On paper, Volbeat looks underwhelming. In practice, Prankster gives priority to its status moves — and that's the whole story. Bug typing means only weak to Fire, Flying, and Rock. Known as the Firefly Pokemon. Can go either physical or special depending on the set.
Sp. Def and Speed carry most of Volbeat's stat budget. Sp. Atk's the obvious dump stat. Common in the wild and yields 1 Speed EV. Follows a standard growth curve.
It lives around clean ponds. At night, its rear lights up. It converses with others by flashing its light.
Volbeat Weakness
AvgFire, Flying, and Rock-type moves hit Volbeat for super-effective damage. With 65 HP and balanced defenses, Volbeat can afford to eat a neutral hit or two.
- Dark and Steel types added — Fairy does not exist yet
- Moves are Physical or Special based on type, not per move
Breeding is the whole story for Volbeat. A decent partner pool through two egg groups, eggs are quick to hatch, and you won't need to evolve anything. It's got 3 egg moves worth looking into.
How to Evolve
Breed Volbeat with 37 breeding partners from the Bug and Humanshape egg groups. Pass egg moves like Baton Pass, Silver Wind, Trick to offspring.
Signalbeam is the safe click most turns. Choice Band locks Volbeat into it but rewards with raw power at the cost of move flexibility. Adamant nature and max Attack and Speed EVs maximize that first hit. Swarm helps on the margins.
Best Build
Best Volbeat Moveset
- Signal Beam
- Thunder Wave
- Trick
- Brick Break
Recommended Teammates
Don't skip the egg moves. Volbeat picks up Baton Pass and Silver Wind only through breeding, and both fill gaps the natural movepool can't. STAB runs through Signal Beam and Silver Wind while coverage across 8 types adds range.
Level-Up Moves
TM Moves
Egg Moves
Tutor Moves
Volbeat can't be caught in FireRed & LeafGreen. Bring it over from Ruby, Emerald, or Brilliant Diamond instead. The encounter info below covers the source games.
Volbeat is not available as a wild encounter in this game.
Catch in the wild in:
Then trade to FireRed & LeafGreen.
Also found in:
Prankster changes the entire equation for Volbeat. The 430 BST doesn't tell the full story. Ranked C-Tier.
Volbeat doesn't evolve and has no evolutionary line. It's a Bug-type Pokemon with a 430 base stat total.
Prankster is what you want on Volbeat. Every competitive set worth running is built with that ability in mind. The alternatives (Illuminate, Swarm) work on paper but Prankster is what makes Volbeat worth using.
Base 85 Speed is workable — faster than some, slower than many. On offense, Volbeat is leaning toward the physical side (base 73 Attack). Defensively? Enough bulk to take a hit or two.
Volbeat appears in 14 games, including Ruby & Sapphire, FireRed & LeafGreen, and Emerald.
Available in 14 titles since its debut in Ruby & Sapphire, Volbeat spans 7 generations of Pokemon games. It's accessible through wild encounters in a solid number of games.
- Gen IY
Yellow - Gen IRB
Red & Blue - Gen IIGS
Gold & Silver - Gen IIC
Crystal - Gen IIIRSDebut
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