Pokemon: The 33 Strongest Out Of The Original 151

23Dugtrio

#0051

• Type: Ground
• Best Moves: Earthquake, Sucker Punch, Sandstorm, Protect
• Level It Evolves: Level 26
• Location In Red & Blue: Evolve from Diglett, Diglett's Cave
  • Diglett: Diglett's Cave

   

Dugtrio is the evolved for Diglett, and it is a decent Pokemon to use in the games with high Speed and Attack. Electric types cower in fear at a fast Ground-type such as the Mole Pokemon.

Dugtrio is a fairly important Pokemon in Red & Blue as it can be found at a high level before the Electric gym leader, Lt. Surge. This gives gamers an awesome Pokemon to take on this challenge if they are struggling to do so, especially if they choose Squirtle as their first Partner Pokemon. Diglett is a pure Ground-type, unlike its Alolan counterpart with long flowing locks, and it gains the Steel typing.

Dugtrio's Base Stats:

22Nidoqueen & Nidoking

#0021/#0034

• Type: Poison/Ground
• Best Moves:
  • Nidoking: Earthquake, Megahorn, Poison Jab, Flamethrower
  • Nidoqueen: Earthquake, Superpower, Poison Jab, Flamethrower

   

• Level It Evolves: Level 16 and then when exposed to a Moon Stone
• Location In Red & Blue: Evolve from Nidorina/Nidorino
  • Nidoran: Route 22
  • Nidoran, Nidorina & Nidorino: Safari Zone

   

A solid option for a Pokemon to use in a playthrough of a Kanto game is either Nidoqueen or Nidoking. Both are available in either version of the game, but the Nidoran male line is more common in Red and the female line is located more easily in Blue.

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They can be found easily on Route 22, one of the earlier routes, and evolved into the final form at a low level of 16, with a Moon Stone found in Mt. Moon. Having a fully evolved Pokemon in the early game is an absolute cheat code and Nidoqueen or Nidoking certainly carry their own into the later stages of the game. Ground types are useful against Lt. Surge (Electric), Blaine (Fire) and Koga (Poison). Their stats are fairly similar, with Nidoking being slightly more attacking and Nidoqueen being more defensive. It is up to the gamer for which one they prefer and what their team needs to focus on.

Base Stats:

21Tauros

#0128

• Type: Normal
• Best Moves: Work Up, Earthquake, Thrash, Rest
• Level It Evolves: N/A
• Location In Red & Blue: Safari Zone

The Wild Bull Pokemon is most famous for its anime appearances when Ash Ketchum caught 30 of them in the Safari Zone. This is impressive considering it has a 1% encounter to capture in the area in the games.

This Pokemon cannot evolve, which is sometimes a blessing, as gamers have an awesome Pokemon to use from the off, as it shines in speed and attack, but it also is no slouch defensively. It has a varied movepool, capable of learning Close Combat, Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, and Flamethrower. Having a Tauros on a Pokemon team can lead to a lot of versatility when it comes to Gym challenges and the Elite Four.

Tauros' Base Stats:

20Arcanine

#0059

• Type: Fire
• Best Moves: Flamethrower, Take Down, Extremespeed, Thunder Fang
• Level It Evolves: When exposed to a Fire Stone
• Location In Red & Blue: Evolve from Growlithe
  • Growlithe: Route 7, 8 and Pokemon Mansion (Red Only)

   

A truly iconic Pokemon, Arcanine is a Fire-type Pokemon and is the signature 'mon of Cinnabar Island Gym Leader Blaine, and a famous Pokemon of Champion/Rival Blue and his anime counterpart Gary Oak.

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In the games, the Legendary Pokemon (by category) is a beast to use as a fast, mixed attacker. It can decimate opponents with powerful Fire-type moves and strike first when the time is right, with a priority Extremespeed. Only players of Red or FireRed can use Arcanine without training, with those playing Blue or LeafGreen instead having Rapidash, which isn't as strong.

