Pokemon Gold Extras (Legendary Pokemon)

Raikou, Entei, Suicune
Gold and Silver introduced something truly awful in the form of "Roaming Legendaries." What this means is that you can't just go to a specific location, save your game, and keep re-trying a very difficult battle until you finally capture the Pokemon.

Electric-type Raikou, Fire-type Entei and Water-type Suicune will move randomly around Johto, and you have to try to chase after them, hoping eventually to encounter them. But the fun doesn't stop there! They will run away as soon as the battle starts, so you'll only have time to get one move in, only if your lead Pokemon is faster than them of course. Note that any damage or status conditions inflicted will remain the next time you encounter them. So here are some things you can do to increase your chances;

1. If you have a high-level Pokemon that knows Spider Web (Spinarak/Ariados) or Mean Look (Gastly/Haunter/Gengar are good choices as they can also learn Hypnosis but Zubat/Golbat/Crobat can learn Mean Look too), these moves will keep them from fleeing. Note that they can still use Roar to end the battle.

2. Inflict the Sleep or Paralysis status condition after trapping them. Unlike in Crystal version, the status condition will not carry over to the next time you find them.

3. Be VERY CAREFUL with your attacks and save after every encounter - if you knock them out by accident, they will never come back. Night Shade is a good attack (Gastly/Haunter/Gengar, Natu/Xatu, etc) because it always deals damage equal to the user's level and never gets a critical hit. Other than that, using moves that are ineffective (ie fire against Entei, electric against Raikou etc) are a SOMEWHAT safe bet.

4. You might as well use your Master Ball on one of them, the other two legendaries remain in one spot so you can just save beforehand and re-load if you wast too many balls.

5. Only try to track down one at a time, or you will drive yourself crazy.

6. You can have Kurt make Fast Balls from White Apricorns, but it will take forever to get a bulk of them so you might as well just stock up on Ultra Balls.

 

Lugia
Lugia is fixed in one spot, thankfully, but it can be almost as difficult to track down as the roaming puppies if you don't know how to go about finding it. First thing you need to do is make sure you have the Silver Wing - if you're playing Silver version, you got this from the director of the radio tower. If you're playing Gold version, you got this from the old man in Pewter City. Next thing you'll need are Pokemon who know the moves Flash, Whirlpool, Surf.

This legendary Pokemon hangs out in a particularly awful(ly laid out) place called the Whirl Islands. There are four difference entrances, on islands scattered about in the sea between Olivine and Cianwood. The first entrance we are going to take is the northwestern one.

Whirl Islands
Zubat
Golbat
Seel
Krabby
Horsea (Surf)

When you enter, use Flash to find the ladder just ahead of you. Follow it down. On the next floor, follow the raised platform south, ignoring the steps and the item ball on your right (we'll be back). The platform ends in some more steps, take these ones.

Get this hidden item, as well as the Carbos above it. Go east of the hidden item, up the other steps, and down another ladder. Get a Max Elixer and another Full Restore from the little island here, then go back up the ladder. Backtrack to the first set of steps I told you to ignore, and grab the item ball to the south which contains yet another Full Restore. Go east until you see some steps, go up them and follow another raised path around to an item ball with a Nugget. Jump over the two ledges to your right.

Get this hidden item, then go up the ladder below you to get an Ultra Ball. Go back down the ladder, then south and jump over the ledge to your left. A couple steps to your left you will see a ledge below you, jump over it. You will see an item ball right away - it has an Escape Rope inside. Go southwest and take the ladder up.

Exit the cave here, then surf east and loop around to this small patch of land where you can grab another hidden item. Go back and re-enter the cave (you'll have to use Flash again of course) but don't take the same ladder you took up. Surf to the east, grab the Guard Spec. and then go down the ladder to your right. You'll be on the other side of the boulder we passed by a moment ago, but don't bother pushing it around. Just go northeast.

Get another hidden item, then go south and take the steps up. Grab a Calcium from the item ball above you, then take the ladder just to the left of the steps. Up here there's nothing to do but exit the cave, so do that. Back outside, you will now be on the south-eastern island. Surf to the one directly north of you, using Whirlpool on the way, and make your way to the entrance.

Once you've entered and used Flash, you should find yourself in an area that looks like this. Jump over the ledge beside you, but be very careful afterward. There is a north ledge and a south one - you want to take the NORTH one. We've already got all the items on the south path. You'll be led to a ladder, so follow it down. Nowhere to go here but south to another ladder, so do that. You'll end up in an open underground area with lots of water. Over to your left will be an item ball with a Max Revive so get that first, then surf south and go down the waterfall. There will be two places to land here; a dark brown chunk of land with a ladder, and a white-brown chunk of land with a hole in the north wall. Enter the hole first to find the roost of the legendary Pokemon. Surf out into the water and save your game, then engage your target.

