Most Pokemon battles are 1v1, or in some cases, 2v1. But, whatever the case may be, it is usually a single player against the CPU. It’s usually an uphill battle, to be the very best like no one ever was.
But what if I told you that wasn’t the real test? Or that you didn’t have to do it alone?
In Pokemon GO, the hit mobile game released on Android and IoS, there is a feature called Raid Battles and Bosses.
A Raid Battle in Pokemon GO is when a boss Pokemon takes over a gym, and it’s your job to defeat them!
Raid Bosses Challenge is a coop experience where Trainers work with each other to defeat extremely strong Pokemon. But they don’t come around very often and only happen at gyms. Accordingly, Raid Battles occur only at Pokémon Gyms and might appear only from 5:00 AM to 7:45 PM in your local time, and only for 45 minutes.
A Gym is a stronghold where various teams battle it out for control of the location. For example, if Team Valour has it, then the raids will be held by Team Valour.
After that, the usual coop shenanigans begin, with 20 or so players fighting against a Raid Boss in a Raid Party, and players have to win in under five minutes.
When the Raid Boss is defeated, each Trainer gets several Premier Balls. Then, each trainer gets a chance to capture said Raid Boss Pokemon using the Premier Balls, along with any Berries they might have.
With this in mind, that begs the question, what sort of Raid Battles are there? Well, there are a few.
- Raid: the normal kind of battle, and the most common.
- Ultra Beast: When an extradimensional Pokemon controls your gym.
- Mega: when a gigantic Pokemon decides they want your gym.
- Primal: A blast from the past!
- Elite: When the best decide they need to knock you down a peg.
- EX Raid: These require special passes to attend.
And that should be everything! The nitty-gritty of each Pokemon Raid Battle is, quite frankly, debatable, as any guide written now will likely be outdated whenever the next patch comes around. In any case, have fun raiding in the sha….wait, that’s the wrong game.