Soulgold FAQ

Short answers, drawn from Soulgold's own FAQ and source. Where the hack's documentation and the extracted data disagree, both are noted rather than smoothed over.

Versions and saves

What is the current version? 1.1.1, and the hack's FAQ says it is only distributed on Hackdex.

Are saves compatible between versions? Yes, always.

Are there cheats? No. The FAQ says cheats are unsupported and likely to corrupt your save.

What is the base ROM? Pokémon Emerald. Soulgold is a patch, and PolishedDex does not host game files.

Difficulty and settings

What does Hard mode change? Gym battles become double battles unless another setting forces singles, and trainers with no pre-assigned movesets generate slightly smarter movepools based on your progression.

When do innates unlock? They are postgame progression by design. You can enable them early from the bookcase behind the starter case in Elm's lab, but it is not a balanced way to play.

Are there level caps? Yes, as soft caps tied to badges: experience gain is heavily reduced once a Pokémon reaches the current cap rather than being blocked outright. See the Walkthrough & Progression Guide for the numbers.

Morning, day, evening, night? Morning 06:00-10:00, day 10:00-19:00, evening 19:00-20:00, night 20:00-06:00.

Region and story

Is there Kanto? The hack's FAQ answers this with "No kanto, pure Johto focus", but the game's own flag and Gym data contradict that narrower reading: Soulgold defines 16 badge flags, its Gym data carries Kanto Leaders from Brock through Blue at levels 57-69, and Kanto maps such as Cerulean City, Cerulean Cave and Viridian City Gym exist in the ROM. Treat Johto as the story region and Kanto as postgame content, and verify in-game.

What is the Exp. Share situation? You are given one just before arriving in Violet City.

How do HMs work? You need to own the HM and hold the matching badge. Fly also works from the Pokégear region map once you have the HM.

Where is Strength? Olivine Cafe. Waterfall? Ice Path.

How do I get into Whitney's Gym? Complete the quiz on the Radio Tower's first floor.

How do I clear the tree after the third badge? Get the Squirtbottle from the Goldenrod Flower Shop next to the Gym.

What is the Candy Jar? After your first badge, Elm's aide gives it to you with the egg. It accumulates overflow experience from battles and converts it into Exp Candy on use.

When do I get the Mega Ring? After the Team Rocket takeover event in Goldenrod City. Your starter's mega stone comes from Elm at a set point in the story.

Where is the Coin Case? Goldenrod Underground.

Encounters and collecting

Shiny odds? 1/256 here, far friendlier than the official games. There are no shiny locks, and eggs show blue dots when they will hatch shiny.

How do I get the other starters? The Gachapon machine behind the rewards counter in Goldenrod Casino can give starters from any generation. 3,000 Coins is the minimum entry, and adding more Coins raises the chance of avoiding a duplicate.

Where are regional forms? Most are in Baoba's Safari Zone, though several turn up before you get there.

How often do Hidden Grottos reset? Once per day, or on demand with the Beckoning Bell from the Battle Factory after your third badge.

Are Grotto Pokémon different? Yes: at least two perfect IVs and their Hidden Ability. Each Grotto has a 60% chance of a Pokémon, 30% of a generic item and 10% of a Grotto-specific item.

Fossils? Smash rocks in the Ruins of Alph.

What are the in-game trades? Pawmi in Violet for a Cottonee, Galarian Slowpoke in Azalea for a regular Slowpoke, Honedge in the Goldenrod Department Store for a Clefairy, Hisuian Voltorb in Olivine for a Mareanie, Gabite in Blackthorn City for a Dragonair, and Meltan in Rinto Village for a Tinkaton. The In-Game Trades page lists every registered trade with its exact location.

Mechanics

Are types changed? Not during the main game. Some Pokémon can pick up an extra type in the postgame through an innate.

Are base stats changed? No species is weaker than its Emerald counterpart, but some are stronger and the hack adds species well beyond Emerald's dex. The Differences From Vanilla page has the counts.

Are movepools changed? Yes. Several Pokémon learn extra moves for late-game power, and the hack's FAQ gives Beedrill's Attack Order as the example.

How do I Mega Evolve? Press Start while selecting a move, with the right mega stone held and the Mega Ring in your bag.

Should I delay evolving Growlithe, Vulpix and friends? No. Evolved forms learn everything their pre-evolution does.

How do I change Rotom's form? Take a Rotom to the guard on the first floor of the Goldenrod apartment building, which opens the basement and its form-changing appliances.

Training and items

Raising IVs? Fishing and the Battle Factory after your third badge hand out feathers, which permanently raise an IV by 5 each. Hyper Training is also available in Rinto Village with Bottle Caps, which you can fish up with the Super Rod.

Raising EVs? Power items are heavily buffed and sold in Goldenrod, vitamins are no longer capped at 100 EVs, and EX versions of those items exist that push a stat straight to maximum.

Mints? The Olivine beach cafe sells nature mints.

Tutor moves? A move tutor master in the top-right house in Olivine City sells unlimited access to every tutor move for 44,444. After buying it you can teach tutor moves from the summary screen.

Egg moves? Blackthorn City's egg move master sells unlimited access to all egg moves for 88,888 the same way.

Where do I grind late game? Kitakami has an Audino and Blissey trainer who will train your team for 10,000 per session.

Fast money? Early on, run a Pickup Pokémon. Later, fishing feathers or smashing rocks for shards converts to cash quickly, and Coveting the Yanma on Route 35 for Wide Lenses is a reliable farm once you reach Goldenrod. After eight badges the Battle Factory stocks Nuggets and Big Nuggets, and the postgame Rocket Arcade pays out directly.

Postgame

How do I get the Dive HM? Complete the Mt. Silver event in the postgame, then talk to your rival in their house to start the questline that rewards Dive.

Where are the Route Experts? Route 31, Goldenrod Shore, Route 47, Route 43 and Route 27.

Where do Gym Leaders rematch? Falkner in the Violet City school, Bugsy in the National Park, Whitney in the Goldenrod Department Store, Morty on Bellchime Trail, Chuck on the Route 47 bridge, Jasmine in the Olivine cafe, Pryce at the Lake of Rage, and Clair in the Dragon's Den cave.