For Red & Blue, we rate Cloyster A-Tier: a strong pick in Red & Blue's competitive scene. At 565 BST, the stats are spread pretty evenly. Explosion anchors the moveset.

What is Cloyster weak to?

In Red & Blue, watch for Raikou (Electric), Venusaur (Grass), and Hitmonlee (Fighting) when using Cloyster. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Rock-type attackers are also a problem. Cloyster has enough bulk to absorb a hit, but don't push the matchup. Pivot to a teammate that resists.

What role does Cloyster play in battle?

Base 70 Speed is workable. Faster than some, slower than many. On offense, Cloyster is a special attacker with base 85 Special. Defensively? Tanky enough to absorb a few hits.

What counters Cloyster?

For Red & Blue, Cloyster has answers, but so do you. Super-effective STAB from faster Pokemon is the simplest answer. Electric, Grass, and Fighting-type attackers hit hardest.

What are the best moves for Cloyster?

In Red & Blue, run Explosion, Clamp, Blizzard, and Rest on Cloyster. Explosion is the most common pick at 23% usage. Clamp provides reliable STAB damage.

Cloyster - Weakness, Evolution, Moveset, EVs & Stats

Special

Balanced

ATier

70Speed · Below Avg

Stats & Training

Defense leads and HP gets almost nothing. That's Cloyster's stat line in a nutshell. 4 stats sit in respectable range, but the spread is brutal. Moderately hard to find and yields 2 Defense stat exp.

Base Stats

High

HP50

Attack95

Defense180

Sp. Atk85

Sp. Def85

Speed70

Total565

Details

Catch Rate

Challenging60 / 255

Growth Rate

Slow1.25M XP

Height1.5 m

Weight132.5 kg

Base XP184

Abilities

Abilities were introduced in Generation III. Shown below for reference.

Shell Armor

Protects against critical hits.

Skill Link

Extends two-to-five-hit moves and triple kick to their full length every time.

OvercoatHA

Protects against damage from weather.

EV Yield

HPAtkDef+2SpASpDSpe

Defense training target

Pokedex Entries

When attacked, it launches its horns in quick volleys. Its innards have never been seen.

Cloyster Weakness

Cloyster's Water/Ice typing leaves it vulnerable to Electric, Grass, Fighting, and Rock. Cloyster's physical bulk (base 180 Def) helps cushion physical weakness hits, but special attackers are the bigger threat.

Cloyster Weakness and Resistance Chart
Damage	Types
2x (Weak)	Electric, Grass, Fighting, Rock
0.5x (Resist)	Water
0.25x (Resist)	Ice

Type ChartVulnerable

4Weak

2Resist

0Immune

Score-5

Gen I Type Chart

Only 15 types exist — Dark, Steel, and Fairy are absent
Ghost has no effect on Psychic (a known bug, fixed in Gen II)
Special stat governs both offense and defense — no Sp.Atk / Sp.Def split

4xCritical

None

2xWeak

Electric Grass Fighting Rock

½xResist

Water

¼xResist

Ice

0xImmune

None

STAB (6)

Fire Ground Rock Grass Flying Dragon

How to Beat Cloyster in Red & Blue (Best Counters)

In Red & Blue, Snorlax's Self-Destruct hits Cloyster for 58-68%. Exeggutor deals 56-66% with Psychic.

SnorlaxResists Ice via Thick Fat, walls special sets Normal	S
Recommended Build Moves Body Slam RestRecovery Self Destruct Earthquake Damage vs Cloyster Body Slam 25-30% Self Destruct 58-68% Earthquake 20-23% View Snorlax builds →
ChanseyThreatens with Thunder Wave, cures status via Natural Cure Normal	S
Recommended Build Moves Soft Boiled Thunder Wave Ice Beam Thunderbolt Damage vs Cloyster Ice Beam 3-4% Thunderbolt 2x 28-33% View Chansey builds →
ExeggutorResists Water, threatens with Sleep Powder GrassPsychic	S
Recommended Build Moves PsychicSTAB Sleep Powder Explosion Stun Spore Damage vs Cloyster Psychic 56-66% Explosion 42-50% View Exeggutor builds →
GolemThreatens with Rock Slide, sturdy guarantees survival, walls physical sets RockGround	B
Recommended Build Moves EarthquakeSTAB Explosion Rock Slide Body Slam Damage vs Cloyster Earthquake 32-37% Explosion 52-61% Rock Slide 2x 47-56% Body Slam 18-21% View Golem builds →
ArticunoOutspeeds, walls special sets IceFlying	B
Recommended Build Moves BlizzardSTAB AgilitySetup Hyper Beam Ice Beam Damage vs Cloyster Blizzard 13-16% Hyper Beam 23-28% Ice Beam 11-13% View Articuno builds →

Red & Blue Evolution

The Water/Ice-type Cloyster caps Shellder's chain at 565 stats. No daycare options for this one. Defense grew the most through evolution (+80 over Shellder), and Cloyster peaks at 565 total stats. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.

