Is Chinchou Good in HeartGold & SoulSilver Playthrough?
Route 41 fishing encounter during mid-Johto. Water/Electric with AbilityVolt Absorb granting Electric immunity. The unique dual typing covers Water and Flying threats in one slot. Lanturn at level 27 tanks special hits surprisingly well.
Chinchou resists most of Falkner's coverage and hits back hard.
Chinchou has the type edge here and should clean up Bugsy's team.
Chinchou trades roughly evenly with Whitney's team.
Chinchou trades roughly evenly with Morty's team.
Lanturn trades roughly evenly with Chuck's team.
Lanturn has the type edge here and should clean up Jasmine's team.
Lanturn has the type edge here and should clean up Pryce's team.
Lanturn trades roughly evenly with Clair's team.
Lanturn resists most of Brock's coverage and hits back hard.
Lanturn trades roughly evenly with Misty's team.
Lanturn trades roughly evenly with Lt. Surge's team.
Lanturn trades roughly evenly with Erika's team.
Lanturn has the type edge here and should clean up Janine's team.
Lanturn trades roughly evenly with Sabrina's team.
Lanturn resists most of Blaine's coverage and hits back hard.
Lanturn has the type edge here and should clean up Blue's team.
Lanturn has the type edge here and should clean up Will's team.
Lanturn has the type edge here and should clean up Koga's team.
Lanturn trades roughly evenly with Bruno's team.
Lanturn has the type edge here and should clean up Karen's team.
Lanturn has the type edge here and should clean up Lance's team.
Catchable
Catch Chinchou in New Bark Town (Good Rod fishing, Lv 20, rare).
Recommended Moves
- STARTING (Lv 20)
- LV 20ElectricSparkPower 98Accuracy 100%PP 20
- After Bugsy
- TM25ElectricThunderPower 180Accuracy 70%PP 10Goldenrod Department Store
- TM24ElectricThunderboltPower 143Accuracy 100%PP 15Goldenrod Game Corner
- After Whitney
- HM03WaterSurfPower 143Accuracy 100%PP 15Gift from a Kimono Girl in the Ecruteak Dance Theater
- LV 28WaterBubble BeamPower 98Accuracy 100%PP 20
- LV 34ElectricDischargePower 120Accuracy 100%PP 15
- After Pryce
- HM07WaterWaterfallPower 120Accuracy 100%PP 15Item ball on Ice Path 1F
- LV 42WaterHydro PumpPower 180Accuracy 80%PP 5
Evolve Chinchou to Lanturn
Chinchou evolves into Lanturn at Level 27. Your Chinchou should hit Level 27 before you reach Chuck, at typical leveling pace.
Recommended Moves
- STARTING (Lv 27)
- LV 27GhostConfuse RayPower —Accuracy 100%PP 10
- After Bugsy
- TM25ElectricThunderPower 180Accuracy 70%PP 10Goldenrod Department Store
- TM24ElectricThunderboltPower 143Accuracy 100%PP 15Goldenrod Game Corner
- TM15NormalHyper BeamPower 150Accuracy 90%PP 5Goldenrod Department Store
- After Whitney
- HM03WaterSurfPower 143Accuracy 100%PP 15Gift from a Kimono Girl in the Ecruteak Dance Theater
- After Pryce
- HM07WaterWaterfallPower 120Accuracy 100%PP 15Item ball on Ice Path 1F
- LV 40ElectricDischargePower 120Accuracy 100%PP 15
- LV 52WaterHydro PumpPower 180Accuracy 80%PP 5
How to Get Chinchou in HeartGold & SoulSilver
Chinchou is purely a fishing catch, common on the Super Rod across about ten water spots in both games and only a rare nibble on the Good Rod. You need the Super Rod before it becomes reliable.
Wild Chinchou may be holding when caught:
Deep Sea Scale (5% chance) An item to be held by CLAMPERL. A scale that shines a faint pink, it raises the Sp. Def stat.10 locations to catch Chinchou
Encountered via fishing with a Rod
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Badge 8Where To Catch Chinchou in HGSS
Chinchou is the chain's first catch. You'll find fishing encounters from Lv. 20-40 across 60 total spots in the chain.
- Step 1Chinchou ✓New Bark TownLv.20Good RodRate 20%Route 41Lv.20Good RodRate 20%Route 47Lv.20Good RodRate 20%Cinnabar IslandLv.20Good RodRate 20%Pallet TownLv.20Good RodRate 20%Route 20Lv.20Good RodRate 20%Route 21Lv.20Good RodRate 20%Route 26Lv.20Good RodRate 20%Route 27Lv.20Good RodRate 20%Vermilion City - CityLv.20Good RodRate 20%New Bark TownLv.40Super RodRate 40%Route 41Lv.40Super RodRate 40%Route 47Lv.40Super RodRate 40%Cinnabar IslandLv.40Super RodRate 40%Pallet TownLv.40Super RodRate 40%Route 20Lv.40Super RodRate 40%Route 21Lv.40Super RodRate 40%Route 26Lv.40Super RodRate 40%Route 27Lv.40Super RodRate 40%Vermilion City - CityLv.40Super RodRate 40%
- Step 2Catch or Evolve into LanturnNew Bark TownLv.40Super RodRate 10%Route 41Lv.40Super RodRate 10%Route 47Lv.40Super RodRate 10%Cinnabar IslandLv.40Super RodRate 10%or evolve from Chinchou (Step 1)
Want the exact numbers? Work out your catch odds in HeartGold & SoulSilver for Chinchou.