Arcanine's Base Stats:

19Vaporeon, Jolteon & Flareon

#0134/#0135/#136

• Type:
  • Vaporeon: Water
  • Jolteon: Electric
  • Flareon: Fire

   

• Best Moves:
  • Vaporeon: Surf, Dig, Acid Armor, Last Resort
  • Jolteon: Thunderbolt, Dig, Thunder Wave, Last Resort
  • Flareon: Flamethrower, Dig, Smog, Last Resort

   

• Level It Evolves:
  • Vaporeon: Water Stone
  • Jolteon: Thunder Stone
  • Flareon: Fire Stone

   

• Location In Red & Blue: Evolve from Eevee
  • Eevee: Received from a person in Celadon Mansion (Eevee)

   

Eevee has the unique ability to evolve into Pokemon of various types, with more introduced in future generations, but back in Pokemon Red & Blue, there were only three. Vaporeon the Water-type, Jolteon the Electric-type, and Flareon the Fire type.

The player only receives one Eevee in the game, so the player must decide which Pokemon to evolve it into. Each different Eeveelution has different stats, moves, and abilities, so gamers will need to work out what their team needs and what difficulties lie ahead. Whatever the trainer decides, they will have an amazing Pokemon with 525 base stats to work with.

Base Stats:

18Venusaur

#0003

• Type: Grass/Poison
• Best Moves: Leech Seed, Petal Blizzard, Toxic, Sludge Bomb
• Level It Evolves: Level 16 then 32
• Location In Red & Blue: Evolve from Ivysaur
  • Bulbasaur: Given by Professor Oak

   

The original fully evolved Pokemon, Venusaur is a powerful Pokemon in the games with high special attack and defense, capable of hitting hard with Solar Beam, Frenzy Plant, and Petal Blizzard. What Venusaur is good at is his wide variety of status moves that it can learn; Poison Powder, Sleep Powder, Sunny Day, and Synthesis.

Venusaur is a Grass/Poison type and it has four weaknesses, Fire (2x), Psychic (2x), Flying, and Ice (2x), but upon Mega Evolving, it gains the ability of Thick Fat which removes the Fire and Ice weaknesses. Mega Venusaur is a beast with a massive improvement in its stats, the biggest being a big increase in physical defense.

Venusaur's Base Stats:

17Charizard

#0006

• Type: Fire/Flying
  • Mega Charizard X: Fire/Dragon
  • Mega Charizard Y: Fire/Flying

   

• Best Moves: Flamethrower, Air Slash, Dragon Breath, Will-O-Wisp
• Level It Evolves: Level 16 then 36
• Location In Red & Blue: Evolve from Charmeleon
  • Charmander: Given by Professor Oak

   

A fan-favorite Pokemon, Charizard has received some criticism in recent times for being too favored by Game Freak. However, this takes nothing away from the fact Charizard is a fantastic Pokemon and a go-to Fire-type for many in the games.

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Back in Generation 1, there was only one line of Dragon Pokemon, the Dragonite line and some fans thought that Charizard should have been a Dragon all along. It clearly looks like one. Fans got this with its Mega Evolution introduced in Pokemon X & Y, with Mega Charizard X.

Charizard's Base Stats:

16Blastoise

#0009

• Type: Water
• Best Moves: Protect, Rain Dance, Hydro Pump, Flash Cannon
• Level It Evolves: Level 16 then 36
• Location In Red & Blue: Evolve from Wartortle
  • Squirtle: Given by Professor Oak

   

The signature Pokemon of the first champion in Pokemon, Blue, Blastoise, is an icon with its two massive water cannons and blow-away special attack stat. Hydro Pump can wash away opponents with ease, it thrives in its defense, making use of that massive shell on its back.

With only two weaknesses to Grass (2x) and Electric (2x), it also resists four types, the Shellfish Pokemon can be handy in battle and there isn't a lot that can knock it down. There is a reason why it is one of the most popular Starter Pokemon of all time.

Blastoise's Base Stats:

15Pidgeot

#0018

• Type: Normal/Flying
• Best Moves: Hurricane, Quick Attack, Roost, U-Turn
• Level It Evolves: Level 18 then 36
• Location In Red & Blue: Evolve from Pidgeotto
  • Pidgey: Routes 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, 15, 21, 24, and 25

   

Flying types are useful in Pokemon as they can avoid Ground-type attacks completely and Pidgeot is one of the best, starting as a humble Pidgey, it blossoms into the majestic Pidgeot at level 36.

