Physical
Pivot
CTier
125Speed · Very Fast

Stats & Training

The stat budget goes to damage. Speed and Attack carry the offense, Sp. Def doesn't even come close. A Swallow Pokemon on a 1.06M XP medium-slow curve, worth 2 Speed EVs per KO.

Base Stats
Above
HP60
C
Attack85
C
Defense60
C
Sp. Atk75
C
Sp. Def50
D
Speed125
A
Total455
Details
Catch Rate
Challenging45 / 255
Growth Rate
Medium Slow1.06M XP
Height0.7 m
2'04"Small
Weight19.8 kg
43.7 lbsFeather
Base XP159
Average
Abilities
GutsTop Pick
Increases Attack to 1.5× with a major status ailment.
ScrappyHANot in game
Lets the Pokémon's normal and fighting moves hit ghost Pokémon.
EV Yield
HPAtkDefSpASpDSpe+2
Speed training target
Pokedex Entries

It dives at a steep angle as soon as it spots its prey. It catches its prey with sharp claws.

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.

Swellow Weakness and Resistance Chart
DamageTypes
2x (Weak)Electric, Ice, Rock
0.5x (Resist)Grass, Bug
0x (Immune)Ground, Ghost
Type ChartGood
3Weak
2Resist
2Immune
Score+2
Gen IV Type Chart
  • Fairy type does not exist — Dragon has fewer checks
  • Physical / Special split now per-move (introduced Gen IV)
4xCritical
None
2xWeak
ElectricIceRock
½xResist
GrassBug
¼xResist
None
0xImmune
GroundGhost
STAB (3)
GrassFightingBug
How to Beat Swellow in HeartGold & SoulSilver (Best Counters)

In HeartGold & SoulSilver, Zapdos can KO Swellow with Thunderbolt (155-183%). Aerodactyl threatens a KO with Stone Edge (164-193%). Weavile deals 73-86% with Ice Shard.

Zapdos
Zapdos
ElectricFlying
A
Recommended Build
AbilityPressure
ItemLeftovers
NatureBold
Moves
  • ThunderboltSTAB
  • RoostRecovery
  • Hidden Power Ice
  • Heat Wave
Damage vs Swellow
Thunderbolt 2x
155-183%KO
Heat Wave
54-64%
View Zapdos builds →

HeartGold & SoulSilver Evolution

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

2 Forms
Taillow
#276Taillow
22
Level 22
Swellow
#277Swellow
Stat Comparison 2 Stages
Taillow
NormalFlying
Swellow
NormalFlying
HP
40
60+20
ATK
55
85+30
DEF
30
60+30
SP.ATK
30
75+45
SP.DEF
30
50+20
SPE
85
125+40
BST
270D-Tier
455C-Tier+185
ROLE
Balanced
Pivot
TYPE
Physical
Mixed

Breeding

Very Easy

Breed with Swellow to get Taillow eggs easily using 31 partners from the Flying egg group. Notable egg moves include Brave Bird, Mirror Move, Pursuit and 5 more.

Egg Groups
Flying
Gender
♂50.0%♀50.0%
Hatch Time
15 cycles·3,855 steps
Quick~4 min with Flame Body
Egg Moves
8moves
Breed With (best first)
togekisstogeticaltariapelipperfarfetchdswabluwingullcrobathonchkrowstaraptorpidgeotdodrio
12 of 31·

HeartGold & SoulSilver Swellow Best Moveset

The build revolves around U-turn for safe pivoting. Guts and Flame Orb support Swellow's hit-and-run approach, with max Attack and Speed EVs making sure each pivot actually threatens. The remaining moves adds versatility.

