How to Catch Cobalion Easily: A Comprehensive Guide

Catching the legendary Cobalion can be a thrilling but challenging experience for any Pokémon trainer. This Steel/Fighting-type Pokémon, known for its imposing presence and role as a member of the Swords of Justice, requires a strategic approach to successfully add to your collection. The key to capturing Cobalion easily lies in a combination of preparation, understanding its weaknesses, and employing the right tools and techniques.

Essentially, you can catch Cobalion easily by weakening it significantly while using berries to increase the chance of capture, choosing the right Poké Balls, and having the proper team ready to deal with its typing. Let’s break down the process for you to secure this formidable Legendary.

Preparing for the Encounter

Understanding Cobalion’s Strengths and Weaknesses

Before you even encounter Cobalion, you must know what you’re up against. Cobalion’s dual Steel/Fighting-type gives it a unique set of resistances and weaknesses. It is weak against Fighting, Ground, and Fire-type moves. However, it is resistant to Normal, Rock, Bug, Steel, Grass, Ice, Dark, and Dragon-type attacks.

Using Pokémon that can exploit its weaknesses is crucial. Pokémon like Reshiram, Mega Charizard, Chandelure, Darmanitan, Lucario, and Conkeldurr are excellent choices due to their strong moves and advantageous type match-ups.

The Right Tools for the Job

Having the right items is vital for an easy capture. Here are the most important:

• Berries: Razz Berries increase the catch rate, while Golden Razz Berries enhance it even further. Nanab Berries can calm Cobalion, making its movements less erratic and throws more precise.
• Poké Balls: While a Master Ball guarantees a 100% catch rate, it’s a rare resource. Dusk Balls are a solid choice with a 3.5x catch rate when used in caves or at night. Timer Balls gain effectiveness the longer the battle lasts, offering a 4x boost after 10 turns. Quick Balls are also an option if you prefer to try a lucky early catch.

Team Composition

Beyond type advantages, having Pokémon with moves that can inflict status conditions is highly beneficial. Paralysis and Sleep significantly increase the chance of catching Cobalion, making it less prone to breaking free from Poké Balls. Pokémon that can reliably inflict these conditions will be invaluable.

The Capture Process: Step-by-Step

1. Engage in Battle: Initiate the battle with Cobalion in Mistralton Cave.

2. Weaken Cobalion: Carefully reduce Cobalion’s health to the red zone on the health bar. Be cautious not to knock it out. Using moves that do consistent damage rather than massive, high-risk hits is recommended.

3. Inflict Status Conditions: Use a Pokémon that knows moves like Thunder Wave (Paralysis) or Hypnosis (Sleep) to inflict a status condition on Cobalion.

4. Berry Usage: Once the health is low and a status condition is active, use a Golden Razz Berry for the highest catch rate boost. If you’re struggling with consistent throws, try a Nanab Berry first, then apply other strategies once you have a rhythm.

5. Choose the Right Poké Ball: After using a berry, throw a Dusk Ball if it’s in a cave or at night, or a Timer Ball if the battle has lasted 10 turns or more.

6. Be Persistent: Cobalion, like most Legendaries, has a low catch rate. Be patient and continue to throw Poké Balls until it’s caught. Don’t be discouraged by failed attempts; persistence is key.

Advanced Strategies

• Quick Ball Attempt: At the start of the battle, you can try using a Quick Ball. It might result in an easy catch, though the chances are slim, it’s worth the try.
• Hail Weather Effect: Keep in mind Cobalion will take damage in hail. This is useful if you need to whittle down its health even more, but be careful not to accidentally make it faint.
• Be Ready to Soft Reset: If you have a strong aversion to losing, and if you are trying to catch a shiny Cobalion, you can soft reset the game by holding down L+R+Start+Select if you accidentally knock it out, or if it isn’t a shiny. If you are playing on a more modern system you should know how to soft reset on your console of choice.

By combining these steps, you’ll significantly increase your chances of capturing Cobalion easily. Remember that luck does play a part, but with the right approach, you’ll catch this legendary Pokémon in no time.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What is Cobalion’s base catch rate?

Cobalion, like most Legendary Pokémon, has a base catch rate of 3. This is relatively low, so preparation is essential for a successful catch.

2. Can Cobalion respawn if I accidentally defeat it?

Yes, Cobalion will respawn if you accidentally defeat it. Simply leave the area and return to Mistralton Cave’s Guidance Chamber. If you are playing an older game in the series, you may have to defeat the Elite Four again for Cobalion to reappear.

3. What is Cobalion weak against?

Cobalion is weak against Fighting, Ground, and Fire-type attacks.

4. What is Cobalion resistant to?

Cobalion resists Normal, Rock, Bug, Steel, Grass, Ice, Dark, and Dragon-type moves.

5. Which berries should I use to catch Cobalion?

Use Razz Berries to increase the catch rate, and Golden Razz Berries for a higher chance. If you’re struggling to hit with Poké Balls, use a Nanab Berry first to calm Cobalion.

6. What are the best Poké Balls to catch Cobalion?

Dusk Balls are effective in caves or at night (3.5x catch rate). Timer Balls are strong after 10 turns (4x catch rate). Try a Quick Ball at the beginning of the battle for a stroke of luck. The Master Ball guarantees a catch but is best saved for other instances.

7. What are the best Pokémon to use against Cobalion?

Ideal counters include Reshiram, Mega Charizard, Chandelure, Darmanitan, Lucario, and Conkeldurr. These Pokémon have strong moves that exploit Cobalion’s weaknesses.

8. Is Cobalion a Legendary Pokémon?

Yes, Cobalion is a Steel/Fighting-type Legendary Pokémon and a member of the Swords of Justice.

9. Is Cobalion better than Lucario?

Generally, Lucario is considered superior to Cobalion due to its higher attacking potential and more diverse movepool.

10. What is Cobalion’s strongest move?

Sacred Sword is Cobalion’s strongest standalone move.

11. When can I catch Cobalion?

You can catch Cobalion once you receive Surf from Alder. After defeating Skyla, you can use Surf to reach Mistralton Cave where Cobalion resides.

12. How rare is a shiny Cobalion?

The base chance to encounter a shiny Cobalion is 1/8192 in older games. Be patient and soft reset if you want to catch one.

13. Is Cobalion weak to Fairy types?

No, because of its Steel-typing, Cobalion is not weak to Fairy-type moves. Psychic and Flying types also do only neutral damage due to its dual-typing.

14. Is Cobalion a good Pokémon?

Cobalion is not a top-tier choice, often ranking below others like Aggron in the Steel-type meta. In terms of the Fighting-type meta, it isn’t considered at all. It is primarily a collector’s piece.

15. Can three people beat Cobalion in a raid?

Yes, with the right counters, three trainers can beat Cobalion in a raid according to Pokebattler’s estimator.