Special
Setup Sweeper
CTier
95Speed · Above Avg

Stats & Training

Nothing fancy in Arcanine's spread. It leans physical with Attack out front. And you'll get 2 Attack stat exp per KO for it. Follows a slow 1.25M XP grind.

Base Stats
High
HP90
B
Attack110
B
Defense80
C
Sp. Atk80
C
Sp. Def80
C
Speed95
B
Total535
Details
Catch Rate
Challenging75 / 255
Growth Rate
Slow1.25M XP
Height1.9 m
6'03"Average
Weight155.0 kg
341.7 lbsHeavy
Base XP194
High Yield
Abilities
Abilities were introduced in Generation III. Shown below for reference.
Intimidate
Lowers opponents' Attack one stage upon entering battle.
Flash Fire
Protects against fire moves. Once one has been blocked, the Pokémon's own Fire moves inflict 1.5× damage until it leaves battle.
JustifiedHA
Raises Attack one stage upon taking damage from a dark move.
Flash Fire grants Fire immunity
EV Yield
HPAtk+2DefSpASpDSpe
Attack training target
Pokedex Entries

A POKéMON that has been admired since the past for its beauty. It runs agilely as if on wings.

Arcanine Weakness

Arcanine's Fire typing leaves it vulnerable to Water, Ground, and Rock. The Fire typing picks up 4 resistances to work with. With 90 HP and balanced defenses, Arcanine can afford to eat a neutral hit or two.

Arcanine Weakness and Resistance Chart
DamageTypes
2x (Weak)Water, Ground, Rock
0.5x (Resist)Fire, Grass, Ice, Bug
Type ChartAvg
3Weak
4Resist
0Immune
Score-2
Gen I Type Chart
  • 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
4xCritical
None
2xWeak
WaterGroundRock
½xResist
FireGrassIceBug
¼xResist
None
0xImmune
None
STAB (3)
GrassIceBug
How to Beat Arcanine in Red & Blue (Best Counters)

In Red & Blue, Cloyster's Explosion hits Arcanine for 64-76%. Golem threatens a KO with Earthquake (95-112%). Nidoking deals 83-97% with Earthquake.

Cloyster
Cloyster
WaterIce
A
Recommended Build
Moves
  • Explosion
  • ClampSTAB
  • BlizzardSTAB
  • RestRecovery
Damage vs Arcanine
Explosion
64-76%
Clamp 2x
25-30%
Blizzard
20-23%
View Cloyster builds →

Red & Blue Evolution

The Fire-type Arcanine caps Growlithe's chain at 535 stats. No daycare options for this one. The evolution from Growlithe pushed Arcanine to 535 total stats. Attack saw the largest single gain at +40. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.

How to Evolve

2 Forms
Growlithe
#058Growlithe
Fire Stone
Fire Stone
Arcanine
#059Arcanine
Stat Comparison 2 Stages
Growlithe
Fire
Arcanine
Fire
HP
55
90+35
ATK
70
110+40
DEF
45
80+35
SP.ATK
70
100+30
SP.DEF
50
80+30
SPE
60
95+35
BST
350D-Tier
555A-Tier+205
ROLE
Balanced
Attacker
TYPE
Mixed
Mixed
Breeding not available · Introduced in Gen 2

Red & Blue Arcanine Best Moveset

Best Build

Situational pick
Utility
Ability
Not in Gen 1
Item
Not in Gen 1
Nature
Not in Gen 1

Utility Moveset

  • Body Slam
  • Fire BlastSTAB
  • Hyper Beam
  • AgilitySetup

Recommended Teammates

Alakazam
AlakazamDecent
Exeggutor
ExeggutorDecent
Chansey
ChanseyDecent

Moves

The level-up pool is slim, so TMs matter here. Arcanine's Normal and Ground coverage all comes from technical machines, built on top of Fire Blast and Ember for same-type damage. Take Down and Double-Edge are the payoff moves.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Ember
D4010025Fire
Lv 1
Leer
——10030Normal
Lv 1
Roar-6
———20Normal
Lv 1
Take Down
—908520Normal

TM Moves

TM
TM34
Bide+1
———10Normal
TM08
Body Slam
S8510015Normal
TM28
Dig
—10010010Ground
TM32
Double Team
———15Normal
TM10
Double-Edge
B12010015Normal
TM23
Dragon Rage
——10010Dragon
TM38
Fire Blast
S120855Fire
TM15
Hyper Beam
S150905Normal
TM31
Mimic
———10Normal
TM20
Rage
—2010020Normal
TM33
Reflect
B——20Psychic
TM44
Rest
B——10Psychic
TM40
Skull Bash
B10010010Normal
TM50
Substitute
C——10Normal
TM39
Swift
D60—20Normal
TM09
Take Down
—908520Normal
TM30
Teleport-6
———20Psychic
TM06
Toxic
C—9010Poison

Egg Moves

Arcanine doesn't have any Egg moves

Tutor Moves

Arcanine can't learn any Tutor moves

How to Get Arcanine in Red & Blue

Arcanine doesn't appear wild. Catch Growlithe instead, it shows up at decent rates. Evolve it through a special method to get Arcanine. The 2-stage line is mapped in the step cards below.

How to Obtain Arcanine in Red & Blue

Growlithe is your first catch on the way to Arcanine. You'll find walking encounters from Lv. 15-35 across 6 total spots in the chain.

  1. Growlithe
    Step 1Catch Growlithe
    Route 8
    Grass Lv.15-18 Route
    25%Early
    Route 7
    Grass Lv.18-20 Route
    10%Mid
    Pokémon Mansion - 2F
    Grass Lv.32 Building
    20%Late
    Pokémon Mansion - 3F
    Grass Lv.33 Building
    20%Late
    Pokémon Mansion - 1F
    Grass Lv.34 Building
    10%Late
    Pokémon Mansion - B1F
    Grass Lv.35 Building
    10%Late
  2. Arcanine
    Step 2Arcanine ✓

Arcanine Guide

  • In Red & Blue, Arcanine works as a setup sweeper with 535 BST behind it. C-Tier on our list: a niche pick in Red & Blue's meta. Body Slam anchors the moveset.

  • In Red & Blue, watch for Starmie (Water), Golem (Ground), and Aerodactyl (Rock) when using Arcanine. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB.

  • Arcanine is a special attacker with base 80 Special. Enough bulk to take a hit or two, too. Speed tells the real story. Base 95 Speed is workable. Faster than some, slower than many. Fits the setup sweeper role.

  • In Red & Blue, run Body Slam, Fire Blast, Hyper Beam, and Agility on Arcanine. Body Slam is the most common pick at 21% usage. Agility lets it set up before sweeping.

  • For Red & Blue, Arcanine has answers, but so do you. Faster attackers outpace it. Anything with a super-effective STAB move and decent speed can revenge kill.

Game Availability

Available since Red & Blue, Arcanine appears in 21 games spanning 10 generations. Beyond its original form, it gained a Hisuian form in Generation 8.

Click a game to view version-specific details

Was this page helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
Want to tell us more?
What was most useful?
What could be improved?
Thanks for your feedback