Mixed
Balanced
320Low
35Very Slow
DTier

Cubone sits at the start of its evolution line — not yet at full power, but that changes fast. Most trainers push through to Marowak as fast as possible. Known as the Lonely Pokemon. Flexible enough to run physical or special sets.

Nothing fancy in Cubone's spread. It leans mixed with Defense out front. And you'll get 1 Defense EV per KO for it. Follows a medium-fast 1M XP curve.

Base Stats
320Avg
HP50
D
Attack50
D
Defense95
B
Sp. Atk40
D
Sp. Def50
D
Speed35
F
Total320
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Cubone yields +1 Def
HPAtkDef+1SpASpDSpe
Details
Catch190EasyMedium Fast1M XP0.4m / 1'04"6.5kg / 14.3 lbs64Base XP
Pokedex Entries

It lost its mother after its birth. It wears its mother’s skull, never revealing its true face.

Crystal

Cubone Weakness

Avg

Cubone is weak to Water, Grass, and Ice-type moves. On the flip side, it's immune to Electric-type moves entirely. Cubone's physical bulk (base 95 Def) helps cushion physical weakness hits, but special attackers are the bigger threat.

Gen II Type Chart
  • Dark and Steel types added — Fairy does not exist yet
  • Moves are Physical or Special based on type, not per move
  • Special stat split into Sp.Atk and Sp.Def
4xCriticali
None
½xResisti
¼xResisti
None
0xImmunei
3Weak
2Resist
1Immune
Scorei-1
SpikesGrounded — up to 25%
Toxic SpikesVulnerable
Abilities
Rock HeadProtects against recoil damage.
Lightning RodRedirects single-target electric moves to this Pokémon where possible. Absorbs Electric moves, raising Special Attack one stage.
Battle ArmorHAProtects against critical hits.
Lightning Rod grants Electric immunity

Cubone is the base form in a two-stage line leading to Marowak. Check the evolution method below. A decent partner pool for breeding via one egg group. Eggs are average hatch time. Evolving adds up to 105 stat points total.

How to Evolve

2 Forms
Stat Comparison 2 Stages
Cubone
Ground
Marowak
Ground
HP
50
60+10
ATK
50
80+30
DEF
95
110+15
SP.ATK
40
50+10
SP.DEF
50
80+30
SPE
35
45+10
BST
320D-Tier
425C-Tier+105
ROLE
Balanced
Balanced
TYPE
Utility
Physical
Breeding
Very Easy

Breed Cubone easily with 36 breeding partners from the Monster egg group. Pass egg moves like Ancient Power, Belly Drum, Perish Song and 4 more to offspring.

Egg Groups
Monster
Gender
50.0%50.0%
Hatch Time
20 cycles·5,140 steps
Quick~5 min with Flame Body
Egg Moves
7moves
Breed With (best first)
venusaurcharizardblastoisenidokingmeganiumferaligatrampharosslowbrorhydonslowkingivysaurcharmeleon

Cubone runs a standard attacker set. A nature nature with flexible EVs EVs shapes the build, while Thickclub brings extra utility. An ability supports the kit from the background.

Best Build

Utility
Ability
Not in Gen 2
Item
Thickclub
Nature
Not in Gen 2

Best Cubone Moveset

  • BlizzardCoverage
  • EarthquakeSTAB
  • Body Slam
  • Fire Blast

Breeding opens up real options for Cubone. Ancient Power and Belly Drum come exclusively from egg moves, and they're worth the effort. The rest of the kit covers basics through Earthquake and Dig and coverage across 8 types.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Growl
10040Normal
Lv 5
Tail Whip
10030Normal
Lv 9
Bone Club
658520Ground
Lv 13
Headbutt
7010015Normal
Lv 17
Leer
10030Normal
Lv 21
Focus Energy
30Normal
Lv 25
Bonemerang
509010Ground
Lv 29
Rage
2010020Normal
Lv 33
False Swipe
4010040Normal
Lv 37
Thrash
12010020Normal
Lv 41
Bone Rush
259010Ground

TM Moves

Src
TM45
Attract
10015Normal
TM14
Blizzard
120705Ice
TM03
Curse
10Ghost
TM43
Detect+4
5Fighting
TM28
Dig
6010010Ground
TM32
Double Team
15Normal
TM01
Dynamic Punch
100505Fighting
TM26
Earthquake
10010010Ground
TM20
Endure+4
10Normal
TM38
Fire Blast
120855Fire
TM48
Fire Punch
7510015Fire
TM21
Frustration
10020Normal
TM02
Headbutt
7010015Normal
TM10
Hidden Power
6010015Normal
TM16
Icy Wind
559515Ice
TM23
Iron Tail
1007515Steel
TM31
Mud-Slap
2010010Ground
TM17
Protect+4
10Normal
TM44
Rest
10Psychic
TM27
Return
10020Normal
TM08
Rock Smash
2010015Fighting
TM37
Sandstorm
10Rock
TM35
Sleep Talk
10Normal
TM13
Snore
4010015Normal
HM04
Strength
8010015Normal
TM11
Sunny Day
5Fire
TM34
Swagger
8515Normal
TM46
Thief
6010025Dark
TM41
Thunder Punch
7510015Electric
TM06
Toxic
8510Poison

Egg Moves

Src
Egg
Ancient Power
601005Rock
Egg
Belly Drum
10Normal
Egg
Perish Song
5Normal
Egg
Rock Slide
759010Rock
Egg
Screech
8540Normal
Egg
Skull Bash
10010010Normal
Egg
Swords Dance
30Normal

Tutor Moves

Src
Tutor
Flamethrower
9510015Fire
Tutor
Ice Beam
9510010Ice

Cubone is available from early-game routes onward at high spawn rates. 3 encounter spots give you plenty of options. Grab one early and it'll be ready to evolve or train by mid-game.

Best Locations

3 walking and gift spots from Lv. 10-15 for Cubone. Sorted by game progression with rates on each row, so you can compare without scrolling through everything.

Rock Tunnel - 1F
GrassLv.10CommonEarlyCaveMorning/day
EFFORTLESS
Rock Tunnel - B1F
GrassLv.12CommonEarlyCaveMorning/day
EFFORTLESS
Goldenrod City - Game Corner
Gift from NPCLv.15LimitedEarlyCityPurchase: 800 coins
MODERATE
  • At 320 BST, Cubone is firmly in pre-evolution territory. Evolve it into Marowak before bringing it to any serious fight.

  • Cubone's biggest threats include Gyarados (Water), Exeggutor (Grass), and Lapras (Ice), all carrying super-effective STAB moves. At base 35 Speed, Cubone won't outrun any of these threats so switching to a resist is usually the safer play.

  • Cubone can evolve into Marowak and Alolan Marowak depending on the method. Cubone is the base form in a 3-stage evolutionary line.

  • Cubone is a mixed attacker — base 50 Attack and 40 Sp. Atk. But the speed tells the real story — base 35 Speed is low. Priority moves or Trick Room are the way to go.

  • Cubone appears in 20 games, including Yellow, Red & Blue, and Gold & Silver.

Present since Red & Blue, Cubone appears in 20 games spanning 9 generations. Gen 1 originals like Cubone have the longest track record of availability in the series.