Drakloak looks like a stealth bomber that adopted two tiny ghost lizards as flight attendants, so it is only fair that its final evolution feels dramatic. The good news: evolving Drakloak into Dragapult in Pokémon Scarlet & Violet is wonderfully uncomplicated. There is no cryptic sandwich recipe, no midnight weather forecast, no trade partner who disappears the instant you show up, and definitely no need to spin around three times near a suspicious rock.
All Drakloak needs is one ordinary milestone: level 60. This guide explains exactly how the evolution works, the fastest ways to reach the target, what to do when a level-60 Drakloak refuses to transform, and how to make the most of your brand-new Dragapult afterward.
Drakloak Evolution at a Glance
| Pokémon | How It Evolves | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Dreepy | Reach level 50 | Drakloak |
| Drakloak | Reach level 60 | Dragapult |
The short answer: level Drakloak to 60, then allow the evolution scene to play. You do not need an Evolution Stone, a held item, a high Friendship score, a particular move, a trade, or a certain time of day. Drakloak is a Dragon/Ghost-type Pokémon, and its final form, Dragapult, keeps that same unusual typing.
How to Evolve Drakloak Into Dragapult: Step by Step
1. Check Drakloak’s Current Level
Open your party, choose Drakloak, and look at its level. If it is level 59, you are one level away from a very satisfying glow-up. If it is level 60 already, do not panic and accuse the game of dragon fraud. Pokémon that are caught at their evolution level usually need to gain one more level before the game checks the evolution condition. In that case, raise it to level 61 through a normal battle or by using an EXP Candy or Rare Candy.
2. Make Sure It Is Not Holding an Everstone
An Everstone prevents a Pokémon from evolving. It is useful when you want to preserve a form, but it is the party pooper of evolution items. Check Drakloak’s held item before training. If it has an Everstone, remove it and gain another level. The same fix applies if you canceled the evolution previously by pressing the B Button: simply level Drakloak again when you are ready.
3. Gain the Final Level in a Normal Battle or With Candy
The most reliable finish is simple: win a standard turn-based battle, or open your Bag and use an EXP Candy or Rare Candy. Either method can trigger the evolution animation. This is especially helpful after using Let’s Go auto battles for quick experience, because auto battling can push a Pokémon past a level threshold without immediately showing its evolution. Treat auto battles as the warm-up; use one normal battle or one candy for the finish-line photo.
4. Let the Evolution Play
Once Drakloak gains the required level, the screen will shift into the familiar evolution sequence. Do not press B unless you want to cancel it. A few seconds later, Drakloak becomes Dragapult, Paldea’s fighter-jet ghost dragon and a very convincing argument for keeping tiny Dreepy close by.
The Fastest Ways to Level Drakloak to 60
Because Drakloak evolves at a fairly high level, the task can feel long if you are starting from a low-level Dreepy. Fortunately, Pokémon Scarlet & Violet gives you several efficient training routes.
Use EXP Candies From Tera Raid Battles
Tera Raid Battles are the practical answer for players who would rather evolve their Pokémon today instead of sometime after the sun burns out. Successful raids award EXP Candies, which can be fed directly to Drakloak from the Bag. Start with smaller candies so you do not overshoot wildly if you are close to level 60, then use larger candies when you need a bigger boost.
Do not worry that candy leveling somehow “ruins” Dragapult. Its future stats still depend on its level, Individual Values, Effort Values, Nature, and training choices. Candy simply provides experience quickly. You can handle EV training later with battles, feathers, vitamins, or other preparation methods.
Battle High-Level Wild Pokémon
For a more traditional route, fight strong wild Pokémon in late-game areas. High-level opponents give better experience than the small early-route creatures you could defeat while half asleep. Keep Drakloak in your party, use Pokémon that can win safely, and heal when needed. A few focused battles in tougher zones are more efficient than forty polite disagreements with low-level wildlife.
Use Let’s Go Auto Battles, Then Finish Properly
Let’s Go mode is excellent for gathering experience while exploring, collecting items, or looking for outbreaks. Send a strong party Pokémon to defeat easy wild targets, and Drakloak can benefit from the experience flow. However, when Drakloak is close to level 60, switch to a regular battle or an EXP item for the final level. That prevents the classic “Why did it hit level 60 and not evolve?” moment from becoming a dramatic three-act saga.
Keep a Lucky Egg on Drakloak
If you have a Lucky Egg, let Drakloak hold it while you train. The item increases the experience it earns from battles, making ordinary leveling noticeably smoother. It is not required, but it is a tidy efficiency upgradelike adding a moving walkway to your trip through an airport full of angry dragons.
Where to Get Drakloak in Pokémon Scarlet & Violet
You can evolve a Drakloak you raised from Dreepy, catch one in high-level Paldean habitats, or obtain one through a Tera Raid Battle. The Dreepy line is associated with Pokémon Violet as a version-exclusive family. Players using Pokémon Scarlet can still get Dreepy, Drakloak, or Dragapult through trading or by exploring together in a Union Circle with a Violet player.
Raising Dreepy from scratch has one pleasant advantage: you can choose its Nature, ability plan, moves, and Poké Ball from the beginning. Catching Drakloak later is quicker, though, and a raid catch can save a great deal of leveling. Both roads lead to the same airborne menace.
Common Drakloak Evolution Problems and Fixes
“My Drakloak Is Level 60 but Did Not Evolve.”
