This article is about the Pokémon. For the smasher, see Smasher:Rayquaza07.
Rayquaza
Rayquaza Ruby and Sapphire.png
PokemonSymbol.svg
Rayquaza's artwork from Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire.
A boss in Brawl
Universe Pokémon
Location The Lake
Japanese voice actor Katsuyuki Konishi (Brawl)
Article on Bulbapedia Rayquaza

Rayquaza (レックウザ, Rayquaza), stylized as RAYQUAZA in European versions of Brawl, is a draconic creature from the Pokémon media franchise.

OriginEdit

 
Rayquaza's sprite in Pokémon Emerald.

Rayquaza is a dual Dragon/Flying-type legendary Pokémon that debuted in the third generation of Pokémon games, serving as the version mascot for Pokémon Emerald, the solitary third version of Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire and fifth main series game in Generation III overall. It is categorized within the Pokédex at #384 as the "Sky High Pokémon". A green, serpentine creature, it is part of a trio of legendary Pokémon commonly referred to as the Super-ancient Pokémon along with Groudon and Kyogre, and in its games is able to mediate the fights between those two. Symbolising this, it has the ability Air Lock, which neutralises weather effects. It is considered very territorial and usually flies around in the ozone layer, often having battles with Deoxys.

Rayquaza first appeared in Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire as a legendary Pokémon residing in Sky Pillar. However, it did not have a significant story role, with little even implying its existence. In Pokémon Emerald, however, Rayquaza is the mascot and served a much bigger role, becoming the one who stops the fight between Kyogre and Groudon. It also stays in Sky Pillar once the conflict is finished and can be obtained much earlier. Rayquaza later returned in the remakes, Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, playing a major role in the post-game's "Delta Episode", where it was shown to be capable of Mega Evolution. Uniquely, Mega Rayquaza is the only Mega Evolution accessible without the use of a Mega Stone, instead simply by having the move Dragon Ascent.

Rayquaza's distinctive metallic roars seen in Brawl are derived from Destiny Deoxys, the seventh Pokémon movie.

In Super Smash Bros. BrawlEdit

Role in The Subspace EmissaryEdit

 
Rayquaza art for Brawl.

Rayquaza is the second boss in The Subspace Emissary in Brawl. In the mode, Rayquaza first appears in the level The Lake after Diddy Kong goes to investigate a crashed Arwing. Seeing Diddy and the Arwing's pilot as intruders of its territory, Rayquaza bursts out of the water, destroys the Arwing with a ball of energy from its mouth, and then grabs Diddy. Before it can retreat into the water, Fox leaps from the burning Arwing and attacks Rayquaza using Fox Illusion, causing it to lose its grip on Diddy Kong. The beast attacks Fox with the energy ball attack again, but Fox reflects the attack back at Rayquaza using his Reflector, sending it tumbling back into the water. Both Diddy and Fox face off against the dangerous legendary Pokémon.

Even though it was not working for the Subspace army, Tabuu brings back Rayquaza to slow down the heroes in The Great Maze.

Additionally, when Rayquaza is defeated, it twitches at the last second, suggesting it was only knocked out (a possible throwback to the Pokémon series, where a Pokémon that is defeated in battle is said to have fainted).

It can also be battled at any given time in Boss Battles mode.

As a playable characterEdit

Main article: Rayquaza (SSBB)

Like all bosses, Rayquaza can be controlled in Boss Battles mode by hacking. The start button will, like all bosses, self-destruct it.

