This page explains how to encounter and catch Chien-Pao, one of the Legendary Pokémon in Scarlet & Violet.
Chien-Pao is a Ruinous Pokémon and a member of the Legendary quartet known as the “Treasures of Ruin”.
Where to Find Chien-Pao¶
(1 of 2) Seek the orange shrine to find Chien-Pao.
Seek the orange shrine to find Chien-Pao. (left), Location of the orange shrine on the map. (right)
Chien-Pao is sealed behind the orange shrine in West Province (Area One), north-west from the central Pokémon Center
To release the seal, you must remove 8 orange stakes dotted around south-west Paldea. For their precise locations, please refer to our Orange Stakes page.
After doing so, there will be a message saying that a sound is coming from the shrine. Inspect the seal on the shrine (after saving your game first!) to encounter Chien-Pao.
Useful Links¶
How to Catch Chien-Pao¶
(1 of 2) Chien-Pao boasts high Speed and Attack.
Chien-Pao boasts high Speed and Attack. (left), Its Sword of Ruin makes your Pokémon extra vulnerable too. (right)
| Pokémon | Level | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Chien-Pao | 60 | Dark  Ice  |
At the start of the fight, Chien-Pao’s Sword of Ruin ability will activate, lowering the Defense of all Pokémon except itself.
Stat-wise, Chien-Pao has exceptional Speed and Attack, and otherwise OK stats, excluding its low Special Defense.
For attacks, it can use Sacred Sword to deal Fighting damage that ignores stat boosts, Sucker Punch to try and attack first if you’re using an attacking move (otherwise it fails), Ruination to halve your HP and Icicle Crash for Ice STAB and chance to flinch.
(1 of 2) Ruination halves your Pokémon’s HP.
Ruination halves your Pokémon’s HP. (left), Icicle Crash may cause your Pokémon to flinch. (right)
Like the other Legendaries, Chien-Pao has a very low catch rate. So you should inflict a status ailment to improve your success rate. Paralyze is nice and easy, since it doesn’t disappear–you can apply it with Nuzzle, 
Thunder Wave or Glare, etc. Sleep has better odds, but only lasts a few turns–you can use moves like Hypnosis or Yawn to apply it.
When damaging Chien-Pao, avoid Fighting type moves since they deal quadruple damage. Regular super-effective attacks are fine, so long as they’re weak ones. As Chien-Pao’s HP begins to fall, you should swap to 
False Swipe (obtained from Jacq, your homeroom teacher) so you don’t accidentally KO it.
Fortunately, Chien-Pao cannot heal itself, so once you’ve got it down to low or 1 HP, you can relax somewhat. However, Chien-Pao can inflict a lot of damage with its moves, so don’t hesitate to use healing items yourself! If you’re taking big damage, 
X Defense can help reduce the impact. But keep in mind Ruination doesn’t care about this.
(1 of 2) Sucker Punch is no big deal if you don’t attack.
Sucker Punch is no big deal if you don’t attack. (left), It can take many balls, but eventually you should catch Chien-Pao! (right)
When it’s time to start throwing 
Poké Balls, 
Ultra Balls are great by default. When it’s night time, 
Dusk Balls are a better choice. If more than 10 turns have passed, 
Timer Balls are the best choice. If Chien-Pao is asleep, 
Dream Balls are also great, but those are on the rare side.
Recommended Pokémon for Catching Chien-Pao¶
A Pokémon that resists Icicle Crash would be great here. If you chose Fuecoco, Skeledirge is perfect since it resists Icicle Crash and is immune to Sacred Sword. But only field it for walling purposes, because it’s weak to Sucker Punch. (If you don’t attack, Sucker Punch doesn’t work.)
Ceruledge is another great choice, if you’re playing Pokémon Violet or can trade with somebody. It too can resist Icicle Crash and is immune to Sacred Sword, plus it can learn False Swipe. Otherwise, 
Mimikyu with X Defense is good and, unlike the other two, isn’t weak to Sucker Punch.
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