Legendary Pokémon: The Complete List by Generation, from Mewtwo to Terapagos (2026 Guide)

A Legendary Pokémon is an extremely rare Pokémon, tied to a myth of its world and usually met only once per playthrough. From Mewtwo in 1996 to Terapagos in 2023, the series counts 71 of them across nine generations, plus 23 Mythical Pokémon that are often mixed up with them. This guide gives the complete list of Legendary Pokémon by generation, with each one's Pokédex number, French name, types, group and game of origin.

You will also find the difference between Legendary and Mythical, the borderline cases (Ultra Beasts, Paradox Pokémon), the special forms, the ranking by stats, the Dragon-type Legendaries and where to get them in Scarlet and Violet, Sword and Shield, Pokémon Legends: Z-A and Pokémon GO. The counts follow the classification used by Poképédia, the French-language Pokémon encyclopedia, and the article is up to date as of 13 November 2026.

The essentials at a glance

• The series has 71 Legendary Pokémon as of 13 November 2026: 4 in Kanto, 5 in Johto, 8 in Hoenn, 9 in Sinnoh, 9 in Unova, 3 in Kalos, 11 in Alola, 11 in Galar and Hisui, 11 in Paldea.
• The 23 Mythical Pokémon (Mew, Celebi, Arceus and so on) are a separate group: they are almost always obtained through a distribution or an event.
• The 11 Ultra Beasts and the Paradox Pokémon are not Legendaries, with two exceptions: Koraidon and Miraidon, both Paradox and Legendary.
• The highest base stat total belongs to Eternamax Eternatus (1,125), a form reserved for the story of Sword and Shield; next come Mega Mewtwo X, Mega Mewtwo Y and Mega Rayquaza, at 780.
• 14 Legendaries out of 71 are Dragon types, from Latias to Miraidon; only the Psychic type does better, with 16.
• In recent games: 25 older Legendaries return in Scarlet and Violet through the treats of The Indigo Disk, 38 can be battled in the Max Lair of Sword and Shield, and Pokémon Legends: Z-A gathers 13 with its Mega Dimension expansion.
• For the 10^th generation, Pokémon Winds and Waves, expected in 2027, Poképédia lists only the three first partner Pokémon as of 13 November 2026.

Contents

• What is a Legendary Pokémon?
• The list of Legendary Pokémon by generation
• 1st generation (Kanto): the 4 Legendary Pokémon
• 2nd generation (Johto): the 5 Legendary Pokémon
• 3rd generation (Hoenn): the 8 Legendary Pokémon
• 4th generation (Sinnoh): the 9 Legendary Pokémon
• 5th generation (Unova): the 9 Legendary Pokémon
• 6th generation (Kalos): the 3 Legendary Pokémon
• 7th generation (Alola): the 11 Legendary Pokémon
• 8th generation (Galar and Hisui): the 11 Legendary Pokémon
• 9th generation (Paldea): the 11 Legendary Pokémon
• Legendary or Mythical: the difference and the list of the 23 Mythical Pokémon
• Ultra Beasts, Paradox Pokémon and other borderline cases
• Mega Evolutions, Primal Reversions, fusions: the forms of Legendaries
• Which are the most powerful Legendary Pokémon?
• Trios, duos and box Legendaries
• Dragon-type Legendary Pokémon
• Where to find Legendary Pokémon in recent games
• Legendary Pokémon in Pokémon GO
• Legendary Pokémon as figures
• Frequently asked questions
• Going further

What is a Legendary Pokémon?

In the games, a Legendary Pokémon can be recognised by three things. It is rare, even unique: it can be encountered on a single occasion per version, at best. It is tied to a myth: the creation of the world, time, space, the oceans, life or death. And it is stronger than average, with outstanding base stats and a very complete range of moves.

Biological traits come on top. In the vast majority of cases, a Legendary is genderless, has a single form and can neither breed nor evolve. The exceptions can be counted: fifteen Legendaries have a gender (Latias, Latios, Heatran, Cresselia, Tornadus, Thundurus, Landorus, Kubfu, Urshifu, Enamorus, Okidogi, Munkidori, Fezandipiti, Ogerpon and Terapagos) and four can evolve (Type: Null, called Type:0 in French, Cosmog, Cosmoem and Kubfu).

Finally, a Legendary has to be earned. If it faints or if you flee the battle, it disappears in most older games; recent entries are more forgiving: in Sword and Shield, for example, Zacian or Zamazenta can be battled again until it is caught. And because their stats are out of the ordinary, Legendaries are banned from tournaments most of the time.

