Is Magcargo Good in Crystal Playthrough?
Fire/Rock is defensively terrible: 4x weak to both Water and Ground. The postgame timing compounds the bad typing. Crystal's Battle Tower punishes these weaknesses even harder than the story mode does. Not worth the roster spot.
Slugma has the type edge here and should clean up Falkner's team.
Slugma resists most of Bugsy's coverage and hits back hard.
Slugma trades roughly evenly with Whitney's team.
Slugma trades roughly evenly with Morty's team.
Chuck's team hits Slugma's weaknesses hard.
Slugma trades roughly evenly with Jasmine's team.
Slugma trades roughly evenly with Pryce's team.
Clair's Pokemon outpace and outclass Slugma here.
Slugma trades roughly evenly with Lt. Surge's team.
Sabrina's typing presses Slugma's defenses.
Slugma has the type edge here and should clean up Erika's team.
Slugma trades roughly evenly with Janine's team.
Misty's team hits Magcargo's weaknesses hard.
Brock's team hits Magcargo's weaknesses hard.
Magcargo has the type edge here and should clean up Blaine's team.
Magcargo trades roughly evenly with Blue's team.
Magcargo has the type edge here and should clean up Will's team.
Magcargo resists most of Koga's coverage and hits back hard.
Bruno's team hits Magcargo's weaknesses hard.
Magcargo has the type edge here and should clean up Karen's team.
Magcargo trades roughly evenly with Lance's team.
Catch Slugma
Catch Slugma on Route 16 (walking, Lv 29, rare).
Recommended Moves
- STARTING (Lv 29)
- LV 29FireEmberPower 60Accuracy 100%PP 25
- LV 29RockRock ThrowPower 50Accuracy 90%PP 15
- After Bugsy
- TM38FireFire BlastPower 180Accuracy 85%PP 5Goldenrod Game Corner prize (5500 coins)
- After Whitney
- TM13NormalSnorePower 40Accuracy 100%PP 15Moomoo Farm
- After Jasmine
- TM10NormalHidden PowerPower 60Accuracy 100%PP 15Gift from a fisherman in a house at Lake of Rage
- LV 36FireFlamethrowerPower 143Accuracy 100%PP 15
- LV 43RockRock SlidePower 75Accuracy 90%PP 10
- LV 50NormalBody SlamPower 85Accuracy 100%PP 15
Evolve Slugma to Magcargo
Slugma evolves into Magcargo at Level 38. Your Slugma should hit Level 38 before you reach Misty, at typical leveling pace.
Recommended Moves
- STARTING (Lv 38)
- LV 38FireFlamethrowerPower 143Accuracy 100%PP 15
- LV 38RockRock ThrowPower 75Accuracy 90%PP 15
- After Bugsy
- TM38FireFire BlastPower 180Accuracy 85%PP 5Goldenrod Game Corner prize (5500 coins)
- After Morty
- HM04NormalStrengthPower 80Accuracy 100%PP 15Olivine City
- After Clair
- TM26GroundEarthquakePower 100Accuracy 100%PP 10Victory Road
- After Lt. Surge
- TM15NormalHyper BeamPower 150Accuracy 90%PP 5Celadon Game Corner prize (7500 coins)
- LV 48RockRock SlidePower 113Accuracy 90%PP 10
- LV 60NormalBody SlamPower 85Accuracy 100%PP 15
How to Get Magcargo in Crystal
You won't find Magcargo wild anywhere in Crystal. A Slugma caught on the Cycling Road routes evolves at level 38, the only way to the molten snail.
Catch Slugma at any of these 3 spots to eventually evolve into Magcargo.
Encountered via tall grass encounters
- 1Catch Slugma
- 2Evolve Magcargoat Lv.38
Badge 8How to Obtain Magcargo in C
Slugma is your first catch on the way to Magcargo. You'll find walking encounters from Lv. 29-32 across 3 total spots in the chain.
