Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Guide | How to Find Riolu and Evolve into Lucario

Catch Riolu in its regular spawn zone, then build friendship fast to evolve it into Lucario.

Game Guide by Jubair Baky on Mar 09, 2026

If you want Lucario, the first step is to grab a Riolu from a spot where it spawns often. After that, the real requirement is friendship. Riolu does not evolve by level alone. It evolves when its friendship reaches a certain level, so the goal is to use a few quick actions to raise it without wasting hours.

Where To Find Riolu

Riolu spawns pretty regularly in the shown area and usually takes only a couple of minutes of searching once you are in the right zone. From the nearby point, jump down, go across the land bridge, and search the general area until you see Riolu walking around.

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The Requirement: Friendship Evolution

Riolu evolves into Lucario with friendship. After you catch it, focus on boosting friendship safely. The main rule is to keep it from fainting while you build a friendship.

Fast Ways To Raise Friendship

A quick start is catching Riolu in a Luxury Ball, since it boosts friendship immediately. Another fast method is using Let’s Go mode. Keep Riolu out in Let’s Go mode, send it into battles, and even use it to pick up items. Battle weaker Pokémon so it stays safe, and avoid letting it faint.

You can also do a picnic and wash Riolu. Start a picnic, go up to Riolu, and wash it. This also increases friendship.

Feeding candies can help, too. Giving Exp. Candies raises levels and can also increase friendship, helping push Riolu closer to evolving.

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Where To Check Friendship

You can check friendship in the town shown on the map, right by the desert. Talk to the lady there and ask her to look at your Pokémon. She gives you a line that hints at how close your Riolu is to the friendship level needed for evolution.

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Trigger The Evolution Into Lucario

After you stack a few friendship boosts, keep battling weak Pokémon in Let’s Go mode, then feed a few candies and level up. The example shown uses around 10 minutes in Let’s Go mode and a few candies, and the evolution triggers shortly after. The evolution happened around level 33 in the shown run, but the key factor is friendship, not the exact level number.

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