Hidden Power Fire
  • SpikesHazard
  • Sleep Powder
View Roserade builds →

HeartGold & SoulSilver Evolution

One evolution ahead. Cacnea grows into Cacturne through a straightforward two-stage chain. A decent partner pool for breeding via two egg groups. Eggs are average hatch time. The evolved forms gain up to 140 total stats over Cacnea. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.

How to Evolve

2 Forms
Cacnea
#331Cacnea
32
Level 32
Cacturne
#332Cacturne
Stat Comparison 2 Stages
Cacnea
Grass
Cacturne
GrassDark
HP
50
70+20
ATK
85
115+30
DEF
40
60+20
SP.ATK
85
115+30
SP.DEF
40
60+20
SPE
35
55+20
BST
335C-Tier
475B-Tier+140
ROLE
Trick Room
Cannon
TYPE
Mixed
Mixed

Breeding

Very Easy

Breed Cacnea easily with 45 breeding partners from the Plant and Humanshape egg groups. Pass egg moves like Acid, Counter, Dynamic Punch and 7 more to offspring.

Egg Groups
PlantHumanshape
Gender
♂50.0%♀50.0%
Hatch Time
20 cycles·5,140 steps
Quick~5 min with Flame Body
Egg Moves
10moves
Breed With (best first)
venusaurmeganiumtorterraroseradegardevoirinfernapegalladeludicoloshiftryabomasnowlopunnyjumpluff
12 of 45·

HeartGold & SoulSilver Cacnea Best Moveset

Best Build

No build content available for this Pokemon in Gen 4.

Try selecting a different game/generation filter, or check back later.

Moves

You'll want to breed for Acid and Counter on Cacnea. These egg moves aren't just nice to have. Combined with STAB from Solar Beam and Energy Ball, they expand what Cacnea can actually threaten in practice.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Leer
——10030Normal
Lv 1
Poison Sting
—1510035Poison
Lv 5
Absorb
—2010025Grass
Lv 9
Growth
———20Normal
Lv 13
Leech Seed
C—9010Grass
Lv 17
Sand Attack
D—10015Ground
Lv 21
Pin Missile
—149520Bug
Lv 25
Ingrain
———20Grass
Lv 29
Feint Attack
—60—20Dark
Lv 33
Spikes
C——20Ground
Lv 37
Sucker Punch+1
D801005Dark
Lv 41
Payback
D5010010Dark
Lv 45
Needle Arm
—6010015Grass
Lv 49
Cotton Spore
——8540Grass
Lv 53
Sandstorm
———10Rock
Lv 57
Destiny Bond
D——5Ghost

TM Moves

TM
TM45
Attract
——10015Normal
TM31
Brick Break
C7510015Fighting
TM09
Bullet Seed
—1010030Grass
TM78
Captivate
——10020Normal
HM01
Cut
—509530Normal
TM79
Dark Pulse
C8010015Dark
TM32
Double Team
———15Normal
TM60
Drain Punch
C751005Fighting
TM58
Endure+4
———10Normal
TM53
Energy Ball
C8010010Grass
TM42
Facade
D7010020Normal
TM70
Flash
D—10020Normal
TM56
Fling
——10010Dark
TM01
Focus Punch-3
B15010020Fighting
TM21
Frustration
D—10020Normal
TM19
Giga Drain
C6010010Grass
TM86
Grass Knot
D—10020Grass
TM10
Hidden Power
—6010015Normal
TM83
Natural Gift
D—10015Normal
TM66
Payback
D5010010Dark
TM84
Poison Jab
C8010020Poison
TM17
Protect+4
C——10Normal
TM44
Rest
C——10Psychic
TM27
Return
D—10020Normal
TM37
Sandstorm
———10Rock
TM43
Secret Power
—7010020Normal
TM82
Sleep Talk
C——10Normal
TM22
Solar Beam
B12010010Grass
TM90
Substitute
C——10Normal
TM11
Sunny Day
C——5Fire
TM87
Swagger
——9015Normal
TM75
Swords Dance
C——30Normal
TM06
Toxic
C—8510Poison

Egg Moves

Egg
Egg
Acid
—4010030Poison
Egg
Counter-5
D—10020Fighting
Egg
Dynamic Punch
D100505Fighting
Egg
Grass Whistle
——5515Grass
Egg
Low Kick
D—10020Fighting
Egg
Magical Leaf
—60—20Grass
Egg
Nasty Plot
C——20Dark
Egg
Seed Bomb
C8010015Grass
Egg
Smelling Salts
—7010010Normal
Egg
Teeter Dance
——10020Normal

Tutor Moves

Tut
Tutor
Fury Cutter
—109520Bug
Tutor
Headbutt
D7010015Normal
Tutor
Low Kick
D—10020Fighting
Tutor
Mud-Slap
D2010010Ground
Tutor
Role Play
———10Psychic
Tutor
Seed Bomb
C8010015Grass
Tutor
Snore
D4010015Normal
Tutor
Spite
——10010Ghost
Tutor
Sucker Punch+1
D801005Dark
Tutor
Synthesis
D——5Grass
Tutor
Thunder Punch
C7510015Electric
Tutor
Worry Seed
——10010Grass

Transfer Moves

Gen
Gen 3
Body Slam
C8510015Normal
Gen 3
Double-Edge
C12010015Normal
Gen 3
Mega Punch
—808520Normal
Gen 3
Mimic
———10Normal
Gen 3
Seismic Toss
D—10020Fighting

How to Get Cacnea in HeartGold & SoulSilver

Cacnea can't be caught in HeartGold & SoulSilver. Bring it over from Ruby, Emerald, or Scarlet instead. The encounter info below covers the source games.

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

Catch in the wild in:

DiamondWalking · Route 228PlatinumWalking · Route 228

Then trade to HeartGold & SoulSilver.

Also found in:

RubyEmeraldOmega RubyBrilliant DiamondScarlet

Cacnea Guide

  • Get Cacnea to Cacturne at level 32. At 335 BST, Cacnea is just the starting point.

  • Level 32 gets you Cacturne. Not the fastest evolution, so consider Exp. Share or route grinding to speed it up.

  • For HeartGold & SoulSilver, you can run Cacnea through the first few routes without issues. 335 BST won't carry you far though. Get it to Cacturne as fast as you can.

  • You can find Cacnea in HeartGold & SoulSilver. The Locations section has the full breakdown of routes and encounter details. It also appears in 13 other games across the series.

Game Availability

Available in 14 titles since its debut in Ruby & Sapphire, Cacnea spans 8 generations of Pokemon games. It's accessible through catching or hatching as a base form in a solid number of games.

Click a game to view version-specific details

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