- Step 2Magcargo ✓BREEDINGAvailableLeave a compatible parent at the Pokemon Day Care to receive a Slugma egg.
How to Get Shiny Magcargo in Crystal
Magcargo melts out of a leveled Slugma at 38 rather than from any wild patch, so the daytime Slugma grind on Kanto's Route 17 is the real work. Compare Shiny Magcargo odds across every game
Crystal Shiny Magcargo Calculator
2 MethodsThe best route is Breed w/ Shiny Parent, about 1 in 64 on each try.
Full Odds: Walk through grass, surf, or fish. Every encounter is its own independent shiny roll.
Breed w/ Shiny Parent: Eggs inherit stats from a shiny parent, so about 1 in 64 hatch shiny. A shiny Ditto helps every egg, and any other shiny parent (the red Gyarados works) helps only eggs of the opposite gender.
How many you have done, or plan to do.
| Chance | Encounters | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 10%lucky few | 7-- | -- |
| 25%one in four | 19-- | -- |
| 50%coin flip | 45-- | -- |
| 90%very likely | 147-- | -- |
Time assumes -- at your pace and does not change your shiny odds.
How is this calculated?
Every encounter has the same shiny chance, the Shiny Odds Per Try shown above. Each one is a separate roll that does not care how many you have already done, so the more you hunt, the higher your overall chance of at least one shiny. The formula below turns your odds and your number of tries into that combined chance.
chance after N tries = 1 − (1 − p)^N, where p = 1 / odds per try
Example at 1 in 8,192 (classic full odds): about 864 encounters for a 10 percent chance, 5,678 for 50 percent, and 18,862 for 90 percent.
The table above flips that around: it shows how many encounters it takes to reach a 10, 25, 50, and 90 percent chance at your current odds. Turning on boosts like the Shiny Charm, sandwiches, or chains improves your odds, so the encounter numbers drop.
These are estimates, not promises. Most games have no pity counter, meaning no guaranteed shiny no matter how many you hunt, so even Very Likely is not guaranteed: some hunters find one early, others go well past that point.
Planning a longer hunt? Set up Magcargo in the Crystal Shiny Odds Calculator to compare every method side by side.
Magcargo Weakness
Magcargo's Fire/Rock typing leaves it vulnerable to Water, Ground, Fighting, and Rock. Water and Ground hits land at 4x, so they're the biggest threat. 6 resistances give it solid defensive coverage on top of that. Magcargo's physical bulk (base 120 Def) helps cushion physical weakness hits, but special attackers are the bigger threat.
| Damage | Types |
|---|---|
| 4x (Critical) | Water, Ground |
| 2x (Weak) | Fighting, Rock |
| 0.5x (Resist) | Normal, Ice, Poison, Flying, Bug |
| 0.25x (Resist) | Fire |
- Dark and Steel types added — Fairy does not exist yet
- Moves are Physical or Special based on type, not per move
- Special stat split into Sp.Atk and Sp.Def
What is Magcargo Weak Against
VulnerableBest Pokemon Against Magcargo
 Marowak Ground | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Magcargo View Marowak builds →Earthquake 4x134-158%KO Dynamic Punch 2x45-53% | ||
 Rhydon GroundRock | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Magcargo View Rhydon builds →Earthquake 4x196-231%KO Surf 4x76-89% Dynamic Punch 2x65-77% Rollout 2x30-36% | ||
 Tyranitar RockDark | S | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Magcargo View Tyranitar builds →Earthquake 4x135-159%KO Surf 4x133-157%KO Rock Slide 2x76-89% Dynamic Punch 2x68-80% | ||
 Suicune Water | B | |
Obtain MethodTin Tower Interact Encounter Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Magcargo View Suicune builds →Surf 4x193-227%KO Dig 4x53-62% Rock Smash 2x10-12% | ||
 Vaporeon Water | B | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Eevee (Goldenrod City Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Magcargo View Vaporeon builds →Hydro Pump 4x286-336%KO Mud-Slap 4x18-22% | ||
 Slowbro WaterPsychic | C | |
