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Pokémon: Sword & Shield

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Other Discoveries

By
Ben Chard
&
Vincent Lau

Once you’ve caught the various Legendary Pokémon by following the clues given to you by Peony and Sonia, that’s your Crown Tundra expedition more or less complete! Of course, there’s still the Crown Tundra Pokédex to fill, plus a metric ton of Legendaries to be caught in the Dynamax Adventures.

Anyway, before we fully wrap up the Crown Tundra, here are a few more things to discover in your spare time.

Mystery of the Giant Tree

At the centre of Dyna Tree Hill, there’s a massive tree, which is nigh impossible to miss. You should have visited this tree to begin the Galarian birds quest. Anyway, if you go up close to the tree and inspect it, you can try to shake it. Nothing will happen the first time, but if you keep trying, on the 6th shake, something big will fall out!

Max Raid Battle

Pokémon Level Type
"Greedent" IconGreedent ??? Normal

This battle may seem like a joke battle at first glance, but if you don’t take it seriously, you could be in a world of pain! "Greedent" IconGreedent can use Max Strike, Body Slam, Payback and Giga Impact. When its HP drops below half, it will use a Sitrus Berry to restore HP, further boosted by its Cheek Pouch Ability.

Depending on your Levels, you may need to use multiple Pokémon to take this giant squirrel down. The more Fighting-types you have, the better. Ideally, you want to open with Max Knuckle from a Dynamaxed Fighting-type, trying to do as much damage as you can before your Fighting-type faints.

Next, switch over to another Fighting-type or some of the offensive Legendary Pokémon, like "Zacian" IconZacian/"Zamazenta" IconZamazenta, "Eternatus" IconEternatus and "Calyrex" IconCalyrex. Or whatever strong Pokémon you have remaining. Then keep plugging away at the Greedent’s HP. It won’t put up any shields, but it’s immune to status ailments (stat changes are fair game, but it can cancel them at a moment’s notice).

After defeating the Greedent, you won’t be able to catch it. However, you will receive a bucketload of berries, including 30 Oran Berries, 10 Sitrus Berries, 1 Lansat Berry, 20 Tomato Berries, 15 Hondew Berries, 5 Chople Berries and 1 Starf Berry. Sadly, unlike normal trees that you can shake, this is a one time deal.

Receive a Cosmog

Cosmog and Cosmoen are both weak, so you’ll need to feed them experience without them fighting.

This can be easy to miss. Once you’ve reported the first three quests to Peony and finished the Crown Tundra story, there’s something fwoofy waiting for you at Freezington. Head over to the house by the entrance near Slippery Slope, where there’s a lady sitting on top of some boxes.

Inside, go up to the corner of the kitchen, where the wooden boxes are. Is that Nebby?! Give the floating thing a prod and you’ll be allowed to take it home. This is, of course, "Cosmog" IconCosmog, which–when trained–can evolve into Cosmoen and eventually "Solgaleo" IconSolgaleo (if playing Sword) or "Lunala" IconLunala (if playing Shield).

Receive a Poipole

To evolve Poipole, it needs to learn Dragon Pulse. Speak to the Move Relearner (fella on the left) in any Pokémon Centre to do this.

After showing the Legendary Clue? to Peony, you can start to encounter Ultra Beasts in the Max Lair when hosting your own Dynamax Adventures. They will appear randomly like other Legendary Pokémon. You can also run into them in other player’s Dynamax Adventures, provided they’ve done the same thing.

Once you’ve caught 5 Ultra Beasts ("Nihilego" IconNihilego, "Buzzwole" IconBuzzwole, "Pheromosa" IconPheromosa, "Xurkitree" IconXurkitree, "Celesteela" IconCelesteela, "Kartana" IconKartana, "Guzzlord" IconGuzzlord, "Stakataka" IconStakataka or Blacephelon), a curious creature will appear in front of the scientific screen to the right of the lair entrance. This is "Poipole" IconPoipole, a rare Ultra Beast that can evolve into "Naganadel" IconNaganadel.

Ghost at the Cemetery?

