How to beat Giacomo in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, and Team Star Dark Crew's base location
How to get Giacomo's Star Badge.
Giacomo is the leader of the Segin Squad in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, who are the Dark Crew of the evil Team Star.
To get Giacomo's Star Badge in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, you'll have to clear the Dark Star Barrage inside the base first, then defeat Giacomo himself.
To help you earn that badge and progress with the Starfall Street storyline, we've detailed where to find Team Star's Dark Crew base below, along with what Pokémon you have to face outside the base, and how to clear the Star Barrage and beat the Team Star Dark Leader, Giacomo.
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If you'd like to learn more about your Paldea adventure, visit our Pokémon Scarlet and Violet walkthrough.
Team Star's Dark Crew base location in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet
You can find the Team Star Dark Crew's base in both Pokémon Scarlet and Violet just south of Cascarrafa in the West Province (Area 1). The entrance with the Grunts guarding it is marked by a greenish-yellow star icon on your map.
To quickly find the Dark Base, fly to the West Province (Area 1) Pokémon Center and then follow the path through the large flags in the distance, and you'll soon spot the Dark Crew's base.
When you get close enough to the entrance of Segin Squad's base, you'll automatically speak with two Grunts outside and enter a battle with one of them, so it's a good idea to make sure your Pokémon are healed up before heading to the base.
Segin Squad Grunt Pokémon outside Team Star's Dark Crew base in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet
The Grunt outside the Star Dark Crew's base in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet will fight with a Level 19 Murkrow, who is the first Dark-type you'll face here, so make sure you have a Fairy, Fighting, or Bug-Type in the first slot of your team.
We used Tinkatink's evolution Tinkatuff at Level 28 to beat Murkrow quickly.
Once you defeat the Segin Squad Grunt's Murkrow, you'll get 988 prize money, and gain entry to the Dark Crew's base.
Before you ring the bell to enter Team Star's Dark base, however, make sure the first three Pokémon in your team are fully healed, as you'll only be able to use them in the upcoming challenge.
How to complete Star Barrage at Team Star's Dark Crew base in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet
To clear Team Star's Dark base, you need to defeat 30 of their Pokémon within 10 minutes during a 'Star Barrage', then battle the Dark Crew's leader, Giacomo.
You'll be using the Let's Go feature to take on the Star Barrage, so press 'R' to send out your Pokémon when you come across clusters of enemies. You can continue to press 'R' to call out more of your Pokémon, and to move them between areas when you come across more enemies.
During the Dark Crew's Star Barrage challenge, you'll face the following Pokémon:
- Murkrow
- Pawniard
- Sneasel
- Stunky
- Zorua
- Sableye
- Nymble
Although we recommend using Fairy, Fighting, or Bug-types - as Dark-types are weak against them - to prepare for the boss fight ahead, pretty much any Pokémon at a high enough Level will be able to defeat 30 of these Pokémon within a few minutes.
Just make sure you're not using Ghost or Psychic-types, as they're vulnerable to Dark moves.
We used a line-up of Tinkatuff, Floragato, and Pawmo - who were all close to Level 30 - and were able to clear the Dark Crew's Star Barrage challenge in under three minutes.
If you notice your Pokémon are low on health during a Star Barrage, you can return to Clive and he'll heal your party for you. If one of them faints, however, you can help it recover HP by using one of the vending machines in the base.
If you find yourself too low-levelled, or have accidentally picked the wrong types for your party, you can press 'Y' to give up for now, and can come back later to try the Star Barrage again whenever you want.
How to beat Giacomo in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet
Once you complete the Star Barrage at the Dark Crew's base, you'll have to face their leader, Giacomo, in a battle.
Giacomo will use two Pokémon:
- Pawniard - Level 21
- Revavroom (Segin Starmobile) - Level 20
Tinkatink and its evolutions are effective against Pawniard, Giacomo's first Pokémon, as its a dual Steel and Fairy-type, meaning it can resist Pawniard'ss Steel and Dark moves, while using Effective Fairy moves. A good Fighting or Fire-type Pokémon could also be effective againt Pawniard.
Although Revavroom is usually a dual Steel and Poison-type, the Segin Starmobile Revavroom variant shares the same weaknesses at Pawniard, as it's type is specific to this Dark Crew's base. So, Tinkatink and its evolutions, and Fighting and Fire-types, will also be effective in beating Giacomo's Segin Starmobile Revavroom.
Once you've defeated Pawniard and the Segin Starmobile, you'll have successfully beaten Giacomo and cleared Team Star's Dark Crew base.
As well as receiving Giacomo's Team Star Badge and progressing with the Starfall Street story, you'll get the following rewards:
- TM062 Foul Play
- LP (amount depends on what order you do Team Star's bases in)
- New TM recipes and materials
That’s another Team Star Crew base down, so why not take on Mela, Atticus, Ortega, or Eri next? Or maybe you want to continue with Victory Road or Path of Legends? The world is your Cloyster!