In Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, Don't let Kabutops's 495 base stat total fool you. Swift Swim is what makes it tick. It punches way above its weight class. We rate it C-Tier as a wallbreaker. Stone Edge with Assault Vest is the standard set.

What is Kabutops weak to?

In Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, watch for Exeggutor (Grass), Raikou (Electric), and Machamp (Fighting) when using Kabutops. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Exeggutor is the most dangerous since Grass moves deal 4x damage. Ground-type attackers are also a problem.

What is the best ability for Kabutops?

In Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, Run Swift Swim on Kabutops. It's the ability that defines how you build around it and the main reason it holds a competitive niche. Kabutops also gets Battle Armor and Weak Armor, but they don't compare. On wall sets, Swift Swim pairs with Kabutops's base 105 Defense to absorb physical hits on the switch.

What role does Kabutops play in battle?

In Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, Kabutops fills the wallbreaker role. It's a physical attacker with base 115 Attack. Base 80 Speed is workable. Faster than some, slower than many. And it's enough bulk to take a hit or two.

What are the best moves for Kabutops?

In Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, run Stone Edge, Waterfall, Rapid Spin, and Knock Off on Kabutops. Stone Edge is the most common pick at 22% usage. Waterfall provides reliable STAB damage.

Kabutops - Weakness, Evolution, Moveset, EVs & Stats

Physical

Wallbreaker

CTier

80Speed · Above Avg

Stats & Training

Kabutops's spread isn't flashy. Attack leads, HP trails, 3 stats clear the bar. Tough to catch and worth 2 Attack EVs, on a medium-fast 1M XP curve.

Base Stats

Above

HP60

Attack115

Defense105

Sp. Atk65

Sp. Def70

Speed80

Total495

Details

Catch Rate

Challenging45 / 255

Growth Rate

Medium Fast1M XP

Height1.3 m

Weight40.5 kg

Base XP173

Abilities

Swift SwimPopular

Doubles Speed during rain.

Battle Armor

Protects against critical hits.

Weak ArmorHAPopular

Raises Speed and lowers Defense by one stage each upon being hit by a physical move.

EV Yield

HPAtk+2DefSpASpDSpe

Attack training target

Pokedex Entries

It is thought that this Pokémon came onto land because its prey adapted to life on land.

Kabutops Weakness

Grass, Electric, Fighting, and Ground moves hit Kabutops for super-effective damage. Grass hits land at 4x, so they're the biggest threat. It resists 5 types, giving it decent defensive coverage. Kabutops's physical bulk (base 105 Def) helps cushion physical weakness hits, but special attackers are the bigger threat.

Kabutops Weakness and Resistance Chart
Damage	Types
4x (Critical)	Grass
2x (Weak)	Electric, Fighting, Ground
0.5x (Resist)	Normal, Ice, Poison, Flying
0.25x (Resist)	Fire

Type ChartVulnerable

4Weak

5Resist

0Immune

Score-4

4xCritical

Grass

2xWeak

Electric Fighting Ground

½xResist

Normal Ice Poison Flying

¼xResist

Fire

0xImmune

None

STAB (6)

Fire Ice Flying Bug Ground Rock

How to Beat Kabutops in Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl (Best Counters)

In Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, Excadrill can KO Kabutops with Earthquake (125-147%). Rillaboom threatens a KO with Wood Hammer (308-363%). Cobalion's Close Combat also KOs at 113-133%.

