Special
Wall
580Very High
85Moderate
BTier

Cresselia absorbs special hits like nothing. Levitate gives it a Ground immunity, making it even harder to wear down. The tradeoff is physical coverage — anything hitting that side gets through. Only weak to Bug, Ghost, and Dark.

Cresselia's built to absorb hits, not race for knockouts. Balanced defenses with HP doing the heavy lifting. And the slow 1.25M XP grind means it won't take forever to bring up, worth 3 Sp. Def EVs.

Base Stats
580Pseudo
HP120
A
Attack70
C
Defense110
B
Sp. Atk75
C
Sp. Def120
A
Speed85
C
Total580
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Cresselia yields +3 SpD
HPAtkDefSpASpD+3Spe
Details
Catch3LegendarySlow1.25M XP1.5m / 4'11"85.6kg / 188.7 lbs290Base XP
Pokedex Entries

On nights around the quarter moon, the aurora from its tail extends and undulates beautifully.

Black / White

Cresselia Weakness

Vulnerable

Cresselia is weak to Bug, Ghost, and Dark-type moves. Levitate grants an additional Ground immunity, reshaping the matchup chart. Cresselia's overall bulk (120/110/120) lets it take a hit or two from most weaknesses before going down.

Gen V Type Chart
  • Fairy type does not exist — Dragon has fewer checks
  • Physical / Special split now per-move (introduced Gen IV)
4xCriticali
None
½xResisti
¼xResisti
None
0xImmunei
3Weak
2Resist
1Immune
Scorei-4
Abilities
LevitateEvades ground moves.
Levitate grants Ground immunity

Cresselia is strong overall with 580 total stats as a Psychic legendary. Can't breed it, so you're locked to whatever you catch or receive.

How to Evolve

No Evolution
Cresselia
#488Cresselia
Does not evolve
Breeding
Unavailable
Undiscovered egg group

Levitate gives Cresselia passive value while it walls. Bold nature boosts Defense, max HP and Defense EVs maximize the physical wall profile, and Leftovers keeps it in the game.

Best Build

Wall
Ability
Levitate
Item
LeftoversSUSTAIN
Nature
Bold+DEF
EVs

Best Cresselia Moveset

  • Ice Beam
  • MoonlightRecovery
  • ToxicUtility
  • PsychicSTAB

Most of Cresselia's flexibility comes from TMs. Same-type output runs through Future Sight and Dream Eater, but Ice and Normal and the rest of the TM pool push it from predictable to genuinely threatening.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Confusion
5010025Psychic
Lv 1
Double Team
15Normal
Lv 11
Safeguard
25Normal
Lv 20
Mist
30Ice
Lv 29
Aurora Beam
6510020Ice
Lv 38
Future Sight
10010010Psychic
Lv 47
Slash
7010020Normal
Lv 57
Moonlight
5Normal
Lv 66
Psycho Cut
7010020Psychic
Lv 75
Psycho Shift
9010Psychic
Lv 84
Lunar Dance
10Psychic
Lv 93
Psychic
9010010Psychic

TM Moves

Src
TM45
Attract
10015Normal
TM04
Calm Mind
20Psychic
TM57
Charge Beam
509010Electric
TM32
Double Team
15Normal
TM85
Dream Eater
10010015Psychic
TM53
Energy Ball
8010010Grass
TM42
Facade
7010020Normal
TM70
Flash
10020Normal
TM21
Frustration
10020Normal
TM68
Giga Impact
150905Normal
TM86
Grass Knot
10020Grass
TM10
Hidden Power
6010015Normal
TM15
Hyper Beam
150905Normal
TM13
Ice Beam
9510010Ice
TM16
Light Screen
30Psychic
TM17
Protect+4
10Normal
TM77
Psych Up
10Normal
TM29
Psychic
9010010Psychic
TM03
Psyshock
8010010Psychic
TM18
Rain Dance
5Water
TM33
Reflect
20Psychic
TM44
Rest
10Psychic
TM27
Return
10020Normal
TM48
Round
6010015Normal
TM20
Safeguard
25Normal
TM30
Shadow Ball
8010015Ghost
TM22
Solar Beam
12010010Grass
TM90
Substitute
10Normal
TM11
Sunny Day
5Fire
TM87
Swagger
9015Normal
TM19
Telekinesis
15Psychic
TM73
Thunder Wave
10020Electric
TM06
Toxic
9010Poison
TM92
Trick Room-7
5Psychic

Egg Moves

Cresselia doesn't have any Egg moves

Tutor Moves

Cresselia can't learn any Tutor moves

Transfer Moves

Src
Gen 4
Captivate
10020Normal
Gen 4
Endure+4
10Normal
Gen 4
Fury Cutter
209520Bug
Gen 4
Mud-Slap
2010010Ground
Gen 4
Natural Gift
10015Normal
Gen 4
Secret Power
7010020Normal
Gen 4
Swift
6020Normal

Cresselia doesn't appear in Black & White. Transfer it from Diamond, Platinum, or Legends: Arceus to add it to your collection. Check the source games below for encounter details.

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

Special encounter in:

Then trade to Black & White.

Also found in:

  • Cresselia is a Legendary Pokemon rated B-Tier on our tier list. At 580 BST, it hits hard. It excels as a wall. That 120 base HP does the heavy lifting.

  • Cresselia's biggest threats include Scyther (Bug), Gengar (Ghost), and Absol (Dark), all carrying super-effective STAB moves. Cresselia has enough bulk to absorb a hit, but don't push the matchup. Pivot to a teammate that resists.

  • Cresselia doesn't evolve. As a Legendary Pokemon, it stands on its own without an evolutionary line. It's a Psychic type with 580 BST.

  • Cresselia gets Levitate. But Levitate is the one that matters — it's the centerpiece of every viable set. Build around that. On wall sets, Levitate pairs with Cresselia's base 110 Defense to absorb physical hits on the switch.

  • Cresselia is a special attacker with base 75 Sp. Atk. Tanky enough to absorb a few hits, too. But the speed tells the real story — base 85 Speed is workable — faster than some, slower than many. Fits the wall role.

  • Cresselia appears in 13 games, including Platinum, HeartGold & SoulSilver, and Diamond & Pearl.

Since Diamond & Pearl, Cresselia has appeared in 13 games. Legendary Pokemon like Cresselia are usually found through story events or special post-game areas rather than random encounters.