Physical
Wallbreaker
495Average
45Very Slow
BTier

Electric moves don't affect Golem at all — that's the advantage of Rock/Ground typing. It works well under Trick Room. An original Gen 1 pick. Known as the Megaton Pokemon.

Defense leads and Speed gets almost nothing. That's Golem's stat line in a nutshell. 3 stats sit in respectable range, but the spread is brutal. Tough to catch and yields 3 Defense EVs.

Base Stats
495Above
HP80
C
Attack120
A
Defense130
A
Sp. Atk55
D
Sp. Def65
C
Speed45
D
Total495
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Golem yields +3 Def
HPAtkDef+3SpASpDSpe
Details
Catch45Challenging•Medium Slow1.06M XP•1.4m / 4'07"•300kg / 661.4 lbs•223Base XP
Pokedex Entries

Once it sheds its skin, its body turns tender and whitish. Its hide hardens when it’s exposed to air.

Yellow

Golem Weakness

Fragile

Golem is weak to Water, Grass, Ice, Fighting, and Ground-type moves. Watch out for Water and Grass attacks, those deal 4x damage. On the flip side, it's immune to Electric-type moves entirely. 5 resistances help offset the weaknesses. Golem's physical bulk (base 130 Def) helps cushion physical weakness hits, but special attackers are the bigger threat.

Gen I Type Chart
  • Only 15 types exist — Dark, Steel, and Fairy are absent
  • Ghost has no effect on Psychic (a known bug, fixed in Gen II)
  • Special stat governs both offense and defense — no Sp.Atk / Sp.Def split
4xCriticali
WaterGrass
2xWeaki
IceFightingGround
½xResisti
NormalFireFlyingRock
¼xResisti
Poison
0xImmunei
Electric
STAB (7)i
FireIceFlyingBugElectricPoisonRock
5Weak
5Resist
1Immune
Scorei-5
SpikesGrounded — up to 25%
Toxic SpikesVulnerable
4x Water — Surf, Hydro Pump, Scald
4x Grass — Energy Ball, Giga Drain, Leaf Storm
Abilities
Rock HeadProtects against recoil damage.
SturdyPrevents being KOed from full HP, leaving 1 HP instead. Protects against the one-hit KO moves regardless of HP.
Sand VeilHAIncreases evasion to 1.25× during a sandstorm. Protects against sandstorm damage.

Golem is the evolved form of Geodude, reached by trading. A Rock/Ground type at 495 stats that still can't breed. HP grew the most through evolution (+40 over Geodude), and Golem peaks at 495 total stats.

How to Evolve

3 Forms
Geodude
#074Geodude
25
Level 25
Graveler
#075Graveler
Trade
Golem
#076Golem
Stat Comparison 3 Stages
Geodude
RockGround
Graveler
RockGround
Golem
RockGround
HP
40
55+15
80+25
ATK
80
95+15
120+25
DEF
100
115+15
130+15
SP.ATK
30
45+15
55+10
SP.DEF
30
45+15
65+20
SPE
20
35+15
45+10
BST
300C-Tier
390C-Tier+90
495C-Tier+105
ROLE
Trick Room
Trick Room
Wallbreaker
TYPE
Physical
Physical
Physical
Breeding not available · Introduced in Gen 2

For an attacker, Golem wants flexible EVs EVs and an item. The a nature nature tilts toward balanced duty, and an ability contributes without taking a move slot.

Best Build

Utility
Ability
Not in Gen 1
Item
Not in Gen 1
Nature
Not in Gen 1

Best Golem Moveset

  • EarthquakeSTAB
  • ExplosionCoverage
  • Rock SlideSTAB
  • Body Slam

Recommended Teammates

Snorlax
SnorlaxGood
Tauros
TaurosGood
Chansey
ChanseyDecent

TMs carry this one. Golem learns Earthquake and Dig naturally for STAB, but the offensive range comes almost entirely from technical machines. Normal and Fighting and beyond give it real matchup play.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Defense Curl
——40Normal
Lv 1
Tackle
3510035Normal
Lv 11
Defense Curl
——40Normal
Lv 16
Rock Throw
506515Rock
Lv 21
Self-Destruct
2001005Normal
Lv 29
Harden
——30Normal
Lv 36
Earthquake
10010010Ground
Lv 43
Explosion
2501005Normal

