Strong point: Defense — higher than 73% of species. Its weakest point is Sp. Def — lower than 98% of species. Taken together these numbers say little in its favor: below 92% of the Pokédex. This is not the final form yet — it evolves once more, and the line branches into 2 mutually exclusive forms, so the numbers above describe this stage, not what it will end up as. On defense it has 4 weaknesses, 3 resistances and 1 full immunity. Electric-type moves do nothing to it at all. Very easy to catch, often with the first Poké Ball.
Base stats
Last column: what percentage of 1084 species and regional forms have a lower value. Weak point: Sp. Def.
A nature can improve this entry further: its boost hits hardest on Defense, the stat in which this species already leads. Which nature does that — see the list of natures.
Which nature to choose
The stats describe a physical wall — it hits weakly on both sides, but its Defense stays high. A nature does not touch HP, so extra bulk can only be added on this side. Evolution does not change it, so pick it for the final form, not for these numbers.
- Impish +Def · −SpA Raises what this species uses to absorb hits, at the cost of Sp. Atk — a stat it does not use anyway.
- Relaxed +Def · −Spe The same defensive gain, paid for with Speed it does not have anyway. Under Trick Room the drop becomes an advantage.
- Hidden Power and Weather Ball still deal damage based on Sp. Atk. If either of them is going into the set, lowering Sp. Atk is no longer free.
A conclusion drawn from base stats alone — a specific moveset can reverse it. All 25 natures.
Regional numbers 4
The header shows the national number. Inside the game the Pokédex counts from the beginning — below is the number you will see in your version.
| Hoenn | #042 | Ruby / Sapphire , Emerald |
|---|---|---|
| Hoenn | #043 | Omega Ruby / Alpha Sapphire |
| Kalos | #111 | X / Y |
| Galar | #104 | Sword / Shield |
Abilities
- Compound Eyes Increases moves' accuracy to 1.3×.
- Run Away Ensures success fleeing from wild battles.
Pokédex entry
NINCADA lives underground for many years in complete darkness. This POKéMON absorbs nutrients from the roots of trees. It stays motionless as it waits for evolution.
Resistances and weaknesses
Type chart →How much damage Nincada takes when it is hit by a move of each type. The multipliers of both its types are already combined here.
How it was drawn
2002–2019The sprites come straight from the games in which Nincada appeared — one from each release.
Variant gallery
The gallery shows only the appearance variants that exist for this Pokémon. Every image shows the same character and differs in source — a Pokémon HOME render or a pixel sprite — and in coloring, regular or shiny.
TCG cards (10)
All Nincada cards →Nincada has 10 cards in 8 sets. The oldest of them are shown below.
Breeding
All Egg Groups →Offspring can come from 90 species from the same Egg Groups (with opposite genders) or from Ditto. Below are the first 12 by Pokédex number.
The Egg hatches after 15 cycles, which is roughly 4,100 steps. The exact cycle length depends on the game — newer titles shortened it noticeably — so treat this number as an order of magnitude, not a countdown. Having the Flame Body Ability in your party halves the wait.
Where to catch it (11)
All locations →The levels shown are the widest range across all game versions — in a specific release it may be narrower. The exact area, catch method and chance are on the page of each location.
Galar
Hoenn
Johto
Kalos
Sinnoh
Moves (54)
Full move list →Below are the moves learned by leveling up. The rest (32 via TM/TR, 9 via Egg, 14 via tutor) are on the full list.
| Lv. | Move | Type | Cat. | Power | Acc. | PP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sand Attack | Ground | Status | — | 100% | 15 |
| 1 | Scratch | Normal | Physical | 40 | 100% | 35 |
| 5 | Harden | Normal | Status | — | — | 30 |
| 5 | Leech Life | Bug | Physical | 80 | 100% | 10 |
| 10 | False Swipe | Normal | Physical | 40 | 100% | 40 |
| 15 | Mud Slap | Ground | Special | 20 | 100% | 10 |
| 21 | Absorb | Grass | Special | 20 | 100% | 25 |
| 25 | Metal Claw | Steel | Physical | 50 | 95% | 35 |
| 29 | Bide | Normal | Physical | — | — | 10 |
| 30 | Fury Swipes | Normal | Physical | 18 | 80% | 15 |
| 35 | Mind Reader | Normal | Status | — | — | 5 |
| 40 | Dig | Ground | Physical | 80 | 100% | 10 |