Required Party Pokémon

The subject of this article has no official name. The name currently in use is a fan designator; see below for more information.

It has been suggested that this article be moved to Required Pokémon. Please discuss whether or not to move it on its talk page.

---

A Required Party Pokémon is a specific Pokémon that is mandatory to be in the party in certain events in the games. Frequently, this applies early in games when the player has only their first partner Pokémon and has not yet been given the ability to acquire other Pokémon or access trading or storage functionality. However, there are occasionally certain other scenarios in which this concept may apply. From Pokémon X and Y onward, it is ensured that the player's storage can't legally be full when a mandatory catch comes by making sure the final PC Box stays locked until the moment the player catches it so there's always a place to put it.

Contents

Collapse all Hide

Close table of contents

• (Return to top)
• In General
• Generation I
  • Pokémon Stadium (Japanese)
  • Pokémon Stadium
  • Pokémon Yellow
• Generation III
  • Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald
• Generation IV
  • Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum
  • Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver
• Generation V
  • Pokémon Black and White
• Generation VI
  • Pokémon X and Y
  • Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire
• Generation VII
• Generation VIII
  • Pokémon Sword and Shield Expansion Pass
  • Pokémon Legends: Arceus
• Generation IX
  • Pokémon Scarlet and Violet
  • Pokémon Legends: Z-A
• References

Contents

In General

In order to evolve Mantyke into Mantine, Remoraid must be in the party.

Generation I

Pokémon Stadium (Japanese)

Surf can be taught to a Pikachu if the player clears the Master Ball division of the L1-30 Division with a Pikachu in their party.

Pokémon Stadium

Exclusively in international releases of Pokémon Stadium, Surf can be taught to a Pikachu if the player clears the Master Ball division of the Round 2 Prime Cup with all Pokémon selected directly from a Game Pak (the Pikachu can come from any Generation I game), not saving the game during the challenge (continues are permitted), and having Pikachu participate in the final battle.

Pokémon Yellow

In order to play the Pikachu's Beach minigame in the original versions, a surfing Pikachu must be transferred from other games and put in the player's party. In the Virtual Console editions, only the player's partner Pikachu is required.

Generation III

Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald

In Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, it is necessary to have Relicanth at the top of the party and Wailord at the bottom of the party while reading the inscription in the second room of the Sealed Chamber so as to open the doors of the Desert Ruins, Island Cave, and Ancient Tomb. In Pokémon Emerald, the required party positions of Relicanth and Wailord are swapped.

Generation IV

Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum

In Diamond, Pearl and Platinum, Regirock, Regice, and Registeel are required in order to fight Regigigas. In Platinum, a fateful encounter Regigigas is required in order to fight Regirock, Regice, and Registeel.

Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver

The only way to access the Sinjoh Ruins is by bringing an Arceus from an event distribution or an Arceus which the game recognizes as a traded Pokémon from the Hall of Origin to the Ruins of Alph. The event is triggered by having Arceus as the player's walking Pokémon and entering the Ruins of Alph. However, due to the Azure Flute never being released in Generation IV, it is not possible to obtain an Arceus from the Hall of Origin without the use of glitches or cheating.

Generation V

Pokémon Black and White

At the climax of Pokémon Black and White, inside N's Castle, Reshiram^B/Zekrom^W will appear in front of the player and challenge them. The player must capture it to proceed to the final confrontation with N. The only exception occurs if the player has a full party, and a completely filled Storage System (a total of 726 individual Pokémon). In this case, Reshiram^B/Zekrom^W will reappear at the peak of Dragonspiral Tower after defeating N and Ghetsis.

Generation VI

Pokémon X and Y

After battling Korrina at Shalour Gym, she will immediately invite the player to a rematch atop the Tower of Mastery. There, the Lucario that had become close to the player temporarily joins their team, and the two have a one-on-one battle, using just their Lucario, both holding a Lucarionite. Win or lose, the player has the option of getting the Lucario that joined them for the battle, but even if they choose not to accept it, it will still be registered as owned in the Pokédex from the battle in which it was borrowed.

In the player's final confrontation with Team Flare at their secret headquarters in Geosenge Town, Xerneas^X or Yveltal^Y will be awakened and attack the player. Similar to Reshiram and Zekrom in Black and White, the player must capture it to proceed to the final confrontation with Lysandre; if it is defeated, it will instantly respawn, but here it is impossible to have a full Storage System beforehand, as the final box is not unlocked until this battle. If the player's party is full, the player will have the chance to send one of their Pokémon to the PC to make room for the Legendary Pokémon immediately; if they do, or if there was already a vacant slot in the party, the Legendary Pokémon will automatically be moved to the front of the party for the upcoming battle.

Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire

During the Delta Episode, Rayquaza will insist on being in the party upon being captured and will then battle Zinnia, then Deoxys. If the player used hacks to fill up the locked box, the game will teach Dragon Ascent to a Pokémon other than Rayquaza.

Like Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, it is necessary to have Relicanth at the top of the party and Wailord at the bottom of the party while reading the inscription in the second room of the Sealed Chamber so as to open the doors of the Desert Ruins, Island Cave, and Ancient Tomb.

In order to encounter Regigigas in the Island Cave, it is required to have Regirock, Regice, and Registeel in the party. Regice must also have a nickname as well as hold an ice-based item (a Casteliacone, an Icicle Plate, an Icy Rock, a Never-Melt Ice, or a Snowball).

