Gastly has no true form, due to its body being 95% poisonous gas. However, it consistently appears as a black, spherical Pokémon surrounded by a purple haze. It has a wide, pink mouth with two visible fangs. Though its eyes seem to extend past its round body, visible eyelids surround them. The toxic gas surrounding the main body can induce fainting and suffocation, and is capable of enshrouding an Indian elephant within two seconds. Because it is mostly gas, Gastly will dwindle away when exposed to strong winds.
The anime suggests that Gastly has a playful personality, often frightening and playing pranks on people for fun. However, it has shown a willingness to preserve or pass on the memories of departed humans. It has further been shown changing form and creating illusions, and it is capable of phasing through solid objects and forming tangible hands out of its gasses. Gastly is often seen in old, dilapidated buildings, but can also be found in caves.
Gastly first appeared in The Ghost of Maiden's Peak. This Gastly had the ability to talk and shape-shift. He kept posing himself as the spirit of the woman which legend said turned to stone after 2,000 years of waiting for her love to return to her. As the ghost of the maiden, Gastly kept on toying with the minds of young men.
An Officer Jenny owned a Gastly in Pikachu Re-volts. This Gastly appeared to be the only Pokémon not affected by the psychic wave caused by Butch & Cassidy's Drowzee.
A Gastly appeared in A Shipful Of Shivers guarding the Orange league trophy of its deceased Trainer along with a Haunter.
A pair of Gastly were among a group of Ghost Pokémon living in an abandoned mine in Fear Factor Phony. The Ghost Pokémon couldn't stand the partying Psychic Pokémon that lived in the nearby town, so they created a Haunter-like illusion to scare everyone away.
Gastly first appears in That Awful Arbok! under the ownership of Koga, possessing the corpses of dead Pokémon in Pokémon Tower. Red's Bulbasaur manages to defeat it by sucking up the surrounding air with its bulb, along with Gastly's gaseous form, and expelling it in a SolarBeam. In the process, the two also freed Red's rival Blue, who was under its ghostly possession.
In Get Rid of The Ghost Pokémon!!, while Red, Clefairy and Pikachu were in Blue's mansion, they stumble across a Gastly that Clefairy ends up battling. However, since Blue didn't officially control it, it is unknown if it belongs to him.
Gastly appears in the 3DS version as an enemy in Smash Run mode, as well as a trophy. It is immune to melee attacks.
Trophy information
NA: This Ghost/Poison-type Pokémon is made up of several toxic gases—touching it would be really unpleasant. Instead, try to take it out with projectiles. It's not the fastest enemy in Smash Run, but occasionally it may try to chase down a fighter, so be careful around this gaseous foe.
PAL: In Smash Run, these Ghost- and Poison-type Pokémon tend to move slowly, and then, without warning, chase after you at high speed. You'll get hurt if they so much as come into contact with you, so be on your guard. As ghosts, they're immune to direct attacks. The only way to defeat them is to hit them with projectiles or items.
Game data
NPC appearances
Pokémon Pinball: Three Gastly appear in a bonus stage accessible from the Red Table. Once the player knocks them out, they must then proceed to defeat the subsequent pair of Haunter and the Gengar that appears.
Gastly is largely composed of gaseous matter. When exposed to a strong wind, the gaseous body quickly dwindles away. Groups of this Pokémon cluster under the eaves of houses to escape the ravages of wind.
Gastly is largely composed of gaseous matter. When exposed to a strong wind, the gaseous body quickly dwindles away. Groups of this Pokémon cluster under the eaves of houses to escape the ravages of wind.
Due to its unique type combination, Gastly and its evolutionary relatives are the only Ghost-type Pokémon that are weak against Psychic-type moves and also the only Poison-type Pokémon that are weak against Dark-type moves.
Gastly and its evolution Haunter are the lightest of all Poison-type Pokémon and Ghost-type Pokémon.
Origin
Gastly seems to be based on general cartoonish ghosts and spirits, or maybe a will o' the wisp. It may also have been based on the Japanese youkai sōgen bi, the decapitated head of a monk whose head is doomed to wander the Earth, consumed by fire. Its Poison type is most likely a reference to poisonous or polluted gases.
Name origin
Gastly may be a combination of gas and ghastly (dreadfully frightening or horrible).
Ghos is a shortened form of ghost and may also incorporate gas into its name.
This Pokémon article is part of Project Pokédex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on each Pokémon species, as well as Pokémon groups and forms.