Raising up a Dratini into a Dragonite is traditionally one of the biggest challenges in Pokemon games, but Pokemon Scarlet & Violet make it quite easy. Here’s how to get the original pseudo-legendary and how it fares in the games of today.
The flimsy fish Magikarp was meant to be the definitive Pokemon that was tough to raise but offered players big rewards once it evolved. The trouble is that Dratini is actually harder to raise. While Magikarp is weaker, it evolves into Gyarados at level 20, while Dratini needs to hit level 40 to evolve into Dragonair in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet and other games in the series.
The good news is that there is still a big payoff once players have a Dragonite. The Pokemon still has huge potential in almost all settings and stands as a great user of Terastallization.
How to Catch Dratini in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet
Dratini can be found in a few spots, including the lake northeast of Alfornada, Casseroya Lake, and North Province Area Two. These are generally mid or late-game areas, allowing players to get a Dragonite relatively quickly. Dratini is found in lakes and ponds in these areas, swimming alongside water-type Pokemon. It spawns individually, not in packs like the Slowbro and Marills in these areas.
How to Get Dragonite
Players can either raise a Dragonair to level 55 to get a Dragonite or catch one in the wild. While other powerful three-stage Pokemon like Hydreigon can only be captured via raids or evolution, it’s relatively easy to find wild Dragonites in the Paldea region.
Players can head to this area north of Levincia in order to find a number of fixed Dragonite spawns. Included in this is a level 75 Wild Tera Dragonite with steel typing. This is the best opportunity that players have to catch a Dragonite, though it does provide some challenge at this level.
Is Dragonite a Good Pokemon?
Dragonite is a very powerful Pokemon in all formats. Players need to be careful about putting it on the field against Pokemon that may know an ice-type move due to its double weakness to the type, which can be mitigated by Terrastalizing it.
Dragonite has found a lot of success in competitive battling with a normal Tera Typing and the move Extreme Speed. With STAB, the move is effectively as powerful as a Hydro Pump or Fire Blast but with 100% accuracy and increased priority.
Players won’t want to use this build for the story or for Tera Raid battles, though. Speed and priority aren’t as important as bulk and raw power in raids, so players will want to lean on the raw power of Outrage or the Pokemon’s vast coverage options.
Pokemon Scarlet & Violet are available now on Nintendo Switch.