Is Growlithe Good in Legends: Arceus Playthrough?
Hisuian Growlithe is Fire/Rock, a typing unique to the Hisui region. Found in the Cobalt Coastlands, it evolves into one of the strongest Pokemon available. Well worth catching.
How to Get Hisuian Growlithe in Legends: Arceus
Hisuian Growlithe starts showing up in mid-game routes at decent spawn rates across 2 encounter spots. The list below is sorted so you can pick what fits your current progress without scrolling through everything.
Growlithe Weakness
Type-wise, Growlithe takes extra damage from Water, Ground, Fighting, and Rock. Watch out for Water and Ground attacks, those deal 4x damage. With 7 resistances, the defensive profile is strong. Flash Fire grants an additional Fire immunity, reshaping the matchup chart.
| Damage | Types |
|---|---|
| 4x (Critical) | Water, Ground |
| 2x (Weak) | Fighting, Rock |
| 0.5x (Resist) | Normal, Ice, Poison, Flying, Bug, Fairy |
| 0.25x (Resist) | Fire |
What is Growlithe Weak Against
VulnerableBest Pokemon Against Growlithe
 Dewott Water | D | |
 Vaporeon Water | B | |
 Floatzel Water | C | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Floatzel builds →Water Pulse 4x156-185%KO | ||
 Bibarel NormalWater | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Bibarel builds →Water Pulse 4x120-142%KO Rollout 2x31-36% | ||
 Gyarados Water | B | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Gyarados builds →Water Pulse 4x129-153%KO | ||
 Gastrodon WaterGround | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Gastrodon builds →Earth Power 4x246-289%KO Water Pulse 4x167-198%KO Ancient Power 2x55-66% | ||
Gyarados Water | B | |
 Whiscash WaterGround | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Whiscash builds →Water Pulse 4x144-169%KO Mud Bomb 4x155-184%KO | ||
 Rhyhorn GroundRock | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Rhyhorn builds →Bulldoze 4x167-198%KO Rock Slide 2x105-124%KO Rock Smash 2x38-45% | ||
 Graveler RockGround | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Graveler builds →Bulldoze 4x186-219%KO Rock Slide 2x113-134%KO | ||
 Samurott Water | C | |
 Hippowdon Ground | B | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Hippowdon builds →High Horsepower 4x316-372%KO | ||
Gastrodon WaterGround | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Gastrodon builds →Earth Power 4x239-282%KO Water Pulse 4x163-192%KO Ancient Power 2x54-64% | ||
Rhyhorn GroundRock | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Rhyhorn builds →High Horsepower 4x255-300%KO Rock Slide 2x102-120%KO Rock Smash 2x37-44% | ||
Whiscash WaterGround | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Whiscash builds →Aqua Tail 4x229-270%KO Mud Bomb 4x153-180%KO | ||
 Rhyperior GroundRock | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Rhyperior builds →High Horsepower 4x387-456%KO Rock Slide 2x154-182%KO Rock Smash 2x55-66% | ||
Samurott Water | C | |
Hippowdon Ground | B | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Hippowdon builds →High Horsepower 4x322-379%KO | ||
 Golem RockGround | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Golem builds →Bulldoze 4x216-254%KO Rock Slide 2x134-158%KO | ||
Gyarados Water | B | |
Rhyperior GroundRock | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Rhyperior builds →High Horsepower 4x391-460%KO Rock Slide 2x155-182%KO Rock Smash 2x55-65% | ||
Samurott Water | C | |
 Garchomp DragonGround | S | |
 Mamoswine IceGround | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Mamoswine builds →High Horsepower 4x363-428%KO Ancient Power 2x43-51% | ||
 Machamp Fighting | B | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Machamp builds →Close Combat 2x229-270%KO | ||
Rhyperior GroundRock | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Rhyperior builds →High Horsepower 4x396-467%KO Rock Slide 2x157-185%KO Rock Smash 2x57-67% | ||
 Landorus Ground | B | |
Obtain MethodRamanas Island Interact Encounter Available Move Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Landorus builds →Earth Power 4x291-342%KO | ||
 Palkia WaterDragon | S | |
Obtain MethodTemple Of Sinnoh Interact Encounter Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Palkia builds →Hydro Pump 4x448-527%KO Earth Power 4x245-289%KO Power Gem 2x109-128%KO | ||
Samurott Water | C | |
Garchomp DragonGround | S | |
In Legends: Arceus, Greninja can KO Growlithe with Hydro Pump (610-717%). Excadrill threatens a KO with Earthquake (484-570%). Conkeldurr's Drain Punch also KOs at 205-241%.
