Special
Pivot
BTier
100Speed · Fast

Stats & Training

Nothing fancy in Ninetales's spread. It leans mixed with Sp. Def out front. And you'll get 2 Sp. Def and Speed EVs per KO for it. Follows a medium-fast 1M XP curve.

Base Stats
High
HP73
C
Attack76
C
Defense75
C
Sp. Atk81
C
Sp. Def100
B
Speed100
B
Total505
Details
Catch Rate
Challenging75 / 255
Growth Rate
Medium Fast1M XP
Height1.1 m
3'07"Small
Weight19.9 kg
43.9 lbsFeather
Base XP177
Average
Abilities
Flash FireRare
Protects against fire moves. Once one has been blocked, the Pokémon's own Fire moves inflict 1.5× damage until it leaves battle.
DroughtHATop Pick
Summons strong sunlight that lasts indefinitely upon entering battle.
Flash Fire grants Fire immunity
EV Yield
HPAtkDefSpASpD+1Spe+1
Special Defense training target
Pokedex Entries

It has nine long tails and fur that gleams gold. It is said to live for 1,000 years.

Ninetales Weakness

Type-wise, Ninetales takes extra damage from Water, Ground, and Rock. It resists 6 types, so it can switch into a lot of moves safely. Flash Fire grants an additional Fire immunity, reshaping the matchup chart. Ninetales's special bulk (base 100 Sp.Def) helps absorb special-type weaknesses, though physical moves exploit the lower Defense.

Ninetales Weakness and Resistance Chart
DamageTypes
2x (Weak)Water, Ground, Rock
0.5x (Resist)Fire, Grass, Ice, Bug, Steel, Fairy
Type ChartAvg
3Weak
6Resist
1Immune
Score0
4xCritical
None
2xWeak
WaterGroundRock
½xResist
FireGrassIceBugSteelFairy
¼xResist
None
0xImmune
Fire
STAB (4)
GrassIceBugSteel
How to Beat Ninetales in X & Y (Best Counters)

In X & Y, Excadrill can KO Ninetales with Earthquake (122-144%). Gastrodon deals 55-65% with Scald.

Excadrill
Excadrill
GroundSteel
S
Recommended Build
AbilityMold Breaker
ItemLeftovers
NatureJolly
Moves
  • EarthquakeSTAB
  • Rapid Spin
  • Iron Head
  • Stealth Rock
Damage vs Ninetales
Earthquake 2x
122-144%KO
Rapid Spin
21-24%
View Excadrill builds →

X & Y Evolution

Ninetales evolved from Vulpix's chain using an evolution item. It's a non-standard trigger, so check the details below. Breed this form to get Vulpix eggs (average hatch time). The evolution from Vulpix pushed Ninetales to 505 total stats. HP saw the largest single gain at +35. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.

How to Evolve

2 Forms
Vulpix
#037Vulpix
Fire Stone
Fire Stone
Ninetales
#038Ninetales
Stat Comparison 2 Stages
Vulpix
Fire
Ninetales
Fire
HP
38
73+35
ATK
41
76+35
DEF
40
75+35
SP.ATK
50
81+31
SP.DEF
65
100+35
SPE
65
100+35
BST
299D-Tier
505B-Tier+206
ROLE
Balanced
Pivot
TYPE
Utility
Mixed

Breeding

Easy

Breed with Ninetales to get Vulpix eggs easily using 200 partners from the Ground egg group. Notable egg moves include Captivate, Disable, Extrasensory and 11 more.

Egg Groups
Ground
Gender
♂25.0%♀75.0%
Hatch Time
20 cycles·5,140 steps
Quick~5 min with Flame Body
Egg Moves
14moves
Breed With (best first)
raichupikachunidokinggolduckampharosrhydondewgongarbokquagsirenidorinofarfetchdflaaffy
12 of 200·

X & Y Ninetales Best Moveset

the remaining moves keeps opponents guessing about Ninetales's real targets. Heatrock provides extra utility while max HP and Speed EVs and Timid nature handle the stat profile. Drought ties it together.

Best Build

Experimental
Ability
Drought
Item
Heat Rock
Best Nature for Ninetales
Timid+SPE

Ninetales best EVs are HP and Speed

EVs

Doubles Bulky Support Moveset

  • Heat WaveSTAB
  • ProtectFAST +4
  • Solar Beam
  • Will O WispSTAB

Recommended Teammates

Venusaur
VenusaurGood
Arcanine
ArcanineDecent

Moves

Breeding's the move. Captivate and Disable give Ninetales options it can't learn any other way, and Normal and Dark coverage and more already covers a decent range on top of Overheat and Flare Blitz. The egg moves push it further.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Confuse Ray
D—10010Ghost
Lv 1
Flamethrower
A9010015Fire
Lv 1
Imprison
———10Psychic
Lv 1
Nasty Plot
C——20Dark
Lv 1
Quick Attack+1
D4010030Normal
Lv 1
Safeguard
C——25Normal

