Is Tentacool Good in Red & Blue Playthrough?
Tentacool shows up constantly while Surfing, and most players skip it. That's fair for the early catches, but Tentacruel is actually a decent team member if you invest the time.
Brock's typing presses Tentacool's defenses.
Misty's typing presses Tentacool's defenses.
Tentacool trades roughly evenly with Lt. Surge's team.
Tentacool trades roughly evenly with Erika's team.
Tentacool trades roughly evenly with Koga's team.
Tentacool trades roughly evenly with Sabrina's team.
Tentacruel resists most of Blaine's coverage and hits back hard.
Tentacruel resists most of Giovanni's coverage and hits back hard.
Tentacruel has the type edge here and should clean up Lorelei's team.
Tentacruel has the type edge here and should clean up Bruno's team.
Tentacruel trades roughly evenly with Agatha's team.
Tentacruel trades roughly evenly with Lance's team.
Tentacruel has the type edge here and should clean up Blue's team.
Catchable
Catch Tentacool in Pallet Town (Super Rod fishing, Lv 15, common).
Recommended Moves
- After Misty
- TM11WaterBubble BeamPower 98Accuracy 100%PP 20Prize for defeating Cerulean Gym Leader Misty
- After Lt. Surge
- TM10NormalDouble-EdgePower 100Accuracy 100%PP 15Rocket Hideout
- TM13IceIce BeamPower 95Accuracy 100%PP 10Celadon Department Store roof
- After Erika
- HM03WaterSurfPower 143Accuracy 100%PP 15Safari Zone
- TM40NormalSkull BashPower 100Accuracy 100%PP 15Safari Zone
- After Koga
- TM06PoisonToxicPower —Accuracy 85%PP 10Prize for defeating Fuchsia Gym Leader Koga
- After Sabrina
- TM14IceBlizzardPower 120Accuracy 90%PP 5Pokémon Mansion
- LV 48WaterHydro PumpPower 180Accuracy 80%PP 5
Evolve Tentacool to Tentacruel
Tentacool evolves into Tentacruel at Level 30. Your Tentacool should hit Level 30 before you reach Blaine, at typical leveling pace.
Recommended Moves
- After Misty
- TM11WaterBubble BeamPower 98Accuracy 100%PP 20Prize for defeating Cerulean Gym Leader Misty
- After Lt. Surge
- TM15NormalHyper BeamPower 150Accuracy 90%PP 5Rocket Game Corner
- TM10NormalDouble-EdgePower 100Accuracy 100%PP 15Rocket Hideout
- After Erika
- HM03WaterSurfPower 143Accuracy 100%PP 15Safari Zone
- TM40NormalSkull BashPower 100Accuracy 100%PP 15Safari Zone
- After Koga
- TM06PoisonToxicPower —Accuracy 85%PP 10Prize for defeating Fuchsia Gym Leader Koga
- After Sabrina
- TM14IceBlizzardPower 120Accuracy 90%PP 5Pokémon Mansion
- LV 50WaterHydro PumpPower 180Accuracy 80%PP 5
How to Get Tentacool in Red & Blue
Tentacool owns the open water, 18 spots from surfing the southern sea routes to Super Rod fishing. Common wherever there is water, in both Red and Blue.
9 locations to catch Tentacool
Encountered via fishing with a Rod, Surfing
Badge 1
Badge 2
Badge 3
Badge 4
Badge 5
Badge 6
Badge 7Where To Catch Tentacool in RB
The line opens with Tentacool at Lv. 5-40 via fishing and surfing encounters. 1 catchable stage total, with locations listed for each one below.
- Step 2Evolve into Tentacruel
Not landing the catch? Calculate Tentacool catch rates for Red & Blue by ball, status, and HP.
Tentacool Weakness
Tentacool is weak to Electric, Ground, Psychic, and Bug. It resists 5 types, giving it decent defensive coverage. Tentacool's special bulk (base 100 Special) helps absorb special-type weaknesses, though physical moves exploit the lower Defense.
| Damage | Types |
|---|---|
| 2x (Weak) | Electric, Ground, Psychic, Bug |
| 0.5x (Resist) | Fire, Water, Ice, Fighting, Poison |
- Only 15 types exist — Dark, Steel, and Fairy are absent
- Ghost has no effect on Psychic (a known bug, fixed in Gen II)
- Special stat governs both offense and defense — no Sp.Atk / Sp.Def split
What is Tentacool Weak Against
VulnerableBest Pokemon Against Tentacool
 Hypno Psychic | C | |
 Jolteon Electric | A | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Eevee (Celadon City Gift) | ||
 Raichu Electric | C | |
 Kadabra Psychic | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Tentacool View Kadabra builds →Psybeam 2x75-89% Dig 2x66-79% | ||
 Graveler RockGround | C | |
 Dugtrio Ground | B | |
 Marowak Ground | C | |
 Parasect BugGrass | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Tentacool View Parasect builds →Dig 2x128-152%KO Leech Life 2x42-51% | ||
 Voltorb Electric | C | |
 Nidoqueen PoisonGround | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Nidorina (Celadon City Gift) | ||
 Nidoking PoisonGround | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Nidorino (Celadon City Gift) | ||
 Butterfree Bug | C | |
 Onix RockGround | C | |
 Beedrill BugPoison | C | |
Tentacool Evolutions
Tentacool evolves into Tentacruel, but can't breed. At 385 stats as a Water/Poison type, evolution is the only path. Evolving adds up to 130 stat points total. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
RB Tentacool Best Moveset
Water/Poison pre-evolution. The Special stat handles both offense and defense but at 50 it can't do either well. Heading toward Tentacruel where the 120 Special actually matters.
Best Build
Utility Moveset
- Blizzard
- Hydro Pump
- Wrap
- Toxic
Recommended Teammates
Moves List
TMs define Tentacool's movepool. The natural moves cover basics with Hydro Pump and Surf, but the real versatility comes from technical machines giving it Normal and Ice coverage. That's where the options open up.
How to Read the Moves Table
Tabs
- Level-Up
- Learned by leveling up.
- TM
- Taught by a Technical Machine.
- 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.
Tier (S to D)
Each move's competitive rank in RankedBoost's system. TM 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 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 19 TMs are obtainable before the Elite Four
Tutor Moves
Base Stats
Drifts in shallow seas. Anglers who hook them by accident are often punished by its stinging acid.
Tentacool Red & Blue Guide
In Red & Blue, Tentacool does the job early-game if you need a Water/Poison type on your team. Evolve it into Tentacruel before the later gyms and it holds up fine through the story.
In Red & Blue, Tentacool plays as a attacker. Speed is middling, so pick your spots carefully.
Game Availability
Tentacool has been part of the series since Red & Blue, appearing in 21 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
Explore
Where to go next after Tentacool.
Keep playing · Red & BlueRed & Blue Tier ListThe best Pokemon ranked tier by tierSee Red & Blue Tier List