(WIP) Pokemon Emerald (Game Boy Advance) - RetroAchievements/guides GitHub Wiki
Guide by Paradise1
| Set Difficulty | |
| Approximate time to master | |
| Minimum numbers of playthroughs needed | |
| Number of missable achievements | |
| Does difficulty affect achievements? | Not Applicable |
| Hardest achievement of the set |
- 1) Synopsis / Table of Contents
- 2) Introduction
- 3) General Information
- 4) Walkthrough
- Acknowledgements
If you've never played Pokemon before, this short video is an excellent introduction to the basic mechanics.
This section will pick up where that video left off and explain some intermediate mechanics of the Pokemon series (and this game specifically) that may prove helpful.
- Keep the Type Chart handy to figure out what moves are super effective against what types. Note that the type chart has changed over the years, so make sure you're using the one specific to Generations 2-5.
- When a Pokemon uses a move that matches its type (or one of its types, if it has two), it gains a Same-Type Attack Bonus (STAB), which multiplies the move's power by 1.5. This is a very significant boost.
- There are two categories of attacking moves: Physical and Special. Physical moves use the Attack stat of the attacking Pokemon and the Defense stat of the defending Pokemon. Special moves use the Special Attack stat of the attacking Pokemon, and the Special Defense stat of the defending Pokemon. In this generation, whether a move is Physical or Special depends entirely on its type.
- Normal, Fighting, Flying, Poison, Ground, Rock, Bug, Ghost, and Steel moves are all Physical.
- Fire, Water, Grass, Electric, Psychic, Ice, Dragon, and Dark moves are all Special.
- Two moves (Weather Ball and Hidden Power) can change types - they will be Physical or Special depending on their current type.
- There are also Status moves, which raise or lower a Pokemon's stats, or inflict a status effect (such as Poison or Burn).
- Many attacking moves also have a secondary effect. For instance, Ember has a 10% chance to Burn the target, and Mud-Slap will always lower the target's accuracy by one stage.
- Stat buffs and debuffs have twelve levels, six in each direction. Most moves in this game will raise or lower a stat by either 1 or 2 stages. If it says a stat "sharply rose / harshly fell", it's 2 stages, if it just says "rose/fell," it's 1 stage. Once a stat gets to +6 or -6, it can't be boosted higher or lower, respectively. The modifications to stats given by each stage are listed in the table below:
| Stage | Multiplier |
|---|---|
| -6 | Stat x .25 |
| -5 | Stat x .28 |
| -4 | Stat x .33 |
| -3 | Stat x .40 |
| -2 | Stat x .5 |
| -1 | Stat x .66 |
| 0 | Stat x 1 |
| 1 | Stat x 1.5 |
| 2 | Stat x 2 |
| 3 | Stat x 2.5 |
| 4 | Stat x 3 |
| 5 | Stat x 3.5 |
| 6 | Stat x 4 |
- Evasion and Accuracy are slightly different. Basically, you need three boosts to double accuracy instead of 2, and 6 boosts to triple accuracy instead of 4. This also applies going the other direction. See this section in Bulbapedia for the full details.
- Each Pokemon species has a set of Base Stats that range from 1-255 that determine what its stats will be. For instance, Chansey's base HP is 250, meaning it will have a lot of HP, but its base Attack is 5, meaning it will have a very low Attack stat. This makes certain Pokemon species suitable for certain roles.
- A Pokemon's Base Stat Total (the sum of all five stats) is a good approximation of how powerful they are. For instance, Weedle/Caterpie, very weak early-game Pokemon, have BSTs of 195, while Mewtwo, a strong legendary Pokemon, has a BST of 680.
- Typically, when a Pokemon evolves, its Base Stats will go up, making it more powerful.
- Whichever Pokemon has the higher Speed stat typically moves first. The only exception are moves that have a different "priority." Moves with a higher priority will happen before moves with a lower priority. For example, a Pokemon using Quick Attack will always move before a Pokemon using Tackle, regardless of which has the higher Speed.
- If two Pokemon use a move in the same priority tier, the Pokemon with the highest Speed will move first, as normal. For example, if two opposing Pokemon use Quick Attack and ExtremeSpeed, the one with the higher Speed will move first.
- If your Pokemon's stats are debuffed, you can restore them by switching out to a different Pokemon and switching back. If your Pokemon's stats are boosted, this will also reset them back to normal. This will also cure temporary status conditions like confusion, but will have no effect on status conditions like paralysis, sleep, freeze, or poison.