TM Moves

TM
TM45
Attract
D—10015Normal
TM04
Calm Mind
C——20Psychic
TM100
Confide
———20Normal
TM97
Dark Pulse
C8010015Dark
TM28
Dig
C8010010Ground
TM32
Double Team
———15Normal
TM85
Dream Eater
C10010015Psychic
TM53
Energy Ball
B9010010Grass
TM42
Facade
D7010020Normal
TM38
Fire Blast
A110855Fire
TM43
Flame Charge
D5010020Fire
TM35
Flamethrower
A9010015Fire
TM21
Frustration
D—10020Normal
TM68
Giga Impact
C150905Normal
TM10
Hidden Power
—6010015Normal
TM15
Hyper Beam
C150905Normal
TM59
Incinerate
—6010015Fire
TM50
Overheat
B130905Fire
TM66
Payback
—5010010Dark
TM17
Protect+4
A——10Normal
TM77
Psych Up
D——10Normal
TM03
Psyshock
C8010010Psychic
TM44
Rest
C——10Psychic
TM27
Return
D—10020Normal
TM05
Roar-6
C——20Normal
TM48
Round
D6010015Normal
TM20
Safeguard
C——25Normal
TM88
Sleep Talk
C——10Normal
TM22
Solar Beam
A12010010Grass
TM90
Substitute
B——10Normal
TM11
Sunny Day
C——5Fire
TM87
Swagger
——9015Normal
TM06
Toxic
C—9010Poison
TM61
Will-O-Wisp
A—8515Fire

Egg Moves

Egg
Egg
Captivate
——10020Normal
Egg
Disable
C—10020Normal
Egg
Extrasensory
B8010020Psychic
Egg
Feint Attack
—60—20Dark
Egg
Flail
——10015Normal
Egg
Flare Blitz
B12010015Fire
Egg
Heat Wave
S959010Fire
Egg
Hex
D6510010Ghost
Egg
Howl
———40Normal
Egg
Hypnosis
D—6020Psychic
Egg
Power Swap
———10Psychic
Egg
Secret Power
—7010020Normal
Egg
Spite
——10010Ghost
Egg
Tail Slap
D258510Normal

Tutor Moves

Ninetales can't learn any Tutor moves

Reminder Moves

Rem
Rem
Baby-Doll Eyes+1
——10030Fairy
Rem
Captivate
——10020Normal
Rem
Ember
—4010025Fire
Rem
Extrasensory
B8010020Psychic
Rem
Feint Attack
—60—20Dark
Rem
Fire Blast
A110855Fire
Rem
Fire Spin
D358515Fire
Rem
Flame Burst
—7010015Fire
Rem
Grudge
———5Ghost
Rem
Hex
D6510010Ghost
Rem
Inferno
—100505Fire
Rem
Payback
—5010010Dark
Rem
Roar-6
C——20Normal
Rem
Tail Whip
——10030Normal
Rem
Will-O-Wisp
A—8515Fire

Transfer Moves

Gen
Gen 3
Body Slam
C8510015Normal
Gen 3
Double-Edge
C12010015Normal
Gen 4
Endure+4
D——10Normal
Gen 4
Headbutt
D7010015Normal
Gen 3
Mimic
———10Normal
Gen 4
Natural Gift
D—10015Normal
Gen 4
Ominous Wind
—601005Ghost
Gen 4
Swift
—60—20Normal

How to Get Ninetales in X & Y

No wild encounters for Ninetales in X & Y. Bring Vulpix over from Blue, Yellow, or Omega Ruby, then level through the stages. Each step in the chain is laid out below.

How to Obtain Ninetales in X & Y

  1. Vulpix
    Step 1Obtain Vulpix

    Catch in the wild in:

    Omega RubyWalking · Mt. Pyre

    Then trade to X & Y to continue the evolution chain.

    Also found in:

    BlueYellowSilverRubyEmeraldLeafGreen
  2. Ninetales
    Step 2Ninetales ✓

Ninetales Guide

  • In X & Y, Ninetales looks average on paper at 505 BST. But Drought is why it sees play. Build around that and it pulls its weight. B-Tier pivot on our tier list. Heat Wave with Heatrock is the standard set.

  • In X & Y, Ninetales's biggest threats include Gyarados (Water), Rhydon (Ground), and Golem (Rock), all carrying super-effective STAB moves.

  • Ninetales gets Drought and Flash Fire. But Drought is the one that matters. It's the centerpiece of every viable set. Build around that.

  • Ninetales is a special attacker with base 81 Sp. Atk. Enough bulk to take a hit or two, too. Speed tells the real story. Base 100 Speed lets it outrun most of the field. Fits the pivot role.

  • For X & Y, the core moveset is Heat Wave, Protect, Solarbeam, and Will O Wisp. Heat Wave leads at 20% usage. This set covers the pivot role with a mix of damage and utility.

Game Availability

Available since Red & Blue, Ninetales appears in 21 games spanning 10 generations. Beyond its original form, it gained an Alolan form in Generation 7.

Click a game to view version-specific details

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