# Sudowoodo
**Sudowoodo** (Japanese: ウソッキー Usokkie) is a Rock-type Pokémon introduced in Generation II, numbered 0185 in the National Pokédex and classified as the Imitation Pokémon. It resembles a small tree but is composed of mineral matter rather than plant tissue, and it holds its pose to avoid being attacked.[1](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/%E3%82%A6%E3%82%BD%E3%83%83%E3%82%AD%E3%83%BC) • [2](https://sg.portal-pokemon.com/pokedex/0185/) It evolves from Bonsly (No. 0438), also a Rock type.[3](https://www.pokemon.com/el/pokedex/sudowoodo)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Dex number and category | No. 0185, Imitation Pokémon, pure Rock type[1](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/%E3%82%A6%E3%82%BD%E3%83%83%E3%82%AD%E3%83%BC) |
| Size | 1.2 m tall, 38.0 kg[3](https://www.pokemon.com/el/pokedex/sudowoodo) |
| Base stats | HP 70, Attack 100, Defense 115, Sp. Atk 30, Sp. Def 65, Speed 30[4](https://www.smogon.com/dex/ss/pokemon/sudowoodo/) |
| Abilities | Rock Head (no recoil damage) and Sturdy (survives a one-hit KO at full HP); Rattled as a hidden ability[4](https://www.smogon.com/dex/ss/pokemon/sudowoodo/) |
| Type weaknesses | Water, Fighting, Grass, Ground, and Steel; resists Fire, Flying, Normal, and Poison[5](https://www.smogon.com/dex/sv/pokemon/sudowoodo/) |
| Signature behavior | Mimics a tree to avoid attack, hates water, and flees from rain[3](https://www.pokemon.com/el/pokedex/sudowoodo) |
| Designer | Ken Sugimori; created to serve as an obstacle in the overworld[1](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/%E3%82%A6%E3%82%BD%E3%83%83%E3%82%AD%E3%83%BC) |
## Design and name
Sudowoodo was designed by [Ken Sugimori](https://www.edgepedia.org/ken-sugimori), and according to Bulbapedia's concept section it was created to serve as an obstacle in the overworld rather than as an ordinary wild encounter.[1](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/%E3%82%A6%E3%82%BD%E3%83%83%E3%82%AD%E3%83%BC) The design draws on petrified wood, in which organic material is replaced over time by minerals, which explains the pure Rock typing; the species may also draw on stick-insect mimicry, and its forked horn resembles an insect's antennae.[1](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/%E3%82%A6%E3%82%BD%E3%83%83%E3%82%AD%E3%83%BC)
The English name is a corruption of *pseudo* (false) and *wood*, a pun on a rock pretending to be a tree.[1](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/%E3%82%A6%E3%82%BD%E3%83%83%E3%82%AD%E3%83%BC) The Japanese name Usokkie derives from *uso* (嘘, false), possibly combined with *ki* (木, tree), or from *usotsuki* (嘘つき, liar).[1](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/%E3%82%A6%E3%82%BD%E3%83%83%E3%82%AD%E3%83%BC)
## In the games
**Overworld role.** In Generation II, its remakes, and [Pokémon Emerald](https://www.edgepedia.org/pokemon-emerald), a wild Sudowoodo stands in the road at inconvenient locations in Johto and Hoenn, and a trainer must squirt it with water from a Squirt Bottle or Wailmer Pail before it can be engaged in battle.[1](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/%E3%82%A6%E3%82%BD%E3%83%83%E3%82%AD%E3%83%BC) In Gold, Silver, and Crystal it appears on Route 36 as a single encounter.[1](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/%E3%82%A6%E3%82%BD%E3%83%83%E3%82%AD%E3%83%BC) In Generation II, Mimic was its signature move, though other Pokémon could inherit it by breeding.[1](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/%E3%82%A6%E3%82%BD%E3%83%83%E3%82%AD%E3%83%BC)
**Stats and battle profile.** Sudowoodo's stat spread is heavily physical: 115 Defense against 30 Special Attack and 30 Speed.[4](https://www.smogon.com/dex/ss/pokemon/sudowoodo/) Its Rock typing gives it resistances to Fire, Flying, Normal, and Poison, but five common weaknesses, including Water and Grass, the very types its tree disguise might suggest it avoids.[5](https://www.smogon.com/dex/sv/pokemon/sudowoodo/)
**Competitive history.** In the Gold and Silver era, Smogon's strategy entry notes that Sudowoodo was the only Rock-type without a secondary type in the NU metagame, making it one of the few Pokémon there to resist Normal attacks without a major exploitable weakness, and a reliable answer to Curse-boosting Normal-types even without Rest.