Having first entered the fray during the Halloween 2019 event, the Mythical nightmare Pokemon Darkrai has returned to Pokemon GO’s five-star raids until May 5, 2020 at 1:00 pm PT. It is a powerful and popular Pokemon in Pokemon GO.
Darkrai is a Dark type Pokemon introduced in Diamond and Pearl, the series’ fourth generation, and it’s only been available to players on rare occasions in the 13 years since its first reveal. With Pokemon GO’s new remote raid mechanics, the powerful Pokemon has never been more accessible. As a pure Dark type, Darkrai is weak to Bug, Fairy, and Fighting type moves, but it resists Dark and Ghost whilst enjoying full immunity to Psychic attacks.
Alongside the other Mythical Pokemon, Darkrai is exclusive content within the main games and can only usually be encountered by attending events or keeping tabs on Mystery Gift rewards. Previously accessible via time limited serial codes, movie tie-in events, and as part of Pokemon’s 20th anniversary celebrations, Darkrai remains one of the most sought after Mythical Pokemon in the Pokedex.
The Lunar Duo: Drakrai
A few months after its reveal in 2007, Darkrai was the focus of its own Pokemon movie, The Rise of Darkrai, where it intervenes in an epic battle between Dialga and Palkia, the Legendary mascots of Diamond and Pearl respectively. Alongside the Legendary moon Pokemon Cresselia, Darkrai is a member of the Lunar Duo and as such its signature powers revolve around sleep and nightmares. Known in the Pokemon world for invading dreams and triggering endless nightmares, Darkrai’s malignant effects can be undone by presenting the victim with one of Cresselia’s Lunar Wings. In Diamond and Pearl, this is reflected in the post-game’s Cresselia side quest which involves awakening a boy from a nightmare.
Darkrai is the only Pokemon capable of learning the sleep-inducing Dark Void besides Smeargle which can copy the move using Sketch, and it also boasts the exclusive ability Bad Dreams which shaves off an eighth of a sleeping opponent’s health per turn. This ability to passively deal huge amounts of damage has always marked Darkrai as a significant threat that must be countered quickly.
In every generation since Darkrai was first introduced, the main games’ largest unofficial competitive battling community, Smogon, has excluded Darkrai from standard play as a result of its ability and its staggering 135 Special Attack and 125 Speed base stats. With a clear power and speed advantage over the vast majority of available Pokemon, and an ability capable of dealing huge amounts of passive damage during a match, Darkrai was once one of the Ubers tier’s most prominent threats.
In the seventh generation, Dark Void’s accuracy was nerfed from 80% to 50%, significantly hindering Darkrai’s ability to consistently induce sleep and make the most of its abilities. Opportunities for Dark Void to land are also limited, as a 70 HP base stat and middling defenses mean Darkrai struggles to withstand heavy blows. Nevertheless, Darkrai remains a potent and worthy Pokemon for anyone’s collection, and in Pokemon GO its tendency to hit hard and fast holds true.
Battling and Catching Darkrai in Pokemon GO
With remote raids having been recently introduced, there has never been a better opportunity to add Darkrai or more reason to be excited to use it. In Pokemon GO, its stats sit at 285 Attack, 198 Defense, and 172 Stamina. For reference, Hydreigon and Tyranitar are the next hardest-hitting Dark types in the game, with Attack stats of 256 and 251 respectively, though they are both considerably bulkier than the nightmare master. The CP range for a raid capture is 2048-2136, so players without healthy rare candy stocks have a long road to maxing out Darkrai's CP. Once Buddy Boost is active, its CP can reach an eye-watering 3,786.
Darkrai’s most DPS-heavy moveset right now consists of fast move Snarl and charged attack Shadow Ball. Players might expect that using a Dark type charged move would be more effective, owing to the same type attack bonus (STAB) which multiples damage by 1.25, but Shadow Ball’s DPS outpaces Darkrai’s available Dark type moves whilst adding vital coverage to boost its dynamism.
As such, both forms of Giratina and Mewtwo, two of the most common and powerful Pokemon in PVP, should be very concerned by Darkrai’s wider distribution. Armed with Snarl and Shadow Ball, Darkrai is capable of tearing through any Ghost or Psychic type that isn’t equipped with a Fighting, Bug, or Fairy move in quicker time than any other Dark type. Chandelure and Gengar, the two best Ghost type attackers besides Giratina-O and Mewtwo, will also be short work for Darkrai. As with Alakazam, Darkrai users should be wary of Gengar’s ability to turn the tables with Focus Blast for huge super-effective damage.
Darkrai’s frailty, however, means it shouldn’t be relied on against Pokemon that can hit it hard with neutral or super effective damage, and clever defensive play will be vital to keep it healthy for battles against the Pokemon it counters. When it comes to raids, Darkrai’s hard and fast-hitting qualities will make it a shoe-in for most opponents it holds a type advantage against.
Of course, Darkrai must be defeated and caught first, and it’s no small feat. The nightmare Pokemon lives up to its reputation, and is an extremely challenging (or outright impossible) bout for anyone taking it on in groups of less than three. For those bold enough (and well-equipped with high level friends) to take it on, bringing along Fighting, Fairy, and Bug Pokemon is the wisest move. Players should note that Darkrai can carry Focus Blast as one of its charged moves, and part-Steel types like Lucario can be a risky choice despite being one of the game’s best Fighting type attackers.
The very best options for whittling Darkrai’s health down are Machamp, Togekiss, Hariyama, Heracross, and Toxicroak, each of which resist Darkrai’s STAB moves and Shadow Ball. Bug types like Volcarona, Scizor, Genesect, Yanmega, and Pinsir can also be valuable to make up the numbers, but each lack resistance to Dark type moves while Scizor and Genesect must also be wary of Focus Blast.
With a base capture rate of only 2%, catching Darkrai is almost as tough as defeating it. With that in mind, and to maximize the number of Poke Balls available for the post-fight catch phase, it’s recommended to battle Darkrai in the largest group possible with a full team of Pokemon that can counter the Mythical Dark type.
Pokemon GO is available now on iOS and Android mobile devices.