Cubone is a small Pokémon that stands up on two legs. Its golden-brown hide covers its arms, legs, tail, and most of its body, including both dorsal spikes. Cubone’s belly is a very light brown. Two small claws, one on each hand, serve as thumbs for Cubone, and two large nails make up its toes. On its head, Cubone wears the skull of its dead mother, so its actual face has never actually been seen. The skull is worn like a helmet in such a way that the only visible part of Cubone’s face is its eyes, both triangular and white with black irises. The skull has two rounded horns on the top of its head, and two fangs protruding near the front of the snout. Also, Cubone always carries a bone with it, which it uses as a weapon.
Gender differences
None.
Special abilities
It has the ability to wield its bone as an effective weapon, or throw it in the same manner as a boomerang.
It is constantly lonely, due to the fact that it is without its mother, and moans plaintively. It dislikes keeping company or making new friends, and its social skills are almost non-existent.
During the night, it cries for its lost mother and it is unable to let go of the memory of her. Its cries echo within the skull and it comes out as a pained and sad melody that can travel for miles around its mountain homeland. Sometimes, it can emit mournful sounds during the day. On the night of a full moon, its cries are the loudest - for it seems to recognize its mother's face in the moon.
The exact whereabouts of the mothers are unknown; however, the people of Lavender Town acknowledge that Marowak skulls are considered highly expensive. Team Rocket has been blamed for killing Marowak in exchange for money, and the claim is supported by the ghost of a Marowak haunting the Pokémon Tower in Lavender Town. These deaths may set the basis of personality for all Cubone.
Cubone live in rocky areas where they can easily find bones in old sediment that can be millions of years old. They use the bones they find as weapons. Sometimes, they prefer to live in dark caves where they can mourn alone. It is predominantly a Kanto-native Pokémon, but sightings in Sinnoh have been reported as well.
A Cubone was among the four Pokémon that were causing trouble for Pikachu and co. during Pikachu's Vacation.
A Cubone was helping Meowth preparing his party in Pichu Bros. in Party Panic. This Cubone played drums in Meowth's band and got easily sad and gloomy when Meowth chewed it out, but it was also easily consolable.
Crystal owns a Cubone, who has a star-shaped crack in its skull. Cubone's main role in the team is to take out targets from afar using its bone-based attacks.
In the Pokémon Stadium 2 stage, a Cubone can be seen on the Ground Terrain standing atop the highest platform built into a rock. Dugtrio and Pokémon fossils can also be seen on the Ground Terrain.
Trophy Information
"A Lonely Pokémon. It wears its mother's skull as a helmet--for this reason, no one has ever seen its face. It sometimes sees its departed mother's face in the full moon, which causes it to grow sad and cry. The stains on the skull are tracks of its tears. When it cries, the skull shakes and emits a mournful sound. When it levels up, it evolves into Marowak."
Merchandise
Cubone was one of the first four Pokémon designs revealed when the Pokémon 151 brand was first announced. In the shirt design, Cubone's skull is in the center of the shirt, with two Thick Clubs in crossing below it.
Game data
Pokédex entries
This Pokémon was unavailable prior to Generation I.
Cubone pines for the mother it will never see again. Seeing a likeness of its mother in the full moon, it cries. The stains on the skull the Pokémon wears are made by the tears it sheds.
It pines for the mother it will never see again. Seeing a likeness of its mother in the full moon, it cries. The stains on the skull it wears are from its tears.
Despite the Pokédex's statement that it wears the skull of its dead mother, Cubone can be bred in the games with no ill effects on its mother. This is due to Cubone being created before breeding in the games was possible.
Cubone is one of the Pokémon that appears in the Pokémon 151 clothing line.
Cubone is possibly based on a dinosaur or a dinosaur fossil, and, like dinosaurs, nobody has ever seen a Cubone's real face; only its mother's skull. It also could be based off of primitive cultures that wore bones for decoration and used them for weapons.
Name origin
Cubone's name might be a combination of cute and bone, cub and bone, or cue ball (a reference to its pale white head, or to the fact that its bone resembles a billiards or snooker cue) and bone. Karakara may be taken to mean からから, clattering. It is worth noting that karakara denotes lighter clattering than garagara. Cubone's name could also be a combination of the Latin word "cubo", meaning "recluse", and "bone". This can refer to its lonely nature.