Any Legendary is able to be shiny hunted in any game it appears in by saving right before the encounter is triggered and then reloading until the shiny appears. Rayquaza only shows up in the DLC of Scarlet and Violet, so having the chance to grab it from a raid den is super helpful for any shiny hunters who've been waiting for the chance. Tera Raids are a much more efficient way to guarantee Shiny Rayquaza can your team.

How To Catch Shiny Rayquaza

Beat The Main Game And Request Your Dens

Like other Tera Raids, you can complete as many encounters as you want to catch Shiny Rayquaza, but you can only actually catch it one time. While this means you won't be able to field a full set of black and gold sky dragons, one should be enough to round out any collection. There are only a few things you'll need to do before you can start your Tera Raid quests.

Firstly, you'll need to have beaten the game's main story. This doesn't include any of the DLC, so this shouldn't be too tricky. Once this is done, connect to the internet using the Poké Portal to refresh the dens in your game, which should allow Shiny Rayquaza to appear. If you haven't beaten the game for some reason, you can use Nintendo Switch Online to connect with other players and their instances of the Tera Raid.

Shiny Rayquaza Best Counters

There Are A Few Options, So Take Your Pick

Like any Pokémon battle, which 'mon you should use against Shiny Rayquaza depends on who you have in your PC. In an ideal world, you'll want to use one of four Pokémon: Magearna, Sylveon, Clefable, or Primarina. Shiny Rayquaza, like the regular version, is a Dragon/Flying-type, so Fairy- and Steel-type attacks will be your best friend here. Just like in Pokémon GO, Primarina is a reliable and consistent attacker.

Primarina, Sylveon, and Clefable are sort of interchangeable, and either of them is a good option. You're looking for them to have Calm Mind and Draining Kiss as well as be holding a Covert Cloak. The cloak prevents your Pokémon from being confused by Shiny Rayquaza's Hurricane. Calm Mind will boost your Sp. Def. and Sp. Atk. to allow Draining Kiss to sustain any of Shiny Rayquaza's attacks.

If you opt to go with Magearna, you're going to need to get a bit more specific when looking at your moveset and Ability. Here is the optimal Magearna build:

This build functions similarly to the Primarina and Sylveon builds with Draining Kiss, but also relies on the Soul-Heart Ability to buff itself and deal the most Sp. Atk. damage possible. Dazzling Gleam will be your main damage move, while you use Draining Kiss to keep yourself from fainting.

While it might take you multiple tries, you can run this raid as many times as you want during the event period from December 20 to January 5. As mentioned above, Shiny Rayquaza can only be caught once, so the only use in running it again after it's caught is to farm the materials you get as a reward. Shiny Rayquaza is one of many rare Pokémon to come to Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Tera Raids, and hopefully, it won't be the last.

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet

RPG

Released

November 18, 2022

ESRB

E For Everyone Due To Mild Fantasy Violence

Developer(s)

Game Freak

9/10

Pokémon returns in its next installment series: Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Set in a fictional town near Mediterranean Spain, gamers will explore Paldea, catching new and classic Pokémon. Pokémon Scarlet and Violet is the first ever open-world game in the series and features new Pokémon that can transform into vehicles. Pokémon staples like gym battles are still present, but co-op exploration and Terastallize battles are also introduced.

Publisher(s)

Nintendo, The Pokemon Company

Franchise

Pokemon

Platform(s)

Switch

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