Gholdengo

Using Gholdengo in a Playthrough

Gimmighoul evolves into Gholdengo when it levels up while the player has at least 999 Gimmighoul Coins in the Bag, consuming 999 coins in the process, so the family's main playthrough obstacle is exploration and collection rather than combat experience. Chest Form Gimmighoul is the only form natively catchable in Scarlet/Violet and is extremely slow, while Roaming Form appears throughout Paldea only as an overworld coin source unless a catchable specimen is transferred from Pokémon GO; both forms ultimately evolve into the same Gholdengo. The reward for completing the coin requirement is substantial: Gholdengo has base 133 Special Attack, solid 87/95/91 bulk, Steel/Ghost typing with three immunities and many resistances, and the unique Ability Good as Gold, which makes it immune to status moves used by other Pokémon. Its signature Make It Rain is a 120-base-power, perfectly accurate Steel special attack that hits both opponents in doubles and lowers Gholdengo's Special Attack by one stage after use, while Shadow Ball supplies reliable Ghost STAB without that drawback. Recover gives it direct longevity, Nasty Plot can turn it into a setup sweeper, and Thunder Wave, Trick, coverage moves, or Hex can support more specialized roles. Good as Gold does not make Gholdengo immune to every possible status effect or secondary effect, so it should not be treated as blanket protection from all battle disruption. Fire, Ground, Ghost, and Dark attacks remain the primary defensive threats, and base 84 Speed is good rather than elite. Timid is excellent for offensive or Choice Scarf approaches, Modest maximizes immediate special damage, and Bold can support more defensive Nasty Plot or utility sets.

Gholdengo in Competitive Pokémon

Gholdengo has been one of the defining Pokémon of Scarlet/Violet OU and remains OU in Smogon's current SV Pokédex because Good as Gold and Steel/Ghost typing interact with entry-hazard mechanics in an unusually powerful way. Its Ghost typing blocks Rapid Spin, its Steel typing prevents Mortal Spin from functioning against it, and Good as Gold stops status-move removal such as Defog, allowing hazard-stacking teams to preserve Stealth Rock and Spikes far more reliably than in previous generations. That support role is backed by real offensive pressure: base 133 Special Attack, 120-base-power Make It Rain, Shadow Ball, Nasty Plot, Recover, Thunder Wave, Hex, and Choice Scarf or Choice Specs sets prevent opponents from treating Gholdengo as a passive spinblocker. Its weaknesses to Ground, Fire, Ghost, and Dark and only base 84 Speed create real counterplay, and Make It Rain's Special Attack drop means repeated use can surrender momentum if Gholdengo cannot switch or boost afterward. Gholdengo also developed a major VGC résumé, where Make It Rain's spread damage, Good as Gold's disruptive immunity, Nasty Plot, Choice Specs, and defensive Terastallization made it effective across multiple regulations. Official 2026 Regulation H discussion described Gholdengo as the top Pokémon in the format and highlighted the Dragonite/Ursaluna/Gholdengo core, while 2026 international results continued to show Gholdengo on multiple top-cut teams. Its longevity across singles and doubles comes from the same basic package—excellent typing, unusual status immunity, powerful spread or single-target special damage, and enough bulk to contribute defensively even when it is not sweeping.

Gholdengo in Nuzlockes

The Gimmighoul line has one of the most unusual Nuzlocke progression costs in Paldea because obtaining Gholdengo requires collecting 999 Gimmighoul Coins, which can demand substantial exploration even if the player already caught a Chest Form Gimmighoul. Once that requirement is met, Gholdengo is an exceptionally safe Pokémon in many known matchups: Steel/Ghost provides immunities to Normal, Fighting, and Poison plus numerous resistances, and Good as Gold blocks many dangerous status moves that would otherwise inflict sleep, paralysis, stat disruption, or other non-damaging effects. Make It Rain is extremely strong and perfectly accurate, but its one-stage Special Attack drop means consecutive uses become less reliable for securing knockouts, so Shadow Ball or another stable attack can be preferable when maximum Steel damage is unnecessary. Recover provides true repeatable healing, a major advantage in permadeath play, while Nasty Plot can create controlled sweeps if the opposing moveset is known and unable to exploit Gholdengo's Fire, Ground, Ghost, or Dark weaknesses. Good as Gold should not create overconfidence because it does not stop damaging moves from inflicting secondary effects, nor does it erase ordinary super-effective damage. Chest Form Gimmighoul itself is much less safe than Gholdengo because its tiny HP, weak offense, and base 10 Speed leave it highly dependent on favorable matchups before evolution. If the player is willing to complete the coin hunt, the evolved form's combination of reliable offense, immunities, recovery, and status protection makes Gholdengo one of the strongest general-purpose Nuzlocke rewards in Scarlet/Violet.

Gholdengo is a humanoid Pokémon whose body is formed from approximately 1,000 tightly stacked Gimmighoul Coins, including coin-like hair and a belt made from the strap of Gimmighoul's old treasure chest. Despite literally being made from treasure, it is notably sociable, quickly befriends others, and prefers lively places such as cities. The tightly packed coins give its body considerable resilience, and when struck it can loosen coins at the point of impact to help absorb the blow. Gholdengo attacks by firing coins in rapid succession and can create a surfboard from its own coins for transportation; animated canon has shown that board flying and carrying up to two humans. Its unique Good as Gold Ability and signature Make It Rain both extend the species' coin-based physiology directly into battle mechanics.