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Growlithe and Arcanine have been fan-favorite Pokemon from the very beginning, so it’s no real surprise that they’re back in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet. The original dog Pokemon is a great pickup for any team in need of some fire coverage, unlike its Hisuian variant.
Arcanine remains a powerhouse in every way. It has great stats across the board and a strong move pool for use as an offensive powerhouse, a defensive disabler, or a helpful support Pokemon. That applies to every facet of Pokemon Scarlet & Violet including the story mode, Tera Raid battles, and ranked competitive battling.
But of course, the first step to actually making use of Arcanine’s incredible power is to catch it. Luckily, it’s not too difficult to find a Growlithe and players can evolve it in short order.
Where to find Growlithe in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet
Growlithe can be found in East Province Area Three and South Province Area Three. These are the areas to the north of Levincia and east of Mesagoza, respectively.
Growlithe is a relatively rare spawn in these two areas, but is fairly easy to pick out. Its orange color palette stands out against the dusty areas it tends to live in, and it looks wildly different from the common spawns in these areas such as Orthrworm, Voltorb, and Pawmi.
That said, the easiest and fastest way to catch a Growlithe is to take advantage of its fixed spawns. There is a guaranteed Growlithe spawn in South Province Area Three’s border with East Province Area One. A single Growlithe can be found near the mountains that surround the Great Crater of Paldea at this location:
How to Evolve Growlithe into Arcanine
Growlithe into Arcanine at any time using a Fire Stone. There is no minimum or maximum level, so players can evolve a Growlithe at level one or level 100. Fire Stones can also be purchased at the Delibird Presents shop in Mesagoza for just $3,000, letting players easily evolve as many Growlithes as they like.
There’s also a bit of an exploit involving Arcanine and other stone-based evolutions. As soon as Growlithe evolves into Arcanine, it instantly has access to almost all its most powerful moves via the Remember a Move feature. The only exception is Flamethrower, which it learns at level five. This means players can have an Arcanine that knows moves like Flare Blitz and Play Rough before getting their first badge.
If players don’t want to use a Fire Stone, there is an alternative. North Province Area Two has Arcanine as a rare spawn, and the Pokemon also appears in five-star, and potentially in six-star, Tera Raid battles.