#0168 · Johto · Generation 2

Ariados

Long Leg Pokémon · Bug/Poison-type

Ariados is a Bug/Poison-type Pokémon, the Long Leg Pokémon, number 168 (#0168) in the National Pokédex. It was introduced in Generation 2 and comes from the Johto region. It is 1.1 m tall and weighs 33.5 kg.

Ariados is the Long Leg Pokémon, a night hunter that spins thread from both ends of its body. As it wanders it lets out a single strand that leads straight back to its nest.

How to pronounce Ariados

Ariados is pronounced AIR-ee-uh-dohs. The capital letters show the stressed syllable.

Listen to Ariados said out loud:

In Japanese it is アリアドス.

Hear every other name on the Pokémon pronunciation guide.

Lore

Biology

Ariados is a red spider with purple eyes, white mandibles, a white horn and spiny yellow legs banded in purple. It is 1.1 m tall and weighs 33.5 kg. The Pokédex says it spins thread from its mouth as well as its rear, so the two ends are hard to tell apart. Tiny hooks on its feet let it climb walls, Bulbapedia says.

Behaviour

After dark Ariados leaves its web and hunts without settling in one place. The Pokédex says it restrains prey with thread, bites it with its fangs and then feeds at its leisure. Another entry says some people weave its string into strong cloth.

Habitat

The Pokédex habitat is forest, and Bulbapedia says it nests deep in temperate and tropical forests. Today it is found in Kitakami and in Lumiose City.

Powers

Its Abilities are Swarm and Insomnia, with Sniper hidden. It learns Swords Dance on evolving and fights with Fell Stinger, Poison Jab and Sucker Punch, with Psychic at level 41. Its base 90 Attack makes it a decent physical attacker, held back by a Speed of just 40.

Name origin

Ariados may nod to Ariadne, the Cretan princess in Greek myth who gave Theseus a ball of twine so he could find his way out of the Labyrinth. It could also mix 'arachnid' with dos, Spanish for 'two'. The Japanese name is Ariados (アリアドス).

Design inspiration

Bulbapedia says Ariados seems to be based on the ant-mimicking spider Myrmarachne formicaria, with the front and rear body sections reversed, which would fit the Pokédex's remark about telling its ends apart. Spitting spiders may explain the mouth thread. These are fan readings.

Evolution notes

Ariados evolves from Spinarak at level 22.

In the games

Players have met Ariados since Gold and Silver. In Scarlet and Violet's expansion The Teal Mask it appears in 3-star and 4-star Tera Raid Battles. In Legends: Z-A Bulbapedia marks the Ariados in Wild Zone 20 as an Alpha Pokémon, and the Mega Dimension DLC adds it to Hyperspace Lumiose.

In the anime

Ariados debuted in 'Ariados, Amigos', where its Trainer Tōkichi uses it to battle Aya and make her stronger. In the film Pokémon Heroes, Oakley relies on an Ariados as her main Pokémon.

Fun facts

• In the Spaceworld '97 demo, Bulbapedia says Ariados appears to have been called Tsūheddo, probably a transliteration of 'Twohead', and looked like a two-headed spider.
• In the anime, the thief J has an Ariados that wraps her victims in String Shot while she takes their Pokémon, starting in 'Mutiny in the Bounty!'.
• In Pokémon Adventures, Janine's Ariados helps her scale a building to reach the Goldenrod Museum, and she uses it in her work as a ninja.

Sources: Bulbapedia: Ariados (Pokémon) · Serebii: Ariados (Scarlet/Violet Pokédex)

Base stats

• HP: 70
• Attack: 90
• Defense: 70
• Sp. Atk: 60
• Sp. Def: 70
• Speed: 40

Ariados’s base stat total is 400. Its highest stat is Attack.

Type matchups

What is Ariados weak to?

Ariados takes extra damage from Fire (2×), Flying (2×), Psychic (2×), Rock (2×) moves.

It resists Grass (¼×), Fighting (¼×), Poison (½×), Bug (½×), Fairy (½×).

Evolution

What does Ariados evolve from?

Ariados evolves from Spinarak at level 22.

Ariados is the final stage of its evolution family.

The whole family: Spinarak, Ariados.

