Pokémon Go Primal Raids, how to get Primal Energy and Primal Reversion

How to get Primal Energy in Pokémon Go

Primal Energy is the key to getting Primal Groudon or Primal Kyogre in Pokémon Go and this special energy can be gathered through two different methods.

The first is by defeating Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre in Primal Raids. The faster you defeat them, the more Primal Energy you’ll receive, so make sure you know both the Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre counters and weaknesses.

You don’t, however, have to successfully catch Groudon or Kyogre to earn Primal Energy, so don’t worry if the legendary escapes your clutches.

You can also earn Primal Energy by progressing through the Chasing Legends special research quest. Which Primal Energy you earn, however, depends on which team you selected - Ruby or Sapphire.

Finally, once you’ve registered a Primal Form in your Pokédex, you will receive 100 Primal Energy in total for every 20 km you walk with either this Pokémon regular or normal form as your buddy.

When it comes to collecting Primal Energy, we recommend focusing on completing Primal Raids. Since this will also help you complete the Chasing Legends quest, you will still be able to earn the extra Primal Energy this quest gives you.

Once the Go Tour: Hoenn event is over, having either Groudon or Kyogre as your buddy will be the only way to earn Primal Energy until Primal Raids return. Don’t forget though, you must have a Pokémon’s Primal Form registered in your Pokédex to earn Primal Energy from having them as your buddy.

It’s important to note that Groudon and Kyogre do not share the same Primal Energy. This means, if you need Primal Energy for Groudon, it can not be earned by defeating Primal Kyogre in Primal Raids. Instead, you’ll need to battle Primal Groudon to earn the energy you require.

Unlike Candy, the amount of Primal Energy you can keep is capped at 9999. Keep this in mind if you somehow gather 9998 Primal Energy for one of the legendaries!

Primal Raids in Pokémon Go explained

Primal Raids are a new type of raid first introduced to a limited number of players during the Pokémon Go Tour: Hoenn Las Vegas event and then released worldwide during the Go Tour: Hoenn Global event.

In these raids you’ll face either Primal Groudon or Primal Kyogre - ancient versions of the Gen 3 legendaries. These Pokémon will both be incredibly powerful, so make sure your team is designed to take advantage of the Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre counters and weaknesses.

Successfully completing one of these raids will reward you a certain amount of Primal Energy based on how long it took you to defeat the raid boss, as explained in the section above, along with an encounter with either Groudon or Kyogre in their traditional forms.

At the time of writing, Primal Raids have only been available during the Go Tour: Hoenn events. This doesn’t mean, however, we won’t see them return in the future.

The World of Wonders season has come to Pokémon Go, which has brought Rediscover Kanto and Sustainability Week, along with the World of Wonders quest. Don't forget to try out Routes, Gift Exchange and Party Play while you're hunting down rare Pokémon, fighting in the Go Battle League or competing in PokéStop Showcases.

Primal Reversion in Pokémon Go explained

Primal Reversion is the term used to describe transforming a Pokémon into its Primal Form in the Pokémon series.

At the time of writing, Groudon and Kyogre are the only Pokémon which currently have Primal Forms. It’s unlikely we’ll see any more Primal forms being introduced to the main series, since the mechanic was removed when Pokémon Sword and Shield were released.

In Pokémon Go, Primal Reversion works in a similar manner to Mega Evolution; you have to collect a certain amount of Primal Energy to conduct the reversion and then it will last for eight hours. During this time, you’ll receive a number of bonuses depending on whether you’ve reverted Groudon or Kyogre.

You can also use the Primal Pokémon in raids, Gym battles, Team Go Rocket battles, Team Leader battles and Trainer battles. Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre can not, however, be powered up, traded, defend Gyms or used in Go Battle League battles outside of events.

Primal Reversion can be conducted while you wait in raid lobbies and when you’re preparing for a Trainer battle.

If you’d like to learn more, visit our how to get Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre guide.

Finally, the first time you use Primal Reversion will add that Primal Form to the Mega and Primal section of your Pokédex.

Hope you enjoy conducting Primal Reversion!