Is Ninetales Good in Crystal Playthrough?
Requires trading a Vulpix from Gold or Silver since Crystal dropped it from the wild roster. Fire-types are scarce here, and losing Ninetales as a local option makes Typhlosion and the move tutor's MoveFlamethrower even more important for the few Fire-weak bosses.
Ninetales has the type edge here and should clean up Falkner's team.
Ninetales resists most of Bugsy's coverage and hits back hard.
Ninetales has the type edge here and should clean up Whitney's team.
Ninetales has the type edge here and should clean up Morty's team.
Ninetales trades roughly evenly with Chuck's team.
Ninetales resists most of Jasmine's coverage and hits back hard.
Ninetales has the type edge here and should clean up Pryce's team.
Clair's team hits Ninetales's weaknesses hard.
Ninetales has the type edge here and should clean up Lt. Surge's team.
Ninetales trades roughly evenly with Sabrina's team.
Ninetales resists most of Erika's coverage and hits back hard.
Ninetales has the type edge here and should clean up Janine's team.
Misty's team hits Ninetales's weaknesses hard.
Brock's team hits Ninetales's weaknesses hard.
Ninetales trades roughly evenly with Blaine's team.
Ninetales trades roughly evenly with Blue's team.
Ninetales has the type edge here and should clean up Will's team.
Ninetales has the type edge here and should clean up Koga's team.
Ninetales trades roughly evenly with Bruno's team.
Ninetales has the type edge here and should clean up Karen's team.
Lance's team hits Ninetales's weaknesses hard.
Trade
Ninetales 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
- STARTING (Lv 5)
- LV 5FireEmberPower 60Accuracy 100%PP 25
- LV 5GhostConfuse RayPower —Accuracy 100%PP 10
- After Bugsy
- TM38FireFire BlastPower 180Accuracy 85%PP 5Goldenrod Game Corner prize (5500 coins)
- TM02NormalHeadbuttPower 70Accuracy 100%PP 15Gift from a man in Ilex Forest
- TM28GroundDigPower 60Accuracy 100%PP 10National Park
- After Jasmine
- TM23SteelIron TailPower 100Accuracy 75%PP 15Prize for defeating Jasmine
- After Lt. Surge
- TUTORFireFlamethrowerPower 143Accuracy 100%PP 15Goldenrod City
- TM15NormalHyper BeamPower 150Accuracy 90%PP 5Celadon Game Corner prize (7500 coins)
How to Get Ninetales in Crystal
Ninetales has no wild presence here, which follows from Vulpix being absent too. You'd evolve a traded Vulpix with a Fire Stone, since neither half of the line spawns in Crystal.
How to Obtain Ninetales in C
- Step 1Obtain VulpixCARTRIDGE TRADEfrom Gold & SilverAvailableCatch in Gold & Silver via Walking · Route 7, then trade to the current game via link cable.LATER APPEARANCEfrom Red & BlueNot TradeableAppears in Red & Blue via Walking · Pokémon Mansion. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCEfrom YellowNot TradeableAppears in Yellow via Gift · Celadon City · 1,000 Coins. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCEfrom Ruby & SapphireNot TradeableAppears in Ruby & Sapphire via Walking · Mt. Pyre. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCEfrom EmeraldNot TradeableAppears in Emerald via Walking · Mt. Pyre. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCEfrom FireRed & LeafGreenNot TradeableAppears in FireRed & LeafGreen via Walking · Route 8. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCEfrom Diamond & PearlNot TradeableAppears in Diamond & Pearl via Walking · Route 214 · Dual-slot: LeafGreen. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.
- Step 2Ninetales ✓
How to Get Shiny Ninetales in Crystal
Shiny Ninetales has to be traded in from Silver, where the Vulpix line lives, since Gold and Crystal both carry Growlithe instead. See every game where Shiny Ninetales can be hunted
Ninetales Weakness
Type-wise, Ninetales takes extra damage from Water, Ground, and Rock. The Fire typing picks up 5 resistances to work with. Ninetales's special bulk (base 100 Sp.Def) helps absorb special-type weaknesses, though physical moves exploit the lower Defense.