- There are five status conditions in the game: Sleep, Paralysis, Burn, Poison, and Freeze.
- Sleep will prevent your Pokemon from moving until it wakes up. After 1-4 turns, the Pokemon will wake up, using the move it was trying to use on the same turn. Thankfully, sleep-inducing moves are somewhat inaccurate (except for Spore.
- Paralysis will cut your Pokemon's Speed to a quarter of its normal value, and the Pokemon will have a 25% chance to not be able to move at all during a turn. Paralysis doesn't go away naturally - you have to cure it using an item or go to a Pokemon Center. This condition is most often caused by Electric-type moves, but a few other moves can cause it too.
- Burn will half the damage done by Physical moves, and your Pokemon will lose 1/8th of its max HP after every turn. Burn can be cured with items or by healing at a Pokemon Center. This status is typically caused by Fire-type moves, and Fire-type Pokemon are immune to being burned.
- Poison simply decreases the affected Pokemon's HP by 1/8th at the end of each turn. Outside of battle, poisoned Pokemon will take 1 HP of damage for every four steps the player takes. Poison can be cured with items, or by healing at a Pokemon Center. Unsurprisingly, Poison is typically inflicted by Poison-type moves. Poison-type and Steel-type Pokemon are immune to poisoning.
- There is also "bad" poison, caused by the move Toxic. Bad poison will increase the damage it does every turn (from 1/16th to 2/16ths to 3/16ths, and so on). In this generation, bad poison is not converted to regular poison by switching out or ending the battle, but the counter starts again at 1/16.
- Freeze prevents Pokemon from moving until they thaw out. In this generation, Pokemon have a 20% chance to thaw out every turn. Pokemon will also thaw out if hit with a damaging Fire-type move. Freeze is relatively rare - each move that causes it typically only has a 10% chance of freezing the opponent.
- Status effects are very helpful in catching Pokemon. A Pokemon who is burned, poisoned, or paralyzed will be 1.5 times as likely to be caught, and a Pokemon who is asleep or frozen will be twice as likely to be caught. Getting a Pokemon that learns a paralysis move like Thunder Wave or a sleep move like Hypnosis will be a great help.
- Generation 3 introduces Abilities, which are basically something special a Pokemon can do. Each species of Pokemon has one or two possible Abilities. For instance, the Pokemon Zangoose has the Ability Immunity, which prevents it from being poisoned. Meanwhile, the Pokemon Rattata can have either the Run Away ability, which guarantees running away from wild battles, or the Guts ability, which increases its Attack by 50% when it has a status condition.
- Many Abilities also have effects in the overworld. For instance, Pokemon with Pickup will occasionally pick up items, and Pokemon with the Intimidate ability will reduce weaker wild encounters if placed in the front of the party.
- A few Abilities are actually detrimental to the Pokemon. Slaking has the ability Truant, which only allows it to use moves every other turn. This is done to balance out its fantastic stats.
- Generation 3 also introduces Double Battles, in which a team of two Pokemon are active on each side of the field. This alters the mechanics and strategy, as many moves and abilities behave differently in Double Battles! You can be challenged to a Double Battle either by certain Trainer Classes (e.g. Sis & Bro), or if you are challenged by two trainers at the same time by walking in between them. Usually, you will send out the first two Pokemon in your party, so don't get caught off-guard!
- With most attacks, a Pokemon can choose to attack any Pokemon on the field, including its own teammate. Certain moves such as Blizzard and Eruption will target both enemy Pokemon, and other moves such as Earthquake and Explosion will target all other Pokemon, including the user's teammate. Be careful when selecting these moves!
- In Generation 3, Surf only targets both enemies as opposed to every other Pokemon (as is the case in Generation 4 and beyond).
- In this generation, when a Pokemon is KO'd, the next Pokemon is sent out immediately! In later generations, the next Pokemon is sent out after the turn ends.
- With most attacks, a Pokemon can choose to attack any Pokemon on the field, including its own teammate. Certain moves such as Blizzard and Eruption will target both enemy Pokemon, and other moves such as Earthquake and Explosion will target all other Pokemon, including the user's teammate. Be careful when selecting these moves!
In order to master the set, you'll need to conquer the Battle Frontier. This will require a familiarity with several advanced mechanics.
