The new generation of Pokémon, led by Scarlet and Violet, introduced a bevy of new Pokémon for players to try out. Gamers quickly found several of their favorites — and one of those is the little duckling called Quaxly. It looks cute, has some useful abilities, and a surprisingly powerful evolutionary track. If you’re interested in adding this Pokémon to your team, our Quaxly evolution guide will go over all the details you need to know, including how to evolve it, what its stats look like, and more.
How Do You Get Quaxly in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet?
This water type Pokémon is no problem to get for those just starting the game. Once players make a character to go explore the lands of Paldea, they’re given a choice of three different starter Pokémon: One of these is Quaxly, so it can quickly become the first Pokémon that you use. As is often the case with starter Pokémon, Quaxly is a well-rounded Pokémon that can be a helpful member of your team for a long team, and as it levels it can stay useful to the very end.
However, the starter Quaxly isn’t right for everyone. Those who pick Quaxly at the beginning may eventually want to find a new one with a different stat distribution (we’ll talk a bit more about this below). Others may want to experiment with a different starter but eventually get the duckling on their roster as they start to make important team choices. In these cases, players will have to find Quaxly a different way.
However, there’s a problem. Quaxlys aren’t found in the wild. You can’t count on a random encounter to get one. And there’s no trainer or store that will sell or gift you a Quaxly. So, the best way to get a Quaxly is to trade with some friends who already have one. If that’s not an option, you may have to start over as a new character and pick the Pokémon as your starter.
Once you have a Quaxly, however, things become much easier because of the breeding minigame in Scarlet and Violet. You can easily produce more Quaxlys to try and get one with better stats or breed a shiny version.
Whichever way, Quaxly joins your team with a couple of important passives. The first, Torrent, increases all its water damage when Quaxly hits low health, an important boost that can save players during some tough early fights. The second passive is a hidden ability called Moxie, which levels up Quaxly’s attack power whenever it knocks out another Pokémon. That’s a great reason to use Quaxly early on and make sure it gets the “fainting” blow.
What About Getting Quaxly in Pokémon Go?
As with many Pokémon in Scarlet and Violet, Quaxly is also available in Pokémon Go. However, getting it works differently. First, make sure your version of Pokémon Go is updated: Quaxly only arrived on the mobile game in the fall of 2023, so you’ll want all the latest updates.
Second, Quaxly’s addition is universal, which means you can find it out and about just like any other common Pokémon. However, certain events may boost the likelihood of finding one, so keep an eye on timed events and their benefits. You should also pay attention to all your available Field and Special Research tasks, since Quaxly can drop as a reward for completing those missions.
Finally, Pokémon Go rewards you with eggs for completing five-kilometer walkabouts — about three miles. Quaxly can also drop as an egg reward. Combine all these methods at once, and it shouldn’t take you too long to find one.
How Do You Evolve Quaxly Into Quaxwell?
Starter Pokémon are generally easy to evolve, and Quaxly is no exception in Scarlet and Violet. Its first evolution turns the little duck into Quaxwell, a flamboyant adolescent who means business. Quaxwell remains a full water type, but gets a very useful stat boost relatively quickly, so it’s a good idea to work on its evolution.
Fortunately, all you have to do is play and win with Quaxly from the very beginning. Once the duck hits level 16, it will naturally evolve in Quaxwell. You don’t need any special items or activities to make it happen.
Pokémon Go is a little different. To evolve your Quaxly, you’re going to need 25 Quaxly candies. Candy has unique qualities in Pokémon Go. It’s distinct for each Pokémon, and you can get it by doing things like repeatedly capturing Quaxly, so this takes some work.
How Do You Evolve Quaxwell into Quaquaval?
Quaquaval is Quaxly’s final form, which gives a handy boost to stats yet again and turns the Pokémon into a dangerous dancer. The Pokémon also gets some extra advantages, like the ability to learn Aqua Step, a hard-hitting attack which can also increase Quaquaval’s speed, making it a powerhouse when played correctly.
Most importantly, the Pokémon also evolves into a dual type, becoming both a water and a fighting type at this final stage. This provides some extra advantages against certain types of enemies but also introduces a few new weaknesses.
Once again, evolving is easy. Just get Quaxwell to level 36, and it will naturally evolve in Quaquaval. You don’t need to take any additional action to make it happen. However, if you’re playing Pokémon Go, the rules are a little different. You’ll have to amass 100 Quaxly candy items (125 in total) to help the duck reach its final form.
