In FireRed & LeafGreen, Poliwrath looks average on paper at 500 BST. But Swift Swim is why it sees play. Build around that and it pulls its weight. C-Tier on our tier list. Focuspunch with Leftovers is the standard set.

What is Poliwrath weak to?

In FireRed & LeafGreen, Poliwrath's biggest threats include Jolteon (Electric), Exeggutor (Grass), and Dodrio (Flying), all carrying super-effective STAB moves. Psychic-type attackers are also a problem.

What is the best ability for Poliwrath?

Poliwrath gets Swift Swim, Water Absorb, and Damp. But Swift Swim is the one that matters. It's the centerpiece of every viable set. Build around that.

What role does Poliwrath play in battle?

Poliwrath is a mixed attacker with base 85 Attack and 70 Sp. Atk. Enough bulk to take a hit or two, too. Speed tells the real story. Base 70 Speed is workable. Faster than some, slower than many.

What are the best moves for Poliwrath?

For FireRed & LeafGreen, the core moveset is Focuspunch, Substitute, Brickbreak, and Ice Beam. Focuspunch leads at 15% usage. This set covers the balanced role with a mix of damage and utility.

Poliwrath - Weakness, Evolution, Moveset, EVs & Stats

Mixed

Balanced

CTier

70Speed · Below Avg

Stats & Training

Poliwrath's built to absorb hits, not race for knockouts. Balanced defenses with Defense doing the heavy lifting. And the 1.06M XP medium-slow curve means it won't take forever to bring up, worth 3 Defense EVs.

Base Stats

High

HP90

Attack85

Defense95

Sp. Atk70

Sp. Def90

Speed70

Total500

Details

Catch Rate

Challenging45 / 255

Growth Rate

Medium Slow1.06M XP

Height1.3 m

Weight54.0 kg

Base XP230

Abilities

Water AbsorbTop Pick

Absorbs water moves, healing for 1/4 max HP.

DampRare

Prevents self destruct, explosion, and aftermath from working while the Pokémon is in battle.

Swift SwimHANot in game

Doubles Speed during rain.

Water Absorb grants Water immunity

EV Yield

HPAtkDef+3SpASpDSpe

Strong Defense training target

Pokedex Entries

An adept swimmer, it knows the front crawl, butterfly, and more. It is faster than the best human swimmers.

Poliwrath Weakness

Type-wise, Poliwrath takes extra damage from Electric, Grass, Flying, and Psychic. It resists 7 types, so it can switch into a lot of moves safely. Water Absorb grants an additional Water immunity, reshaping the matchup chart.

Poliwrath Weakness and Resistance Chart
Damage	Types
2x (Weak)	Electric, Grass, Flying, Psychic
0.5x (Resist)	Fire, Water, Ice, Bug, Rock, Dark, Steel

Type ChartAvg

4Weak

7Resist

1Immune

Score-1

Gen III Type Chart

Dark and Steel types added — Fairy does not exist yet
Moves are Physical or Special based on type, not per move

4xCritical

None

2xWeak

Electric Grass Flying Psychic

½xResist

Fire Water Ice Bug Rock Dark Steel

¼xResist

None

0xImmune

Water

STAB (7)

Fire Ground Rock Normal Ice Dark Steel

How to Beat Poliwrath in FireRed & LeafGreen (Best Counters)

In FireRed & LeafGreen, Magneton can KO Poliwrath with Thunderbolt (105-123%). Aerodactyl's Double-Edge hits Poliwrath for 61-72%. Starmie deals 56-66% with Thunderbolt.

Magneton ElectricSteel	A
Recommended Build AbilityMagnetpull ItemMagnet NatureModest Moves ThunderboltSTAB Hidden Power Fire ToxicUtility Thunder Wave Damage vs Poliwrath Thunderbolt 2x 105-123%KO View Magneton builds →
Aerodactyl RockFlying	A
Recommended Build AbilityRockhead ItemChoice Band NatureJolly Moves Earthquake Rock Slide Double Edge Hidden Power Flying Damage vs Poliwrath Earthquake 51-60% Rock Slide 29-34% Double Edge 61-72% View Aerodactyl builds →
Starmie WaterPsychic	A
Recommended Build AbilityNatural Cure ItemLeftovers NatureTimid Moves Rapid Spin Ice Beam Thunderbolt SurfSTAB Damage vs Poliwrath Rapid Spin 9-11% Ice Beam 14-17% Thunderbolt 2x 56-66% Surf 21-25% View Starmie builds →
MiloticResists Water, recovers with Recover, wears down with Toxic Water	B
Recommended Build AbilityMarvelscale ItemLeftovers NatureBold Moves RecoverRecovery SurfSTAB ToxicUtility RefreshUtility Damage vs Poliwrath Surf 17-20% View Milotic builds →
Breloom GrassFighting	B
Recommended Build AbilityEffect Spore ItemLeftovers NatureJolly Moves SporeUtility Focus Punch Mach Punch Sky Uppercut Damage vs Poliwrath Mach Punch 24-28% View Breloom builds →