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Back in Generation 1, Pidgeot was the stellar Flying-type attack user, although there are a lot of those to pick from in Kanto. Pigeot is known in the anime as one of Ash's Pokemon, at the end of the original series he released it into the wild with a promise to return for it. But if fans haven't kept up with the latest series, then they will not know that two decades later Ash kept his promise and returned Pidgeot to his team.

Pidgeot's Base Stats:

14Machamp

#0068

• Type: Fighting
• Best Moves: Cross Chop, Strength, Bulk Up, Substitute
• Level It Evolves: Level 28 then traded
• Location In Red & Blue: Evolve from Machoke
  • Machop: Rock Tunnel, Victory Road

   

Machamp is the original powerful Fighting-type Pokemon and in Generation 1 it was so useful, the signature Pokemon of Elite Four member Bruno. Fighting types had only two weaknesses in Red & Blue and were particularly useful as being the only type capable of dealing super effective damage to Normal types.

This four-armed behemoth was a rare Pokemon back in the day as gamers needed to trade a Machoke to obtain it, without the use of cheats back in the ‘90s this was sometimes hard to accomplish on a Game Boy.

Machamp's Base Stats:

13Articuno, Zapdos & Moltres

#0144,#01445,#0146

• Type:
  • Articuno: Ice/Flying
  • Zapdos: Electric/Flying
  • Moltres: Fire/Flying

   

• Best Moves:
  • Articuno: Ice Beam, Hurricane, Roost, Reflect
  • Zapdos: Thunder Wave, Roost, Rain Dance, Thunder
  • Moltres: Sunny Day, Hurricane, Roost, Flamethrower

   

• Level It Evolves: N/A
• Location In Red & Blue:
  • Articuno: Seafoam Islands (Only One)
  • Zapdos: Power Plant (Only One)
  • Moltres: Victory Road (Only One)

   

Although they aren't nearly as high on the totem pole in the present generation, there was a time when Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres were considered among the best possible Pokemon for players to catch. During their stint in the original 151, they had a base stat total of 485 (Articuno), 490 (Zapdos), and 495 (Moltres) respectively. They were hard-hitting and some of the best Pokemon available for their elements.

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Fast-forward to the modern age and the trio has been given a buff to their stats, with each bird now sporting a 580 base stat total. They even received their own Galarian regional forms.

The Legendary Bird Trio's Base Stats:

12Exeggutor

#0103

• Type: Grass/Psychic
• Best Moves: Leech Seed, Psychic, Leaf Storm, Reflect
• Level It Evolves: When exposed to a Leaf Stone
• Location In Red & Blue: Evolve from Exeggcute
  • Exeggcute: Safari Zone

   

Some players that first loaded up Red, Blue, or Yellow back in the late 90s likely passed on Exeggutor thanks to its strange appearance. Exeggcute wasn't the strongest Pokemon in the bunch and there were many other pocket monsters found throughout the adventure that some players likely gravitated towards due to their cool appearance or powerful moves. But Exeggutor was a lot better than some players would give it credit for, boasting a large base stat total (455) and some powerful moves thanks to its unique typing.

Although Exeggutor would suffer heavily against Ice-based attacks, it was still more than capable of taking down a wide array of strong Pokemon.

Exeggutor's Base Stats:

11Lapras

#0131

• Type: Water/Ice
• Best Moves: Surf, Ice Beam, Ice Shard, Rain Dance
• Level It Evolves: N/A
• Location In Red & Blue: Received from a person in Silph Co. (Saffron City)

Speaking of Ice-type Pokemon, this list would be remiss if it didn't include the iconic Lapras. Not only was this Pokemon featured heavily throughout the games, but it also found its place in the original anime. There are many players out there who know Lapras due to its front-and-center status, but many may not realize just how strong the Pokemon really is.

Its base stat total of 450 makes it a powerful special attacker as it features impressive bulk with an HP of 130 and an SP Attack value of 95. It's not the fastest Pokemon around concerning Generation 1 but it does feature some impressive attacks.

