7 Best Pokémon for catching others in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet

You can trust VideoGamer. Our team of gaming experts spend hours testing and reviewing the latest games, to ensure you're reading the most comprehensive guide possible. Rest assured, all imagery and advice is unique and original. Check out how we test and review games here

Every trainer in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet sets out to catch as many Pokémon in the game as possible. Luckily, Paldea offers many formidable foes to encounter, from Legendary to Paradox Pokémon. While searching for wild Pokémon to battle and add to your collection, there are a couple of Pokémon who can make this task much easier for you. Hence, we have prepared a list of 7 of the best Pokémon to help you catch others in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Whether it is searching Glaseado Mountain or tiny ponds, these Pokemon will help with catching other Pokemon to add to your Pokedex.

Best Pokémon to catch other Pokémon

To aid you in catching the most Pokémon in the shortest time, you must be equipped with the best Pokémon in your party. Pokémon that can inflict status effects work best for weakening wild Pokémon. Make sure to stock up on high-rarity Pokeballs as well. These factors will increase the probability of successful captures and save you a lot of time and resources. That said, here is our list of 7 best Pokémon that can be used for catching other Pokémon in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet:

  1. Amoongus
  2. Breloom
  3. Gallade
  4. Scyther
  5. Persian
  6. Masquerain
  7. Pawmi

7. Pawmi

Pokemon-Scarlet-and-Violet-Best-Pokemon-For-Catching-Pawmi-Summary
Use Pawmi’s Static ability to paralyse other Pokemon. Image by VideoGamer

We start our list with a solid Electric-type Pokémon, Pawmi, that can be captured pretty early in the game. Pawmi is located in the South Province (Area One), near Los Platos. The best part of Pawmi’s kit is its Static ability which has a 30% chance to paralyze opponents, making them an easy target to catch. One thing to remember is that Pawmi evolves into Pawmo at level 18, losing the Static ability. You can give it an Everstone to halt this evolution. However, that’s not necessary, as the next Pokémon in this list are just as good.

🚀 Save Up to $1,200 on the Samsung Galaxy S25!

Pre-order now and save big with trade-in and Samsung credit. Limited time only!

*Includes trade-in value + $300 Samsung credit.

IV StatPawmi
HP45
Attack50
Defense20
Special Attack40
Special Defense25
Speed60
Pawmi IV Stat

6. Masquerain

Masquerain is a Bug/Flying-type Pokémon, which you can find in South Province (Area Four and Five). It evolves from Surskit at level 22. Its Intimidate ability lowers an enemy’s attack, which is quite effective against higher-level Pokémon. Furthermore, you can strategically use the Soak ability from Masquerain to give yourself an upper hand during battles. Soak changes the opponent’s type to Water-type instead. If you’re fighting against Grass, Electric, and Ground-type, various status effect abilities won’t work on them. Hence, changing the enemy’s type will allow you to paralyse them.

IV StatMasquerain
HP70
Attack60
Defense62
Special Attack100
Special Defense82
Speed80
Masquerain IV Stat

5. Persian

Pokemon-Scarlet-and-Violet-Best-Pokemon-For-Catching-Persian-Summary
Persian comes with the nasty combo of Thunder Wave and False Swipe. Image by VideoGamer

Persian evolves from Meowth at level 28 and can be found in the West Province (Area Three), outside the town of Medali. You can use a TM in the game to learn Thunder Wave and False Swipe on Persian, moves that paralyse the opponent and leave it with 1 HP, respectively. With a combination of these two moves, you can catch most wild Pokémon relatively easily. Moreover, Persian has the Limber ability by default which renders it unable to be paralysed by enemy attacks. Limber makes Persian more sustainable in fights against more brutal wild Pokémon.


🎮 Must-Listen: Publishing Manor Lords w/ Joe Robinson 🎙️


IV StatPersian
HP65
Attack70
Defense60
Special Attack65
Special Defense65
Speed115
Persian IV Stat

4. Scyther

Scyther for catching Pokemons
Scyther can make short work of other Pokemon, making them easy to grab. Captured by VideoGamer

The next Pokémon on our list is a Bug/Flying-type that makes catching high-level wild Pokémon a piece of cake. The most common spawn spot of Scyther in Paldea is Casseroya Lake. The best part about Scyther is that it can naturally learn the overpowered ability, False Swipe, by levelling up without the aid of any TM. While Scyther doesn’t have any status effect-inflicting abilities, you can use it with other Pokémon on this list. For instance, paralysing a Pokémon with Pawmi’s Static and then using Scyther to cast False Swipe almost guarantees an easy catch. Scyther’s primary appeal is its powerful attack combined with False Swipe.

