possibly one of the most creative aspects of the fourth generation of the pokemon held games is the pokeradar, obtainable from professor Rowan in Sandgem town once you have seen all 150 Sinnoh pokemon. this is the fastest way to catch a pokemon of a certain nature (with the below-mentioned preparations), as well as most shiny pokemon.
note: the pokeradar is obtainable before you beat the elite four, although it may be easier to beat them than to gather pokedex entries for some of their pokemon (like Spiritomb) yourself. that would require wifi access, which some people may not have.
where it can be activated:
refer to the title image i've posted. this kind of grass area is the only place your pokeradar can be used, and only if you are off your bike. no caves, indoors, waters, snow, or super-tall grasses. these restrictions may seem like hindrances to the whole system, but it actually makes catching rare pokemon more likely, as pretty much every normal-grass area has at least one hidden pokemon.
how to use it:
the pokeradar is an item that can be set to the y button for quick use. like the vs. seeker, the pokeradar has to charge up its battery (50 steps). once it's charged, use it while standing in a large area of grass to begin hunting. you will notice that up to 4 patches of grass around you rustle. the rewards hiding in these rustling patches of grass are the heart and soul of the pokeradar.
types of rustling grass:
there are 3 types of rustling grass;
- normal rustle - this patch of grass shakes a few times, and can be hard to distinguish from grass that doesn't rustle at all if you aren't looking right at it. usually contains native pokemon.
- confetti rustle - this patch of grass shakes a few times with what looks like flecks of white. may be mistaken for a shiny rustle...until you've seen what shiny rustles really look like. likely to contain rare pokemon.
- shiny rustle - this patch of grass is white as it shakes, blinking brightly twice. you'll know it when you see it. contains a shiny pokemon.
note: if you land on a confetti rustle, avoid subsequent normal rustles. this will break your chain. if you began on a normal rustle, landing on a subsequent confetti rustles will not break your chain (just don't go back to normal rustles).
as goes with hunting anything rare in any game, there is a bit of prep and practice involved in pokeradar chaining and shiny hunting.
stock up on super repels. they cost 500 coins each and last for 200 steps. 14 steps per 35 coins as opposed to max repels; 700 coins for 250 steps, 12.5 steps per 35 coins. if you're low on cash, leading your party with a pokemon with the ability INTIMIDATE will decrease the chance of random encounters around your target grass patches.- load your party with pokemon who can OHKO any pokemon you may encounter, as well as pp healing items and berries to keep them active.
- if you are hunting for a certain nature, lead your party with a pokemon of that nature and the ability SYNCHRONIZE. this boosts the chance of encountering a pokemon with that nature.
- if you are hunting for an electric or steel type, lead your party with a pokemon with the ability STATIC or MAGNET PULL, respectively. this boosts the chance of encountering a pokemon of that type.
if your pokemon are low on pp or hp and you don't want to lose your chain, focus on pokeballs. i recommend hunting at night so you can use duskballs for this purpose. i've had really good luck using them to catch pokemon with full health. - be patient.
the grid:
the above grid is a visual representation of, relative to your current location, which rustling grass patches are most likely to continue your chain. - if you move to a patch that rustled within your current zone, you are likely to break your chain with an encounter of a different pokemon.
- as you move outward from your initial zone, the likelihood of continuing your chain increases.
- the clear outer ring is the 'unsafe zone', not because it will break your chain; it won't. but, if you move to this zone you will lose a lot of potential pokeradar activity since you will only be about 50% surrounded by grass after your next battle.
- the dark orange zones represent the fourth and final 'safe zone' and will most likely continue your chain. it only looks like a broken ring because it is interrupted by the 'unsafe zone'. if you see a patch rustle in this zone (unless there's a shiny patch anywhere else), take it.
- notice that there is a patch of grass directly above the patch you're standing on, and is blocked by your head. always avoid walking into this patch, as you really can't see which kind of rustle it might have been. it's a dumb risk, and a tedious thing to train yourself from doing, but necessary if you're serious about chaining.
pokemon locations:
this is an exhaustive list of all pokemon available only by pokeradar hunting. those exclusive to diamond or pearl are marked as such.
 | Nidoran F route 201 | ||
 | Nidorina route 221, lake valor | ||
 | Nidoran M route 201 | ||
 | Nidorino route 221, lake valor | ||
 | Venonat route 229 | ||
 | Venomoth route 229 | ||
 | Mankey route 225, route 226 | ||
 | Primeape route 225, route 226 | ||
 | Slowpoke route 211 west | pearl | |
 | Grimer route 215 south | ||
 | Tauros route 209, route 210 south | ||
 | Ditto route 218 | ||
 | Sentret route 202 | ||
 | Togepi route 230 | ||
 | Mareep valley windworks | ||
 | Flaaffy route 222 | ||
 | Hoppip route 205 | ||
 | Skiploom route 205 north | ||
 | Sunkern route 204 north | ||
 | Wobbuffet lake verity, lake valor, lake acuity | ||
 | Houndoom route 214, route 215 | pearl | |
 | Stantler route 207 | pearl | |
 | Smeargle route 212 north | ||
 | Tyrogue route 208, route 211 west | ||
 | Miltank route 209, route 210 south | ||
 | Larvitar route 207 | diamond | |
 | Mightyena route 214, route 215 | diamond | |
 | Swellow route 213 | ||
 | Ralts route 203, route 204 south | ||
 | Kirlia route 203, route 204 south | ||
 | Nincada eterna forest | ||
 | Loudred mt. coronet | ||
 | Aron fuego ironworks | diamond | |
 | Torkoal route 227, stark mt. | ||
 | Trapinch route 228 | ||
 | Vibrava route 228 | ||
 | Swablu route 211 east | ||
 | Baltoy route 206 | ||
 | Kecleon route 210 north | diamond | |
 | Duskull route 224 | ||
 | Dusklops route 224 | ||
 | Snorunt route 216, route 217, lake acuity | ||
 | Bagon route 210 north | pearl |
hunting shiny pokemon:
whether or not you use the pokeradar, the odds of encountering a shiny pokemon (including your starter pokemon) is 1 / 8192. this means that on average, every 8192 battles you fight will yield 1 shiny pokemon. it may take you longer, and it may come quicker. this figure is the average, not a guarantee.
with the pokeradar, your odds of encountering a shiny pokemon increases as your chain increases. this means that the higher your chain is, the more often shiny rustles will occur. there is a formula involved with an exponentially-decreasing return, which becomes an insignificant return after a chain of 40 and higher. this is why you may hear people saying they stop chaining once they hit 40.
once you've hit your 40 chain, you'll want to avoid all subsequent battles, unless they are shiny rustles. to do this, pay close attention to a safe area you can walk around at so that you recharge your pokeradar while simultaneously avoiding all normal and confetti rustles. this will drain a majority of your super repels, but you will be able to activate your pokeradar 4 times per super repel.
note: re-activating your pokeradar in the middle of a chain will not break your current chain. use this anytime you've missed spotting the rustles you're after without losing your chain.
this is incontrovertibly the fastest way to encounter shiny pokemon. still, don't forget to be patient. shinies are rare for a reason.
if you have any questions, or if anything is missing, please ask me. jump on the forums and i'll help asap.
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