Prepare for battle, Trainer! crowned Sword Zacian is back in Pokémon GO as a formidable Tier 5 Legendary Raid Boss. Known for its immense power and crucial role in the game’s top formats, taking down this majestic Fairy/Steel-type requires strategic preparation and the right team. This comprehensive guide will walk you through everything you need to know, from identifying its weaknesses and assembling the best counters to understanding how to obtain this highly sought-after Pokémon and unlock its true potential. Get ready to challenge one of the most dominant forces in Pokémon GO!
Why Raid Crowned Sword Zacian?
Crowned Sword Zacian isn’t just another legendary; it’s currently positioned as one of the most powerful Pokémon in the game. Boasting the highest Combat Power (CP) ceiling at 5629, it reigns supreme as the top-ranked Pokémon in the Master League PvP format.
Beyond PvP dominance, it’s a top-tier attacker in raids, ranking #1 among Steel-types and a strong #2 among Fairy-types. Defeating and obtaining Crowned Sword Zacian is essential for any serious Trainer looking to optimize their raid teams and dominate the Master League meta. Its signature move, Behemoth Blade, even grants a unique Adventure Effect, boosting your Pokémon’s attack in future raids!
Crowned Sword Zacian Raid Details
During the highly anticipated GO Fest 2025 Global event, Crowned Sword Zacian will take center stage in 5-star raids.
Raid Tier: Tier 5 Legendary Raid Boss
Event Appearance: GO Fest 2025 Global
Raid Date & Time: Sunday, June 29th, 2025, from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM local time. Crowned Sword Zacian will be the only 5-star raid boss available on this day.
Shiny Availability: Yes, the dazzling Shiny Crowned Sword Zacian is available to encounter after a successful raid.
Weather Boost: Crowned Sword Zacian receives a weather boost from Cloudy conditions, increasing its CP upon encounter at Level 25.
Defeating the Beast: Crowned Sword Zacian’s Weaknesses
As a Fairy and Steel dual-type Pokémon, Crowned Sword Zacian has specific vulnerabilities that top Trainers can exploit.
Its dual typing gives it a distinct set of weaknesses:
Weak to: Fire and Ground
Conversely, its Steel typing grants it a staggering number of resistances:
Resists: Bug, Dark, Dragon, Fairy, Flying, Grass, Ice, Normal, Poison, Psychic, and Rock-type attacks.
This clear weakness to Fire and Ground types simplifies counter selection significantly. Focusing your raid party on powerful attackers of these two types is the key to victory.
Best Counters for Crowned Sword Zacian Raids
To maximize your damage output and defeat Crowned Sword Zacian efficiently, you need to assemble a team of your strongest Fire and Ground-type Pokémon. Leveraging Mega Evolutions and Shadow Pokémon will provide the highest potential damage per second (DPS).
Here is a breakdown of the top counters based on simulated raid performance:
Top Mega & Primal Counters
Mega Evolutions and Primal Reversions provide massive power boosts to themselves and others on the battlefield. Prioritize these if possible:
- Primal Groudon: (Ground/Fire) – Mud Shot / Precipice Blades
- Mega Charizard Y: (Fire/Flying) – Fire Spin / Blast Burn
- Mega Blaziken: (Fire/Fighting) – Fire Spin / Blast Burn
- Mega Garchomp: (Ground/Dragon) – Mud Shot / Earth Power
- Mega Charizard X: (Fire/Dragon) – Fire Spin / Blast Burn
- Shadow Heatran: (Fire/Steel) – Fire Spin / Magma Storm
- Shadow Chandelure: (Ghost/Fire) – Fire Spin / Overheat
- Shadow Ho-Oh: (Fire/Flying) – Incinerate / Sacred Fire
- Shadow Moltres: (Fire/Flying) – Fire Spin / Overheat
- Shadow Entei: (Fire) – Fire Spin / Overheat
- Shadow Groudon: (Ground) – Mud Shot / Precipice Blades
- Heatran: (Fire/Steel) – Fire Spin / Magma Storm
- Reshiram: (Dragon/Fire) – Fire Fang / Fusion Flare
- Blacephalon: (Fire/Ghost) – Incinerate / Mystical Fire
- Chandelure: (Ghost/Fire) – Fire Spin / Overheat
- Volcarona: (Bug/Fire) – Fire Spin / Overheat
- Groudon: (Ground) – Mud Shot / Precipice Blades
- Skeledirge: (Fire/Ghost) – Incinerate / Blast Burn
- Victini: (Psychic/Fire) – Quick Attack / V-create
- A Hero of Many Battles Zacian: The Pokémon you caught from the raid.
