Pokemon Go: New Legendary, Virizion, Now Available

A new Legendary Pokemon has arrived in Pokemon Go. Following Terrakion’s departure from the game, the third Sword of Justice, Virizion, is now available until January 7, making this your first chance to add one to your collection.

As is typically the case with Legendaries, Virizion can only be encountered in five-star Raids. To catch it, you’ll first need to team up with other players and battle it. If you can successfully defeat Virizion, everyone who participated in the Raid will receive a handful of Premier Balls and the opportunity to capture it.

Like the other Swords of Justice, Virizion is a dual-type Legendary–in this case, a Grass and Fighting type. That makes it particularly susceptible to Flying Pokemon, although Fire, Ice, Poison, Psychic, and Fairy types will also have an advantage over it. Your best bet for defeating Virizion is to bring along Pokemon like Lugia, Entei, Glaceon, and Gardevoir.

Virizion isn’t the only Legendary appearing in Pokemon Go this week. The aforementioned Lugia is also returning to the game alongside Ho-Oh for a special Raid weekend. From December 20-23, the Legendaries will appear again in five-star Raids, giving you another opportunity to catch them.

Niantic still has a few other events lined up for Pokemon Go this month, including the game’s annual holiday celebration, which runs from December 24 to January 1. During that time, you’ll be able to encounter holiday versions of Pichu, Pikachu, Raichu, and Stantler, as well as two new Gen 5 Ice Pokemon: Cubchoo and Cryogonal. 2020, meanwhile, will bring the new Buddy Adventure feature to the game and another Community Day event. You can catch up on more Pokemon Go news below.