Physical
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

When it thinks of its dead mother, it cries. Its crying makes the skull it wears rattle hollowly.

Brilliant Diamond / Shining Pearl

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. Lightning Rod grants an additional Electric immunity, reshaping the matchup chart. Cubone's physical bulk (base 95 Def) helps cushion physical weakness hits, but special attackers are the bigger threat.

4xCriticali
None
½xResisti
¼xResisti
None
3Weak
2Resist
2Immune
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. No compatible partners 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 from the Monster egg group.

Egg Groups
Monster
Gender
50.0%50.0%
Hatch Time
20 cycles·5,140 steps
Quick~5 min with Flame Body

Cubone runs a standard physical attacker set. Brave nature with max HP and Attack EVs shapes the build, while Thickclub brings extra utility. Battlearmor supports the kit from the background.

Best Build

Physical Tank
Ability
Battlearmor
Item
Thickclub
Nature
Brave+ATK
EVs

Best Cubone Moveset

  • ProtectFAST +4
  • EarthquakeSTAB
  • Thunder Punch
  • Belly Drum

Recommended Teammates

Most of Cubone's flexibility comes from TMs. Same-type output runs through Earthquake and Earth Power, but Normal and Dark and the rest of the TM pool push it from predictable to genuinely threatening.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Growl
10040Normal
Lv 1
Tackle
4010035Normal
Lv 4
Tail Whip
10030Normal
Lv 7
Leer
10030Normal
Lv 8
False Swipe
4010040Normal
Lv 12
Headbutt
7010015Normal
Lv 18
Detect+4
5Fighting
Lv 24
Bulldoze
6010020Ground
Lv 29
Brutal Swing
6010020Dark
Lv 32
Focus Energy
30Normal
Lv 40
Bonemerang
509010Ground
Lv 44
Swords Dance
20Normal
Lv 48
Double-Edge
12010015Normal
Lv 55
Perish Song
5Normal

TM Moves

Src
TM120
Ancient Power
601005Rock
TM105
Blizzard
110705Ice
TM33
Body Slam
8510015Normal
TM10
Brick Break
7510015Fighting
TM78
Bulldoze
6010020Ground
TM91
Curse
10Ghost
TM28
Dig
8010010Ground
TM56
Double-Edge
12010015Normal
TM52
Earth Power
9010010Ground
TM69
Earthquake
10010010Ground
TM35
Endure+4
10Normal
TM109
Facade
7010020Normal
TM122
False Swipe
4010040Normal
TM38
Fire Blast
110855Fire
TM29
Fire Punch
7510015Fire
TM62
Flamethrower
9010015Fire
TM01
Headbutt
7010015Normal
TM13
Ice Beam
9010010Ice
TM49
Icy Wind
559515Ice
TM80
Iron Defense
15Steel
TM58
Iron Head
8010015Steel
TM87
Iron Tail
1007515Steel
TM17
Protect+4
10Normal
TM12
Rock Slide
759010Rock
TM36
Rock Tomb
609515Rock
TM136
Scorching Sands
7010010Ground
TM146
Skull Bash
13010010Normal
TM37
Stealth Rock
20Rock
TM85
Substitute
10Normal
TM27
Swift
6020Normal
TM30
Swords Dance
20Normal
TM23
Thunder Punch
7510015Electric

Egg Moves

Cubone doesn't have any Egg moves

Tutor Moves

Cubone can't learn any Tutor moves

No wild encounters for Cubone in Legends: Z-A. It's available in Red, Yellow, or Let's Go Pikachu and can be transferred over. The details below show where to find it.

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

Also found in:

  • 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 gets Lightning Rod, Rock Head, and Battle Armor. But Lightning Rod is the one that matters — it's the centerpiece of every viable set. Build around that.

  • Cubone is a physical attacker with base 50 Attack. 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.