Pokémon Go cheats and tips: 5 ways to catch rare and legendary Pokémon

There are no guaranteed ways to find rare Pokémon like Charmander, Eevee, and Pikachu – but there are lots of ways you can make catching the creatures you want far less random.

Pokemon Go is a long-running game that encourages players to go on adventures and visit new places to catch small virtual creatures. Later, assuming you’ve cared for your creatures and gathered a collection, you can join Pokemon raid battles. In order to succeed, you’ll need Pokemon that can be leveled up and with various abilities.

Even those who know very little about Pokemon are likely familiar with Pikachu. Surprisingly, this very popular yellow creature isn’t easy to find. But, most users don’t mind because the Pokedex is so full of unique characters that everyone finds at least two or three they love.

In this article, we’ll review a few tips and tricks that will help you to find the rare and legendary Pokemon you seek.

1. Get Moving

It’s no secret that there have been several attempts made at tricking Pokemon Go to think you’re traveling to some exotic place in order to catch a rare Pokemon. Unfortunately, these don’t always work and they can often get you in hot water with Niantic.

At one time, in the early days of Pokemon Go, we could strap our mobile phones to a ceiling fan and let it rotate to make the app think we were walking or running and level up further. Today, that’s no longer the case. In order to actually find Pokemon, you’ll need to get out of the house and go searching.

2. Head to Landmarks

You don’t have to get a Passport to find rare Pokemon. Regardless of where you live, you likely have some landmarks, parks, or something noteworthy near you. Often times, this is where we find our strongest Pokemon. Based on experience, these places generally have a high spawn point which means more Poke will appear at a time. This increases your odds of coming across rare and legendary battle companions.

After you’ve played for a while, you will begin to notice spawn points. If you visit these places often, you’ll likely find rare Pokemon.

3. Raise Your Trainer Level

This might be hard to take, but one of the reasons you keep finding low-level, basic Pokémon is because you’re a low-level, basic Pokémon trainer. Your trainer level and the rarity of the Pokémon you’ll encounter are connected, so raising your level quickly will help you find those better Pokémon. We’ve put together a guide here of how you can level up much faster.

If you’re starting out, spend time visiting Poke Stops and making new friends in the game. Both of these will help you to improve your trainer score. As you increase your own abilities you can focus on catching Pokemon and winning battles.

4. Use common Poké-sense

Although the chances of finding particular Pokémon are random, you’re more likely to find certain types of Pokémon in certain places – and it actually makes a lot of sense. You’re more likely to find water Pokémon around water, mouse-like, and land Pokémon in grassy areas, and, if you’re prepared to venture in, you’re more likely to find psychic Pokémon in cemeteries.

 

5. Seek Out Nest Rotations

Nest rotations generally appear in parks and have a high spawn rate. We like this tip because you don’t have to travel far to find great battle companions and (as the name indicates) these nests update often (usually weekly). You can check the next Nest Rotation schedule here.

Basically, you may visit a park on a Monday and see several Bulbasaurs. The following Tuesday you may see more Eevees. Use this to your advantage as it’s generally easy to access regardless of where you live, and it gives you new Pokemon on a rotation schedule.

You can ask other players in your area or perhaps find more local information on a site like Reddit to help you find more information on nest rotations. Get a plan together, learn the schedule, and the places, then get to playing.

What to Do if You Can’t Travel

We are aware that a lot of Pokemon Go players aren’t as mobile as the game permits. This doesn’t mean that you have to do without a great selection of the Pokedex. Fortunately, the creators appear to think so too.

Although we’re talking mainly about the younger trainers here, these tips can by used by anyone. Some of the best places we’ve found Pokemon are churches, restaurants, and shopping centers. These are places that most any trainer will visit at least once a week.

Let’s assume you don’t have a car yet. This pretty much means you can’t drive off to new and exciting places whenever you need to. You’re basically at the mercy of someone else to take you hunting for Pokemon. When you don’t have that option, take the time to care for your current Pokemon and level them up as much as possible.

When you are riding in the car try to spin every Poke Stop you see, you’ll often get the supplies you’ll need when it’s game time. Pokemon Go can still be fun and exciting to play if you don’t have complete control over your travels, but it does take a little more preparation and planning to succeed.