Physical
Sweeper
CTier
105Speed · Fast

Stats & Training

Rapidash's built around mixed offense. Speed leads the charge, HP pays for it. Moderately hard to find, worth 2 Speed EVs. Follows a medium-fast 1M XP curve.

Base Stats
High
HP65
C
Attack100
B
Defense70
C
Sp. Atk80
C
Sp. Def80
C
Speed105
B
Total500
Details
Catch Rate
Challenging60 / 255
Growth Rate
Medium Fast1M XP
Height1.7 m
5'07"Average
Weight95.0 kg
209.4 lbsStandard
Base XP175
Average
Abilities
Run Away
Ensures success fleeing from wild battles.
Flash FireTop Pick
Protects against fire moves. Once one has been blocked, the Pokémon's own Fire moves inflict 1.5× damage until it leaves battle.
Flame BodyHANiche
Has a 30% chance of burning attacking Pokémon on contact.
Flash Fire grants Fire immunity
EV Yield
HPAtkDefSpASpDSpe+2
Speed training target
Pokedex Entries

Little can stand up to its psycho cut. Unleashed from this Pokémon’s horn, the move will punch a hole right through a thick metal sheet.

Rapidash Weakness

Type-wise, Rapidash takes extra damage from Water, Ground, and Rock. 6 resistances give it solid defensive coverage on top of that. Flash Fire grants an additional Fire immunity, reshaping the matchup chart. Rapidash leans offensive (base 100 Atk) rather than trying to tank its weaknesses.

Rapidash Weakness and Resistance Chart
DamageTypes
2x (Weak)Water, Ground, Rock
0.5x (Resist)Fire, Grass, Ice, Bug, Steel, Fairy
Type ChartAvg
3Weak
6Resist
1Immune
Score0
4xCritical
None
2xWeak
WaterGroundRock
½xResist
FireGrassIceBugSteelFairy
¼xResist
None
0xImmune
Fire
STAB (4)
GrassIceBugSteel
How to Beat Rapidash in Sword & Shield (Best Counters)

In Sword & Shield, Excadrill can KO Rapidash with Earthquake (166-196%). Slowking's Scald hits Rapidash for 77-91%. Nihilego's Power Gem also KOs at 109-128%.

Excadrill
Excadrill
GroundSteel
A
Recommended Build
AbilityMold Breaker
ItemLeftovers
NatureJolly
Moves
  • EarthquakeSTAB
  • Rapid Spin
  • Iron Head
  • Swords Dance
Damage vs Rapidash
Earthquake 2x
166-196%KO
Rapid Spin
28-33%
View Excadrill builds →

Sword & Shield Evolution

Rapidash is the evolved form of Ponyta. Breeding produces Ponyta eggs, and they're average hatch time. Evolving from Ponyta gave Rapidash the biggest boost in HP (+15), bringing the total to 500 stats. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.

How to Evolve

2 Evolutions
Ponyta
#077Ponyta
Rapidash
#078RapidashLevel 40
Galar RapidashGalar
#078Galar RapidashLevel 40
Stat Comparison 3 Stages
Ponyta
Fire
Rapidash
Fire
Galar Rapidash
Fire
HP
50
65+15
65+15
ATK
85
100+15
100+15
DEF
55
70+15
70+15
SP.ATK
65
80+15
80+15
SP.DEF
65
80+15
80+15
SPE
90
105+15
105+15
BST
410D-Tier
500C-Tier+90
500C-Tier+90
ROLE
Balanced
Sweeper
Sweeper
TYPE
Physical
Physical
Physical

Breeding

Very Easy

Breed with Rapidash to get Ponyta eggs easily using 152 partners from the Ground egg group. Notable egg moves include Double Kick, Double-Edge, Horn Drill and 3 more.

Egg Groups
Ground
Gender
♂50.0%♀50.0%
Hatch Time
20 cycles·5,140 steps
Quick~5 min with Flame Body
Egg Moves
6moves
Breed With (best first)
raichupikachunidokinggolduckrhydonshiftryexploudquagsiremawilenidorinofarfetchdloudred
12 of 152·

Sword & Shield Rapidash Best Moveset

Flare Blitz is the safe click most turns. Choice Band locks Rapidash into it but rewards with raw power at the cost of move flexibility. Jolly nature and max Attack and Speed EVs maximize that first hit. Flashfire helps on the margins.

Best Build

Experimental
Ability
Flash Fire
Item
Choice BandPOWER
Best Nature for Rapidash
Jolly+SPE

Rapidash best EVs are Attack and Speed

EVs

Physical Sweeper Moveset

  • Flare BlitzSTAB
  • High Horsepower
  • Wild Charge
  • MegahornCoverage

Recommended Teammates

Rillaboom
RillaboomDecent
Slowking
SlowkingDecent
Buzzwole
BuzzwoleDecent

Moves

Stall teams hate this. Rapidash can spread damage across 11 types, with Bug and Poison punishing common defensive pivots. STAB from Overheat and Flare Blitz keeps the pressure honest on everything else.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Ember
D4010025Fire
Lv 1
Growl
——10040Normal
Lv 1
Megahorn
A1208510Bug
Lv 1
Poison Jab
C8010020Poison
Lv 1
Quick Attack+1
D4010030Normal
Lv 1
Smart Strike
C70—10Steel
Lv 1
Tackle
D4010035Normal
Lv 1
Tail Whip
——10030Normal
Lv 15
Flame Charge
S5010020Fire
Lv 20
Agility
C——30Psychic
Lv 25
Flame Wheel
C6010025Fire
Lv 30
Stomp
—6510020Normal
Lv 35
Fire Spin
D358515Fire
Lv 43
Take Down
C908520Normal
Lv 49
Inferno
—100505Fire
Lv 56
Fire Blast
S110855Fire
Lv 63
Flare Blitz
S12010015Fire

