Mt. Silver: Sixteen Badges, Moltres and the Duel Against Red
1640 words | Reading time: 8 minutes
Only Trainers holding all sixteen Badges are allowed to climb it. The largest mountain range in Johto, Mt. Silver rises on the edge of Kanto. Its cave leads to a summit guarded by Red, whom no other Trainer in the game can match in strength; in the HeartGold and SoulSilver remake, it's also home to Moltres.
Contents
- Mt. Silver, Johto's giant at the gates of Kanto
- Sixteen Badges to climb Mt. Silver
- Inside Mt. Silver Cave: waterfalls, rock walls and Moltres
- At the summit, the duel against Red
- Which Pokémon can you find on Mt. Silver?
- A name that shines and a League on screen
- Mt. Silver at a glance
- Frequently Asked Questions
Mt. Silver, Johto's giant at the gates of Kanto
You can visit the mountain in Gold and Silver, in Crystal and then in HeartGold and SoulSilver, and always once the main adventure is over. It belongs to Johto and opens, to the north, onto Mt. Silver Cave, the only way to the summit.
Outside, a Pokémon Center is the only building, surrounded by ledges and patches of tall grass. In Gold, Silver and Crystal, it's the only place in Johto drawn in the art style of the neighboring region, Kanto, from the Pokémon Center to the trees, the rocks and the grass.
On the map, its location is surprising. To reach this Johto mountain on foot, you have to go through Route 28, a Kanto route running farther west than Victory Road: no path directly connects the mountain to the other places in its region.
Sixteen Badges to climb Mt. Silver
The place is reserved for the elite. You need to have collected all sixteen Badges, eight from Johto and eight from Kanto, then stop by Pallet Town, where Professor Oak gives you the green light.
In HeartGold and SoulSilver, along with this permission, the professor hands you HM Rock Climb, without which the climb quickly turns into a headache. Another change in the DS version: the last location to discover is no longer the cave, as in the original games, but Cerulean Cave.
The remake also draws an invisible border. The game files Route 28 under Kanto and the mountain under Johto: as a result, you can't fly from the route to the slopes, even if you've already set foot on them. Once up there, Fly only offers Johto destinations, and you can hear the switch, since the wild battle music changes along the way.
Inside Mt. Silver Cave: waterfalls, rock walls and Moltres
Called Mt. Silver in Gold, Silver and Crystal, Mt. Silver Cave connects the foot of the mountain to its peak. The remake splits it into more areas: floors, two open-air mountainsides and side rooms, one of which is named after the Expert Belt you can pick up there.
Searching every corner takes several field moves: Surf and Waterfall in the original games; Waterfall, Rock Climb and Rock Smash in the remake. The effort pays off with TM76, a Dawn Stone or a Rare Candy, while smashed rocks sometimes yield colored Shards, a Heart Scale or a Max Ether.
The DS version's treasure is hidden in a separate room: Moltres, the fire bird of the legendary trio of Kanto, waits there as a one-time encounter at level 50. With the Ability Pressure, it knows Flamethrower, Air Slash, Ancient Power and Safeguard.
At the summit, the duel against Red
Warning: this section reveals the game's final battle and its ending. At the very top of the cave stands Red, the only Trainer there. His dialogue boils down to "...": the character you controlled in Red and Blue has no more to say now that he stands facing the player.
In Gold, Silver and Crystal, he fields Pikachu at level 81, Espeon, Snorlax and the final forms of the Kanto starters, Venusaur, Charizard and Blastoise. The remake raises the team to between levels 80 and 88, with a Pikachu holding a Light Ball at the top of that range. Lapras takes over from Espeon, a permanent hail storm pounds the field, and Red's Full Restores, once kept for Pikachu, can now heal any member of his team.
Once Red is beaten, the end credits roll, but what happens next depends on the version. In the remake, the victorious Pokémon each receive the Legend Ribbon, then the player is sent back to their own bedroom; Red has left the summit, and only another victory over the Elite Four brings him back. The original games get straight to the point: play resumes at the door of the mountain's Pokémon Center, and a rematch is still possible.
⚡ Pikachu leads Red's team in both battles: find the electric mouse in our Pikachu collection.
Which Pokémon can you find on Mt. Silver?
Outside, the tall grass holds a mix of Tangela, Doduo and Dodrio, Ponyta and its evolved form Rapidash. Sneasel comes out at night in Gold, Silver and the remake, while Crystal goes instead for Arbok during the day, then Golbat and Poliwhirl after sunset. The case of Ursaring and Donphan illustrates version exclusives: the first lives here in Gold, the second in Silver, then the remake swaps them around.
Underground, Onix, Graveler, Golduck, Quagsire and Golbat fill the tunnels, joined at night by Misdreavus; in the remake, the Moltres room is also home to Steelix. Curiously, Larvitar shows up there most often between levels 15 and 20, well below its neighbors, which hover around levels 40 to 50, while its evolution, Pupitar, only turns up very rarely.
The remake adds more ways to encounter Pokémon. A Headbutt on the trees knocks down Natu, Aipom or, most often, Heracross, and the radio changes the cave's wildlife: Hoenn Sound draws in Makuhita and Absol, Sinnoh Sound Chingling and Bronzor. In the underground waters, Seaking dominates Surf encounters, and the two best rods reel in Gyarados.
A name that shines and a League on screen
Where does the name come from? The answer lies far from the slopes, on Route 9 in Kanto. A Hiker there asks the player about it, then answers for them: the mountain is said to gleam like the metal itself. As for the mountain range, it's inspired by Mt. Fuji, Japan's great volcano.
The anime sets the Johto League there, the tournament that closes the journey of Ash Ketchum through the region, over the course of Master Quest.
Mt. Silver at a glance
| Feature | Detail |
|---|---|
| Region | Johto, on the border with Kanto |
| Games | Gold, Silver, Crystal, HeartGold and SoulSilver |
| Access | Via Route 28, with all sixteen Badges and Professor Oak's approval |
| Sub-area | Mt. Silver Cave, called Mt. Silver in the original games |
| Opponent | Red, the only Trainer there, at the summit |
| Legendary | Moltres at level 50, in the remake |
| Inspiration | Mt. Fuji |
| In the anime | The setting of the Johto League |
Frequently Asked Questions
-
How do you get to Mt. Silver?
You need to hold the eight Johto Badges and the eight Kanto Badges, then get the green light from Professor Oak in Pallet Town. You then reach the mountain via Route 28, on the Kanto side. -
What team does Red use at the top of Mt. Silver?
Pikachu, Espeon, Snorlax, Venusaur, Charizard and Blastoise in Gold, Silver and Crystal. In HeartGold and SoulSilver, Lapras replaces Espeon and the levels climb to between 80 and 88. -
Where can you find Moltres in HeartGold and SoulSilver?
In a room of Mt. Silver Cave named after it, at level 50 and as a one-time encounter. It isn't there in Gold, Silver and Crystal. -
Why can't you use Fly to go from Route 28 to Mt. Silver?
Because the remake counts the mountain as part of Johto and Route 28 as part of Kanto: even after a first visit, Fly won't take you there. Since this route is also the only way in on foot, the mountain has no direct land connection to the rest of Johto. -
Can you battle Red more than once?
Yes. In Gold, Silver and Crystal, a rematch is always possible. In the remake, he leaves the summit once beaten and only comes back after another victory over the Elite Four.
In short
Mt. Silver sums up the spirit of Gold and Silver: a trial reserved for those who have beaten everything, at the end of a road coming from Kanto. At the summit, the silent face-off with Red remains the final Trainer challenge in every version, and HeartGold and SoulSilver slipped in a legendary bird as a bonus.