Pokemon Scarlet & Violet Shiny Hunting Guide

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet add new Shiny Pokemon to catch. Shiny hunting has been a thing in Pokemon games since the second generation of the franchise. Shiny Pokemon are different colors, they are much rarer variants with different colors, but their underlying combat stats are the same. This guide explains all Shiny Hunting Methods for Pokemon Scarlet & Violet.

NOTE – Unlike previous iterations of the game Shiny Pokemon will present themselves as shiny before the actual encounter so you will see them walking/swimming/flying around shiny. They however make no sounds or indications they are in the area so keep an eye out for any Pokemon that are a different color then they should be.

The odds of running into a shiny Pokemon in the game are 1 in 4,096 but there are a few ways to increase your odds. Below you will find a few different methods in improving the odds to be more favorable:

The Shiny Charm

The shiny charm is where you should start your shiny hunting although it takes the longest amount of time of any of the steps. It stacks with all the other methods to make them more effective. Below you will find the steps to attaining the Shiny Charm:

1. Complete the Pokedex. You will have to have caught or owned every single one of the 400 available Pokemon:
   
2. Once you have completed the Pokedex you will need to travel back to the biology lab in the Mesagoza Academy:
   
3. Speak with Jacq in the corner of the room and he will be impressed with you getting all 400 Pokemon registered in the Pokedex and will award you with the shiny charm:
   

The shiny charm does not need to be manually activated, it’s permanently on by default. It doubles the Shiny Spawn Rate to 1 in 2,048.

Masuda Method Breeding

The Masuda Method is the act of breeding your Pokemon with higher odds of the egg hatching into a Shiny Pokemon. This method was introduced in Generation 4 and is one of the best methods for obtaining a Shiny Pokemon. This method of breeding is 100% the same as breeding normally but instead with 2 Pokemon of different languages. The best way to go about this is simply to use a Ditto of another language region (Japanese, German, English etc) and have it breed with the Pokemon from your game.

The odds of finding a shiny from an egg using the Masuda method alone is 1 in 683.

The odds of finding a shiny from an egg using the Masuda method in conjunction with the shiny charm is 1 in 512.

For a detailed description on how to breed refer to: Pokemon Scarlet & Violet Breeding Guide – How to Breed Eggs.

Mass Outbreaks

Potentially the easiest way as of now to finding shiny Pokemon in the wild is mass outbreaks. Here’s how Mass Outbreaks work:

1. Locate the Pokemon having a mass outbreak on the map. This will be signified by seeing the Pokemon’s picture on the map:
   
2. Head to the location and in the top right corner you will see a notification that you have found the Mass Outbreak:
   
3. Once you have found the Mass Outbreak run around and use the Let’s Go feature to knock out Pokemon of the one in the Mass Outbreak. You will want to defeat 60 of the Pokemon you are trying to find in shiny form.
4. Once you have knocked out 60 Pokemon save your game and search the area to see if any of the Pokemon are shiny. They will appear shiny in the Overworld so you can tell before battling them:
   
5. If none are shiny, don’t worry, simply pull out a Picnic and this will reload all of the spawns. Leave the picnic right away and look again until you find the Pokemon you are looking for as a shiny.
6. Once you find one SAVE YOUR GAME and then simply start a fight with it and try to catch it. It is best to have a high-level Pokemon that knows the TM Move False Swipe.
    

You can also use Sandwiches to further increase your chances of finding a shiny Pokemon.

Sandwiches

Sandwiches can not only be used for breeding but also to increase the encounter rate of specific Pokemon types and increase the shiny rate. Just note that only 1 sandwich can be used at a time. The sandwiches you can use to increase your Sparkling Rate (which are used to increase the chances of finding a shiny Pokemon) require late game ingredients you can only get from 5 or 6 star Tera Raids so use them carefully. Sandwich materials can be found in the Auction House from the vendors all the way on the right and all the way on the left. Here is how to use Sandwiches to increase your shiny rates:

1. Prepare yourself for whatever Pokemon you want to encounter. Know which sandwich will give you the best results and make sure you have the ingredients. Mystic Herbs can only be obtained through Tera Raids and aren’t a guaranteed drop.
2. Once you have an idea of which sandwich you want to make you can either choose one of the default sandwiches or make one of your own. To create one of your own use the X Button while in the sandwich menu in your picnic.
3. Make the sandwich that’s right for the type of Pokemon you are shiny hunting. Here is a list of the best sandwiches to make as they are tailored to a specific type’s Level 3 encounter rate and Level 3 sparkling power for that Pokemon which is the highest as of the time of this writing:
   1. Normal – 1 Chorizo + 2 Salty Herba Mystica
   2. Fire – 1 Basil + 1 Salty Herba Mystica + 1 Sweet Herba Mystica
   3. Water – 1 Cucumber + 2 Salty Herba Mystica
   4. Grass – 1 Lettuce + 1 Salty Herba Mystica + 1 Sour Herba Mystica
   5. Flying – 1 Prosciutto + 2 Salty Herba Mystica
   6. Fighting – 1 Pickles + 2 Salty Herba Mystica
   7. Poison – 1 Noodles + 2 Salty Herba Mystica
   8. Electric – 1 Yellow Bell Pepper + 1 Salty Herba Mystica + 1 Spicy Herba Mystica
   9. Ground – 1 Ham + 2 Salty Herba Mystica
   10. Rock – 1 Jalapeno + 2 Salty Herba Mystica
   11. Psychic – 1 Onion + 2 Salty Herba Mystica
   12. Ice – 1 Klawf Stick + 2 Salty Herba Mystica
   13. Bug – 1 Cherry Tomato + 2 Salty Herba Mystica
   14. Ghost – 1 Red Onion + 2 Salty Herba Mystica
   15. Steel – 1 Hamburger + 1 Salty Herba Mystica + 1 Sweet Herba Mystica
   16. Dragon – 1 Avocado + 2 Salty Herba Mystica
   17. Dark – 1 Smoked Fillet + 1 Salty Herba Mystica + 1 Sweet Herba Mystica
   18. Fairy – 1 Tomato + 2 Salty Herba Mystica
4. Once you make your sandwich you will have 30 minutes until the sandwich no longer has any effect but you can track this by pressing Right on the D-Pad to see how much time you have left.

You can use these sandwiches in conjunction with Wild Encounters in general or Mass Outbreaks.

For more guides check out Pokemon Scarlet & Violet 100% Wiki.