Pokémon Legends: Arceus — How to beat all Noble Pokémon

Pokémon Legends: Arceus is a considerable departure from previous mainline entries in many ways. Most notably are the somewhat controversial changes of removing all Gym Battles and even moving away from battles with other trainers. However, this ambitious new take on the franchise provides plenty of worthy entertainment in the form of over-the-top boss battles. If you're looking for some helpful tips on tackling the toughest encounters in the game, here's how to beat all the Noble Pokémon in Pokémon Legends: Arceus.

What are Noble Pokémon?

In many ways, Noble Pokémon fights in Pokémon Legends: Arceus fill the role of traditional Gym Battles. Each of the five distinct areas of the Hisui region hosts a different Noble Pokémon, which is a guardian to the contentious Diamond and Pearl clans. To progress to the following areas of the game, players must face off against these powerful frenzied creatures and defeat them with throwable items called balms. Crafted from their favorite food sources, these enchanted balms are critical in quelling the frenzy of these Noble Pokémon.

While your introduction to these brooding beasts is somewhat forgiving, each of these boss-type encounters injects fresh mechanics that significantly escalate in difficulty as you get deeper into the game. With a greater emphasis on action-oriented gameplay, these Noble Pokémon battles are arguably more challenging than Gym Battles of the past. Understanding the behavior of these larger-than-life Pokémon is critical to your success. Dodge, throw, and battle your way to victory.

Kleavor – Obsidian Fieldlands

Your first Noble Pokémon encounter takes place in the Obsidian Fieldlands. Here you're tasked with quelling the frenzy of the Bug/Rock-type Pokémon, Kleavor. Following the main story quest will ultimately take you to Grandtree Arena, where your allies teach you the fundamentals of using balms to calm these relentless Pokémon. You'll quickly put your skills to the test against the mighty Kleavor in a multi-part boss battle.

• Type: Bug/Rock
• Moves: Aerial Ace, Double Hit, Stealth Rock, Air Slash
• Weaknesses: Water, Steel, Rock

While you're free to toss balms at any time to damage Kleavor or any other Noble Pokémon, there are a few specific things you can do to gain the upper hand in this battle. Kleavor will recklessly charge around the small Grandtree Area. Bait this Pokémon into smashing into a wall by dodge-rolling at the precise moment to stun it.

This will open an opportunity for you to throw one of your partner Pokémon at Kleavor to initiate a battle. Depleting Kleavor's health bar will temporarily disarm the Pokémon and allow you to toss a significant number of balms during this window freely. Repeat these steps until Kleavor's frenzied health bar is emptied to win this Noble Pokémon showdown.

Lilligant – Crimson Mirelands

The second Noble Pokémon battle begins in the swampy territory of the Crimson Mirelands. This time around, players are summoned to end the frenzy of the Grass/Fighting-type Pokémon, Lilligant. Once again, progress through the main questline in this area to unlock the battle at Brava Arena. Here, use your newly acquired March Balms to defeat the frenzied Lilligant.

• Type: Grass/Fighting
• Moves: Stun Spore, Poison Powder, Energy Ball, Rock Smash
• Weaknesses: Fire, Ice, Poison, Fairy, Psychic

Much like your previous encounter with Kleavor, dodge-rolling will be critical to overcoming Lilligant's aggressive attacks. In Brava Arena, Lilligant will launch itself up into the air and crash down towards you with explosive force. The impact will create a shockwave that players must roll through to avoid damage. Eventually, your nimble maneuvers will frustrate this Noble Pokémon, and it will tire itself out after rapidly stomping.

Take advantage of Lilligant's exhausted state and throw a partner Pokémon out to engage in battle. Use Fire, Ice, Poison, Fairy, or Psychic-type moves to drain the Noble Pokémon's health bar quickly. Successfully besting Lilligant in combat will leave the Pokémon vulnerable to balm throws. Throw as many March Balms as possible during this time. Repeat these steps until Lilligant's rage has been diffused.

Arcanine – Cobalt Coastlands

The third Noble Pokémon is found atop a roaring volcano in the scenic area of the Cobalt Coastlands. Here, players will attempt to beat the Fire/Rock-type Pokémon, Arcanine. Progressing through the main story in this region will eventually take players to Magma Arena, where the Hisiuan Arcanine awaits. Prepare your balms and get ready for your first real challenge.

• Type: Fire/Rock
• Moves: Fire Fang, Rock Slide, Raging Fury, Crunch
• Weaknesses: Water, Fighting, Ground, Rock

Arcanine takes the established mechanics of the previous two Noble Pokémon and introduces some challenging wrinkles. In the tight confines of Magma Arena, Arcanine will charge rapidly in your direction with incredible speed. Dodge-roll out of the way of these attacks and make sure not to trap yourself in a corner. Eventually, Arcanine will summon five fire orbs and charge its ultimate attack. Hit the Noble Pokémon five times with balms to stun it and prevent it from unleashing this devasting area of effect blast.

