Qwilfish is meant to evolve into Overqwil . At 430 BST, the stats aren't there for competitive play yet. Pre-evolution Pokemon rarely hold up against fully evolved threats.

What is Qwilfish weak to?

In Emerald, watch for Raikou (Electric), Golem (Ground), and Alakazam (Psychic) when using Qwilfish. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB.

What is the best ability for Qwilfish?

Intimidate is what you want on Qwilfish. Every competitive set worth running is built with that ability in mind. The alternatives (Poison Point, Swift Swim) work on paper but Intimidate is what makes Qwilfish worth using.

What role does Qwilfish play in battle?

Base 85 Speed is workable. Faster than some, slower than many. On offense, Qwilfish is a mixed attacker with base 95 Attack and 55 Sp. Atk.

Qwilfish - Weakness, Evolution, Moveset, EVs & Stats

Mixed

Balanced

CTier

85Speed · Above Avg

Stats & Training

Attack and Speed carry most of Qwilfish's stat budget. Sp. Atk's the obvious dump stat. Tough to catch and yields 1 Attack EV. Follows a medium-fast 1M XP curve.

Base Stats

Above

HP65

Attack95

Defense75

Sp. Atk55

Sp. Def55

Speed85

Total430

Details

Catch Rate

Challenging45 / 255

Growth Rate

Medium Fast1M XP

Height0.5 m

Weight3.9 kg

Base XP88

Abilities

Poison PointPopular

Has a 30% chance of poisoning attacking Pokémon on contact.

Swift SwimPopular

Doubles Speed during rain.

IntimidateHANot in game

Lowers opponents' Attack one stage upon entering battle.

EV Yield

HPAtk+1DefSpASpDSpe

Attack training source

Pokedex Entries

A QWILFISH uses the pressure of water it swallows to shoot toxic quills all at once from all over its body. It finds swimming to be somewhat challenging.

Emerald

Qwilfish Weakness

Qwilfish's Water/Poison typing leaves it vulnerable to Electric, Ground, and Psychic. With 7 resistances, the defensive profile is strong. Qwilfish leans offensive (base 95 Atk) rather than trying to tank its weaknesses.

Qwilfish Weakness and Resistance Chart
Damage	Types
2x (Weak)	Electric, Ground, Psychic
0.5x (Resist)	Fire, Water, Ice, Fighting, Poison, Bug, Steel

Type ChartGood

3Weak

7Resist

0Immune

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 Ground Psychic

½xResist

Fire Water Ice Fighting Poison Bug Steel

¼xResist

None

0xImmune

None

STAB (4)

Fire Ground Rock Grass

How to Beat Qwilfish in Emerald (Best Counters)

In Emerald, Magneton can KO Qwilfish with Thunderbolt (143-168%). Starmie's Thunderbolt hits Qwilfish for 76-90%. Claydol's Earthquake also KOs at 88-104%.

Magneton ElectricSteel	A
Recommended Build AbilityMagnetpull ItemMagnet NatureModest Moves ThunderboltSTAB Hidden Power Fire ToxicUtility Thunder Wave Damage vs Qwilfish Thunderbolt 2x 143-168%KO View Magneton builds →
Starmie WaterPsychic	A
Recommended Build AbilityNatural Cure ItemLeftovers NatureTimid Moves Rapid Spin Ice Beam Thunderbolt SurfSTAB Damage vs Qwilfish Rapid Spin 10-12% Ice Beam 19-22% Thunderbolt 2x 76-90% Surf 28-34% View Starmie builds →
Claydol GroundPsychic	A
Recommended Build AbilityLevitate ItemLeftovers NatureAdamant Moves Rapid Spin EarthquakeSTAB Explosion PsychicSTAB Damage vs Qwilfish Rapid Spin 15-18% Earthquake 2x 88-104%KO Explosion 73-86% Psychic 2x 64-75% View Claydol builds →

Emerald Evolution

Qwilfish doesn't evolve by leveling. You'll need an evolution item to push it forward to Overqwil. The evolved forms gain up to 80 total stats over Qwilfish. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.

How to Evolve

No Evolution

#211QwilfishDoes not evolve

Breeding

Very Easy

Breed Qwilfish easily with 17 breeding partners from the Water2 egg group. Pass egg moves like Astonish, Bubble Beam, Flail and 2 more to offspring.

