Latias

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Latias
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Page Type(s)	N/A
Franchise	Pokémon
Basic Information
Height	4' 7" (1.4 m)
Weight	88.2 lb (40 kg)
Ability	Levitate
Evolutionary Information
Stage	Basic
Gender	100% Female
Species	Eon Pokémon
Appearance(s)	Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire

Latias (ラティアス, Ratiasu) is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon franchise. Created by Ken Sugimori, Latias first appeared as a central character in the film Pokémon Heroes, and later appeared in the video games Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, also appearing in various merchandise, spinoff titles and animated and printed adaptations of the franchise. It is voiced in Japan by Megumi Hayashibara.

Known as the Eon Pokémon, Latias is a legendary Pokémon originating from the Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald series of games. They are female, and the first legendary Pokémon to have genders. Their male counterpart is Latios.

Design and characteristics

As with all the characters introduced in Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, Latias was designed by Ken Sugimori with the help of Ruby and Sapphire's development team. Latias are bird-like dragon Pokémon vaguely resembling Lugia. The lower half of their body is red with jet-plane wings and stubby feet. They have a red triangle-shaped ring on their chest. The upper-half of Latias's body is white. They have a red face with a white spot in the middle.

Latias is highly intelligent and can understand human speech. She can telepathically communicate with others. Latias will form small herds of several members. They will rarely make contact with people or other Pokémon. If Latias senses hostility towards herself, she will ruffle the feathers all over her body and cry shrilly to intimidate her foe. However, she will usually disappear if she senses an enemy, as they are able to use a form of active camouflage by enfolding their bodies with their glass-like coat of down and refracting light in unique ways, allowing them to become invisible or even take on the appearance of a human.

Appearances

In the video games

Latias first appears in Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, after completing the Pokémon League. They are found on a random-encounter basis, similar to that of Raikou, Entei, and Suicune in Gold, Silver, and Crystal. She can also be found in Pokémon Emerald, a remake of Ruby and Sapphire, after completing the Pokémon League. In Emerald, the player's mother tells him or her to watch a TV news story, which explains that a Pokémon has been seen; the player may answer that the Pokémon was red or blue, which chooses which one will appear. They can also be obtained in their partner's respective version via the Eon Ticket, an e-Card given to the player after attending a Nintendo promotional event or in an issue of Nintendo Power. In Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, Latias or Latios will roam Kanto, after receiving the National Pokédex. The other can be obtained through a Wi-Fi event.

In Pokémon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire, if the ball drops out of the field while the "Ball Saver" is active, Latias will rescue it and place it on Spoink without the ball being lost. Latias also appears in the non-Pokémon-exclusive video game Super Smash Bros. Brawl appearing in tandem with Latios as Pokémon appearing from Poké Ball items, alternately zooming onto the stage, damaging any opponent that collides with them.

In other media

Latias have a starring role in the movie Pokémon Heroes as guardians of Altomare, a city modeled after Venice, Italy. Latias and her brother, Latios were the targets of Annie and Oakley. Latias assisted Ash in the mission to save Latios. Latios did not trust humans as his sister did, but at the end of the film, Latios sacrifices himself to protect Altomare from a tremendous tsunami showing his loyalty and love to his friends there, marking the first actual Pokémon death in the anime series. After his death Latios becomes a new Soul Dew and is placed as the new guardian of Altomare. Latias and Latios also appeared in Pikachu's Ocean Adventure where, they used their powers to help Pikachu, Meowth and the other Pokémon search for the legendary 'Wailord's Tear' beneath the ocean.

In the Pokémon Adventures manga, Latias, along with Latios, was befriended by Emerald and took the young Trainer to the Battle Frontier. She appeared in a human a few times by using her ability to reflect light. Latios helped Todd watch the events going on on top of the Battle Pyramid.