Can You Breed a Quaxly in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet?
Yes! This is an excellent option if you really like Quaxly and want to get a powerful or shiny version before you start working to evolve it. Pokémon Scarlet and Violet re-introduce breeding, but in a new way that players will have to master to get the best results. Here, you’ll need to hold Picnics for Pokémon in the same egg group. Look up Pawmi’s egg group and you’ll see it’s Flying and Water 1, which means Pawmi can breed with any other Flying/Water 1 Pokémon (or a Ditto).
Make sure your Quaxly (or equivalent evolved form) is female before you begin. That can be tough because most are male, but using a Ditto can solve this problem. Start a Picnic with the two Pokémon and leave them to it. Certain foods you can eat at the Picnic, like a peanut butter sandwich, will help the Pokémon produce eggs faster.
With your eggs in tow, start walking. After a certain number of steps, the eggs will hatch. A warm Pokémon with an ability like Flame Body will speed this process up. There are other tricks you can use to improve your breeding results, like winning the Individual Value Checker in the game to take a closer look at stats. Items like Destiny Knot let you influence certain stats, while an Everystone can help guarantee parents will pass Natures along. Also, the more powerful the mother Quaxly, the more likely the offspring will prove powerful, too. It all takes some practice, but that’s part of the fun.
Is Quaxly a Good Pick in Scarlet and Violet?
Opinions are divided in early gameplay. Choosing a water type Pokémon as a starter carries some risk. In Scarlet and Violet, as with many Pokémon games, you face some tough grass opponents early on. Water types will struggle more with that. Quaxly’s early stats don’t pack a lot of speed, so it can get quickly overcome with less experienced players.
However, that can quickly change after leveling up for a while. Quaxly’s high attack power starts to shine, and it learns useful abilities like Wing Attack. This can make up for its water-based shortcomings. By the time Quaxly has started evolve, it’s often become a strong pick.
Keep in mind, Quaxly will eventually become a water/fighting dual type. Dual types can get a little confusing because of the overlapping strengths and weaknesses, which yield many different results. Quaxly ends up with high effectiveness against fire, water, ice, bug, dark, steel, and rock opponents. But it is weaker against electric, grass, flying, psychic, and fairy types.
What are Quaxly’s Stats Like? What Nature is Best for Quaxly?
Quaxly starts with well-rounded stats that place an emphasis on attack power to help deal damage with normal attacks. Its defenses and speed are a bit low as a result, but nothing too drastic. By the time you evolve the Pokémon into Quaquaval, the dancing fiend has a big boost to attack power with most other stats settling in the 80s at the start. Special defense is generally its lowest stat.
Of course, Pokémon are also influenced by their Natures (and other breeding techniques), which often sacrifice one stat for the sake of another. Work toward getting a Quaxly with an Adamant Nature, which increases its already valuable attack and lowers its much-less-useful special attack stat. Other players may want to look for Jolly, which helps offset low speed with a speed boost at the cost of special attack.
How Do I Use Quaxly in Battle?
Quaxly becomes an interesting pick as it evolves. During the beginning, level up to get Flying Strike so Quaxly becomes more dangerous to a wider range of foes. Once you start to evolve, look for ways to use Quaxly’s situational attacks during a battle. Acrobatics is a great pick if you know your opponent isn’t holding an item. Also, Liquidation lowers the defense of tough-shelled enemies for your team. Try to get in fainting blows to benefit from Moxie. You can also hit with Feather Dance if an enemy is getting too dangerous. Think a move or two ahead, and you’ll be able to use Quaxly like a pro by the time you get to Quaxwell.
What Technical Machine Moves Should I Teach Quaxly?
Quaxly can learn a lot of flying, water, and normal abilities via Technical Machines. You can use these to round out your Quaxly depending on how you want to play. Air Slash has potential because of its Stab bonus but it is a special attack. Knockoff can complement some of Quaquaval’s other abilities, while Reversal can help the Pokémon during tougher battles.
Is Quaxly Available in Both Pokémon Scarlet and Violet?
Yes. Because Quaxly is one of the starter Pokémon that players can choose when beginning, it’s available in either version of the game. Some Pokémon are exclusive to only one version, but you don’t have to worry about Quaxly. Just keep in mind that if you didn’t pick Quaxly as your starter Pokémon, you will want to trade with a friend ASAP to get it and start breeding as we discussed above.
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