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Apr 29, 2024

How to Increase Your Shiny Odds in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet

For as long as they’ve been around, Shiny Pokémon have been a manic fascination amongst the Pokémon fanbase. Fortunately, Shiny Pokémon are back in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, alongside a few new ways

For as long as they’ve been around, Shiny Pokémon have been a manic fascination amongst the Pokémon fanbase. Fortunately, Shiny Pokémon are back in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, alongside a few new ways to hunt them.

Shiny Pokémon are simply just different coloured variants of a Pokémon. They hold no statistical or competitive advantage aside from looking better (or worse, sometimes). However, they’re so rare that many players will do anything they can to get their hands on them. And there are plenty of ways to get your hands on them in the 9th Generation.

Here’s the ultimate Shiny Hunting guide for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet.

Want more Pokémon Scarlet and Violet articles and guides? You can find more here on KeenGamer:

The odds of obtaining a Shiny Pokémon in Scarlet and Violet are pretty consistent with what they have been in previous generations.

When you encounter a wild Pokémon or obtain a Pokémon from an Egg, there is a 1/4096 that it will be a Shiny. In Scarlet and Violet, Shiny Pokémon appear in the overworld so you can instantly tell what is and isn’t a wild Shiny.

Another thing to note about Pokémon Scarlet and Violet is that the Pokémon spawning on the overworld may help with Shiny hunting in general. Compared to previous games, you encounter so many more Pokémon simply by walking around the overworld – previously, you had to encounter and battle every single Pokémon, but now they spawn as you walk past them.

Shinies

There is one permanent way to increase your Shiny Odds in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. That is through the Shiny Charm.

The Shiny Charm returns in the 9th Generation and, just like in the past, is a reward for 100% completing your Pokédex. Once you have received it, the Shiny Charm will permanently increase your Shiny Odds twofold: instead of 1/4096 for each encounter, it will instead act as 2/4096, bringing the Shiny Odds up to 1/2048.

This means acquiring 400 Pokémon from both games for Scarlet and Violet. That list includes:

Fortunately, you do not have to acquire every form or variant of a Pokémon (such as the 4 versions of Oricorio or the male and female versions of Pyroar). You only need to have the Pokémon logged into your Pokédex once.

Once you have completed your Pokédex, return to Mesagoza and either the Naranja Academy (in Pokémon Scarlet) or the Uva Academy (in Pokémon Violet). Visit your teacher, Jacq, in the Biology Lab and he will give you the Shiny Charm.

Jacq the Teacher

Aside from randomly encountering Shiny Pokémon from eggs or wild battles, there are 3 distinct ways to hunt for Shinies in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. One of these methods is a classic method of Shiny Hunting while the other two are brand new additions to Pokémon Scarlet and Violet.

The Masuda Method is the fan name given to a certain type of Shiny Hunting method involving breeding and eggs. This has been present in every mainline Pokémon game since Generation 4 (Pokémon Diamond, Pearl and Platinum).

If you breed two Pokémon of different language origins, it will increase the Shiny chance of the Eggs that are produced. For example:

This chance stacks with the Shiny Charm, increasing the chance from 1/682 to 1/512. As such, Shiny hunting with the Masuda Method has become a reliable way of getting Shiny Pokémon for years.

In Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, breeding works slightly differently from other titles. There are no daycares or nurseries where Pokémon can breed like in previous titles.

Instead, you have to set up a Picnic with 2 compatible Pokémon. Simply walk around or wait in the Picnic area and, eventually, an Egg will appear. Do be wary that if you have multiple compatible Pokémon in your party, it will spawn Eggs from every possible grouping. To avoid this, just bring the two Pokémon you want to the Picnic.

Eggs

One of the main (and most important) new methods of Shiny hunting in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet has to do with the picnic and meal power system.

Similar to how players could cook curry back in Pokémon Sword and Shield, players can now make different sandwiches in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. The main difference between these is that the sandwiches can be customised to provide a whole bevvy of different bonuses and boons such as extra EXP, increased chance to find specific types of Pokémon and more.

The main effect we care about with Shiny Hunting is Sparkling Power. If you eat a sandwich with the Sparkling Power effect, you will receive a boost to your Shiny Odds for 30 minutes. At base, this increases the odds from 1/4096 to 1/1024 (which goes up even further to 1/683 with the Shiny Charm).

In order to get Sparkling Power in your sandwiches, you need a few rare items. Specifically, the Herba Mystica ingredients.

If you want a deep dive into how sandwiches work and what you need to activate specific kinds of Sparkling Power, check out our Ultimate Sandwich Guide here.

Yum!

The second major new addition in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet is Mass Outbreaks. These have been in a few of the other Pokémon titles, but make their return in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet.

Mass Outbreaks are a large gathering of specific Pokémon which appear all around Paldea. Every day, new Mass Outbreaks spawn in a variety of locations around the map, each with an Outbreak of a different Pokémon. When you reach the location of the Outbreak, the area will be filled almost exclusively with the Pokémon involved in the Outbreak.

Mass Outbreaks

The important thing to know for Shiny Hunters is that Mass Outbreaks have the ability to increase your Shiny Odds.

Mass Outbreaks typically contain around 120 Pokémon before they disperse. This gives you plenty of time to search around and potentially find a Shiny.

The main issue with Mass Outbreaks is that you cannot decide which Pokémon to hunt. The Pokémon involved in the Outbreak are random each day, so despite being relatively easy, you don’t have control over what specific Pokémon you are hunting.

Lots of Fish

So now that we know all of the methods for Shiny Hunting, what is the best way to get Shiny Pokémon in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet? There are actually two answers.

The first is for Shiny Hunting Wild Pokémon.

With all of these methods combined, you will drastically increase your Shiny Odds. The bonuses including the Shiny Charm, Sparkling Power and Mass Outbreak defeats will put your Shiny Odds at 1/512.

Lovable Little Shiny

If you want to Shiny Hunt by breeding instead, you’ll want to use a different method.

With the Shiny Charm and the Masuda Method together, the Shiny Odds come out once again at 1/512.

Around the Picnic

That is everything you need to know to increase your Shiny Odds in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet.

Jack is a Creative Writing English graduate with a passion for writing about games. He primarily writes about Destiny 2, Genshin Impact and Xenoblade Chronicles but is especially keen on RPGs, looters and action games. KeenGamer is the third publication he has written for.

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