ITEM DEX
Metal Coat
DE: Metallmantel · Cost: 2000 ₽
Metal Coat is a held item that boosts Steel-type moves and triggers two evolutions during a trade. It arrived in Generation 2 and turns Onix and Scyther into their Steel forms.
What does the item do?
Steel-type moves from the holder do 20% more damage. An item to be held by a Pokémon. It’s a special metallic film that can boost the power of Steel-type moves.
Effect numbers are modern rules. FRLG may differ. See Q&A.
Which Pokémon does Metal Coat evolve?
Steel moves ×1.2 in battle, plus a trade evolution for Onix and Scyther. The battle bonus has been 20% since Generation 4; in the older games, including FireRed/LeafGreen, it is only 10%. Its real value sits in the evolutions: held during a trade, Onix becomes Steelix and Scyther becomes Scizor, and the item is consumed. In Legends: Arceus you use the coat directly on the Pokémon instead. As a pure battle item it only makes sense for Steel Pokémon with no better option.
Our Kanto dataset (FireRed/LeafGreen) has no recorded location for Metal Coat. In FireRed/LeafGreen one Metal Coat lies at the Memorial Pillar in the Sevii Islands, and another is a prize in the Trainer Tower. Our Kanto map covers neither place, which is why no location appears above.
Belongs on Onix or Scyther, period. Steelix and Scizor are massive upgrades over their pre-evolutions. With either one on your team, the answer is clear: hold, trade, done. As a pure battle item for Steel moves, the coat is solid but replaceable.
These Pokémon evolve when traded while holding Metal Coat: Onix, Scyther