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Pokemon Legends: Arceus does away with the old Pokedex formula by requiring trainers to complete a list of tasks just to unlock a Pokemon's Pokedex entry. When players catch a wild Pokemon, it does not automatically fill out their entry like in previous Pokemon games such as Sword & Shield. By going into Pokemon Legends: Arceus' Pokedex, players can view Research Tasks for each species by tapping the A button.
A Pokemon's entry will unlock once its Research Level reaches 10. There are usually various Tasks per Pokemon, such as "Number caught" and "Times you've seen it use [move]," and these all add "experience" to a trainer's Research Level.
Common Pokemon such as Bidoof have simple Tasks that can be completed in one sitting, while a Pokemon like Spiritomb will take longer due to their limited in-game availability. It's not required to max out every Research Task, but if players are going for 100% completion, they'll have some work to do. The following are just a few Research Tasks that may give players some trouble.
Cherrim's Research Tasks
Players will first hear of Cherrim in Pokemon Legends: Arceus when they go to accept the request "To Bloom or Not to Bloom" at the Fields in Jubilife Village. I
t's quickly revealed that Cherrim is one of the toughest Pokemon to find - at least in the beginning. According to Cherrim's Pokedex, it can be found in shaking trees within The Heartwood during morning and daytime, but players also have a chance of getting its pre-evolved form, Cherubi, instead.
Cherrim has the following Research Tasks:
- Number caught (15 total)
- Number caught during daylight hours (10 total)
- Number defeated (5 total)
- Times you've seen it use Petal Dance (40 total)
- Times you've seen it us an agile style move (15 total)
- Number you've seen leap out of tress (15 total)
To complete the Cherrim Request, players only need to get Cherrim's Research level to 10 and unlock its entry. Getting a Perfect entry is the hard part.
Cherrim's appearance rate isn't too high in Obsidian Fieldlands, but it will start appearing more in Coronet Highlands (Fabled Spring) and Crimson Mirelands (southwest of Gapejaw Bog; the tree by the lake).
Look for shaking trees during the day and keep trying until Research Task 2 and Task 6 are completed. This way, it'll be easier to knock out three of its hardest Research Tasks at once.
If Cherrim isn't appearing, return to Jubilife Village and respawn in whichever region has Cherrim.
Strong Style Moves with Spiritomb
Spiritomb is tricky because it's locked behind the Request "Eerie Apparitions in the Night." This involves finding all 107 wisps scattered around Hisui before Spiritomb starts "spawning" in the Crimson Mirelands near the Shrouded Ruins at night.
Once Spiritomb has been caught, his Research Tasks are quite easy to fill out since they're based around seeing it use specific Moves 40 times.
The most tedious Spiritomb Research Task is "See it use strong style move," with the highest objective at 70. Using a strong or agile style move will cost 2PP instead of 1PP.
The best way to complete this Research Task is to have Spiritomb battle lower-leveled Pokemon and defeat them with strong style moves.
Keep plenty of Max Ethers and Max Elixirs on hand to restore Spiritomb's moves without having to rush back to a camp.
This strategy also applies to Pokemon with similar Research Tasks. For example, one of Lucario's Research Tasks requires seeing it use Aura Sphere 70 times in battle.
Catching Pokemon with Multiple Forms (Rotom)
Since the fourth generation of Pokemon, some species have been given physical differences depending on their gender. Any Pokemon that looks different as a male or female will have a Research Task called "Number of different forms you've obtained."
Pokemon with a 50/50 gender ratio like Pikachu means this Research Task can be completed very quickly. Others with uneven gender ratios (such as Eevee) may take some time due to their rarity.
In addition, there are Pokemon with different forms such as Rotom and the Forces of Nature (Landorus, Thundurus, Tornadus, and Enamorus). Rotom's in particular is not only time-consuming but can be expensive.
Rotom has six objectives for its "different forms" Research Task. Unfortunately, the only way to get the appliances that change Rotom's form is by buying them from the Ginter of the Ginkgo Guild.
