Pokémon Scarlet and Violet tera raid battles

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet tera raid battles are exciting unique battles in Paldea, with fantastical ‘mons up for grabs. Similar to Sword and Shield’s max raid battles, these collaborative challenges see you try and take down a Pokémon with a typing twist, in an all-new concept for the ninth generation of catching ’em all.

For even more great coverage on Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, be sure to check out our fantastic 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 the current Pokémon Scarlet and Violet tera raid events?

Every now and then, you can take part in special Pokémon Scarlet and Violet tera raid events to get special ‘mons. By approaching tera crystals on your map or accessing the Poké Portal, you can join in the events below when they take place (so make a note on your calendar!)

How do I counter the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet tera raid Chesnaught event?

After a brief delay due to some technical hitches, Chesnaught is back in tera raids, alongside Great Tusk and Iron Treads. Chesnaught is one of the easier foes you can face, but that doesn’t mean it’s a pushover. Even with the rock tera type, don’t rush in with a water type and it’s grass STAB moves are dangerous.

Some tips are shared by YouTube creator Austin John Plays below:

While another strategy is shared by PKMNcast:

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet paradox Pokémon tera Raid

During the February 2023 Pokémon Presents, Nintendo announced two new Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Paradox Pokémon are arriving in the Paldea region, with Walking Wake appearing in Scarlet and Iron Leaves appearing in Violet.

You can catch them for yourself by claiming victory in the new Tera Raid battle event, kicking off shortly after the Pokémon Presents on February 27 (which also happens to be Pokémon Day).

During the event, official notes confirmed that you can only catch one Walking Wake and one Iron Leaves per save data during this event. You can still participate in all Tera Raid Battles during the event period and receive other rewards even after catching both Pokémon. Both Walking Wake and Iron Leaves will appear again in future events.

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-for-this-generation battle mechanic.

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

You can find Pokémon Scarlet and Violet tera raid battles 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. Just like Sword and Shield, you can play with friends by using a link code, or without one, if you’re playing multiplayer in the overworld.

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. Regardless of whether you catch the Pokémon, successfully defeating it in a tera raid will always reward you with useful items.

There you have it, all you need to know about Pokémon Scarlet and Violet tera raids. For more help picking the right fight on your trip through Paldea, check out our Pokémon Scarlet and Violet gym leaders and Pokémon Quest recipes guides.