Almost nobody uses Sunkern in battle. It exists to evolve into Sunflora, which is a completely different story. Get it there and you won't regret it. Part of the Gen 2 roster. 5 type weaknesses to keep in mind.
You won't find a real weakness in Sunkern's stat line. It's well-rounded for the Seed Pokemon, and what it does with that depends on moveset and items. Yields 1 Sp. Atk EV, on a 1.06M XP medium-slow curve.
It suddenly falls out of the sky in the morning. Knowing it’s weak, it simply feeds until it evolves.
It is very weak. Its only means of defense is to shake its leaves desperately at its attacker.
Sunkern Weakness
FragileSunkern's Grass typing leaves it vulnerable to Fire, Ice, Poison, Flying, and Bug moves. The Grass typing picks up 4 resistances to work with.
To get Sunflora from Sunkern, you need an evolution item. The evolution method matters here. The evolved forms gain up to 245 total stats over Sunkern.
How to Evolve
Breed Sunkern easily with 89 breeding partners from the Plant egg group.
One guaranteed turn is all Sunkern needs. Focus Sash buys it, a spread EV build EVs make it count, and Chlorophyll adds something extra. The goal: deal early damage and deal damage with Absorb. The remaining moves gives it play beyond just the lead turn.
Best Build
Best Sunkern Moveset
- Leech Seed
- Grass Knot
- Absorb
- Magical Leaf
Recommended Teammates
The level-up pool is slim, so TMs matter here. Sunkern's Normal and Ground coverage all comes from technical machines, built on top of Leaf Storm and Solar Beam for same-type damage. Solar Beam and Double-Edge are the payoff moves.
Level-Up Moves
TM Moves
Egg Moves
Tutor Moves
The natural movepool does the job, but Curse and Encore from the egg pool give Sunkern something extra. Pair those with Solar Beam and Energy Ball for STAB and Normal and Poison coverage for reach, and the kit fills out nicely.
The natural movepool does the job, but Bide and Curse from the egg pool give Sunkern something extra. Pair those with Solar Beam and Energy Ball for STAB and Normal and Poison coverage for reach, and the kit fills out nicely.
The natural movepool does the job, but Bide and Curse from the egg pool give Sunkern something extra. Pair those with Solar Beam and Energy Ball for STAB and Normal and Poison coverage for reach, and the kit fills out nicely.
Easy grab on Sunkern with high spawn rates across 28 locations in early-game routes. The sorted list below shows the full spread so you can pick the most convenient spot.
Best Locations
Which version you're playing matters for Sunkern. 28 walking spots at Lv. 5-12 spread across Scarlet and Violet, and some routes only appear in one cartridge. Check the version badges below.
decent spawn rates across 6 locations for Sunkern in early-game routes. Scroll the sorted list below and pick whichever spot sits closest to your current route. The rate differences between locations are worth comparing.
Best Locations
6 walking and special encounters at Lv. 6-63 for Sunkern across Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl. A few locations are version-exclusive, so your copy of the game affects what's available.
Sunkern can't be caught in Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon. Bring it over from Gold, Crystal, or Scarlet instead. The encounter info below covers the source games.
At 180 BST, Sunkern is firmly in pre-evolution territory. Evolve it into Sunflora before bringing it to any serious fight.
Watch for Arcanine (Fire), Lapras (Ice), and Nidoking (Poison) when using Sunkern. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Flying and Bug-type attackers are also a problem. With 5 weakness types, most competitive teams carry at least one counter. At base 30 Speed, Sunkern won't outrun any of these threats so switching to a resist is usually the safer play.
Sunkern evolves into Sunflora using a Sun Stone. Sunkern is the base form of this evolutionary line.
Sunkern gets Chlorophyll, Solar Power, and Early Bird. But Chlorophyll is the one that matters — it's the centerpiece of every viable set. Build around that.
Sunkern is a physical attacker with base 30 Attack. Fragile — can't afford to take many hits, too. But the speed tells the real story — base 30 Speed is low. Priority moves or Trick Room are the way to go.
Sunkern appears in 16 games, including Gold & Silver, Crystal, and Ruby & Sapphire.
Since Gold & Silver, Sunkern has been in 16 games. Requiring an item-based evolution to obtain means it's consistently available but requires more effort than simply catching it in the wild.
- Gen IY
Yellow - Gen IRB
Red & Blue - Gen IIGSDebut
Gold & Silver - Gen IIC
Crystal - Gen IIIRS
Ruby & Sapphire - Gen IIIFRLG
FireRed & LeafGreen - Gen IIIE
Emerald - Gen IVPt
Platinum - Gen IVHGSS
HeartGold & SoulSilver - Gen IVDP
Diamond & Pearl - Gen VBW
Black & White - Gen VB2W2
Black 2 & White 2 - Gen VIXY
X & Y - Gen VIORAS
Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire - Gen VIIUSUM
Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon - Gen VIISM
Sun & Moon - Gen VIILGPE
Let's Go Pikachu & Eevee - Gen VIIISwSh
Sword & Shield - Gen VIIIPLA
Legends: Arceus - Gen VIIIBDSP
Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl - Gen IXSV
Scarlet & Violet - Gen IXLZA
Legends: Z-A