First, I want to preface this with:
I looked at all the links in the sticky. I do not think I saw one with significant detail in them. However, if there is, then I will succeed and admit laziness and shame.

What I have done (basics):

• Obtained National Dex.
• Given Ruby and Sapphire to Celio on Sevii Islands.

What I have done to catch the Legendary Beast:

• Looked at Lugia34's strategy. (Trap + Baton Pass to a pokémon immune to Roar.)
• Encountered Entei.
• Slept him with Venusaur's Sleep Powder.
• Entei fled.
• Encountered Entei again.
• Damaged Entei to little less than 2/3 health left with Venusaur's Razor Leaf (idiot me; wasted encounter).
• Got an Ariados with Baton Pass and Spider Web.
• Raised Ariados to level 49.
• Raised an Electrode to level 45 for immunity to Roar and potential paralysis through Spark. (I later taught him Thunder Wave through the proper Move Tutor. For more information check out the Move Tutors Guide.)
• Encountered Entei again.
• Entei fled before I could get the Spider Web off.
• Encountered Entei again.
• Entei fled before I could get the Spider Web off.
• I assumed I just needed to get my speed up.
• I maxed out the speed EVs for Ariados.
• Had Ariados at level 76, 135 speed (the important part).
• Encountered Entei.
• Ariados uses Spider Web.
• Entei cannot flee! (It counts as his turn.)
• Ariados uses Baton Pass.
• Passed to Electrode, level 45.
• Weakened with Electrode's Spark down to slightly more than the sliver of red, two slivers, let's call it. (Looks like I wasn't an idiot after all from hitting him earlier on! Lucky me!)
• Entei woke up! (I could not paralyze him with Spark because his health was too low.)
• Battle ensues.
• Caught with an Ultra Ball.
• Cheers were had.

At the point where I kept chucking Ultra Balls at Entei, every time Electrode got below half health, I used a Full Restore. This was good because it took care of the burn if Ember left a burn. Electrode NEEDS to be alive, and Stomp hit the hardest for a bit more than 1/3 health. So, I wasn't hesitant to be liberal with them. I say I used about 8 Restores, and about 15 Ultra Balls. I was well stocked ahead of time. (I had over 60 of each.... I need to spend the money somewhere!)

Reasons why I did all of that. A Full Compilation Guide! Any confusion? Look Here:
(For help locating your beast for the first time, read the first two sentences of this post, then read this post. For help relocating your beast, consult this post. Though for relocation, your lead Pokémon does not have to be less than or equal to level 50. Just keep running around in the proper grass without Repels until the beast shows itself. You might have to go through some other wild Pokémon first.)

This guide assumes you have already encountered your beast and have have the ability to relocate him. This is a strategy on how to catch the beast without a Master Ball.

The Legendary Beasts always run away when seen. There is a way around that. You can trap the beasts so that they cannot run away. You can trap them via Mean Look, Block, Spider Web, Arena Trap, or Shadow Tag. However, only Mean Look, Block, or Spider Web can be Baton Passed. (Correct me here if I am wrong!) This means those abilities are the only ones that matter for this strategy. Arena Trap or Shadow Tag don't mean anything at all. So, it makes sense to trap the beast to allow more than one shot on it. But, there is a downside of trapping the beast. If the beast is trapped, it decides to actually attack; they use their own abilities.

Raikou has:
Thundershock
Roar
Quick Attack
Spark

Entei has:
Ember
Roar
Fire Spin
Stomp

Suicune has:
Aurora Beam
Gust
Rain Dance
Bubblebeam

If you notice, Entei and Raikou have Roar. That ability will make you run away. The battle WILL end. If you are running LeafGreen or FireRed, and Roar is used to make you run away, then you will never be able to see them again due to a glitch in the system.

If you use any Pokémon that prevents the beast from running away through a trapping ability mentioned above, you WILL be susceptible to Roar. The battle will end and you will not be able to catch them ever again.

So, I decided to use a Pokémon that is immune to Roar and its effects. Any Pokémon that cannot be forced to run away by either Soundproof or Suction Cups works. Those Pokémon include: Octillery, Lileep, Cradily, Voltorb, Electrode, Mr. Mime, Whismur, Loudred, and Exploud. By using any of these Pokémon's special abilities, you can stay in battle with the beast without worry! However, if you switch to one of those Pokémon in the middle of a battle, then the beasts can flee (I believe)! This is because the trapping ability wears off when you switch out Pokémon. However, you can get around that problem by using Baton Pass with Mean Look, Block, or Spider Web.