You're in for a struggle here either way, but if you're playing Gold version Lugia will be rather intimidating at level 70 with the moves Recover, Hydro Pump, Swift, and Rain Dance (an odd set, considering it is Psychic/Flying, not Water/Flying). Unfortunately, this means it does not come with its signature move Aeroblast, but that also means it can't use it against you. If you are playing Silver version, it will be a more manageable level 40 with the moves Aeroblast, Safeguard, Gust and Recover. The same strategy applies as with other wild Pokemon - inflict sleep/paralysis, gets its hp as low as possible without knocking it out, throw lots of Ultra Balls. Don't just keep chucking ultra balls at it heedlessly either, make sure you keep your team members in good health so your capture attempt doesn't get interrupted by a game over.

Ho-Oh
I'm sure you don't need my assistance figuring this out, but in order to encounter the other legendary bird Pokemon of Johto, you will need the Rainbow Wing item - obtained from the director of the radio tower in Goldenrod if you're playing Gold version, obtained from the old man in Pewter City if you're playing Silver version. We need to take this to Ecruteak City.

Enter this building, then take the steps in the back. Follow a few hallways to end up back outside, then enter the Tin Tower to your right.

Tin Tower
Rattata
Gastly

There is absolutely nothing on the first two floors, so make your way up the third where things get a teensy bit more complicated. The little ramps here can be jumped over like ledges, but only if you approach them from the sloped side. First jump left to a small platform with a Full Heal, then jump back. Jump over to the right, then go north, then jump over four more ramps, all leading left. Go up once again, jump across all the ramps leading right, and take the stairs to the fourth floor.

You can go down or left here - go down first. You're faced with the same choice right after, go left. Jump south over two more ramps, and collect the Ultra Ball here. Jump right, then south twice and get the Super Potion here. Ignore the stairs, they're a dead end. Go all the way left, ignore the other stairs, and grab the Escape Rope as you head up. Jump across two ramps leading to the right, then go up again, and across two leading left. These are the stairs that lead forward, so take them.

Go up and jump across two ledges going right. Now the ramps start to branch off in two different directions constantly, and unfortunately we'll have to do a little bit of backtracking to get the item here.. From the first branch go down once, left twice, down once, right once, down once. Go down and get the Rare Candy on the central platform, then take all the ramps going right (the only ones you can take from here). Go down, and descend the steps.

Back on the previous floor, you may or may not recognize your position. Go all the way left, then north, right, north, left, and take the stairs again. Go right twice again to reach that first branch, then go down, left twice, down five times, right twice, down once, and take the stairs up. the next floor is fairly linear, so just follow it around to the next set of stairs.

As you go north on the next floor, you will see these red panels - they are warp tiles. Don't panic though, they are actually very easy to navigate. Step on this first one, then go left and step on the next one. Go down and jump left across a few ramp to reach a small platform with two more warp tiles on it. Step on the left one first, then jump left across a ramp. Pick up the Nugget here, then jump back to the right and onto the warp tile to return to the platform. Step on the warp tile on the right and pick up the Max Elixer here, then go back once again. Jump across the ramps leading to the right, then go north and step on the warp tile. Go right and step on the red square and you will be back by the very first tile.

Hop over a couple ramps leading to the right and pick up the Max Revive sitting out in the open. Go south across a few much wider ramps, then tale the warp tile against the south edge of the screen. Go south and step on another warp tile, then go left and step on another. Go north and then west, ignoring the next tile you see to continue over to an item ball with a Full Restore. Go back to the right a few steps and take the warp tile below you. Take the stairs to your left and you will end up on the roof.

If you are playing Gold version, Ho-Oh will be at level 40 with the moves Gust, Recover, Safeguard, and its signature move Sacred Fire. If you are playing Silver version, it will be at level 70 with the moves Recover, Sunny Day, Fire Blast, and Swift. All my team members were at level 70 by this point, so I was having a lot of trouble keeping it alive and keeping the only two Pokemon who could attack it and not knock it out alive (those being my Heracross with Megahorn, which only has 10 PP and who takes 4x the regular damage from Ho-Oh's Gust attack, and my HM slave Lv.30 Gyarados which was attacking with Waterfall, which also ran out of PP). In the end I did prevail however, as I'm sure you will with enough patience and spare money for Ultra Balls.

And with that, my guide for Pokemon Gold is complete! As always, I thank anyone who has taken the time to follow along, and I do hope I was able to offer a bit of help! Bye-bye now!