Pokémon Go Battle Week – Raging Battles event guide: All bonuses, encounters, and challenges

Be prepared for everything from Fighting-types to trainer battles.

Annihilape throwing out a fist in Pokemon Go.
Image via Niantic

It is time to get in on some new Battle Week action as Niantic launches its Raging Battles event. This features the debut of Annihilape, Collection Challenges, and plenty of bonuses that you will want to stick on top of to maximize your punching power. 

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Whether you plan to train up a small army of Mankey to dominate the Go Battle League with the best Annihilape moveset in Pokémon Go or make the most of the various boosted encounters and raids, there is plenty to do while the event is live from Jan. 19 to 24 at 8pm local time

Event-exclusive Timed Research will be available to complete alongside a new set of Collection Challenges throughout the Raging Battles event. Players can also encounter Throh and Sawk in the wild with no regional restrictions, giving you a great chance to catch them before they disappear again. And, don’t overlook the boosted GBL Stardust and Team Go Rocket spawns either. 

Full Pokémon Go Battle Week: Raging Battles event content guide

Get ready to throw some hands with various battle-ready Pokémon. Image via The Pokémon Company

All Pokémon Go Battle Week: Raging Battles boosted Pokémon spawns and raids

Every Pokémon with boosted wild spawns or appearing more frequently in Raging Battles raids has a propensity for getting into fights or causing mischief—including the seemingly out-of-place Lickitung. You will have a higher chance of encountering all of these Pokémon throughout the event and any Pokémon marked with an asterisk (*) can also be found as a Shiny. Here is a full list of every Pokémon you will have an increased chance of seeing in the wild and raids. 

  • Boosted Wild Spawns
    • Mankey*
    • Machop*
    • Lickitung*
    • Gligar*
    • Sableye*
    • Throh*
    • Sawk*
    • Scraggy*
  • Event One-Star Raids
    • Snubbull*
    • Houndout*
    • Pancham*
    • Mareanie
  • Event Three-Star Raids
    • Primeape*
    • Gyarados*
    • Zweilous
  • Ongoing Five-Star Raids (not event-boosted)
    • Thundurus* (Therian Form) until Jan. 24
    • Landorus* (Therian Form) after Jan. 24

How to complete all Pokémon Go Battle Week: Raging Battles Collection Challenges

The Raging Battles event has two, nearly identical Collection Challenges available to complete that are themed around Mankey’s different abilities—Vital Spirit and Inner Focus. They have slightly different requirements and rewards but are worth getting done if you want to grind TMs and Stardust. 

Pokémon Go Battle Week: Raging Battles Inner Focus Collection Challenge guide

  • Catch a Mankey
  • Evolve a Mankey into Primeape
  • Catch a Scraggy
  • Catch a Lickitung
  • Catch a Throh

Total Rewards: Three Charged TMs and 3,000 Stardust

Pokémon Go Battle Week: Raging Battles Vital Spirit Collection Challenge guide

  • Catch a Mankey
  • Evolve a Mankey into Primeape
  • Catch a Sableye
  • Catch a Gligar
  • Catch a Sawk

Total Rewards: Three Fast TMs and 3,000 Stardust

All Pokémon Go Battle Week: Raging Battles event bonuses

During the Battle Week: Raging Battles event, players can enjoy the usual type of Pokémon Go event or work on increasing their rank and rating in the Go Battle League thanks to some extra goodies. You don’t have to participate in the battles if you don’t want to, but the option is there and the bonuses are worth it for those who do plan on grinding a bit. 

  • Team Go Rocket is appearing more often at PokéStops and in overworld balloons. 
  • Throh and Sawk are appearing in the wild, regardless of player location. 
  • Get quadruple Stardust from Go Battle League win rewards. 
  • The maximum number of Go Battle League sets you can play per day has increased from five to 10 during the event—letting you play 50 battles per day.

Don’t forget to evolve your Primeape into Annihilape while battles are plentiful, and you can spend some time grinding the Timeless Travels seasonal research as well.

Author
Image of Cale Michael
Cale Michael
Lead Staff Writer for Dota 2, the FGC, Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, and more who has been writing for Dot Esports since 2018. Graduated with a degree in Journalism from Oklahoma Christian University and also previously covered the NBA. You can usually find him writing, reading, or watching an FGC tournament.