Once stunned, hit Arcanine with a partner Pokémon to begin a battle. As Fire/Rock types are four-times as weak to Water abilities, I'd highly recommend choosing a member of your team that has strong Water attacks. Win this encounter to weaken the Noble Pokemon and open your window for uninterrupted balm strikes. Repeat these steps until you've drained Arcanine's health bar.

Electrode – Coronet Highlands

The fourth Noble Pokémon makes its home in the mountainous region of the Coronet Highlands. After scaling treacherous terrain and passing through dark tunnels, players will face off against this Electric/Grass-type Pokémon at the heights of Moonview Arena. This powerful Pokémon, Electrode, requires plenty of speed and stamina to successfully takedown.

• Type: Electric/Grass
• Moves: Thunder Wave, Energy Ball, Thunderbolt, Thunder
• Weaknesses: Fire, Ice, Poison, Bug

The encounter with Hisuian Electrode is more frantic than previous Noble Pokémon engagements. Electrode controls the arena with a slurry of raining Voltorb bombs and aggressive leap attacks this time around. Your best chance of survival here is simply running and dodging all its incoming attacks. Eventually, it will begin powering up a massive explosion, and avoiding this ability will leave Electrode vulnerable.

Use this window to hit the Noble Pokémon with a partner Pokémon to engage in battle. Depleting this Noble Pokémon's health bar will leave it temporarily stunned. Use this chance to spam as many balm throws as possible. Because of Electrode's pressure on players, you likely won't have as many opportunities to freely hit the Pokémon with balms outside of these windows of vulnerability.

Avalugg – Alabaster Icelands

The fifth and final Noble Pokémon resides in the arctic land of Alabaster Icelands. Once you've unlocked the flying mount Braviary, make your way to Icepeak Arena to put an end to the frenzied Ice/Rock Pokémon, Avalugg. This gargantuan Pokémon delivers the most dramatic and over-the-top challenge of any Noble encounter.

• Type: Ice/Rock
• Moves: Earth Power, Mountain Gale, Blizzard, Double-Edge
• Weaknesses: Fighting, Steel, Water, Ground, Rock

Like any decent final-ish boss battle, Avalugg has a specific pattern of attacks and multiple phases. Initially, Avalugg fires a stream of icy balls in a horizontal pattern. You'll need to dodge-roll through these spheres to avoid taking damage. Secondly, this Noble Pokémon erupts glacial rock from the earth under your feet, which will also require some proper dodging. Thirdly, this Pokémon will launch homing icicles towards the players. They are significantly trickier to outmaneuver. And lastly, Avalugg fires a steady stream of energy that swipes across the entire landscape. A perfectly timed dodge-roll is necessary to avoid this devastating attack.

After successfully dodging all four of these attacks, Avalugg becomes vulnerable to a Pokémon battle. Choose a strong Pokémon with either Fighting or Steel-type attacks to quickly defeat Avalugg. Like all previous Noble Pokémon fights, winning this battle will open up your chance to throw balms without fear of being damaged. Repeat this process to drain Avalugg's health bar, but be aware that all four of its attacks will become faster and more devastating after reaching half health.

Noble Pokémon Rematches

Pokémon Legends: Arceus offers Noble Pokémon rematches for players looking for even greater challenges. Upon completing the game, players unlock the option to revisit and rematch all five Noble Pokémon. However, things are far more difficult this time around. Every single one of these fierce Pokémon are now level 70 with max Effort Levels and new moves. These rematches are now also timed on how quickly you can tackle these foes with rewards like EXP. Candy are provided based on how you performed. Here's a quick breakdown of the new movesets for these powered-up Noble Pokémon.

• Type: Bug/Rock
• Moves: Stone Axe, Air Slash, X-Scissor, Close Combat
• Weaknesses: Water, Steel, Rock

• Type: Grass/Fighting
• Moves: Victory Dance, Petal Dance, Drain Punch, Giga Impact
• Weaknesses: Fire, Ice, Poison, Fairy, Psychic

• Type: Fire/Rock
• Moves: Fire Fang, Rock Slide, Raging Fury, Crunch
• Weaknesses: Water, Fighting, Ground, Rock

• Type: Electric/Grass
• Moves: Chloroblast, Thunder, Hyper Beam, Thunder Wave
• Weaknesses: Fire, Ice, Poison, Bug

• Type: Ice/Rock
• Moves: Mountain Gale, High Horsepower, Stone Edge, Iron Head
• Weaknesses: Fighting, Steel, Water, Ground, Rock

A fresh take on the formula

Noble Pokémon encounters in Pokémon Legends: Arceus are a radical step forward in many ways. For some, they won't entirely fill the void of Gym Battles of the past, but there's no denying the exciting spin this adds to the gameplay loop in this Pokémon title. Positive sentiments from fans and critics alike are quickly making Pokémon Legends: Arceus one of the best games on Switch in 2022. Here's to hoping we see further evolutions like this with future Pokémon entries.