Is Houndour Good in Ruby & Sapphire Playthrough?
Not native to Hoenn. Trade from Colosseum. AbilityEarly Bird wakes faster and AbilityFlash Fire absorbs Fire. Dark/Fire coverage handles Phoebe, Sidney, and Glacia. Import-only but the typing is strong against three of the four E4 members. One of the better Colosseum imports.
Roxanne's team hits Houndour's weaknesses hard.
Houndour trades roughly evenly with Brawly's team.
Houndour trades roughly evenly with Wattson's team.
Houndour trades roughly evenly with Flannery's team.
Norman's team hits Houndour's weaknesses hard.
Houndour trades roughly evenly with Winona's team.
Houndour has the type edge here and should clean up Tate & Liza's team.
Houndour trades roughly evenly with Wallace's team.
Houndour trades roughly evenly with Sidney's team.
Houndour has the type edge here and should clean up Phoebe's team.
Houndour trades roughly evenly with Glacia's team.
Drake's team hits Houndour's weaknesses hard.
Houndour trades roughly evenly with Steven's team.
Trade
Houndour cannot be caught in this game. It must be traded in from a compatible game where it appears in the wild. Cross-region trading typically becomes available after defeating the Elite Four.
Recommended Moves
- LV 25DarkBitePower 90Accuracy 100%PP 25
- After Flannery
- TM50FireOverheatPower 210Accuracy 90%PP 5Prize for defeating Flannery
- After Norman
- TM38FireFire BlastPower 180Accuracy 85%PP 5Lilycove Department Store
- TM22GrassSolar BeamPower 120Accuracy 100%PP 10Safari Zone
- TM36PoisonSludge BombPower 90Accuracy 100%PP 10Dewford Town
- LV 37DarkFeint AttackPower 90Accuracy 100%PP 20
- LV 43FireFlamethrowerPower 143Accuracy 100%PP 15
- LV 49DarkCrunchPower 120Accuracy 100%PP 15
How to Get Houndour in Ruby & Sapphire
Houndour is missing from the Hoenn map, leaving the dark-fire hound out of the wild. You will have to trade one over to get it.
How to Obtain Houndour in RS
- Step 1Houndour ✓CARTRIDGE TRADEfrom EmeraldAvailableCatch in Emerald via Walking · Safari Zone · Safari Zone: 500 entry fee, 30 Safari Balls, then trade to the current game via link cable.LATER APPEARANCEfrom Gold & SilverNot TradeableAppears in Gold & Silver via Walking · Route 7. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCEfrom CrystalNot TradeableAppears in Crystal via Walking · Route 7. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCEfrom PlatinumNot TradeableAppears in Platinum via Walking · Route 214. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCENot TradeableAppears in HeartGold & SoulSilver via Walking · Route 7. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCEfrom Black & WhiteNot TradeableAppears in Black & White via Swarm · Route 9 · Swarm active. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCEfrom X & YNot TradeableAppears in X & Y via Walking · Route 10 · Yellow Flower. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.
- Step 2Evolve into Houndoom
How to Get Shiny Houndour in Ruby & Sapphire
Houndour prowls no Hoenn route, so hunt a shiny through Emerald's Safari Zone North Extension and trade the pup home. See every game where Shiny Houndour can be hunted
Houndour Weakness
Houndour is weak to Water, Fighting, Ground, and Rock. On the flip side, it's immune to Psychic-type moves entirely. 6 resistances give it solid defensive coverage on top of that. Flash Fire grants an additional Fire immunity, reshaping the matchup chart.
