Is Cloyster Good in Diamond & Pearl Playthrough?
Water Stone evolution from Shellder. AbilitySkill Link guarantees multi-hit moves strike five times. MoveIcicle Spear becomes one of the hardest-hitting Ice moves in the game with Skill Link. Postgame-only timing, but Cloyster dominates the Battle Tower.
Shellder has the type edge here and should clean up Roark's team.
Shellder has the type edge here and should clean up Gardenia's team.
Shellder trades roughly evenly with Maylene's team.
Crasher Wake's typing presses Shellder's defenses.
Shellder trades roughly evenly with Fantina's team.
Shellder has the type edge here and should clean up Byron's team.
Candice's team hits Shellder's weaknesses hard.
Volkner's team hits Shellder's weaknesses hard.
Cloyster has the type edge here and should clean up Aaron's team.
Cloyster resists most of Bertha's coverage and hits back hard.
Cloyster has the type edge here and should clean up Flint's team.
Cloyster trades roughly evenly with Lucian's team.
Cloyster has the type edge here and should clean up Mars's team.
Cloyster resists most of Jupiter's coverage and hits back hard.
Cloyster has the type edge here and should clean up Saturn's team.
Cloyster trades roughly evenly with Cynthia's team.
Catch Shellder
Catch Shellder on Route 205 (Super Rod fishing, Lv 20-40, uncommon).
Recommended Moves
- After Gardenia
- TM64NormalExplosionPower 250Accuracy 100%PP 5Given by the coin clerk at the Veilstone Game Corner once you string together ten bonus rounds in a row on the slot machines
- TM14IceBlizzardPower 120Accuracy 70%PP 5Lake Acuity
- TM43NormalSecret PowerPower 70Accuracy 100%PP 20Amity Square
- After Crasher Wake
- HM03WaterSurfPower 143Accuracy 100%PP 15Celestic Town
- After Fantina
- TM03WaterWater PulsePower 90Accuracy 100%PP 20Ravaged Path
- LV 44WaterBrinePower 98Accuracy 100%PP 10
- LV 49IceIce BeamPower 95Accuracy 100%PP 10
- Post-Game
- TM42NormalFacadePower 70Accuracy 100%PP 20Survival Area
Evolve Shellder to Cloyster
Shellder evolves into Cloyster with a Water Stone. You can pick up the Water Stone in Route 213. Use the Water Stone in the post-game, after you beat Cynthia.
Recommended Moves
- STARTING (Lv 49)
- LV 49IceAurora BeamPower 98Accuracy 100%PP 20
- After Gardenia
- TM14IceBlizzardPower 180Accuracy 70%PP 5Lake Acuity
- TM13IceIce BeamPower 143Accuracy 100%PP 10Route 216
- TM64NormalExplosionPower 250Accuracy 100%PP 5Given by the coin clerk at the Veilstone Game Corner once you string together ten bonus rounds in a row on the slot machines
- TM68NormalGiga ImpactPower 150Accuracy 90%PP 5Veilstone Game Corner
- TM15NormalHyper BeamPower 150Accuracy 90%PP 5Veilstone Department Store
- After Crasher Wake
- HM03WaterSurfPower 143Accuracy 100%PP 15Celestic Town
- TM55WaterBrinePower 98Accuracy 100%PP 10Prize for defeating Crasher Wake
- Post-Game
- TM42NormalFacadePower 70Accuracy 100%PP 20Survival Area
How to Get Cloyster in Diamond & Pearl
Cloyster never appears wild in these games. Hook a Super Rod Shellder, then apply a Water Stone, the same stone that finishes the Poliwag line into Poliwrath.
Wild Cloyster may be holding when caught:
Pearl (50% chance) A somewhat-small pearl that sparkles in a pretty silver color. It can be sold cheaply to shops.
Big Pearl (5% chance) A quite-large pearl that sparkles in a pretty silver color. It can be sold at a high price to shops.Catch Shellder at any of these 3 spots to eventually evolve into Cloyster.
Encountered via fishing with a Rod
- 1Catch Shellder
- 2Evolve CloysterUse Water Stone
Badge 1
Badge 2
Badge 3
Badge 4
Badge 5How to Obtain Cloyster in DP
Shellder is your first catch on the way to Cloyster. You'll find fishing encounters from Lv. 20-40 across 6 total spots in the chain.
- Step 2Cloyster ✓BREEDINGAvailableLeave a compatible parent at the Pokemon Day Care to receive a Shellder egg.
How to Get Shiny Cloyster in Diamond & Pearl
Cloyster comes from breeding then a Water Stone, so hatch a shiny Shellder the Masuda way first. Compare Shiny Cloyster odds across every game
Diamond & Pearl Shiny Cloyster 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.
Want exact numbers for your session? Calculate your shiny odds in Diamond & Pearl with Cloyster preloaded.
