Pokemon GO Halloween 2019 Guide

Fall is upon us, and that means that it's time to re-visit the Halloween Event in Pokemon Go. Back in 2016, Halloween was actually the focus of the first event released in the game, making it something of a special time for many players. The event has evolved quite a bit over the years, but our goal is to help you cut through the confusion and help you to focus on the most important aspects of this time-honored event.

Event Information 

• 2x Candy from Catches, Hatches, and Transfers
• The Return of "A Spooky Message", with Spiritomb as the final reward
• The Introduction of Yamask and Cofagrigus, including their Shiny Formes
• The release of the Mythical Pitch-Black Pokemon, Darkrai in Raid Battles
• Additional Dark and Ghost Type Pokemon appearing in the wild, eggs, and raids
• New Shadow Pokemon available via Team Rocket battles
• The release of costumed versions of Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle in raids
• The release of a new costumed version of Pikachu in the wild
• New Halloween themed Avatar Items
• Lavender Town night music

Infographic

Official Video

While many parts of this event are obvious, some are able to work together in order to give you a greater advantage in moving forward.

2x Candy

Every Catch, Hatch, and Transfer gives 2x candy. While we really don't have much control over what hatches, we can make sure that we're efficient with our other bonuses.

• Look at what Legendary Pokemon that you may have been holding onto. Is it likely to ever give you an advantage? If not, then consider transferring it!
• Focus on Pokemon that you need or want. The event is likely to have a number of powerful Pokemon families featured such as Gengar and Golurk, so work out your priorities in advance!
• Prioritize Pinap berries. Not only are they useful for leveling up desired Pokemon, but stockpiling candy for common Pokemon can be useful for mass-evolving to gain experience later if you are below Lv.40

New Shadow Pokemon

While Team Rocket Content may not be the highest priority for some players, it is a good source of above-average Pokemon IVs, and a fairly predictable candy source for the event.

• Do you know the taglines that Grunts will say for each type? You can get a good idea as to what you're going to catch with them!
• Remember that Purified Pokemon gain +2 to all IVs, meaning it's a bit easier to find a higher IV Pokemon this way.
• Remember that Purified Pokemon also cost 10% less Stardust and Candy to power up
• While the exclusive move that Pokemon learn when Purified, Return, has limited use in raids, it may have some utility in PVP for some Pokemon.

List of New Shadow Pokemon

A Spooky Message, 2019

• While not terribly interesting overall, this limited special research is currently the only way to obtain Spiritomb outside of trading.
• Spiritomb has some limited use in PVP formats, namely some limited Silph Road formats.

Costumed Starter Pokemon

It has been confirmed that these new costumed Pokemon cannot evolve, so unless we see a change before release, it might be best to not prioritize them too heavily; especially the ones that require raid passes to obtain.

For many of us, this event brings with it one real question: what Pokemon are worth catching? This year's event isn't likely to bring us an extremely large pool of big-names, but the few that we have are definitely valuable.

Darkrai

Perhaps the most exciting part of this event is the release of Darkrai into raids. Darkrai is a powerful Pokemon that can definitely hold its own and patch up a Psychic/Ghost Counter team beautifully. It's also untradeable, so catching at least one should definitely be a priority, as it won't be possible to get one from a friend later. On top That of that, the 2x candy event that will be active the entire time that Darkrai is in the raid rotation will make it a much less resource intensive investment than some of its peers. That said, its lead as a Dark Type isn't as overwhelming as, say, Mewtwo's over the Psychic Type when it gained Psystrike not too long ago. As such, some players might not see as much of a need to prioritize the Pitch-Black Pokemon.

Regardless, it's definitely a headliner for the event, and you can read more about fighting and using Darkrai here:

Chandelure

Chandelure is an extremely interesting Pokemon. Its a top-tier Ghost Type attacker, and a top-tier Fire Type attacker, meaning it can definitely cover its cost for many, many players. For many players, this is likely to be the first chance to obtain its pre-evolution, Litwick, as it has been extremely rare up until now. This is one of those Pokemon that you'll want to keep in contact with your Raid group over, reporting any high-IV specimens that you may find while keeping an eye out for any reports from others. Just remember that evolving from a Lampent into a Chandelure requires an Unova stone!

While the "Headliners" may be the most generally sought-after Pokemon of the event, they're not the only species to be featured. While this is likely to be an incomplete list as it's going off of what we currently have available, these are the other species that we can be sure will appear.

Yamask and Cofagrigus

This is sort of the face of the event, as Yamask and Cofagrigus will make their debut at its inception, and will also have their Shiny formes available. Cofagrigus is a fan-favorite Pokemon with a particularly impressive Shiny forme, but it's sadly too weak for PvE, and cursed with a bad moveset for PvP. That said; changes have been made to movesets before, so try for a few good ones while they're common!

Golett and Golurk

A great little Ghost/Ground Type Pokemon. Golurk is a good Ground Type attacker, and is another fan favorite due to its unique design.

Drifloon and Drifblim

A fun little Balloon Pokemon with its Shiny Forme available. Drifblim has a decent presence as a gym Defender, and is also decent in PvP. In fact, it is a very strong candidate for Silph Road's Sinister Cup that is taking place this month, meaning a lot of players will be happy to see it!

Stunky and Skuntank

These Pokemon stink. While Skuntank isn't useful in PVE at all, it does have some presence in PVP, especially in some Silph Road cups, so it might be worth snatching a few up.

Gastly, Haunter, and Gengar

The OG ghosts in all of their glory. Gengar is an exceptional Pokemon in raids, but sadly that's almost strictly if it has one of its legacy Fast Moves. That said, it's still an okay choice if you need to counter Psychics or other Ghosts (PRIORITIZE CHANDELURE AND DARKRAI FOR THIS!). Haunter, amazingly, has some use as well; it's a good choice for some PVP formats. However, to really shine it too needs a legacy move; Shadow Ball. Regardless, it still functions decently.

Houndour and Houndoom

Not much can be said here. Houndoom is a good starter choice for a Fire or Dark Type, but it really doesn't have much lasting value. It's like a worse Chandelure in many ways.

Other Pokemon That May Be Featured!

Once again; these are only the Pokemon that we know as a fact will be obtainable. Niantic has a way of dropping more than we bargain for in events, so be on the lookout for other event-boosted spawns that can help you in your own Pokemon journey! Happy catching!