| Damage | Types |
|---|---|
| 2x (Weak) | Water, Fighting, Ground, Rock |
| 0.5x (Resist) | Fire, Grass, Ice, Ghost, Dark, Steel |
| 0x (Immune) | Psychic |
- Dark and Steel types added — Fairy does not exist yet
- Moves are Physical or Special based on type, not per move
What is Houndour Weak Against
GoodBest Pokemon Against Houndour
 Hariyama Fighting | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Houndour View Hariyama builds →Focus Punch 2x401-472%KO Earthquake 2x179-211%KO Rock Tomb 2x90-106%KO Surf 2x52-61% | ||
 Blaziken FireFighting | B | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Torchic (Route 101 Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Houndour View Blaziken builds →Focus Punch 2x401-472%KO Earthquake 2x179-211%KO Rock Tomb 2x90-106%KO | ||
 Breloom GrassFighting | B | |
 Heracross BugFighting | A | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Houndour View Heracross builds →Focus Punch 2x416-490%KO Earthquake 2x185-218%KO Rock Tomb 2x93-110%KO | ||
 Machoke Fighting | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Houndour View Machoke builds →Focus Punch 2x343-404%KO Earthquake 2x153-180%KO Rock Tomb 2x77-91% | ||
 Swampert WaterGround | S | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Mudkip (Route 101 Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Houndour View Swampert builds →Earthquake 2x249-293%KO Focus Punch 2x249-293%KO Surf 2x137-161%KO Rock Tomb 2x84-99% | ||
 Walrein IceWater | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Spheal (Shoal Cave Surfing) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Houndour View Walrein builds →Surf 2x149-176%KO Earthquake 2x127-150%KO Rock Tomb 2x64-76% Rock Smash 2x27-32% | ||
 Medicham FightingPsychic | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Houndour View Medicham builds →Focus Punch 2x228-269%KO Rock Tomb 2x52-61% | ||
 Flygon GroundDragon | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Houndour View Flygon builds →Earthquake 2x230-271%KO Rock Tomb 2x77-91% Rock Smash 2x32-38% | ||
 Rhydon GroundRock | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Houndour View Rhydon builds →Earthquake 2x287-338%KO Focus Punch 2x287-338%KO Rock Tomb 2x145-170%KO Surf 2x55-66% | ||
 Regirock Rock | B | |
Obtain MethodRoute 111 Interact Encounter Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Houndour View Regirock builds →Focus Punch 2x229-270%KO Earthquake 2x153-180%KO Ancient Power 2x138-163%KO | ||
 Donphan Ground | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Houndour View Donphan builds →Earthquake 2x269-316%KO Rock Tomb 2x90-106%KO Rock Smash 2x37-44% | ||
 Ludicolo WaterGrass | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Houndour View Ludicolo builds →Surf 2x143-168%KO Focus Punch 2x172-202%KO | ||
 Aggron SteelRock | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Houndour View Aggron builds →Focus Punch 2x249-293%KO Earthquake 2x166-195%KO Rock Tomb 2x126-148%KO Surf 2x69-82% | ||
Houndour Evolutions
Houndour evolves into Houndoom. It's a two-stage chain with the method shown below. A massive partner pool for breeding via one egg group. Eggs take an average time to hatch. Evolving adds up to 170 stat points total. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
Breeding
Breed Houndour easily with 102 breeding partners from the Field egg group. Pass egg moves like Beat Up, Counter, Fire Spin and 5 more to offspring.
RS Houndour Best Moveset
Dark/Fire pre-evolution with MovePursuit hinting at Houndoom's locking role. AbilityEarly Bird wakes from sleep faster and AbilityFlash Fire absorbs Fire attacks. Stats too low to compete. Evolve for the Sp. Atk.
Best Build
Houndour best EVs are HP and Sp. Def
Wall Moveset
- Pursuit
- Fire Blast
- Will O Wisp
- Crunch
Recommended Teammates
Moves List
Egg moves make a real difference. Houndour gets Beat Up and Counter exclusively through breeding, filling gaps that TMs and level-up can't touch. Poison and Normal coverage and more rounds out the picture alongside Overheat and Fire Blast.
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
23 of 24 TMs are obtainable before the Elite Four
Egg Moves
Tutor Moves
Base Stats
HOUNDOUR hunt as a coordinated pack. They communicate with each other using a variety of cries to corner their prey. This POKéMON’s remarkable teamwork is unparalleled.
Houndour Ruby & Sapphire Guide
No. Houndour isn't catchable in Ruby & Sapphire. Catch one in Emerald, then trade it over.
Game Availability
Houndour first appeared in Gold & Silver and has been available in 17 games across 8 generations. Obtainable through catching or hatching as a base form in most titles where it appears.
Click a game to view version-specific details
- Gen 1RB
Red & Blue - Gen 1Y
Yellow - Gen 2GSDebut
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 7Let's Go
Let's Go Pikachu & Eevee - Gen 8SwSh
Sword & Shield - Gen 8BDSP
Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl - Gen 8PLA
Legends: Arceus - Gen 9SV
Scarlet & Violet - Gen 9LZA
Legends: Z-A - Gen 10WW
Winds & Waves
Explore
Where to go next after Houndour.
Keep playing · Ruby & SapphireRuby & Sapphire Tier ListThe best Pokemon ranked tier by tierSee Ruby & Sapphire Tier List