Special
Support
290Low
25Very Slow
DTier

Mid-stage Pokemon like Spheal rarely see competitive play outside of special formats. It's a waypoint on the road to Walrein, which is where the real potential kicks in. Only weak to Electric, Grass, Fighting, and Rock. Known as the Clap Pokemon.

Spheal's spread isn't flashy. HP leads, Speed trails, 0 stats clear the bar. Easy to catch and worth 1 HP EV, on a 1.06M XP medium-slow curve.

Base Stats
290Below
HP70
C
Attack40
D
Defense50
D
Sp. Atk55
D
Sp. Def50
D
Speed25
F
Total290
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Spheal yields +1 HP
HP+1AtkDefSpASpDSpe
Details
Catch255GuaranteedMedium Slow1.06M XP0.8m / 2'07"39.5kg / 87.1 lbs58Base XP
Pokedex Entries

It rolls across ice floes to reach shore because its body is poorly shaped for swimming.

Brilliant Diamond / Shining Pearl

Spheal Weakness

Vulnerable

Spheal's Ice/Water typing leaves it vulnerable to Electric, Grass, Fighting, and Rock moves. Thick Fat reduces Fire/Ice damage, further improving the defensive spread.

4xCriticali
None
½xResisti
¼xResisti
0xImmunei
None
4Weak
2Resist
0Immune
Scorei-5
Stealth Rock25% on switch
SpikesGrounded — up to 25%
Toxic SpikesVulnerable
Abilities
Thick FatHalves damage from fire and ice moves.
Ice BodyHeals for 1/16 max HP after each turn during hail. Protects against hail damage.
ObliviousHAPrevents infatuation and protects against captivate.
Thick Fat reduces Fire/Ice to ½x

Spheal is the start of a three-stage chain. It evolves into Sealeo first, then eventually reaches Walrein. For breeding, average hatch time with no compatible partners via two egg groups. The evolved forms gain up to 240 total stats over Spheal.

How to Evolve

3 Forms
Stat Comparison 3 Stages
Spheal
IceWater
Sealeo
IceWater
Walrein
IceWater
HP
70
90+20
110+20
ATK
40
60+20
80+20
DEF
50
70+20
90+20
SP.ATK
55
75+20
95+20
SP.DEF
50
70+20
90+20
SPE
25
45+20
65+20
BST
290D-Tier
410D-Tier+120
530C-Tier+120
ROLE
Balanced
Balanced
Balanced
TYPE
Utility
Special
Mixed
Breeding
Very Easy

Breed Spheal easily from the Ground and Water1 egg groups. Pass egg moves like Aqua Ring, Belly Drum, Curse and 6 more to offspring.

Egg Groups
GroundWater1
Gender
50.0%50.0%
Hatch Time
20 cycles·5,140 steps
Quick~5 min with Flame Body
Egg Moves
9moves

Nothing and Icebody form the backbone. Spheal invests a spread EV build EVs to play its attacker role properly, and Hardy nature pushes higher. Waterfall handles the heavy lifting on offense. The remaining moves rounds it out.

Best Build

Utility
Ability
Icebody
Item
Nothing
Nature
Hardy
EVs

Best Spheal Moveset

  • Aurora BeamSTAB
  • WaterfallSTAB
  • Aqua TailSTAB
  • Ice BeamSTAB

Recommended Teammates

You'll want to breed for Aqua Ring and Belly Drum on Spheal. These egg moves aren't just nice to have. Combined with STAB from Blizzard and Surf, they expand what Spheal can actually threaten in practice.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Defense Curl
40Normal
Lv 1
Rollout
309020Rock
Lv 4
Growl
10040Normal
Lv 8
Water Gun
4010025Water
Lv 12
Powder Snow
4010025Ice
Lv 16
Rest
10Psychic
Lv 20
Snore
5010015Normal
Lv 24
Brine
6510010Water
Lv 28
Aurora Beam
6510020Ice
Lv 33
Encore
1005Normal
Lv 36
Body Slam
8510015Normal
Lv 40
Surf
9010015Water
Lv 44
Blizzard
110705Ice
Lv 48
Hail
10Ice
Lv 52
Sheer Cold
305Ice

TM Moves

Src
TM45
Attract
10015Normal
TM14
Blizzard
110705Ice
TM55
Brine
6510010Water
TM83
Bulldoze
6010020Ground
TM32
Double Team
15Normal
TM26
Earthquake
10010010Ground
TM58
Endure+4
10Normal
TM42
Facade
7010020Normal
TM07
Hail
10Ice
TM13
Ice Beam
9010010Ice
TM23
Iron Tail
1007515Steel
TM17
Protect+4
10Normal
TM18
Rain Dance
5Water
TM44
Rest
10Psychic
TM80
Rock Slide
759010Rock
TM98
Rock Smash
4010015Fighting
TM39
Rock Tomb
609515Rock
TM82
Sleep Talk
10Normal
TM96
Strength
8010015Normal
TM90
Substitute
10Normal
TM95
Surf
9010015Water
TM87
Swagger
8515Normal
TM03
Water Pulse
6010020Water
TM99
Waterfall
8010015Water

Egg Moves

Src
Egg
Aqua Ring
20Water
Egg
Belly Drum
10Normal
Egg
Curse
10Ghost
Egg
Fissure
305Ground
Egg
Rollout
309020Rock
Egg
Spit Up
10010Normal
Egg
Stockpile
20Normal
Egg
Swallow
10Normal
Egg
Yawn
10Normal

Tutor Moves

Spheal can't learn any Tutor moves

Spheal starts showing up in late-game routes at high spawn rates across 5 encounter spots. The list below is sorted so you can pick what fits your current progress without scrolling through everything.

Best Locations

Walking and surfing encounters at Lv. 35-63 across 5 spots for Spheal. Sorted by progression so you can see what's reachable at your current point in the game.

Route 226
Surfing on waterLv.35-4530%LateRoute
EASY
Route 230
Surfing on waterLv.35-4530%LateRoute
EASY
Glacial Cavern
GrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
Icy Cave
GrassLv.58-63PostIcePost-game
Whiteout Cave
GrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
  • Spheal isn't fully evolved, so it's not built for competitive play. You'll want to evolve it into Sealeo to unlock its full potential. At 290 BST, it's a stepping stone rather than a team anchor.

  • Watch for Jolteon (Electric), Exeggutor (Grass), and Blaziken (Fighting) when using Spheal. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Rock-type attackers are also a problem. At base 25 Speed, Spheal won't outrun any of these threats so switching to a resist is usually the safer play.

  • Spheal evolves into Sealeo at level 32. Spheal is the base form in a 3-stage evolutionary line.

  • Run Thick Fat on Spheal. It's the ability that defines how you build around it and the main reason it holds a competitive niche. Spheal also gets Ice Body and Oblivious, but they don't compare.

  • Spheal fills the support role. It's a special attacker with base 55 Sp. Atk. Base 25 Speed is low. Priority moves or Trick Room are the way to go.

  • Spheal appears in 15 games, including Ruby & Sapphire, FireRed & LeafGreen, and Emerald.

Spheal first appeared in Ruby & Sapphire and has been available in 15 games across 7 generations. Obtainable through catching or hatching as a base form in most titles where it appears.