A Traveler's Guide to the World of Pokémon/Hoenn/Shoal Cave
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The Shoal Cave is a cave in Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald located close to Mossdeep City. Its most notable feature is having tides, which vary by the time of the day, and also affect how you journey Shoal Cave. It is moreso a side quest, as it doesn't need to be checked to beat the game.
Required HMs
[edit | edit source]The only HM that is absolutely necessary to get to Shoal Cave is HM03, Surf, since Shoal Cave is in the ocean. However, if you want to get full use out of Low Tide, it is also recommended to have HM04, Strength.
Tides
[edit | edit source]In Shoal Cave, there are tides, which have certain effects. The two types of tides are high and low.
High tide
[edit | edit source]At 9 a.m to 3 p.m., as well as 9 p.m. to 3 a.m., it is high tide. The amount of water is huge, and this is the only way to access the highest points of Shoal Cave, and the only way to get Shoal Shells.
Low tide
[edit | edit source]At 3 a.m. to 9 a.m., as well as 3 p.m. to 9 p.m., it is low tide. There is hardly any water at all, and the only water is the shallow one you can walk in without using surf. This is the only way to access the lower points of Shoal Cave, including the lowest floor where the setting is blue and icy instead of brown and rocky.
Objects of note
[edit | edit source]Shoal Salt and Shoal Shells
[edit | edit source]These are the most notable objects of Shoal Cave, as you need four of each to make a Shell Bell. Shoal Salt looks like a clump of salt, and can only be gotten at Low Tide. Shoal Shells looks like a blue pearl, and can only be gotten at High Tide.
When you get four of each, you can talk to the old man near the beginning of the cave to get a Shell Bell, which recovers some HP when your Pokémon holding the Shell Bell attacks in a battle. You can do this as much as you want, but however, you need to wait for a day before there is more Shoal Salt and Shoal Shells.
Focus Band
[edit | edit source]The Focus Band can only be gotten at Low Tide. As you journey through the cave at Low Tide, you will eventually find a trainer who gives you a Focus Band if you talk to him. If a Pokémon holds it, there's a small chance it will prevent fainting. The chance is slim though, so you should not rely on it.
Nevermeltice
[edit | edit source]This, like the Focus Band, can only be gotten at Low Tide. You also need Strength for this. At the point with the trainer who gives you the Focus Band, you will see a boulder. Use strength on it, and you will find a hole with a ladder. Go down it, and there is a slippery ice puzzle, and eventually, you'll come across a Pokéball that contains Nevermeltice, which slightly raises the power of ice type moves. In the same puzzle, you can also get TM07 - Hail, which makes it hail for 5 turns in a battle, hurting any non-ice type Pokémon.
Obtainable Pokémon
[edit | edit source]Zubat, like most, if not all caves in Pokémon, is common at both tides, and it's evolution, Golbat, can be caught at both tides as well, although it's rare. Spheal, who is exclusive to this cave, is catchable at both tides as well. Tentacool can be caught by surfing at high tide, but only high tide. And at the very lowest floor which is icy and slippery, you can catch Snorunt, but they are rare. Although Zubat, Golbat, and Tentacool are very widespread, this is the only place where Spheal and Snorunt are catchable.