While most trainers evolve Yanma into Yanmega immediately, the unevolved form has a niche with Eviolite boosting its defenses. Ground moves can't touch it, which offsets the 5 weaknesses somewhat. Known as the Clear Wing Pokemon. Can go either physical or special depending on the set.
The stat budget goes to damage. Speed and Sp. Atk carry the offense, Defense doesn't even come close. A Clear Wing Pokemon on a medium-fast 1M XP curve, worth 1 Speed EV per KO.
Its eyes can see 360 degrees without moving its head. It won’t miss prey--even those behind it.
Yanma Weakness
VulnerableRock, Fire, Electric, Ice, and Flying-type moves hit Yanma for super-effective damage. Rock hits land at 4x, so they're the biggest threat. The upside? Ground-type moves can't touch it at all.
- Fairy type does not exist — Dragon has fewer checks
- Physical / Special split now per-move (introduced Gen IV)
Yanma doesn't evolve by leveling. You'll need knowing a specific move to push it forward to Yanmega. The evolved forms gain up to 125 total stats over Yanma.
How to Evolve
Breed Yanma easily with 47 breeding partners from the Bug egg group. Pass egg moves like Feint, Feint Attack, Leech Life and 5 more to offspring.
The build revolves around U-turn for safe pivoting. Compoundeyes and Focus Sash support Yanma's hit-and-run approach, with max Sp. Atk and Speed EVs making sure each pivot actually threatens. Utility options adds versatility.
Best Build
Best Yanma Moveset
- Hypnosis
- U Turn
- Air Slash
- Hidden Power Ice
Recommended Teammates
Don't skip the egg moves. Yanma picks up Feint and Feint Attack only through breeding, and both fill gaps the natural movepool can't. STAB runs through Bug Buzz and Leech Life while coverage across 8 types adds range.
Level-Up Moves
TM Moves
Egg Moves
Tutor Moves
Transfer Moves
Yanma appears at decent spawn rates across 2 spots in mid-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
Yanma is meant to evolve into Yanmega. At 390 BST, the stats aren't there for competitive play yet. Pre-evolution Pokemon rarely hold up against fully evolved threats.
Watch for Aerodactyl (Rock), Arcanine (Fire), and Jolteon (Electric) when using Yanma. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Aerodactyl is the most dangerous since Rock moves deal 4x damage. Ice and Flying-type attackers are also a problem. With 5 weakness types, most competitive teams carry at least one counter.
Yanma evolves into Yanmega after learning Ancient Power. Yanma is the base form of this evolutionary line.
Speed Boost is what you want on Yanma. Every competitive set worth running is built with that ability in mind. The alternatives (Compound Eyes, Frisk) work on paper but Speed Boost is what makes Yanma worth using.
Base 95 Speed is workable — faster than some, slower than many. On offense, Yanma is leaning toward the special side (base 75 Sp. Atk). Defensively? Fragile — can't afford to take many hits. Best used as a pivot.
Yanma appears in 17 games, including Gold & Silver, Crystal, and Ruby & Sapphire.
Available in 17 titles since its debut in Gold & Silver, Yanma spans 8 generations of Pokemon games. It's accessible through catching or hatching as a base form in most mainline games.
- Gen IY
Yellow - Gen IRB
Red & Blue - Gen IIGSDebut
Gold & Silver - Gen IIC
Crystal - Gen IIIRS
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