Abilities

• Swarm: Strengthens Bug moves to inflict 1.5× damage at 1/3 max HP or less.
• Insomnia: Prevents sleep.
• Sniper (hidden ability): Strengthens critical hits to inflict 3× damage rather than 2×.

Moves

Moves Ariados learns by level up in Scarlet / Violet

“Evo” means Ariados learns the move the moment it evolves: Swords Dance.

TM moves (43)

Ariados can learn 43 moves from TMs in Scarlet / Violet: Agility, Scary Face, Protect, Acid Spray, Struggle Bug, Thief, Trailblaze, Pounce, Facade, Hex, Night Shade, Venoshock, Endure, Sunny Day, Smart Strike, Dig, Foul Play, Sleep Talk, Poison Jab, Rest, Swords Dance, Toxic Spikes, Leech Life, Substitute, X-Scissor, Giga Drain, Psychic, Baton Pass, Sludge Bomb, Giga Impact, Bug Buzz, Hyper Beam, Solar Beam, Tera Blast, Toxic, Spite, Knock Off, Bug Bite, Lunge, Electroweb, Sludge Wave, Skitter Smack, Throat Chop.

Egg moves (5):Disable, Lunge, Megahorn, Night Slash, Rage Powder.

Breeding & training

• Gender: 50% male, 50% female.
• Egg groups: Bug.
• Egg cycles: 15 (steps to hatch, Scarlet/Violet: 1,920).
• Catch rate: 90 out of 255.
• Base friendship (Gen 8 onward): 50.
• Growth rate: Fast (800,000 experience points to reach level 100).
• Defeating it gives 2 Attack effort values.
• Base experience yield: 140.

Pokédex entries

It spews threads from its mouth to catch its prey. When night falls, it leaves its web to go hunt aggressively. (Ultra Moon)

Every night, it wanders around in search of prey, whose movements it restrains by spewing threads before it bites into them with its fangs. (Ultra Sun)

It spins thread from both its rear and its mouth. Then it wraps its prey up in thread and sips their bodily fluids at its leisure. (Moon)

There are some areas where people use the string Ariados spins for their own weaving. The resulting cloth is popular for its strength. (Sun)

Ariados's feet are tipped with tiny hooked claws that enable it to scuttle on ceilings and vertical walls. This Pokémon constricts the foe with thin and strong silk webbing. (Ruby, Sapphire, Omega Ruby, Alpha Sapphire)

It attaches silk to its prey and sets it free. Later, it tracks the silk to the prey and its friends. (Diamond, Pearl, Platinum, Black, White, Black 2, White 2, Y)

Names around the world

Trivia

• Taller than 54% of all Pokémon (1.1 m).
• Heavier than 56% of all Pokémon (33.5 kg).
• Base stat total 400, ranked #633 of 1,025.
• One of 12 Pokémon that are both Bug and Poison.
• One of 97 red Pokémon.
• Number 17 of 100 Pokémon introduced in Generation 2 (Johto).
• Part of an evolution family of 2 Pokémon.
• Can learn 60 different moves in Scarlet / Violet.
• Catch rate 90: about 11.8% per Poké Ball at full health.
• Appears in 11 distinct Pokédex entries.

Sources and fact-checking

• Stats, types, abilities, moves, evolutions, forms and Pokédex entries: PokéAPI open game data.
• Lore: written by pokee.si in our own words, researched from Bulbapedia: Ariados (Pokémon), Serebii: Ariados (Scarlet/Violet Pokédex).
• Pronunciation (AIR-ee-uh-dohs): it follows how the English anime, games or official videos say it.

Last checked: 19 October 2026. Every sentence of the lore was checked against Bulbapedia, Serebii and the game data.

Explore

Bug-type Pokémon · Poison-type Pokémon · Bug/Poison weaknesses and matchups · Johto region guide · Swarm ability · Insomnia ability · Sniper ability · Compare Ariados · Full Pokédex · Type chart · All moves

Browse similar Pokémon

Gen 2 Bug-type Pokémon · Gen 2 Poison-type Pokémon · Gen 2 Pokémon list · Red Pokémon list · Bug egg group · Pokémon that start with A · Bug Pokémon · Spider Pokémon

← Spinarak | Crobat →