The best Poison-type Pokémon in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet

Listen, don’t run back to your toxic ex, please. If there’s anything toxic you need to chase, it’s the Poison-type Pokémon in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet.

The roster of Poison-type ‘mons present in Gen IX is absolutely stacked, and if this is one of your favorite types, you’re going to have a hard time choosing which one you should be obsessing over.

This is why in this list, we will be talking about the 10 best Poison-types in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, based on their design, lore, and competitive viability.

The 10 best Poison-type Pokémon in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet

10) Muk

Probably the poster child for the Poison-type, Muk is literally the embodiment of Poison in Pokémon form.

Muk are known to live off of trash and toxic waste which compose all of their diet, and with the recent improvements made environmentally, Muk are likely to soon go extinct due to not having enough garbage to eat.

Come on guys, let’s stand up for the little guy. Hashtag Muk Lives Matter.

9) Salazzle

The first Poison and Fire dual-type to be introduced into the franchise, Salazzle are unique evolutions since only female Salandit get to evolve into them. Hey, we’re all for girl power. You go, queen.

Salazzle is also in a decent position in the current competitive metagame of Scarlet and Violet, with access to Fake Out, and an incredibly high Speed stat to make use of the amazing supportive coverage it gets, with moves like Acid Spray, Encore, Disable, Taunt, Will-O-Wisp, and so much more.

8) Clodsire

This absolutely rotund little boy is probably one of the best things to come out of Gen IX. It has been quickly accepted by the Wooper and Quagsire fanbase and has been showered with love ever since its release, and honestly, how could you not? It’s absolutely adorable.

Clodsire is said to live in the depths of ponds and swamps and always makes sure to help Paldean Wooper cross waters by carrying them on its back. Now that’s a gentleman if we’ve ever seen one.

Clodsire looks like the cuddliest thing on the planet, and even though it’s probably muddy and grimey from living in swamps the whole time, we’re going to say a little cuddling session with this good boy is absolutely worth it.

7) Toxicroak

Toxicroak are powerful Pokémon whose poison is incredibly potent, a single scratch proving to be poisonous enough to be life-threatening. Just like its pre-evolution, Toxicroak seem to be quite layered Pokémon, as they have been observed to be cruel and ruthless, while also calm and laid back, cooling off in marshes in harmony with the Pokémon around them.

This physically talented, toxic frog Pokémon also shows off one of the most entertaining cries in the entirety of the franchise. Pretty sure most of its fanbase loves it for its hilarious cry itself.

Interestingly enough, Toxicroak is said to be directly related to Seismitoad.

6) Gengar

The very first Ghost Pokémon introduced to the franchise as well as the only Ghost Pokémon in Generation I, a lot of people almost forgot that Gengar is actually a Poison type as well, back in the day.

It wasn’t uncommon for players to think that Ghost types were also weak to Psychic-type moves because Gengar was weak to them—due to its secondary Poison typing—and since there were no other Ghost-type Pokémon to refer to, which is pretty funny in hindsight.

Gengar still hasn’t lost its relevance after eight whole generations, taking home a tournament win and some top placements in Scarlet and Violet’s competitive circuit. Always nice to see an old ‘mon not fall victim to the unforgiving power creep of newer generations.

5) Grafaiai

The newest Pokémon in the games to boast the Prankster ability, Grafaiai is an interesting pick in the competitive scene of Pokémon.

This scrappy little aye-aye gets a lot of interesting moves that benefit from Prankster such as Encore, Switcheroo, Taunt, Parting Shot, and so on, but the reason you would use this ‘mon over other Prankster users is for its signature move Doodle.

Doodle replaces the user’s as well as its ally’s ability with the target’s ability, letting a lot of Pokémon with debilitating abilities such as Slaking and Regigas suddenly become viable with Doodle-Grafaiai as their partner. 

This Pokémon may seem a little gimmicky, but if you’re aiming to have fun and be more unconventional, then Grafaiai is a solid pick.

