New Pokédexes mean new novelties and Game Freak's Pokemon Scarlet and Violet sticks with that tradition with Tera Types. Similar to X and Y's Mega Evolutions, Sun and Moon's Z-Crystals, and Sword and Shield's Dynamaxing, the Terastal phenomenon is a new mechanic in the Paldea region that remixes the battle system and how it works. It pins type charts to movepools and introduces an entirely different form of discovery for new Pokemon such as Charcadet, Finizen, and Tandemaus. Terastallizing a new Pokemon has its positives, but it also makes Scarlet and Violet one of the more exciting entries in recent years. For starters, here's everything you need to know about Tera Types, including how to find them.
What is Terastallizing?
In the Paldea region, local Pokemon can crystallize through a new phenomenon called Terastallizing. When a Pokemon Terastallizes, a shiny Tera Jewel appears above its head (like a hat) and its original type changes into a tertiary Tera Type that grants special powers. Terastallizing requires a Tera Orb that’s acquired from Nemona in the first hour of Scarlet and Violet, and you cannot Terastallize a Pokemon again until the Orb is recharged through shining crystals or at a Pokemon Center.
What are Tera Types?
Tera Types are a third typing assigned to Pokemon through Terastallizing and they can increase the power of a Pokemon's moves with the same Tera Type (i.e. Fire, Psychic) and change their strengths and weaknesses. Tera Types are inactive until a Pokemon Terastallizes during a battle or a Tera Raid and each Pokemon's Tera Type can be viewed in the menu system next to their original typing.
There's a total of 18 different Tera Types in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, including:
- Bug
- Dark
- Dragon
- Electric
- Fairy
- Fighting
- Fire
- Ghost
- Grass
- Ground
- Ice
- Normal
- Poison
- Psychic
- Rock
- Steel
- Water
If a Pokemon’s Tera Type matches one of its existing types, then a 50% damage boost or Same Type Attack Bonus (STAB) is applied to its own "super effective" moves--meaning if a Fire-type Growlithe Terastallizes into a Fire-Type, its Flame Wheel attack will be boosted twice. If a Pokemon's Tera Type doesn’t match at all, like a Paldean Wooper (Poison/Ground) that also has a third Dragon-type, then its defensive typing will change and its same-type attacks will gain or retain additional bonuses.
How to find Tera Type Pokemon
Our advice? Explore. Every Pokemon in Paldea's open world has a Tera Type which means there is an Electric-type Dragonair out there somewhere. Pokemon that can Terastallize can be discovered in the wild next to villages, caverns, and Team Star Bases while others with more unique types usually roam the overworld as crystallized beacons of light. These wild Pokemon can be seen from afar and are automatically Terastallized at the start of battles as they're higher level pocket monsters that can't be caught until their health bar is reduced to red and their Terastallize form is completely broken.
Other Pokemon with differing Tera Types can also be acquired in Tera Raid Battles. These Raids are marked on the Paldean map with symbols that indicate a specific Pokemon class and they are also represented in the world by luminous crystals (and towers) that glow throughout each province.
How do Tera Raid Battles work?
Tera Raids are Sword and Shield's Max Raids, but better. They take place in large, crystallized domain expansions and throw four trainers (or three other NPCs) into a turn-based battle against a powerful Terastal Pokemon. Every raid in the Paldea region ranges from one to five stars and each trainer has to attack the Terastallized Pokemon in turns, with limited respawns and no items as players have to resort to three options for "cheering"--which can boost damage, defense, and healing allies.
Tera Raid Battles are found in the wild but they can also be joined through the Poke Portal that's in the game's menu system. They provide opportunities to catch unusual Terastal Pokemon but they also offer a handful of other rewards like berries, Exp. Candy, TM Materials, and hidden items such as Tera Shards. There's also Tera Raid Battle events that feature rare Tera Types and the first two are the Eevee Spotlight, from Thursday, November 24th to Sunday, November 27th, and Unrivaled Charizard, which kicks off its first wave next month from Thursday, December 1st to Sunday, December 4th.
Can you change a Pokemon's Tera Type?
The short answer: yes. Tera Raid Battles offer up limited items such as Tera Shards and while they are exceedingly rare, there are 18 different types of Tera Shards that represent the 18 different types that Pokemon can have. To use shards, players must defeat Larry, the Normal-type Gym Leader, and then return to the Treasure Eatery restaurant in Medali where the chef NPC will exchange 50 Tera Shards of the same type (i.e. Grass) to prepare a special dish that's served to the Pokemon of your choice.
For more on Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, check out our guides on Starters and Food Buffs.