MovesetEdit

 
Rayquaza fighting against Diddy Kong and Fox in The Lake
Move Input Description Move Number
Iron Tail   Rayquaza sweeps its tail across the ground. It actually hits twice, and it can break shields quite easily at higher difficulties. 1
Dig  +  Rayquaza flies up slowly, then crashes into the character while burrowing into the ground, then appears on the other side. The lightning bolt attack is the substitute for this at lower HP. 3
Dash  +  Rayquaza ducks down and rushes to the other side of the stage. 1
Air Dash  + /  Rayquaza flies up, and then dashes back and forth near the ground. At lower HP, Rayquaza does this two or three times. Small characters can evade this attack by ducking if they can fit between the "waves" of Rayquaza's wavy shape and the ground, but the move also produces a wind that can push characters around into a spot where they can be hit, making crawling an asset. 3
Diagonal Electric Ball   Rayquaza sends a ball of electricity in front of itself diagonally, which can be reflected by various reflecting attacks but not absorbed by PSI Magnet or Oil Panic. 2
Lightning Strike  +  Rayquaza flies up in a tight circle and attacks with a multi-hit lightning bolt (it does not have knockback, however). It breaks shields down quickly. During the time Rayquaza rises, touching it will deal electric damage. It's one of the few attacks that are easier to dodge on higher difficulties due to its much shorter duration. Rayquaza only uses at lower HP. Similar to Pikachu's Thunder 3
Ground Burst  +  Rayquaza burrows underground, then bursts out of the ground where the player was standing. At lower HP, Rayquaza does this three times. When its HP is low enough that it can be captured with a Trophy Stand, it will perform this attack four times. 2
Horizontal Electric Ball  + /  Rayquaza lowers its head and sends the lightning orb in front of itself, which travels across the stage unless it hits the ground, when it will explode. Like its diagonal counterpart, it can be reflected by various reflecting attacks but not absorbed by PSI Magnet or Oil Panic. 2
Blast   Rayquaza's eyes glow, and then it creates an explosion at the location where the character was at that time. While Rayquaza's eyes glow, fighters in contact with its head will be spiked to the ground, often a perfect setup for the explosion. 3
Roar Unusable Rayquaza roars. During the first part of the roar, characters are pushed away from Rayquaza if they are close to it. This attack deals no damage and does not affect Rayquaza's attack cycle. Random

GalleryEdit

HP and damage takenEdit

HP Values          
The Lake 185.68 208.4 225.44 253.84 282.24
The Great Maze 151 173 188 211 235
Round 1-3 4-6 7-9 1-3 4-6 7-9 1-3 4-6 7-9 1-3 4-6 7-9 1-3 4-6 7-9
Boss Battles 115.4 121 133.2 128 135 148.6 141.5 150 164 155 165 182.7 191 205 224.5
                       
Damage taken ×0.7 ×0.7 ×0.5 ×1.0 ×0.7 ×0.5 ×0.5 ×0.7 ×0.7 ×0.7 ×0.3
Unknown weak point ×1.0 ×1.0 ×0.7 ×1.5 ×1.0 ×0.7 ×0.7 ×1.0 ×1.0 ×1.0 ×0.8

While Rayquaza technically has less health than later bosses, its massive battery of resistances practically gives it a very large amount of health. In fact, the only moves which it does not resist are those with freezing hitboxes, which is a nod to the Pokémon games, where Rayquaza's typing makes it weakest to Ice-type moves. However with there being only a few moves in the game with hitboxes of the freezing type, only possessed by the Ice Climbers, Lucas, and Mr. Game & Watch, this lone relative weakness can rarely be exploited. Even then, most of those few freezing moves are projectiles, meaning Rayquaza will still resist them, while also being low-damaging and laggy moves that would make them ineffective for using against bosses. With this inability to use moves that Rayquaza does not possess an at least x0.7 resistance to, it is effectively about as or even more durable than Duon, the most durable boss outside of Tabuu.

None of Rayquaza's hurtboxes are programmed to be a weak point, though it notably has weak point numbers programmed in that are not the default ×2.0 like they are for other enemies that lack a weak point. This may indicate that Rayquaza originally had a weak point to counterbalance its massive resistances, which was scrapped late in development.

Like all bosses in Brawl, Rayquaza gains an additional ×0.6 damage resistance modifier when fought in co-op mode, effectively gaining 67% more health. This modifier is applied whenever the second player is in-game, and is no longer applied if the second player loses all their stocks.

TrophyEdit

Rayquaza's trophy must be obtained by using a Trophy Stand on it during its Subspace Emissary fight.

