This page explains how to obtain Arceus and change its form in Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl (BDSP).

How to Unlock Arceus¶

There are four conditions that are required before you can go and chase after the Pokémon God. Hey, nobody said it’d be simple!

1. You must be on the latest software version of the game, which is Version 1.3.0 at the time of writing. If your Nintendo Switch is connected to the Internet, the software should automatically update (otherwise you may need to check your System Settings). Or you can manually update by hovering over the game icon, pressing and selecting “Software Update”.

2. You must have save data from Pokémon Legends Arceus where Mission 27 has been completed. This is probably the tallest requirement, because it requires obtaining every Pokémon in the game. Also, the save data must be from the matching Nintendo Account.

3. You must have defeated the Pokémon League and entered the Hall of Fame. In other words, you’re in the postgame.

4. Last but not least, you must have the National Pokédex. This requires seeing all 150 Pokémon that’s native to the Sinnoh region. If you’re worried, this is actually easier than it sounds–and we suggest checking the page we just linked for tips.

Once you’ve accomplished everything, return to your room in Twinleaf Town. There should be a suspicious item near the staircase, which turns out to be the Azure Flute.

Arceus Location¶

With the Azure Flute in hand, make your way back to the Spear Pillar at the top of Mt. Coronet. We suggest flying to Oreburgh City, then head north into Route 207 and east towards Mt. Coronet. If you can’t remember how to navigate to the Spear Pillar, you can start here. It shouldn’t take more than 5 minutes if you spread Repels on yourself.

When you step foot on the square panel near the start of the Spear Pillar, you’ll be prompted to play the Azure Flute. Do so and a staircase of light will appear in front of you. Walk up the stairs and Arceus will be waiting at the top.

How to Catch Arceus¶

As soon as you leave the top of the staircase, a battle with Arceus will trigger.

Mythical Pokémon¶

As the God of all Pokémon, Arceus isn’t trivial to catch. First of all, it’s Level 80, which is the highest for a wild Pokémon. You don’t need to be Level 80+ yourself, but you want to be somewhat close–and, obviously, the higher Level the better.

Arceus has 4 moves it can use. Hyper Beam deals the most damage, but requires Arceus to recharge–if you survive, this is a great opportunity to weaken Arceus. Future Sight triggers a Psychic-type attack two turns after it’s used. Recover is probably the most annoying, restoring half of Arceus’s HP. Finally, Healing Wish is completely useless here.

Surviving Arceus isn’t too bad, but since it’s high Level and its STAB Hyper Beam hits hard, you may want a resistant Pokémon to soak its attacks. We’d recommend a durable Steel-type, since they resist both attacks. Otherwise, Dark and Ghost-types are immune to one of the attacks and take neutral damage from the other. If you have one, Spiritomb is immune to both attacks, but it’s not easy getting one.

Rather, the major annoyance here is likely Recover, which will restore a big chunk of Arceus’s health, wasting time where you could be throwing balls at it instead. Unfortunately, there isn’t much you can do, but pray Arceus uses its other 3 moves. You can somewhat mitigate the chance by inflicting paralysis near the start. Also, if you’re using a False Swiper, you can boost their Attack (to +6 for example) with X. Attack or Swords Dance.

Like always, the goal is to get Arceus to as low HP as possible and ideally with a status condition, such as the aforementioned paralysis. At that point, throw your best Poké Balls at the Poké God. Ultra Balls are an easy and solid pick; there’s also Timer Balls after passing 10 turns of battle.

How to Change Arceus’s Form¶

After successfully catching Arceus, there’s one thing that makes Arceus stand out from other mons. Namely, if you let Arceus hold onto a Plate item, such as Sky Plate, Arceus will become the type that corresponds to the Plate–in this case, the Flying-type. This effectively allows Arceus to be any type, making it extremely versatile.