FireRed & LeafGreen Evolution

Poliwrath is one of 2 ways Poliwhirl's chain can end. This one takes the item path, while the siblings go different directions. Breed through Poliwag to get eggs. Poliwrath and Politoed share the same 500 total stats, but they're distributed differently. Check the comparison below to see where each one specializes. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.

How to Evolve

4 Forms

#060Poliwag

Level 25

#061Poliwhirl

#062PoliwrathWater Stone

#186PolitoedTrade + Kings Rock

Stat Comparison 4 Stages

Poliwag

Water

Poliwhirl

Water

Poliwrath

WaterFighting

Politoed

Water

65+25

90+25

ATK

65+15

95+30

75+10

DEF

65+25

95+30

75+10

SP.ATK

50+10

70+20

90+40

SP.DEF

50+10

90+40

100+50

SPE

70-20

BST

300D-Tier

385D-Tier+85

510C-Tier+125

500B-Tier+115

ROLE

Balanced

TYPE

Utility

Physical

Mixed

Breeding

Very Easy

Breed with Poliwrath to get Poliwag eggs easily using 58 partners from the Water1 egg group. Notable egg moves include Bubble Beam, Haze, Ice Ball and 4 more.

Egg Groups

Water1

Gender

♂50.0%♀50.0%

Hatch Time

20 cycles·5,140 steps

Quick~5 min with Flame Body

Egg Moves

7moves

Breed With (best first)

FireRed & LeafGreen Poliwrath Best Moveset

Bulk and offense in one package. Poliwrath runs Leftovers for passive recovery each turn with a Mild nature, so it survives long enough to threaten with Focuspunch. Spread EVs and utility options make it hard to safely switch into.

Best Build

Solid pick

Physical Attacker

Ability

Water Absorb

Item

LeftoversSUSTAIN

Best Nature for Poliwrath

Mild+SPA

Poliwrath best EVs are Attack and Sp. Atk

EVs

Atk

SpA

Spe

Physical Attacker Moveset

Focus PunchSTAB
SubstituteUtility
Brick BreakSTAB
Ice Beam

Recommended Teammates

SalamenceDecent

ForretressDecent

BlisseyDecent

Moves

Breeding's the move. Bubble Beam and Haze give Poliwrath options it can't learn any other way, and Normal and Ice coverage and more already covers a decent range on top of Focus Punch and Hydro Pump. The egg moves push it further.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1

