Special
Pivot
505High
100Fast
BTier

Ninetales's stats are solid on their own, but Drought is what pushes it over the line. It sets sun on switch-in. Only weak to Water, Ground, and Rock. Known as the Fox Pokemon. Flexible enough to run physical or special sets.

Nothing fancy in Ninetales's spread. It leans mixed with Sp. Def out front. And you'll get 2 Sp. Def and Speed EVs per KO for it. Follows a medium-fast 1M XP curve.

Base Stats
505High
HP73
C
Attack76
C
Defense75
C
Sp. Atk81
C
Sp. Def100
B
Speed100
B
Total505
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Ninetales yields +1 SpD, +1 Spe
HPAtkDefSpASpD+1Spe+1
Details
Catch75Challenging•Medium Fast1M XP•1.1m / 3'07"•19.9kg / 43.9 lbs•177Base XP
Pokedex Entries

Ninetales casts a sinister light from its bright red eyes to gain total control over its foe’s mind. This Pokémon is said to live for a thousand years.

Omega Ruby

Legend has it that Ninetales came into being when nine wizards possessing sacred powers merged into one. This Pokémon is highly intelligent—it can understand human speech.

Alpha Sapphire

Ninetales Weakness

Avg

Type-wise, Ninetales takes extra damage from Water, Ground, and Rock. It resists 6 types, so it can switch into a lot of moves safely. Flash Fire grants an additional Fire immunity, reshaping the matchup chart. Ninetales's special bulk (base 100 Sp.Def) helps absorb special-type weaknesses, though physical moves exploit the lower Defense.

4xCriticali
None
2xWeaki
WaterGroundRock
½xResisti
FireGrassIceBugSteelFairy
¼xResisti
None
0xImmunei
Fire
STAB (4)i
GrassIceBugSteel
3Weak
6Resist
1Immune
Scorei0
Stealth Rock25% on switch
SpikesGrounded — up to 25%
Toxic SpikesVulnerable
Abilities
Flash FireProtects against fire moves. Once one has been blocked, the Pokémon's own Fire moves inflict 1.5× damage until it leaves battle.
DroughtHASummons strong sunlight that lasts indefinitely upon entering battle.
Flash Fire grants Fire immunity

Ninetales evolved from Vulpix's chain using an evolution item. It's a non-standard trigger, so check the details below. Breed this form to get Vulpix eggs (average hatch time). The evolution from Vulpix pushed Ninetales to 505 total stats. HP saw the largest single gain at +35.

How to Evolve

2 Forms
Vulpix
#037Vulpix
Fire Stone
Ninetales
#038Ninetales
Stat Comparison 2 Stages
Vulpix
Fire
Ninetales
Fire
HP
38
73+35
ATK
41
76+35
DEF
40
75+35
SP.ATK
50
81+31
SP.DEF
65
100+35
SPE
65
100+35
BST
299D-Tier
505B-Tier+206
ROLE
Balanced
Pivot
TYPE
Utility
Mixed
Breeding
Easy

Breed with Ninetales to get Vulpix eggs easily from the Ground egg group. Notable egg moves include Captivate, Disable, Extrasensory and 11 more.

Egg Groups
Ground
Gender
♂25.0%♀75.0%
Hatch Time
20 cycles·5,140 steps
Quick~5 min with Flame Body
Egg Moves
14moves

the remaining moves keeps opponents guessing about Ninetales's real targets. Heatrock provides extra utility while max HP and Speed EVs and Timid nature handle the stat profile. Drought ties it together.

Best Build

Bulky Support
Ability
Drought
Item
Heatrock
Nature
Timid+SPE
EVs

Best Ninetales Moveset

  • Heat WaveSTAB
  • ProtectFAST +4
  • Solar Beam
  • Will O WispSTAB

Recommended Teammates

Venusaur
VenusaurGood
Arcanine
ArcanineDecent

Breeding's the move. Captivate and Disable give Ninetales options it can't learn any other way, and coverage across 7 types already covers a decent range on top of Overheat and Flare Blitz. The egg moves push it further.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Confuse Ray
—10010Ghost
Lv 1
Flamethrower
9010015Fire
Lv 1
Imprison
——10Psychic
Lv 1
Nasty Plot
——20Dark
Lv 1
Quick Attack+1
4010030Normal
Lv 1
Safeguard
——25Normal

TM Moves

Src
TM45
Attract
—10015Normal
TM04
Calm Mind
——20Psychic
TM100
Confide
——20Normal
TM97
Dark Pulse
8010015Dark
TM28
Dig
8010010Ground
TM32
Double Team
——15Normal
TM85
Dream Eater
10010015Psychic
TM53
Energy Ball
9010010Grass
TM42
Facade
7010020Normal
TM38
Fire Blast
110855Fire
TM43
Flame Charge
5010020Fire
TM35
Flamethrower
9010015Fire
TM21
Frustration
—10020Normal
TM68
Giga Impact
150905Normal
TM10
Hidden Power
6010015Normal
TM15
Hyper Beam
150905Normal
TM59
Incinerate
6010015Fire
TM50
Overheat
130905Fire
TM66
Payback
5010010Dark
TM17
Protect+4
——10Normal
TM77
Psych Up
——10Normal
TM03
Psyshock
8010010Psychic
TM44
Rest
——10Psychic
TM27
Return
—10020Normal
TM05
Roar-6
——20Normal
TM48
Round
6010015Normal
TM20
Safeguard
——25Normal
TM94
Secret Power
7010020Normal
TM88
Sleep Talk
——10Normal
TM22
Solar Beam
12010010Grass
TM90
Substitute
——10Normal
TM11
Sunny Day
——5Fire
TM87
Swagger
—9015Normal
TM06
Toxic
—9010Poison
TM61
Will-O-Wisp
—8515Fire