The list of Legendary Pokémon by generation

Here is the overview: 71 species, from the 1^st to the 9^th generation. Alternate forms (Mega Evolutions, Galarian forms, fusions) do not count as additional species. Each generation is detailed further down in its own table.

That makes 71 Legendary Pokémon out of the 1,025 Pokémon in the National Pokédex at the end of the 9^th generation, about 7% of the total. The most generous generations are not the first ones: Alola, Galar and Paldea bring 11 each, while Kalos has only 3.

1st generation (Kanto): the 4 Legendary Pokémon

It all begins in 1996 with Pokémon Red and Blue. Kanto is home to three Legendary birds, each the master of an element: Articuno is said to bring snow, Zapdos to unleash thunderstorms and Moltres to command fire. The fourth is of a different kind: Mewtwo, the Genetic Pokémon, is a clone of Mew modified to be more powerful, the first Legendary created by human hands.

Mew itself is not a Legendary but a Mythical Pokémon. The three birds received a Galarian form in 2020, with different types: Galarian Articuno is Psychic and Flying, Galarian Zapdos Fighting and Flying, Galarian Moltres Dark and Flying. Mewtwo, for its part, has two Mega Evolutions, Mega Mewtwo X (Psychic and Fighting) and Mega Mewtwo Y (Psychic).

On the collecting side, two pieces from Kanto: our Zapdos figure, wings spread above its dark base, and Mewtwo with its energy sphere, levitating above its psychic flames.

2nd generation (Johto): the 5 Legendary Pokémon

Pokémon Gold and Silver (1999) set a habit: from now on each version has its own box Legendary. Ho-Oh, the rainbow bird, is met at the top of the Bell Tower and appears on the Gold version; Lugia, guardian of the seas, hides at the bottom of the Whirl Islands and appears on the Silver version. Beside them are the three Legendary beasts, Raikou, Entei and Suicune, which many French players still call the “legendary dogs”.

Each of the three beasts embodies a force: Raikou is said to bark like thunder, Entei is tied to volcanoes and Suicune can purify polluted waters. In Gold, Silver and Crystal, Raikou and Entei do not stay put: they roam Johto and flee on the first turn of battle. Suicune, for its part, is the box Legendary of Pokémon Crystal.

The three beasts are available from us as 9.5 cm figures, chosen individually: Suicune, Raikou or Entei.

3rd generation (Hoenn): the 8 Legendary Pokémon

With Ruby and Sapphire (2002), Legendaries become the heart of the plot. Kyogre is said to have created the oceans, Groudon the land, and their clash only stops when Rayquaza, master of the sky, steps in to calm them. Kyogre appears on the Sapphire version, Groudon on the Ruby version and Rayquaza on the Emerald version.

Hoenn adds two other families. The Legendary titans, Regirock, Regice and Registeel, are golems of rock, ice and steel; their master, Regigigas, only arrives in the next generation. The Eon duo, Latias and Latios, brings together the first Legendaries to have a gender.

The remakes Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire (2014) gave this generation its most spectacular forms: the Primal Reversion of Kyogre and Groudon, and the Mega Evolutions of Latias, Latios and Rayquaza. Primal Groudon gains the Fire type there. Our Groudon figure shows it in a fighting stance, a translucent burst of magma in its hand.

4th generation (Sinnoh): the 9 Legendary Pokémon

Diamond and Pearl (2006) tell the birth of the world. Dialga stands for time, Palkia for space, and Giratina, the Renegade Pokémon, lives in the Distortion World, the reverse of ours. The three Lake guardians represent what makes the human mind: Uxie knowledge, Mesprit emotion, Azelf willpower.

Three loners complete the list: Heatran, the Lava Dome Pokémon, Regigigas, the master of the Legendary titans, and Cresselia, the Lunar Pokémon, said to be able to bring beautiful dreams. Arceus, often mentioned with them, is classified among the Mythical Pokémon.

Giratina has changed appearance since Pokémon Platinum: its Origin Forme is the one it keeps in the Distortion World. Dialga and Palkia received theirs much later, in Pokémon Legends: Arceus (2022).

5th generation (Unova): the 9 Legendary Pokémon

Black and White (2010) pit two dragons born from a single being against each other: Reshiram stands for truth, Zekrom for ideals, and Kyurem is said to be what remains of their original body. In Black 2 and White 2, the DNA Splicers fuse Kyurem with one or the other: Black Kyurem and White Kyurem are the mascots of those two versions.