Best Build

Experimental
Physical Sweeper
Ability
Guts
Item
Flame Orb
Best Nature for Swellow
Jolly+SPE

Swellow best EVs are Attack and Speed

EVs

Physical Sweeper Moveset

  • FacadeSTAB
  • Brave BirdSTAB
  • U Turn
  • Quick AttackSTAB

Recommended Teammates

Infernape
InfernapeGood
Magnezone
MagnezoneGood
Gengar
GengarGood

Moves

Without breeding, Swellow misses out on Brave Bird and Mirror Move. That's 8 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.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Focus Energy
———30Normal
Lv 1
Growl
——10040Normal
Lv 1
Peck
—3510035Flying
Lv 1
Pluck
—6010020Flying
Lv 1
Quick Attack+1
A4010030Normal
Lv 4
Focus Energy
———30Normal
Lv 8
Quick Attack+1
A4010030Normal
Lv 13
Wing Attack
C6010035Flying
Lv 19
Double Team
———15Normal
Lv 28
Endeavor
D—1005Normal
Lv 38
Aerial Ace
B60—20Flying
Lv 49
Agility
C——30Psychic
Lv 61
Air Slash
C759520Flying

TM Moves

TM
TM40
Aerial Ace
B60—20Flying
TM45
Attract
——10015Normal
TM78
Captivate
——10020Normal
TM32
Double Team
———15Normal
TM58
Endure+4
———10Normal
TM42
Facade
S7010020Normal
HM02
Fly
C909515Flying
TM21
Frustration
D—10020Normal
TM68
Giga Impact
B150905Normal
TM10
Hidden Power
—6010015Normal
TM15
Hyper Beam
B150905Normal
TM83
Natural Gift
D—10015Normal
TM88
Pluck
—6010020Flying
TM17
Protect+4
B——10Normal
TM18
Rain Dance
C——5Water
TM44
Rest
C——10Psychic
TM27
Return
D—10020Normal
TM51
Roost
C——10Flying
TM43
Secret Power
—7010020Normal
TM82
Sleep Talk
C——10Normal
TM47
Steel Wing
B709025Steel
TM90
Substitute
C——10Normal
TM11
Sunny Day
C——5Fire
TM87
Swagger
——9015Normal
TM46
Thief
—6010025Dark
TM06
Toxic
C—8510Poison
TM89
U-turn
A7010020Bug

Egg Moves

Egg
Egg
Brave Bird
S12010015Flying
Egg
Mirror Move
———20Flying
Egg
Pursuit
D4010020Dark
Egg
Rage
D2010020Normal
Egg
Refresh
D——20Normal
Egg
Sky Attack
B140905Flying
Egg
Supersonic
——5520Normal
Egg
Whirlwind-6
D——20Normal

Tutor Moves

Tut
Tutor
Air Cutter
C559525Flying
Tutor
Endeavor
D—1005Normal
Tutor
Heat Wave
C1009010Fire
Tutor
Mud-Slap
D2010010Ground
Tutor
Ominous Wind
D601005Ghost
Tutor
Sky Attack
B140905Flying
Tutor
Snore
D4010015Normal
Tutor
Swift
—60—20Normal
Tutor
Tailwind
D——15Flying
Tutor
Twister
—4010020Dragon

Transfer Moves

Gen
Gen 3
Counter-5
D—10020Fighting
Gen 3
Double-Edge
B12010015Normal
Gen 3
Mimic
———10Normal

How to Get Swellow in HeartGold & SoulSilver

Can't catch Swellow directly. Start with Taillow but it's a rare spawn from the locations below, then evolve at level 22. The 2-stage line from Taillow to Swellow is where the leveling time goes.

How to Obtain Swellow in HeartGold & SoulSilver

  1. Taillow
    Step 1Catch Taillow
    Cherrygrove City
    SoulSilverHeadbutting special trees Lv.18-25 City
    LimitedMid
    Post-game
    Cherrygrove City
    HeartGoldHeadbutting special trees Lv.18-25 City
    LimitedMid
    Post-game
  2. Swellow
    Step 2Swellow ✓

Swellow Guide

  • For HeartGold & SoulSilver, we rate Swellow C-Tier: a niche pick in HeartGold & SoulSilver's meta. At 455 BST, it fits the pivot role. Facade with Flame Orb is the standard set.

  • In HeartGold & SoulSilver, watch for Raikou (Electric), Walrein (Ice), and Golem (Rock) when using Swellow. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Swellow's base 125 Speed lets it outpace many threats and strike first, which matters more than trying to tank hits.

  • 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.

  • For HeartGold & SoulSilver, Swellow has answers, but so do you. Super-effective STAB from faster Pokemon is the simplest answer. Electric, Ice, and Rock-type attackers hit hardest.

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

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