#0658 · Kalos · Generation 6 · starter

Greninja

Ninja Pokémon · Water/Dark-type

Greninja is a Water/Dark-type Pokémon, the Ninja Pokémon, number 658 (#0658) in the National Pokédex. It was introduced in Generation 6 and comes from the Kalos region. It is 1.5 m tall and weighs 40 kg.

Greninja is the Ninja Pokémon, a sleek Water and Dark frog that throws shuriken made of compressed water. It is the final form of Kalos's Water starter and, thanks to Ash-Greninja, the winner of the biggest Pokémon popularity vote ever held.

How to pronounce Greninja

Greninja is pronounced gruh-NIN-juh. The capital letters show the stressed syllable.

Listen to Greninja said out loud:

In Japanese it is ゲッコウガ (Gekkouga).

Hear every other name on the Pokémon pronunciation guide.

Lore

Biology

Greninja is a bipedal frog with a dark blue body, a yellow chest, white triangles over its red eyes and pale blue stars on its thighs. A long pink tongue wraps round its neck like a scarf. It is 1.5 m tall and weighs 40 kg. The Pokédex says its water stars split metal, that it also rolls shuriken from the mucus on its thighs, and that air moving over its tongue lets it sense enemies it cannot see.

Behaviour

Greninja is elusive, moving with a ninja's speed and grace. The Pokédex says it appears and vanishes, toying with foes before slicing them with its sharpest shuriken. In the anime, a deep bond with its Trainer can trigger the Bond Phenomenon and a stronger form.

Habitat

The Pokédex gives no habitat. As a starter's final form it is given to the player rather than found wild.

Powers

Greninja flings Water Shuriken and Hydro Pump, cuts with Night Slash and Dark Pulse, and scatters Spikes. Torrent is its normal Ability, but Hidden Ability Protean changes its type to match every move it uses. With 122 base Speed and 103 base Special Attack it is a very fast, hard-hitting attacker.

Name origin

Greninja may combine 'grenouille', French for 'frog', with 'ninja'. The Japanese name Gekkouga (ゲッコウガ) may blend geko (a croak) or gekkō ('moonlight') with Kōga-ryū, a famous school of ninja.

Design inspiration

Greninja may be based on horned frogs, and its colours resemble the splendid leaf frog. The ninja theme comes from Japanese folklore, where frogs and ninja are linked through the tale of Jiraiya, a ninja who could turn into a giant toad. Game Freak has said the Kalos starters' final forms were designed with creatures from European role-playing games in mind.

Evolution notes

Froakie evolves into Frogadier at level 16 and into Greninja at level 36. Greninja has two special forms: Ash-Greninja, from the anime, and Mega Greninja, introduced in Legends: Z-A, which hangs upside down beneath a giant floating shuriken.

In the games

Greninja's Ash-Greninja form, with the Ability Battle Bond, exists only in Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon. Greninja was added to Super Smash Bros. for 3DS and Wii U, working from concept art, before its own first games, X and Y, were even released. In Legends: Z-A you evolve it from Frogadier and it can Mega Evolve; in Scarlet and Violet it comes by transfer or from The Indigo Disk.

In the anime

Ash's Frogadier evolved in 'A Festival of Decisions!' and soon learned to become Ash-Greninja through the Bond Phenomenon. The ninja brothers Ippei and Sanpei each have one.

Fun facts

• Greninja won the 2020 Pokémon of the Year vote with 140,559 votes, ahead of Lucario and Mimikyu.
• No other fully evolved starter has its own special form outside Mega Evolution, Gigantamax and regional variants; Ash-Greninja is one of a kind.
• It shares its Ninja Pokémon category with Ninjask.
• Japanese fans voted it the Pokémon to be given away at screenings of 'Volcanion and the Mechanical Marvel'.
• Its picture is on a utility hole cover in Lumiose City's Bleu District, where it stands for modesty.

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

Base stats

• HP: 72
• Attack: 95
• Defense: 67
• Sp. Atk: 103
• Sp. Def: 71
• Speed: 122

Greninja’s base stat total is 530. Its highest stat is Speed.

Type matchups

What is Greninja weak to?

Greninja takes extra damage from Electric (2×), Grass (2×), Fighting (2×), Bug (2×), Fairy (2×) moves.

It resists Fire (½×), Water (½×), Ice (½×), Ghost (½×), Dark (½×), Steel (½×).

It is immune to Psychic moves.

Evolution

What does Greninja evolve from?