Each Pokemon has a set of six Individual Values, one for each stat. Individual Values can fall anywhere between 0 and 31, and each point corresponds to an extra point to that stat at level 100. For instance, a Level 100 Mudkip with a 31 IV in Attack will have 31 more points of Attack than a Level 100 Mudkip with a 0 IV in Attack.
Below Level 100, these bonuses are scaled to the Pokemon's level, and rounded down. A level 50 Mudkip with a 30 IV in Attack will have only 15 more points in Attack than a level 50 Mudkip with a 0 IV in Attack. And a level 50 Mudkip with a 31 IV in Attack will also only have 15 more points, as the boost is rounded down.
A Pokemon's IVs are generated when a wild battle starts, when a roamer first spawns, and for Eggs, when it is received from the Day Care man (note that the Nature is set when the egg is first generated). IVs cannot be changed in any way - a Pokemon is stuck with its IVs! IVs are randomly assigned, so if you're trying to find a Pokemon with great IVs, you'll either have to be very lucky, use some tricks while Breeding, or delve into the wild world of RNG Manipulation.
Effort Values
Once you unlock the Battle Frontier in the postgame, you also get access to a very easy cloning glitch that allows you to clone Pokemon and items.
The site rules are a little ambiguous on Arbitrary Code Execution, but from what I've been able to dig up, it's not allowed. So, to be safe, don't use the Pomeg Glitch.
Latios: frame 4572
- This set is very streamlined compared to other Pokemon sets. There aren't any achievements for collecting every item or defeating every trainer, and there aren't any optional challenge achievements like level caps or restricting teams to certain Pokemon. There are also very few missables to worry about.
- Preparing for the Battle Frontier is something you're probably going to want to keep in mind throughout the run. Swampert is a great option to have, so you may want to pick Mudkip as your starter. Latios is also very powerful, so you might want to choose it over Latias. If you'd like, you can try and get a beneficial Nature and IVs on Mudkip, or you can wait until after the story and just breed a new one.
- When catching Latios, you're probably going to want to make sure it has a beneficial Nature, as well as IVs that are at least decent. You can achieve this either by resetting the old-fashioned way, or by using RNG Manipulation. Note that Latios' stats are generated when you select "BLUE" on the TV and cannot be changed after that point! For this reason, you're probably going to want to keep the Master Ball for Latios, as that will make attempts and resets much easier.
- The Gotta Catch 'Em All achievement is set up in such a way that if you obtain a Pokemon you're not supposed to have (i.e. a Pokemon that's unobtainable in Emerald, or two different starters), it will lock you out of the achievement. Trading Pokemon in from another save file is also against the site rules (or it's a gray area, at least), so you shouldn't be doing it anyways.
- Bulbapedia is the most thorough and accessible source of Pokemon information out there. You can use it for Pokemon locations, learnsets, item locations, and more. Note that by default pages display information and movesets for the latest generation, which might not be accurate for Generation 3. Usually there will be a button to view information for different generations, if applicable.
- The Serebii Generation 3 Pokedex has thorough information on all Pokemon specific to Generation 3, and without extra information on things like the anime. If you want a more streamlined and Gen 3-specific experience than Bulbapedia, this is likely your best bet.
- The Generation 2-5 Type Chart is worth keeping handy. There are several notable differences from later generations.
- Bulbapedia and StrategyWiki both have an beat-by-beat walkthrough if you'd like to follow them. Choose whichever you prefer. Bulbapedia also has the advantage of being specific to Emerald, whereas StrategyWiki includes Ruby and Sapphire, which may be slightly more confusing.
- The Cave of Dragonflies is a treasure trove of really in-depth information on Gen 3 mechanics, as well as every other generation. Of particular interest for this set is the Gen 3 Catch Rate Calculator.
Step 4: Catch 'em All/Miscellaneous
Because Swampert is very useful for the Battle Frontier, I would definitely recommend choosing Mudkip as your starter. I wouldn't worry too much about trying to get one with a good Nature/IVs at this point, as it may be easier to just breed one later on. And if you plan on using your first Mudkip in the Frontier, you'll have to be very careful with leveling and EV training throughout the whole game, which may be more trouble than it's worth.
Once you choose your starter, head to Route 103 north of Oldale Town for the first Rival battle.
Humble Beginnings (3) Defeat your Rival on Route 103
This fight should be pretty easy, especially if you've leveled Mudkip once or twice - open with a Mud-Slap or Growl if you'd like, then whale away with Tackle and you should win easily.
