Excadrill

Excadrill in the games: a sandstorm digger with a new Mega

Excadrill evolves from Drilbur at level 31 and adds Steel to the Ground type Drilbur already has. Both of its standard abilities pay off in a sandstorm: Sand Rush doubles its Speed, and Sand Force powers up its Ground, Rock and Steel moves. Its hidden ability, Mold Breaker, lets its moves ignore abilities that would otherwise get in the way. Pokémon Legends: Z-A added Mega Excadrill, which keeps the Ground and Steel typing.

Excadrill in the anime: Iris's partner and Clay's Gym ace

Excadrill debuted in "The Bloom Is on Axew!" as Iris's partner, her first Pokémon, which she had raised since it was a Drilbur. It started out refusing to obey her, and "Iris and Excadrill Against the Dragon Buster!" uncovered the reason and brought the pair back together. Driftveil Gym Leader Clay also used an Excadrill in "Battling the King of the Mines!," where it beat Ash's Snivy before Roggenrola evolved into Boldore mid-battle and defeated it.

Excadrill on cards: Emerging Powers to Mega Excadrill ex

Excadrill debuted in Emerging Powers (2011) with two cards, a holo by 5ban Graphics and a Rare by Shin Nagasawa, and Dark Explorers (2012) added two more by Mitsuhiro Arita and Masakazu Fukuda. Legendary Treasures (2013) printed Excadrill-EX, illustrated by Ryo Ueda, and Cosmic Eclipse (2019) gave it a Secret Rare by Arita, numbered above the 236-card set.

Temporal Forces (2024) added an Illustration Rare by Saboteri. Black Bolt (2025), a Scarlet & Violet era set, printed Excadrill ex three ways, as a Double Rare and Ultra Rare by N-DESIGN Inc. and a special illustration rare that is Arita's third Excadrill. Pitch Black (2026) then brought the new Mega form to the Mega Evolution era as Mega Excadrill ex, a Double Rare and an Ultra Rare both illustrated by Keisuke Azuma.

Cards to know

• Excadrill (Emerging Powers #56)

  The holo from Excadrill's debut set, illustrated by 5ban Graphics.

• Excadrill-EX (Legendary Treasures #82)

  Excadrill's Black & White era EX card, illustrated by Ryo Ueda.

• Excadrill (Cosmic Eclipse #246)

  A Secret Rare by Mitsuhiro Arita, numbered above Cosmic Eclipse's 236 cards.

• Excadrill ex (Black Bolt #168)

  A special illustration rare by Mitsuhiro Arita from the Scarlet & Violet era.

• Mega Excadrill ex (Pitch Black #103)

  The Ultra Rare Mega Excadrill ex from the Mega Evolution era, illustrated by Keisuke Azuma.