If you chat to Peonia in the Max Lair, she may mention something about a woman with long hair being sighted near a grave at night. This isn’t merely flavor text. When it’s night time (and you’re not afraid), head for the west entrance of the Old Cemetery. You should spot the woman from the rumors standing in front of a nearby grave. There’s no reward for speaking to her, but it’s quite funny!

Communicating with Spiritomb

This is the only clue you get.

Ah, "Spiritomb" IconSpiritomb… This ominous Pokémon often requires a really convoluted method to catch–and this time is no different. First, you’ll need to head to Ballimere Lake (this requires a bike that can traverse water) and, most likely, you’ll need Internet access (and a Nintendo Switch Online subscription).

Ideally, you want to start from Dyna Tree Hill, in the centre of Ballimere Lake. If you’ve been here before (to catch the Galarian birds for instance), wonderful. Just call the taxi to fly here in a jiffy. With your back facing the giant tree in Dyna Tree Hill, transition into Ballimere Lake.

Immediately turn right and head straight forward. Keep going until you reach the tall grass in the corner. Go through the tall grass and head down the slope on the other side, towards the lower ground. Now turn left and go straight towards the far end of this section. You can avoid the tall grass by going along its right side.

At the very end, towards the right, there’s a lone tree with a gravestone at its base. Check the gravestone if you’re brave. The words “Spread my voice.” will appear on the screen. Here’s where you need to be clever. Open up the Y-Comm and connect to the Internet (if you’re not already connected).

With luck, other players will start randomly beaming in. What you need to do is speak to 32 unique players while inside the Crown Tundra. Each time you chat to a new player, they will give you a random item, which can help you keep track of the numbers. 32 players sounds like a lot, but you can be done within several minutes.

Speaking to 32 players is a throwback to Pokémon Diamond and Pearl where you did a similar thing in the Underground.

Firstly, it only takes a few seconds (10 seconds?) to speak to a player and receive their item. Also, since–at the time of writing–many people are playing this game, you should be able to find many players on screen. In our experience, you can find the most players just outside Crown Tundra station or the entrance to the Max Lair.

After you’ve socialised with 32 players, leave and re-enter Ballimere Lake (if you can, fly to Dyna Tree Hill). Then return to the gravestone. If done correctly, Spiritomb will show up in front of the gravestone. The rest is simple, although remember to save the game beforehand, just in case!

Wild Pokémon

Pokémon Level Type
"Spiritomb" IconSpiritomb 72 Ghost/Dark

This isn’t a Legendary Pokémon, so it’s easier to catch. The main thing to keep in mind is that Spiritomb is a Ghost-type, so False Swipe won’t work on it normally. You probably don’t need False Swipe since it has a high catch rate, but you can always use Soak (learned by "Sobble" IconSobble or "Pelipper" IconPelipper etc.) to turn it into a Water-type.

Move-wise, Spiritomb can use Hypnosis to put its opponent to sleep and, if it’s smart, follow up with Dream Eater to steal their health. Try not to let your Pokémon fall asleep (cure them if it happens). It can also shoot a Shadow Ball or Dark Pulse your way. Your own Dark-type can absorb all of these attacks (and is immune to Dream Eater).

Evolve Your Slowpoke (Take 2)

(1 of 2) As before, finding these twigs is entirely down to luck.

As before, finding these twigs is entirely down to luck. (left), You need 15 twigs, which is double the amount needed for the Galarica Cuff. But you can return to the Isle of Armor to look for twigs there as well. (right)

Crown Tundra added a new evolution for Galarian "Slowpoke" IconSlowpoke: Galarian "Slowking" IconSlowking. The method to acquire it is basically the same as for Galarian "Slowbro" IconSlowbro. While exploring the Crown Tundra (or Isle of Armor), you can randomly find Galarica Twigs when searching sparkling spots. For example, next to trees.

Gather a whopping 15 twigs, then make your way to Frigid Sea. From the Roaring-Sea Caves exit, head into the water straight ahead, then take a left. Following the stream towards a secluded area of land, where you’ll find a different entrance back into the caves.

Inside, head over to the far end of the cavern (it won’t take long to get there). Waiting at the back is an old granny whose sole purpose in life is to trade you a Galarica Wreath for 15 Galarica Twigs. You can then use the wreath on a Galarian Slowpoke to evolve it. We kind of feel sorry for it though.

