#0902 · Hisui · Generation 8

Basculegion

Big Fish Pokémon · Water/Ghost-type

Basculegion is a Water/Ghost-type Pokémon, the Big Fish Pokémon, number 902 (#0902) in the National Pokédex. It was introduced in Generation 8 and comes from the Hisui region. It is 3 m tall and weighs 110 kg.

Basculegion is a Water and Ghost type: a White-Striped Basculin wrapped in the souls of schoolmates that died swimming upstream. On a male the souls are red with rage, and on a female they are pale blue with sadness.

How to pronounce Basculegion

Basculegion is pronounced bas-kyoo-LEE-jun. The capital letters show the stressed syllable.

Listen to Basculegion said out loud:

In Japanese it is イダイトウ (Idaitou).

Hear every other name on the Pokémon pronunciation guide.

Lore

Biology

Basculegion measures 3 m and weighs 110 kg. It is a green fish with a jagged mouth and smoky wisps around its face like barbels. A male has red markings and fierce eyes; a female is light blue with drowsy eyes and shorter wisps. The Pokédex says the deeper the sadness in the souls wrapped around it, the paler it becomes.

Behaviour

When it senses danger, Basculegion turns hostile and attacks alongside its souls until the enemy is beaten. Bulbapedia says the souls have wills of their own and keep it swimming without tiring. The Legends: Arceus Pokédex says no other species in Hisui's rivers is its equal.

Habitat

Bulbapedia says its only known home today is Kitakami's Timeless Woods. In Legends: Arceus it appears in massive mass outbreaks in the Cobalt Coastlands. In The Teal Mask you evolve a White-Striped Basculin or face it in 5 and 6 star Tera Raid Battles, and it is not available in Legends: Z-A.

Powers

Its Ability is Swift Swim, which doubles Speed in rain, with Adaptability and a hidden Mold Breaker. It starts out knowing Phantom Force and Shadow Ball, and learns Wave Crash and Aqua Jet. The Pokédex says a male jumps with incredible power and a female controls terrifying illusions, and their stats differ: male Attack 112 and Special Attack 80, female 92 and 100.

Name origin

Basculegion may combine 'Basculin' with 'legion', a vast army, or with the biblical demon Legion. The Japanese name is Idaitou (イダイトウ), possibly from idai ('great'), aitou ('mourning') and itou, a fish.

Design inspiration

Salmon and their relatives may have inspired Basculegion, especially the itou (Sakhalin taimen), a large river fish of Hokkaido nicknamed the 'phantom fish' that appears in Ainu folklore. Its Ghost type may refer to salmon wearing out after spawning, and the red male and pale female may echo breeding colours. These are fan readings.

Evolution notes

Only a White-Striped Basculin can evolve into Basculegion, by levelling up after taking at least 294 HP of recoil damage without fainting; a male Basculin becomes a male Basculegion and a female a female.

In the games

In Legends: Arceus, where it debuted, a male Basculegion serves as a Ride Pokémon and supporting character.

In the anime

Only a minor part so far: a male Basculegion appears in a fantasy in 'The Arceus Chronicles (Part 1)'.

Fun facts

• The 294 HP of recoil needed to evolve may be wordplay on nikushi, an archaic Japanese word for hatred, though Bulbapedia only calls this a possibility.
• Bulbapedia says Basculegion is the only Pokémon whose English name contains all five vowels.
• Bulbapedia says Basculegion's primary Ability in Legends: Arceus's internal data is Rattled, not Swift Swim.

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

Base stats

• HP: 120
• Attack: 112
• Defense: 65
• Sp. Atk: 80
• Sp. Def: 75
• Speed: 78

Basculegion’s base stat total is 530. Its highest stat is HP.

Type matchups

What is Basculegion weak to?

Basculegion takes extra damage from Electric (2×), Grass (2×), Ghost (2×), Dark (2×) moves.

It resists Fire (½×), Water (½×), Ice (½×), Poison (½×), Bug (½×), Steel (½×).

It is immune to Normal, Fighting moves.

Evolution

What does Basculegion evolve from?