Excadrill GroundSteel	A
Recommended Build AbilityMold Breaker ItemLeftovers NatureJolly Moves EarthquakeSTAB Rapid Spin Iron Head Swords Dance Damage vs Kabutops Earthquake 2x 125-147%KO Rapid Spin 10-12% View Excadrill builds →
Rillaboom Grass	A
Recommended Build AbilityGrassy Surge ItemAssault Vest NatureAdamant Moves Fake Out Grassy Glide U Turn Wood Hammer Damage vs Kabutops U Turn 30-36% Wood Hammer 4x 308-363%KO View Rillaboom builds →
Cobalion SteelFighting	A
Recommended Build AbilityJustified ItemRocky Helmet NatureJolly Moves Close Combat Swords Dance Iron Head Stealth Rock Damage vs Kabutops Close Combat 2x 113-133%KO View Cobalion builds →
Zeraora Electric	A
Recommended Build AbilityVoltabsorb ItemAir Balloon NatureJolly Moves Plasma Fists Fake Out Drain Punch Fire Punch Damage vs Kabutops Drain Punch 2x 54-64% View Zeraora builds →
Breloom GrassFighting	C
Recommended Build AbilityTechnician ItemFocus Sash NatureJolly Moves Bullet Seed SporeUtility Mach Punch Swords Dance Damage vs Kabutops Bullet Seed 4x 62-74% Mach Punch 2x 50-59% View Breloom builds →

Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl Evolution

Kabutops is the evolved form of Kabuto. Breeding produces Kabuto eggs, and they're slow to hatch. Evolving from Kabuto gave Kabutops the biggest boost in Attack (+35), bringing the total to 495 stats. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.

How to Evolve

2 Forms

#140Kabuto

Level 40

#141Kabutops

Stat Comparison 2 Stages

Kabuto

RockWater

Kabutops

RockWater

60+30

ATK

115+35

DEF

105+15

SP.ATK

65+10

SP.DEF

70+25

SPE

80+25

BST

355D-Tier

495C-Tier+140

ROLE

Balanced

Wallbreaker

TYPE

Physical

Breeding

Moderate

Breed with Kabutops to get Kabuto eggs using 69 partners from the Water1 and Water3 egg groups. Notable egg moves include Aurora Beam, Bubble Beam, Confuse Ray and 8 more.

Egg Groups

Water1Water3

Gender

♂87.5%♀12.5%

Hatch Time

30 cycles·7,710 steps

Moderate~8 min with Flame Body

Egg Moves

11moves

Breed With (best first)

Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl Kabutops Best Moveset

This build takes hits and hits back. Assault Vest provides a special bulk boost with no status moves allowed, Weakarmor supports the gameplan, and max Attack and Speed EVs mean Kabutops doesn't crumble to chip damage. Plus the remaining moves backing it up.

Best Build

Experimental

Ability

Weak Armor

Item

Assault VestBULK

Best Nature for Kabutops

Adamant+ATK

Kabutops best EVs are Attack and Speed

EVs

Atk

SpD

Spe

Physical Sweeper Moveset

Stone EdgeSTAB
WaterfallSTAB
Rapid Spin
Knock Off

Recommended Teammates

AerodactylGood

Moves

Without breeding, Kabutops misses out on Aurora Beam and Bubble Beam. That's 11 egg moves adding depth that the base kit lacks. STAB comes from Stone Edge and Surf, with coverage across 8 types rounding things out.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1

