Trainers once again have an opportunity to find an easy Shiny in this weekend’s Pokémon: Sword & Shield Max Raid event, and the Shiny with increased odds is the Galarian squirrel Skwovet. While previous events have featured more exciting or useful Pokémon, this Max Raid weekend has chosen to feature the obligatory Route 1 normal-type rodent.
Max Raid weekends are special events that Pokémon: Sword & Shield hold every so often. These are themed events that feature a group of similar Pokémon, either in appearance or typing, that appear more frequently in Max Raids. Defeating these Pokémon will also net trainers special items such as increased Experience Candy or rare berries. Each Max Raid event also gives one of the featured Pokémon increased Shiny odds making its Shiny form much easier to come by. Previous events have featured Shiny Wailord, Clefairy, Gourgeist, and many more.
Now, trainers have the chance to catch the elusive red squirrel that is Shiny Skwovet, in a new event announced by Game Freak. The event started on Thursday, November 19, and will end on Sunday, November 22. During this time, Max Raids will feature Cherubi, Amoonguss, Shiinotic, and Greedent along with an increased chance to find Shiny Skwovet. When completing Max Raid battles against the featured Pokémon, players will receive a large number of berries including some of the rarest berries. While Game Freak hasn’t revealed the Shiny odds for the event, PKMNCast on Twitter has broken down the odds of encountering every featured Pokémon.
Shiny Skwovet has a whopping 2 percent chance to appear in Max Raids, which are the raids that have five stars. Compared to the normal Shiny odds outside of events, these odds are astronomical. This means that players have a 1 in 50 chance of encountering a Shiny Skwovet. Usually, trainers have a .02 percent chance to encounter a Shiny Pokémon in raids, or a .14 percent chance if they have the Shiny Charm. Players who are looking to add a Shiny squirrel to their team won’t want to miss out on this event.
Shiny Pokémon are extremely rare and normally require a lot of patience and dedication when hunting outside of events. While some players may think these increased odds may devalue a Shiny, it’s nice that Game Freak allows everyone a chance to find one. Plus, how much is a Shiny Skwovet really worth? Of all the Gen 8 Pokémon introduced in Pokémon: Sword & Shield, Skwovet might just be the least sought after.
Sources: Pokémon, PKMNCast