Physical
Trick Room
510High
30Very Slow
CTier

Steelix was practically built for Trick Room teams. Sheer Force drops secondary effects for a straight power boost, and 200 base Defense gives it real offensive presence. Electric and Poison moves can't touch it, which offsets the 4 weaknesses somewhat. Known as the Iron Snake Pokemon.

Defense leads and Speed gets almost nothing. That's Steelix's stat line in a nutshell. 2 stats sit in respectable range, but the spread is brutal. Very hard to catch and yields 2 Defense EVs.

Base Stats
510High
HP75
C
Attack85
C
Defense200
S
Sp. Atk55
D
Sp. Def65
C
Speed30
F
Total510
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Steelix yields +2 Def
HPAtkDef+2SpASpDSpe
Details
Catch25Difficult•Medium Fast1M XP•9.2m / 30'02"•400kg / 881.8 lbs•179Base XP
Pokedex Entries

This Pokémon evolved through use of a strange item. Its body is coated with steel powder and notably hard—not even diamond can leave so much as a scratch.

Legends Arceus

Steelix Weakness

Excellent

Steelix is weak to Fire, Water, Fighting, and Ground-type moves. On the flip side, it's immune to Electric and Poison-type moves entirely. With 8 resistances, the defensive profile is strong. Steelix's physical bulk (base 200 Def) helps cushion physical weakness hits, but special attackers are the bigger threat.

4xCriticali
None
2xWeaki
FireWaterFightingGround
½xResisti
NormalFlyingPsychicBugDragonSteelFairy
¼xResisti
Rock
0xImmunei
ElectricPoison
STAB (7)i
IceRockFairyFireElectricPoisonSteel
4Weak
8Resist
2Immune
Scorei+7
SpikesGrounded — up to 25%
Abilities
Rock HeadProtects against recoil damage.
SturdyPrevents being KOed from full HP, leaving 1 HP instead. Protects against the one-hit KO moves regardless of HP.
Sheer ForceHAStrengthens moves with extra effects to 1.3× their power, but prevents their extra effects.

Getting Steelix requires a trade, not just grinding levels. The chain starts at Onix. Breed this form to get Onix eggs (average hatch time). HP grew the most through evolution (+40 over Onix), and Steelix peaks at 510 total stats.

How to Evolve

2 Forms
Onix
#095Onix
Trade + Metal Coat
Steelix
#208Steelix
Stat Comparison 2 Stages
Onix
RockGround
Steelix
SteelGround
HP
35
75+40
ATK
45
85+40
DEF
160
200+40
SP.ATK
30
55+25
SP.DEF
45
65+20
SPE
70
30-40
BST
385C-Tier
510C-Tier+125
ROLE
Balanced
Trick Room
TYPE
Utility
Physical
Breeding
Easy

Breed with Steelix to get Onix eggs easily using 23 partners from the Mineral egg group.

Egg Groups
Mineral
Gender
♂50.0%♀50.0%
Hatch Time
25 cycles·6,425 steps
Moderate~6 min with Flame Body
Breed With (best first)
avaluggglaliefroslasssnoruntbergmiteporygon2bronzongmagnezoneporygon-zprobopassgolemelectrode
12 of 23·

Brave nature gives Steelix the slow physical lean it needs to trade hits effectively. Leftovers adds passive recovery each turn, max HP and Attack EVs split the difference, and utility options punishes anything trying to wall it.

Best Build

Legends: Arceus uses different battle mechanics.

Competitive build content is not applicable for this game. Select a main series game for builds.

A solid spread overall. Steelix gets Steel Beam and Iron Tail for same-type damage alongside coverage across 8 types. It won't blow anyone away, but it doesn't leave you stuck either.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Rollout
309020Rock
Lv 6
Tackle
4010035Normal
Lv 11
Bulldoze
6010020Ground
Lv 18
Rock Slide
759010Rock
Lv 25
Stealth Rock
——20Rock
Lv 34
High Horsepower
959510Ground
Lv 43
Iron Tail
1007515Steel

TM Moves

Steelix can't learn any TM moves

Egg Moves

Steelix doesn't have any Egg moves

Tutor Moves

Src
Tutor
Aqua Tail
909010Water
Tutor
Bulldoze
6010020Ground
Tutor
Dark Pulse
8010015Dark
Tutor
Earth Power
9010010Ground
Tutor
Fire Fang
659515Fire
Tutor
Flash Cannon
8010010Steel
Tutor
Giga Impact
150905Normal
Tutor
High Horsepower
959510Ground
Tutor
Hyper Beam
150905Normal
Tutor
Ice Ball
309020Ice
Tutor
Ice Fang
659515Ice
Tutor
Iron Head
8010015Steel
Tutor
Iron Tail
1007515Steel
Tutor
Power Shift
——10Normal
Tutor
Rest
——10Psychic
Tutor
Rock Slide
759010Rock
Tutor
Rock Smash
4010015Fighting
Tutor
Stealth Rock
——20Rock
Tutor
Steel Beam
140955Steel
Tutor
Stone Edge
100805Rock
Tutor
Thunder Fang
659515Electric

A trade step sits in Steelix's 2-stage line from Onix. The step cards below map each stage with catch locations and evolution methods. Onix shows up at decent rates, so the starting catch is the easy part.

Trade Evolution Required — Requires trading with another player

Where To Catch Steelix in Legends: Arceus

The path to Steelix starts with Onix at walking via walking encounters. 2 catchable stages total, with locations listed for each one below.

  1. Onix
    Step 1Catch Onix
    Bolderoll Slope
    GrassUncommon
    EASY
    Celestica Trail
    GrassUncommonRoute
    EASY
    Lake Valor
    GrassUncommonWater
    EASY
    Scarlet Bog
    GrassUncommonSwamp
    EASY
  2. Steelix
    Step 2Steelix ✓
    Celestica Trail
    GrassUncommonRoute
    EASY
    or evolve from Onix (Step 1)

  • Sheer Force changes the entire equation for Steelix. The 510 BST doesn't tell the full story. Ranked C-Tier as a trick room.

  • Steelix's biggest threats include Charizard (Fire), Starmie (Water), and Machamp (Fighting), all carrying super-effective STAB moves. Ground-type attackers are also a problem. At base 30 Speed, Steelix won't outrun any of these threats so switching to a resist is usually the safer play.

  • Onix evolves into Steelix while holding a Metal Coat. Steelix is the fully evolved form. At 510 BST, it's got solid stats to work with.

  • Sheer Force is what you want on Steelix. Every competitive set worth running is built with that ability in mind. The alternatives (Rock Head, Sturdy) work on paper but Sheer Force is what makes Steelix worth using.

  • Base 30 Speed is low. Priority moves or Trick Room are the way to go. On offense, Steelix is a physical attacker with base 85 Attack. Defensively? Tanky enough to absorb a few hits. Best used as a trick room.

  • Steelix appears in 18 games, including Gold & Silver, Crystal, and Ruby & Sapphire.

Obtainable through a trade evolution, Steelix appears in 18 titles across 8 generations since Gold & Silver. The evolution method adds a barrier that wild-catchable Pokemon don't have.