 Greninja WaterDark | A | |
Recommended Build AbilityBattlebond ItemChoice Specs NatureTimid Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Greninja builds →Dark Pulse111-130%KO Ice Beam41-49% Hydro Pump 4x610-717%KO | ||
 Excadrill GroundSteel | B | |
Recommended Build AbilitySandrush ItemLeftovers NatureJolly Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Excadrill builds →Earthquake 4x484-570%KO Rapid Spin20-24% | ||
 Conkeldurr Fighting | B | |
Recommended Build AbilityGuts ItemFlame Orb NatureAdamant Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Conkeldurr builds →Mach Punch 2x109-129%KO Drain Punch 2x205-241%KO Knock Off59-70% Facade32-38% | ||
Rhyperior GroundRock | B | |
Recommended Build AbilitySolidrock ItemWeakness Policy NatureCareful Moves
Damage vs Growlithe View Rhyperior builds →Earthquake 4x414-487%KO Avalanche21-25% | ||
Growlithe Evolutions
Growlithe doesn't evolve by leveling. You'll need an evolution item to push it forward to Arcanine. Evolving adds up to 205 stat points total. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
PLA Growlithe Best Moveset
Hisuian form adds Rock typing to Fire, gaining resistances to Normal, Flying, Bug, Ice, Fire, Poison, and Fairy. 75 Attack at 55 Speed across fragile 60/45/50 bulk. The moveset can't survive most encounters. Evolve to Hisuian Arcanine for the stats that make Fire/Rock TermStab work.
Best Build
Legends: Arceus uses different battle mechanics.
Competitive build content is not applicable for this game. Select a main series game for builds.
Moves List
A solid spread overall. Growlithe gets Flare Blitz and Flamethrower for same-type damage alongside coverage across 8 types. It won't blow anyone away, but it doesn't leave you stuck either.
How to Read the Moves Table
Tabs
- Level-Up
- Learned by leveling up.
- TM
- Taught by a Technical Machine.
- Egg
- Inherited via breeding.
- Tutor
- NPC tutor (cost: items, BP, money).
- Reminder
- An NPC reteaches any move this Pokemon could have learned by leveling up.
- Transfer
- Carried over from an older game using Pokemon HOME.
- Event
- Given out through Mystery Gift events.
Visual Signals
CAT (Category)
How the move deals damage and which stats it uses.
A small dot on the icon's corner marks the move as contact. That triggers abilities like Static, Flame Body, Rough Skin, or Iron Barbs, plus items like Rocky Helmet and Sticky Barb.
Tier (S to D)
Each move's competitive rank in RankedBoost's system. TM, Egg, and Tutor sort by tier by default (best first). On Level-Up, click the Tier header to do the same.
PWR (Power)
Base damage. Numbers shown in a type color include STAB (base × 1.5). Hover any colored number to see the math.
— means no power (status moves) or variable power.
Sorting & Filter
Click any column header to sort. Level-Up opens with Lv 1 at the top. TM, Egg, and Tutor open with the highest-tier moves at the top.
Search filters by move name or type. The Filter button limits the list to STAB, Physical, Special, or Status moves.
Level-Up Moves
TM Moves
Egg Moves
Tutor Moves
Base Stats
They patrol their territory in pairs. I believe the igneous rock components in the fur of this species are the result of volcanic activity in its habitat.
Growlithe Legends: Arceus Guide
Growlithe is meant to evolve into Arcanine. At 350 BST, the stats aren't there for competitive play yet. Pre-evolution Pokemon rarely hold up against fully evolved threats.
Intimidate is what you want on Growlithe. Every competitive set worth running is built with that ability in mind. The alternatives (Flash Fire, Rock Head) work on paper but Intimidate is what makes Growlithe worth using.
At base 55 Speed, it won't be moving first often. On offense, Growlithe is leaning toward the physical side (base 75 Attack). Defensively? Fragile, can't afford to take many hits.
For Legends: Arceus, you can run Growlithe through the first few routes without issues. 350 BST won't carry you far though. Get it to Arcanine as fast as you can.
Game Availability
Since debuting in Red & Blue, Growlithe has appeared in 21 titles over 10 generations. Along the way, it received a Hisuian form in Generation 8, keeping it relevant across different competitive metas.
Click a game to view version-specific details
- Gen 1RBDebut
Red & Blue - Gen 1Y
Yellow - Gen 2GS
Gold & Silver - Gen 2C
Crystal - Gen 3RS
Ruby & Sapphire - Gen 3E
Emerald - Gen 3FRLG
FireRed & LeafGreen - Gen 4DP
Diamond & Pearl - Gen 4Pt
Platinum - Gen 4HGSS
HeartGold & SoulSilver - Gen 5BW
Black & White - Gen 5B2W2
Black 2 & White 2 - Gen 6XY
X & Y - Gen 6ORAS
Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire - Gen 7SM
Sun & Moon - Gen 7USUM
Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon - Gen 7LGPE
Let's Go Pikachu & Eevee - Gen 8SwSh
Sword & Shield - Gen 8BDSP
Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl - Gen 8PLAHisuian
Legends: Arceus - Gen 9SV
Scarlet & Violet - Gen 9LZA
Legends: Z-A - Gen 10WW
Winds & Waves