Special
Setup Sweeper
525High
110Fast
BTier

Espeon is a Psychic-type from Gen 2. Only weak to Bug, Ghost, and Dark. 130 base Sp. Atk is its best stat. It clears the crowded base-100 Speed benchmark. Known as the Sun Pokemon.

The stat budget goes to damage. Sp. Atk and Speed carry the offense, Defense doesn't even come close. A Sun Pokemon on a medium-fast 1M XP curve, worth 2 Sp. Atk stat exp per KO.

Base Stats
525High
HP65
C
Attack65
C
Defense60
C
Sp. Atk130
A
Sp. Def95
B
Speed110
B
Total525
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Espeon yields +2 SpA
HPAtkDefSpA+2SpDSpe
Details
Catch45Challenging•Medium Fast1M XP•0.9m / 2'11"•26.5kg / 58.4 lbs•184Base XP
Pokedex Entries

The tip of its forked tail quivers when it is predicting its opponent’s next move.

Crystal

Espeon Weakness

Vulnerable

Espeon is weak to Bug, Ghost, and Dark-type moves. Espeon's special bulk (base 95 Sp.Def) helps absorb special-type weaknesses, though physical moves exploit the lower Defense.

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
2xWeaki
BugGhostDark
½xResisti
FightingPsychic
¼xResisti
None
0xImmunei
None
STAB (2)i
FightingPoison
3Weak
2Resist
0Immune
Scorei-4
SpikesGrounded — up to 25%
Toxic SpikesVulnerable
Abilities
SynchronizeCopies burns, paralysis, and poison received onto the Pokémon that inflicted them.
Magic BounceHAReflects most non-damaging moves back at their user.

Eevee's line splits into 8 evolutions, and Espeon is the level-up path. Each sibling form needs a different method to obtain. Breed through Eevee to get eggs. Espeon and Vaporeon share the same 525 total stats, but they're distributed differently. Check the comparison below to see where each one specializes.

How to Evolve

5 Evolutions
Eevee
#133Eevee
Vaporeon
VaporeonWater Stone
Jolteon
JolteonThunder Stone
Flareon
FlareonFire Stone
Espeon
EspeonHigh Friendship (Day)
Umbreon
UmbreonHigh Friendship (Night)
Stat Comparison 6 Forms
Eevee
Normal
Vaporeon
Water
Jolteon
Electric
Flareon
Fire
Espeon
Psychic
Umbreon
Dark
HP
55
130+75
65+10
65+10
65+10
95+40
ATK
55
65+10
65+10
130+75
65+10
65+10
DEF
50
60+10
60+10
60+10
60+10
110+60
SP.ATK
45
110+65
110+65
95+50
130+85
60+15
SP.DEF
65
95+30
95+30
110+45
95+30
130+65
SPE
55
65+10
130+75
65+10
110+55
65+10
BST
325D-Tier
525B-Tier+200
525A-Tier+200
525C-Tier+200
525A-Tier+200
525B-Tier+200
ROLE
Balanced
Tank
Sweeper
Wallbreaker
Sweeper
Wall
TYPE
Utility
Special
Special
Physical
Special
Utility
Breeding
Challenging

Breed with Espeon to get Eevee eggs (with patience) using 66 partners from the Ground egg group. Notable egg moves include Charm, Flail.

Egg Groups
Ground
Gender
♂87.5%♀12.5%
Hatch Time
35 cycles·8,995 steps
Slow~9 min with Flame Body
Egg Moves
2moves
Breed With (best first)
raichupikachunidokinggolduckampharosrhydondewgongarbokquagsirenidorinofarfetchdflaaffy
12 of 66·

Best Build

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

Best Espeon Moveset

  • PsychicSTAB
  • GrowthSetup
  • Morning Sun
  • Baton Pass

Recommended Teammates

Snorlax
SnorlaxGood
Cloyster
CloysterDecent
Exeggutor
ExeggutorDecent

TMs carry this one. Espeon learns Dream Eater and Psychic naturally for STAB, but the offensive range comes almost entirely from technical machines. Normal and Steel and beyond give it real matchup play.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Tackle
3510035Normal
Lv 1
Tail Whip
—10030Normal
Lv 8
Sand Attack
—10015Ground
Lv 16
Confusion
5010025Psychic
Lv 23
Quick Attack+1
4010030Normal
Lv 30
Swift
60—20Normal
Lv 36
Psybeam
6510020Psychic
Lv 42
Psych Up
——10Normal
Lv 47
Psychic
9010010Psychic
Lv 52
Morning Sun
——5Normal

TM Moves

Src
TM45
Attract
—10015Normal
TM03
Curse
——10Ghost
HM01
Cut
509530Normal
TM43
Detect+4
——5Fighting
TM32
Double Team
——15Normal
TM42
Dream Eater
10010015Psychic
TM20
Endure+4
——10Normal
HM05
Flash
—7020Normal
TM21
Frustration
—10020Normal
TM02
Headbutt
7010015Normal
TM10
Hidden Power
6010015Normal
TM15
Hyper Beam
150905Normal
TM23
Iron Tail
1007515Steel
TM31
Mud-Slap
2010010Ground
TM50
Nightmare
—10015Ghost
TM17
Protect+4
——10Normal
TM09
Psych Up
——10Normal
TM29
Psychic
9010010Psychic
TM18
Rain Dance
——5Water
TM44
Rest
——10Psychic
TM27
Return
—10020Normal
TM30
Shadow Ball
8010015Ghost
TM35
Sleep Talk
——10Normal
TM13
Snore
4010015Normal
TM11
Sunny Day
——5Fire
TM34
Swagger
—8515Normal
TM39
Swift
60—20Normal
TM06
Toxic
—8510Poison
TM07
Zap Cannon
100505Electric

Egg Moves

Src
Egg
Charm
—10020Normal
Egg
Flail
—10015Normal

Tutor Moves

Espeon can't learn any Tutor moves

Reminder Moves

Src
Rem
Baton Pass
——40Normal
Rem
Bite
6010025Dark
Rem
Growl
—10040Normal
Rem
Take Down
908520Normal

Espeon doesn't appear wild. Catch Eevee instead, it shows up but it's a rare spawn. Evolve it with high friendship to get Espeon. The 2-stage line is mapped in the step cards below.

How to Obtain Espeon in Crystal

  1. Eevee
    Step 1Catch Eevee
    Goldenrod City
    Gift from NPCLv.20LimitedMidCityGift from Bill
    MODERATE
  2. Espeon
    Step 2Espeon ✓

  • We rate Espeon B-Tier — a solid choice for the right team. At 525 BST, it fits the setup sweeper role. Base 130 Sp. Atk stands out.

  • Espeon's biggest threats include Scyther (Bug), Misdreavus (Ghost), and Tyranitar (Dark), all carrying super-effective STAB moves.

  • Eevee evolves into Espeon by leveling up. Espeon is the final evolution in a 9-stage line starting from Eevee. At 525 BST, it's got solid stats to work with.

  • Base 110 Speed lets it outrun most of the field. On offense, Espeon is a special attacker with base 130 Sp. Atk. Defensively? Enough bulk to take a hit or two. Best used as a setup sweeper.

  • Espeon appears in 19 games, including Gold & Silver, Crystal, and Ruby & Sapphire.

Available in 19 titles since its debut in Gold & Silver, Espeon spans 8 generations of Pokemon games. It's accessible through wild encounters in most mainline games.