Pokémon Scarlet and Violet – tera raid battles

We’re slowly learning more about Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, and the most recent Pokémon Presents gave us a look at one big difference, the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet tera raid battles. Using the brand new mechanic known as Pokémon Scarlet and Violet terastal Pokémon, raids are about to get a lot shinier.

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet tera raid battles are similar to Sword and Shield’s max raid battles, but there are a few important differences, so we’re going to break it all down for you today, and tell you exactly what you need to know to get battling with friends when the latest generation launches later this year.

For even more great coverage on Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, be sure to check out our great guides. We’ve covered Pokémon Scarlet & Violet co-op, Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Paldea region, and the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet legendaries.

Here’s our guide to Pokémon Scarlet and Violet tera raid battles.

What are Pokémon Scarlet and Violet tera raid battles?

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet’s tera raid battles are limited-time four vs one Pokémon battles between four trainers and one terastallized Pokémon. These powered-up Pokémon are much stronger than regular Pokémon, so it takes all four trainers to bring them down. You can play online with three other friends, or you can play offline and fill the vacant spots with NPC players.

If you ever took part in Pokémon Sword and Shield’s max raid battles, this mechanic has been brought over largely intact with the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet tera raid battles, but with a few key differences. First of all, players no longer wait for other people to take their turns, with everyone attacking on their own schedule. So keep attacking, and keep an eye on what your teammates are doing.

Additionally, as well as the ability to use your regular movies is the new ability to cheer. Using the cheer move takes up a regular move slot, but rewards every single Pokémon on your side, including those of your allies. The buffs available from using cheer include increases to attack, special attack, defence, and special defence.

Pokémon who appear in tera raids are Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Terastal Pokémon, so in line with this new mechanic, they may have a tera type that is different from their regular type. This makes planning for these battles much tricker than before and will add new importance to a Pokémon’s move set and clever type coverage. This also means tera raid Pokémon are unpredictable, adding freshness to each battle and a nice amount of longevity to the new battle mechanic.

How do I find Pokémon Scarlet and Violet tera raid battles?

Tera raid battles are found in the open plains of Paldea, in the form of shining crystals. The colour of the crystal matches the tera type of the Pokémon within, so if you find a green crystal, you’re about to battle a Pokémon with the grass tera type. As you explore, a shining light will shoot upwards from these crystals making them easier to spot.

How do I play Pokémon Scarlet and Violet tera raid battles with friends?

Once you engage with a shining crystal in the overworld, trainers can choose to either challenge the tera raid as a group with other players online, challenge them alone, and also have the option to choose from your current Pokémon team or those in your Pokémon box.

When you decide to challenge a tera raid, you can search for allies online, or you try to join other allies by using a link code. We don’t yet know if you’re able to invite friends directly to these raids, but if its anything like Sword and Shield, the best way to approach things may be sharing link codes with your friends and communicating outside of the game via Discord or something similar as you do so.

How do I catch Pokémon Scarlet and Violet tera raid Pokémon?

If you defeat a tera Pokémon in a tera raid before the allotted time limit ends, you’re presented with the opportunity to catch that specific Pokémon. You’re given the option to use a Poké ball from your collection, though currently the catch rates for these Pokémon are unknown, and will likely depend on the type and level of the Pokémon you are attempting to catch. Regardless of whether you catch the Pokémon, successfully defeating it in a tera raid will always reward you with useful items.

What are the current Pokémon Scarlet and Violet tera raid events?

Currently, as we patiently wait for the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet release date there are no plans for any specific tera raid events. We’ll update this guide in the future with more information as and when it arrives.

We hope this guide made things a bit clearer for you, and remember we will be updating this guide with all the information about tera raid events as and when we get it. If you just can’t wait to get stuck in and explore Paldea, be sure to check out our Pokémon Scarlet and Violet pre-order guide now.