Two trios surround them. The Swords of Justice, Cobalion, Terrakion and Virizion, share the Fighting type; their fourth member, Keldeo, is a Mythical Pokémon. The Forces of Nature, Tornadus, Thundurus and Landorus, have had two appearances since Black 2 and White 2: the Incarnate Forme and the Therian Forme, switched with the Reveal Glass.

6th generation (Kalos): the 3 Legendary Pokémon

X and Y (2013) form the smallest class: only three Legendaries. Xerneas symbolises life, Yveltal death, and Zygarde watches over the balance of the ecosystem. It is also the generation that introduces Mega Evolution, which Mewtwo benefits from as early as X and Y.

Zygarde is the one that has changed the most since: its original 50% Forme was joined by the 10% Forme and the Complete Forme with Sun and Moon, then by Mega Zygarde, which arrived in 2025 with Pokémon Legends: Z-A, of which it is the mascot.

7th generation (Alola): the 11 Legendary Pokémon

Sun and Moon (2016) present Legendaries that evolve for the first time. Cosmog becomes Cosmoem, then Solgaleo in Pokémon Sun or Lunala in Pokémon Moon. Type: Null (Type:0 in French), created by the Aether Foundation to fight the Ultra Beasts, evolves into Silvally.

The four Guardian deities of Alola, Tapu Koko, Tapu Lele, Tapu Bulu and Tapu Fini, each protect an island and share the Fairy type. That leaves Necrozma, which can fuse with Solgaleo (Dusk Mane) or with Lunala (Dawn Wings), the two mascots of Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, before becoming Ultra Necrozma.

The eleven Ultra Beasts discovered in Alola are not in this table: they form a separate family, detailed in the section on borderline cases.

8th generation (Galar and Hisui): the 11 Legendary Pokémon

Sword and Shield (2019) feature Zacian and Zamazenta, the heroes who saved Galar from Eternatus 3,000 years ago. The latter, which arrived on Earth in a meteorite, is the source of the Dynamax phenomenon. With the Rusted Sword and the Rusted Shield, Zacian and Zamazenta gain the Steel type.

The two 2020 expansions pushed the count up. The Isle of Armor offers Kubfu, which evolves into Urshifu depending on the scroll chosen: Single Strike Style (Fighting and Dark) or Rapid Strike Style (Fighting and Water). The Crown Tundra brings Calyrex and its two steeds, Glastrier and Spectrier, as well as two new titans, Regieleki and Regidrago.

The eleventh comes from elsewhere: Enamorus, the fourth Force of Nature, was discovered in the Hisui region with Pokémon Legends: Arceus (2022), a game attached to the 8^th generation.

9th generation (Paldea): the 11 Legendary Pokémon

In Scarlet and Violet (2022), the box Legendary travels with you from the start of the adventure and serves as your mount: Koraidon in Pokémon Scarlet, Miraidon in Pokémon Violet. Both are also Paradox Pokémon, one from the past, the other from the future.

Paldea hides four Treasures of Ruin, Wo-Chien, Chien-Pao, Ting-Lu and Chi-Yu, all Dark types: each one only appears once its eight stakes have been pulled out across the region. The two-part expansion adds five Legendaries: the Loyal Three (Okidogi, Munkidori, Fezandipiti) and Ogerpon in The Teal Mask, then Terapagos in The Indigo Disk.

The two mounts of Paldea are available as 15 cm figures on a base: Miraidon or Koraidon, your choice.

And the 10^th generation? Pokémon Winds and Waves were announced on 27 February 2026 for release in 2027 on Nintendo Switch 2. As of 13 November 2026, Poképédia lists only their three first partner Pokémon, Browt, Pombon and Gecqua: the list of Legendaries therefore stops, for now, at the ninth generation.

Legendary or Mythical: the difference and the list of the 23 Mythical Pokémon

Mythical Pokémon are related to Legendaries but form a separate group. The difference lies in how you get them: a Legendary is encountered in the game, over the course of the story or a quest; a Mythical generally cannot be encountered in a normal playthrough and is most often obtained through an event or a distribution. Mythicals are generally not required to complete the Pokédex either.

As of 13 November 2026, 23 species are listed as Mythical. Most have a base stat total of 600, often 100 in each stat, like Mew, Celebi or Jirachi. Arceus is the exception with 720.

A few peculiarities: Phione is obtained by breeding Manaphy with a Ditto, and those two are the only Mythicals able to breed. Meltan is the only Mythical that evolves, into Melmetal, and only in Pokémon GO. Recent games are more generous: in Pokémon Legends: Z-A and its Mega Dimension expansion, ten Mythicals can be caught over the course of missions, including Darkrai, Hoopa, Magearna and Zeraora.