 
Rayquaza's trophy in Brawl
Rayquaza
A Sky High Pokémon. It normally resides high up in the ozone layer where it flies endlessly, so it is rarely seen. However, when Groudon and Kyogre began to fight, it appeared to calm them down. It has the ability Air Lock, which blocks all weather-condition effects. It has exceedingly strong abilities, and its attack power is especially remarkable.
 : Pokémon Ruby/Sapphire
 : Pokémon Emerald

StickerEdit

Name Game Effect Fighter(s)
Rayquaza Pokémon series   Attack +24  
 
Rayquaza
(Pokémon series)

In Super Smash Bros. for Wii UEdit

As a stage elementEdit

 
Rayquaza using one of its attacks in the Kalos Pokémon League stage.

Rayquaza appears in the Kalos Pokémon League stage as a stage element. Appearing rarely in the Dragonmark Chamber, it performs its Air Dash move from The Subspace Emissary by flying across the stage at various angles, dealing damage to fighters. Its path is shown briefly by lightning before it appears, giving players time to avoid it.

TrophyEdit

Rayquaza's trophy is exclusive to Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, where it is part of the Legend of Pokémon Ruby & Pokémon Sapphire Trophy Box.

 
Rayquaza's trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U
Rayquaza
  This Dragon/Flying-type Pokémon usually dwells high in the ozone layer, so it can't be seen from the ground. In the Kalos Pokémon League stage, it occasionally flies at great speed through the Elite Four's Dragon-type chamber, where any fighters in its path will be damaged and launched with great force.
 : Pokémon Ruby & Pokémon Sapphire (03/2003)
 : Pokémon HeartGold & Pokémon SoulSilver (03/2010)
  This Dragon- and Flying-type Pokémon usually dwells high in the ozone layer, so it can't be seen from the ground. In the Kalos Pokémon League stage, it occasionally flies at great speed through the Elite Four's Dragon-type chamber, where any fighters in its path will be damaged and launched with great force.
 : Pokémon Ruby/Sapphire (07/2003)
 : Pokémon HeartGold/SoulSilver (03/2010)

In Super Smash Bros. UltimateEdit

As a stage elementEdit

Rayquaza returns in its role on Kalos Pokémon League.

SpiritEdit

Rayquaza appears in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as an Ace-class primary spirit.

Rayquaza's Spirit Battle uses a Ridley puppet fighter and is fought on the Kalos Pokémon League stage's Dragonmark Chamber, which features Rayquaza as a stage element. During the battle, heavy winds are immediately in effect, referencing Mega Rayquaza's ability, Delta Stream, which creates strong winds.

No. Image Name Type Class Slots Base   Max   Base   Max   Base   Max   Ability Series
500 Rayquaza
 
★★★ 3 2920 8760 1653 4959 1102 3306 Jump ↑ Pokémon Series

Names in other languagesEdit

Language Name
  Japanese レックウザ, Rayquaza
  English Rayquaza
  French Rayquaza
  German Rayquaza
  Spanish Rayquaza
  Italian Rayquaza
  Chinese 烈空坐
  Korean 레쿠쟈, Rayquaza
  Dutch Rayquaza
  Russian Райкваза

TriviaEdit

  • Despite being the "Sky High" Pokémon which lives high in the ozone layer, Rayquaza in Brawl seems to be able to live underwater (although in the game, it is capable of learning the move Dive) and attacks by burrowing underground (it cannot learn Dig in the games). The Pokédex says that Rayquaza never touches the ground, however, unless Groudon and Kyogre were to fight.
  • A glitch can happen when facing Rayquaza. It is unknown how this happens, but it can leave some of the playable character's model stuck frozen in the immediate foreground, moving with the camera. Any attack Rayquaza performs that targets the player's location go offscreen, failing to hit the almost-KO'ed player. This glitch lasts until the player quits the battle.[1]
  • Rayquaza is the only boss fought at the beginning of a stage whose fight is not the entire stage.
  • Rayquaza is the only boss in The Subspace Emissary known to have a specific voice actor (Katsuyuki Konishi), with said voice actor having voiced the Pokémon in the seventh Pokémon movie, as well as several other Pokémon throughout the series as well.
  • Aside from freezing attacks being the most effective, many of Rayquaza's weaknesses and resistances do not match its properties in the Pokémon games: it resists electric, grass, water, and dark attacks more than flame attacks, whereas its Pokémon typing dictates it takes regular damage from electric, ghost and dark, half damage from fire and water, and quarter damage from grass.

ReferencesEdit

  1. ^ [1]