You’re standing in the tall grass of the Obsidian Fieldlands, holding your breath while a giant, red-eyed Snorlax snoozes just a few feet away. One wrong move and you’re getting flattened. This isn't the Pokémon game your parents played. Pokémon Legends: Arceus flipped the script on how we find, catch, and live alongside these creatures. Honestly, the Hisui region is a beautiful, terrifying mess.
Most people think "completing the Dex" means just catching one of everything. In this game? That's barely the start. There are 242 Pokémon in the Hisui Pokédex, and the game demands you actually study them. You aren't just a trainer; you’re the world's first field researcher.
The Reality of the Hisui Pokédex
Let’s get the numbers out of the way first. You have 242 entries to fill. That sounds manageable until you realize you can't just trade your way to victory. Since Legends: Arceus is a single-player-focused experience, every single monster is obtainable within one save file. No version exclusives. No "I need a friend with the other game" excuses.
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The variety is wild. You’ve got classics like Pikachu and Magikarp living right next to brand-new Hisuian forms that look like they’ve seen some things. These regional variants aren't just palette swaps. A Hisuian Arcanine is a Fire/Rock type with a literal coat of stone armor. It’s bulky, it’s mean, and it’s a nightmare to catch if it spots you first.
New Faces and Old Friends
The stars of the show are the new evolutions. Stantler finally got some love with Wyrdeer, a Normal/Psychic type that you’ll spend most of your time riding across the map. Then there’s Kleavor, the Bug/Rock evolution of Scyther that looks like it was carved out of a mountain.
- Ursaluna: Evolves from Ursaring using a Peat Block during a full moon.
- Basculegion: A Water/Ghost type that evolves from white-striped Basculin after it takes enough recoil damage without fainting.
- Sneasler: A tall, lanky Poison/Fighting type that replaces Weavile in the Hisuian ecosystem (though you can still get Weavile through space-time distortions).
- Overqwil: The spikey evolution of Hisuian Qwilfish.
Getting these isn't about hitting level 36 and watching a cutscene. It’s about specific items, weather conditions, or even using a certain move in "Strong Style" 20 times. It's tedious. It's rewarding. It’s basically a full-time job.
Where to Find the Heavy Hitters
Hisui is split into five massive zones. You can't just walk from one to the other; you have to head back to Jubilife Village and redeploy. Each area has its own "Alpha" Pokémon—those massive, glowing-eyed monsters that will absolutely wreck your team if you're underleveled.
The Five Main Hubs
In the Obsidian Fieldlands, you'll find the basics. Ponyta, Bidoof, and the terrifying Level 45 Alpha Snorlax. Most players make the mistake of trying to fight that Snorlax too early. Don't. Just don't.
Move over to the Crimson Mirelands for your Poison and Ground types. This is where you’ll hunt for Hisuian Sliggoo and the muddy Ursaring. The Cobalt Coastlands is all about the ocean. You’ll need Basculegion to reach the offshore islands where Hisuian Growlithe hides on the cliffs.
The Coronet Highlands is verticality incarnate. You’re looking for Hisuian Voltorb here—which, strangely enough, is a Grass/Electric type because it’s made of wood. Finally, the Alabaster Icelands is the endgame. It's freezing, it's full of Hisuian Zorua (which are Normal/Ghost and arguably the best design in the game), and it’s where the toughest Alphas live.
Those Annoying Space-Time Distortions
If you’re looking for "all Pokémon in Legends Arceus," you have to talk about the bubbles. Space-time distortions are these weird, shimmering domes that pop up randomly. Inside, reality breaks.
This is the only way to get "modern" Pokémon like Porygon, Magnemite, or the other starters you didn't pick at the beginning. If you chose Rowlet, you have to wait for a distortion in the Crimson Mirelands to find a Cyndaquil. It’s a waiting game. You literally just sit in a field and wait for the sky to turn purple. It’s not "engaging gameplay," but it’s necessary for that 100% completion.
Hunting the Legends
The endgame is basically a boss rush of deities. You’ve got the Lake Trio—Uxie, Mesprit, and Azelf—who each give you a trial. Then there’s the big ones. Dialga and Palkia show up in their "Origin" forms, which... honestly? They look a bit weird. They’re like centaurs but with less neck.
But the real challenge is Enamorus. She’s the fourth member of the Forces of Nature (joining Landorus, Thundurus, and Tornadus). Catching her involves chasing her through a swamp while she throws clouds of confusion at you. It’s frustrating. You’ll probably throw your controller.
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And then there’s Arceus itself. To even see the God of Pokémon, you must catch everything else first. Every. Single. One.
Practical Steps for Completion
If you’re serious about finishing the Dex, stop trying to fight everything. Stealth is your best friend.
- Stock up on Lead Balls and Wing Balls. Standard Pokéballs are trash for range or heavy targets.
- Use Smoke Bombs. You can literally create your own cover in the middle of a flat field.
- Check the Research Tasks. You don't just need to catch a Pokémon; you might need to see it use "Splash" 100 times.
- Don't ignore the side quests. Many of them, like the one for Spiritomb, are the only way to trigger specific spawns. To get Spiritomb, you have to find 107 wisps scattered across the entire map. It’s the ultimate "check every corner" quest.
Most players burn out because they try to "perfect" every page immediately. Don't do that. Just get every entry to Research Level 10. That counts as "complete" for the sake of meeting Arceus. Perfecting a page (completing every single checkmark) only increases your shiny odds.
Completing the Pokédex in this game is a massive undertaking. It’s about patience and learning the patterns of the world. Once you’ve caught that final mythical and stood before the creator on top of Mt. Coronet, you’ll realize this is the most "complete" a Pokémon journey has ever felt.
To finish your journey, focus on hitting Star Rank 10. This ensures you have the crafting recipes for Jet Balls and Gigaton Balls, which make catching those high-level Alphas in the Alabaster Icelands significantly easier than using standard Ultra Balls.