Rotom's appliances are randomized daily and get more expensive with each purchase. The final appliance will cost as much as 100,000. The best way to get Rotom's forms is by saving up on money and crafting items instead of buying them at Jubilife Village's item shop.
Additionally, space-time distortions can drop Star Shards and Comet Shards, which can be sold for a lot of money at a general store.
Catching All 28 Unown
Players will quickly notice that Unown does not have more than one Research Task. By catching all 28 forms of Unown, its Pokedex entry will be unlocked, and it will be marked with Perfect.
There are other bonuses with finding all Unown such as being able to catch them at Solaceon Ruins and potentially shiny hunt them.
Catching Unown is easy since their catch rate has been changed to 100% for Legends: Arceus. Finding them is the difficult part. The hints in the Unown Research Notes are all written in Unown alphabet, and some hints aren't very specific. Unfortunately, players are going to have to search every corner of Hisui if they want this Pokemon's entry completed.
Feed Snorlax 50 Times
This Research Task would be almost silly if it weren't for such a high objective marker. There's an Alpha Snorlax in the Obisidian Fieldlands that can be distracted with all types of food. However, given the abundance of Oran Berry trees in the Fieldlands, the best strategy is to throw Oran Berries until Snorlax has eaten 50 of them just to complete this Research Task.
Remember when feeding wild Pokemon to wait for it to finish eating before tossing another Berry/Food item. Bait will perish if it remains untouched for too long. Although players can find regular-sized Snorlax in space-time distortions, it's better to just feed the Alpha Snorlax since it's very easy to be ganged up on by other Pokemon in space-time distortions.
See Magikarp use Splash 100 Times
Magikarp is well-known for being a useless Pokemon that evolves into the much stronger Gyarados at level 20. As ridiculous as Snorlax's Research Task may be, Magikarp takes it up a notch by needing to be seen using the move Splash 100 times.
Fortunately, Magikarp doesn't have any damage dealing moves, so the chance of it using another move is impossible until it runs out of PP. However, watching Magikarp flop around uselessly is a boring Research Task despite its simplicity.
The best strategy is to swim out to the Magikarp in the river between Grueling Grove and Horseshoe Plains in the Obsidian Fieldlands. There should be several Magikarp to battle. After throwing a Pokemon at it, use a move that deals no damage (such as Swords Dance) to stall until Magikarp burns through its Splash move. Then, defeat it and move on to the next Magikarp.
Alternatively, players can always catch a Magikarp themselves and have it battle another Magikarp. Neither side will be dealing any damage, but at least the Splash objective will go up a little quicker.
Space-Time Distortion Pokemon
Some Pokemon that aren't native to Hisui will appear in space-time distortions. To trigger a space-time distortion, players just need to be in one region for more than five minutes. When a distortion appears, there will be a notification at the top of the screen and a space-time distortion icon on the map.
Pokemon such as Porygon and Cranidos will only appear in distortions, and unfortunately, their Research Tasks require catching more than one. These Pokemon have Research Tasks that require trainers to catch 3 and 5 large specimens, respectively. There's no strategy to make larger-sized Pokemon appear, so it's a matter of trial and error when dealing with space-time distortion exclusive Pokemon.
Completing A Pokemon's Entry vs. Completing All Research Tasks
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When a player has completed enough Research Tasks, their Research Level will continue to climb. At 10, they'll be able to view their entry. Completing all Pokemon's entries in the Pokedex is the only way to get the Shiny Charm in Pokemon Legends: Arceus.
However, if players go out of their way to get a Perfect Entry, then the chances of encountering a Shiny Pokemon of that particular Pokemon increase.
Combine this with the Shiny Charm, and it could make shiny hunting very easy. Shiny Pokemon tend to crop up more in mass outbreaks, so if there's a Pokemon that players really want, it's recommended to complete all of its Research Tasks first.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus is available now on Nintendo Switch.