Lapras' Base Stats:

10Gyarados

#0130

• Type: Water/Flying
  • Mega Gyarados: Water/Dark

   

• Best Moves: Crunch, Dragon Dance, Aqua Tail, Hurricane
• Level It Evolves: Level 20
• Location In Red & Blue: Evolve from Magikarp
  • Magikarp: Routes 6, 10, 11, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, Pallet Town, Viridian City, Cerulean City, Vermilion City, Celadon City, Fuchsia City, Safari Zone, Seafoam Islands, Cinnabar Island, Indigo Plateau, Cerulean Cave (Old Rod), Routes 12, 13, 17, and 18, Fuchsia City (Super Rod), Buy from Magikarp salesman for $500 on Route 4

   

This atrocious Pokemon can become a rampaging destroyer when provoked. In the games, manga, and anime, this sea serpent often wreaks havoc when it appears from the depths. Usually depicted using impressive moves like Hyper Beam and Twister, they are not a foe most would wish to face.

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With access to Dragon Dance, which allows them to buff their Attack and Speed simultaneously, they can sweep whole teams. However, they have a crippling x4 weakness to Electric attacks, many of which can one-shot or two-shot them.

Gyarados' Base Stats:

9Aerodactyl

#0142

• Type: Rock/Flying
• Best Moves: Stone Edge, Fly, Giga Impact, Crunch
• Level It Evolves: N/A
• Location In Red & Blue: Revive from Old Amber at the Pokémon Lab on Cinnabar Island (found at Pewter City museum)

A prehistoric predator brought back from the dead by modern science, this former resident of an Old Amber fossil takes to the skies with wrathful ferocity. Out of all the original 151, Aerodactyl is tied for the second-highest Speed with the legendary Pokemon Mewtwo. The only species that can outspeed them is Electrode.

However, the fossil Pokemon has a substantial Attack stat that makes great use of powerhouse Physical moves like Earthquake and Stone Edge. They can also set up Stealth Rocks, which combined with their high Speed makes them a great lead.

Aerodactyl's Base Stats:

8Starmie

#0121

• Type: Water/Psychic
• Best Moves: Surf, Recover, Thunderbolt, Psychic
• Level It Evolves: When exposed to a Water Stone
• Location In Red & Blue: Evolve from Staryu
  • Staryu: Seafoam Islands, Routes 19, 20, 21, Cinnabar Island, Seafoam Islands (Super Rod)

   

These mysterious Pokemon inhabit the seas, swimming while propelled by their secondary star behind the main body. They have high Special Attack and Speed, plus access to a wide array of excellent moves. Hydro Pump, Ice Beam, and even Thunderbolt can be learned by this vividly gemmed monster.

As a dual Water and Psychic-type, it gets some great type advantages against many others in Gen 1. Furthermore, it can heal with Recover and utilize great Psychic support moves such as Cosmic Power and Agility to buff various stats.

Starmie's Base Stats:

7Snorlax

#0143

• Type: Normal
• Best Moves: Rest, Snore, Body Slam, Sleep Talk
• Level It Evolves: N/A
• Location In Red & Blue: Route 12, Route 16 (only two)

These usually sleepy titans can unleash a world of hurt when they want to. Against most foes, they do excellent neutral damage with a high base power Normal-type attack like Giga Impact as well as more situational moves like Facade and their trademark Body Slam.

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When confronting Ghost-type enemies, they can even unleash Dark-type attacks to counter them like Crunch and Darkest Lariat. On top of all this, Snorlax has the second-highest HP stat of all the original 151. It can utilize Rest to restore this vast quantity of life followed by Sleep Talk to attack while dosing.

Snorlax's Base Stats:

6Chansey

#0113

• Type: Normal
• Best Moves: Softboiled, Take Down, Sing, Light Screen
• Level It Evolves: N/A (in Generation 1)
• Location In Red & Blue: Safari Zone, Cerulean Cave

These adorable pink blobs with egg pouches are friends to many due to their caring nature. However, when it comes to defending their companions or themselves, these rare creatures can be quite troublesome to deal with. A veritable wall of health points, almost possessing the highest-HP stat of any Pokemon in the entire series, it takes a lot to put down a Chansey.

That is if one is attacking with Special attacks. Though, much like an egg, Chansey does not have very high Physical Defense. In fact, in this regard, it has one of the lowest in the series, which offsets its huge pool of health.