Basculegion evolves from Basculin (Take 294 recoil damage). Only White-Striped Basculin can evolve. A male Basculin becomes male Basculegion and a female becomes female Basculegion.

Basculegion is the final stage of its evolution family.

The whole family: Basculin, Basculegion.

Forms

• Female Basculegion (Gender difference): Water/Ghost-type, base stat total 530 (HP 120, Attack 92, Defense 65, Sp. Atk 100, Sp. Def 75, Speed 78). Abilities: Swift Swim, Adaptability, Mold Breaker (hidden).

Abilities

• Swift Swim: Doubles Speed during rain.
• Adaptability: Increases the same-type attack bonus from 1.5× to 2×.
• Mold Breaker (hidden ability): Bypasses targets' abilities if they could hinder or prevent a move.

Moves

Moves Basculegion learns by level up in Scarlet / Violet

TM moves (41)

Basculegion can learn 41 moves from TMs in Scarlet / Violet: Take Down, Agility, Scary Face, Protect, Ice Fang, Water Pulse, Confuse Ray, Chilling Water, Facade, Hex, Icy Wind, Mud Shot, Night Shade, Rain Dance, Snowscape, Psychic Fangs, Sleep Talk, Waterfall, Rest, Substitute, Crunch, Liquidation, Shadow Ball, Surf, Ice Beam, Hydro Pump, Blizzard, Phantom Force, Giga Impact, Outrage, Hyper Beam, Tera Blast, Spite, Uproar, Flip Turn, Scale Shot, Pain Split, Double-Edge, Endeavor, Whirlpool, Muddy Water.

Egg moves (2):Endeavor, Last Respects.

Breeding & training

• Gender: 50% male, 50% female.
• Egg groups: Water 2.
• Egg cycles: 20 (steps to hatch, Scarlet/Violet: 2,560).
• Catch rate: 135 out of 255.
• Base friendship (Gen 8 onward): 50.
• Growth rate: Medium (1,000,000 experience points to reach level 100).
• Defeating it gives 3 HP effort values.
• Base experience yield: 265.

Pokédex entries

Clads itself in the souls of comrades that perished before fulfilling their goals of journeying upstream. No other species throughout all Hisui's rivers is Basculegion's equal. (Legends: Arceus)

Names around the world

Trivia

• Tallest Water type in Gen 8: 3 m.
• Highest HP among Water types in Gen 8: 120.
• Highest base stat total among Water types in Gen 8: 530, shared with 1 other.
• Heaviest Ghost type in Gen 8: 110 kg.
• Tallest Ghost type in Gen 8: 3 m, shared with 1 other.
• Highest HP among Ghost types in Gen 8: 120.
• Taller than 95% of all Pokémon (3 m).
• Heavier than 84% of all Pokémon (110 kg).
• Base stat total 530, ranked #163 of 1,025.
• Its best stat is HP, ranked #37 of 1,025.
• One of 3 Pokémon that are both Water and Ghost.
• One of 130 green Pokémon.
• Number 93 of 96 Pokémon introduced in Generation 8 (Hisui).
• Part of an evolution family of 2 Pokémon.
• Can learn 53 different moves in Scarlet / Violet.
• Catch rate 135: about 17.6% per Poké Ball at full health.
• Has 1 alternate form.
• Appears in 1 distinct Pokédex entry.

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: Basculegion (Pokémon), Serebii: Basculegion (Scarlet/Violet Pokédex).
• Pronunciation (bas-kyoo-LEE-jun): no English source says it out loud, so it is our best guess from the parts of the name.

Last checked: 20 October 2026. Every sentence of the lore was checked against Bulbapedia, Serebii and the game data.

Explore

Water-type Pokémon · Ghost-type Pokémon · Water/Ghost weaknesses and matchups · Hisui region guide · Swift Swim ability · Adaptability ability · Mold Breaker ability · Compare Basculegion · Full Pokédex · Type chart · All moves

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Gen 8 Water-type Pokémon · Gen 8 Ghost-type Pokémon · Gen 8 Pokémon list · Green Pokémon list · Water 2 egg group · Pokémon that start with B · Fish Pokémon

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