How to Evolve

2 Forms

#090Shellder

Water Stone

#091Cloyster

Stat Comparison 2 Stages

Shellder

Water

Cloyster

WaterIce

50+20

ATK

95+30

DEF

100

180+80

SP.ATK

85+40

SP.DEF

45+20

SPE

70+30

BST

305B-Tier

525B-Tier+220

ROLE

Balanced

TYPE

Physical

Mixed

Breeding not available · Introduced in Gen 2

Red & Blue Cloyster Best Moveset

Best Build

Solid pick

Utility

Ability

Not in Gen 1

Item

Not in Gen 1

Nature

Not in Gen 1

Utility Moveset

ExplosionCoverage
ClampSTAB
BlizzardSTAB
RestRecovery

Recommended Teammates

TaurosGood

ChanseyGood

SnorlaxGood

Moves

Level-up moves are just the starting point for Cloyster. TMs unlock Normal coverage and turn a straightforward STAB kit around Blizzard and Ice Beam into something with actual range.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1

Aurora Beam

C6510020Ice

Lv 1

Clamp

S358510Water

Lv 1

Supersonic

——5520Normal

Lv 1

Withdraw

D——40Water

Lv 50

Spike Cannon

—2010015Normal

TM Moves

TM34

Bide+1

———10Normal

TM14

Blizzard

S110905Ice

TM11

Bubble Beam

C6510020Water

TM32

Double Team

———15Normal

TM10

Double-Edge

C12010015Normal

TM47

Explosion

S2501005Normal

TM15

Hyper Beam

C150905Normal

TM13

Ice Beam

C9510010Ice

TM31

Mimic

———10Normal

TM20

Rage

—2010020Normal

TM33

Reflect

C——20Psychic

TM44

Rest

A——10Psychic

TM36

Self-Destruct

B2001005Normal

TM50

Substitute

C——10Normal

HM03

Surf

C9510015Water

TM39

Swift

D60—20Normal

TM09

Take Down

—908520Normal

TM30

Teleport-6

———20Psychic

TM06

Toxic

C—9010Poison

TM49

Tri Attack

—8010010Normal

TM12

Water Gun

D4010025Water

Egg Moves

Cloyster doesn't have any Egg moves

Tutor Moves

Cloyster can't learn any Tutor moves

How to Get Cloyster in Red & Blue

Cloyster doesn't appear wild. Catch Shellder instead, it shows up at solid rates. Evolve it through a special method to get Cloyster. The 2-stage line is mapped in the step cards below.

How to Obtain Cloyster in Red & Blue

The path to Cloyster starts with Shellder at Lv. 15-33 via fishing and walking encounters. 1 catchable stage total, with locations listed for each one below.

Step 1Catch Shellder
Route 11
RedSuper Rod Lv.15 Route
50%Early
Route 11
BlueSuper Rod Lv.15 Route
50%Early
Route 6
RedSuper Rod Lv.15 Route
50%Early
Route 6
BlueSuper Rod Lv.15 Route
50%Early
Vermilion City - City
BlueSuper Rod Lv.15 City
50%Early
Vermilion City - City
RedSuper Rod Lv.15 City
50%Early
Vermilion City - Harbor
BlueSuper Rod Lv.15 City
50%Early
Vermilion City - Harbor
RedSuper Rod Lv.15 City
50%Early
Route 19
BlueSuper Rod Lv.15 Route
25%Early
Route 19
RedSuper Rod Lv.15 Route
25%Early
Route 20
RedSuper Rod Lv.15 Route
25%Early
Route 20
BlueSuper Rod Lv.15 Route
25%Early
Route 21
RedSuper Rod Lv.15 Route
25%Early
Route 21
BlueSuper Rod Lv.15 Route
25%Early
Seafoam Islands - B4F
RedSuper Rod Lv.15 Water
25%Early
Seafoam Islands - B4F
BlueSuper Rod Lv.15 Water
25%Early
Seafoam Islands - B3F
RedSuper Rod Lv.15 Water
25%Early
Seafoam Islands - B3F
BlueSuper Rod Lv.15 Water
25%Early
Seafoam Islands - B1F
BlueGrass Lv.30 Water
20%Mid
Seafoam Islands - 1F
RedGrass Lv.28-30 Water
15%Mid
Seafoam Islands - B3F
RedGrass Lv.29-31 Water
15%Mid
Seafoam Islands - B2F
BlueGrass Lv.30 Water
10%Mid
Seafoam Islands - B2F
RedGrass Lv.28 Water
5%Mid
Seafoam Islands - B4F
RedGrass Lv.31-33 Water
30%Late
Seafoam Islands - B1F
RedGrass Lv.32 Water
10%Late
Water Stone
Step 2Cloyster ✓

Cloyster Guide

For Red & Blue, we rate Cloyster A-Tier: a strong pick in Red & Blue's competitive scene. At 565 BST, the stats are spread pretty evenly. Explosion anchors the moveset.
In Red & Blue, watch for Raikou (Electric), Venusaur (Grass), and Hitmonlee (Fighting) when using Cloyster. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Rock-type attackers are also a problem. Cloyster has enough bulk to absorb a hit, but don't push the matchup. Pivot to a teammate that resists.
Base 70 Speed is workable. Faster than some, slower than many. On offense, Cloyster is a special attacker with base 85 Special. Defensively? Tanky enough to absorb a few hits.
For Red & Blue, Cloyster has answers, but so do you. Super-effective STAB from faster Pokemon is the simplest answer. Electric, Grass, and Fighting-type attackers hit hardest.
In Red & Blue, run Explosion, Clamp, Blizzard, and Rest on Cloyster. Explosion is the most common pick at 23% usage. Clamp provides reliable STAB damage.

Game Availability

One of the original 151, Cloyster has appeared in 20 games — most mainline games. From Red & Blue through the latest titles, it's rarely been left out of a regional Pokedex.

Click a game to view version-specific details

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