4) Toxtricity

It’s about time we got a rockstar Pokémon, and how apt that Toxtricity comes with the typing of Poison along with Electric. Something about famous rockstars being toxic and all, you know.

Toxtricity’s toxicity only comes out during battle, however, which is where you want it to be. Apart from its signature Electric move Overdrive—hitting both opponents for 80 base power—it also possesses the move Boomburst, an incredibly strong spread Normal-type move that is boosted by its ability Punk Rock, which boosts Sound-based moves by 30 percent.

Through Terrastalization, Toxtricity further gains a 50 percent damage boost on Boomburst with Tera Normal to blow its enemies out of the water without breaking a sweat. You just gotta make sure to build your team around it though, since Boomburst will normally hit your partner Pokémon as well.

3) Glimmora

Glimmora is a pretty unique Pokémon that stands out from the rest of the roster in Scarlet and Violet. One of the best things about Glimmora is its ability Toxic Debris, which sets up a layer of Toxic Spikes each time it gets hit by a physical move.

In competitive VGC, using an entire turn to set up hazards such as Toxic Spikes is usually a waste of a turn, when you can be doing more useful things. Setting up Toxic Spikes as a passive effect, however, is pretty neat, letting Glimmora do just the things that it needs to be doing.

One of the things that Glimmora does well is boast a very wide coverage, letting it hit a plethora of types for super-effective damage, and coupled with its high Special Attack stat, you will very easily be picking up one hit KO’s on an array of different Pokémon.

One question though: what is this Pokémon exactly? It looks like a flower, but is actually Poison and Rock type? Got us scratching our heads, for sure.

2) Iron Moth

It’s pretty tough to think about an even cooler version of Volcarona, but it looks like Iron Moth did just that.

With this future Paradox form, Volcarona has lost its Bug typing and now gains the Poison secondary typing. We don’t know about you, but a Fire and Poison dual typing just screams evil and malicious, which apparently, it is

According to the paranormal magazine in the games—Occulture—Iron Moth is believed to be sent by aliens to earth while it has been seen to terrorize random people for no apparent reason. Looks like it’s time for Volcarona to head into its villain arc, and hey, we’re all for it.

Iron Moth also boasts one of the highest Special Attack stats in the game, and with the Booster Energy item or Electric terrain present on the field, it can up its damage to unfathomable heights, all due to its ability Quark Drive.

Also, this thing’s idle animation is super cool, with its solar panel-like wings shifting in an eerie but awesome manner. Another solid reason why Iron Moth finds a high placement on this list.

1) Amoonguss

Amongus, haha funny meme. But this piece of fungus is so much more than just that. It is also an absolute force in the competitive scene of Pokémon, and it’s back to cause mayhem in Scarlet and Violet as well.

It wouldn’t be outrageous to assume that Amoonguss would soon fade away into irrelevance with the presence of Brute Bonnet in the metagame. The past Paradox form of Amoonguss has an actually usable Attack stat, more bulk, and the opportunity to raise its highest stat with its ability Protosynthesis, after all. Even with all these things going for it, Amoonguss still manages to outshine its prehistoric ancestor. 

Amoonguss has a superior dual-typing and is not threatened by four-times effective moves like Brute Bonnet is with Bug moves such as the omnipresent U-Turn in competitive VGC. Couple that with Amoonguss’ Regenerator ability that lets it heal one-third of its health every time it switches out, and you have a classic tried-and-tested formula that does not need any fixing.

Furthermore, Amoonguss has an incredibly supportive movepool, its most useful options being Spore and Rage Powder, providing a 100 percent accurate Sleep move and a valuable redirection move, respectively. This overgrown fungus has other niche options that see constant usage such as Clear Smog to clear out the opponent’s stat boosts which are so prevalent in the meta right now, as well as Pollen Puff which can provide consistent healing for its teammates and a source of damage onto its opponents.

And come on, on top of all that, Amoonguss is a meme legend, and it’s precisely why this sussy baka takes the No. 1 spot on our list.