Double Slap

—158510Normal

Lv 1

Hypnosis

B—6020Psychic

Lv 1

Submission

—808025Fighting

Lv 1

Water Gun

—4010025Water

Lv 35

Submission

—808025Fighting

Lv 51

Mind Reader

——1005Normal

TM Moves

TM45

Attract

——10015Normal

TM14

Blizzard

D120705Ice

TM31

Brick Break

A7510015Fighting

TM08

Bulk Up

B——20Fighting

TM28

Dig

—6010010Ground

Dive

—6010010Water

TM32

Double Team

———15Normal

TM26

Earthquake

C10010010Ground

TM42

Facade

D7010020Normal

TM01

Focus Punch-3

A15010020Fighting

TM21

Frustration

——10020Normal

TM07

Hail

———10Ice

TM10

Hidden Power

—6010015Normal

TM15

Hyper Beam

C150905Normal

TM13

Ice Beam

A9510010Ice

TM17

Protect+4

C——10Normal

TM29

Psychic

C9010010Psychic

TM18

Rain Dance

C——5Water

TM44

Rest

C——10Psychic

TM27

Return

D—10020Normal

HM06

Rock Smash

—2010015Fighting

TM39

Rock Tomb

—609510Rock

TM43

Secret Power

—7010020Normal

HM04

Strength

—8010015Normal

HM03

Surf

C9510015Water

TM46

Thief

D6010025Dark

TM06

Toxic

C—8510Poison

TM03

Water Pulse

—6010020Water

HM07

Waterfall

C8010015Water

Egg Moves

Egg

Bubble Beam

—6510020Water

Egg

Haze

D——30Ice

Egg

Ice Ball

—309020Ice

Egg

Mind Reader

——1005Normal

Egg

Mist

———30Ice

Egg

Splash

———40Normal

Egg

Water Sport

———15Water

Tutor Moves

Tut

Tutor

Body Slam

C8510015Normal

Tutor

Counter-5

D—10020Fighting

Tutor

Double-Edge

C12010015Normal

Tutor

Mega Kick

—120755Normal

Tutor

Mega Punch

—808520Normal

Tutor

Metronome

D——10Normal

Tutor

Mimic

———10Normal

Tutor

Seismic Toss

D—10020Fighting

Tutor

Substitute

A——10Normal

Reminder Moves

Rem

Belly Drum

D——10Normal

Rem

Body Slam

C8510015Normal

Rem

Bubble

—2010030Water

Rem

Hydro Pump

C120805Water

Rem

Rain Dance

C——5Water

How to Get Poliwrath in FireRed & LeafGreen

No wild encounters for Poliwrath. The 3-stage chain runs through Poliwag, which you can catch at solid rates from the locations below. Evolve through a special method once you've got the levels.

How to Obtain Poliwrath in FireRed & LeafGreen

To get Poliwrath, start by catching Poliwag through fishing encounters at Lv. 5-30. The chain covers 2 catchable stages before reaching the final form.