Egg Moves

Src
Egg
Captivate
—10020Normal
Egg
Disable
—10020Normal
Egg
Extrasensory
8010020Psychic
Egg
Feint Attack
60—20Dark
Egg
Flail
—10015Normal
Egg
Flare Blitz
12010015Fire
Egg
Heat Wave
959010Fire
Egg
Hex
6510010Ghost
Egg
Howl
——40Normal
Egg
Hypnosis
—6020Psychic
Egg
Power Swap
——10Psychic
Egg
Secret Power
7010020Normal
Egg
Spite
—10010Ghost
Egg
Tail Slap
258510Normal

Tutor Moves

Src
Tutor
Covet
6010025Normal
Tutor
Foul Play
9510015Dark
Tutor
Heat Wave
959010Fire
Tutor
Iron Tail
1007515Steel
Tutor
Pain Split
——20Normal
Tutor
Role Play
——10Psychic
Tutor
Snore
5010015Normal
Tutor
Spite
—10010Ghost
Tutor
Zen Headbutt
809015Psychic

Reminder Moves

Src
Rem
Baby-Doll Eyes+1
—10030Fairy
Rem
Captivate
—10020Normal
Rem
Ember
4010025Fire
Rem
Extrasensory
8010020Psychic
Rem
Feint Attack
60—20Dark
Rem
Fire Blast
110855Fire
Rem
Fire Spin
358515Fire
Rem
Flame Burst
7010015Fire
Rem
Grudge
——5Ghost
Rem
Hex
6510010Ghost
Rem
Inferno
100505Fire
Rem
Payback
5010010Dark
Rem
Roar-6
——20Normal
Rem
Tail Whip
—10030Normal
Rem
Will-O-Wisp
—8515Fire

Transfer Moves

Src
Gen 3
Body Slam
8510015Normal
Gen 3
Double-Edge
12010015Normal
Gen 4
Endure+4
——10Normal
Gen 4
Headbutt
7010015Normal
Gen 3
Mimic
——10Normal
Gen 4
Natural Gift
—10015Normal
Gen 4
Ominous Wind
601005Ghost
Gen 4
Swift
60—20Normal

Can't catch Ninetales directly. Start with Vulpix at moderate rates from the locations below, then evolve through a special method. The 2-stage line from Vulpix to Ninetales is where the leveling time goes.

How to Obtain Ninetales in Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire

Vulpix is your first catch on the way to Ninetales. You'll find walking encounters from Lv. 15-38 across 14 total spots in the chain.

  1. Vulpix
    Step 1Catch Vulpix
    Mt. Pyre - Area 5
    Omega RubyGrassLv.155%EarlyCaveHorde battle
    CHALLENGING
    Mt. Pyre - Area 5
    Alpha SapphireGrassLv.155%EarlyCaveHorde battle
    CHALLENGING
    Mt. Pyre - Area 6
    Omega RubyGrassLv.155%EarlyCaveHorde battle
    CHALLENGING
    Mt. Pyre - Area 6
    Alpha SapphireGrassLv.155%EarlyCaveHorde battle
    CHALLENGING
    Mt. Pyre - Area 7
    Alpha SapphireGrassLv.155%EarlyCaveHorde battle
    CHALLENGING
    Mt. Pyre - Area 7
    Omega RubyGrassLv.155%EarlyCaveHorde battle
    CHALLENGING
    Mt. Pyre - Area 5
    Alpha SapphireGrassLv.29-318%MidCave
    MODERATE
    Mt. Pyre - Area 5
    Omega RubyGrassLv.29-318%MidCave
    MODERATE
    Mt. Pyre - Area 6
    Omega RubyGrassLv.29-318%MidCave
    MODERATE
    Mt. Pyre - Area 6
    Alpha SapphireGrassLv.29-318%MidCave
    MODERATE
    Mt. Pyre - Area 7
    Alpha SapphireGrassLv.29-318%MidCave
    MODERATE
    Mt. Pyre - Area 7
    Omega RubyGrassLv.29-318%MidCave
    MODERATE
    Mirage Spots - Area 2
    Alpha SapphireGrassLv.36-386%Late
    CHALLENGING
    Mirage Spots - Area 2
    Omega RubyGrassLv.36-386%Late
    CHALLENGING
  2. Ninetales
    Step 2Ninetales ✓

  • Ninetales looks average on paper at 505 BST. But Drought is why it sees play — build around that and it pulls its weight. B-Tier pivot on our tier list.

  • Ninetales's biggest threats include Gyarados (Water), Rhydon (Ground), and Golem (Rock), all carrying super-effective STAB moves.

  • Vulpix evolves into Ninetales using a Fire Stone. Ninetales is the final evolution in a 3-stage line starting from Vulpix. At 505 BST, it's got solid stats to work with.

  • Ninetales gets Drought and Flash Fire. But Drought is the one that matters — it's the centerpiece of every viable set. Build around that.

  • Ninetales is a special attacker with base 81 Sp. Atk. Enough bulk to take a hit or two, too. But the speed tells the real story — base 100 Speed lets it outrun most of the field. Fits the pivot role.

  • Ninetales appears in 21 games, including Yellow, Red & Blue, and Gold & Silver.

Available since Red & Blue, Ninetales appears in 21 games spanning 9 generations. Beyond its original form, it gained an Alolan form in Generation 7.