Rock-type Pokemon: Weaknesses & Strengths Explained

If you are not familiar with the weaknesses of Rock-type Pokemon, they can be quite difficult to defeat and may even cause you to hit a wall. However, with the following information, you will have everything you need to overcome them.

Rock-type Pokemon possess an inherent toughness that can make them challenging opponents to defeat. Their stony composition only adds to their durability, often leading to confusion with Ground-type Pokemon. For inexperienced trainers, facing a Rock-type Pokemon without proper knowledge of their vulnerabilities can prove to be a dangerous mistake.

Despite being a strong element in the Pokemon game series, Rock types can still be countered. Therefore, here are the essential strategies for achieving victory in battle.

Rock-type Pokemon weaknesses

There are five main vulnerabilities that Rock-type Pokemon have when facing moves and other types of Pokemon:

  • Grass
  • Water
  • Steel
  • Fighting
  • Ground

Make sure to remember that a Pokemon can have two types, so always be mindful of their secondary type and utilize any additional weaknesses they may have.

Screenshot of Gen II Sudowood in Pokemon anime.
Game Freak / The Pokemon Company

Rock-type Pokemon strengths & resistances

Rock-type Pokemon not only have weaknesses, but they also possess resistance to specific types and moves. In this particular situation, they exhibit resistance to Fire, Flying, Normal, and Poison types.

Furthermore, it should be noted that Bug, Fire, Flying, and Ice-type Pokemon are all vulnerable to Rock-type attacks. Therefore, it is wise to swap out these types of Pokemon when facing a Rock-type opponent.

If you include a Rock-type in your team, avoid using it against Fighting, Ground, or Steel opponents, as Rock moves are not particularly effective against them.

Best counters for Rock-type Pokemon

The most effective Pokemon for countering Rock-type Pokemon can be found in the list below:

  • Lucario (Fighting/Steel)
  • Poliwrath (Water/Fighting)
  • Great Tusk (Ground/Fighting)
  • Iron Treads (Ground/Steel)
  • Ogerpon Wellspring Mask (Grass/Water)

When facing Rock type opponents, utilizing pure-type Pokemon allows you to exploit any of their 5 weaknesses. In fact, combining two weaknesses in Rock-type Pokemon makes for an even more advantageous battle.

It is important to consider a Pokemon’s secondary type when choosing your counter Pokemon and moves. Even though the aforementioned examples are strong against Rock types, keep in mind that the opposing Pokemon may have resistances depending on their primary or secondary type.

Best Tera Types for Rock-type Pokemon

The inclusion of Tera Types by Scarlet & Violet altered the rules of battle, therefore, the following are the key considerations to enhance the strength of your Rock-type Pokemon:

  • Rock: Boost the power of Rock-type moves on top of STAB
  • Fighting: Eliminates the Rock-type weaknesses to Water, Ground, and Fighting-type moves
  • Water: Eliminates the Rock-type weaknesses to Water and Steel-type moves
  • Grass: Eliminates the Rock-type weaknesses to Grass and Water-type moves
All three different forms of Lycanroc stand together and roar
The Pokemon Company

Best Rock moves in Pokemon

There are a total of 25 Rock-type moves, and we have selected the most dominant special, physical, and status attacks that can be utilized in a battle.

MOVE CATEGORY POWER ACCURACY PP EFFECT GEN
Meteor Beam Special 120 90% 10 Takes a turn to charge and boosts the user’s Sp. Attack Gen VIII
Power Gem Special 80 100% 20 Gen IV
Ancient Power Special 60 100% 5 May raise all user’s stats at once Gen II
Head Smash Physical 150 80% 5 User receives recoil damage Gen IV
Rock Wrecker Physical 150 90% 5 User must recharge next turn Gen IV
Diamond Storm Physical 100 95% 5 May sharply raise the user’s Defense Gen VI
Stone Edge Physical 100 80% 5 High critical hit ratio Gen IV
Rock Tomb Physical 60 95% 15 Lowers the opponent’s Speed Gen III
Sandstorm Status X X 10 Creates a sandstorm for 5 turns Gen II
Stealth Rock Status X X 20 Damages the opponents that switch into battle Gen IV

Best Rock-type Pokemon of all time

The Pokemon franchise currently includes 88 Rock-type creatures (up to Gen 9), and the following list ranks the top 10 among them.

  • Regirock
  • Tyranitar
  • Terrakion
  • Diancie
  • Stakataka
  • Iron Thorns
  • Iron Boulder
  • Rhyperior
  • Crustle
  • Ogerpon Cornerstone Mask

Before facing Rock-type Pokemon, the only information you need to be aware of is covered in the preceding paragraph.

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