Shiny Rayquaza raid guide for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet

Starting today, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are hosting a 5-Star Shiny Rayquaza raid event that’s accessible to all players. Previous raid events we’ve reported on have been 7 stars, which are significantly more difficult. In other words, even though this is a Legendary Pokemon raid, it shouldn’t give you quite as much trouble as the other raid events Pokemon Scarlet and Violet have hosted in the past. Here’s how to take down and catch the Shiny Rayquaza raid before the event ends on January 5, 2025.

Shiny Rayquaza raid guide

This time around, the Shiny Rayquaza raid is running Tera Dragon. This means it doesn’t have its signature quadruple weakness to Ice; just a standard double weakness instead. It’s also weak to Fairy and Dragon-type moves. For attacks, Rayquaza can choose from Dragon Ascent, Earthquake, Dragon Pulse, Extreme Speed, Hurricane, Dragon Dance, and Draco Meteor. Overall, the best type here is absolutely Fairy-types – just make sure you pick a Pokemon that isn’t weak to Ground or Flying as well. Here are some of our suggestions.

We actually solo cleared this event with Crowned form Zacian even though it’s weak to Earthquake. More specifically, we used a build with an Adamant nature, 252 EVs in Attack and HP, and the moves Play Rough and Swords Dance. Those are actually the only two attacks you really need. At the beginning of the battle, use Play Rough over and over again until you are KO’d. Once you’re revived, Terastallize immediately to shed your Ground weakness and then use Swords Dance once or twice. Then keep hitting it with Play Rough and you should clear the Shiny Rayquaza raid fairly easily.

If you’re playing with friends, a good idea for a support build is Bronzong with Light Screen, Reflect, and Light Clay. Rayquaza can’t really hit Bronzong for any meaningful damage, and Bronzong can use something like Ice Spinner for weak damage. You’re probably better off going for an offensive build, however; Azumarill with Huge Power and Play Rough is another great option. We’d recommend some HP and Attack investment for its EVs, as well as a Shell Bell or Choice Band for its item. You could go with Belly Drum and a Sitrus Berry as well, but cutting your health in half for a moment via Belly Drum always comes with its own set of risks. Other Fairy-types work okay too, but we found Azumarill to work best.

Were you able to defeat the Shiny Rayquaza raid with a different setup we didn’t include here? If so, feel free to share the counter you came up with in the comments down below. If you want to read up on more Pokemon Scarlet and Violet guides, we have a ton of them archived over at our master list.

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet are available now for Switch. You can visit the official website here.