Physical
Sweeper
STier
110Speed · Fast

Stats & Training

The stat budget goes to damage. Sp. Atk and Speed carry the offense, HP doesn't even come close. A Shadow Pokemon on a 1.06M XP medium-slow curve, worth 3 Sp. Atk stat exp per KO.

Base Stats
High
HP60
C
Attack65
C
Defense60
C
Sp. Atk130
A
Sp. Def75
C
Speed110
B
Total500
Details
Catch Rate
Challenging45 / 255
Growth Rate
Medium Slow1.06M XP
Height1.5 m
4'11"Average
Weight40.5 kg
89.3 lbsLight
Base XP250
High Yield
Abilities
Abilities were introduced in Generation III. Shown below for reference.
Cursed Body
Has a 30% chance of Disabling any move that hits the Pokémon.
EV Yield
HPAtkDefSpA+3SpDSpe
Strong Special Attack training target
Pokedex Entries

It steals heat from its surroundings. If you feel a sudden chill, it is certain that a GENGAR appeared.

Gengar Weakness

Type-wise, Gengar takes extra damage from Ground, Psychic, Ghost, and Dark. Normal and Fighting moves do nothing thanks to a full immunity. At base 110 Speed, Gengar outspeeds most threats and doesn't need to tank what it can outrun.

Gengar Weakness and Resistance Chart
DamageTypes
2x (Weak)Ground, Psychic, Ghost, Dark
0.5x (Resist)Grass
0.25x (Resist)Poison, Bug
0x (Immune)Normal, Fighting
Type ChartGood
4Weak
3Resist
2Immune
Score+3
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
4xCritical
None
2xWeak
GroundPsychicGhostDark
½xResist
Grass
¼xResist
PoisonBug
0xImmune
NormalFighting
STAB (3)
PsychicGhostGrass
How to Beat Gengar in Gold & Silver (Best Counters)

In Gold & Silver, Skarmory's Drill Peck hits Gengar for 42-49%. Dragonite deals 39-46% with Thunder.

Forretress
ForretressImmune to Poison, resists Ghost, wears down with Toxic
BugSteel
A
Recommended Build
ItemLeftovers
Moves
  • SpikesHazard
  • Explosion
  • Rapid Spin
  • ToxicUtility
View Forretress builds →

Gold & Silver Evolution

Getting Gengar requires a trade, not just grinding levels. The chain starts at Gastly. Breed this form to get Gastly eggs (average hatch time). Sp.Def grew the most through evolution (+40 over Gastly), and Gengar peaks at 500 total stats. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.

How to Evolve

3 Forms
Gastly
#092Gastly
25
Level 25
Haunter
#093Haunter
Trade
Gengar
#094Gengar
Stat Comparison 3 Stages
Gastly
GhostPoison
Haunter
GhostPoison
Gengar
GhostPoison
HP
30
45+15
60+15
ATK
35
50+15
65+15
DEF
30
45+15
60+15
SP.ATK
100
115+15
130+15
SP.DEF
35
55+20
75+20
SPE
80
95+15
110+15
BST
310C-Tier
405C-Tier+95
500A-Tier+95
ROLE
Attacker
Cannon
Sweeper
TYPE
Special
Special
Special

Breeding

Very Easy

Breed with Gengar to get Gastly eggs easily using 11 partners from the Indeterminate egg group. Notable egg moves include Haze, Perish Song, Psywave.

Egg Groups
Indeterminate
Gender
♂50.0%♀50.0%
Hatch Time
20 cycles·5,140 steps
Quick~5 min with Flame Body
Egg Moves
3moves
Breed With (best first)
mukweezingmagcargohaunterwobbuffetkoffinggrimergastlyslugmamisdreavus
10 of 11·

Gold & Silver Gengar Best Moveset

Best Build

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

Utility Moveset

  • Ice Punch
  • ExplosionCoverage
  • ThunderboltCoverage
  • Destiny BondSTAB

Recommended Teammates

Snorlax
SnorlaxGood
Cloyster
CloysterGood
Zapdos
ZapdosGood

Moves

Breeding's the move. Haze and Perish Song give Gengar options it can't learn any other way, and coverage across 8 types already covers a decent range on top of Shadow Ball and Lick. The egg moves push it further.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Hypnosis
C—6020Psychic
Lv 1
Lick
—2010030Ghost
Lv 1
Spite
——10010Ghost
Lv 8
Spite
——10010Ghost
Lv 13
Mean Look
D——5Normal
Lv 16
Curse
C——10Ghost
Lv 21
Night Shade
——10015Ghost
Lv 31
Confuse Ray
C—10010Ghost
Lv 39
Dream Eater
—10010015Psychic
Lv 48
Destiny Bond
B——5Ghost