- Knows Iron Head: The Zacian must currently know the Charged Attack Iron Head. If it doesn’t, you’ll need to use a Charged TM.
- Resources: You need 1,000 Crowned Sword Energy and 30 Zacian Candy.
- Potential Codes: Occasionally, special Pokémon GO codes might distribute small amounts of event-specific energy.
- www.polygon.com
- www.si.com
- www.eurogamer.net
- www.polygon.com
- www.eurogamer.net
Primal Groudon stands out due to its typing advantage and immense power. Mega Charizard Y is the premier Fire-type Mega choice.
Premier Shadow Attackers
Shadow Pokémon deal significantly more damage than their standard counterparts, making them invaluable despite lower defense.
Shadow Heatran with its exclusive move Magma Storm is a top contender, even outperforming some Megas. Shadow Ground types like Groudon are also excellent options.
Strong Standard & Legendary Counters
Even without Megas or Shadows, many powerful non-Shadow Pokémon excel against Crowned Sword Zacian.
Pokémon with powerful signature or Community Day moves like Heatran (Magma Storm), Reshiram (Fusion Flare), and Groudon (Precipice Blades) are particularly effective.
Understanding the Counter Table Stats
The counter lists above are derived from simulation data showing metrics like:
DPS (Damage Per Second): How quickly the Pokémon deals damage. Higher is better.
Faints: How many times the Pokémon faints during the simulated battle. Lower is better (means more time attacking).
TTW (Time To Win): How long it takes a team of six of this Pokémon to defeat the raid boss. Lower is better.
While DPS shows raw power, a balance of DPS and Faints (leading to lower TTW) is ideal. Pokémon with higher Faints might require more Revives and Potions but contribute significant damage quickly.
Crowned Sword Zacian’s Moveset Analysis
Knowing Crowned Sword Zacian’s potential moves is crucial for survival and maximizing your counter’s effectiveness.
Fast Moves
Metal Claw: (Steel type) – Deals reduced damage to Fire-type counters.
Air Slash: (Flying type) – Deals neutral damage to most Fire and Ground-type counters.
Neither Fast Move is a major threat to your recommended counters due to typing advantages or resistances.
Charged Moves
Behemoth Blade: (Steel type, Signature Move) – Extremely powerful! Deals massive damage but is resisted by Fire and Steel types.
Play Rough: (Fairy type) – Gains STAB (Same Type Attack Bonus). Deals significant damage but is resisted by Fire, Poison, and Steel types.
Close Combat: (Fighting type) – Powerful and charges relatively quickly. Deals neutral damage to Fire types but hits Ground types for super effective damage. Can be dangerous for pure Ground counters. Self-debuffs Zacian after use.
Giga Impact: (Normal type) – A very powerful, high-energy move. Deals neutral damage to all your recommended counters. While slow to charge, its raw power poses a significant threat.
Behemoth Blade and Play Rough are less concerning for Fire-type counters due to resistances. Close Combat is a risk for Ground types. Giga Impact is the biggest threat to all counters as it deals heavy neutral damage. Be prepared to dodge charged attacks, especially Giga Impact and Close Combat if using Ground types.
Raid Strategy and Party Size
The difficulty of the Crowned Sword Zacian raid depends heavily on your team composition and the number of participants.
Minimum Trainers: Theoretically, a highly skilled trio with max-level, best-in-slot counters (like Primal Groudon or Mega Charizard Y) under ideal weather (Clear/Sunny or Cloudy) might succeed. This is very challenging and requires perfect execution.
Recommended Trainers: For a reliable clear without needing perfect Pokémon or dodging skills, a group of 4-6 high-level Trainers with strong counters is recommended.
Larger Groups: Trainers with lower-level Pokémon or those without ideal counters should aim for a larger raid party of 7+ Trainers to ensure success and have more room for error.
