Confronting Rayquaza it the final test in Pokémon Mystery Dungeon DX. The player needs to take down this legendary beast in the hopes of saving the world from an incoming asteroid. This fight is meant to be the ultimate challenge testing the players knowledge of the game.

For players looking to bring down this mighty dragon there are some tips to make the fight a bit easier. It certainly won’t be a cakewalk, but with the right preparation and tactics it’s much more manageable.

10 Grab the Checkpoint Between Floors 25 & 26

Before facing Rayquaza the player will need to ascend the various floors of the Sky Tower. This is along slog of a fight and can burn out many teams before even reaching the boss at the top.

Because of this its important to grab the checkpoint found between the 25th and 26th floors as soon as possible. The player will still have to flight through the remaining floors to get to Rayquaza on floor 35, but this checkpoint saves a ton of time.

9 Be At Level 40

Because the player has to fight through at least eight floors of the Sky Tower before facing Rayquaza the player will want to be properly leveled. Fans generally agree that being at level 40 makes the Sky Tower and the following Boss fight much more manageable.

Clever and strategic players could get away with being at a weaker level. But if the player is struggling to clear the Tower and face Rayquaza odds are they need to level up a bit.

8 Have A Team Of 8

Many players like to fight with smaller teams as having the full eight feels like herding cats. That being said players will want a full team of eight when facing off against Rayquaza.

Not only is the added DPS handy, but the boss fight will often relocate teammates to other parts of the arena. Having one Pokémon relocated that’s part of a team of eight isn’t too big a deal, having a Pokémon moved when there are only four is a bit more problematic.

7 Have Items Only For Rayquaza

A very important tip for players to keep in mind is to have enough items to clear both the Tower and face Rayquaza. Players will often stock up on items only to burn the out on the upper floors of the Sky Tower and face the dragon with only a handful of items.

The player will want to dedicate some serious time to stocking up before tackling Rayquaza. Reviver Seeds, Oran Berries, Slumber Wands, and Empowerment Seeds are huge in both fights. The player should stock up and then add a few more before climbing the Tower.

6 Freeze It

Rayquaza is a Dragon/Flying type which means its incredibly weak to Ice based attacks. In fact an Ice-based attack will do four times the damage because of this weakness. So obviously the player will want to stack their team with Pokémon that can deal Ice damage.

Good alternatives in a pinch are Dragon, Rock, and Fairy types. Having a mix of these four types with an emphasis on Ice is a great strategy.

5 Do Not Use Ground

It’s also important to know the advantages Rayquaza has being a Dragon/Flying type. It’ll be resistant to Fighting, Bug, Fire, Water, and Grass. But the big one to remember is that it’ll be completely immune to Ground attacks.

Obviously, the player will be forced to have a few of these elements in their team, but the more they can avoid it the better off they are. The ultimate takeaway from this tip is to not have any Ground-based members on the team.

4 Watch The Tiles

During the fight with Rayquaza it’s important to pay attention to what’s going on around the arena. Every now and then the legendary Pokémon will summon forth a Whirlwind to attack the player’s team.

Just before this happens various tiles on the ground will light up green. Any Pokémon standing on these green tiles when the turn is over will be caught up in the whirldwind and flung to another part of the arena. To avoid this it’s best to take a moment to move the at risk Pokémon to different squares when they turn green.

3 Get Close

The player’s team should be separated into three groups, the tanks, the subduers, and the heavy hitters. The tanks should be strong and durable Pokémon that can take hits and stick close to Rayquaza. The reason for this is that Rayquaza’s most powerful attacks are ranged, but it will be inclined to use it’s weaker Hyper Voice if anything is close to it.

To exploit this behavior players should have strong Pokémon stick close and tank hits. The defensive Blastoise or Venasaur with Leech Seed are some good examples. But really anything will solid recovery or high HP and defensive stats will work great here.

2 Keep It Subdued With Status Effects

While the tanks keep Rayquaza distracted another group should be dedicated to keeping the boss incapacitated as much as possible with Status Effects. These subduers should be spamming moves that cause Confusion, Sleep, and Paralysis to keep Rayquaza out of the fight as much as possible.

Granted being a boss it’ll recover from status effects in a turn or two, but that can be enough breathing room to quickly recover, chip away at its health, or reposition. Pokémon like the starter Venusaur, Butterfree, and especially Altaria are very helpful for this.

1 Bring The Heavy Hitters

The last group of fighters players want on their team are the heavy hitters. While the tanks prevent ranged attacks and the subduers keep Rayquaza locked down the rest should be doing as much damage ass possible.

This team should be full of Ice-based ranged attackers to avoid taking damage and punishing Rayquaza as much as possible. Anything that can hit hard or chain attacks from a distance is key. Absol is a beast for this and Cloyster with Ice attacks is another solid choice.

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