TM Moves

Src
TM34
Bide+1
——10Normal
TM08
Body Slam
8510015Normal
TM18
Counter-5
—10020Fighting
TM28
Dig
10010010Ground
TM32
Double Team
——15Normal
TM10
Double-Edge
12010015Normal
TM26
Earthquake
10010010Ground
TM47
Explosion
2501005Normal
TM38
Fire Blast
120855Fire
TM27
Fissure
—305Ground
TM15
Hyper Beam
150905Normal
TM05
Mega Kick
120755Normal
TM01
Mega Punch
808520Normal
TM35
Metronome
——10Normal
TM31
Mimic
——10Normal
TM20
Rage
2010020Normal
TM44
Rest
——10Psychic
TM48
Rock Slide
759010Rock
TM19
Seismic Toss
—10020Fighting
TM36
Self-Destruct
2001005Normal
HM04
Strength
8010015Normal
TM17
Submission
808025Fighting
TM50
Substitute
——10Normal
TM09
Take Down
908520Normal
TM06
Toxic
—9010Poison

Egg Moves

Golem doesn't have any Egg moves

Tutor Moves

Golem can't learn any Tutor moves

A trade step sits in Golem's 3-stage chain from Geodude. The step cards below map each stage with catch locations and evolution methods. Geodude shows up at solid rates, so the starting catch is the easy part.

Trade Evolution Required — Requires trading with another player

How to Obtain Golem in Yellow

The path to Golem starts with Geodude at Lv. 10-55 via walking encounters. 2 catchable stages total, with locations listed for each one below.

  1. Geodude
    Step 1Catch Geodude
    Mt. Moon - 1F
    GrassLv.10CommonEarlyCave
    EFFORTLESS
    Mt. Moon - B1F
    GrassLv.10-11CommonEarlyCave
    EFFORTLESS
    Mt. Moon - B2F
    GrassLv.11UncommonEarlyCave
    EASY
    Rock Tunnel - 1F
    GrassLv.16-20CommonMidCave
    EFFORTLESS
    Rock Tunnel - B1F
    GrassLv.17-21CommonMidCave
    EFFORTLESS
    Victory Road - 1F
    GrassLv.26-41CommonMidCave
    EFFORTLESS
    Victory Road - 2F
    GrassLv.31-41CommonLateCave
    EFFORTLESS
    Victory Road - 3F
    GrassLv.36-46CommonLateCave
    EFFORTLESS
  2. Graveler
    Step 2Catch or Evolve Graveler
    Victory Road - 3F
    GrassLv.41-47UncommonLateCave
    EASY
    Victory Road - 2F
    GrassLv.44UncommonLateCave
    EASY
    Cerulean Cave - 1F
    GrassLv.45UncommonLateCave
    EASY
    Victory Road - 1F
    GrassLv.41-47RareLateCave
    CHALLENGING
    Cerulean Cave - 2F
    GrassLv.50UncommonPostCave
    EASY
    Cerulean Cave - B1F
    GrassLv.55UncommonPostCave
    EASY
    or evolve from Geodude (Step 1)
  3. Golem
    Step 3Golem ✓

  • We rate Golem B-Tier — a solid choice for the right team. At 495 BST, it fits the wallbreaker role. Base 130 Defense stands out.

  • Golem's biggest threats include Gyarados (Water), Venusaur (Grass), and Lapras (Ice), all carrying super-effective STAB moves. Gyarados is the most dangerous since Water moves deal 4x damage. Fighting and Ground-type attackers are also a problem. With 5 weakness types, most competitive teams carry at least one counter.

  • Graveler evolves into Golem by trading. Golem is the final evolution in a 5-stage line starting from Geodude. At 495 BST, it's got solid stats to work with.

  • Base 45 Speed is low. Priority moves or Trick Room are the way to go. On offense, Golem is a physical attacker with base 120 Attack. Defensively? Enough bulk to take a hit or two. Best used as a wallbreaker.

  • Golem appears in 20 games, including Yellow, Red & Blue, and Gold & Silver.

Since debuting in Red & Blue, Golem has appeared in 20 titles over 9 generations. Along the way, it received an Alolan form in Generation 7, keeping it relevant across different competitive metas.