What’s going on, Buttonmashers? Here’s what you need to know to be a better gamer in the latest Pokémon go update.
This guide will be split into three parts; Coins, Battles, and the newest part, Raids.
Battles
Battles have gotten a lot easier in this update – you don’t have level up a gym to be able to put a Pokémon into it. The flip side of that is that only 6 unique Pokémon can be in a gym at a time.
That means that you can’t have a gym with 2 Blisseys (sp) and 4 Snorlaxes. Because no one needs that sort of headache.
Also, the order that you fight the rival gym’s Pokémon is random. So even if you did have your Blissey with Max IVs in HP and Defense in the gym, there is still a chance that the CP 800 Wobbuffet would be battled before you. This leads us into another new feature with battles and that is motivation.
Pokémon, when put in a gym, will have a heart above them that shows their motivation- which directly impacts the CP they fight opponents with! When the Pokémon’s motivation hits zero, they will leave the gym and come back with the coins they’ve earned. I’ll explain the new coin system in a later section. Motivation can decrease over time and through losing battles against other teams, so check on your Pokémon from time to time.
Be sure to feed your Pokémon right after you place them into a gym as they do not start out with full motivation. While you’re at it, go ahead and feed any other Pokémon in the gym as you get 20 Stardust for each berry used and a slight level gain on the Gym Badge.
I’ve yet to decipher what exactly you get for leveling up a Gym Badge completely. I do know that you get a “Team Bonus” when you swipe that gym stop that will give you more, if not better items.
Niantic have implemented a 10 minute rule for trainers putting in Pokémon that weren’t part of the battle winners when a gym is overturned. So make sure make to take down the gym together, in a team.
Coins
Earning Coins in Pokémon go has become much easier! Your Pokémon now earn 1 coin for every 10 minutes that they are holding a particular Gym. That sounds great until you realize that you only receive the coins when the Pokémon is knocked out of the Gym. Gone are the days of leveling up a gym to get your Pokémon and collecting your Defender bonus for the day.
I know that isn’t how everyone was doing it- I wasn’t so lucky. #mywifeneverstoppedplaying
Here’s the breakdown for the most efficient coin collection
• 1 coin = 10 min
• 50 coins = 500 min
• 500 min / 60 min = 8 hours
The Pokémon only needs to be in a Gym for 8 hours to get your 50 max coins for the day. Please note that if two Pokémon that have been in gyms for 8 hours each get knocked out in the same day, you still only earn 50 coins. After that, there’s no need to keep the Pokémon motivated as it has earned all the coins that it can for the day.
Which reminds me….
Raids
Arguably the best feature added to the game are raids. They are special battles against a powered up Pokémon, ranging from two to five times the normal level. You can fight this solo or with a group and must use a raid pass to enter the raid battle.
You get one free raid pass per day after swiping a Gym. So if done right, you can do two raids in a day without sacrificing your hard-earned coins.
When you see the raid Pokemon, there will be a suggested player count. You can ignore that. Players that are level 30 and above can take a one to two star raid on their own. It’s only when you get to three, four, and five star raids that you might need some help. You can even work together with the rival teams to take down the raid.
Only in a raid can you get special items, like Fast and Charged TM’s. These items give you the ability to change to moveset of your Pokemon. Now you can finally, make your Tyranitar forget Fire Blast.
Other special items include Golden Razz Berries and Rare Candies. The Golden Razz Berries make Pokémon even easier to catch than regular Razz Berries and Rare Candies turn into one candy of the Pokémon you use it on.
Keep in mind that you have to do at least two and three star raids to get the TM’s.
Defeating the raid Pokémon not only gives you items, but you get the chance to catch the Pokémon itself! You won’t be catching at the same CP level it was when you fought it but to be able to catch a Tyranitar in the wild is a feat. The team that but in the most to defeat the raid Pokemon Mr. will earn the better items and special Premier balls to catch the raid Pokemon