Ultra Beasts, Paradox Pokémon and other borderline cases

Several families look like Legendaries without being Legendaries. Here is how Poképédia classifies them.

The 11 Ultra Beasts

First seen in Sun and Moon, the Ultra Beasts come from other worlds, Ultra Space, and emerge through Ultra Wormholes. Each one has a code name. There are eleven of them and they are a family distinct from Legendaries, even though you sometimes battle them in the same place: at the bottom of the Max Lair in Sword and Shield, the final opponent is a Legendary or an Ultra Beast.

Paradox Pokémon

The Paradox Pokémon of Paldea number twenty-two, eleven per version: those from the past are exclusive to Pokémon Scarlet, those from the future to Pokémon Violet. Twenty of them are not Legendaries: Great Tusk, Scream Tail, Brute Bonnet, Flutter Mane, Slither Wing, Sandy Shocks, Roaring Moon, Walking Wake, Gouging Fire and Raging Bolt on the past side; Iron Treads, Iron Bundle, Iron Hands, Iron Jugulis, Iron Moth, Iron Thorns, Iron Valiant, Iron Leaves, Iron Boulder and Iron Crown on the future side. The last two, Koraidon and Miraidon, are the only ones to hold both statuses.

Six Paradox Pokémon mirror a Legendary: Walking Wake, Gouging Fire and Raging Bolt recall Suicune, Entei and Raikou; Iron Leaves, Iron Boulder and Iron Crown recall Virizion, Terrakion and Cobalion.

Legendaries that do not look the part

Conversely, some modest Pokémon really are Legendary. Cosmog (a base stat total of 200), Cosmoem and Kubfu are first-stage Legendaries. Type: Null (Type:0 in French) and Silvally, created in a laboratory, belong to the group too. As for Phione, which can be obtained by breeding, Poképédia files it among the Mythicals.

Mega Evolutions, Primal Reversions, fusions: the forms of Legendaries

Seventeen Legendaries have several forms, six can Mega Evolve and two undergo Primal Reversion. The table sums up who changes, and since which game.

Rayquaza's Mega Evolution is a unique case: it does not need a Mega Stone, it only has to know the move Dragon Ascent. If these metamorphoses appeal to you, our article on the best anime transformations takes the subject further on the series side. And to see them in three dimensions, our Mega Mewtwo X or Y figure comes in classic or shiny colours.

Which are the most powerful Legendary Pokémon?

“The most powerful” depends on the battle format, abilities and moves. The only objective criterion is the base stat total (HP, Attack, Defense, Special Attack, Special Defense, Speed). Here are the ten highest totals in the whole series, all forms included, according to 9^th-generation values.

Right behind, at 700, come Black Kyurem and White Kyurem, Zacian Crowned Sword, Zamazenta Crowned Shield, Terapagos Stellar Form, Mega Latias, Mega Latios and Mega Heatran. Without a special form, the ranking of Legendaries reads as follows:

Two readings stand out. Box Legendaries nearly all sit between 660 and 680: that is the tier of the “major” Legendaries. And a high total is not everything: Regigigas shows 670, but its Slow Start ability halves its Attack and Speed for the first five turns of battle.

Trios, duos and box Legendaries

Almost all Legendaries come in twos or threes. The pattern returns from generation to generation: a main duo or trio, tied to the plot and the box art, and one or more secondary groups, hidden in the four corners of the region. The tradition of the box Legendary goes back to Gold and Silver.

Pokémon Legends: Arceus is the exception: its mascot, Arceus, is a Mythical Pokémon. The secondary groups, for their part, follow a theme: the three birds of Kanto, the three beasts of Johto, the three titans of Hoenn, the three Lake guardians of Sinnoh, the Swords of Justice and the Forces of Nature of Unova, the four Guardian deities of Alola, the four Treasures of Ruin and the Loyal Three of Paldea.

Dragon-type Legendary Pokémon

Fourteen Legendaries carry the Dragon type, nearly one in five. None appears before the 3^rd generation: Latias, Latios and Rayquaza lead the way in 2002. Only the Psychic type is more common among Legendaries, with sixteen representatives.

Forms add to this: Ultra Necrozma becomes Psychic and Dragon. Among non-Legendaries, four Paradox Pokémon are dragons too, Roaring Moon, Walking Wake, Gouging Fire and Raging Bolt, as are two Ultra Beasts, Guzzlord and Naganadel.