Obtain MethodSlowpoke Well Surfing Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Magcargo View Slowbro builds →Surf 4x210-247%KO Earthquake 4x84-100%KO Dynamic Punch 2x42-50% | ||
 Donphan Ground | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Magcargo View Donphan builds →Earthquake 4x186-219%KO Rollout 2x19-23% Rock Smash 2x14-16% | ||
 Poliwrath WaterFighting | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Poliwag (Ecruteak City Surfing) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Magcargo View Poliwrath builds →Surf 4x158-186%KO Earthquake 4x101-119%KO Submission 2x61-73% | ||
 Feraligatr Water | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Totodile (New Bark Town Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Magcargo View Feraligatr builds →Hydro Pump 4x217-255%KO Earthquake 4x110-130%KO Dynamic Punch 2x55-65% | ||
 Golduck Water | C | |
Obtain MethodIlex Forest Surfing Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Magcargo View Golduck builds →Hydro Pump 4x251-296%KO Dig 4x55-65% Dynamic Punch 2x45-53% | ||
 Quagsire WaterGround | B | |
Obtain MethodRoute 32 Surfing Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Magcargo View Quagsire builds →Earthquake 4x138-162%KO Surf 4x148-174%KO Dynamic Punch 2x46-54% Rollout 2x15-18% | ||
 Nidoking PoisonGround | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Magcargo View Nidoking builds →Earthquake 4x161-191%KO Surf 4x122-143%KO Dynamic Punch 2x53-64% | ||
 Sandslash Ground | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Magcargo View Sandslash builds →Earthquake 4x158-186%KO Dynamic Punch 2x53-62% Rollout 2x17-20% | ||
 Lapras WaterIce | C | |
Obtain MethodUnion Cave Interact Encounter Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Magcargo View Lapras builds →Hydro Pump 4x230-272%KO Rock Smash 2x10-12% | ||
Magcargo Evolutions
Magcargo is the evolved form of Slugma. Breeding produces Slugma eggs, and they take an average time to hatch. Evolving from Slugma gave Magcargo the biggest boost in Defense (+80), bringing the total to 410 stats. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
Breeding
Breed with Magcargo to get Slugma eggs easily using 11 partners from the Amorphous egg group. Notable egg moves include Acid Armor.
C Magcargo Best Moveset
Fire/Rock creates 4x weaknesses to both Water and Ground, the format's two most common attacking types. MoveFire Blast from 80 Sp. Atk hits modestly. Held ItemLeftovers can't sustain what the typing invites. Defensive liabilities that outweigh the offensive output.
Best Build
Utility Moveset
- Rest
- Fire Blast
- Amnesia
- Acid Armor
Recommended Teammates
Moves List
Without TMs, Magcargo's movepool is bare bones. With them, you get Poison and Normal coverage and more on top of Fire Blast and Flamethrower for STAB. The natural kit handles basics, but TMs are doing the real work.
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.
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
17 of 22 TMs are obtainable before the Elite Four
Egg Moves
Tutor Moves
Base Stats
Its body is as hot as lava and is always billowing. Flames will occasionally burst from its shell.
Magcargo Crystal Guide
Honestly, in Crystal Magcargo is a tough sell. It rates just E-Tier, and stronger Fire/Rock options exist. Fun pick, not a practical one.
Yes. Magcargo is a post-game Pokemon. You need to defeat the Elite Four and enter the Hall of Fame first. Magcargo becomes available after the main story is complete in Crystal.
In Crystal, use Magcargo as a support. Splits damage between physical and special. It's slow, so Trick Room or priority moves are key.
Game Availability
Magcargo first appeared in Gold & Silver and has been available in 16 games across 8 generations. Obtainable through wild encounters 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 Magcargo.
Keep playing · CrystalCrystal Tier ListThe best Pokemon ranked tier by tierSee Crystal Tier List