So, this means that you need to have a Pokémon that can trap using Mean Look, Block, or Spider Web while also having Baton Pass.

There are only three (four if you count the evolution) Pokémon that can have this combo. Those Pokémon are Spinarak/Ariados, Umbreon, and Smeargle.

If you notice, Spinarak/Ariados doesn't have Baton Pass as a Level-Up move. It is an Egg Move, a move that can be passed down from a Father Pokémon through Breeding at the Day-Care Center. The Father will have to be a Male Ledyba or Ledian knowing the Baton Pass, which is a Level-Up Move at level 29 for Ledyba and level 33 for Ledian. The Mother will be a Female Spinarak or Ariados. Put the Father and Mother in the Day-Care Center on Island Four, and walk around until an egg is produced. When the old man outside the center has taken a step forward, talk to him and receive your egg! Walk around a bit more until the egg is hatched. From that egg will hatch a Spinarak knowing Baton Pass. Level it up to where it knows Spider Web, level 37 for Spinarak and level 43 for Ariados. Now you have a Pokémon with a trapping ability and Baton Pass! This is the most recommended way of getting a Pokémon with this combo, as you only have to have your one game – no other outside games are needed. You don't have to have an E-Reader, and the acquisition of both moves is not too hard to understand. If you are not familiar with Egg Moves, this is a great chance for your to learn about and use them!

In order for Umbreon to have this combo, he will need to have Mean Look as his trapping ability while also having Baton Pass. Here is how you can do this. Get an Eevee to level 36 to learn his Baton Pass. You must let Eevee learn Baton Pass at level 36; do not let him evolve until then. Before getting to level 42, make sure he loves you at night and then evolve him to Umbreon. This is because Umbreon will need to learn Mean Look at level 42. If you failed to get Eevee to evolve before 42, it is okay. You can go to the Move Rememberer on Island Two and have him make your Umbreon "remember" Mean Look. By choosing Umbreon, it is quicker and easier to get his speed up, but more difficult because of the need to evolve at nighttime. The only way to get Eevee to evolve at nighttime is by using the Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald versions of the game, thus making this impossible to get with only LeafGreen/FireRed.

Smeargle is probably one of the most awkward Pokémon to learn this ability combo. First you have to obtain him from Emerald in the Artisan Cave and then trade him over to your game. Either that or use the Smeargle E-Card and go to the Altering Cave on Island #6. (The Altering Cave E-Card option works in Emerald, but why when you can get him in the Artisan Cave?) Once you get a Smeargle into your game, you need to level him up enough to have at least two Sketch abilities. Next obtain two other Pokémon – one with Mean Look/Block/Spider Web, and one with Baton Pass. (To find Pokémon with these moves, click the moves and then hit "Learn by Level-Up" on the left-hand side of the webpage to find the corresponding Pokémon.) You will want the Pokémon other than Smeargle to be faster than him. (You want the other to have higher Speed. You can check this by selecting a Pokémon and hitting Summary and going to the second tab. If the other Pokémon is not faster, level it up on Digletts for a while until it is faster.) Now put the Smeargle and the Pokémon with Mean Look/Block/Spider Web as the first two in your party. Go to Route 8 and use the Vs. Seeker to battle the Twins. Make the Pokémon use the Mean Look/Block/Spider Web and then have Smeargle use Sketch on its partner that just used the trapping ability. Now Smeargle knows Mean Look, Block, or Spider Web! Baton Pass is a bit tougher. Make sure you have only two Pokémon in your party – the Pokémon with Baton Pass and Smeargle. Have the other Pokémon use Baton Pass, and Smeargle Sketch that Pokémon. Baton Pass will fail, but Sketch will still Sketch that ability! Now Smeargle knows Baton Pass and Mean Look/Block/Spider Web! As I said, this is probably the most awkward way of getting this combo, but it is indeed possible. But... if you only have LeafGreen/FireRed, I hope you have an E-Reader and a Smeargle card, otherwise, this method is impossible without Emerald.

