Pokemon GO Raids: Bosses, Passes, Raid Hour, And More
Pokemon GO raids explained including bosses, raid passes, raid hour, and everything else you need to know.
Pokemon GO raids are a huge feature in the hit Pokemon mobile game, and you absolutely must participate in them if you want to stand any chance of completing your Pokedex. Unfortunately, learning how raids work in Pokemon GO is largely a case of trial and error unless you read this guide. From raid bosses and raid passes to the different tiers of raid you can take on, we've got everything you need to know about Pokemon GO raids.
Pokemon GO Raids Explained
Raids are special battle events, that take place exclusively in gyms. You can recognise them in-game easily, as they’re marked by an orange or pink outline on top of a Gym. Tapping the gym will show you what Pokemon you’ll have to battle, and its CP level – indicating the difficulty. From there, you can try and take it alone, but you’ll ideally want to be fighting alongside other Trainers. If you see an egg on a gym with a countdown timer, that means a raid will be starting there at the end of the timer.
When in the Raid, combat is relatively simple: you choose your roster of six Pokemon, and rapidly tap the screen to attack. Alongside that are the powered-up special attacks from normal battles, without a charge-up minigame. You can also dodge charged attacks from the raid boss by swiping left and right. If you and your teammates manage to defeat the raid Pokemon, you’ll be granted a number of Premier Balls, exclusive to Raids, to try and catch the target.
Pokemon GO Raids: How To Use Raid Passes
The good news is that you can fight with Trainers from different Teams, putting allegiances aside to focus on the goal. To join the Raid, you have to use a Raid Pass. These are a special kind of item that grant you access to Raids, and there’s several different types:
- Raid Pass – these are the regular Passes, that let you join a Raid if you’re standing next to the Gym in question. You can earn a Raid Pass every day by spinning Gyms, but can only use one a day.
- Premium Raid Pass – slightly different to normal Raid Passes, these can only be used once, but let you partake in more than one Raid a day. Therefore, if you have two of these, you can fight in two Raids without limits.
- Remote Raid Pass – arguably the best Raid Pass, these let you join Raids that you aren’t geographically close to. With these, you can accept a friend’s invite to help them in a Raid, even if you’re far away.
Once you’ve chosen the desired pass all you have to do is tap it, then you’re greeted with a waiting room. It’ll grant you two minutes to invite fellow Trainers and choose your Pokemon lineup, and then battle begins.
Pokemon GO Raids: Different Raid Tiers
There are four different types of Raid in Pokemon GO: 1-star, 3-star, 5-star, and Mega Raids. As you might expect, the star rating correlates with the strength and rarity of the target Pokemon. 5-star Raids usually involve the toughest and most rare Pokemon, while 1-star Raids can often be defeated playing solo. For example, in late 2020, the legendary Pokemon Giratina appeared in 5-star Raids, which gives you an idea of the sort of Pokemon you’ll encounter in these Raids. Therefore, if you’re teaming up with friends, it’s best to save your Passes for the toughest Raids.
On top of that are Mega Raids, containing the Mega-evolved versions of regular Pokemon. These Raids are indicated by a pink outline on Gyms, and are even tougher than 5-star Raids.
Raid bosses for all the different tiers change frequently, so it's worth checking The Silph Road to see which Pokemon you can obtain from raids at any given time.
That’s everything you’ll need to know about Pokemon GO Raids, and how to take them on. If you want more Pokemon GO, check out our guides below:
Pokemon Go Ditto | Pokemon Go Eevee evolutions | Pokemon Go promo codes | Pokemon Go teams | Best Pokemon in Pokemon Go | Pokemon Go Mewtwo | Pokemon Go Arlo counters | Pokemon Go Cliff counters | Pokemon Go Sierra counters | Pokemon Go Giovanni counters
About The Author
Luke Hinton
Luke Hinton is a freelance culture journalist with a focus on games and movies.
