Is Nidoran♂ (male) Good in Red & Blue Playthrough?
The offensive counterpart to Nidoran-F. Evolves at level 16 into Nidorino, Moon Stone immediately, and Nidoking carries you through most of the game. The male version trades some bulk for more hitting power.
Brock's typing presses Nidoran♂ (male)'s defenses.
Nidoran♂ (male) trades roughly evenly with Misty's team.
Nidoran♂ (male) trades roughly evenly with Lt. Surge's team.
Nidoran♂ (male) trades roughly evenly with Erika's team.
Koga's typing presses Nidoran♂ (male)'s defenses.
Nidoking trades roughly evenly with Sabrina's team.
Nidoking resists most of Blaine's coverage and hits back hard.
Nidoking has the type edge here and should clean up Giovanni's team.
Nidoking has the type edge here and should clean up Lorelei's team.
Nidoking has the type edge here and should clean up Bruno's team.
Nidoking trades roughly evenly with Agatha's team.
Nidoking trades roughly evenly with Lance's team.
Nidoking has the type edge here and should clean up Blue's team.
Catch Nidoran M on Safari Zone (walking, Lv 24, rare).
- STARTING (Lv 24)
- LV 24NormalHorn Attack65100%25
- After Misty
- TM08NormalBody Slam85100%15
- After Lt. Surge
- TM24ElectricThunderbolt90100%15
- After Erika
- TM40NormalSkull Bash130100%10
- TM10NormalDouble-Edge120100%15
- After Sabrina
- TM14IceBlizzard11070%5
- TM25ElectricThunder11070%10
- After Koga
- TM09NormalTake Down9085%20
You can pick up the Moon Stone in Mt. Moon. 4 other locations are also available.
- STARTING (Lv 43)
- LV 43NormalThrash120100%10
- After Lt. Surge
- TM13IceIce Beam90100%10
- TM24ElectricThunderbolt90100%15
- After Erika
- TM15NormalHyper Beam15090%5
- TM40NormalSkull Bash130100%10
- TM10NormalDouble-Edge120100%15
- After Koga
- TM26GroundEarthquake150100%10
- After Blaine
- TM38FireFire Blast11085%5
How to Get Nidoran♂ (male) in Red & Blue
Nidoran♂ (male)'s scattered across 8 spots in early-game routes with high spawn rates. Check the list below for the closest location to wherever you are in the game. This one's quick.
Where To Catch Nidoran♂ (male) in RB
Nidoran♂ (male) is your first catch on the way to Nidoran♂ (male). You'll find walking and gift encounters from Lv. 2-33 across 15 total spots in the chain.
Step 1Nidoran♂ (male) ✓Route 22Lv.2-4GrassRedRate 40%Route 22Lv.3-4GrassBlueRate 40%Safari Zone - CenterLv.22FloorRedRate 20%Safari Zone - NorthLv.22FloorRedRate 20%Safari Zone - EastLv.24FloorRedRate 20%Safari Zone - WestLv.25FloorRedRate 20%Safari Zone - EastLv.24FloorBlueRate 5%Safari Zone - WestLv.25FloorBlueRate 5%
Step 2Catch or Evolve into NidorinoSafari Zone - NorthLv.30FloorRedRate 10%Safari Zone - NorthLv.30FloorBlueRate 5%Celadon City - Game CornerLv.17Gift from NPCBlueLimitedPurchase: 1,200 coinsSafari Zone - CenterLv.31FloorRedRate 10%Safari Zone - EastLv.33FloorRedRate 10%Safari Zone - WestLv.33FloorRedRate 10%Safari Zone - CenterLv.31FloorBlueRate 5%or evolve from Nidoran♂ (male) (Step 1)
Step 3Evolve into Nidoking
Nidoran♂ (male) Weakness
Nidoran♂ (male) is weak to Ground, Psychic, and Bug. Not too many gaps in the chart, 3 weaknesses to account for.