Now, I just earlier mentioned something about speed. If you look at what happened to me when I did this my first time, I could not get my Spider Web off before Entei fled! This was because my Ariados's speed was not high enough! I had to find a way to get his speed as high as possible. I fed him 10 Carbos, and trained him by feinting Digletts. Each Diglett gives 1 EV of Speed and a Dugtrio gives 2 EVs of Speed when feinted. You will want your Trap + Baton Pass-er's Speed EVs as high as possible. I brought mine to 255 Speed EVs. Just keep track how many Digletts it takes to level up and calculate how many levels it will take to max out your Speed EVs to 255.
(To learn more about EVs and what they are, visit the Effort Values Guide.)

I did some research to figure out exactly how high my Speed Value (the number shown next to Speed when you inspect or level up your Pokémon) needs to be in order to go so my beast doesn't flee. It would be best to have the Trap + Baton Pass-er's Speed above 132 for if you are after Entei, 115 for Suicune, and 148 for Raikou to guarantee you get the trapping ability off before the beast flees. Please correct me if I am wrong here!!! If your Trap + Baton Pass-er's Speed is indeed above those numbers, then you will get your trap off before the flee!

If you choose to use Spinarak/Ariados as your Pokémon of choice to pull off this combo, you should follow these instructions to see if he has the ability to out-speed your beast:
If your beast is either Suicune (if you chose Charmander as your starter) or Entei (if you chose Bulbasaur as your starter), then you can choose to ignore all this as all Ariados at level 100 with 255 Speed EVs can out-speed those beasts. But it is recommended to read on for learning purposes. If your beast is Raikou, or if you would rather NOT raise your Pokémon to level 100, then you should most definitely read on.

Since you are choosing Spinarak/Ariados as the Pokémon to pull off the all-mighty combo, that means you had to get a Spinarak from an egg. I recommended you give him an Experience Share, put him in your party, and head over to the Diglett Cave East of Vermillion City. Put a Pokémon that you know can 1-hit the Digletts in the leader position of your party. Get out a pen/pencil and paper, because we are going to EV train that Spinarak for some Speed EVs. I would recommend you put on the piece of paper "Digletts:" and leave a lot of space, and write "Dugtrios:" after. Every time you feint a Diglett or Dugtrio, put a tally mark next to the corresponding name. Keep doing this until the Spinarak is level 20.



As soon as Spinarak hits level 20, look at the stats and nature. You can do this by selecting a Pokémon and hitting Summary. On the first tab, on the bottom half, you should see the Pokémon's nature, e.g. Rash. On the second tab, you should see all of the Pokémon's stats.



Take all of that information and go to the IV Calculator. Select Spinarak from the drop down menu. He should be level 20. Enter that next to level. Type in all the stats from your Spinarak under each appropriate box on the stats row. For EVs, every number should be 0 except for the speed number. To find this number, take the number of Dugtrios feinted, multiply that by two, and then add it to the number of Digletts feinted. Then select the Spinarak's nature from the nature drop down menu. After you enter in all of the information, hit submit.



Then in a new tab on your browser, visit the Stat Calculator. Instead of choosing Spinarak as the Pokémon, choose Ariados, as it will be best to choose to evolve Spinarak. Under level, choose 100. This is so we can see if your Spinarak (soon to be Ariados) is doomed, and if your approximate 30 minutes of training has been wasted. In the DVs row, enter in the corresponding lowest IVs number from the range that you got from the IV Calculator under each appropriate box. For EVs, every number should be 0 except for the speed number. Put 255 for the speed, as you will want to max out your speed EVs for your Pokémon. Then select the Pokémon's nature from the nature drop down menu. After you enter in all of the information, hit submit.



If the number under speed is greater than the number for your appropriate beast, then you are good to continue EV training up to 255 speed EVs and then level him up! (Keep in mind, it should always be greater than Entei and Suicune's number. If you would like to see what level you might have to train your Ariados, then you can tinker with the level on the Stat Calculator until it is greater than your beast's corresponding speed number.
This example is for Raikou, which from above is 148.



You may not have to actually attain that level. You might reach the appropriate speed a few levels before that, as we did use the lowest number from the range of IVs.

So, if you have a Pokémon with a trapping ability and Baton Pass while having enough speed, and a Pokémon with immunity to Roar through Soundproof or Suction Cups, then you are ready to take on your beast.