IV StatScyther
HP70
Attack110
Defense80
Special Attack55
Special Defense80
Speed105
Scyther IV Stat

3. Gallade

Gallade false swipe
Gallade’s False Swipe ability is among the best for catching Pokemon. Captured by VideoGamer

Next up on our list is Gallade, a fantastic choice for an offensive Pokémon to catch other wild Pokémon. Its typical habitat is the Glaseado Mountain and North Province (Area Two), and it can be evolved by using Dawn Stone on a male Kirlia. Gallade can learn the move Hypnosis, which immediately puts other Pokémon to sleep. Furthermore, you can learn Thunder Wave and False Swipe on Gallade, too, making it a deadly foe for wild Pokémon. With a combination of these 3 moves, you can catch almost any Pokémon in the game without too much struggle. In fact, sometimes using Hypnosis in tandem with False Swipe feels too broken.

IV StatGallade
HP68
Attack125
Defense65
Special Attack65
Special Defense115
Speed80
Gallade IV Stat

2. Breloom

Breloom’s abilities can incapacitate enemies in many ways. Captured by VideoGamer

Coming at number 2 in our list is Brelomm, a Grass/Fighting-type Pokémon that evolves from Shroomish at level 23. It is found in the West Province (Area Three), usually spawned in the forest. It has the Effect Spore ability with a 10% chance to Paralyse, Poison, or put the opponent to Sleep whenever it attacks the enemy with a physical move. It can also learn status-inflicting moves such as Poison Powder, and Stun Spore, and its prior evolution Shroomish can learn Spore at level 40. Breloom is also capable of learning False Swipe by TM, making it an excellent choice for both inflicting status effects and weakening wild Pokemon.

IV StatBreloom
HP60
Attack130
Defense80
Special Attack60
Special Defense60
Speed70
Breloom IV Stat

1. Amoongus

Finally, at the top of our list is a Grass/Poison-type Pokémon, Amoongus, that evolves from Foongus at level 39. It often spawns in the Casseroya Lake and North Province (Area Two). Although it takes multiple levels to evolve this Pokémon, this investment is worth it as it’s one of your best companions to catch wild Pokémon in the game. It can learn Spore, which puts opponent Pokémon to sleep and makes them vulnerable to capture. Furthermore, the Regenerator ability restores one-third of its HP when switched out of the battle, making Amoongus a solid choice against high-level and more challenging opponents.

IV StatAmoongus
HP114
Attack85
Defense70
Special Attack85
Special Defense80
Speed30
Total464
Amoongus IV Stat

How to catch Pokémon in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet?

While traversing the region of Paldea, you are bound to come across wild Pokémon you can catch and make part of your collection. Follow the steps described below to catch a wild Pokémon in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet:

  1. Approach a Pokémon you encounter in the wild to start the battle.
  2. Attack the Pokémon with your choice of companion and lower its HP without Fainting it.
  3. Make the best use of status effects such as Sleep or Paralysis.
  4. Once the opponent Pokémon has been weakened enough, throw a Poké Ball to catch it.
✓ Did you know?

Not all status effects are created equal. While each status effect increases the liklihood of catching a Pokemon, status effects like Sleep and Frozen work better than Paralysis and Poisoned. Make sure you have the best status effects to increase your catching rate.

With this, we wrap up our guide on the 7 best Pokémon to help you catch others in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. After this, read up on the best order to battle Gym Leaders or the best order to face the Titans.

About the Author

Morgan Truder

Morgan has a wealth of experience when it comes to gaming, having previously edited Realsport, a website dedicated to sports games. At VG, Morgan focuses on Football Manager news and features.

Pokémon Scarlet & Violet

  • Platform(s): Nintendo Switch
  • Genre(s): RPG
7 VideoGamer