To get Tornadus^OR/Thundurus^AS, the player needs a Castform in their party while soaring through the sky. Finding Landorus requires Tornadus and Thundurus in the player's party while soaring through the sky. To get Dialga^AS/Palkia^OR, the player must soar through the sky with Uxie, Mesprit and Azelf in their party. To get Giratina, the player must have Dialga and Palkia while soaring through the sky. To reach Gnarled Den, where Kyurem is located, the player needs Reshiram and Zekrom in their party while soaring through the sky.

Generation VIII

Pokémon Sword and Shield Expansion Pass

In The Isle of Armor, after completing all three trials, the player will receive a Kubfu from Mustard. The player is then tasked with training at either the Tower of Darkness or the Tower of Waters with Kubfu alone. Unless Kubfu is holding an Everstone, completing its training will cause it to evolve into Urshifu in either its Fighting/Dark Single Strike Style or Fighting/Water Rapid Strike Style, depending on the place it trained. If Kubfu is not in the player's party or PC, they can use any Pokémon they want.

In The Crown Tundra, the player needs Regirock, Regice, Registeel, Regidrago, and Regieleki in their party while at the Giant's Bed to catch Regigigas.

Pokémon Legends: Arceus

This section is incomplete. Please feel free to edit this section to add missing information and complete it. Reason: Can the caught legendary Pokemon be traded or transferred to HOME prior to catching the other one?

It is necessary to have the Dialga or Palkia the player caught at Spear Pillar in the party in order to leave Jubilife Village to battle its counterpart. The game won't even allow the legendary Pokémon to be released until the other one is caught in the Origin Ball.

Generation IX

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet

In Zero Lab, after the first battle with AI Sada^S/AI Turo^V, the Paradise Protection Protocol's defense system will activate prior to the AI professor sending out their Koraidon^S/Miraidon^V, preventing the player from using any Pokémon except their own Koraidon^S/Miraidon^V against it.

After completing the main story, the player is given the ability to freely switch Koraidon^S/Miraidon^V between its Sprinting Build^S/Drive Mode^V and Apex Build^S/Ultimate Mode^V, the latter allowing it to be used in battle. However, Koraidon^S/Miraidon^V cannot be moved to a Box or traded away; it can only be removed from the player's battle party by reverting it to its rideable form.

Near the end of The Teal Mask, Carmine requests that the player battle her with Ogerpon in their party; if Ogerpon is in a Box, Carmine will refuse to battle. If Ogerpon is released, traded, or transferred to Pokémon HOME, Carmine will be disappointed, but offer to battle anyway. Until this battle is finished, as well as the Koraidon/Miraidon battle, The Indigo Disk can't be played.

During The Indigo Disk, the player must battle 3 Trainers using only Pokémon caught in the Terarium in their party before battling Drayton; anything caught anywhere else is forbidden. Pokémon that were caught in Tera Raid Battles in the Terarium are also disallowed, as the met area for these Pokémon, "a crystal cavern", is not considered part of it.

Pokémon Legends: Z-A

This section is incomplete. Please feel free to edit this section to add missing information and complete it. Reason: What if Absol is traded/released? Is that possible before the battle?

At the beginning of main mission 10, "The Secrets of Mega Evolution", the player is required to have an Absol holding an Absolite in their party in order to battle their rival, Urbain/Taunie.

During main mission 26, "An Invitation from the SBC", Asami the Furisode Girl requests that the player defeat her Florges with a Mega-Evolved Pokémon in order to earn access to Boutique Couture. If Florges is not defeated with a direct attack from a Mega-Evolved Pokémon, the battle must be restarted.

In Mega Dimension, during hyperspace mission 1, "Hyperspace Lumiose Survey No. 1", Korrina asks the player to use Mega Evolution during a battle with her. If the player does not Mega Evolve any Pokémon prior to defeating her, the battle must be restarted.

In both the base game of Pokémon Legends: Z-A and Mega Dimension, certain side missions require the player to use a specific species or type of Pokémon in a battle:

Side Mission	Pokémon permitted
030: "Show Me a Mega Camerupt!"	Any party containing a Camerupt holding a Cameruptite*
031: "Show Me a Mega Sableye!"	Any party containing a Sableye holding a Sablenite*
032: "Show Me a Mega Medicham!"	Any party containing a Medicham holding a Medichamite*
069: "A Sky Battle, for Old Times' Sake"	Any number of Flying-type Pokémon
083: "Honedge's Cutting Edge"	A single Pupitar
095: "A Haunting Experience"	Any number of Ghost-type Pokémon
103: "Facing the Furfrou League"	Any number of Furfrou*
107: "The World's Greatest Pikachu!"	A single Pikachu
108: "Alola, Raichu!"	A single Raichu
116: "Show the Power of Aurorus!"	A single Aurorus
132: "Bitter Blue Flames vs. Blazing Crimson"	A single Armarouge* or Ceruledge*
133: "Farfetch'd Ambush!"	A single Farfetch'd holding a Leek
186: "The Ultimate Techniques"	A single Meganium*
	A single Emboar*
	A single Feraligatr*
197: "Ultra-Hardcore Lucario Showdown!"	A single Lucario