How to catch Lugia and Articuno in Pokémon Go

Image via Niantic

Two fan-favorite legendary Pokémon are now available inPokémon Go, but catching them is extremely difficult.

Lugia and Articuno were both introduced to Pokémon Go on July 22 as a part of the game’s one year anniversary event in Chicago, Illinois: Pokémon Go Fest.

Although the event had its share ofproblems, Pokémon Go Fest did successfully launch the two legendary bird Pokémon into the game. And since Lugia and Articuno have been added to Pokémon Go, they’re two of the most highly-coveted Pokémon.

Finding Lugia and Articuno, however, is a tough task on its own—and catching these beasts is also very challenging. Here’s everything you need to know about how to catch Lugia and Articuno inPokémon Go.

Find a legendary gym raid

The first step to catching Lugia and Articuno is to locate a Pokémongym that is hosting a raid battle. Raids happen frequently, and can be found using the nearby in-game function.

There are multiple levels to these raid battles—the higher the level, the stronger the raid boss is. The goal of a raid battle is to team up with fellow trainers to defeat these incredibly strong Pokémon.

A level five raid battle indicates that the raid boss will be a legendary Pokémon, which means Lugia and Articuno for the time being. In almost all of the footage captured online of trainers battling these legendary beasts, Lugia and Articuno have over 35,000 or 40,000 CP—which is the in-game number used to determine a Pokémon’s strength. For the sake of comparison, most trainers’ strongest Pokémon rarely even have 3,000 CP.

This is why it’s crucial to team-up with fellow trainers in order to take down Lugia and Articuno—you won’t be able to defeat these monsters on your own. But, the first step is still to get lucky enough to find a nearby gym that is hosting a legendary raid battle. Once you’ve successfully done that, the real challenge begins.

Battling Lugia and Articuno

A trainer can use up to six Pokémon in Pokémon Go raid battles, so picking the right creatures to give you the best advantage in these fights is incredibly important. Trainers will get roughly two minutes to put together their best lineup of Pokémon before entering the five-minute battle against these legendary birds.

Lugia is a Psychic and Flying-type Pokémon, while Articuno is an Ice and Flying-type beast. This means that Lugia is weak against Dark, Ghost, Ice, Electric, and Rock-type attacks, while Articuno struggles with Fire, Rock, Electric, and Steel-moves.

Tyranitar is a strong choice against both Lugia and Articuno—especially if he knows the move Stone Edge, which is super effective against these two legendary birds. Strong Rock-type Pokémon, like Golem and Rhydon, would be good against these creatures, but if the Lugia you’re battling knows Hydro Pump, you’re Pokémon will instantly faint.

Against Lugia, you can use Dark-type Pokémon, like Umbreon or Houndoom, while Articuno will struggle against the best Fire-types, such as Charizard or Flareon. Electric-type Pokémon, such as Jolteon or Ampharos, can deal massive damage to both Lugia and Articuno.

Building a team around the weaknesses of Lugia and Articuno is essential to defeating these strong monsters, so use your strongest Pokémon that can cripple these legendaries as quickly as possible.

If, and when, you and your large group of friends defeat one of these mighty beasts, all that’s left to do is try to catch them.

Catching Lugia and Articuno

Capturing these legendary birds is much easier said than done. After a raid battle is completed, every trainer who participated earns individual in-game items as rewards for defeating the raid boss. But then the trainers are given a certain number of Pokéballs to attempt to catch a weaker version of the raid boss.

It’s suggested that you use Golden Razz Berries—which greatly increase your chance to catch any Pokémon—on every throw when attempting to capture Lugia or Articuno. Even then, it might not be enough.

You’ll need to uses these berries and get an excellent throw to have the optimal percentage of catching a legendary Pokémon. Once you’ve flicked your Pokéball at one of these creatures, you basically need to pray to the Pokémon Go gods for luck. And hopefully, you'll eventually add Lugia or Articuno to your Pokédex.

Well, there you have it. If you’re fortunate enough to find a legendary level five raid battle in your area, assemble your best team of Pokémon and fellow trainers to give yourself the most likely chance to catch one of these legendary creatures—but even then, it might not be enough.