Nihilego
RockPoison
Best attacking moveset: Poison Jab and Sludge Bomb, worth 14.3 damage per second against a neutral target.
Best moveset
Nihilego can learn 12 combinations. Poison Jab with Sludge Bomb does the most damage per second of them, at level 40 with a perfect attack stat. Same-type moves get the 1.2× bonus, and the cycle assumes the charged attack fires the moment it has the energy.
Stats and moves come straight from the game's own data files. Every number on this page is a raid and gym number, not a PvP one.
Type matchups
| Fast attack | Type | Power | Duration | Energy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acid | Poison | 11 | 1.0s | +10 |
| Poison Jab | Poison | 13 | 1.0s | +9 |
| Pound | Normal | 6 | 0.5s | +5 |
| Charged attack | Type | Power | Duration | Energy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gunk Shot | Poison | 130 | 3.0s | -100 |
| Power Gem | Rock | 80 | 3.0s | -50 |
| Rock Slide | Rock | 75 | 2.5s | -50 |
| Sludge Bomb | Poison | 85 | 2.5s | -50 |
Shiny
Yes. Shiny Nihilego has been released. Players have found it from: wild, raid, research, photobomb.
Numbers
| Max CP | 4,465 at level 50, 3,949 at level 40 |
|---|---|
| Raid catch | 2,256 CP at level 20, or 2,821 if weather boosted (perfect IVs) |
| Lowest possible raid catch | 2,167 CP. Raid encounters can't roll below 10/10/10 |
| Base stats | 249 attack · 210 defense · 240 stamina |
What it costs
| Second charged move | 100,000 Stardust and 100 Candy |
|---|---|
| Buddy distance | 20 km per Candy |
| Size | 1.2 m and 55.5 kg |
Best moveset against each type
Nihilego does not have one best moveset, it has 4. Which one wins depends on what you are attacking, because a move only gets its bonus against something weak to it. Best against Grass, Fairy, Flying.
| Against | Best moveset | DPS |
|---|---|---|
| Grass | Poison Jab + Sludge Bomb | 22.1 |
| Fairy | Poison Jab + Sludge Bomb | 22.1 |
| Poison Jab + Rock Slide | 17.3 | |
| Bug | Poison Jab + Rock Slide | 17.3 |
| Fire | Poison Jab + Rock Slide | 17.3 |
| Ice | Poison Jab + Rock Slide | 17.3 |
| Normal | Poison Jab + Sludge Bomb | 14.3 |
| Fighting | Poison Jab + Sludge Bomb | 14.3 |
| Water | Poison Jab + Sludge Bomb | 14.3 |
| Electric | Poison Jab + Sludge Bomb | 14.3 |
| Psychic | Poison Jab + Sludge Bomb | 14.3 |
| Dragon | Poison Jab + Sludge Bomb | 14.3 |
| Dark | Poison Jab + Sludge Bomb | 14.3 |
| Poison | Pound + Rock Slide | 12.4 |
| Rock | Pound + Rock Slide | 11.1 |
| Ghost | Poison Jab + Rock Slide | 10.7 |
| Ground | Pound + Gunk Shot | 10.5 |
| Steel | Pound + Rock Slide | 8.4 |
Same maths as the headline number, run once per defending type: level 40, perfect attack IV, and the target's own type taken into account. Sorted by damage, so the top of this table is what Nihilego is actually for.
Counters: what beats Nihilego
| Attacker | Type | Moveset | DPS |
|---|---|---|---|
 Groudon | Ground | Mud Shot + Precipice Blades Legacy | 36.9 |
 Excadrill | GroundSteel | Mud Slap + Earthquake | 35.1 |
 Mamoswine | IceGround | Mud Slap + High Horsepower | 34.5 |
 Rhyperior | GroundRock | Mud Slap + Earthquake | 33.2 |
 Garchomp | DragonGround | Mud Shot + Earthquake | 32.9 |
 Landorus | Ground | Mud Shot + Earth Power | 32.8 |
 Krookodile | GroundDark | Mud Slap + Earthquake | 31.7 |
 Golurk | GroundGhost | Mud Slap + Earth Power | 30.2 |
 Golem | RockGround | Mud Slap + Earthquake | 29.4 |
 Torterra | GrassGround | Mud Slap + Earthquake | 28.2 |
Ranked by damage per second against Nihilego's own defense, at level 40 with a 15 attack IV, one per evolution family.