Find the beast and use your trapping ability. Baton Pass to the Pokémon immune to Roar. Whittle the beast down and catch him like a normal Pokémon! Be sure to have lots of Full Restores and Ultra Balls. Don't hesitate to use lots of Full Restores because you simply cannot have your Pokémon immune to Roar be feinted.

And there you go! You can have your Legendary Beast!



So, to sum it all up. Even if you have a Pokémon with enough speed to use a trap via Mean Look, Block, or Spider Web, you still can be Roared away and screwed forever. The only way around it is to trap the beast, then Baton Pass to a Pokémon immune to Roar. Then fight like normal and catch the beast.
The strategy indeed works! If you have the patience for leveling up multiple Pokémon and the desire to save the Master Ball, then everything will work out well. Happy hunting!



P.S. For those that might ask, my Entei had:
HP: 189 [28 - 29 IVs]
Atk: 121 [2 - 3 IVs]
Def: 99 [0 - 1 IVs]
Sp. Atk: 95 [0 - 1 IVs]
Sp. Def: 72 [0 - 3 IVs]
Speed: 105 [0 - 1 IVs]
Nature: Lax

My second Entei had:
HP: 178 [6 - 7 IVs]
Atk: 123 [6 - 7 IVs]
Def: 90 [0 - 1 IVs]
Sp. Atk: 104 [0 - 1 IVs]
Sp. Def: 72 [0 - 3 IVs]
Speed: 105 [0 - 1 IVs]
Nature: Rash

My Raikou had:
HP: 157 [14 - 15 IVs]
Atk: 91 [2 - 3 IVs]
Def: 80 [0 - 1 IVs]
Sp. Atk: 120 [0 - 1 IVs]
Sp. Def: 105 [0 - 1 IVs]
Speed: 120 [0 - 1 IVs]
Nature: Hardy

My Suicune had:
HP: 157 [24 - 25 IVs]
Atk: 91 [2 - 3 IVs]
Def: 80 [0 - 1 IVs]
Sp. Atk: 120 [0 - 1 IVs]
Sp. Def: 105 [0 - 1 IVs]
Speed: 120 [0 - 3 IVs]
Nature: Quiet

Yes... I played through the games four times....

I am pretty sure those are quite weak.... (Bulbapedia: Roaming IV Glitch. For more information, visit this Project Pokemon Forum post and this Project Pokemon Forum post.)
...But, however, the glory is in catching them!

The whole thing is just luck, really. You just need to make sure you can outspeed and trap him. With most things not named Golbat with a trapping move, this is not possible, so you may need to use Quick Claw. Alternatively you can use Wobbuffet, which prevents the opponent from fleeing.

Keep in mind in FRLG, there is a glitch: if Raikou or Entei uses Roar against you, it will disappear permanently.
~~
Hm, giving an idea for a good way to raise something to actually fight against the legendary beasts, without being susceptible to the Roar glitch?
Huh. Not bad.

Ah yes. That is why I am being careful to put it to sleep first while I am preventing it from running away and baton passing.

And as for the , I assume the Shadow Tag only works while he is out? I swear I researched this, and saw no answers to that. It makes sense that it wouldn't remain in effect, but from the way others talk, it sounds like it does.


P.S. Thanks for not being all "There is already a googleplex of threads out there!"
's are had.

Yes, Shadow Tag only works while the pokemon with that ability is in battle.

Honestly, I would just recommend using your Master Ball. The Legendary Dog is the most difficult to catch in FR/LG, and there's only one per game, so it makes the most sense to just throw the Master Ball and not waste your time.

Yeah... that makes sense.... The reason I haven't yet is because I am afraid of Mewtwo and his recover. He just sounds like a royal PITA to keep low and slept.
But yet, maybe not as much as this dog as seemed to be.

The thing that irks me most was a strategy was given, but it must have never been put into play. Because if what is said above is true, and cannot possibly be faster than why bother with the strat at all? Or did I misinterpret what was said, and it is impossible to have a level 49 fast enough, and can eventually outspeed with levels?

Ah, the strategy does indeed work. I raised 's speed to 135, above 132, which looked like the max speed for (at level 50 with no EVs, max IVs, fastest Nature) from the stat calculator. (Please correct me if I am wrong or have improper usage!)

