What does Piplup evolve into?

Prinplup at level 16 is the mid-stage. Push through to Empoleon at level 36 for the final form. 314 BST right now won't cut it long-term.

At what level does Piplup evolve?

Level 16 gets you Prinplup . Quick enough that Piplup barely slows you down.

In Legends: Arceus, Piplup does the job early-game if you need a Water type on your team. Evolve it into Prinplup before the later gyms and it holds up fine through the story.

Where can you catch Piplup?

You can find Piplup in Legends: Arceus. The Locations section has the full breakdown of routes and encounter details. It also appears in 11 other games across the series.

Piplup - Weakness, Evolution, Moveset, EVs & Stats

Special

Balanced

DTier

40Speed · Very Slow

Stats & Training

Piplup's stats barely vary. None sit in respectable range with no real gaps. It's a blank slate for EV investment. Worth 1 Sp. Atk EV, 1.06M XP medium-slow curve to max.

Base Stats

Avg

HP53

Attack51

Defense53

Sp. Atk61

Sp. Def56

Speed40

Total314

Details

Catch Rate

Challenging45 / 255

Growth Rate

Medium Slow1.06M XP

Height0.4 m

Weight5.2 kg

Base XP63

Abilities

TorrentTop Pick

Strengthens water moves to inflict 1.5× damage at 1/3 max HP or less.

CompetitiveHA

Raises Special Attack by two stages upon having any stat lowered.

EV Yield

HPAtkDefSpA+1SpDSpe

Special Attack training source

Pokedex Entries

Prefers cold climes and appears along coasts. It’s an adorable little thing—as cute as any child—but it’s also prideful, unwilling to accept handouts from people.

Legends: Arceus

Piplup Weakness

Electric and Grass moves hit Piplup for super-effective damage. It resists 4 types, giving it decent defensive coverage. Only 2 weaknesses makes it relatively easy to build around defensively.

Piplup Weakness and Resistance Chart
Damage	Types
2x (Weak)	Electric, Grass
0.5x (Resist)	Fire, Water, Ice, Steel

Type ChartGood

2Weak

4Resist

0Immune

Score0

4xCritical

None

2xWeak

Electric Grass

½xResist

Fire Water Ice Steel

¼xResist

None

0xImmune

None

STAB (3)

Fire Ground Rock

How to Beat Piplup in Legends: Arceus (Best Counters)

Tangrowth Grass	A
Available Move Moves AbsorbLv. 1 Damage vs Piplup Absorb 2x 48-57% View Tangrowth builds →
Leafeon Grass	A
Available Move Moves LeafageLv. 1 Damage vs Piplup Leafage 2x 71-86% View Leafeon builds →
Shaymin Grass	C
Obtain MethodFloaro Gardens Interact Encounter Available Move Moves LeafageLv. 1 Damage vs Piplup Leafage 2x 71-86% View Shaymin builds →
Carnivine Grass	C
Available Move Moves AbsorbLv. 1 Damage vs Piplup Absorb 2x 48-57% View Carnivine builds →
Cherrim Grass	C
Available Move Moves AbsorbLv. 1 Damage vs Piplup Absorb 2x 48-57% View Cherrim builds →

Legends: Arceus Evolution

Piplup is the start of a three-stage chain. It evolves into Prinplup first, then eventually reaches Empoleon. For breeding, average hatch time with plenty of partners via two egg groups. The evolved forms gain up to 216 total stats over Piplup. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.

How to Evolve

3 Forms

#393Piplup

Level 16

#394Prinplup

Level 36

#395Empoleon

Stat Comparison 3 Stages

Piplup

Water

Prinplup

Water

Empoleon

WaterSteel

64+11

84+20

ATK

66+15

86+20

DEF

68+15

88+20

SP.ATK

81+20

111+30

SP.DEF

76+20

101+25

SPE

50+10

60+10

BST

314D-Tier

405D-Tier+91

530B-Tier+125

ROLE

Balanced

Attacker

TYPE

Utility

Special

Breeding is not available in this game

Legends: Arceus Piplup Best Moveset

The recommended build leans into Piplup's strengths as an attacker. Nothing provides extra utility, and max HP and Attack EVs back that up. Torrent rounds out the package.

Best Build

Legends: Arceus uses different battle mechanics.

Competitive build content is not applicable for this game. Select a main series game for builds.

Moves

Piplup's options are limited here. You've got Liquidation and Water Pulse for STAB damage, but there isn't much beyond Water hitting power. TMs help fill gaps, though the kit stays tight.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1

Tackle

D4010035Normal

Lv 6

Bubble

D4010030Water

Lv 11

Aerial Ace

D60—20Flying

Lv 18

Water Pulse

D6010020Water

Lv 25

Roost

C——10Flying

Lv 34

Liquidation

C8510010Water

Lv 43

Double-Edge

C12010015Normal

TM Moves

Piplup can't learn any TM moves

Egg Moves

Piplup doesn't have any Egg moves

Tutor Moves

Tut

Tutor

Aerial Ace

D60—20Flying

Tutor

Baby-Doll Eyes+1

D—10030Fairy

Tutor

Ice Beam

D9010010Ice

Tutor

Icy Wind

D559515Ice

Tutor

Rest

C——10Psychic

Tutor

Rock Smash

D4010015Fighting

Tutor

Stealth Rock

C——20Rock

Tutor

Water Pulse

D6010020Water

Legends: Arceus Piplup Locations

Piplup starts showing up in mid-game routes at decent spawn rates across 1 encounter spots. The list below is sorted so you can pick what fits your current progress without scrolling through everything.

Best Locations to Catch Piplup in Legends: Arceus

Spring Path

Grass Route

Uncommon

Piplup Guide

Prinplup at level 16 is the mid-stage. Push through to Empoleon at level 36 for the final form. 314 BST right now won't cut it long-term.
Level 16 gets you Prinplup. Quick enough that Piplup barely slows you down.
In Legends: Arceus, Piplup does the job early-game if you need a Water type on your team. Evolve it into Prinplup before the later gyms and it holds up fine through the story.
You can find Piplup in Legends: Arceus. The Locations section has the full breakdown of routes and encounter details. It also appears in 11 other games across the series.

Game Availability

Piplup first appeared in Diamond & Pearl and has been available in 12 games across 7 generations. Obtainable through catching or hatching as a base form in most titles where it appears.

Click a game to view version-specific details

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Zarude DarkGrass	A
Recommended Build AbilityLeafguard ItemChoice Scarf NatureJolly Moves Darkest Lariat Power Whip U Turn Close Combat Damage vs Piplup U Turn 38-45% Close Combat 65-77% View Zarude builds →
Regieleki Electric	A
Recommended Build AbilityTransistor ItemMagnet NatureTimid Moves Volt Switch ProtectPriority ElectrowebSTAB ThunderboltSTAB Damage vs Piplup Volt Switch 2x 99-116%KO Electroweb 2x 78-92% Thunderbolt 2x 126-149%KO View Regieleki builds →
Raikou Electric	B
Recommended Build AbilityInnerfocus ItemHeavy-Duty Boots NatureTimid Moves ThunderboltSTAB Scald Volt Switch Calm Mind Damage vs Piplup Thunderbolt 2x 140-165%KO Scald 21-24% Volt Switch 2x 108-128%KO View Raikou builds →
Breloom GrassFighting	C
Recommended Build AbilityTechnician ItemFocus Sash NatureJolly Moves Bullet Seed SporeUtility Mach Punch Swords Dance Damage vs Piplup Bullet Seed 2x 44-52% Mach Punch 35-41% View Breloom builds →