There aren't any achievements until you reach Roxanne's gym in Rustboro City, although if you're catching and leveling Pokemon, you'll likely get Friends Made Along the Way and Metamorphosis without too much effort.
You might want to catch 2 Ralts on Route 102 west of Oldale town so you can trade one for a Seedot in Rustboro City. Seedot is only a 1% encounter by default, so trading for one is probably easier.
You may want to catch a Zigzagoon to use as an HM Friend. Zigzagoon also has the ability Pickup, which has a 10% chance of finding several useful items whenever you win a battle.
Hard as a Rock (10) Defeat Roxanne to earn the Stone Badge
Roxanne isn't too hard if you have Mudkip. Her 2 Geodude are 4x weak to Water moves, so a single Water Gun will likely take them out. For Nosepass, you can use Mud-Slap once or twice to lower its accuracy and then hit it with Water Gun.
If you don't have Mudkip, you can also try using a Marill or Wingull, who also learn Water Gun early. Lotad and Shroomish are also an option. Although Absorb is not as powerful as Water Gun, it will still make quick work of the 2 Geodude, who are also 4x weak to Grass-type moves.
After defeating Roxanne, go ahead and continue the story until the Dewford City Gym. The fight with your rival in Rustboro City is optional - there's no achievement tied to it.
In Dewford City, do not change the trendy phrase, as having it set to default will help you find Feebas much more easily.
Martial Artist (10) Defeat Brawly to earn the Knuckle Badge
Brawly is a little tougher, but if you evolve some of your Pokemon he shouldn't be too hard to beat. Here are some suggestions:
- Mudkip evolves at level 16 into Marshtomp and learns Mud Shot, a STAB physical move that lets it take advantage of its higher Attack stat.
- Beautifly is also a decent option, as it 4x resists Fighting moves and learns Gust at Level 13.
- Taillow is not bad. Although it is neutral to Fighting moves due to its Normal typing, it learns the powerful Wing Attack at level 13.
- Ralts is a decent option, although it won't be able to take hits very well. You could evolve it into Kirlia at level 20 if you wanted. The first floor of Granite Cave north of Dewford Town is a great place to train Ralts.
- Don't bother trying to decrease Makuhita's accuracy (or boost your own evasion with Double Team), as Vital Throw will always hit regardless of accuracy.
After defeating Brawly, deliver the letter to Steven and then head on to Slateport to continue the story (or go back to Rustboro for the EXP Share from Mr. Stone if you want).
In Slateport, you can challenge the Battle Tent if you want, but there's no achievement for it.
Friendly Rivalry (5) Defeat your Rival on Route 110
Our next achievement is defeating the Rival on Route 110 north of Slateport City. This time, they will come with a Slugma, Wingull, and the second form of their starter (Grovyle, if you chose Mudkip). Of these three, Grovyle is the threat. Marshtomp can probably get some damage in with Mud Shot, but might not be able to survive an Absorb, as it is 4x weak to Grass moves. If you have a few level ~20 Pokemon, it probably shouldn't be too hard to combine their efforts and take Grovyle down, especially if they're evolved. Kirlia, Golbat and Hariyama are good options.
If you need to train a bit, you can head west to some Trainers on Route 103, or you can explore the Trick House here on Route 110. You'll need to do all the Trick House puzzles for an achievement, so you might as well do it now while the Exp is still useful!
After defeating your Rival, continue the story until Wattson's gym in Mauville City. While you're in Mauville City, pick up the Mach bike so you have it for Mirage Tower later.
Thunderstruck (10) Defeat Wattson to earn the Dynamo Badge
Wattson is a cinch with Marshtomp. Mud Shot will likely KO the first three Pokemon in 1-2 hits, and won't have much trouble KOing Manectric either. The only thing to watch out for is Supersonic from Magneton.
If you don't have Marshtomp, things will probably be a little harder. Geodude from Granite Cave is an option if you're looking for a Ground type. You can also evolve it into Graveler at level 25. Graveler may also be useful for the next few gyms too, so it might not ba a bad idea to grab one. Bringing a Fighting type like Hariyama or Combusken may also be useful for Magneton. Grovyle resists Electric attacks, so it may also be useful.
Next is a long stretch with no achievements. Once you get to the northern part of Route 111, you can talk to a guy who's looking at a tree, and he'll give you the Secret Power TM, allowing you to create a Secret Base. Feel free to teach it to Pokemon now - you can always get anothe copy of the TM in Slateport City!