| Damage | Types |
|---|---|
| 2x (Weak) | Ground, Psychic, Bug |
| 0.5x (Resist) | Grass, Fighting, Poison |
- 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
What is Nidoran♂ (male) Weak Against
VulnerableBest Pokemon Against Nidoran♂ (male)
 Geodude RockGround | C | |
 Sandshrew Ground | C | |
 Kadabra Psychic | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Nidoran♂ (male) View Kadabra builds →Confusion 2x107-127%KO Dig 2x62-76% | ||
 Paras BugGrass | C | |
 Butterfree Bug | C | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Nidoran♂ (male) View Butterfree builds →Confusion 2x56-67% | ||
Geodude RockGround | C | |
Sandshrew Ground | C | |
Kadabra Psychic | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Nidoran♂ (male) View Kadabra builds →Confusion 2x107-127%KO Dig 2x62-76% | ||
Paras BugGrass | C | |
Butterfree Bug | C | |
Available Move Moves
Damage vs Nidoran♂ (male) View Butterfree builds →Confusion 2x56-67% | ||
Nidoran♂ (male) Evolutions
Nidoran♂ (male) is the evolved form of Nidoran♂ (male), reached. A Poison type at 273 stats that still can't breed. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
RB Nidoran♂ (male) Best Moveset
Poison pre-evolution on the path to Nidoking's wider movepool. No competitive use before evolving twice.
Best Build
Gen 1 build content has limited support (no abilities, held items, or natures).
Try selecting a different game/generation filter, or check back later.
Moves List
Most of Nidoran♂ (male)'s flexibility comes from TMs. Same-type output runs through Poison Sting, but Normal and Fighting and the rest of the TM pool push it from predictable to genuinely threatening.
How to Read the Moves Table
Tabs
- Level-Up
- Learned by leveling up.
- TM
- Taught by a Technical Machine.
- Egg
- Inherited via breeding.
- Tutor
- NPC tutor (cost: items, BP, money).
- Reminder
- An NPC reteaches any move this Pokemon could have learned by leveling up.
- Transfer
- Carried over from an older game using Pokemon HOME.
- Event
- Given out through Mystery Gift events.
Visual Signals
CAT (Category)
How the move deals damage and which stats it uses.
A small dot on the icon's corner marks the move as contact. That triggers abilities like Static, Flame Body, Rough Skin, or Iron Barbs, plus items like Rocky Helmet and Sticky Barb.
Tier (S to D)
Each move's competitive rank in RankedBoost's system. TM, Egg, and Tutor sort by tier by default (best first). On Level-Up, click the Tier header to do the same.
PWR (Power)
Base damage. Numbers shown in a type color include STAB (base × 1.5). Hover any colored number to see the math.
— means no power (status moves) or variable power.
Sorting & Filter
Click any column header to sort. Level-Up opens with Lv 1 at the top. TM, Egg, and Tutor open with the highest-tier moves at the top.
Search filters by move name or type. The Filter button limits the list to STAB, Physical, Special, or Status moves.
Level-Up Moves
TM Moves
Egg Moves
Tutor Moves
Base Stats
Stiffens its ears to sense danger. The larger its horns, the more powerful its secreted venom.
Nidoran♂ (male) Red & Blue Guide
- How do I catch Nidoran♂ (male) in the Red & Blue Safari Zone?
See the Locations section above for where to find Nidoran♂ (male) in Red & Blue.
Safari rules: You can only use Safari Balls. No battling. Two tactical items shift the catch/flee trade-off:
- Throw bait to keep Nidoran♂ (male) from fleeing (flee rate cut to 1/4) but it becomes harder to catch (catch factor halved).
- Throw a rock to make Nidoran♂ (male) easier to catch (catch factor doubled) but it flees twice as often.
- Each effect lasts 2-6 random turns; throwing one cancels the other.
In Red & Blue, Nidoran♂ (male) at 273 BST is a stepping stone. Evolve it when you can for a real stat jump.
Game Availability
Present since Red & Blue, Nidoran%e2%99%82 Male appears in 19 games spanning 10 generations. Gen 1 originals like Nidoran%e2%99%82 Male have the longest track record of availability in the series.
Click a game to view version-specific details
- Gen 1RBDebut
Red & Blue - Gen 1Y
Yellow - Gen 2GS
Gold & Silver - Gen 2C
Crystal - Gen 3RS
Ruby & Sapphire - Gen 3E
Emerald - Gen 3FRLG
FireRed & LeafGreen - Gen 4DP
Diamond & Pearl - Gen 4Pt
Platinum - Gen 4HGSS
HeartGold & SoulSilver - Gen 5BW
Black & White - Gen 5B2W2
Black 2 & White 2 - Gen 6XY
X & Y - Gen 6ORAS
Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire - Gen 7SM
Sun & Moon - Gen 7USUM
Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon - Gen 7LGPE
Let's Go Pikachu & Eevee - Gen 8SwSh
Sword & Shield - Gen 8BDSP
Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl - Gen 8PLA
Legends: Arceus - Gen 9SV
Scarlet & Violet - Gen 9LZA
Legends: Z-A - Gen 10WW
Winds & Waves