| Damage | Types |
|---|---|
| 2x (Weak) | Water, Ground, Rock |
| 0.5x (Resist) | Fire, Grass, Ice, Bug, Steel |
- 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 Ninetales Weak Against
AvgBest Pokemon Against Ninetales
 Marowak Ground | B | |
 Vaporeon Water | B | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Eevee (Goldenrod City Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Ninetales View Vaporeon builds →Hydro Pump 2x99-118%KO Mud-Slap 2x10-13% | ||
 Rhydon GroundRock | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Ninetales View Rhydon builds →Earthquake 2x122-143%KO Rollout 2x38-44% Surf 2x27-32% | ||
 Suicune Water | B | |
Obtain MethodTin Tower Interact Encounter Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Ninetales View Suicune builds →Surf 2x68-80% Dig 2x32-38% | ||
 Tyranitar RockDark | S | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Ninetales View Tyranitar builds →Rock Slide 2x94-111%KO Earthquake 2x83-98% Surf 2x47-56% | ||
 Donphan Ground | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Ninetales View Donphan builds →Earthquake 2x113-133%KO Rollout 2x24-28% | ||
 Slowbro WaterPsychic | C | |
Obtain MethodSlowpoke Well Surfing Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Ninetales View Slowbro builds →Surf 2x74-87% Earthquake 2x52-61% | ||
 Golduck Water | C | |
Obtain MethodIlex Forest Surfing Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Ninetales View Golduck builds →Hydro Pump 2x88-104%KO Dig 2x34-40% | ||
 Azumarill Water | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Azurill (Mt Mortar Surfing) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Ninetales View Azumarill builds →Surf 2x49-58% Rollout 2x13-15% Mud-Slap 2x9-10% | ||
 Feraligatr Water | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Totodile (New Bark Town Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Ninetales View Feraligatr builds →Hydro Pump 2x77-90% Earthquake 2x68-80% | ||
 Lapras WaterIce | C | |
Obtain MethodUnion Cave Interact Encounter | ||
 Nidoking PoisonGround | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Ninetales View Nidoking builds →Earthquake 2x99-118%KO Surf 2x43-51% | ||
 Quagsire WaterGround | B | |
Obtain MethodRoute 32 Surfing Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Ninetales View Quagsire builds →Earthquake 2x85-101%KO Surf 2x52-61% Rollout 2x18-22% | ||
 Sandslash Ground | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Ninetales View Sandslash builds →Earthquake 2x97-114%KO Rollout 2x20-24% | ||
Ninetales Evolutions
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. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
Breeding
Breed with Ninetales to get Vulpix eggs easily using 66 partners from the Field egg group. Notable egg moves include Disable, Feint Attack, Flail and 2 more.
C Ninetales Best Moveset
100 Speed fires first against most threats, though the stat split dropped Sp. Atk to 81 from the old 100 Special, and MoveFire Blast feels the difference. Steel types now resist Fire, shrinking the target list further. Held ItemLeftovers and MoveConfuse Ray provide disruption. Fast Fire support with reduced offensive reach.
Best Build
Utility Moveset
- Hypnosis
- Confuse Ray
- Fire Blast
- Substitute
Recommended Teammates
Moves List
Breeding's the move. Disable and Feint Attack give Ninetales options it can't learn any other way, and Normal and Ground coverage and more already covers a decent range on top of Fire Blast and Flamethrower. The egg moves push it further.
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
16 of 21 TMs are obtainable before the Elite Four
Egg Moves
Tutor Moves
Reminder Moves
Base Stats
It is said to live a thousand years, and each of its tails is loaded with supernatural powers.
Ninetales Crystal Guide
In Crystal, Ninetales plays as a support. It outspeeds most threats, so it can pressure opponents before they move.
Yes. Alolan Ninetales is a regional variant with different typing and a reworked stat spread. Introduced in Gen 7. Plays completely differently from the original.
No. Ninetales isn't catchable in Crystal. Obtain one in Gold or Silver, then trade it over.
Game Availability
Available since Red & Blue, Ninetales appears in 21 games spanning 9 generations. Beyond its original form, it gained an Alolan form in Generation 7.
Click a game to view version-specific details
- Gen 1RBDebut
Red & Blue - Gen 1Y
Yellow - Gen 2GS
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 7SMAlolan
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 Ninetales.
Keep playing · CrystalCrystal Tier ListThe best Pokemon ranked tier by tierSee Crystal Tier List