+17 Black Pokémon: Colors, Accents and Palette Ideas

Umbreon’s yellow rings, Darkrai’s pale plume and Zygarde’s green markings show how much variety fits around a dark body. This selection looks at black and dark-colored Pokémon through those color relationships, with enough character background to keep the names and forms straight.

Black here describes an appearance, not a strength rating or the Dark type. Some entries have only dark sections; others use a regional form. The existing 3D illustrations are stylized interpretations and can differ from the official designs. For drawing accuracy, follow the linked Pokédex references. Suggested palettes are our design choices, not official Pokémon HEX specifications or sampled color measurements.

Murkrow

Murkrow’s hat-shaped crest and broomlike tail do much of the work in its outline. Dark feathers can carry a slight blue cast, with yellow on the beak and a muted warm tone on the feet. Those small accents leave most of the bird dark. It is a Dark/Flying Pokémon that evolves into Honchkrow.

Zygarde

The repeated hexagons on Zygarde’s 50% Forme break green markings across a long, dark body. This Dragon/Ground Pokémon has several forms, so choose one before assembling a drawing reference.

Small markings: electric lime
Larger panels: Moss green
Background: Muted blue

Darkrai

Darkrai divides into three striking areas: a dark body, a pale plume and a red collar-like shape. The plume is worth keeping broad enough to see in a small thumbnail.

Main shape: charcoal
Pale plume: Ivory
Neck accent: Crimson

Keep the red near the neck and the paler shape above it. Darkrai’s game type is Dark.

Trumbeak

A broad pale chest sits between Trumbeak’s dark wings. Its warm-colored beak supplies a third, narrower area. When simplifying the design, keep the chest as a connected light patch; the beak can carry a deeper orange beside a yellow-orange tip. Trumbeak is Normal/Flying and sits between Pikipek and Toucannon in its evolution family.

Lampent

Lampent puts the dark color in a frame: its curved metal arms surround a pale, flame-lit body. It is a Ghost/Fire Pokémon in the Litwick–Lampent–Chandelure family. Inside the near-black structure, pale lavender can sit beside a deeper violet. Leave room between the arms and the body so the curves stay visible against the background.

Zekrom

Zekrom’s dark surfaces need more than one tone in a drawing. A medium charcoal can separate adjoining plates before the brightest electrical highlight is added.

Electric blue is the accent to explore here. Keep it concentrated where the image suggests emitted light, with most of the body remaining dark. Zekrom is a Dragon/Electric Legendary Pokémon associated with Pokémon White.

Umbreon

The gaps between Umbreon’s yellow rings matter as much as the rings themselves. They leave a black body visible around each mark, while red eyes provide a smaller accent near the face.

Dark charcoal and golden yellow are enough for the main palette. Add red sparingly when a design needs the eye detail. This Dark-type Pokémon is an evolution of Eevee.

Claydol

Claydol repeats pale rings and reddish eye details around a dark body. Keeping the red narrower than the pale surrounds preserves that circular pattern. A brown-black base and warm off-white would give a related illustration an earthy palette. Claydol is Ground/Psychic and evolves from Baltoy.

Qwilfish

Qwilfish needs a form-specific reference. The familiar Water/Poison form has a blue-green upper body and pale belly. Hisuian Qwilfish is Dark/Poison, with darker coloring.

In a dark version, use the rounded body as the largest area and let the spikes interrupt its edge. Purple or pink can remain a small detail. Check the chosen form’s Pokédex image for the actual markings before borrowing its palette.

Coalossal

Coalossal is Rock/Fire and the final stage of the Rolycoly–Carkol–Coalossal family. Dark coal and glowing fuel provide the main color relationship. A softer gray can separate the rocky surfaces inside a charcoal outline. Reserve the ember orange for the fuel area, where a concentrated warm patch will read differently from orange spread evenly over the whole body.

Zarude

The green vines on Zarude trace long shapes across dark fur. A leaf green would keep a drawing less fluorescent than the Zygarde palette, with small warm facial details left secondary. The vine shapes can stay continuous where they cross the body. Zarude is a Dark/Grass Mythical Pokémon with no evolution family listed in the official Pokédex.

Honchkrow

Honchkrow and Murkrow can share a feather color in a paired illustration, while the larger pale chest changes the balance on Honchkrow. Ivory is one option for that area, especially against a cool, dark background. Honchkrow evolves from Murkrow and shares its Dark/Flying type. Its hatlike crest and broader proportions give the pair a family resemblance without needing the same distribution of light and dark.

Raticate (Pokémon)

A dark coat belongs to Alolan Raticate, whose type is Dark/Normal. The original Raticate is brown and Normal-type; both are in the Rattata evolution family.

The Alolan form offers a warm version of a dark palette: brown-black around a cream muzzle and belly. Block in the pale front before adding teeth and whiskers. It gives the face a clear area to sit within the heavier outer shape.

Sigilyph (Pokémon)

Sigilyph uses black as a framework for several colored sections. Red, yellow and blue can occupy separate parts of the pattern, while the dark outlines hold the shapes apart.

At icon size, try fewer divisions rather than making every accent brighter. Sigilyph is Psychic/Flying and has no evolution listed in its Pokédex entry. Its multicolored body makes this an example of dark structure around bright areas.

Salandit (Pokémon)

Salandit’s orange-red marking runs along a low, dark lizard shape. A narrow strip of coral red on charcoal borrows that arrangement with very few colors. Keep the warm area continuous enough to follow when the image is reduced. Salandit is Poison/Fire and belongs to the Salandit–Salazzle family.

Carkol (Pokémon)

Carkol’s cartlike body carries the coal theme between Rolycoly and Coalossal. It is Rock/Fire.

Carry charcoal and ember colors through the family, changing their proportions at each stage:

Rolycoly: a small orange detail against dark stone.
Carkol: more visible heat in the coal load.
Coalossal: a larger fuel area on a much bigger figure.

Rolycoly (Pokémon)

A rough dark body, orange eye and wheel-like lower part establish Rolycoly’s coal theme. A small study only needs a deep coal tone, a lighter stone gray and warm orange. Put the gray between surfaces that would merge in a single dark fill. This Rock-type Pokémon begins the family that continues through Carkol to Coalossal.

Three starting palettes for your own design

These combinations are suggestions for a card, poster or background inspired by the characters. The values were chosen for this article. They are not official character codes, and text contrast still needs checking in the final layout.

Direction	Dark base	Supporting color	Small accent
Umbreon-inspired	#333333	#FFDF00	#B22222
Darkrai-inspired	#36454F	#FFFFF0	#DC143C
Zygarde-inspired	#202421	#596B3E	#CCFF00

For the Umbreon direction, leave the yellow as isolated marks on a mostly dark field. The Darkrai combination can carry a larger pale shape above a narrow red area. With the Zygarde colors, try the middle green across a few panels and reserve the brightest lime for the smallest highlights.

For another red accent to compare with the Darkrai-inspired swatches, open Crimson and judge it beside the background you actually plan to use.