Dondozo looks average on paper at 530 BST. But Unaware is why it sees play. Build around that and it pulls its weight. B-Tier tank on our tier list.

What is Dondozo weak to?

Watch for Miraidon (Electric) and Venusaur (Grass) when using Dondozo. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Only 2 weaknesses means fewer dedicated counters to worry about. At base 35 Speed, Dondozo won't outrun any of these threats so switching to a resist is usually the safer play.

What is the best ability for Dondozo?

Dondozo gets Unaware, Oblivious, and Water Veil. But Unaware is the one that matters. It's the centerpiece of every viable set. Build around that.

What role does Dondozo play in battle?

Dondozo is a physical attacker with base 100 Attack. Tanky enough to absorb a few hits, too. Speed tells the real story. Base 35 Speed is low. Priority moves or Trick Room are the way to go. Fits the tank role.

What are the best moves for Dondozo?

Run Rest, Sleep Talk, Curse, and Bodypress on Dondozo. Rest is the most common pick at 0% usage. Curse lets it set up before sweeping.

Dondozo - Weakness, Evolution, Moveset, EVs & Stats

Physical

Tank

BTier

35Speed · Very Slow

Dondozo Best Moveset

150 HP and 115 Defense on Water with AbilityUnaware ignoring all opposing stat boosts. Held ItemLeftovers with NatureImpish creates the bulkiest physical wall available. MoveCurse boosts Attack and Defense at the cost of Speed, which is already 35. The moveset pretends opposing Swords Dances and Dragon Dances never happened. S-Tier as the premier physical Unaware wall.

★Gen IX — Scarlet & Violet / Legends Z-AS

Dondozo reached S-Tier in Gen IX, competing at the highest level. This was Dondozo's competitive peak. Its most popular set ran Unaware with Leftovers, favoring a Impish nature.

Terastallization became available

Best Moves

SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE

Lv 15

Rest

Psychic—COMMONRecovery

Lv 15

Sleep Talk

Normal—COMMONUtility

TM224

Curse

Ghost—COMMONSetup

TM89

Body Press

Fighting80COMMONCoverage

TM46

Avalanche

Ice60RARECoverage

TM77

Waterfall

Water80RARESTAB

TM110

Liquidation

Water85RARESTAB

Dondozo Scarlet & Violet Moves Dondozo Legends Z-A Moves

Best Build

Experimental

Wall

Dondozo best EVs are HP and Defense

EVs

Def

SpD

Wall Moveset

RestRecovery
Sleep Talk
CurseSetup
Body Press

Recommended Teammates

GliscorDecent

CorviknightDecent

BlisseyDecent

View full Scarlet & Violet / Legends Z-A moveset →

Dondozo Weakness

Electric and Grass moves hit Dondozo for super-effective damage. The Water typing picks up 4 resistances to work with. Dondozo's physical bulk (base 115 Def) helps cushion physical weakness hits, but special attackers are the bigger threat.

Dondozo Weakness and Resistance Chart
Damage	Types
2x (Weak)	Electric, Grass
0.5x (Resist)	Fire, Water, Ice, Steel

What is Dondozo Weak Against

Good

2Weak

4Resist

0Immune

Score0

4xCritical

None

2xWeak

Electric Grass

½xResist

Fire Water Ice Steel

¼xResist

None

0xImmune

None

What is Dondozo Strong Against

3Strong

3Resisted

0Immune

Score0

2xStrong

Fire Ground Rock

½xResisted

Water Grass Dragon

0xImmune

None

Best Pokemon Against Dondozo

Cetitan	B
Recommended Build AbilitySlushrush ItemSitrus Berry NatureJolly Moves Earthquake Ice Shard Belly Drum Ice Spinner Damage vs Dondozo Earthquake 13-15% Ice Shard 3-3% View Cetitan builds →
Iron Boulder	B
Recommended Build AbilityQuarkdrive ItemBooster Energy NatureJolly Moves Mighty Cleave Swords Dance Close Combat Zen Headbutt Damage vs Dondozo Close Combat 16-19% View Iron Boulder builds →
Eiscue	C
Recommended Build AbilityIceface ItemSitrus Berry NatureJolly Moves Belly Drum Liquidation Ice Spinner Icicle Spear Damage vs Dondozo Liquidation 4-5% Icicle Spear 1-2% View Eiscue builds →
Beartic	C
Recommended Build AbilitySlushrush ItemLoaded Dice NatureAdamant Moves Earthquake Icicle Crash Close Combat Swords Dance Damage vs Dondozo Earthquake 16-18% Close Combat 19-22% View Beartic builds →
Sandslash-Alola
Recommended Build AbilitySlushrush ItemHeavy-Duty Boots NatureJolly Moves Rapid Spin Iron Head Earthquake Knock Off View Sandslash-Alola builds →

Evolution

Dondozo is what you get. No evolutions, but it breeds through one egg group with a decent partner pool. Hatching is takes forever to hatch. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.

How to Evolve

No Evolution

#977DondozoDoes not evolve

Breeding

Moderate

Breed Dondozo with 34 breeding partners from the Water2 egg group.

Egg Groups

Water 2

Gender

♂50.0%♀50.0%

Hatch Time

40 cycles·10,280 steps

Slow~10 min with Flame Body

Breed With (best first)

Dondozo Locations

low spawn rates across 2 encounter spots for Dondozo. That's the kind of hunt where you pick one location and settle in. Sort by Best below to see where the odds are highest.

Best Locations to Catch Dondozo in Scarlet & Violet

Casseroya Lake - Lake

Lv.49-65Overworld

Rate 1%

Base Stats

The stat line revolves around HP. Percentage recovery gets extra mileage here. Defense backs it up, though Speed doesn't pull its weight. Worth 3 HP EVs on a slow 1.25M XP grind to max out.

Base Stats

High

HP150

Attack100

Defense115

Sp. Atk65

Sp. Def65

Speed35

Total530

Details

Catch Rate

Difficult25 / 255

Growth Rate

Slow1.25M XP

Height12.0 m

Weight220.0 kg

Base XP265

Abilities

Unaware

Ignores other Pokémon's stat modifiers for damage and accuracy calculation.

Oblivious

Prevents infatuation and protects against captivate.

Water VeilHidden Ability

Prevents burns.

EV Yield

HP+3AtkDefSpASpDSpe

Strong HP training target

Pokedex Entry

This Pokémon is a glutton, but it’s bad at getting food. It teams up with a Tatsugiri to catch prey.

Pokemon Legends: Z-A

Dondozo Guide

Dondozo looks average on paper at 530 BST. But Unaware is why it sees play. Build around that and it pulls its weight. B-Tier tank on our tier list.
Watch for Miraidon (Electric) and Venusaur (Grass) when using Dondozo. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Only 2 weaknesses means fewer dedicated counters to worry about. At base 35 Speed, Dondozo won't outrun any of these threats so switching to a resist is usually the safer play.
Dondozo gets Unaware, Oblivious, and Water Veil. But Unaware is the one that matters. It's the centerpiece of every viable set. Build around that.
Dondozo is a physical attacker with base 100 Attack. Tanky enough to absorb a few hits, too. Speed tells the real story. Base 35 Speed is low. Priority moves or Trick Room are the way to go. Fits the tank role.
Run Rest, Sleep Talk, Curse, and Bodypress on Dondozo. Rest is the most common pick at 0% usage. Curse lets it set up before sweeping.

Game Availability

Since Scarlet & Violet, Dondozo has been obtainable in 2 games. A Generation 9 debut means a shorter history, but Dondozo has appeared steadily across every generation since.

Click a game to view version-specific details