TM Moves

TM
TM45
Attract
D—10015Normal
TM03
Curse
C——10Ghost
TM32
Double Team
———15Normal
TM42
Dream Eater
—10010015Psychic
TM01
Dynamic Punch
B100505Fighting
TM20
Endure+4
D——10Normal
TM48
Fire Punch
D7510015Fire
TM21
Frustration
D—10020Normal
TM19
Giga Drain
C751005Grass
TM02
Headbutt
D7010015Normal
TM10
Hidden Power
—6010015Normal
TM15
Hyper Beam
B150905Normal
TM33
Ice Punch
S7510015Ice
TM50
Nightmare
——10015Ghost
TM17
Protect+4
C——10Normal
TM09
Psych Up
D——10Normal
TM29
Psychic
C9010010Psychic
TM18
Rain Dance
C——5Water
TM44
Rest
C——10Psychic
TM27
Return
D—10020Normal
TM08
Rock Smash
—2010015Fighting
TM30
Shadow Ball
B8010015Ghost
TM35
Sleep Talk
C——10Normal
TM13
Snore
—4010015Normal
HM04
Strength
D8010015Normal
TM11
Sunny Day
C——5Fire
TM34
Swagger
C—8515Normal
TM46
Thief
D6010025Dark
TM25
Thunder
C1207010Electric
TM41
Thunder Punch
D7510015Electric
TM06
Toxic
C—8510Poison
TM07
Zap Cannon
C100505Electric

Egg Moves

Egg
Egg
Haze
C——30Ice
Egg
Perish Song
D——5Normal
Egg
Psywave
——8015Psychic

Tutor Moves

Gengar can't learn any Tutor moves

How to Get Gengar in Gold & Silver

The chain to Gengar requires a trade evolution through a trade. Catch Gastly at solid rates and level through the stages, but line up the trade first. The rest of the chain runs on levels alone.

Trade Evolution Required — Requires trading with another player

How to Obtain Gengar in Gold & Silver

To get Gengar, start by catching Gastly through walking encounters at Lv. 3-22. The chain covers 2 catchable stages before reaching the final form.

  1. Gastly
    Step 1Catch Gastly
    Sprout Tower
    GoldGrass Lv.3-6 Building
    85%Early
    Night
    Sprout Tower
    SilverGrass Lv.3-6 Building
    85%Early
    Night
    Tin Tower - 2F-9F
    GoldGrass Lv.20-22 Building
    80%Mid
    Night
    Tin Tower - 2F-9F
    SilverGrass Lv.20-22 Building
    80%Mid
    Night
  2. Haunter
    Step 2Catch or Evolve Haunter
    Route 8
    SilverGrass Lv.20 Route
    30%Mid
    Night
    Route 8
    GoldGrass Lv.20 Route
    30%Mid
    Night
    or evolve from Gastly (Step 1)
  3. Gengar
    Step 3Gengar ✓

Gengar Guide

  • For Gold & Silver, we rate Gengar S-Tier: one of the best picks in the Gold & Silver meta. At 500 BST, it fits the sweeper role. Icepunch with Leftovers is the standard set.

  • Mega Evolution isn't available in Gold & Silver, but Gengar does have a Mega form in Gen 6-7 games (X/Y, ORAS, Sun/Moon). Mega Gengar hits 600 BST.

  • In Gold & Silver, Gengar's biggest threats include Golem (Ground), Starmie (Psychic), and Misdreavus (Ghost), all carrying super-effective STAB moves. Dark-type attackers are also a problem. Gengar's base 110 Speed lets it outpace many threats and strike first, which matters more than trying to tank hits.

  • Base 110 Speed lets it outrun most of the field. On offense, Gengar is a physical attacker with base 65 Attack. Best used as a sweeper.

  • In Gold & Silver, the best way to handle Gengar: Priority moves (Mach Punch, Aqua Jet, Ice Shard) bypass its speed. Bulky walls that resist its STAB also shut it down.

Game Availability

Since debuting in Red & Blue, Gengar has appeared in 22 titles over 10 generations. Along the way, it received a Mega form in Generation 7 and a Gigantamax form in Generation 8, keeping it relevant across different competitive metas.

Click a game to view version-specific details

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