Despite such slim pickings, there’s a few great Ghosts to help fill out your team on your way across Johto and Kanto. So let’s see what they are, why they’re good, and how you can snag one for yourself.
3. Drifblim
Look, I know Drifblim isn’t catchable in HG/SS. But with so few Ghost-types in the games, I’m going to include it anyway. It’s the most easily-available Ghost-type that you can trade from the Sinnoh games, and it’ll put up a fight for those who have the games and a spare DS. Drifblim’s strongest stats are HP and special attack, so we should build its move pool to play into these strengths. Shadow Ball is the best Ghost-type STAB on offer, with either Air Cutter or Fly taking the Flying STAB spot. Toxic is the secret weapon in Drifblim’s arsenal. Pick it up from the Battle Frontier Market and get ready to absolutely melt any Pokémon that gets hit by it. The last move slot should be taken up by a defensive move, and it’s up to you whether you go for Calm Mind, Protect, or Roost. Calm Mind is my choice, since it raises Drifblim’s special stats – but any of the three will work great. Drifblim’s speed is on the low side, so we’ll make use of its ability Unburden to give it the edge against faster opponents. Unburden doubles Drifblim’s speed once it consumes a held item, so you could try equipping Drifblim with an Oran Berry. Oran Berries are used automatically once the holding Pokémon’s HP falls below 50%. If Drifblim has Calm Mind, it’ll last longer after its health drops below 50%, giving it some more longevity once Unburden activates. If all goes to plan, Drifblim can follow-up with a Shadow Ball or two – which should outspeed an otherwise faster opponent. How to catch: Drifloon can be found in the Valley Windworks in Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum on a Friday. Once caught, trade it over to HeartGold/SoulSilver, and train it to level 28 to evolve it into Drifblim.
2. Mismagius
So here’s a more reasonable ghost to chase – and you you won’t need another DS to obtain it. Mismagius is a much-needed Sinnoh upgrade to Misdreavus, an adorable but pretty useless Johto Ghost-type. Mismagius comes with a big boost to Misdreavus’ speed and special stats, so let’s build around this upgrade. Shadow Ball is Mismagius’ best piece of STAB, learned at level 37. Also make sure to grab the Thunderbolt TM from Goldenrod Game Corner for some high-damage niche coverage, too. Mismagius lacks some coverage for its Dark-type weakness, so instead we can weaken their attacks with Will-o-wisp, which is guaranteed to burn if it hits. As well as the chip damage, burning an opponent also halves their physical attack, which should let Mismagius take an extra hit before fainting. For its final move, you can give Mismagius either Calm Mind or Toxic, depending on whether you want more attack or defense. If you’re playing without using potions in battle, I recommend Toxic for weakening a bulky opponent for the next party member. If you’re allowing potions, teach Mismagius Calm Mind to buff its special stats, and follow it up with a Hyper Potion to keep it alive long enough to throw some Shadow Balls. Mismagius definitely has its weaknesses. But with a move set like this, it can deal some critical blows to Misty’s team and to Champion Lance’s rematch team. How to catch: Catch Misdreavus in Mt. Silver or the Safari Zone. Find a Dusk Stone by winning the Johto Bug Catching Contest, and use it on Misdreavus to evolve it into Mismagius. Mismagius can’t learn any moves by level up, so make sure to let Misdreavus learn Shadow Ball at level 37 before using your Dusk Stone.
1. Gengar
Gengar is the obvious pick for the top Ghost-type here, and it’s for good reason. Its special attack is enormous, and its Ghost/Poison typing gives it some very strong Poison STAB for dealing with Grass-types who may give you trouble if you don’t have a Flying or Fire Pokémon around. Shadow Ball makes another appearance on this list as Gengar’s Ghost-type STAB move. Also be sure to pick up the Sludge Bomb TM on Route 43 for an easy KO on any Grass-type unlucky enough to face Gengar. We can go with two different strategies for the last two moves in Gengar’s move set. The first is sleep tactics – we’ll be using a combination of Hypnosis and Dream Eater to put the opponent to sleep, and follow up with a huge Psychic-type attack. Both moves are learned by level up too. So we won’t have to go TM hunting for this strategy. The second strategy, and the way I personally build Gengar, is built on covering its few weaknesses. Focus Blast is an essential bit of coverage for Gengar’s Dark-type weakness. It can be found cheap in the Goldenrod Department Store. And finally, we can cover for Gengar’s poor HP and physical defense by teaching it Will-O-Wisp, learned by TM 61 bought from the Battle Frontier Market. This will give Gengar coverage for all of its weaknesses, since the Ground-type weakness with its Poison-typing is completely removed by its ability Levitate. How to catch: Catch a Gastly from Sprout Tower at night, then train it to level 25 where it will evolve into Haunter. Next, trade Haunter with another player to evolve it into Gengar. Trade it back to get the best Ghost-type in the game.
