Mixed
Attacker
505High
85Moderate
CTier

Electric moves don't affect Nidoking at all — that's the advantage of Poison/Ground typing. Sheer Force drops secondary effects for a straight power boost. Known as the Drill Pokemon. Flexible enough to run physical or special sets.

Attack and Sp. Atk carry most of Nidoking's stat budget. Sp. Def's the obvious dump stat. Tough to catch and yields 3 Attack EVs. Follows a 1.06M XP medium-slow curve.

Base Stats
505High
HP81
C
Attack102
B
Defense77
C
Sp. Atk85
C
Sp. Def75
C
Speed85
C
Total505
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Nidoking yields +3 Atk
HPAtk+3DefSpASpDSpe
Details
Catch45Challenging•Medium Slow1.06M XP•1.4m / 4'07"•62kg / 136.7 lbs•227Base XP
Pokedex Entries

One swing of its mighty tail can snap a telephone pole as if it were a matchstick.

Brilliant Diamond / Shining Pearl

Nidoking Weakness

Avg

Type-wise, Nidoking takes extra damage from Water, Ice, Ground, and Psychic. Electric moves do nothing thanks to a full immunity. 5 resistances help offset the weaknesses.

4xCriticali
None
2xWeaki
WaterIceGroundPsychic
½xResisti
FightingBugRockFairy
¼xResisti
Poison
0xImmunei
Electric
STAB (7)i
GrassFairyFireElectricPoisonRockSteel
4Weak
5Resist
1Immune
Scorei+1
SpikesGrounded — up to 25%
Toxic SpikesAbsorbs on switch
Abilities
Poison PointHas a 30% chance of poisoning attacking Pokémon on contact.
RivalryIncreases damage inflicted to 1.25× against Pokémon of the same gender, but decreases damage to 0.75× against the opposite gender.
Sheer ForceHAStrengthens moves with extra effects to 1.3× their power, but prevents their extra effects.

Getting Nidoking requires an evolution item, not just grinding levels. The chain starts at Nidoran♂ (male). Breed this form to get Nidoran♂ (male) eggs (average hatch time). Attack grew the most through evolution (+45 over Nidoran M), and Nidoking peaks at 505 total stats.

How to Evolve

3 Forms
Nidoran♂ (male)
#032Nidoran♂ (male)
16
Level 16
Nidorino
#033Nidorino
Moon Stone
Nidoking
#034Nidoking
Stat Comparison 3 Stages
Nidoran♂ (male)
Poison
Nidorino
Poison
Nidoking
PoisonGround
HP
46
61+15
81+20
ATK
57
72+15
102+30
DEF
40
57+17
77+20
SP.ATK
40
55+15
85+30
SP.DEF
40
55+15
75+20
SPE
50
65+15
85+20
BST
273D-Tier
365D-Tier+92
505C-Tier+140
ROLE
Balanced
Balanced
Attacker
TYPE
Utility
Physical
Mixed
Breeding
Moderate

Breed with Nidoking to get Nidoran M eggs using 278 partners from the Ground and Monster egg groups.

Egg Groups
GroundMonster
Gender
♂100.0%
Hatch Time
20 cycles·5,140 steps
Quick~5 min with Flame Body
Breed With (best first)
raichupikachunidokinggolduckampharosvenusaurcharizardblastoisemeganiumferaligatrsceptileswampert
12 of 278·

Nothing fancy here. Nidoking builds around Life Orb for extra damage on every hit for a health trade, Timid nature for the right stat lean, and max Sp. Atk and Speed EVs. Sheerforce does its job quietly.

Best Build

Special Sweeper
Ability
Sheerforce
Item
Life OrbPOWER
Nature
Timid+SPE
EVs

Best Nidoking Moveset

  • Earth PowerSTAB
  • Ice Beam
  • FlamethrowerCoverage
  • Sludge WaveSTAB

Recommended Teammates

Venusaur-Mega
Venusaur-MegaDecent
Toxapex
ToxapexDecent
Muk-Alola
Muk-AlolaDecent
All 19 games

Hard to wall, honestly. Nidoking threatens 13 types beyond its own STAB, with Fighting and Normal standing out. Pair that with Earthquake and Sludge Wave and switchins need to think twice.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Double Kick
3010030Fighting
Lv 1
Earth Power
9010010Ground
Lv 1
Flatter
—10015Dark
Lv 1
Focus Energy
——30Normal
Lv 1
Fury Attack
158520Normal
Lv 1
Helping Hand+5
——20Normal
Lv 1
Horn Attack
6510025Normal
Lv 1
Leer
—10030Normal
Lv 1
Megahorn
1208510Bug
Lv 1
Peck
3510035Flying
Lv 1
Poison Jab
8010020Poison
Lv 1
Poison Sting
1510035Poison
Lv 1
Sludge Wave
9510010Poison
Lv 1
Toxic
—9010Poison
Lv 1
Toxic Spikes
——20Poison

