Is Swellow Good in Black 2 & White 2 Playthrough?
Normal/Flying at level 22 with AbilityGuts. Transfer only. If imported, AbilityGuts with a Flame Orb makes it one of the strongest Normal/Flying attackers. Handles Marshal through Flying.
Taillow has the type edge here and should clean up Cheren's team.
Taillow has the type edge here and should clean up Roxie's team.
Swellow resists most of Burgh's coverage and hits back hard.
Swellow trades roughly evenly with Elesa's team.
Swellow trades roughly evenly with Clay's team.
Swellow trades roughly evenly with Skyla's team.
Swellow trades roughly evenly with Drayden's team.
Swellow trades roughly evenly with Marlon's team.
Swellow trades roughly evenly with Shauntal's team.
Swellow trades roughly evenly with Grimsley's team.
Swellow trades roughly evenly with Caitlin's team.
Swellow has the type edge here and should clean up Marshal's team.
Swellow trades roughly evenly with Iris's team.
Swellow cannot be caught in this game. It must be traded in from a compatible game where it appears in the wild. Cross-region trading typically becomes available after defeating the Elite Four. Alternatively, transfer the pre-evolution and level it up to Lv 22.
How to Get Swellow in Black 2 & White 2
Swellow can't be caught in Black 2 & White 2. Transfer Taillow from Ruby & Sapphire, Emerald, or Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire and evolve through the 2-stage line to get it. The step cards below map the full chain.
How to Obtain Swellow in B2W2
Step 1Obtain TaillowLATER APPEARANCEfrom Ruby & SapphireNot TradeableAppears in Ruby & Sapphire via Walking · Route 115. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCEfrom EmeraldNot TradeableAppears in Emerald via Walking · Route 115. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCENot TradeableAppears in HeartGold & SoulSilver via Headbutt special · Cherrygrove City · Post-National Dex. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCEfrom X & YNot TradeableAppears in X & Y via Walking · Route 8 · Horde battle. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCENot TradeableAppears in Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire via Walking · Route 115. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.- Step 2Swellow ✓
Swellow Weakness
Electric, Ice, and Rock moves hit Swellow for super-effective damage. The upside? Ground and Ghost-type moves can't touch it at all. At base 125 Speed, Swellow outspeeds most threats and doesn't need to tank what it can outrun.
| Damage | Types |
|---|---|
| 2x (Weak) | Electric, Ice, Rock |
| 0.5x (Resist) | Grass, Bug |
| 0x (Immune) | Ground, Ghost |
- Fairy type does not exist — Dragon has fewer checks
- Physical / Special split now per-move (introduced Gen IV)
What is Swellow Weak Against
GoodBest Pokemon Against Swellow
 Aggron SteelRock | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Swellow View Aggron builds →Rock Slide 2x104-122%KO Thunder 2x77-91% Blizzard 2x77-91% | ||
 Magnezone ElectricSteel | A | |
 Dwebble BugRock | C | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Swellow View Dwebble builds →Rock Wrecker 2x135-159%KO | ||
 Glaceon Ice | C | |
 Beartic Ice | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Swellow View Beartic builds →Icicle Crash 2x133-157%KO Rock Slide 2x78-92% | ||
Aggron SteelRock | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Swellow View Aggron builds →Rock Slide 2x101-120%KO Thunder 2x76-90% Blizzard 2x76-90% | ||
 Terrakion RockFighting | B | |
Obtain MethodRoute 22 Interact Encounter | ||
Magnezone ElectricSteel | A | |
Dwebble BugRock | C | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Swellow View Dwebble builds →Rock Wrecker 2x133-157%KO | ||
Glaceon Ice | C | |
 Rampardos Rock | B | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Cranidos (Nacrene City Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Swellow View Rampardos builds →Head Smash 2x290-341%KO Thunderbolt 2x64-76% Ice Beam 2x64-76% | ||
Aggron SteelRock | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Swellow View Aggron builds →Stone Edge 2x136-160%KO Thunderbolt 2x61-71% Ice Beam 2x61-71% | ||
 Relicanth WaterRock | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Swellow View Relicanth builds →Head Smash 2x172-202%KO Ice Beam 2x49-57% | ||
 Kyurem DragonIce | B | |
Obtain MethodGiant Chasm Interact Encounter Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Swellow View Kyurem builds →Ice Beam 2x171-201%KO Stone Edge 2x105-123%KO | ||
 Tyranitar RockDark | A | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Swellow View Tyranitar builds →Stone Edge 2x161-190%KO Ice Beam 2x87-103%KO Thunderbolt 2x87-103%KO | ||
In Black 2 & White 2, Raikou can KO Swellow with Thunderbolt (232-274%). Weavile threatens a KO with Ice Shard (95-111%). Rhyperior's Stone Edge also KOs at 329-387%.
