Dates, location, and best counters

The three Starters of Paldea are taking over Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Tera Raids one by one, and the dancing Quaquaval is finally making its grand entrance.

Following in the footsteps of Meowscarada and Skeledirge, Quaquaval will be featured in the next seven-star Tera Raid event with the rare Mightiest Mark. You can expect it to be another tough battle, so come prepared with your strongest counter and a solid game plan.

Here’s everything you need to know about Quaquaval and the seven-star Tera Raid event in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet.

When is the seven-star Quaquaval Tera Raid event in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet?

The seven-star Quaquaval Tera Raids will be around for one week from Thursday, March 13 at 7pm CT until Thursday, March 20 at 6:59pm CT. This comes after the Meowscarada and Skeledirge events, making Quaquaval the last Starter Pokémon of the franchise to be featured in a Tera Raid with the Mightiest Mark. With all the Starters out of the way, we’ll have to wait and see what’s next for the seven-star raids.

During the Quaquaval Tera Raids, there will also be special Mass Outbreaks for Charcadet, Smoliv, Finizen, Applin, Sewaddle, Poliwag, Porygon, Scyther, and Lapras in Paldea, Kitakami, and the Terarium. All of the Pokémon in these outbreaks will have boosted Shiny odds, so it’s a good opportunity to do some Shiny hunting.

How to find the seven-star Quaquaval Tera Raids in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet

The Quaquaval Tera Raids are easy to find, but you’ll need to unlock seven-star raids and have internet access. Then follow these steps: 

• Once the event has begun, connect to the internet and update your Poké Portal news.
• Open your Paldea map and look for the black Tera Raid icon with the Water Tera Type symbol. Select that as your destination.
• Fly to a nearby Pokémon Center or landmark. From there, hop on Koraidon or Miraidon and head toward the orange flag on your mini map until you reach your destination.
• Interact with the black crystal and make sure it’s a seven-star Tera Raid with a silhouette of Quaquaval.
• You may also join online group raids by using the Tera Raid Battle Search feature in the Poké Portal. You will need a Nintendo Switch Online membership for this option.

Can you catch more than one Quaquaval in the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Unrivaled Tera Raid event?

Every player is limited to catching one Quaquaval with the Mightiest Mark from this specific Tera Raid. You can technically rechallenge this raid to farm more rewards, but you won’t be able to catch another Quaquaval here. Outside of this event, however, there are other opportunities to obtain the Paldean Water Starter.

How to catch Quaquaval in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet

Quaquaval is one of the rarer Pokémon in the game as a Paldean Starter, but you still have a few different ways to obtain it. The most obvious way is to select Quaxly as your first partner Pokémon at the beginning of Scarlet and Violet and then evolve it up to final form. 

If you went with Sprigatito or Fuecoco as your Starter, you’ll need to trade with a fellow trainer for Quaxly, Quaxwell, or Quaquaval. There’s also a chance that the Quaxly line may be featured in a future Mystery Gift distribution like the previous giveaway for Dot’s Quaxly.

Beating the Unrivaled Quaquaval Tera Raid in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet

What makes this Quaquaval Tera Raid so difficult is its Hidden Ability, Moxie, which boosts its Attack stat each time it gets a knockout. If you or your allies are constantly getting knocked out, Quaquaval’s Attack stat will be maxed out in no time, allowing it to deal massive damage or even oneshot your Pokémon. 

Therefore, the best way to approach this raid is with a Pokémon counter that can ignore Quaquaval’s ability or all of its Attack boosts. This can be done with Weezing’s Neutralizing Gas ability to shut down Quaquaval’s Moxie, or with the Unaware ability to completely ignore its stat changes.

What type is Unrivaled Quaquaval?

Quaquaval is normally a Water/Fighting-type Pokémon, and it will have the Water Tera Type for this specific Tera Raid event. This means all of its Water-type attacks will deal a good chunk of damage unless you bring a Pokémon with a defensive resistance or immunity to Water with Abilities like Water Absorb or Storm Drain. Consider bringing a counter with Grass or Electric attacks to hit this water bird for super-effective damage.

What moves does Unrivaled Quaquaval know?

This Quaquaval comes equipped with four physical attacks and two setup moves. If you aren’t careful, it has the potential to keep oneshotting your Pokémon until you lose the battle. And if you’re planning on bringing a Grass-type counter, watch out for Quaquaval’s Brave Bird and Ice Spinner.

Best counters for the Unrivaled Quaquaval Tera Raid in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet

Quaquaval’s damage output can quickly spiral out of control thanks to Moxie, but one Pokémon that can easily handle its offense is Dondozo.

Best Dondozo Tera Raid build in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet

Dondozo might not be a Grass or Electric Pokémon that can deal STAB (same type attack bonus) damage to Water Tera Quaquaval, but it has the right ability and enough physical bulk to withstand any attacks thrown at it.

With Dondozo’s Unaware ability, all of Quaquaval’s Attack boosts are meaningless. Combined with the catfish’s massive HP and Defense stats, it can easily tank multiple hits without ever fainting. This gives it the opportunity to set up its Attack and Defense with Curse until both stats are maxed. From there, Dondozo is free to Terastallize to the Grass Tera Type and spam Tera Blast for super-effective damage until you win the battle.

Here’s a step-by-step guide for using Dondozo:

1. Use one Curse on the first turn.
2. Use Body Press three times to build up your Tera charge.
3. At this point, Quaquaval should reset Dondozo’s stats and nullify its Ability. Right after you see this message, use Protect once to keep your Pokémon safe.
4. Use Curse six times to maximize Dondozo’s Attack and Defense.
5. Terastallize to the Grass Tera Type and spam Tera Blast.
6. Use a heal cheer if Dondozo’s HP gets dangerously low at any point in the battle.

What is the best Nature for Quaxly, Quaxwell, and Quaquaval in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet?

Quaxly, Quaxwell, and Quaquaval work best as strong physical attacks, so the best Nature for them would be Adamant (+ Attack, – Special Attack) or Jolly (+ Speed, – Special Attack).

Quaquaval’s highest base stat is Attack at 120, which makes sense with Fighting as its secondary typing. Its Hidden Ability, Moxie, also boosts its Attack when it knocks out another Pokémon, giving it even more of a reason to have an Attack-boosting Nature like Adamant.

On the other hand, Quaquaval has the potential to become quite speedy with a combination of its signature move, Aqua Step, and a Jolly nature. Aqua Step increases the user’s Speed while also dealing good damage, so it’s a convenient way to set your Quaquaval up to be the fastest Pokémon on the field.

Whether you go with an Adamant or Jolly nature, your Quaquaval should be able to deal quick and meaningful damage with physical attacks like Aqua Step, Close Combat, Wave Crash, Brave Bird, and Ice Spinner.