Where to find Legendary Pokémon in recent games

Here is where Legendaries are found in three recent games, Scarlet and Violet, Sword and Shield and Pokémon Legends: Z-A, according to the Poképédia pages consulted on 13 November 2026. When a Legendary is missing from a game, it can often be transferred there from Pokémon HOME.

In Scarlet and Violet

Koraidon or Miraidon is entrusted to you as early as Poco Path; a second one waits at the bottom of Area Zero. The four Treasures of Ruin appear once their eight stakes are removed: purple for Wo-Chien, yellow for Chien-Pao, green for Ting-Lu, blue for Chi-Yu. Ogerpon and the Loyal Three are met in Kitakami (The Teal Mask), Terapagos in the Area Zero Underdepths (The Indigo Disk).

The Indigo Disk above all brings back 25 Legendaries from previous generations. At the entrance of Blueberry Academy, Snacksworth hands you treats: thirteen as a reward for solo Blueberry Quests (one every ten quests), twelve for Group Quests (one per quest). As long as a treat is in your bag, the matching Legendary appears at a specific spot in Paldea.

In Sword and Shield

Zacian (Sword) or Zamazenta (Shield) is caught at the tower summit after the League, Eternatus during the story. Type: Null (Type:0 in French) is given to you in Wyndon once the game is finished, Kubfu at the Master Dojo on the Isle of Armor, Cosmog in Freezington in the Crown Tundra.

The Crown Tundra holds the rest: Calyrex and its steed at the Crown Shrine, Regirock, Regice and Registeel in their ruins, Regieleki or Regidrago at the Split-Decision Ruins, the three Swords of Justice and the Galarian birds as you explore. Regigigas only appears at Giant's Bed if the five other titans are in your party. Finally, the Dynamax Adventures of the Max Lair let you battle 38 Legendaries from previous generations, from Mewtwo to Necrozma.

In Pokémon Legends: Z-A

The base game gathers four Legendaries: Zygarde (Wild Zone 20, main mission 042), Xerneas (Wild Zone 11, main mission 040), Mewtwo (Lysandre Labs, side mission EX-2) and Yveltal. The Mega Dimension expansion, released on 10 December 2025, adds nine in Hyperspace Lumiose: Latias, Latios, Kyogre, Groudon, Rayquaza, Heatran, Cobalion, Terrakion and Virizion.

The table gathers all of this, group by group. A dash marks a Legendary that is unavailable in the game.

Legendary Pokémon in Pokémon GO

In Pokémon GO, Legendaries arrived in July 2017 and Mythicals in March 2018. The most common way to catch one remains the five-star raid, recognisable by its black Egg: you have to defeat the Pokémon, alone or in a team, before attempting the capture. The bosses of these raids change regularly, and a Legendary Raid Hour takes place every Wednesday from 18h to 19h, local time.

Other routes exist: defeating Giovanni, the boss of Team GO Rocket, at the end of certain Special Research rewards a Shadow Legendary. As for trades, a Legendary only passes from one player to another through a Special Trade, limited to one per day, and the Stardust required ranges from 1,000,000 between mere Good Friends to 40,000 between Best Friends.

Legendary Pokémon as figures

A Legendary as a figure is first of all a silhouette you recognise from afar. At Manga Horizon, the painted PVC pieces cover four generations. For Kanto, Mewtwo comes in three versions: Mewtwo with the big spoon (12 cm), Mewtwo with its energy sphere (15 cm) and Mega Mewtwo X or Y.

Zapdos stands 15.5 cm tall, wings spread; the three beasts of Johto are 9.5 cm and are chosen individually; Groudon, 13 cm, holds a translucent burst of magma; Koraidon and Miraidon, 15 cm, each stand on a base in their own colour. All these pieces are gathered in our collection of Pokémon figures, along with the first partner Pokémon and the Eevee family.

Two tips for displaying them: keep the translucent effects (sphere, magma, lightning) out of direct sunlight, and leave some air around the pieces with wide wings. Our guide to displaying and caring for your figures covers the rest, and our Eevee evolution guide covers the other big family in the collection.

Sources: Poképédia, the French-language Pokémon encyclopedia, pages Legendary Pokémon, Mythical Pokémon and ninth-generation base stats, consulted on 13 November 2026.

Frequently asked questions

Going further

• All our Pokémon figures, from first partner Pokémon to Legendaries.
• The Johto trio, sold individually: Suicune, Raikou or Entei.
• The Genetic Pokémon: Mewtwo with its energy sphere.
• The other big Pokémon family: our Eevee evolution guide.
• An idea for a Pokémon or manga fan: our manga gift guide.
• To show off your pieces: displaying and caring for your figures.