Is Pinsir Good in Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl Playthrough?
Shining Pearl Underground catch. High Attack but pure Bug typing limits what Pinsir can do in the Sinnoh gauntlet. AbilityMold Breaker ignores abilities, which helps against AbilitySturdy users. Niche at best.
Pinsir resists most of Roark's coverage and hits back hard.
Pinsir resists most of Gardenia's coverage and hits back hard.
Pinsir has the type edge here and should clean up Maylene's team.
Pinsir has the type edge here and should clean up Crasher Wake's team.
Pinsir has the type edge here and should clean up Fantina's team.
Pinsir has the type edge here and should clean up Byron's team.
Pinsir resists most of Candice's coverage and hits back hard.
Pinsir has the type edge here and should clean up Volkner's team.
Pinsir has the type edge here and should clean up Aaron's team.
Pinsir has the type edge here and should clean up Bertha's team.
Pinsir trades roughly evenly with Flint's team.
Pinsir has the type edge here and should clean up Lucian's team.
Pinsir has the type edge here and should clean up Cynthia's team.
Catch Pinsir on Route 229 (walking, Lv 52, uncommon).
Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl Pinsir Locations
Pinsir is available from mid-game routes onward at high spawn rates. 6 encounter spots give you plenty of options. Grab one early and it'll be ready to evolve or train by mid-game.
Best Locations to Catch Pinsir in Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl
Walking encounters at Lv. 16-63 across 6 spots for Pinsir. Sorted by progression so you can see what's reachable at your current point in the game.
Pinsir Weakness
Pinsir's Bug typing leaves it vulnerable to Fire, Flying, and Rock. Pinsir's physical bulk (base 100 Def) helps cushion physical weakness hits, but special attackers are the bigger threat.
| Damage | Types |
|---|---|
| 2x (Weak) | Fire, Flying, Rock |
| 0.5x (Resist) | Grass, Fighting, Ground |
What is Pinsir Weak Against
AvgBest Pokemon Against Pinsir
 Golbat Poison | C | |
Obtain MethodMt Coronet Surfing | ||
 Noctowl Normal | C | |
 Masquerain Bug | C | |
 Doduo Normal | D | |
 Probopass RockSteel | C | |
Golbat Poison | C | |
Obtain MethodMt Coronet Surfing | ||
 Sudowoodo Rock | C | |
Probopass RockSteel | C | |
Noctowl Normal | C | |
Masquerain Bug | C | |
 Staraptor Normal | B | |
Golbat Poison | C | |
Obtain MethodMt Coronet Surfing | ||
 Dodrio Normal | C | |
 Farfetch'd Normal | C | |
Masquerain Bug | C | |
Staraptor Normal | B | |
 Rapidash Fire | B | |
Golbat Poison | C | |
Obtain MethodMt Coronet Surfing | ||
Dodrio Normal | C | |
Farfetch'd Normal | C | |
Staraptor Normal | B | |
Rapidash Fire | B | |
Golbat Poison | C | |
Obtain MethodMt Coronet Surfing | ||
Dodrio Normal | C | |
Farfetch'd Normal | C | |
Staraptor Normal | B | |
 Skarmory Steel | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pinsir View Skarmory builds →Brave Bird 2x81-96% Rock Slide 2x34-41% | ||
Rapidash Fire | B | |
Farfetch'd Normal | C | |
 Magcargo FireRock | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pinsir View Magcargo builds →Overheat 2x127-150%KO Ancient Power 2x60-71% | ||
In Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, Blaziken can KO Pinsir with Flare Blitz (151-177%). Staraptor threatens a KO with Double-Edge (102-121%).
 Blaziken FireFighting | B | |
Recommended Build AbilitySpeed Boost ItemLeftovers NatureAdamant Moves
Damage vs Pinsir View Blaziken builds →Close Combat38-44% Flare Blitz 2x151-177%KO | ||
Staraptor Normal | B | |
Recommended Build AbilityReckless ItemChoice Band NatureJolly Moves
Damage vs Pinsir View Staraptor builds →Close Combat34-40% Double Edge102-121%KO U Turn40-47% | ||
 Rhyperior GroundRock | B | |
Recommended Build AbilitySolidrock ItemWeakness Policy NatureCareful Moves
Damage vs Pinsir View Rhyperior builds →Earthquake27-31% Avalanche21-25% | ||
Pinsir Evolutions
Pinsir is what you get. No evolutions, but it breeds through one egg group with a decent partner pool. Hatching is average hatch time. It's got 8 egg moves worth looking into. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
BDSP Pinsir Best Moveset
125 Attack at 85 Speed behind Bug TermStab with AbilityMold Breaker ignoring defensive abilities like AbilitySturdy and AbilityLevitate. Hidden AbilityMoxie boosts Attack after each KO. The moveset has raw physical power, but E-tier because Bug typing and 65/100/70 bulk limit what it survives.
Best Build
Pinsir best EVs are Attack and Speed
Physical Revenge Killer Moveset
- X Scissor
- Earthquake
- Close Combat
- Knock Off
Recommended Teammates
Moves List
The natural movepool does the job, but Bug Bite and Close Combat from the egg pool give Pinsir something extra.
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. That triggers abilities like Static, Flame Body, Rough Skin, or Iron Barbs, plus items like Rocky Helmet and Sticky Barb.
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
Egg Moves
Tutor Moves
Base Stats
It grips prey with its pincers until the prey is torn apart. What it can’t tear, it tosses far away.
Pinsir Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl Guide
In Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, Mold Breaker changes the entire equation for Pinsir. The 500 BST doesn't tell the full story. Ranked C-Tier as a wallbreaker. Xscissor with Choice Scarf is the standard set.
Mega Evolution isn't available in Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, but Pinsir does have a Mega form in Gen 6-7 games (X/Y, ORAS, Sun/Moon). Mega Pinsir hits 600 BST.
In Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, watch for Arcanine (Fire), Dodrio (Flying), and Aerodactyl (Rock) when using Pinsir. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB.
Mold Breaker is what you want on Pinsir. Every competitive set worth running is built with that ability in mind. The alternatives (Hyper Cutter, Moxie) work on paper but Mold Breaker is what makes Pinsir worth using. On wall sets, Mold Breaker pairs with Pinsir's base 100 Defense to absorb physical hits on the switch.
Base 85 Speed is workable. Faster than some, slower than many. On offense, Pinsir is a physical attacker with base 125 Attack. Defensively? Enough bulk to take a hit or two. Best used as a wallbreaker.
Game Availability
Since debuting in Red & Blue, Pinsir has appeared in 20 titles over 10 generations. Along the way, it received a Mega form in Generation 6, keeping it relevant across different competitive metas.
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 6ORASMega
Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire - Gen 7SM
Sun & Moon - Gen 7USUM
Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon - Gen 7LGPE
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