How to Find Rayquaza in Pokémon Emerald & What You Need to Catch It

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Defeat the Sky Pillar boss & add Rayquaza to your Pokédex
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Are you trying to capture the Legendary Pokémon Rayquaza in Pokémon Emerald, but you're not sure how to do it? Capturing this Pokémon is a two-step process, as you can't actually get it the first time you see it. However, once you awaken it and see it in action in Sootopolis Town, you can return to the spot of your first meeting to capture Rayquaza. In this article, we go over all the prerequisites you must meet to catch Rayquaza, as well as how to catch the Pokémon. Read on to learn more!

Catching Rayquaza in Pokémon Emerald

To catch Rayquaza, you must have the Mach Bike, a lot of Ultra Balls, a strong team with at least one Pokémon that can inflict status effects, and a Pokémon that can use Surf. Once Rayquaza arrives to break up the fight between Groudon and Kyogre, you can go to the Sky Pillar to catch it.

Section 1 of 2:

Prerequisites

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  1. You won't unlock these two areas until later in the game, so if you can't yet go to Pacifidlog town as part of the main quest, you can't get Rayquaza just yet. [1]
    • Pacifidlog town is west of Route 131 and is encountered later in the game than most areas. [2]
  2. If you don't have a Mach Bike, you can't catch Rayquaza at all, as there are weak spots in the floor that will sink you if you aren't going full speed on the bike.
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  3. You'll need to cross the ocean to get to the area where you can find Rayquaza, but you will have gotten this HM much earlier in the game. If you don't have a Pokémon in your party with Surf, grab one from earlier in your adventures.
  4. Rayquaza is the most powerful natural Pokémon you'll find in the game and is already at level 70 when you encounter it. To weaken it enough to capture it, you'll need some Pokémon that can hold their own against a high-level Pokémon. [3]
  5. This is probably your best chance to use the Master Ball, which will capture Rayquaza automatically, no questions asked. But if you don't have it anymore (or if you're saving it for something else), Ultra Balls will do, so long as you have a strong team capable of weakening it first.
  6. Status-effecting moves that inflict sleep, freeze, or paralyze make it much, much easier to successfully capture this Legendary Pokémon, and they prevent it from fighting back for a few turns. Note, of course, that the higher the level of the Pokémon using the move is, the more likely it will succeed.
    • You can use moves like Sleep Powder, Blizzard, or Thunder Wave to inflict these statuses.
    • Avoid inflicting statuses that cause damage (such as Burn and Poison), as this could accidentally knock out the Rayquaza.
  7. In the main quest, you'll meet Rayquaza when you go to the Sky Pillar for the first time. It'll immediately fly away, but you see it again later when he fights Kyogre and Groudon. In this necessary cut-scene (unlocked by flying to Sootopolis after awakening Rayquaza), Rayquaza appears and breaks up the fight, then flies away. As soon as this is finished, you can return to the Sky Pillar to catch Rayquaza for real.
    • If you haven't gotten this far in the quest, you can't catch Rayquaza yet. [4]
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Section 2 of 2:

Catching Rayquaza

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  1. From the Pokémon Center in the middle of town, head up to the upper right, skirting through the small "maze" of rocks to reach the cave just northeast of town.
  2. 2
    Navigate through the cave until you reach the Sky Pillar. The Sky Pillar is a tall, tan colored building. When you reach the area with the Sky Pillar, you'll see the words "Sky Pillar" in the upper-left corner of your screen.
  3. There are a lot of strong Pokémon in the Sky Pillar, so feel free to use a few Max Repels to speed up the process. However, climbing the Sky Pillar is not as straightforward as it might seem. Here's how to do it:
    • In the first room, navigate around the rocks and enter the door at the north of the room.
    • In the second room, you'll need to use the Mach Bike to ride over the cracked tiles. If you stop on a tile, you'll fall through, so you may need to practice a few times. To get through this room, you'll need to ride the bike south, then west, then north to find the door that leads to the next room.
    • In the third room, you'll enter from the left-most door. Go south, east, then north to enter the right-most door. There are no cracked tiles in this room.
    • In the fourth room, you'll enter from the right-most door. Go south, west, and then north, then stop on a non-cracked tile. You'll see some cracked tiles in the middle of the room (across from another door). Ride your Mach Bike forward, then stop on one of the middle cracked tiles so you fall back down to the third room.
    • After falling through the floor, go into the middle door in front of you.
    • Back in the fourth room, you'll enter through the middle door. Go west and walk through the left-most door in the room.
    • In the fifth room, go down, east, and north to find the door to the next room. There are no cracked tiles in this room.
    • Once you leave the fifth room, you'll be at the top of the Sky Pillar. Ascend the steps that are slightly west of the doorway you came out of, and you'll find Rayquaza! [5]
  4. You only get one chance to catch Rayquaza, so you need to make sure you save in case you fail the first time. If it escapes, defeats you, or faints, you're out of luck. If you don't save right before the fight, you'll have to restart the game and lose potentially hours of progress to try and get Rayquaza again.
  5. Moves like False Swipe and Tackle are good for dealing only a little damage at a time, preventing you from accidentally knocking it out and never catching Rayquaza.
    • Avoid lowering the Rayquaza's health too much, as it can end up knocking itself out with Outrage.
    • If you're throwing the Master Ball, toss it out on the very first turn. It will capture Rayquaza automatically for you!
  6. Apply one of these status-affecting moves, then start throwing Ultra Balls. Rayquaza has a low catch rate even with Ultra Balls, so it could take quite a few tries before you end up catching it.
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Community Q&A

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  • Question
    Do I need to beat the Elite 4 before catching Rayquaza?
    Lugia2453
    Top Answerer
    No, you can catch Rayquaza before facing Juan, the eighth gym leader.
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  • Question
    What moves does Rayquaza have?
    Blubb lé Blubb
    Community Answer
    In Pokémon Emerald, Rayquaza's moveset typically includes Fly, Rest, Extreme Speed, and Outrage upon capture. For Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire (ORAS), its moves are Extreme Speed, Dragon Pulse, Dragon Dance, and Dragon Ascent.
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  • Question
    Do I need a Swampert to catch Rayquaza, especially since I have a Froakie?
    Community Answer
    You do not need a Swampert to catch Rayquaza. In Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire (ORAS), you can only encounter Rayquaza after you have beaten the Elite Four and completed the Delta Episode storyline.
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
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      References

      1. ↑ https://www.pokemoncoders.com/how-to-get-rayquaza-in-pokemon-emerald/
      2. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBdfjvmjXvk
      3. ↑ https://www.supercheats.com/guides/pokemon-emerald/skypillar-rayquaza
      4. ↑ https://gaming.stackexchange.com/questions/185272/where-can-i-catch-rayquaza-in-pokemon-emerald
      5. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WE3Je6tkMS8

      About This Article

      Article Summary X

      1. Fly to Pacifidlog Town.
      2. Surf to the cave to the northeast.
      3. Use the Match Bike to reach the top of the Sky Pillar.
      4. Save the game before fighting.
      5. Weaken Rayquaza to the lower yellow or red section.
      6. Put it to sleep, paralyze, or freeze it.
      7. Throw Ultra Balls until you capture Rayquaza.

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