Utility
Balanced
295Low
25Very Slow
DTier

Mid-stage Pokemon like Duskull rarely see competitive play outside of special formats. It's a waypoint on the road to Dusknoir, which is where the real potential kicks in. Introduced in Gen 3. Normal and Fighting moves can't touch it, and only 2 types hit it super-effectively.

Defense and Sp. Def carry most of Duskull's stat budget. HP's the obvious dump stat. Common in the wild and yields 1 Sp. Def EV. Follows a fast 800K XP curve.

Base Stats
295Below
HP20
F
Attack40
D
Defense90
B
Sp. Atk30
F
Sp. Def90
B
Speed25
F
Total295
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Duskull yields +1 SpD
HPAtkDefSpASpD+1Spe
Details
Catch190EasyFast800,000 XP0.8m / 2'07"15kg / 33.1 lbs59Base XP
Pokedex Entries

If it finds bad children who won’t listen to their parents, it will spirit them away—or so it’s said.

Sword

Making itself invisible, it silently sneaks up to prey. It has the ability to slip through thick walls.

Shield

Duskull Weakness

Excellent

Duskull's Ghost typing leaves it vulnerable to Ghost and Dark moves. It shrugs off Normal and Fighting-type attacks completely. Levitate grants an additional Ground immunity, reshaping the matchup chart.

4xCriticali
None
2xWeaki
½xResisti
¼xResisti
None
STAB (2)i
2Weak
2Resist
3Immune
Scorei+4
Abilities
LevitateEvades ground moves.
FriskHAReveals an opponent's held item upon entering battle.
Levitate grants Ground immunity

Three stages ahead. Duskull grows into Dusclops, then pushes on to Dusknoir. Check the evolution methods below. For breeding, average hatch time with a decent partner pool via one egg group. The evolved forms gain up to 230 total stats over Duskull.

How to Evolve

3 Forms
Duskull
#355Duskull
37
Level 37
Dusclops
#356Dusclops
Trade + Reaper Cloth
Dusknoir
#477Dusknoir
Stat Comparison 3 Stages
Duskull
Ghost
HP
20
40+20
45+5
ATK
40
70+30
100+30
DEF
90
130+40
135+5
SP.ATK
30
60+30
65+5
SP.DEF
90
130+40
135+5
SPE
25
25
45+20
BST
295C-Tier
455C-Tier+160
525B-Tier+70
ROLE
Balanced
Balanced
Attacker
TYPE
Utility
Physical
Physical
Breeding
Easy

Breed Duskull easily with 43 breeding partners from the Indeterminate egg group. Pass egg moves like Grudge, Haze, Memento and 1 more to offspring.

Egg Groups
Indeterminate
Gender
50.0%50.0%
Hatch Time
25 cycles·6,425 steps
Moderate~6 min with Flame Body
Egg Moves
4moves
Breed With (best first)
gardevoirgalladepolteageistalcremiegastrodonstunfisktrevenantpincurchinshellosphantumpsinisteacofagrigus

Best Build

No build content available for this Pokemon in Gen 8.

Try selecting a different game/generation filter, or check back later.

You'll want to breed for Grudge and Haze on Duskull. These egg moves aren't just nice to have. Combined with STAB from Poltergeist and Shadow Ball, they expand what Duskull can actually threaten in practice.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Astonish
3010015Ghost
Lv 1
Leer
10030Normal
Lv 4
Disable
10020Normal
Lv 8
Shadow Sneak+1
4010030Ghost
Lv 12
Confuse Ray
10010Ghost
Lv 16
Night Shade
10015Ghost
Lv 20
Payback
5010010Dark
Lv 24
Will-O-Wisp
8515Fire
Lv 28
Mean Look
5Normal
Lv 32
Hex
6510010Ghost
Lv 36
Curse
10Ghost
Lv 40
Shadow Ball
8010015Ghost
Lv 44
Future Sight
12010010Psychic

TM Moves

Src
TR83
Ally Switch+2
15Psychic
TM31
Attract
10015Normal
TR06
Blizzard
110705Ice
TR01
Body Slam
8510015Normal
TR49
Calm Mind
20Psychic
TR58
Dark Pulse
8010015Dark
TR26
Endure+4
10Normal
TM39
Facade
7010020Normal
TM59
Fling
10010Dark
TR34
Future Sight
12010010Psychic
TM41
Helping Hand+5
20Normal
TM77
Hex
6510010Ghost
TR05
Ice Beam
9010010Ice
TM27
Icy Wind
559515Ice
TM44
Imprison
10Psychic
TM57
Payback
5010010Dark
TM25
Protect+4
10Normal
TR11
Psychic
9010010Psychic
TM33
Rain Dance
5Water
TM21
Rest
10Psychic
TM42
Revenge-4
6010010Fighting
TM76
Round
6010015Normal
TR33
Shadow Ball
8010015Ghost
TR40
Skill Swap
10Psychic
TR27
Sleep Talk
10Normal
TM24
Snore
5010015Normal
TR20
Substitute
10Normal
TM34
Sunny Day
5Fire
TR37
Taunt
10020Dark
TM23
Thief
6010025Dark
TR38
Trick
10010Psychic
TM70
Trick Room-7
5Psychic
TM38
Will-O-Wisp
8515Fire
TM71
Wonder Room
10Psychic

Egg Moves

Src
Egg
Grudge
5Ghost
Egg
Haze
30Ice
Egg
Memento
10010Dark
Egg
Pain Split
20Normal

Tutor Moves

Src
Tutor
Poltergeist
110905Ghost
Tutor
Skitter Smack
709010Bug

high spawn rates in early-game routes across 39 locations. Duskull's one of the easier catches on the list. Knock it out fast and save your time for harder targets.