[6](https://www.smogon.com/dex/gs/pokemon/sudowoodo/) In later generations its standing fell: the Diamond and Pearl entry places it in ZU and describes it as long shunned in favor of stronger Rock-types such as Rhyperior, Kabutops, and Aggron, while crediting Wood Hammer, a 120-power Grass move with one-third recoil, as the advantage that lets it turn the tables on Water- and Ground-types that counter other Rock-types.[7](https://www.smogon.com/dex/dp/pokemon/sudowoodo/) Rock Head removes that recoil cost. In Sword and Shield's ZU tier the assessment is blunter: it is unviable because Rhydon outclasses it defensively in almost every category, with a better typing and support moves in Toxic and Roar.[4](https://www.smogon.com/dex/ss/pokemon/sudowoodo/) In Scarlet and Violet draft formats it is treated as a cheap utility pick, valued for access to both Stealth Rock and Spikes alongside Sturdy and Rock Head, with its terrible Speed and minimal special bulk limiting it to pseudo-useful roles.[5](https://www.smogon.com/dex/sv/pokemon/sudowoodo/)
## In the anime and other media
Sudowoodo debuted in the episode *Type Casting*, in which two researchers, Marie and Pierre, argue over whether the species is a Grass- or Rock-type Pokémon and pursue one to prove their points.[1](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/%E3%82%A6%E3%82%BD%E3%83%83%E3%82%AD%E3%83%BC) Brock's Bonsly, caught during the Battle Frontier saga, evolved into Sudowoodo in *Leave It To Brocko!* and became a strong, reliable partner after a needy start as a Bonsly.[1](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/%E3%82%A6%E3%82%BD%E3%83%83%E3%82%AD%E3%83%BC) • [8](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Takeshi%27s_Usokkie) In *All That Glitters is Not Golden!*, a character named Keenan owns a golden Sudowoodo that he experimented on hoping to give it resistance to Water-type Pokémon.[1](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/%E3%82%A6%E3%82%BD%E3%83%83%E3%82%AD%E3%83%BC)
In *Pokémon Horizons: The Series*, a Sudowoodo belonging to the Gym Leader Brassius can Terastallize into a Grass type, and Brassius refers to it as Truleewoodo (Japanese: ウソから出た実, "truth from lies").[1](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/%E3%82%A6%E3%82%BD%E3%83%83%E3%82%AD%E3%83%BC) Sudowoodo also appears in the trading card game; a Basic Pokémon card in the XY—BREAKpoint set has 90 HP and the attack Watch and Learn, which copies the opponent's last used attack.[9](https://www.pokemon.com/us/pokemon-tcg/pokemon-cards/xy-series/xy9/67/)
## Behavior
Pokédex entries state that to avoid being attacked it does nothing but mimic a tree, that it hates water and flees from rain, and that despite its appearance its composition is closer to rock than to vegetation.[3](https://www.pokemon.com/el/pokedex/sudowoodo) According to information cited from [Pokémon Sleep](https://www.edgepedia.org/pokemon-sleep), Sudowoodo keeps its tree mimicry even while sleeping, though it occasionally abandons the stance and sleeps on the ground.[1](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/%E3%82%A6%E3%82%BD%E3%83%83%E3%82%AD%E3%83%BC)
## References
1. [Sudowoodo (Pokémon), Bulbapedia](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/%E3%82%A6%E3%82%BD%E3%83%83%E3%82%AD%E3%83%BC)
2. [Sudowoodo, official Pokémon Website in Singapore, Pokédex](https://sg.portal-pokemon.com/pokedex/0185/)
3. [Sudowoodo N.º 0185, official Pokémon Pokédex (Spanish edition)](https://www.pokemon.com/el/pokedex/sudowoodo)
4. [Sudowoodo, SS, Smogon Strategy Pokedex](https://www.smogon.com/dex/ss/pokemon/sudowoodo/)
5. [Sudowoodo, SV, Smogon Strategy Pokedex](https://www.smogon.com/dex/sv/pokemon/sudowoodo/)
6. [Sudowoodo, GS, Smogon Strategy Pokedex](https://www.smogon.com/dex/gs/pokemon/sudowoodo/)
7. [Sudowoodo, DP, Smogon Strategy Pokedex](https://www.smogon.com/dex/dp/pokemon/sudowoodo/)
8. [Brock's Sudowoodo, Bulbapedia](https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Takeshi%27s_Usokkie)
9. [Sudowoodo, XY—BREAKpoint, Pokémon TCG Card Database](https://www.pokemon.com/us/pokemon-tcg/pokemon-cards/xy-series/xy9/67/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license