On this page, we explain how to evolve Haunter in order to get the fearsome Gengar, which definitely remains one of the coolest ghost-type Pokemon. For the sake of clarity and completionism, we also explain how to catch Gastly and Haunter, too, so you can complete this evolutionary line in your Pokedex. If you find this page helpful, check out our other, similar pages on getting Wyrdeer and Kleavor, two all-new evolutions for this game.
How to get Gastly and Haunter in Pokemon Legends Arceus
You naturally need to be in possession of a Haunter in order to evolve it into Gengar - and there’s a few ways of doing this in Pokemon Legends Arceus. First of all, you can catch a Gastly, then evolve it to Haunter. Your other option, of course, is to catch a Haunter natively. To catch a Gastly or Haunter, look for them in one of three of the game’s zones, in the following locations:
In the Crimson Mirelands, look in the Golden Lowlands, Gapejaw Bog, Scarlet Bog, Shrouded Ruins, or Cottonsedge Prairie. In the Coronet Highlands, check the Bolderoll Ravine, Sacred Plaza, or Celestica Ruins. And in the Alabaster Icelands, search the Bonechill Wastes.
Remember, as a ghost-type Pokemon, Gastly and Haunter only appear at night. Rest back at a base camp to advance time to the night, then go hunting for one or both of these Pokemon. If you catch Gastly and want to manually evolve it, it’ll evolve to Haunter at Level 25.
How to evolve into Gengar in Pokemon Legends Arceus
In past Pokemon games right back to the first generation, Gengar was one of the more difficult and frustrating evolutions to try to obtain for a simple reason: it had a requirement that you engage in the Pokemon trading mechanic in order to get it. Specifically, you had to trade a Haunter to another player, and when you did it’d automatically evolve into Gengar. That mechanic is still present in Pokemon Legends Arceus, and still works - if you trade a Haunter to another player at the trade point in Jubilife Village, it will still evolve to Gengar when it arrives to the other player. However, in this game, there’s an easier way. With multiplayer features like battling friends stripped out of this release, it appears the developers have deliberately tried to ensure that Pokemon Legends Arceus can be played solely as a single-player endeavor if you want. Because of that, there’s a new item that can be used to force Pokemon that usually evolve when traded to do so without: the Linking Cord. The Linking Cord is of course a reference to the old-school Game Boy Link Cables that’d be used to connect Pokemon Red and Blue back in the day. In Pokemon Legends Arceus, you just need to use the Linking Cable on Haunter and it’ll evolve to Gengar immediately. Linking Cords are like other evolution items, and so are quite rare. Find them in the following places:
You can exchange MP/Merit Points for them at the same stall where you can do online trading, near the training ground. You also have a rare chance of finding Linking Cables as item drops inside space-time distortions. Request 64, Getting to Know Ghosts, gives a Linking Cord as a reward, too.
Simply use that cord on Haunter to grab yourself a Gengar! This same trick works for other trade evolutions including Machoke and Kadabra.
