Physical
Attacker
290Low
10Very Slow
CTier

Trapinch sits at the start of its evolution line — not yet at full power, but that changes fast. Most trainers push through to Flygon as fast as possible. Electric moves can't touch it, and only 3 types hit it super-effectively. Known as the Ant Pit Pokemon.

Attack leads and Speed gets almost nothing. That's Trapinch's stat line in a nutshell. 1 stats sit in respectable range, but the spread is brutal. Easy to catch and yields 1 Attack EV.

Base Stats
290Below
HP45
D
Attack100
B
Defense45
D
Sp. Atk45
D
Sp. Def45
D
Speed10
F
Total290
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Trapinch yields +1 Atk
HPAtk+1DefSpASpDSpe
Details
Catch255GuaranteedMedium Slow1.06M XP0.7m / 2'04"15kg / 33.1 lbs58Base XP
Pokedex Entries

It makes a conical pit in desert sand and lies in wait at the bottom for prey to come tumbling down.

Black / White

Trapinch Weakness

Avg

Trapinch is weak to Water, Grass, and Ice-type moves. On the flip side, it's immune to Electric-type moves entirely. Standard number of weaknesses for the Ground typing.

Gen V Type Chart
  • Fairy type does not exist — Dragon has fewer checks
  • Physical / Special split now per-move (introduced Gen IV)
4xCriticali
None
½xResisti
¼xResisti
None
0xImmunei
3Weak
2Resist
1Immune
Scorei-1
SpikesGrounded — up to 25%
Toxic SpikesVulnerable
Abilities
Hyper CutterPrevents Attack from being lowered by other Pokémon.
Arena TrapPrevents opponents from fleeing or switching out. Eluded by flying-types and Pokémon in the air.
Sheer ForceHAStrengthens moves with extra effects to 1.3× their power, but prevents their extra effects.

Three stages ahead. Trapinch grows into Vibrava, then pushes on to Flygon. Check the evolution methods below. For breeding, average hatch time with plenty of partners via two egg groups. Evolving adds up to 230 stat points total.

How to Evolve

3 Forms
Stat Comparison 3 Stages
Trapinch
Ground
Vibrava
GroundDragon
Flygon
GroundDragon
HP
45
50+5
80+30
ATK
100
70-30
100+30
DEF
45
50+5
80+30
SP.ATK
45
50+5
80+30
SP.DEF
45
50+5
80+30
SPE
10
70+60
100+30
BST
290B-Tier
340D-Tier+50
520A-Tier+180
ROLE
Attacker
Balanced
Sweeper
TYPE
Physical
Physical
Physical
Breeding
Very Easy

Breed Trapinch easily with 64 breeding partners from the Bug and Dragon egg groups. Pass egg moves like Bug Bite, Earth Power, Endure and 7 more to offspring.

Egg Groups
BugDragon
Gender
50.0%50.0%
Hatch Time
20 cycles·5,140 steps
Quick~5 min with Flame Body
Egg Moves
10moves
Breed With (best first)
gyaradosflygondrapioncharizardkingdrasceptilemiloticaltariascraftymasquerainarbokseadra

Still unevolved, still relevant. Trapinch's Eviolite bulk with max HP and Attack EVs creates a defensive profile that punches above its stage. Sheerforce adds passive value. Earthquake gives it offensive presence.

Best Build

Physical Tank
Ability
Sheerforce
Item
EvioliteBULK
Nature
Adamant+ATK
EVs

Best Trapinch Moveset

  • Rock Slide
  • EarthquakeSTAB
  • CrunchCoverage
  • SuperpowerCoverage

Breeding opens up real options for Trapinch. Bug Bite and Earth Power come exclusively from egg moves, and they're worth the effort. The rest of the kit covers basics through Earthquake and Earth Power and coverage across 7 types.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Bite
6010025Dark
Lv 9
Sand Attack
10015Ground
Lv 17
Feint Attack
6020Dark
Lv 25
Sand Tomb
358515Ground
Lv 33
Crunch
8010015Dark
Lv 41
Dig
8010010Ground
Lv 49
Sandstorm
10Rock
Lv 57
Hyper Beam
150905Normal
Lv 65
Earth Power
9010010Ground
Lv 73
Earthquake
10010010Ground
Lv 81
Feint+2
3010010Normal
Lv 89
Fissure
305Ground

TM Moves

Src
TM45
Attract
10015Normal
TM78
Bulldoze
6010020Ground
TM28
Dig
8010010Ground
TM32
Double Team
15Normal
TM26
Earthquake
10010010Ground
TM42
Facade
7010020Normal
TM21
Frustration
10020Normal
TM10
Hidden Power
6010015Normal
TM15
Hyper Beam
150905Normal
TM17
Protect+4
10Normal
TM44
Rest
10Psychic
TM27
Return
10020Normal
TM80
Rock Slide
759010Rock
TM94
Rock Smash
4010015Fighting
TM39
Rock Tomb
609510Rock
TM48
Round
6010015Normal
TM37
Sandstorm
10Rock
TM22
Solar Beam
12010010Grass
HM04
Strength
8010015Normal
TM76
Struggle Bug
3010020Bug
TM90
Substitute
10Normal
TM11
Sunny Day
5Fire
TM87
Swagger
9015Normal
TM06
Toxic
9010Poison

Egg Moves

Src
Egg
Bug Bite
6010020Bug
Egg
Earth Power
9010010Ground
Egg
Endure+4
10Normal
Egg
Flail
10015Normal
Egg
Focus Energy
30Normal
Egg
Fury Cutter
209520Bug
Egg
Gust
4010035Flying
Egg
Mud Shot
559515Ground
Egg
Quick Attack+1
4010030Normal
Egg
Signal Beam
7510015Bug

Tutor Moves

Trapinch can't learn any Tutor moves

Transfer Moves

Src
Gen 3
Body Slam
8510015Normal
Gen 4
Captivate
10020Normal
Gen 3
Double-Edge
12010015Normal
Gen 4
Headbutt
7010015Normal
Gen 3
Mimic
10Normal
Gen 4
Natural Gift
10015Normal
Gen 4
Secret Power
7010020Normal

Trapinch appears at decent spawn rates across 1 spots in early-game routes. Sort by Best below if you want the highest rate, or Earliest if you want the quickest access point in your playthrough.

Best Locations

White Forest
GrassLv.5UncommonEarlyForestAny
EASY
  • Trapinch is meant to evolve into Vibrava. At 290 BST, the stats aren't there for competitive play yet. Pre-evolution Pokemon rarely hold up against fully evolved threats.

  • Trapinch's biggest threats include Gyarados (Water), Breloom (Grass), and Lapras (Ice), all carrying super-effective STAB moves. At base 10 Speed, Trapinch won't outrun any of these threats so switching to a resist is usually the safer play.

  • Trapinch evolves into Vibrava at level 35. Trapinch is the base form in a 3-stage evolutionary line.

  • Sheer Force is what you want on Trapinch. Every competitive set worth running is built with that ability in mind. The alternatives (Hyper Cutter, Arena Trap) work on paper but Sheer Force is what makes Trapinch worth using.

  • Base 10 Speed is low. Priority moves or Trick Room are the way to go. On offense, Trapinch is a physical attacker with base 100 Attack. Defensively? Fragile — can't afford to take many hits. Best used as an attacker.

  • Trapinch appears in 15 games, including Ruby & Sapphire, FireRed & LeafGreen, and Emerald.

Available in 15 titles since its debut in Ruby & Sapphire, Trapinch spans 7 generations of Pokemon games. It's accessible through catching or hatching as a base form in most mainline games.