If you’re looking for your next big challenge in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet then you’re going to need to know how to beat and catch Empoleon in the game. During a timed special event you’ll be able to catch the Pokémon, and because it doesn’t usually show up in Paldean encounters, it’s a rare opportunity for trainers.
If you’re not too sure what the Mightiest Mark is, it’s a special Pokémon credential that means that it’s incredibly strong compared to a normal version of it. As a result, the Mightiest Mark Empoleon should be much more powerful than any you will have come across in other games.
AdvertisementIn addition to the Empoleon having a Mightiest Mark, it’s also got the Ice-Type Tera, so it’s definitely going to be a strong addition to your team. As you can see from the picture above, it looks amazing, but when you take its stats into account then it’s going to make for a formidable ally in plenty of other Tera Raid Battles.
The bad news, though, is that there’s a very specific window of opportunity to be able to catch Mightiest Mark Empoleon, so you’re going to need to be on it. The good news, though, is that there will be two timed periods to aim for, so if you miss the first of these then you’ll have a second bight of the Applin a little later.
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Mightiest Mark Empoleon 7 Star Tera Raid battles time
Your first opportunity to catch Mightiest Mark Empoleon will be from Thursday, February 1, 2024, at 4:00pm Pacific Standard Time (7pm Eastern Time and midnight in the UK). This will run until Sunday, February 4, 2024, at 3:59pm Pacific Standard Time, so that’s 6:59pm Eastern Time and a minute to midnight in the UK.
AdvertisementIf you’re struggling to make the first, the second Tera Raid opportunity will be on Thursday, February 8, 2024, at 4:00pm Pacific Standard Time (7pm Eastern Time and midnight in the UK). You’ll then have until Sunday, February 11, 2024, at 3:59pm Pacific Standard Time (6:59pm Eastern Time and a minute to midnight in the UK) to land the catch.
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This will be your last chance, so make sure you don’t miss it if you want to add Mightiest Mark Empoleon to your team. However, it’s not just a case of opening the game and wildly trying out Tera Raid Battles. You’ll need to unlock the special Pokémon first, which you can read all about in the section below.
How to unlock the Mightiest Mark Empoleon Tera Raids
To unlock the turbo-powered Pokémon in Scarlet and Violet, you’ll need to activate the special Tera Raids to be able to battle it first. To do this, you just need to open up the Poké Portal and select Mystery Gift.
From there you need to choose Check Poké Portal News and from that point onward you’ll be good to go. To find the Tera Raids, you’ll be looking for the ones with a sparkling light shining from the crystal up into the sky.
However, you’ll only be able to do this if you’ve completed the post-game events that follow the main story, or if you join a 7-star Tera Raid Battle hosted by a Trainer who has completed them. If you’re not too sure what these are, you can get all of the details at the bottom of the page. There are some minor spoilers in them, but this should help you understand what you need to do.
It’s definitely possible to miss the Tera Raids, so get yourself a good vantage point up on high to be able to search the skyline for any beacons of light. You can also fly around on either Miraidon or Koraidon to be able to search for the Empoleon Tera Raids.
AdvertisementOnce you’ve found one, it’s just a case of heading up to it and interacting with the crystal to start the Tera Raid battle. Unfortunately, these are 7-star battles, so they’re going to be some of the toughest you’re ever likely to face. You can read our tips below to help you to beat and catch the super powered Pokémon.
How to catch Empoleon with the Mightiest Mark
Firstly, you’ll need to beat Mightiest Mark Empoleon in order to be given a chance to catch it. To do this, you definitely need to exploit its weaknesses. While it’s Ice Tera form might make you think Fire is its weakness, the reality is that it will probably use mostly water or steel attacks.
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When you look at this and the fact that both the main legendary Pokémon deal big damage in Tera Raid battles, they might be a better choice. Both fighting and electric moves will work well, and Scarlet players will have the added benefit of Koraidon’s Swords Dance to boost attacks for the following five moves.
If you’re looking for an alternative, Iron Hands is worth a try with its Thunder Punch and Drain Punch moves. The latter will do decent damage and give you a much needed HP boost each time it successfully lands.
You’re going to need your most powerful Pokémon with the advantages mentioned above to be able to tilt the dial against Mightiest Mark Empoleon. Make sure that you’ve got them leveled up to 100 and boosted their stats to give you the edge.
Fainting is a massive drain on time, so defense stats are incredibly important, so focus on these. You’ll already have the weakness advantage to help you out in terms of attack, so having a tank-like defense will help.
AdvertisementHowever, this will still be a challenge, so ideally you want to be in a team of friends that are set up in a similar way. This is by far the best way to face 7-star Tera Raid battles, and if you combine this with solid collaboration and tactics around healing (e.g. one member of the party having Blissey with Life Dew and Light Screen) then you can smash through Empoleon.
The other thing to take into account is held items. Punching Gloves, Muscle Bands, Metronome and Black Belt can all help with attack damage. However, you might also want to look at a Sitris Berry or Leftover to get a HP boost.
Once it’s been defeated, you’ll be given the opportunity to catch it. It goes without saying that you definitely want to do this after all of the effort to get to it and that will be the Pokémon added to your Scarlet and Violet collection.
You can only catch Mightiest Mark Empoleon once, but you can enter the 7-star Tera Raids as much as possible to boost out your rewards. These will be some of the best in the game, so it’s worth trying a few times once you’ve got the measure of it.
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What post-game content do you need to complete to face Mightiest Mark Empoleon?
After you complete the main story there is a series of post-game events that you can complete in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. These range from getting the Master Ball from Clavell to catching Paradox Pokémon to build out your team and Pokédex.
However, the challenge that is most related to Mightiest Mark Empoleon is unlocking 5-star and 6-star Tera Raid battles. The latter are represented by black crystals and it’s these that you’ll need to be able to fight chunky ice Empoleon during the event.
To unlock 5-star Tera Raid battles, you’ll need to complete the Academy Ace Tournament, but you can only get to this once you’ve all of the gym leaders for a second time. Once you’ve done all of this, you then need to move up to 6-star black crystal Tera Raids, which you can do by successfully beating 10 5-star battles.
Once you’ve got these and done the Poképortal unlock mentioned above you should be all clear to fight in the 7-star Tera Raid battles you need to complete to catch Empoleon. The tips above on how to beat him should help you get over the line, so drop a comment below once you land the catch.
You can also check out our computer games section to keep tabs on other releases or visit the Pokémon website at www.pokemon.com/ for more details.
