The best moveset for Rayquaza in Pokemon Emerald

The mascot of Pokemon Emerald, Rayquaza, can arguably become better than the other cover legendaries in Generation III with the appropriate moves.

According to lore, Raquaza was made to be more powerful than Kyogre and Groudon. Statistically speaking, that is very accurate. Rayquaza has the Attack stat of Groudon, the Special Attack stat of Kyogre (150 for both), and has the same amount of Speed. It basically takes what is good about both Pokemon and combines them into one monstrous machine. Rayquaza will decimate teams with this moveset.

Note: This article is subjective and reflects the opinion of the writer.

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The best moveset for Rayquaza in Pokemon Emerald

Image via Pokemon GO Hub

Since both its base Attack and Special Attack are 150, a mixed set works great on Rayquaza. After boosting its stats, nothing will be capable of standing in Rayquaza’s way.

• Dragon Dance
• Fly
• Outrage
• Earthquake

Rayquaza is guaranteed to outspeed every Pokemon there is in Generation III after using Dragon Dance. Since this Pokemon’s attacking stats are so impressive, no trainer will have to worry about using super effective moves. Neutral attacks like Fly and Strength can wipe away any Pokemon that doesn’t resist. It's just important to remember that, in order to use this move, a trainer needs to have a Heart Scale on them, since it’s a move that will need to be remembered.

Rayquaza is somewhat left wanting for Flying-type attacks in Generation III, so Fly ends up being the best option. Aerial Ace is an alternative that ignores evasion boosts, but Fly simply does more consistent damage, especially after raising its Attack with Dragon Dance. It is a shame that Rayquaza only got Dragon Ascent in the Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire remakes, which is a much more solid attack.

Since Rayquaza has equal Attack and Special Attack base stats, there is no reason not to run Outrage. Any player can click this move once against many opponents and win the match without doing much else. The Elite Four matches with Sydney and Phoebe will particularly become really easy with Rayquaza, as neither member has a Dragon move resist.

Earthquake works well with Rayquaza, since it works well on about every Pokemon that can learn the move. There is an extra benefit for Rayquaza, however, other than generally pummeling opponents. With Flying and Dragon coverage, Rayquaza struggles to hit Steel-type Pokemon. By learning Earthquake, Rayquaza can simply Dragon Dance boost in front of some of these Pokemon and KO them.

Extreme speed could be another option, especially since priority is usually great on any Pokemon. On a Dragon Dance set with Rayquaza, though, it isn't so necessary. After Dragon Dance, Rayquaza outspeeds the entire Pokedex, as there is no Choice Scarf or other speed boosting item in Generation III. Therefore, Rayquaza will be moving first anyways, and won’t need the priority. This is why Earthquake might be a bit more valuable.