Step 1Catch Poliwag
Cerulean Cave - 1F
LeafGreenGood Rod Lv.5-15 Cave
60%Early
Cerulean Cave - 1F
FireRedGood Rod Lv.5-15 Cave
60%Early
Cerulean Cave - B1F
FireRedGood Rod Lv.5-15 Cave
60%Early
Cerulean Cave - B1F
LeafGreenGood Rod Lv.5-15 Cave
60%Early
Route 25
FireRedGood Rod Lv.5-15 Route
60%Early
Route 25
LeafGreenGood Rod Lv.5-15 Route
60%Early
Viridian City
FireRedGood Rod Lv.5-15 City
60%Early
Viridian City
LeafGreenGood Rod Lv.5-15 City
60%Early
Cerulean Cave - 1F
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.15-25 Cave
40%Early
Cerulean Cave - 1F
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.15-25 Cave
40%Early
Cerulean Cave - B1F
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.15-25 Cave
40%Early
Cerulean Cave - B1F
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.15-25 Cave
40%Early
Route 25
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.15-25 Route
40%Early
Route 25
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.15-25 Route
40%Early
Viridian City
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.15-25 City
40%Early
Viridian City
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.15-25 City
40%Early
Cape Brink
LeafGreenGood Rod Lv.5-15
CommonEarly
Cape Brink
FireRedGood Rod Lv.5-15
CommonEarly
Four Island
FireRedGood Rod Lv.5-15 Water
CommonEarly
Four Island
LeafGreenGood Rod Lv.5-15 Water
CommonEarly
Icefall Cave - 1F Room 1
FireRedGood Rod Lv.5-15 Cave
CommonEarly
Icefall Cave - 1F Room 1
LeafGreenGood Rod Lv.5-15 Cave
CommonEarly
Route 22
LeafGreenGood Rod Lv.5-15 Route
CommonEarly
Route 22
FireRedGood Rod Lv.5-15 Route
CommonEarly
Route 23
LeafGreenGood Rod Lv.5-15 Route
CommonEarly
Route 23
FireRedGood Rod Lv.5-15 Route
CommonEarly
Route 6
FireRedGood Rod Lv.5-15 Route
CommonEarly
Route 6
LeafGreenGood Rod Lv.5-15 Route
CommonEarly
Ruin Valley
FireRedGood Rod Lv.5-15
CommonEarly
Ruin Valley
LeafGreenGood Rod Lv.5-15
CommonEarly
Cape Brink
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.15-25
CommonEarly
Cape Brink
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.15-25
CommonEarly
Four Island
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.15-25 Water
CommonEarly
Four Island
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.15-25 Water
CommonEarly
Icefall Cave - 1F Room 1
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.15-25 Cave
CommonEarly
Icefall Cave - 1F Room 1
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.15-25 Cave
CommonEarly
Route 22
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.15-25 Route
CommonEarly
Route 22
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.15-25 Route
CommonEarly
Route 23
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.15-25 Route
CommonEarly
Route 23
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.15-25 Route
CommonEarly
Route 6
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.15-25 Route
CommonEarly
Route 6
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.15-25 Route
CommonEarly
Ruin Valley
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.15-25
CommonEarly
Ruin Valley
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.15-25
CommonEarly
Fuchsia City
FireRedGood Rod Lv.5-15 City
20%Early
Fuchsia City
LeafGreenGood Rod Lv.5-15 City
20%Early
Berry Forest
FireRedGood Rod Lv.5-15 Forest
UncommonEarly
Berry Forest
LeafGreenGood Rod Lv.5-15 Forest
UncommonEarly
Safari Zone - Center
FireRedGood Rod Lv.5-15 Facility
UncommonEarly
Safari Zone - Center
LeafGreenGood Rod Lv.5-15 Facility
UncommonEarly
Safari Zone - East
LeafGreenGood Rod Lv.5-15 Facility
UncommonEarly
Safari Zone - East
FireRedGood Rod Lv.5-15 Facility
UncommonEarly
Safari Zone - North
LeafGreenGood Rod Lv.5-15 Facility
UncommonEarly
Safari Zone - North
FireRedGood Rod Lv.5-15 Facility
UncommonEarly
Safari Zone - West
LeafGreenGood Rod Lv.5-15 Facility
UncommonEarly
Safari Zone - West
FireRedGood Rod Lv.5-15 Facility
UncommonEarly
Train until Level 25
Step 2Catch or Evolve Poliwhirl
Cerulean Cave - 1F
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.20-30 Cave
40%Mid
Cerulean Cave - 1F
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.20-30 Cave
40%Mid
Cerulean Cave - B1F
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.20-30 Cave
40%Mid
Cerulean Cave - B1F
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.20-30 Cave
40%Mid
Route 25
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.20-30 Route
40%Mid
Route 25
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.20-30 Route
40%Mid
Viridian City
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.20-30 City
40%Mid
Viridian City
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.20-30 City
40%Mid
Cape Brink
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.20-30
CommonMid
Cape Brink
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.20-30
CommonMid
Four Island
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.20-30 Water
CommonMid
Four Island
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.20-30 Water
CommonMid
Icefall Cave - 1F Room 1
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.20-30 Cave
CommonMid
Icefall Cave - 1F Room 1
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.20-30 Cave
CommonMid
Route 22
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.20-30 Route
CommonMid
Route 22
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.20-30 Route
CommonMid
Route 23
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.20-30 Route
CommonMid
Route 23
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.20-30 Route
CommonMid
Route 6
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.20-30 Route
CommonMid
Route 6
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.20-30 Route
CommonMid
Ruin Valley
LeafGreenSuper Rod Lv.20-30
CommonMid
Ruin Valley
FireRedSuper Rod Lv.20-30
CommonMid
or evolve from Poliwag (Step 1)
Water Stone
Step 3Poliwrath ✓

Poliwrath Guide

In FireRed & LeafGreen, Poliwrath looks average on paper at 500 BST. But Swift Swim is why it sees play. Build around that and it pulls its weight. C-Tier on our tier list. Focuspunch with Leftovers is the standard set.
In FireRed & LeafGreen, Poliwrath's biggest threats include Jolteon (Electric), Exeggutor (Grass), and Dodrio (Flying), all carrying super-effective STAB moves. Psychic-type attackers are also a problem.
Poliwrath gets Swift Swim, Water Absorb, and Damp. But Swift Swim is the one that matters. It's the centerpiece of every viable set. Build around that.
Poliwrath is a mixed attacker with base 85 Attack and 70 Sp. Atk. Enough bulk to take a hit or two, too. Speed tells the real story. Base 70 Speed is workable. Faster than some, slower than many.
For FireRed & LeafGreen, the core moveset is Focuspunch, Substitute, Brickbreak, and Ice Beam. Focuspunch leads at 15% usage. This set covers the balanced role with a mix of damage and utility.

Game Availability

Present since Red & Blue, Poliwrath appears in 20 games spanning 10 generations. Gen 1 originals like Poliwrath have the longest track record of availability in the series.

Click a game to view version-specific details

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