One of the biggest surprises of Pokémon Omega Ruby and Pokémon Alpha Sapphire is the chance to catch most of the legendary Pokémon of the Johto, Sinnoh and Unova regions without any trading or transfer. The games feature 23 of them in all, an unprecedented number at release. They hide in Mirage Spots, places that can’t be reached on foot and are visited on the back of Latios or Latias while Soaring. Each Mirage Spot has its own entry condition, which sometimes depends on the Pokémon in your party.
This page details the locations, conditions and times for each legendary Pokémon, version by version. The four legendary Pokémon found instead in Hoenn’s usual landscapes, Lugia, Ho-Oh, Heatran and Regigigas, are covered on the Hoenn legendaries page.
General rules
- Access: you must have received the Eon Flute, that is, finished the Primal Reversion episode.
- Level: all the legendary Pokémon in Mirage Spots are at Lv. 50.
- A mysterious ring: in each Mirage Spot, a golden ring floats in the air. Just interact with it to start the battle.
- Returning after defeat: if you knock out a legendary Pokémon or run away, it comes back after your next entry into the Hall of Fame.
- The console clock matters: times are based on the console’s clock. If you change the time, the Mirage Spot stays empty for 24 hours.
- Required Pokémon can come from elsewhere: for the Trackless Forest and the Gnarled Den, Poképédia specifies that it is enough to have Ho-Oh or Lugia, or Reshiram and Zekrom, in your party, whether they were caught in that cartridge or obtained by trade.
Summary table
| Mirage Spot | Where to find it | Entry condition | Legendary Pokémon |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crescent Isle | South of Ever Grande City | Appears at random as the daily Mirage Spot, or via StreetPass | Cresselia |
| Trackless Forest | East of Petalburg Woods | Ho-Oh or Lugia in the party | Raikou, Entei, Suicune |
| Nameless Cavern | East of Sootopolis City | Three Pokémon with maximum happiness in the party | Uxie, Mesprit, Azelf |
| Space-Time Rift (1) | In the sky, south of Dewford Town | Uxie, Mesprit and Azelf in the party | Palkia (Omega Ruby) or Dialga (Alpha Sapphire) |
| Space-Time Rift (2) | Same place | Dialga and Palkia in the party | Giratina |
| Pathless Plain | South of Pacifidlog Town | Three Pokémon with maximum EVs (510 EVs) in the party | Cobalion, Terrakion, Virizion |
| Storm clouds (1) | In the sky, above Fortree City | Castform in the party | Tornadus (Omega Ruby) or Thundurus (Alpha Sapphire) |
| Storm clouds (2) | Same place | Tornadus and Thundurus in the party | Landorus |
| Fabled Cave | North of Route 133 | A Lv. 100 Pokémon in the party | Reshiram (Omega Ruby) or Zekrom (Alpha Sapphire) |
| Gnarled Den | Near Mt. Chimney, to the west | Reshiram and Zekrom in the party | Kyurem |
The legendary Pokémon of Johto
Raikou, Entei and Suicune: the Trackless Forest
The Trackless Forest is located east of Petalburg Woods, southeast of Rustboro City. It only appears if your party includes Ho-Oh or Lugia. The three legendary beasts take turns there depending on the minutes of the hour when you enter: Raikou during the first twenty minutes, Entei from the twenty-first to the fortieth minute, Suicune during the last twenty. The Pokémon present doesn’t change as long as you stay in the forest: if the beast you want isn’t there, leave and come back at the right minute.
Lugia and Ho-Oh
The two legendary birds are not in a Mirage Spot but in Sea Mauville. How to obtain them is explained on the Hoenn legendaries page.
The legendary Pokémon of Sinnoh
Uxie, Mesprit and Azelf: the Nameless Cavern
The Nameless Cavern is located east of Sootopolis City. It appears when three Pokémon in your party have maximum happiness. The Pokémon present depends on the time of entry: Uxie between 8:00 PM and 8:59 PM, Azelf between 9:00 PM and 3:59 AM, Mesprit between 4:00 AM and 7:59 PM.
Dialga, Palkia and Giratina: the Space-Time Rifts
With Uxie, Mesprit and Azelf in your party, a first rift opens in the sky, south of Dewford Town. The game asks whether you want to enter: Palkia awaits you in Omega Ruby, Dialga in Alpha Sapphire. After catching one of them, an identical rift appears if you have Dialga and Palkia in your party: Giratina is behind it.
Cresselia: Crescent Isle
Cresselia is found at the center of Crescent Isle, a rare Mirage Spot that sometimes appears as the daily Mirage Spot. To improve your chances of seeing one, pass other players via StreetPass.
Heatran and Regigigas
These two legendary Pokémon of Sinnoh are encountered in the Scorched Slab and in the Island Cave. They are described on the Hoenn legendaries page.
The legendary Pokémon of Unova
Cobalion, Terrakion and Virizion: the Pathless Plain
The Pathless Plain is a small island south of Pacifidlog Town. It appears if your party includes three Pokémon with 510 EVs distributed, the maximum. The Pokémon depends on the day of the week, read from the console: Cobalion on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday; Terrakion on Tuesday and Saturday; Virizion on Monday and Thursday.
Tornadus, Thundurus and Landorus: the storm clouds
Above Fortree City, a storm appears when Castform is in your party. Tornadus (Omega Ruby) or Thundurus (Alpha Sapphire) challenges you when you enter the cloud. Once that legendary Pokémon is caught, a second storm appears if both Tornadus and Thundurus are in your party: it’s Landorus’s turn.
Reshiram, Zekrom and Kyurem
The Fabled Cave, north of Route 133, opens when a Pokémon in your party is Lv. 100. Reshiram (Omega Ruby) or Zekrom (Alpha Sapphire) awaits you there. Once both dragons are together in your party, the Gnarled Den appears west of Mt. Chimney, with Kyurem inside. A DNA Splicers is also hidden in this cave: just search for it with the Dowsing Machine on the left side of the cave.
Recommended order to catch them all
- Play through the story up to Primal Reversion and obtain the Eon Flute.
- Catch Ho-Oh or Lugia in Sea Mauville to unlock the Trackless Forest.
- Train three Pokémon to maximum happiness for the Nameless Cavern (Pokémon Refresh, or Pokémon-Amie) and for Uxie, Mesprit and Azelf.
- With those three Pokémon in your party, catch Dialga or Palkia. Then trade to get the other, and catch Giratina.
- Get Castform (given by the Weather Institute), then catch Tornadus or Thundurus, then Landorus after trading.
- Level a Pokémon up to Lv. 100 for Reshiram or Zekrom, then Kyurem.
- Max out the EVs of three Pokémon for the Pathless Plain.
Going further
The Pokémon France archives present these encounters in The legendary Pokémon of the second generation, of the fourth generation and of the fifth generation, as well as in Mirage Spots. To complete your collection with the Mythical Pokémon the game doesn’t give you, such as Mew or Jirachi, find the history of events on the updates and distributions page.
