Physical
Tank
525High
47Slow
BTier

Hippowdon's Ground typing gives it an immunity to Electric. Only 3 weaknesses on top of that — it has plenty of safe switch-in opportunities. Sand Stream adds more value on top. Built to hit on the physical side. Been around since Gen 4.

Hippowdon's spread favors physical bulk over offense. Defense leads the defensive side, Speed eats the cost. Yields 2 Defense EVs per defeat. Slow 1.25M XP grind to level.

Base Stats
525High
HP108
B
Attack112
B
Defense118
B
Sp. Atk68
C
Sp. Def72
C
Speed47
D
Total525
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Hippowdon yields +2 Def
HPAtkDef+2SpASpDSpe
Details
Catch60Challenging•Slow1.25M XP•2m / 6'07"•300kg / 661.4 lbs•184Base XP
Pokedex Entries

It blasts internally stored sand from ports on its body to create a towering twister for attack.

Brilliant Diamond

Its huge mouth opens almost seven feet wide. It has enough power to completely crush a car.

Shining Pearl

Hippowdon Weakness

Avg

Type-wise, Hippowdon takes extra damage from Water, Grass, and Ice. Electric moves do nothing thanks to a full immunity. Hippowdon's physical bulk (base 118 Def) helps cushion physical weakness hits, but special attackers are the bigger threat.

4xCriticali
None
2xWeaki
WaterGrassIce
½xResisti
PoisonRock
¼xResisti
None
0xImmunei
Electric
STAB (5)i
FireElectricPoisonRockSteel
3Weak
2Resist
1Immune
Scorei-1
SpikesGrounded — up to 25%
Toxic SpikesVulnerable
Abilities
Sand StreamSummons a sandstorm that lasts indefinitely upon entering battle.
Sand ForceHAStrengthens rock, ground, and steel moves to 1.3× their power during a sandstorm. Protects against sandstorm damage.

Hippowdon is the evolved form of Hippopotas. Breeding produces Hippopotas eggs, and they're slow to hatch. Evolving from Hippopotas gave Hippowdon the biggest boost in HP (+40), bringing the total to 525 stats.

How to Evolve

2 Forms
Hippopotas
#449Hippopotas
34
Level 34
Hippowdon
#450Hippowdon
Stat Comparison 2 Stages
Hippopotas
Ground
Hippowdon
Ground
HP
68
108+40
ATK
72
112+40
DEF
78
118+40
SP.ATK
38
68+30
SP.DEF
42
72+30
SPE
32
47+15
BST
330C-Tier
525B-Tier+195
ROLE
Balanced
Tank
TYPE
Physical
Physical
Breeding
Easy

Breed with Hippowdon to get Hippopotas eggs easily from the Ground egg group. Notable egg moves include Body Slam, Curse, Revenge and 6 more.

Egg Groups
Ground
Gender
♂50.0%♀50.0%
Hatch Time
30 cycles·7,710 steps
Moderate~8 min with Flame Body
Egg Moves
9moves

The build centers on Stealth Rock and survivability. Leftovers means passive recovery each turn, and max HP and Sp. Def EVs give Hippowdon the bulk to set up repeatedly. Sand Stream adds another layer of staying power. Slack Off keeps it healthy between hits.

Best Build

Wall
Ability
Sand Stream
Item
LeftoversSUSTAIN
Nature
Impish+DEF
EVs

Best Hippowdon Moveset

  • Slack Off
  • EarthquakeSTAB
  • Stealth Rock
  • ToxicUtility

Recommended Teammates

Scizor
ScizorDecent

The egg pool carries weight here. Body Slam and Curse aren't available any other way for Hippowdon, and they meaningfully change what it threatens. Stack those on top of Earthquake and Dig for solid options.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Bite
6010025Dark
Lv 1
Fire Fang
659515Fire
Lv 1
Ice Fang
659515Ice
Lv 1
Sand Attack
—10015Ground
Lv 1
Tackle
4010035Normal
Lv 1
Thunder Fang
659515Electric
Lv 1
Yawn
——10Normal
Lv 12
Sand Tomb
358515Ground
Lv 16
Dig
8010010Ground
Lv 20
Crunch
8010015Dark
Lv 24
Sandstorm
——10Rock
Lv 28
Take Down
908520Normal
Lv 32
Roar-6
——20Normal
Lv 38
Rest
——10Psychic
Lv 44
Earthquake
10010010Ground
Lv 50
Double-Edge
12010015Normal
Lv 56
Fissure
—305Ground
Lv 62
Slack Off
——10Normal