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.
| Damage | Types |
|---|---|
| 2x (Weak) | Electric, Grass, Fighting, Rock |
| 0.5x (Resist) | Water |
| 0.25x (Resist) | Ice |
- Fairy type does not exist — Dragon has fewer checks
- Physical / Special split now per-move (introduced Gen IV)
What is Cloyster Weak Against
VulnerableBest Pokemon Against Cloyster
 Hariyama Fighting | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Cloyster View Hariyama builds →Focus Punch 2x95-112%KO Stone Edge 2x43-50% | ||
 Heracross BugFighting | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Cloyster View Heracross builds →Focus Punch 2x99-118%KO Stone Edge 2x44-53% | ||
 Breloom GrassFighting | A | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Cloyster View Breloom builds →Focus Punch 2x102-121%KO Seed Bomb 2x55-65% Stone Edge 2x46-54% | ||
 Toxicroak PoisonFighting | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Cloyster View Toxicroak builds →Focus Punch 2x86-102%KO Stone Edge 2x39-46% | ||
 Machoke Fighting | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Cloyster View Machoke builds →Focus Punch 2x82-96% Rock Slide 2x27-33% | ||
 Exeggutor GrassPsychic | C | |
 Infernape FireFighting | A | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Chimchar (Lake Verity Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Cloyster View Infernape builds →Focus Punch 2x85-100%KO Solar Beam 2x140-165%KO Stone Edge 2x39-46% | ||
 Abomasnow GrassIce | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Cloyster View Abomasnow builds →Wood Hammer 2x63-74% Focus Punch 2x51-61% Rock Slide 2x26-32% | ||
 Magnezone ElectricSteel | A | |
 Roserade GrassPoison | B | |
 Ludicolo WaterGrass | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Cloyster View Ludicolo builds →Solar Beam 2x185-218%KO Focus Punch 2x42-49% | ||
 Kabutops RockWater | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Kabuto (Oreburgh City Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Cloyster View Kabutops builds →Stone Edge 2x63-74% Brick Break 2x32-37% Giga Drain 2x49-57% | ||
 Rhydon GroundRock | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Cloyster View Rhydon builds →Focus Punch 2x68-81% Stone Edge 2x68-81% Thunderbolt 2x58-69% | ||
 Cacturne GrassDark | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Cloyster View Cacturne builds →Solar Beam 2x228-268%KO Focus Punch 2x61-73% | ||
Cloyster Evolutions
Getting Cloyster requires an evolution item, not just grinding levels. The chain starts at Shellder. Breed this form to get Shellder eggs (average hatch time). Defense grew the most through evolution (+80 over Shellder), and Cloyster peaks at 525 total stats. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
Breeding
Breed with Cloyster to get Shellder eggs easily using 21 partners from the Water 3 egg group. Notable egg moves include Barrier, Bubble Beam, Icicle Spear and 4 more.
DP Cloyster Best Moveset
180 Defense is the highest in this part of the roster, and MoveSpikes plus MoveRapid Spin let the moveset control hazards from both sides. AbilitySkill Link guarantees MoveRock Blast hits five times for 125 total power, adding real physical damage to the utility. Water/Ice typing brings several weaknesses though, and 70 Speed means going second.
Best Build
Cloyster best EVs are Attack and HP
Physical Tank Moveset
- Rapid Spin
- Explosion
- Toxic Spikes
- Spikes
Recommended Teammates
Moves List
You'll want to breed for Barrier and Bubble Beam on Cloyster. These egg moves aren't just nice to have. Combined with STAB from Blizzard and Ice Beam, they expand what Cloyster can actually threaten in practice.
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
29 of 30 TMs are obtainable before the Elite Four
Egg Moves
Tutor Moves
Reminder Moves
Transfer Moves
Base Stats
It fights by keeping its shell tightly shut for protection and by shooting spikes to repel foes.
Cloyster Diamond & Pearl Guide
Yes. Cloyster is a post-game Pokemon. You need to defeat the Elite Four and enter the Hall of Fame first. Cloyster becomes available after the main story is complete in Diamond & Pearl.
In Diamond & Pearl, use Cloyster as a hazard setter. Splits damage between physical and special. Speed is middling,
For Diamond & Pearl, build your team around Abomasnow. These have the highest co-usage rates with Cloyster in competitive formats. They cover each other's weaknesses.
For Diamond & Pearl, run Adamant on Cloyster. +Attack is what matters, and the -Sp. Atk cut doesn't hurt this set. Fits the hazard setter role.
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
- Gen 1RBDebut
Red & Blue - Gen 1Y
Yellow - Gen 2GS
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
Explore
Where to go next after Cloyster.
Keep playing · Diamond & PearlDiamond & Pearl Tier ListThe best Pokemon ranked tier by tierSee Diamond & Pearl Tier List