Pokémon Platinum: How to Get Dialga and Palkia

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Catch legendary Pokémon Dialga & Palkia in one game

Co-authored by Hannah Dillon Reviewed by Ishrak

Last Updated: October 24, 2025 Fact Checked

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Preparation

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Catching Dialga

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Catching Palkia

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Video

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Q&A

Dialga and Palkia are the Legendary Pokémon associated with Diamond and Pearl, respectively, but if you're playing Pokémon Platinum, you can get both of them without needing to do any trading! In this article, we'll teach you how to get Dialga and Palkia, including how to prepare for catching them. Read on to learn more.

Catching Dialga and Palkia in Platinum

Before going to catch Dialga and Palkia, beat the Elite Four and speak to Cynthia's grandmother in Celestic Town. Stock up on Ultra Balls and build your team, then go to Spear Pillar. You'll enter a blue portal to fight Dialga, then you'll immediately enter a pink portal to fight Palkia.

Section 1 of 3:

Preparing to Catch Dialga & Palkia

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1
Beat the Elite Four. To get Dialga and Palkia, you must have beaten the Elite Four. Preparing for this will take you essentially the whole game, as catching Dialga and Palkia is one of the last things you do before entering the post-game.
She will read a book about Legendary Pokémon to you.^{[1]
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3
Buy Ultra Balls. There's no Poké Mart in Celestic Town, so you'll have to buy your items from an elderly couple's house in the northwest of town. The man has Dusk Balls, and the woman has Ultra Balls.^{[2]
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- If you want to use your Master Ball on Dialga and Palkia, you can—but we suggest saving it for Giratina instead!
- It's also a good idea to stock up on Hyper Potions and other healing items. You'll need to buy them somewhere outside of Celestic Town if you don't have enough on hand.
4
Build your team. Keep in mind that Dialga is Steel/Dragon type, and Palkia is Water/Dragon type. Since Dragon type is only weak to Dragon type, you'll want to focus on Pokémon that are strong against Steel (Fire, Fighting, and Ground) and Water (Electric, Grass).
- Water is super effective against both Fire and Ground types, so be careful about the team you bring.
- Some good options for a team include Garchomp (Dragon/Ground), Magmortar (Fire), Luxray (Electric), Lucario (Fighting/Steel), and your final starter evolution (Torterra, Infernape, or Empoleon).
  - If you can get your hands on an Infernape via trading (if you started with Turtwig or Piplup), it's a great choice for these fights, as Dialga is weak to both Fire and Fighting types.
  - Be careful if you use Garchomp. Even though Garchomp is one of the most powerful non-Legendary Pokémon in the game, it's got the Dragon type, which means any Dragon-type moves by Dialga and Palkia will be super effective against it.
  - Include a Pokémon that can learn moves that induce Sleep or Paralysis to make catching Dialga and Palkia even easier. Avoid Pokémon that know moves that inflict Burn or Poison, as these will damage Dialga and Palkia and could cause them to get knocked out.
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Find the Adamant and Lustrous Orbs. To get these orbs, go to Mt. Coronet. Go through the inside of the mountain until you find a door with wooden planks on the floor. Continue through this section until you find a room at the top of the mountain with a large lake and a waterfall. Ascend the waterfall and enter the room at the top to find the Adamant and Lustrous Orbs.^{[3]
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- You'll need the HMs Surf, Rock Climb, Strength, and Waterfall to reach the orbs.

Section 2 of 3:

Catching Dialga

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After you have the Adamant and Lustrous Orbs, you'll be able to find Dialga and Palkia's rifts at the top of the mountain.^{[4]
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If you accidentally defeat the legendary or are beaten, you'll want a save point to return to.^{[5]
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Enter the blue portal and catch Dialga. You'll enter battle with Dialga when you enter the portal, so be ready.^{[6]
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- Dialga is a level 70 Steel/Dragon-Type Pokémon with the signature move Roar of Time. That's an insanely powerful move that will probably cause your Pokémon to faint.^{[7]
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- Use Ultra Balls to catch Dialga quickly. You may need to use a few Ultra Balls to successfully catch Dialga.
- When you catch Dialga, you'll be transported out of the blue rift and back into Spear Pillar. You'll still see the blue rift, but it's empty.
After you successfully catch Dialga, you'll want to save your game so you don't have to catch it again if you end up reloading your game later.

Section 3 of 3:

Catching Palkia

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1
Leave the area and re-enter. You'll want Palkia's portal to appear, so you'll need to leave the area and come back in. When you re-enter Spear Pillar, you'll see a pink portal.
- You can save the game again if you want to, but you saved your game immediately after catching Dialga, so if you reload your game, you'll just need to run out and run back into Spear Pillar.
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Enter the pink portal and catch Palkia. You'll enter a battle with Palkia when you enter the portal, so be ready.^{[8]
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- Palkia is level 70 and is a Water/Dragon-Type Pokémon with the signature move Spacial Rend. That's an insanely powerful move that will probably cause your Pokémon to faint.^{[9]
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- Use Ultra Balls to catch Palkia quickly. You may need to use a few Ultra Balls to successfully catch Palkia.
- When you catch Palkia, you'll be transported out of the pink rift and back into Spear Pillar. You'll still see the pink rift, but it's empty.

Community Q&A

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Question

Can I get both or do I have to choose?

Community Answer

If you are playing in Platinum, you can get both. If you're playing in Peal/Diamond, you can only get one.

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Question

How can I catch Cresselia in Platinum?

Community Answer

Beat the elite four, go to Canalave and go into the house in the bottom left, next to the boat that took you to Iron Island. There should be a boy there who is trapped in a nightmare and, when you speak to him, Cressellia will be available. Go to the sailor on the jetty and he will tell you about getting a lunar wing, so go to Halfmoon Island. Once you get it, Cresselia should be wandering around.

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Question

How can I beat Cynthia if I have a level 74 Empoleon and I still lose?

Natalie Tellechea

Top Answerer

Catch and train more Pokemon, train to level 80 and/or teach Empoleon stronger moves.

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