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Completing the Pokédex With Gens 1 and 2 (Pokémon Crystal)

There are 251 Pokémon in Crystal's Pokédex. Only 249 are needed to get the certificate from the Game Freak employee in Celadon City. The game is programmed to accept any 249, meaning if you use the Mew glitch or Celebi egg glitch to get Mew or Celebi, or have access to the GS Ball Celebi in your copy of Crystal, you can skip up to two other Pokémon. That said, this page focuses on getting the 249 Pokémon that aren't Mew and Celebi.

In order to complete the Pokédex in Pokémon Crystal with Gen 1 and Gen 2 games you will need access to at minimum a copy of Pokémon Gold and a copy of either Pokémon Japanese Green/International Blue or Pokémon Yellow, or a copy of Pokémon Silver and a copy of either Pokémon Red or Pokémon Yellow.
Access to Gold and Red or Japanese Blue is not sufficient, as Vulpix and Ninetales are only available in Silver, Japanese Green/International Blue, and Yellow.
Access to Silver and Japanese Green/International Blue or Japanese Blue is not sufficient, as Mankey and Primeape are only available in Gold, Red, and Yellow.
Access to only Gen 2 games will not enable you to get all 249 Pokémon, as several are missing from the Gen 2 games entirely; see here for instructions if you only have access to Gen 2 games.
Access to only Gen 1 games is not sufficient, as Mareep, Flaaffy, Ampharos, Girafarig, Remoraid, and Octillery are not in Crystal, and cannot be obtained in any Gen 1 game due to their being introduced in Gen 2.

Version Exclusives

The following version-exclusive Pokémon have to be traded from another game:

• Mareep, Flaaffy, Ampharos (Gold, Silver)
• Vulpix, Ninetales (Japanese Green/International Blue, Yellow, Silver)
• Mankey, Primeape (Red, Yellow, Gold)
• Girfarig (Gold, Silver)
• Remoraid, Octillery (Gold, Silver)

Mutually Exclusive Pokémon

Several Pokémon are mutually exclusive, meaning that if you get one species, you cannot get at least one other species. The list of mutually exclusive species is below.

• Starters: Chikorita/Bayleef/Meganium, Cyndaquil/Quilava/Typhlosion, Totodile/Croconaw/Feraligatr

Within Gen 1, as well, some Pokémon are mutually exclusive.

• Starters: Bulbasaur/Ivysaur/Venusaur, Charmander/Charmeleon/Charizard, Squirtle/Wartortle/Blastoise (except in Yellow, where you can acquire all three)
• Fossils: Omanyte/Omastar, Kabuto/Kabutops

In order to get all the Kanto starters, Johto starters, and Fossils, you will need multiple files.
For Gen 2, you would need to do the following:

• Pick a Starter on one game.
• On the second game, pick a different Starter.
• Trade the second game's Starter to the first game.
• Start a new file on the second game, pick the third Starter.

Now you will have two starters on your first file, and another Starter on your second. At this point, trade back and forth until the game you're trying to complete the Pokédex on has data for each Starter.
You will need to breed your Starters, or keep them unevolved, in order to register data for all stages.

To get Kanto starters and Fossils, you will need to do the following:

• Start a new game. Play up until you are able to revive the fossil you receive from Mt. Moon. If you are playing Yellow, transfer the Fossil and all three Starters to Gen 2. Otherwise, transfer the Fossil and your single Starter.
• Start a new file, or play a second Gen 1 game. Choose a different starter (if not playing Yellow), and the other Fossil. On reviving the Fossil, transfer it (and your Starter if not playing Yellow) to Gen 2.
• If not playing Yellow, start a third file, and pick the final starter to transfer.

After considering the Starters and Fossils, the only Pokémon left exclusive to Gen 1 games are four legendaries: Articuno, Zapdos, Moltres, and Mewtwo. Any Gen 1 game has access to them, so play a file until you can access them (or use one of the files that you already used for transferring Starters/Fossils) and send them on to Gen 2.

Trade Evolutions

Ten Pokémon evolve by trading: Golem, Machamp, Alakazam, Gengar, Politoed, Slowking, Steelix, Scizor, Kingdra, and Porygon2. The easiest way to get data for them is to trade them to another game and immediately trade the newly-evolved Pokémon back.
You will need two King's Rocks, two Metal Coats, one Dragon Scale, and one Upgrade to evolve Politoed, Slowking, Steelix, Scizor, Kingdra, and Porygon2. The following list contains locations for each.

• Metal Coat: S.S. Aqua, and held by a Magneton you receive in a trade. Can also be held by wild Magnemite, allowing for an infinite supply of Metal Coats.
• King's Rock: Slowpoke Well, and held by Cooltrainer Gaven's Kingler in his second rematch. Can also be held by wild Slowpoke and Poliwhirl, allowing for an infinite supply of King's Rocks.
• Dragon Scale: Mt. Mortar. Can also be held by wild Horsea, Seadra, Dratini, and Dragonair, allowing for an infinite supply of Dragon Scales.
• Upgrade: Silph Co. There is only one, so after using it to evolve Porygon, you cannot get any more without restarting.

Note that of this list, only Golem, Machamp, Alakazam, and Gengar can be obtained via trades with Gen 1 games.