This is usually not a bug. If you caught it at level 60, it must gain another level. Use one EXP Candy or win one standard battle to bring it to level 61. The evolution check happens when the Pokémon levels up, not merely because the number 60 exists on its summary screen.
“I Used Auto Battles and Nothing Happened.”
Let’s Go auto battles are useful for experience, but they do not reliably show standard level-up evolutions at the moment the threshold is crossed. Give Drakloak one more level through a regular battle, EXP Candy, or Rare Candy. This is the simplest cure for an evolution that appears to be stuck.
“Do I Need to Trade Drakloak?”
No. Trading is only useful for obtaining the version-exclusive line if you play Scarlet. The evolution from Drakloak to Dragapult is strictly level-based. Once you own Drakloak, it evolves on your own save file at the required level.
“Does Drakloak Need High Friendship, a Special Move, or Nighttime?”
No, no, and no. Those are common Pokémon evolution conditions, which makes the confusion understandable. Drakloak does not care whether it adores you, knows a stylish move, or has been staring at the moon. It only cares about leveling to 60.
Why Evolve Drakloak Into Dragapult?
Dragapult is popular because it combines a Dragon/Ghost typing with exceptional Speed and flexible attacking options. It can work as a physical attacker, a special attacker, or a fast pivot depending on your moves, Nature, items, and the format you play. In a story playthrough, that speed means Dragapult often gets to move first and clean up battles before opponents can organize a proper complaint.
Its typing does demand awareness. Dragon/Ghost Pokémon are weak to Ice, Ghost, Dragon, Dark, and Fairy attacks. Keep Dragapult away from unfavorable matchups when possible, and consider teammates that cover those threats. A Steel-type partner, for instance, can help against Fairy attacks, while a strong Water- or Fire-type can give Ice-focused opponents something more urgent to worry about.
Simple Story-Mode Move Ideas
For a casual Paldea adventure, build around reliable moves you enjoy using rather than chasing a laboratory-grade competitive set. Ghost-type attacks provide useful coverage, Dragon-type attacks supply strong same-type damage, and a flexible utility or coverage move rounds out the set. Check the in-game move reminder whenever Dragapult evolves; it is an easy way to review options that may fit your team better than whatever it learned during its awkward teenage-dragon phase.
Trainer Experiences: Making the Drakloak Evolution Feel Easy
The experience of evolving Drakloak is usually less about solving a puzzle and more about managing expectations. Players often see “level 60” in a guide, catch a Drakloak whose summary already says 60, and wait for fireworks that never arrive. The important mental reset is this: level-based evolutions trigger when a Pokémon gains a level while meeting the condition. A level-60 catch is not broken; it simply has not had its post-capture level-up check yet. One candy later, the problem vanishes so quickly that it feels almost rude.
Another common experience is raising Dreepy from a low level and wondering why this tiny, timid-looking creature has such a long runway. Dreepy becomes Drakloak at level 50, which can make the line seem demanding compared with early-game Pokémon that evolve before they have learned how to file taxes. The upside is that the final jump is only ten levels away. Once Drakloak appears, Dragapult is close enough to feel like a real goal instead of a distant legend whispered by annoyed hikers on Glaseado Mountain.
Players who enjoy exploration tend to have the smoothest time. Keep Drakloak in the party while filling Pokédex entries, clearing trainer battles, gathering materials, or moving through late-game areas. The experience accumulates naturally, and the evolution arrives during ordinary progress. This method is slower than pouring candy into it, but it has a pleasant rhythm: the Pokémon grows alongside the adventure instead of being promoted in a single break-room snack session.
Raid-focused players usually describe a different route. A handful of successful Tera Raids produces EXP Candies, and those candies turn the trip from level 50 to 60 into a matter of careful item use. The trick is not to feed everything at once when you are near the target. Use smaller candies to approach level 60, then intentionally trigger the final level with one normal battle or one more candy. This approach feels controlled, especially when you want Dragapult ready for a specific Gym rematch, tournament battle, or postgame objective.
There is also the Let’s Go lesson. Auto battling is convenient, but it can confuse players because the experience numbers move while the evolution scene does not always appear. The safest habit is to use Let’s Go mode for bulk training, then perform one ordinary battle at the end. Think of it as sending Drakloak through airport security before allowing it to board the Dragapult flight. It may have done all the work, but the final confirmation still needs a proper gate check.
Finally, the best experience comes from not overcomplicating the evolution. Drakloak does not ask for a trade, a bizarre item, perfect Friendship, or a moonlit picnic. Remove an Everstone if one is equipped, get it to the right level, and let the animation play. In a game full of evolutions that ask you to walk exactly enough steps, defeat oddly specific targets, or find someone willing to trade at the right moment, Drakloak’s level-60 requirement is refreshingly civilized.
Final Takeaway
To evolve Drakloak in Pokémon Scarlet & Violet, raise it to level 60. If you caught one already at level 60, raise it once more to level 61. EXP Candies and normal battles are the cleanest finishing tools, while Tera Raids and late-game exploration make the training faster. Soon, your Dreepy babysitter becomes Dragapult: fast, spooky, and fully prepared to launch its tiny passengers into battle with the confidence of a ghostly supersonic limousine.
Note: This guide applies to the standard evolution method in Pokémon Scarlet & Violet; DLC ownership is not required for Drakloak to evolve into Dragapult.