TM Moves

Src
TM45
Attract
—10015Normal
TM83
Bulldoze
6010020Ground
TM28
Dig
8010010Ground
TM32
Double Team
——15Normal
TM26
Earthquake
10010010Ground
TM58
Endure+4
——10Normal
TM42
Facade
7010020Normal
TM68
Giga Impact
150905Normal
TM15
Hyper Beam
150905Normal
TM23
Iron Tail
1007515Steel
TM17
Protect+4
——10Normal
TM44
Rest
——10Psychic
TM05
Roar-6
——20Normal
TM80
Rock Slide
759010Rock
TM98
Rock Smash
4010015Fighting
TM39
Rock Tomb
609515Rock
TM37
Sandstorm
——10Rock
TM82
Sleep Talk
——10Normal
TM76
Stealth Rock
——20Rock
TM71
Stone Edge
100805Rock
TM96
Strength
8010015Normal
TM90
Substitute
——10Normal
TM11
Sunny Day
——5Fire
TM87
Swagger
—8515Normal
TM03
Water Pulse
6010020Water

Egg Moves

Src
Egg
Body Slam
8510015Normal
Egg
Curse
——10Ghost
Egg
Revenge-4
6010010Fighting
Egg
Sand Tomb
358515Ground
Egg
Slack Off
——10Normal
Egg
Spit Up
—10010Normal
Egg
Stockpile
——20Normal
Egg
Swallow
——10Normal
Egg
Whirlwind-6
——20Normal

Tutor Moves

Hippowdon can't learn any Tutor moves

decent spawn rates for Hippowdon across 4 locations in endgame routes. Nothing complicated. Check the sorted list below, compare the top few options, and head to whichever is closest.

Where To Catch Hippowdon in Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl

The path to Hippowdon starts with Hippopotas at Lv. 22-54 via walking encounters. 2 catchable stages total, with locations listed for each one below.

  1. Hippopotas
    Step 1Catch Hippopotas
    Ruin Maniac Tunnel - 26 Unown caught
    Shining PearlGrassLv.22-2520%MidCave
    EASY
    Ruin Maniac Tunnel - 26 Unown caught
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.22-2520%MidCave
    EASY
    Ruin Maniac Tunnel - 10-25 Unown caught
    Shining PearlGrassLv.22-2410%MidCave
    MODERATE
    Ruin Maniac Tunnel - 10-25 Unown caught
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.22-2410%MidCave
    MODERATE
    Big Bluff Cavern
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.25-29MidCaveRequires Defog
    Big Bluff Cavern
    Shining PearlGrassLv.25-29MidCaveRequires Defog
    Rocky Cave
    Shining PearlGrassLv.25-29MidCaveRequires Defog
    Rocky Cave
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.25-29MidCaveRequires Defog
    Sandsear Cave
    Shining PearlGrassLv.25-29MidDesertRequires Defog
    Sandsear Cave
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.25-29MidDesertRequires Defog
    Ruin Maniac Tunnel - 0-9 Unown caught
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.22-235%MidCave
    CHALLENGING
    Ruin Maniac Tunnel - 0-9 Unown caught
    Shining PearlGrassLv.22-235%MidCave
    CHALLENGING
  2. Hippowdon
    Step 2Hippowdon ✓
    Route 228
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.52-5420%PostRouteMorning/day
    EASY
    Route 228
    Shining PearlGrassLv.52-5420%PostRouteMorning/day
    EASY
    Route 228
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.5410%PostRouteNight
    MODERATE
    Route 228
    Shining PearlGrassLv.5410%PostRouteNight
    MODERATE
    or evolve from Hippopotas (Step 1)

  • Don't let Hippowdon's 525 base stat total fool you. Sand Stream is what makes it tick — it punches way above its weight class. We rate it B-Tier as a tank.

  • Hippowdon's biggest threats include Swampert (Water), Roserade (Grass), and Lapras (Ice), all carrying super-effective STAB moves.

  • Hippopotas evolves into Hippowdon at level 34. Hippowdon is the fully evolved form. At 525 BST, it's got solid stats to work with.

  • Run Sand Stream on Hippowdon. It's the ability that defines how you build around it and the main reason it holds a competitive niche. Hippowdon also gets Sand Force, but they don't compare.

  • Hippowdon fills the tank role. It's a physical attacker with base 112 Attack. Base 47 Speed is low. Priority moves or Trick Room are the way to go. And it's tanky enough to absorb a few hits.

  • Hippowdon appears in 14 games, including Platinum, HeartGold & SoulSilver, and Diamond & Pearl.

Hippowdon first appeared in Diamond & Pearl and has been available in 14 games across 6 generations. Obtainable through wild encounters in most titles where it appears.