Pokemon GO Water Festival 2022 Guide

Pokemon GO Water Festival 2022 Guide

Unlike Community Days, Pokemon GO Festival events tend to last a full week or longer with plenty of time-limited events and event-limited Pokemon. Starting May 12, 10 a.m. and lasting until May 20th at 8 p.m. (local time) the Water Festival kicks off, bringing with it a series of Alolan-focused releases, a time-limited Lapras wearing a unique scarf accessory, and a brand-new shiny: Binacle and Barbaracle.

New Pokemon Releases – Scarf Lapras & Araquanid

Debuting with the Water Festival is the event Pokemon Lapras, wearing a unique scarf. This Lapras has a chance to be shiny and , you can increase your chances by completing the new event-specific Timed Research. They don’t have any special or unique skills from other Lapras, but if you’re a collector, you definitely want to snag a few before the event ends.

In addition, two new Pokemon debut during the Water Festival in Dewpider and Araquanid. Araquanid, in the mainline games at least, is a tanky Water and Bug dual-type that features high Special Defense. In Pokemon GO (at least in datamined information) Araquanid boasts a high Base Defense of over 215, but a low Base Attack of just under 130 and a max CP of 2065. It can learn Infestation and Bug Bite as Quick Moves, and Bug Buzz, Bubble Beam, and Mirror Coat as Charge Moves. Whether or not this Pokemon will climb up the water spout is unknown, but it wouldn’t hurt to grab a few itsy bitsy spiders, just in case.

New Research, Raids, and Challenges

In addition to the new Pokemon, the Season of Alola continues with special research related to Poni Island, the home of Tapu Fini, a legendary Water and Fairy that will be appearing in Raids throughout the Water Festival. Tapu Fini has a high max CP of 3230, and features Water Gun and Hidden Power as Quick Moves, and Surf, Moonblast, Ice Beam, and Hydro Pump as Charge Moves.

The Timed Research mentioned earlier also has a chance to reward you with Gyarados Mega Energy, increased Dewpider and Scarf Lapras spawns, and plenty of Stardust to level up your new Tapu Finis. You also will see a marked increase in Water Pokemon spawns, such as Tympole, Carvanha, Alomomola, Mantine and more. To top it all off, Binacle’s Shiny form will be unlocked, allowing players an opportunity to add another Shiny to their collection.

Finally, Raids will cycle out to focus on Water Pokemon. Here are your raid targets:

One-Star: Qwilfish, Wailmer, Spritzee, Helioptile, Rockruff
Three-Star: Alolan Raichu, Scarf Lapras, Feraligatr, Azumaril, Ludicolo
Five-Star: Tapu Fini
Mega: Mega Blastoise

Of those, Qwilfish, Wailmer, Rockruff, Alolan Raichu, Scarf Lapras, and Mega Blastoise can all be shiny. We recommend stocking up on Electric or Grass type Pokemon to help you in these raids. Some excellent choices would be Venusaur, Manectric and Ampharos (as well as their Mega variants), or any Electric-type legendary, such as Thunderus, Raikou, or Zekrom. A budget, non-Legendary but still excellent choice would be Roserade or Electivire.

Tips for Catching Scarf Lapras

Keep an eye on nearby raids. Tapu Fini may be rarer, but let’s be honest, a Lapras with a scarf? Infinitely more valuable.
Complete those Field Research tasks! Scarf Lapras is a rare encounter after each you complete!
If you encounter a Shiny Scarf Lapras in a raid, remember that your Premier Ball gets upgraded to a 100% catch rate. Don’t panic!
For the normal variants, there is a pity timer on catching a raid boss which maxes out around your tenth attempt. Keep going and you’ll eventually catch one!

New Encounters and Egg Hatchlings

When you complete your Field Research, you have an increased chance to find Water-types such as Dewpider, Binacle, and of course, Scarf Lapras. In addition, when you hatch 7km Eggs, you have an increased chance to find specific Water-types.

Common: Psyduck (Shiny), Azurill (Shiny), and Mantyke.
Uncommon: Mudkip, Feebas, and Binacle (All Shiny)
Rare: Staryu and Clamperl (Both Shiny)

Don’t forget to stock up on Egg Incubators before the Festival kicks off to try and track down these rare additions to your collection.

Poni Island Special Research Tasks and Rewards

Though it outlasts this event, we also recommend completing these Poni Island Special Research Tasks! For these, you have until June 1, 2022.

A Poni Adventure – Step 1 of 4

Tasks:

Catch 10 Pokemon – Rewards ten PokeBalls.
Power Up Pokemon 5 Times – Rewards five Razz Berries.
Defeat 2 Team GO Rocket Grunts – Rewards three Hyper Potions.

Complete this step for 500 XP, 500 Stardust, and an Alolan Raticate encounter.

A Poni Adventure – Step 2 of 4

Tasks:

Catch 3 Water-type Pokemon – Rewards a Tentacruel Encounter.
Take a snapshot of a Water-type Pokemon (One of Yours) – Rewards a Wailmer Encounter.
Use 5 berries to help catch Pokemon – Rewards a Wingull Encounter.

Complete this step for 500 XP, 500 Stardust, and a Fast TM.

A Poni Adventure – Step 3 of 4

Tasks:

Walk 2 Kilometers – Rewards a Miltank encounter.
Catch 15 Pokemon – Rewards a ten Great Balls.
Spin 5 PokeStops or Gyms – Rewards a Stufful encounter.

Complete this step for 1,000 XP, 1,000 Stardust, and a Premium Battle Pass.

A Poni Adventure – Step 4 of 4

Tasks:

Send 5 Gifts to Friends – Rewards ten Great Balls.
Catch 15 Pokemon – Rewards seven Pinap Berries.
Win a Raid – Rewards a Alolan Exeggutor encounter.

Complete this step for a whopping 8,000 XP, 3,000 Stardust, and 15 Ultra Balls.

Author: Deann Hawkins