Chansey's Base Stats:

5Mew

#0151

• Type: Psychic
• Best Moves: Transform, Amnesia, Psychic, Aura Sphere
• Level It Evolves: N/A
• Location In Red & Blue: Event

This legendary Psychic-type is considered a genetic ancestor of many Pokemon. Because of this, they can learn a tremendous number of moves, more than any other in the series. This opens up infinite possibilities for sets and makes Mew arguably the more versatile of the original Pokemon in combat.

With both high and evenly distributed stats, Mew can fit as any part of any team; sweeper, healer, lead, or even as a wall. They can also learn Transform, which can make them exceptionally tricky to counter.

Mew's Base Stats:

4Gengar

#0094

• Type: Ghost/Poison
• Best Moves: Shadow Ball, Sludge Bomb, Hypnosis, Curse
• Level It Evolves: Level 25 then traded
• Location In Red & Blue: Evolve from Haunter
  • Gastly: Pokemon Tower

   

These terrifying Ghost and Poison-type pokemon boast remarkable Special Attack, Speed, and a stellar movepool. This makes them a versatile threat that usually specializes in trickery or a strong Special offense. Usually depicted confounding or crippling their foes in the anime, they can do so in gameplay as well via Confuse Ray, Hypnosis, and the deadly Curse.

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Alternatively, they can dish out huge Special damage with Shadow Ball, Psychic, Thunderbolt, or any other number of great coverage attacks.

Gengar's Base Stats:

3Dragonite

#0149

• Type: Dragon/Flying
• Best Moves: Outrage, Dragon Dance, Hyper Beam, Fire Punch
• Level It Evolves: Level 30 then 55
• Location In Red & Blue: Evolve from Dragonair
  • Dratini: Safari Zone or buy in Game Corner

   

This pseudo-legendary is the Pokemon with the highest Attack stat out of all the original 151. They were also the first fully-evolved Dragon-type Pokemon, only really fearing Ice-type attacks, which do x4 damage on them since they are also part Flying-type. Apart from their Attack, their other stats are average, which allows them to fit their role as bulky attacker well.

Access to Dragon Dance makes them a devastating sweeper under the right conditions. With a well-timed Outrage, they can go on a rampage, felling two or three Pokemon on consecutive turns. As if taking out half of a team by themselves isn't enough, they can also learn Extreme Speed, the highest-damage Priority move in the game, allowing them to injure or knock out faster Pokemon.

Dragonite's Base Stats:

2Alakazam

#0065

• Type: Psychic
• Best Moves: Psychic, Recover, Future Sight, Calm Mind
• Level It Evolves: Level 16 then traded
• Location In Red & Blue: Evolve from Kadabra
  • Abra: Routes 24 and 25, Celadon City (Rocket Game Corner)

   

Alakazam is the definition of a 'Glass Cannon'. They can hit ridiculously hard with a wealth of Special Attacks like Psyshock, Future Sight, and Tri Attack. They can also outspeed almost any other Pokemon, though their defensive stats are less than average.

They allegedly have an incredibly high IQ and use it to outwit their adversaries, usually successfully. Alakazam can also learn quite a few Status moves like Recover and Substitute to stall or heal, Thunder Wave and Encore to harass the foe, as well as Nasty Plot and Calm Mind to buff their already staggering Special Attack.

Alakazam's Base Stats:

1Mewtwo

#0150

• Type: Psychic
  • Mega Mewtwo X: Psychic
  • Mega Mewtwo Y: Psychic/Fighting

   

• Best Moves: Psychic, Shadow Ball, Future Sight, Recover
• Level It Evolves: N/A
• Location In Red & Blue: Cerulean Cave

This legendary Pokemon has the highest Special Attack out of all the original 151 in addition to the highest overall base stats. With remarkable Speed, they function a lot like Alakazam but do not suffer from the same faults. Mewtwo has great HP, Attack, Defense, and Special Defense, which makes them incredibly overpowered.

This Pokemon was a genetic experiment created by people to be the strongest Pokemon ever. It seems humans succeeded regarding all of those that can be found in the Kanto region. Mewtwo has access to such a huge pool of moves that they are a one-monster team. If one has a Mewtwo on their side, they'll rarely need others in a battle.

Mewtwo's Base Stats:

3:30

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