Best Locations

You can catch Duskull through 39 walking encounters from Lv. 11-47, but availability differs between Shield and Sword. Some spots are exclusive to one version.

Watchtower Ruins
ShieldGrassLv.11-1440%EarlyBuildingRaining
EFFORTLESS
Watchtower Ruins
ShieldGrassLv.11-1440%EarlyBuildingHeavy Fog
EFFORTLESS
Watchtower Ruins
SwordGrassLv.11-1440%EarlyBuildingRaining
EFFORTLESS
Watchtower Ruins
ShieldGrassLv.11-1440%EarlyBuildingOvercast
EFFORTLESS
Watchtower Ruins
SwordGrassLv.11-1440%EarlyBuildingHeavy Fog
EFFORTLESS
Watchtower Ruins
SwordGrassLv.11-1440%EarlyBuildingOvercast
EFFORTLESS
Watchtower Ruins
ShieldGrassLv.11-1430%EarlyBuildingIntense Sun
EFFORTLESS
Watchtower Ruins
ShieldGrassLv.11-1430%EarlyBuildingSnowing
EFFORTLESS
Watchtower Ruins
SwordGrassLv.11-1430%EarlyBuildingIntense Sun
EFFORTLESS
Watchtower Ruins
SwordGrassLv.11-1430%EarlyBuildingSnowing
EFFORTLESS
Watchtower Ruins
ShieldGrassLv.11-1420%EarlyBuildingThunderstorm
EASY
Watchtower Ruins
SwordGrassLv.11-1420%EarlyBuildingThunderstorm
EASY
Watchtower Ruins
ShieldGrassLv.11-1420%EarlyBuildingSandstorm
EASY
Watchtower Ruins
SwordGrassLv.11-1420%EarlyBuildingSandstorm
EASY
Watchtower Ruins
ShieldGrassLv.11-1420%EarlyBuildingSnowstorm
EASY
Watchtower Ruins
SwordGrassLv.11-1420%EarlyBuildingSnowstorm
EASY
Watchtower Ruins
SwordOverworldLv.26-2960%MidBuildingOvercast
EFFORTLESS
Watchtower Ruins
ShieldOverworldLv.26-2960%MidBuildingOvercast
EFFORTLESS
Watchtower Ruins
ShieldOverworldLv.26-2950%MidBuildingRaining
EFFORTLESS
Watchtower Ruins
SwordOverworldLv.26-2950%MidBuildingRaining
EFFORTLESS
Watchtower Ruins
ShieldOverworldLv.26-2935%MidBuildingThunderstorm
EFFORTLESS
Watchtower Ruins
SwordOverworldLv.26-2935%MidBuildingThunderstorm
EFFORTLESS
Watchtower Ruins
ShieldOverworldLv.26-2928%MidBuildingIntense Sun
EASY
Watchtower Ruins
SwordOverworldLv.26-2928%MidBuildingIntense Sun
EASY
Watchtower Ruins
SwordOverworldLv.26-2925%MidBuildingNormal Weather
EASY
Watchtower Ruins
ShieldOverworldLv.26-2925%MidBuildingHeavy Fog
EASY
Watchtower Ruins
SwordOverworldLv.26-2925%MidBuildingHeavy Fog
EASY
Watchtower Ruins
ShieldOverworldLv.26-2925%MidBuildingNormal Weather
EASY
Giant's Cap
ShieldGrassLv.26-2820%MidHeavy Fog
EASY
Giant's Cap
SwordGrassLv.26-2820%MidHeavy Fog
EASY
Route 6
ShieldGrassLv.28-3018%MidRouteAll Weather
EASY
Route 6
SwordGrassLv.28-3018%MidRouteAll Weather
EASY
Watchtower Ruins
ShieldOverworldLv.26-2915%MidBuildingSnowing
EASY
Watchtower Ruins
SwordOverworldLv.26-2915%MidBuildingSnowing
EASY
Motostoke Riverbank
SwordOverworldLv.26-285%MidHeavy Fog
MODERATE
Motostoke Riverbank
ShieldOverworldLv.28-305%MidHeavy Fog
MODERATE
Giant's Seat
ShieldOverworldLv.33-3860%LateWaterHeavy Fog
EFFORTLESS
Giant's Seat
SwordOverworldLv.33-3860%LateWaterHeavy Fog
EFFORTLESS
Dusty Bowl
SwordOverworldLv.42-4735%LateHeavy Fog
EFFORTLESS
  • Duskull is meant to evolve into Dusclops. At 295 BST, the stats aren't there for competitive play yet. Pre-evolution Pokemon rarely hold up against fully evolved threats.

  • Watch for Misdreavus (Ghost) and Absol (Dark) when using Duskull. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Only 2 weaknesses means fewer dedicated counters to worry about. At base 25 Speed, Duskull won't outrun any of these threats so switching to a resist is usually the safer play.

  • Duskull evolves into Dusclops at level 37. Duskull is the base form in a 3-stage evolutionary line.

  • Levitate is what you want on Duskull. Every competitive set worth running is built with that ability in mind. The alternatives (Frisk) work on paper but Levitate is what makes Duskull worth using.

  • Base 25 Speed is low. Priority moves or Trick Room are the way to go. On offense, Duskull is leaning toward the physical side (base 40 Attack). Defensively? Enough bulk to take a hit or two.

  • Duskull appears in 16 games, including Ruby & Sapphire, FireRed & LeafGreen, and Emerald.

Available in 16 titles since its debut in Ruby & Sapphire, Duskull spans 7 generations of Pokemon games. It's accessible through catching or hatching as a base form in most mainline games.