Greninja evolves from Frogadier at level 36.

Greninja is the final stage of its evolution family.

The whole family: Froakie, Frogadier, Greninja.

• Froakie evolves into Frogadier at level 16.

Forms

• Mega Greninja (Mega): Water/Dark-type, base stat total 630 (HP 72, Attack 125, Defense 77, Sp. Atk 133, Sp. Def 81, Speed 142). Ability: Protean.
• Battle Bond Greninja (Forme): Water/Dark-type, base stat total 530 (HP 72, Attack 95, Defense 67, Sp. Atk 103, Sp. Def 71, Speed 122). Ability: Battle Bond.
• Ash-Greninja (Battle form): Water/Dark-type, base stat total 640 (HP 72, Attack 145, Defense 67, Sp. Atk 153, Sp. Def 71, Speed 132). Ability: Battle Bond.

Abilities

• Torrent: Strengthens Water moves to inflict 1.5× damage at 1/3 max HP or less.
• Protean (hidden ability): Changes the bearer's type to match each move it uses.

Moves

Moves Greninja learns by level up in Scarlet / Violet

“Evo” means Greninja learns the move the moment it evolves: Water Shuriken.

TM moves (53)

Greninja can learn 53 moves from TMs in Scarlet / Violet: Take Down, Mud-Slap, Protect, Water Pulse, Low Kick, Acrobatics, Thief, Trailblaze, Chilling Water, Facade, Aerial Ace, Swift, Icy Wind, Mud Shot, Rock Tomb, Low Sweep, Fling, Endure, Rain Dance, Snowscape, Dig, False Swipe, Brick Break, U-turn, Ice Punch, Sleep Talk, Waterfall, Grass Knot, Rest, Rock Slide, Taunt, Swords Dance, Spikes, Toxic Spikes, Dark Pulse, Gunk Shot, Substitute, Liquidation, Surf, Helping Hand, Ice Beam, Hydro Pump, Blizzard, Water Pledge, Giga Impact, Hydro Cannon, Hyper Beam, Tera Blast, Haze, Smack Down, Weather Ball, Sludge Wave, Upper Hand.

Egg moves (5):Counter, Retaliate, Spikes, Switcheroo, Toxic Spikes.

Breeding & training

• Gender: 87.5% male, 12.5% female.
• Egg groups: Water 1.
• Egg cycles: 20 (steps to hatch, Scarlet/Violet: 2,560).
• Catch rate: 45 out of 255.
• Base friendship (Gen 8 onward): 50.
• Growth rate: Medium Slow (1,059,860 experience points to reach level 100).
• Defeating it gives 3 Speed effort values.
• Base experience yield: 239.

Pokédex entries

It appears and vanishes with a ninja's grace. It toys with its enemies using swift movements, while slicing them with throwing stars of sharpest water. (Y, Alpha Sapphire)

It creates throwing stars out of compressed water. When it spins them and throws them at high speed, these stars can split metal in two. (X, Omega Ruby)

Names around the world

Trivia

• Fastest Water type in Gen 6: 122 Speed.
• Fastest Dark type in Gen 6: 122 Speed.
• Taller than 72% of all Pokémon (1.5 m).
• Heavier than 61% of all Pokémon (40 kg).
• Base stat total 530, ranked #163 of 1,025.
• Its best stat is Speed, ranked #34 of 1,025.
• One of 4 Pokémon that are both Water and Dark.
• One of 170 blue Pokémon.
• Number 9 of 72 Pokémon introduced in Generation 6 (Kalos).
• Part of an evolution family of 3 Pokémon.
• Can learn 68 different moves in Scarlet / Violet.
• Catch rate 45: about 5.9% per Poké Ball at full health.
• Has 3 alternate forms.
• Appears in 2 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: Greninja (Pokémon), Serebii: Greninja (Scarlet/Violet Pokédex).
• Pronunciation (gruh-NIN-juh): 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

Water-type Pokémon · Dark-type Pokémon · Water/Dark weaknesses and matchups · Greninja vs Charizard · Greninja vs Blaziken · Greninja vs Chesnaught · Greninja vs Delphox · Greninja vs Lucario · Greninja vs Blastoise · Kalos region guide · Torrent ability · Protean ability · Compare Greninja · Full Pokédex · Type chart · All moves

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Gen 6 Water-type Pokémon · Gen 6 Dark-type Pokémon · Gen 6 Pokémon list · Blue Pokémon list · Water 1 egg group · Pokémon that start with G · Frog Pokémon

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