Is Shellder Good in Black 2 & White 2 Playthrough?
Water with AbilitySkill Link guaranteeing five hits on multi-hit moves. Wild on surfing routes. Water Stone for Cloyster. AbilitySkill Link is the real prize here. Once Cloyster gets Shell Smash, the combination is devastating.
Shellder has the type edge here and should clean up Cheren's team.
Shellder has the type edge here and should clean up Roxie's team.
Shellder trades roughly evenly with Burgh's team.
Shellder trades roughly evenly with Elesa's team.
Shellder has the type edge here and should clean up Clay's team.
Skyla's typing presses Shellder's defenses.
Cloyster has the type edge here and should clean up Drayden's team.
Cloyster trades roughly evenly with Marlon's team.
Cloyster trades roughly evenly with Shauntal's team.
Cloyster has the type edge here and should clean up Grimsley's team.
Cloyster trades roughly evenly with Caitlin's team.
Cloyster trades roughly evenly with Marshal's team.
Cloyster trades roughly evenly with Iris's team.
Catch Shellder on Undella Town (Super Rod fishing, Lv 40-60, common).
You can pick up the Water Stone in Chargestone Cave. 8 other locations are also available.
How to Get Shellder in Black 2 & White 2
Shellder appears at high spawn rates across 8 spots in late-game fishing spots. Sort by Best below if you want the highest rate, or Earliest if you want the quickest access point in your playthrough.
Where To Catch Shellder in B2W2
Shellder is your first catch on the way to Shellder. You'll find fishing and walking encounters from Lv. 40-70 across 16 total spots in the chain.
Step 1Shellder ✓Route 13Lv.40-60Super RodRate 70%AnyUndella TownLv.40-60Super RodRate 40%AnyHumilau CityLv.40-60Super RodRate 30%AnySeaside Cave - 1FLv.40-60Super RodRate 30%Any
Step 2Catch or Evolve into CloysterHumilau CityLv.50-70Rippling Water FishRate 100%AnyShaking spotRoute 13Lv.50-70Rippling Water FishRate 100%AnyShaking spotUndella TownLv.50-70Rippling Water FishRate 100%AnyShaking spotSeaside Cave - 1FLv.50-70Rippling Water FishRate 5%AnyShaking spotor evolve from Shellder (Step 1)
Shellder Weakness
Type-wise, Shellder takes extra damage from Electric and Grass. It resists 4 types, giving it decent defensive coverage. Shellder's physical bulk (base 100 Def) helps cushion physical weakness hits, but special attackers are the bigger threat.
| Damage | Types |
|---|---|
| 2x (Weak) | Electric, Grass |
| 0.5x (Resist) | Fire, Water, Ice, Steel |
- Fairy type does not exist — Dragon has fewer checks
- Physical / Special split now per-move (introduced Gen IV)
What is Shellder Weak Against
GoodBest Pokemon Against Shellder
 Snivy Grass | D | |
Obtain MethodAspertia City Gift | ||
Snivy Grass | D | |
Obtain MethodAspertia City Gift | ||
 Sewaddle BugGrass | D | |
 Flaaffy Electric | C | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Shellder View Flaaffy builds →Thunder Shock 2x91-109%KO | ||
 Magnemite ElectricSteel | C | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Shellder View Magnemite builds →Thunder Shock 2x102-123%KO | ||
 Sunkern Grass | D | |
 Lilligant Grass | C | |
 Leafeon Grass | B | |
 Whimsicott Grass | C | |
 Servine Grass | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Snivy (Aspertia City Gift) | ||
 Swadloon BugGrass | C | |
 Maractus Grass | C | |
Lilligant Grass | C | |
 Sunflora Grass | C | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Shellder View Sunflora builds →Petal Dance 2x346-407%KO | ||
Leafeon Grass | B | |
Whimsicott Grass | C | |
Maractus Grass | C | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Shellder View Maractus builds →Petal Dance 2x345-407%KO | ||
 Roselia GrassPoison | C | |
Sunflora Grass | C | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Shellder View Sunflora builds →Petal Dance 2x343-404%KO | ||
 Leavanny BugGrass | C | |
Lilligant Grass | C | |
Maractus Grass | C | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Shellder View Maractus builds →Petal Dance 2x360-425%KO | ||
Lilligant Grass | C | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Shellder View Lilligant builds →Petal Dance 2x373-440%KO | ||
Roselia GrassPoison | C | |
Sunflora Grass | C | |
Leafeon Grass | B | |
Maractus Grass | C | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Shellder View Maractus builds →Petal Dance 2x352-415%KO | ||
Lilligant Grass | C | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Shellder View Lilligant builds →Petal Dance 2x366-432%KO | ||
Roselia GrassPoison | C | |
Sunflora Grass | C | |
Leafeon Grass | B | |
Maractus Grass | C | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Shellder View Maractus builds →Petal Dance 2x370-436%KO | ||
 Roserade GrassPoison | B | |
Lilligant Grass | C | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Shellder View Lilligant builds →Petal Dance 2x383-451%KO | ||
 Tangrowth Grass | B | |
Sunflora Grass | C | |
In Black 2 & White 2, Rotom can KO Shellder with Thunderbolt (242-285%).
 Rotom ElectricGhost | C | |
Recommended Build AbilityLevitate ItemChoice Scarf NatureTimid Moves
Damage vs Shellder View Rotom builds →Volt Switch 2x189-222%KO Shadow Ball107-127%KO Thunderbolt 2x242-285%KO | ||
Shellder Evolutions
Evolving Shellder into Cloyster takes an evolution item. It's not a simple level-up, so check the chain details below. Evolving adds up to 220 stat points total. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
B2W2 Shellder Best Moveset
100 Defense behind Water typing absorbs physical hits, but 30 HP undermines the bulk. AbilitySkill Link makes multi-hit moves connect five times every turn, but the moveset needs Cloyster's MoveShell Smash to become the devastating attacker the ability enables. Pre-evolution of one of the format's most dangerous setup threats.
Best Build
Shellder best EVs are Attack and Speed
Physical Sweeper Moveset
- Shell Smash
- Rapid Spin
- Rock Blast
- Icicle Spear
Recommended Teammates
Moves List
The egg pool carries weight here. Aqua Ring and Avalanche aren't available any other way for Shellder, and they meaningfully change what it threatens. Stack those on top of Hydro Pump and Surf for solid options.
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
Transfer Moves
Base Stats
It swims backward by opening and closing its two shells. Its large tongue is always kept hanging out.
Shellder Black 2 & White 2 Guide
In Black 2 & White 2, Shellder does the job early-game if you need a Water type on your team. Evolve it into Cloyster before the later gyms and it holds up fine through the story.
Game Availability
Shellder has been part of the series since Red & Blue, appearing in 20 titles across all 10 generations. As a Gen 1 original, it's one of the most consistently available Pokemon in the franchise.
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 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