TM Moves

Src
TM45
Attract
—10015Normal
TM72
Avalanche-4
6010010Ice
TM14
Blizzard
110705Ice
TM31
Brick Break
7510015Fighting
TM83
Bulldoze
6010020Ground
TM93
Cut
509530Normal
TM28
Dig
8010010Ground
TM32
Double Team
——15Normal
TM59
Dragon Pulse
8510010Dragon
TM26
Earthquake
10010010Ground
TM58
Endure+4
——10Normal
TM42
Facade
7010020Normal
TM38
Fire Blast
110855Fire
TM35
Flamethrower
9010015Fire
TM56
Fling
—10010Dark
TM52
Focus Blast
120705Fighting
TM01
Focus Punch-3
15010020Fighting
TM68
Giga Impact
150905Normal
TM15
Hyper Beam
150905Normal
TM13
Ice Beam
9010010Ice
TM23
Iron Tail
1007515Steel
TM84
Poison Jab
8010020Poison
TM17
Protect+4
——10Normal
TM18
Rain Dance
——5Water
TM44
Rest
——10Psychic
TM05
Roar-6
——20Normal
TM100
Rock Climb
908520Normal
TM80
Rock Slide
759010Rock
TM98
Rock Smash
4010015Fighting
TM39
Rock Tomb
609515Rock
TM37
Sandstorm
——10Rock
TM30
Shadow Ball
8010015Ghost
TM65
Shadow Claw
7010015Ghost
TM34
Shock Wave
60—20Electric
TM82
Sleep Talk
——10Normal
TM36
Sludge Bomb
9010010Poison
TM76
Stealth Rock
——20Rock
TM71
Stone Edge
100805Rock
TM96
Strength
8010015Normal
TM90
Substitute
——10Normal
TM11
Sunny Day
——5Fire
TM95
Surf
9010015Water
TM87
Swagger
—8515Normal
TM12
Taunt
—10020Dark
TM46
Thief
6010025Dark
TM25
Thunder
1107010Electric
TM24
Thunderbolt
9010015Electric
TM41
Torment
—10015Dark
TM06
Toxic
—9010Poison
TM03
Water Pulse
6010020Water

Egg Moves

Nidoking doesn't have any Egg moves

Tutor Moves

Nidoking can't learn any Tutor moves
All 19 games

You're catching Nidoran♂ (male) first, not Nidoking. Nidoran♂ (male) appears at decent rates in the encounters below. The step cards map the full 3-stage chain with evolution methods between each stage.

How to Obtain Nidoking in Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl

To get Nidoking, start by catching Nidoran♂ (male) through walking and special encounters at Lv. 2-63. The chain covers 2 catchable stages before reaching the final form.

  1. Nidoran♂ (male)
    Step 1Catch Nidoran♂ (male)
    Route 201
    Shining PearlUsing PokeRadarLv.320%EarlyRoute
    CHALLENGING
    Route 201
    Brilliant DiamondUsing PokeRadarLv.22%EarlyRoute
    LEGENDARY
    Bogsunk Cavern
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostSwampPost-game
    Bogsunk Cavern
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostSwampPost-game
    Dazzling Cave
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Dazzling Cave
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Grassland Cave
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Grassland Cave
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Riverbank Cave
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Riverbank Cave
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Stargleam Cavern
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Stargleam Cavern
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Still-Water Cavern
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Still-Water Cavern
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Sunlit Cavern
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Sunlit Cavern
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Swampy Cave
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostSwampPost-game
    Swampy Cave
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostSwampPost-game
  2. Nidorino
    Step 2Catch or Evolve Nidorino
    Valor Lakefront
    Shining PearlUsing PokeRadarLv.21-2220%MidWater
    CHALLENGING
    Route 221
    Shining PearlUsing PokeRadarLv.2920%MidRoute
    CHALLENGING
    Valor Lakefront
    Brilliant DiamondUsing PokeRadarLv.222%MidWater
    LEGENDARY
    Route 221
    Brilliant DiamondUsing PokeRadarLv.302%MidRoute
    LEGENDARY
    Bogsunk Cavern
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostSwampPost-game
    Bogsunk Cavern
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostSwampPost-game
    Dazzling Cave
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Dazzling Cave
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Grassland Cave
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Grassland Cave
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Riverbank Cave
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Riverbank Cave
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Stargleam Cavern
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Stargleam Cavern
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Still-Water Cavern
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Still-Water Cavern
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Sunlit Cavern
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Sunlit Cavern
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Swampy Cave
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostSwampPost-game
    Swampy Cave
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostSwampPost-game
    or evolve from Nidoran♂ (male) (Step 1)
  3. Nidoking
    Step 3Nidoking ✓

  • Sheer Force changes the entire equation for Nidoking. The 505 BST doesn't tell the full story. Ranked C-Tier as an attacker.

  • Nidoking's biggest threats include Gyarados (Water), Cloyster (Ice), and Golem (Ground), all carrying super-effective STAB moves. Psychic-type attackers are also a problem.

  • Nidorino evolves into Nidoking using a Moon Stone. Nidoking is the final evolution in a 3-stage line starting from Nidoran M. At 505 BST, it's got solid stats to work with.

  • Sheer Force is what you want on Nidoking. Every competitive set worth running is built with that ability in mind. The alternatives (Poison Point, Rivalry) work on paper but Sheer Force is what makes Nidoking worth using.

  • Base 85 Speed is workable — faster than some, slower than many. On offense, Nidoking is a mixed attacker — base 102 Attack and 85 Sp. Atk. Defensively? Enough bulk to take a hit or two. Best used as an attacker.

  • Nidoking appears in 19 games, including Yellow, Red & Blue, and Gold & Silver.

One of the original 151, Nidoking has appeared in 19 games — most mainline games. From Red & Blue through the latest titles, it's rarely been left out of a regional Pokedex.