Home Away From Home (1) Enter your very own Secret Base
This is the only achievement related to Secret Bases in this set, so you can create one, enter it, and then leave it alone for the rest of the game if you'd like.
Our next achievement is for defeating Team Magma and Maxie at Mt Chimney. Along the way, in Meteor Falls, you'll find a Moon Stone. Make sure you don't drop or sell it, as you'll need to evolve a Pokemon with it to complete the Pokedex!
Fiery Crew (5) Interfere with Team Magma on Mt. Chimney
Maxie is the threat here, but he's honestly not too bad. He has a level 24 Mightyena and Zubat (one wonders why he doesn't evolve it) and a level 25 Camerupt. As long as your team is reasonably diverse and properly leveled, you should be able to take him down pretty easily. I myself used Hariyama to take down Mightyena, Kirlia to KO Zubat, and Marshtomp to take down Camerupt (although pretty much any Water type would do, as Camerupt is 4x weak to Water.)
Once you beat him, make sure you interact with the machine to get the Meteorite.
Next up is heading to Lavaridge town to defeat Flannery.
Who Turned Up the Temperature? (10) Defeat Flannery to earn the Heat Badge
Again, Marshtomp makes the Gym very easy. Use Water Gun for Numel and Camerupt, and Mud Shot for Slugma and Torkoal. If Flannery manages to get a Sunny Day up, Water moves will only do half damage, so switch to Ground moves for the rest of the fight. Torkoal may be the biggest problem, as its Attract will cause Marshtomp to become infatuated if it is male. Still, you should be able to KO it with 2-3 Mud Shots, so it's not too much of a problem.
If you don't have Marshtomp, a strong Water-type and/or Ground-type Pokemon is likely your best bet. Of the options available at this point, Graveler, Tentacruel, or Pelipper may be worth considering. Just remember that Numel has Magnitude (which Graveler is weak to) and that Sunny Day cuts the power of Water type moves in half.
Heading east from Lavaridge City, you can take a quick detour to the desert on Route 111 to grab a Fossil from Mirage Tower. You will need the Mach Bike and a Pokemon with Rock Smash to get through the obstacles, though. I'd recommend bringing a few Repels, too.
Amateur Archaeologist (1) Acquire a fossil in the Mirage Tower
If you ride the Mach Bike at max speed over the cracked ground, you won't fall through. I would recommend using Repel so that a wild encounter doesn't interrupt you. It may take a few tries to get the timing down, but that one stretch on the second floor is the only one you'll have to navigate to get to the Fossil at the top.
You can choose whichever you like - the Root Fossil will give the Rock/Grass Lileep, while the Claw Fossil will give the Rock/Bug Armaldo. You'll be able to get the one you didn't pick after the Pokemon League, so don't worry too much about missing out.
Our next achievement is the Gym in Petalburg City, so head back there however you like. If you head south through Mauville and onto Route 110, you can visit the Trick House and do a few of the puzzles while the EXP is still useful!
If you stop by Rustboro City, you can also revive your Fossil Pokemon on the second floor of the Devon Corporation building (and grab the EXP. Share from Mr. Stone on the third floor if you haven't already).
Taking Down a Vanilla Team (10) Defeat Norman to earn the Balance Badge
Before you fight Norman, watch out for the Gym Trainer on the top left (in the "Strength Room"), as she has a Zangoose that knows Swords Dance that can wipe out your whole team if you're not careful. Or maybe I'm just bad.
Norman isn't too bad - he has a level 27 Spinda and Vigoroth, a level 29 Linoone, and a level 31 Slaking. A Fighting type like Hariyama or Breloom can do pretty well (just watch out for Spinda's Psybeam). Try to take down Linoone before it can use Belly Drum (or on the same turn), or else it might go on a rampage. Slaking has a high Attack stat, but its ability Truant is easily exploited. Truant means Slaking can only attack every other turn, so a Pokemon with Protect/Detect or Dig can completely shut it down. Otherwise, just use a Special attacker like Marshtomp/Swampert and heal with items as necessary on the off turn.
Be careful about burning/poisoning/paralyzing Norman's Pokemon, as they all know Facade, which doubles in damage if the Pokemon is afflicted by a status condition!
Immediately after defeating Norman, Wally's dad will give you the Surf HM, which is also a powerful move in its own right. I'd recommend teaching it to Marshtomp/Swampert right away!
Surf opens up a lot of places to explore.