TM Moves

TM
TR12
Agility
C——30Psychic
TR83
Ally Switch+2
C——15Psychic
TM31
Attract
C—10015Normal
TR29
Baton Pass
C——40Normal
TR01
Body Slam
C8510015Normal
TM52
Bounce
C85855Flying
TM29
Charm
C—10020Fairy
TR87
Drill Run
C809510Ground
TR26
Endure+4
C——10Normal
TM39
Facade
C7010020Normal
TR15
Fire Blast
S110855Fire
TM13
Fire Spin
D358515Fire
TR02
Flamethrower
C9010015Fire
TR55
Flare Blitz
S12010015Fire
TM09
Giga Impact
B150905Normal
TR36
Heat Wave
C959010Fire
TR94
High Horsepower
A959510Ground
TM08
Hyper Beam
C150905Normal
TR31
Iron Tail
C1007515Steel
TR07
Low Kick
D—10020Fighting
TR28
Megahorn
A1208510Bug
TM92
Mystical Fire
C7510010Fire
TR43
Overheat
B130905Fire
TM02
Pay Day
—4010020Normal
TR90
Play Rough
C909010Fairy
TR57
Poison Jab
C8010020Poison
TM25
Protect+4
C——10Normal
TM21
Rest
C——10Psychic
TM76
Round
D6010015Normal
TR27
Sleep Talk
C——10Normal
TM96
Smart Strike
C70—10Steel
TM24
Snore
—5010015Normal
TM11
Solar Beam
C12010010Grass
TM12
Solar Blade
B12510010Grass
TR20
Substitute
C——10Normal
TM34
Sunny Day
B——5Fire
TM40
Swift
D60—20Normal
TM
Swords Dance
A——20Normal
TR95
Throat Chop
C8010015Dark
TR86
Wild Charge
A9010015Electric
TM38
Will-O-Wisp
C—8515Fire

Egg Moves

Egg
Egg
Double Kick
D3010030Fighting
Egg
Double-Edge
B12010015Normal
Egg
Horn Drill
——305Normal
Egg
Hypnosis
C—6020Psychic
Egg
Morning Sun
S——5Normal
Egg
Thrash
B12010010Normal

Tutor Moves

Tut
Tutor
Scorching Sands
D7010010Ground

Reminder Moves

Rem
Rem
Smart Strike
C70—10Steel

How to Get Rapidash in Sword & Shield

No wild encounters for Rapidash. The 2-stage line runs through Ponyta, which you can catch at moderate rates from the locations below. Evolve at level 40 once you've got the levels.

How to Obtain Rapidash in Sword & Shield

To get Rapidash, start by catching Ponyta through walking encounters at Lv. 34-65. The chain covers 1 catchable stage before reaching the final form.

  1. Ponyta
    Step 1Catch Ponyta
    Glimwood Tangle
    Overworld Lv.34-36 Forest
    10%Late
    Snowstorm
    Glimwood Tangle
    Grass Lv.34-36 Forest
    10%Late
    All Weather
    Glimwood Tangle
    Overworld Lv.34-36 Forest
    10%Late
    Thunderstorm
    Glimwood Tangle
    Overworld Lv.34-36 Forest
    10%Late
    Intense Sun
    Glimwood Tangle
    Overworld Lv.34-36 Forest
    10%Late
    Snowing
    Glimwood Tangle
    Overworld Lv.34-36 Forest
    10%Late
    Sandstorm
    Glimwood Tangle
    Overworld Lv.34-36 Forest
    10%Late
    Raining
    Glimwood Tangle
    Overworld Lv.34-37 Forest
    10%Late
    Heavy Fog
    Glimwood Tangle
    Overworld Lv.34-36 Forest
    10%Late
    Overcast
    Glimwood Tangle
    Overworld Lv.34-36 Forest
    10%Late
    Normal Weather
    Old Cemetery
    Overworld Lv.60-65
    10%Post
    Heavy Fog
  2. Rapidash
    Step 2Rapidash ✓

Rapidash Guide

  • In Sword & Shield, Don't let Rapidash's 500 base stat total fool you. Flash Fire is what makes it tick. It punches way above its weight class. We rate it C-Tier as a sweeper. Flare Blitz with Choice Band is the standard set.

  • In Sword & Shield, Rapidash's biggest threats include Gyarados (Water), Rhydon (Ground), and Golem (Rock), all carrying super-effective STAB moves. Rapidash's base 105 Speed lets it outpace many threats and strike first, which matters more than trying to tank hits.

  • In Sword & Shield, Run Flash Fire on Rapidash. It's the ability that defines how you build around it and the main reason it holds a competitive niche. Rapidash also gets Run Away and Flame Body, but they don't compare. With base 105 Speed, Flash Fire gives Rapidash an edge before opponents can react.

  • In Sword & Shield, Rapidash fills the sweeper role. It's a physical attacker with base 100 Attack. Base 105 Speed lets it outrun most of the field. And it's enough bulk to take a hit or two.

  • In Sword & Shield, the best way to handle Rapidash: Priority moves (Mach Punch, Aqua Jet, Ice Shard) bypass its speed. Bulky walls that resist its STAB also shut it down.

Game Availability

Rapidash first appeared in Red & Blue and spans 20 games across 10 generations. It later gained a Galarian form in Generation 8, adding new dimensions to its competitive identity.

Click a game to view version-specific details

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