 Raikou Electric | B | |
Recommended Build AbilityPressure ItemLife Orb NatureTimid Moves
Damage vs Swellow View Raikou builds →Thunderbolt 2x232-274%KO Aura Sphere69-81% | ||
 Weavile DarkIce | B | |
Recommended Build AbilityPressure ItemLife Orb NatureJolly Moves
Damage vs Swellow View Weavile builds →Ice Shard 2x95-111%KO | ||
 Rhyperior GroundRock | B | |
Recommended Build AbilitySolidrock ItemChoice Band NatureAdamant Moves
Damage vs Swellow View Rhyperior builds →Stone Edge 2x329-387%KO Megahorn66-77% | ||
Swellow Evolutions
Evolved from Taillow. Swellow is the final form in this two-stage line. A decent partner pool for breeding via one egg group. Eggs are quick to hatch. Sp.Atk grew the most through evolution (+45 over Taillow), and Swellow peaks at 455 total stats. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
Breeding
Breed with Swellow to get Taillow eggs easily using 45 partners from the Flying egg group. Notable egg moves include Brave Bird, Defog, Mirror Move and 8 more.
B2W2 Swellow Best Moveset
AbilityGuts with Held ItemFlame Orb turns burn into a permanent Attack boost, and MoveFacade at doubled power from Normal TermStab hits harder than most attacks in the tier. 125 Speed guarantees acting first. The moveset threatens through self-inflicted status that opponents can't prevent or exploit.
Best Build
Swellow best EVs are Attack and Speed
Physical Sweeper Moveset
- Facade
- Brave Bird
- U Turn
- Quick Attack
Recommended Teammates
Moves List
Without breeding, Swellow misses out on Brave Bird and Defog. That's 11 egg moves adding depth that the base kit lacks. STAB comes from Giga Impact and Hyper Beam, with coverage across 8 types rounding things out.
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 circles the sky in search of prey. When it spots one, it dives steeply to catch the prey.
Swellow Black 2 & White 2 Guide
For Black 2 & White 2, we rate Swellow C-Tier: a niche pick in Black 2 & White 2's meta. At 455 BST, it fits the pivot role. Facade with Flame Orb is the standard set.
Guts increases Attack to 1.5× with a major status ailment. That's the one you want on Swellow. Scrappy is the hidden ability. Niche, but it has its uses.
Base 125 Speed lets it outrun most of the field. On offense, Swellow is a physical attacker with base 85 Attack. Best used as a pivot.
In Black 2 & White 2, run Facade, Bravebird, U Turn, and Quickattack on Swellow. Facade is the most common pick at 0% usage. Facade provides reliable STAB damage.
Game Availability
Available in 14 titles since its debut in Ruby & Sapphire, Swellow spans 8 generations of Pokemon games. It's accessible through wild encounters in a solid number of games.
Click a game to view version-specific details
- Gen 1RB
Red & Blue - Gen 1Y
Yellow - Gen 2GS
Gold & Silver - Gen 2C
Crystal - Gen 3RSDebut
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