How to Get Shiny Chinchou in HeartGold & SoulSilver
Chinchou glows in the deep water off Cinnabar Island and Pallet Town, but breeding it Masuda-style is the fastest way to a shiny. Compare Shiny Chinchou odds across every game
HeartGold & SoulSilver Shiny Chinchou Calculator
2 MethodsThe best route is Masuda Method, about 1 in 1,639 on each try.
Masuda Method: Breed with a parent from a different-language game. Works on any breedable line.
Full Odds: Walk through grass, surf, or fish. Every encounter is its own independent shiny roll.
How many you have done, or plan to do.
| Chance | Encounters | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 10%lucky few | 173-- | -- |
| 25%one in four | 472-- | -- |
| 50%coin flip | 1,136-- | -- |
| 90%very likely | 3,773-- | -- |
Time assumes -- at your pace and does not change your shiny odds.
How is this calculated?
Every encounter has the same shiny chance, the Shiny Odds Per Try shown above. Each one is a separate roll that does not care how many you have already done, so the more you hunt, the higher your overall chance of at least one shiny. The formula below turns your odds and your number of tries into that combined chance.
chance after N tries = 1 − (1 − p)^N, where p = 1 / odds per try
Example at 1 in 8,192 (classic full odds): about 864 encounters for a 10 percent chance, 5,678 for 50 percent, and 18,862 for 90 percent.
The table above flips that around: it shows how many encounters it takes to reach a 10, 25, 50, and 90 percent chance at your current odds. Turning on boosts like the Shiny Charm, sandwiches, or chains improves your odds, so the encounter numbers drop.
These are estimates, not promises. Most games have no pity counter, meaning no guaranteed shiny no matter how many you hunt, so even Very Likely is not guaranteed: some hunters find one early, others go well past that point.
Curious how fast a hunt could go? Work out your HeartGold & SoulSilver shiny odds for Chinchou.
Chinchou Weakness
Type-wise, Chinchou takes extra damage from Grass and Ground. The Water/Electric typing picks up 5 resistances to work with. Volt Absorb grants an additional Electric immunity, reshaping the matchup chart.
| Damage | Types |
|---|---|
| 2x (Weak) | Grass, Ground |
| 0.5x (Resist) | Fire, Water, Ice, Flying |
| 0.25x (Resist) | Steel |
- Fairy type does not exist — Dragon has fewer checks
- Physical / Special split now per-move (introduced Gen IV)
What is Chinchou Weak Against
GoodBest Pokemon Against Chinchou
 Cacturne GrassDark | B | |
 Victreebel GrassPoison | C | |
 Marowak Ground | C | |
 Vileplume GrassPoison | C | |
 Quagsire WaterGround | C | |
Obtain MethodCliff Edge Gate Surfing | ||
 Carnivine Grass | C | |
 Meganium Grass | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Chikorita (New Bark Town Gift) | ||
 Sandslash Ground | B | |
 Jumpluff Grass | C | |
Obtain MethodSafari Zone Surfing | ||
 Leafeon Grass | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Eevee (Goldenrod City Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Chinchou View Leafeon builds →Solar Beam 2x96-114%KO Dig 2x91-107%KO | ||
 Parasect BugGrass | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Chinchou View Parasect builds →Solar Beam 2x96-114%KO Dig 2x80-94% | ||
 Graveler RockGround | C | |
 Budew GrassPoison | C | |
 Rhyhorn GroundRock | C | |
Chinchou Evolutions
Chinchou is the base form in a two-stage line leading to Lanturn. Check the evolution method below. A decent partner pool for breeding via one egg group. Eggs take an average time to hatch. Evolving adds up to 130 stat points total. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
Breeding
Breed Chinchou easily with 19 breeding partners from the Water 2 egg group. Pass egg moves like Agility, Amnesia, Flail and 4 more to offspring.
HGSS Chinchou Best Moveset
Water/Electric is a rare defensive typing combination, and AbilityVolt Absorb adds Electric immunity for free HP. The moveset absorbs Electric attacks aimed at Water teammates. 75 HP gives some bulk for a first-stage. Evolve to Lanturn.
Best Build
Chinchou best EVs are HP and Sp. Def
Wall Moveset
- Surf
- Thunder Wave
- Sleep Talk
- Rest
Recommended Teammates
Moves List
The egg pool carries weight here. Agility and Amnesia aren't available any other way for Chinchou, and they meaningfully change what it threatens. Stack those on top of Hydro Pump and Thunder for solid options.
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
All 22 TMs are obtainable before the Elite Four
Egg Moves
Tutor Moves
Base Stats
It shoots positive and negative electricity between the tips of its two antennae and zaps its enemies.
On the dark ocean floor, its only means of communication is its constantly flashing lights.
Chinchou HeartGold & SoulSilver Guide
Yes. Wild Chinchou in HeartGold & SoulSilver can hold Deep Sea Scale (5%). Use Thief (TM46) or Covet to swipe the held item without affecting your catch chance. Quickest way to farm rare items like Deep Sea Scale.
In HeartGold & SoulSilver, for a casual playthrough, Chinchou works as a placeholder. Water/Electric coverage is useful early. The real payoff is Lanturn. That's where the stats start mattering.
Game Availability
Debuting in Gold & Silver, Chinchou appears in 17 games across 8 generations. A reliable presence in most mainline games, typically found through catching or hatching as a base form.
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 6ORAS
Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire - Gen 7SM
Sun & Moon - Gen 7USUM
Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon - Gen 7Let's Go
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
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