Egg Groups

Water2

Gender

♂50.0%♀50.0%

Hatch Time

20 cycles·5,140 steps

Quick~5 min with Flame Body

Egg Moves

5moves

Breed With (best first)

Emerald Qwilfish Best Moveset

This build takes hits and hits back. Leftovers provides passive recovery each turn, Poison Point supports the gameplan, and flexible EVs mean Qwilfish doesn't crumble to chip damage. Plus the remaining moves backing it up.

Best Build

Situational pick

Hazard Setter

Ability

Poison Point

Item

LeftoversSUSTAIN

Best Nature for Qwilfish

Jolly+SPE

Qwilfish best EVs are HP and Speed

EVs

SpD

Spe

Hazard Setter Moveset

SpikesHazard
Self Destruct
Sludge BombSTAB
Destiny Bond

Recommended Teammates

KingdraDecent

SwampertDecent

Moves

You'll want to breed for Astonish and Bubble Beam on Qwilfish. These egg moves aren't just nice to have. Combined with STAB from Hydro Pump and Sludge Bomb, they expand what Qwilfish can actually threaten in practice.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1

Poison Sting

—1510035Poison

Lv 1

Spikes

S——20Ground

Lv 1

Tackle

—3510035Normal

Lv 10

Harden

D——30Normal

Lv 10

Minimize

———20Normal

Lv 19

Water Gun

—4010025Water

Lv 28

Pin Missile

—149520Bug

Lv 37

Take Down

C908520Normal

Lv 46

Hydro Pump

B120805Water

TM Moves

TM45

Attract

——10015Normal

TM14

Blizzard

D120705Ice

HM08

Dive

—6010010Water

TM32

Double Team

———15Normal

TM42

Facade

C7010020Normal

TM21

Frustration

——10020Normal

TM07

Hail

———10Ice

TM10

Hidden Power

—6010015Normal

TM13

Ice Beam

D9510010Ice

TM17

Protect+4

C——10Normal

TM18

Rain Dance

C——5Water

TM44

Rest

C——10Psychic

TM27

Return

D—10020Normal

TM43

Secret Power

—7010020Normal

TM30

Shadow Ball

D8010015Ghost

TM34

Shock Wave

—60—20Electric

TM36

Sludge Bomb

A9010010Poison

HM03

Surf

C9510015Water

TM06

Toxic

C—8510Poison

TM03

Water Pulse

—6010020Water

HM07

Waterfall

C8010015Water

Egg Moves

Egg

Astonish

—3010015Ghost

Egg

Bubble Beam

—6510020Water

Egg

Flail

D—10015Normal

Egg

Haze

D——30Ice

Egg

Supersonic

——5520Normal

Tutor Moves

Tut

Tutor

Defense Curl

———40Normal

Tutor

Double-Edge

C12010015Normal

Tutor

Endure+4

D——10Normal

Tutor

Icy Wind

—559515Ice

Tutor

Mimic

———10Normal

Tutor

Rollout

—309020Rock

Tutor

Sleep Talk

D——10Normal

Tutor

Snore

—4010015Normal

Tutor

Substitute

C——10Normal

Tutor

Swagger

——9015Normal

Tutor

Swift

—60—20Normal

Tutor

Swords Dance

C——30Normal

Tutor

Thunder Wave

B—10020Electric

How to Get Qwilfish in Emerald

Qwilfish can't be caught in Emerald. Bring it over from Gold, Crystal, or Sword instead. The encounter info below covers the source games.

Qwilfish is not available as a wild encounter in this game.

Available in:

FireRedSuper rod · Trainer Tower

Then trade to Emerald.

Also found in:

Gold Crystal Diamond Platinum HeartGold Black

Qwilfish Guide

Qwilfish is meant to evolve into Overqwil. At 430 BST, the stats aren't there for competitive play yet. Pre-evolution Pokemon rarely hold up against fully evolved threats.
In Emerald, watch for Raikou (Electric), Golem (Ground), and Alakazam (Psychic) when using Qwilfish. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB.
Intimidate is what you want on Qwilfish. Every competitive set worth running is built with that ability in mind. The alternatives (Poison Point, Swift Swim) work on paper but Intimidate is what makes Qwilfish worth using.
In Emerald, Qwilfish's hidden ability is Intimidate. Lowers opponents' Attack one stage upon entering battle. Better than the standard options for competitive play.
Base 85 Speed is workable. Faster than some, slower than many. On offense, Qwilfish is a mixed attacker with base 95 Attack and 55 Sp. Atk.

Game Availability

Since debuting in Gold & Silver, Qwilfish has appeared in 20 titles over 9 generations. Along the way, it received a Hisuian form in Generation 8, keeping it relevant across different competitive metas.

Click a game to view version-specific details

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