Is Staryu Good in HeartGold & SoulSilver Playthrough?
Olivine City and Cianwood City fishing during the story. Water-type with AbilityNatural Cure clearing status on switch. Starmie at Water Stone is one of the best special attackers in HGSS. Fast, versatile, and available before the back half of the gym circuit.
Staryu has the type edge here and should clean up Falkner's team.
Staryu has the type edge here and should clean up Bugsy's team.
Staryu trades roughly evenly with Whitney's team.
Staryu trades roughly evenly with Morty's team.
Starmie trades roughly evenly with Chuck's team.
Starmie has the type edge here and should clean up Jasmine's team.
Starmie has the type edge here and should clean up Pryce's team.
Starmie trades roughly evenly with Clair's team.
Starmie resists most of Brock's coverage and hits back hard.
Starmie trades roughly evenly with Misty's team.
Starmie has the type edge here and should clean up Lt. Surge's team.
Starmie trades roughly evenly with Erika's team.
Starmie has the type edge here and should clean up Janine's team.
Starmie trades roughly evenly with Sabrina's team.
Starmie resists most of Blaine's coverage and hits back hard.
Starmie has the type edge here and should clean up Blue's team.
Starmie has the type edge here and should clean up Will's team.
Starmie has the type edge here and should clean up Koga's team.
Starmie has the type edge here and should clean up Bruno's team.
Starmie has the type edge here and should clean up Karen's team.
Starmie has the type edge here and should clean up Lance's team.
Catchable
Catch Staryu in Cherrygrove City (Good Rod fishing, Lv 20, rare).
Recommended Moves
- After Bugsy
- TM14IceBlizzardPower 120Accuracy 70%PP 5Goldenrod Department Store
- TM25ElectricThunderPower 120Accuracy 70%PP 10Goldenrod Department Store
- TM13IceIce BeamPower 95Accuracy 100%PP 10Goldenrod Game Corner
- TM24ElectricThunderboltPower 95Accuracy 100%PP 15Goldenrod Game Corner
- After Whitney
- HM03WaterSurfPower 143Accuracy 100%PP 15Gift from a Kimono Girl in the Ecruteak Dance Theater
- LV 28WaterBubble BeamPower 98Accuracy 100%PP 20
- After Pryce
- HM07WaterWaterfallPower 120Accuracy 100%PP 15Item ball on Ice Path 1F
- LV 55WaterHydro PumpPower 180Accuracy 80%PP 5
Evolve Staryu to Starmie
Staryu evolves into Starmie with a Water Stone. You can receive the Water Stone from an NPC in Route 42. 2 other locations are also available.
Recommended Moves
- After Bugsy
- TM15NormalHyper BeamPower 150Accuracy 90%PP 5Goldenrod Department Store
- TM14IceBlizzardPower 120Accuracy 70%PP 5Goldenrod Department Store
- TM25ElectricThunderPower 120Accuracy 70%PP 10Goldenrod Department Store
- TM13IceIce BeamPower 95Accuracy 100%PP 10Goldenrod Game Corner
- TM24ElectricThunderboltPower 95Accuracy 100%PP 15Goldenrod Game Corner
- After Whitney
- HM03WaterSurfPower 143Accuracy 100%PP 15Gift from a Kimono Girl in the Ecruteak Dance Theater
- After Pryce
- HM07WaterWaterfallPower 120Accuracy 100%PP 15Item ball on Ice Path 1F
- After Jasmine
- TM43NormalSecret PowerPower 70Accuracy 100%PP 20Lake of Rage
How to Get Staryu in HeartGold & SoulSilver
Staryu is a single-spot surf encounter, uncommon, sitting around levels 15 to 25. Just the one place to find it, so there is no shopping around for a better location.
Wild Staryu may be holding when caught:
Stardust (50% chance) Lovely, red-colored sand with a loose, silky feel. It can be sold at a high price to shops.
Star Piece (5% chance) A shard of a pretty gem that sparkles in a red color. It can be sold at a high price to shops.8 locations to catch Staryu
Encountered via fishing with a Rod, Surfing
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Badge 8Where To Catch Staryu in HGSS
Staryu is where the line starts, caught through fishing and surfing encounters at Lv. 15-40. The chain covers 1 catchable stage before reaching the final form.
- Step 1Staryu ✓Route 47Lv.15-25Surfing on waterRate 10%Cherrygrove CityLv.20Good RodRate 10%NightCianwood CityLv.20Good RodRate 10%NightOlivine CityLv.20Good RodRate 10%NightRoute 34Lv.20Good RodRate 10%NightRoute 40Lv.20Good RodRate 10%NightUnion Cave - B2FLv.20Good RodRate 10%NightRoute 19Lv.20Good RodRate 10%NightCherrygrove CityLv.40Super RodRate 30%NightCianwood CityLv.40Super RodRate 30%NightOlivine CityLv.40Super RodRate 30%NightRoute 34Lv.40Super RodRate 30%NightRoute 40Lv.40Super RodRate 30%NightUnion Cave - B2FLv.40Super RodRate 30%NightRoute 19Lv.40Super RodRate 30%Night
- Step 2Evolve into Starmie
Want the exact numbers? Work out your catch odds in HeartGold & SoulSilver for Staryu.