Absorb

—2010025Grass

Lv 1

Feint+2

—3010010Normal

Lv 1

Harden

———30Normal

Lv 1

Night Slash

C7010015Dark

Lv 1

Sand Attack

D—10015Ground

Lv 1

Scratch

—4010035Normal

Lv 1

Slash

C7010020Normal

Lv 15

Aqua Jet+1

S4010020Water

Lv 20

Leer

D—10030Normal

Lv 25

Mud Shot

D559515Ground

Lv 30

Ancient Power

D601005Rock

Lv 35

Brine

C6510010Water

Lv 43

Protect+4

S——10Normal

Lv 49

Leech Life

C8010010Bug

Lv 56

Liquidation

S8510010Water

Lv 63

Metal Sound

D—8540Steel

Lv 70

Stone Edge

S100805Rock

TM Moves

TM40

Aerial Ace

C60—20Flying

TM45

Attract

C—10015Normal

TM14

Blizzard

D110705Ice

TM31

Brick Break

A7510015Fighting

TM55

Brine

C6510010Water

TM93

Cut

—509530Normal

TM28

Dig

C8010010Ground

TM32

Double Team

———15Normal

TM58

Endure+4

C——10Normal

TM42

Facade

C7010020Normal

TM19

Giga Drain

B7510010Grass

TM68

Giga Impact

B150905Normal

TM07

Hail

C——10Ice

TM15

Hyper Beam

C150905Normal

TM13

Ice Beam

D9010010Ice

TM17

Protect+4

S——10Normal

TM18

Rain Dance

C——5Water

TM44

Rest

C——10Psychic

TM100

Rock Climb

—908520Normal

TM69

Rock Polish

C——20Rock

TM80

Rock Slide

S759010Rock

TM98

Rock Smash

D4010015Fighting

TM39

Rock Tomb

C609515Rock

TM37

Sandstorm

D——10Rock

TM49

Scald

C8010015Water

TM82

Sleep Talk

C——10Normal

TM76

Stealth Rock

C——20Rock

TM71

Stone Edge

S100805Rock

TM90

Substitute

C——10Normal

TM95

Surf

C9010015Water

TM87

Swagger

D—8515Normal

TM75

Swords Dance

A——20Normal

TM46

Thief

C6010025Dark

TM03

Water Pulse

D6010020Water

TM99

Waterfall

S8010015Water

TM81

X-Scissor

C8010015Bug

Egg Moves

Egg

Aurora Beam

D6510020Ice

Egg

Bubble Beam

C6510020Water

Egg

Confuse Ray

D—10010Ghost

Egg

Flail

D—10015Normal

Egg

Icy Wind

D559515Ice

Egg

Knock Off

A6510020Dark

Egg

Mega Drain

—4010015Grass

Egg

Mud Shot

D559515Ground

Egg

Rapid Spin

S5010040Normal

Egg

Screech

D—8540Normal

Egg

Take Down

C908520Normal

Tutor Moves

Kabutops can't learn any Tutor moves

How to Get Kabutops in Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl

Kabutops can't be caught in Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl. Transfer Kabuto from Red, Yellow, or Shield and evolve through the 2-stage line to get it. The step cards below map the full chain.

How to Obtain Kabutops in Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl

Step 1Obtain Kabuto
Catch in the wild in:
ShieldSurfing · Roaring-Sea Caves · Overcast
Then trade to Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl to continue the evolution chain.
Also found in:
Red Yellow FireRed Diamond Platinum HeartGold
Train until Level 40
Step 2Kabutops ✓

Kabutops Guide

In Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, Don't let Kabutops's 495 base stat total fool you. Swift Swim is what makes it tick. It punches way above its weight class. We rate it C-Tier as a wallbreaker. Stone Edge with Assault Vest is the standard set.
In Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, watch for Exeggutor (Grass), Raikou (Electric), and Machamp (Fighting) when using Kabutops. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Exeggutor is the most dangerous since Grass moves deal 4x damage. Ground-type attackers are also a problem.
In Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, Run Swift Swim on Kabutops. It's the ability that defines how you build around it and the main reason it holds a competitive niche. Kabutops also gets Battle Armor and Weak Armor, but they don't compare. On wall sets, Swift Swim pairs with Kabutops's base 105 Defense to absorb physical hits on the switch.
In Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, Kabutops fills the wallbreaker role. It's a physical attacker with base 115 Attack. Base 80 Speed is workable. Faster than some, slower than many. And it's enough bulk to take a hit or two.
In Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, run Stone Edge, Waterfall, Rapid Spin, and Knock Off on Kabutops. Stone Edge is the most common pick at 22% usage. Waterfall provides reliable STAB damage.

Game Availability

Kabutops has been part of the series since Red & Blue, appearing in 19 titles across all 10 generations. As a Gen 1 original, it's one of the most consistently available Pokemon in the franchise.

Click a game to view version-specific details

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