Rematch with Peony

Once you’ve finished the three main quests that Peony gave you, he’ll be idling inside the Max Lair on the left. Speak to him and you can challenge him to a fight once per day. You don’t win anything special, but it’s a good chance to earn experience points or just flex your Pokémon.

Pokémon Trainer Peony

Pokémon Level Type
"Perrserker" IconPerrserker 74 Steel
"Scizor" IconScizor 73 Bug/Steel
"Bronzong" IconBronzong 73 Steel/Psychic
"Aggron" IconAggron 74 Steel/Rock
"Copperajah" IconCopperajah 74 Steel

Peony was a former Steel-type Gym Leader, so naturally his team is full of Steel-types. His team is quite high Level, but nothing you can’t handle at this stage.

To start with, Peony will send out "Perrserker" IconPerrserker. It can use Iron Head for STAB damage, U-turn to cause damage and pivot out, plus Seed Bomb and Throat Chop to cover common threats. Fire or Fighting-types are recommended.

Next, he may send out "Scizor" IconScizor. This ironclad bug is immensely weak to Fire-type moves, so use those if you can. Move-wise, it can use X-Scissor and Bullet Punch for STAB. The latter will generally strike first.

"Bronzong" IconBronzong is a defensive Steel-type, so you don’t have to worry too much about taking damage from it. However, it does know Calm Mind, so you’ll want to get rid of it fast, so it doesn’t boost its Sp. Attack and Sp. Defense too much. Suggested types are Fire, Ghost and Dark. Ghost-types should be mildly cautious of Shadow Ball.

"Aggron" IconAggron, you may have fought before at the start of your Crown Tundra adventure. It has a double weakness to Ground and Fighting. If you’ve none of those, Water-types should suffice. Aggron is a juggernaut, but it’s slow and has poor Sp. Defense.

Finally, Peony’s star Pokémon is "Copperajah" IconCopperajah. His one can use Heavy Slam for STAB, plus Play Rough, High Horsepower and Superpower to annoy its counters. As a result, Fire and Fighting-types need to be cautious; Ground-types have nothing to fear.

Replica State Crown

Wouldn’t it be better if completing the Isle of Armor Dex gave you some, y’know, armor instead of a crown?

Like in the base game and the Isle of Armor, there’s a reward for registering all 210 Pokémon in the Crown Tundra Pokédex. This time, you’ll receive an Original Style Replica State Crown, 50 Rare Candies and 3 Gold Bottle Caps.

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Guide Information
  • Publisher
    Pokemon Company International
  • Platforms,
    Switch
  • Genre
    RPG
  • Guide Release
    15 November 2019
  • Last Updated
    21 March 2024
    Version History
  • Guide Author

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Welcome to our comprehensive strategy guide for Pokémon: Sword and Shield, the latest entries in the Pokémon video game franchise. Our guide also incorporates all the DLC, including the Isle of Armor and brand new Crown Tundra DLC.

In Sword and Shield, you explore the Galar region, based on the United Kingdom, alongside rivals Hop, Bede and Marnie, with the aim to dethrone the Pokémon League Champion.

The games introduce several new features such as Dynamaxing and Gigantamaxing, functions that increase size and change forms of certain Pokémon; the Wild Area, a large open world with free camera movement; and raids with co-op battling. They also reintroduce features previously seen in Sun and Moon and Let’s Go, Pikachu! and Let’s Go, Eevee!, such as regional variants and roaming Pokémon depicted in the overworld.

Brand New October 2020:

Version 1.2

  • A Complete Walkthrough of the Isle of Armor.
  • Details of all 16 new Wild Areas, including Pokémon encounter rates.
  • All the new Max Raid Dens: Locations and Featured Pokémon.
  • Images and Locations of All 150 of the Missing Diglett.
  • The Isle of Armor Pokédex (featuring 100 Returning Pokémon).
  • Recipes for the Cram-o-matic.
  • A Full Walkthrough featuring Pokémon encounter rates.
  • All Gym Encounters and Strategies.
  • New Items: Mints & Natures Explained.
  • Post Game content including Champion Cup.
  • Dynamaxing and Gigantamaxing.
  • The Galar Region Pokédex (featuring 400 Pokemon).

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