I'll add the following to the original post for easier viewing possibilities:

• I maxed out the speed IVs for .
• Have at level 76, 135 speed (the important part), with quick claw attached (because of my uncertainty mentioned in bold above).
• Encounter . (I actually got lucky after all the training and only took about 5 minutes to find him. Yay RNG paying off my my favor for once!)
• uses Spider Web.
• cannot flee! (counts as his turn)
• uses Baton Pass.
• Passed to level 45.
• Weakened with spark down to slightly more than the sliver of red, two slivers, let's call it. (Looks like I wasn't an idiot after all from hitting him earlier on in an encounter I mentioned in the first post! Lucky me!)
• woke up! (I could not paralyze him with spark because his health was too low.)
• Battle ensues.
• Caught with an Ultra Ball.
• Cheers were had.

At the point where I kept chucking Ultra Balls at him, every time got below half health, I used a Full Restore. This was good because it took care of the burn if Ember left a burn. NEEDS to be alive, and stomp hit the hardest for a bit more than 1/3 of my health. So, I wasn't hesitant to be liberal with them. I say I used about 8 Restores, and about 15 Ultra Balls. I was well stocked ahead of time. (I had over 60 of each.... I need to spend the money somewhere!)

The strategy indeed works! If you have the patience for leveling and the desire to save the Master Ball, then everything will work out well. Happy hunting!

I normaly wait till the end of the game to go legendary hunting, and my method is the same everytime
Towards the end of a game I have around level 60-75 poke

Find the legendary Pokemon im looking for
Send out my crowbat (I ALWAYS get one)
Use mean look (Or scary face, whichever one makes it so they cant leave)
Put it to sleep
Attack the living hell out of it
Till it gets to really low, switch to something tht has false swipe
Hit it till it has 1 HP left
Assuming its still asleep spam whatever specialized ball al it (Dusk balls, heavy balls ect ect)
Keep doing it till I catch whatever im trying to get

After twenty or so times of it either running away, or me running away because it keeps killing me I usually get it

My way is nothing special, but I like my method

That does work, SanguinaryScientist.
But doesn't Mean Look no longer work when you switch Pokémon (unless you Baton Pass)? If so, then the beast is free to leave, being quite an annoyance to find again.
Also, the beast is free to use Roar if or is your beast to make the encounter to end at any time as well.

That is why it is best to Mean Look (or any Trapping ability) + Baton Pass to a Pokémon that cannot be forced to run away by either Soundproof or Suction Cups which includes (moved to original post as well):
Octillery
Lileep
Cradily
Voltorb
Electrode
Mr. Mime
Whismur
Loudred
Exploud

I'll actually keep that in mind
Assuming I get it to a lower level of health, then I'll just switch to the poke with false swipe as first in my party (Normally a )

If you do that, then you're going to be in for a long ride hunting him down over and over. Heh.

But you are still going to have a problem when you reach him to 1 hp. Unless you want one Ultra Ball try per find (oh god...), then you still will need to trap him and have Roar prevention.

Wouldent 's arena trap also be effective?

I think there is one main thing you are forgetting about or don't understand.

This has all since been added to the original post for greater detail.


All of the legendary beasts decide to actually attack you if you trap them via Mean Look, Block, Spider Web, Arena Trap, Shadow Tag, etc. They use their own abilities.
has:
Thundershock
Roar
Quick Attack
Spark

has:
Ember
Roar
Fire Spin
Stomp

has:
Aurora Beam
Gust
Rain Dance
Bubblebeam

If you notice, and have Roar. That ability will make you run away. The battle WILL end. And if you are running LeafGreen or FireRed, and Roar is used to make you run away, then you will never be able to see them again.

If you use any Pokémon that prevents the beast from running away, you WILL be susceptible to Roar. The battle will end and you will not be able to catch them ever again.
If you decide to switch to a Pokémon that is immune to it (listed in a previous post of mine), then the beasts can flee (I believe), unless you Baton Pass to that Pokémon.

To sum it all up. If you use a trap via Mean Look, Block, or Spider Web, then you can be Roared away and screwed forever. The only way around it is to trap them, then Baton Pass to a Pokémon immune to the Roar.

This has all since been added to the original post for greater detail.