How to Get Shiny Staryu in HeartGold & SoulSilver
Staryu drifts in the water off Route 47, but a shiny comes faster from Masuda breeding with a foreign parent. Compare Shiny Staryu odds across every game
HeartGold & SoulSilver Shiny Staryu Calculator
2 MethodsThe best route is Masuda Method, about 1 in 1,639 on each try.
Masuda Method: Breed with a parent from a different-language game. Works on any breedable line.
Full Odds: Walk through grass, surf, or fish. Every encounter is its own independent shiny roll.
How many you have done, or plan to do.
| Chance | Encounters | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 10%lucky few | 173-- | -- |
| 25%one in four | 472-- | -- |
| 50%coin flip | 1,136-- | -- |
| 90%very likely | 3,773-- | -- |
Time assumes -- at your pace and does not change your shiny odds.
How is this calculated?
Every encounter has the same shiny chance, the Shiny Odds Per Try shown above. Each one is a separate roll that does not care how many you have already done, so the more you hunt, the higher your overall chance of at least one shiny. The formula below turns your odds and your number of tries into that combined chance.
chance after N tries = 1 − (1 − p)^N, where p = 1 / odds per try
Example at 1 in 8,192 (classic full odds): about 864 encounters for a 10 percent chance, 5,678 for 50 percent, and 18,862 for 90 percent.
The table above flips that around: it shows how many encounters it takes to reach a 10, 25, 50, and 90 percent chance at your current odds. Turning on boosts like the Shiny Charm, sandwiches, or chains improves your odds, so the encounter numbers drop.
These are estimates, not promises. Most games have no pity counter, meaning no guaranteed shiny no matter how many you hunt, so even Very Likely is not guaranteed: some hunters find one early, others go well past that point.
Curious how fast a hunt could go? Work out your HeartGold & SoulSilver shiny odds for Staryu.
Staryu Weakness
Staryu is weak to Electric and Grass. It resists 4 types, giving it decent defensive coverage. Only 2 weaknesses makes it relatively easy to build around defensively.
| 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 Staryu Weak Against
GoodBest Pokemon Against Staryu
 Parasect BugGrass | C | |
 Cacturne GrassDark | B | |
 Victreebel GrassPoison | C | |
 Vileplume GrassPoison | C | |
 Carnivine Grass | C | |
 Meganium Grass | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Chikorita (New Bark Town Gift) | ||
 Magnezone ElectricSteel | A | |
 Jolteon Electric | B | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Eevee (Goldenrod City Gift) | ||
 Ampharos Electric | C | |
 Jumpluff Grass | C | |
Obtain MethodSafari Zone Surfing | ||
 Plusle Electric | B | |
 Electrode Electric | B | |
Obtain MethodTeam Rocket Hq Interact Encounter | ||
 Luxray Electric | C | |
 Budew GrassPoison | C | |
Staryu Evolutions
Evolving Staryu into Starmie takes an evolution item. It's not a simple level-up, so check the chain details below. Evolving adds up to 180 stat points total. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
Breeding
Staryu is genderless and can only breed with Ditto. Part of the Water 3 egg group.
Ditto onlyHGSS Staryu Best Moveset
85 Speed with AbilityNatural Cure clearing status on every switch. 70 Sp. Atk provides some special damage. Defensive utility through status immunity that needs Starmie's stats to fully function.
Best Build
Staryu best EVs are Sp. Atk and Speed
Special Sweeper Moveset
- Rapid Spin
- Ice Beam
- Hydro Pump
- Thunderbolt
Recommended Teammates
Moves List
Staryu develops a solid moveset just through leveling. Hydro Pump and Blizzard show up naturally, and the progression handles both STAB and utility without leaning on TMs for the core attacks.
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
All 22 TMs are obtainable before the Elite Four
Egg Moves
Tutor Moves
Base Stats
At night, the middle of its body slowly flickers with the same rhythm as a human heartbeat.
Even if its body is torn, it can regenerate as long as the glowing central core remains intact.
Staryu HeartGold & SoulSilver Guide
Yes. Wild Staryu in HeartGold & SoulSilver can hold Stardust (50%) or Star Piece (5%). Use Thief (TM46) or Covet to swipe the held item without affecting your catch chance. Quickest way to farm rare items like Stardust.
In HeartGold & SoulSilver, Staryu does the job early-game if you need a Water type on your team. Evolve it into Starmie before the later gyms and it holds up fine through the story.
Game Availability
Staryu has been part of the series since Red & Blue, appearing in 20 titles across all 9 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 7Let's Go
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
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