Coordinate with your raid group! Discuss counter strategies, activate Mega Evolutions strategically (only one Mega boost per trainer), and use Party Play to gain damage bonuses. Weather boost (Clear/Sunny for Ground, Sunny for Fire) can significantly aid your counters.
Beyond the Battle: Getting Crowned Sword Zacian
Defeating Crowned Sword Zacian in a raid doesn’t immediately grant you its Crowned form. Instead, you’ll encounter its standard Hero of Many Battles form for the catching phase.
The Combat Power (CP) ranges for catching Hero of Many Battles Zacian are:
2100 – 2188 CP at Level 20 (no weather boost)
2625 – 2735 CP at Level 25 (Cloudy weather boost)
A perfect 100% IV Zacian will have 2188 CP (Level 20) or 2735 CP (Level 25).
Transforming to Crowned Sword Zacian
To transform your caught Hero of Many Battles Zacian into its more powerful Crowned form, you will need three things:
Once these requirements are met, a “Change Form” button will appear on the Pokémon’s summary screen. Upon transformation, Zacian’s Charged Attack Iron Head will change into its signature move, Behemoth Blade.
How to Get Crowned Sword Energy
Crowned Sword Energy is the key resource for this transformation. During GO Fest 2025 Global, the primary ways to obtain it are:
Defeating Crowned Sword Zacian in Raids: Participating in and winning Crowned Sword Zacian raids on Sunday, June 29th, will reward you with Crowned Sword Energy. The amount typically ranges from 80-120 per raid, potentially more for faster clears.
GO Fest 2025 Special Research: If you purchased a GO Fest 2025 Global ticket, the “A Hero’s Journey” Special Research quest offers a crucial branching point. By choosing the “Crowned Sword Journey” path, you will earn a total of 1,000 Crowned Sword Energy as rewards from completing later steps of the research.
It’s vital to participate in Crowned Sword Zacian raids on Sunday, June 29th, and consider the ticketed Special Research if you need the 1,000 energy requirement fulfilled during the event period.
Free Form Switching (After Initial Transformation)
A major benefit is that once you have transformed a specific Zacian into its Crowned form using the initial 1,000 Energy and 30 Candy, you can switch it back and forth between its Hero of Many Battles form and Crowned Sword form for free, without needing more energy or candy for subsequent changes on that specific Pokémon.
Behemoth Blade’s Adventure Effect
Beyond being a powerful attack, Crowned Sword Zacian’s Behemoth Blade has a unique Adventure Effect. Activating it boosts your Pokémon’s attack power in raids and Max Battles by 10% for six minutes. This effect costs 5,000 Stardust and 5 Zacian Candy per activation, and its duration can be extended. This added utility makes obtaining Crowned Sword Zacian even more appealing.
Shiny Crowned Sword Zacian
For collectors, the Shiny Crowned Sword Zacian is a highly desirable catch. Its metallic body shifts from blue to a striking cyan color (living up to its name’s origin, “The Cyan”) with pink accents changing to a vibrant orange. If you encounter a different colored Zacian after the raid, you’ve found a shiny!
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the best Pokémon to use against Crowned Sword Zacian?
The top counters are powerful Fire and Ground-type Pokémon. This includes Premier attackers like Primal Groudon, Mega Charizard Y, Mega Blaziken, Shadow Heatran, Shadow Chandelure, Reshiram, Heatran, and Groudon. Focus on Fire and Ground type attacks like Precipice Blades, Blast Burn, Magma Storm, and Earth Power.
How do I get Crowned Sword Energy to transform Zacian?
During GO Fest 2025 Global, the primary ways to get Crowned Sword Energy are by defeating Crowned Sword Zacian in 5-star raids specifically on Sunday, June 29th. If you purchase a GO Fest ticket, you can also earn 1,000 Crowned Sword Energy by selecting the “Crowned Sword Journey” path in the “A Hero’s Journey” Special Research.
Why is Crowned Sword Zacian considered one of the best Pokémon in GO?
Crowned Sword Zacian holds the highest max CP in Pokémon GO (5629) and ranks #1 in the Master League PvP format. In raids, it is the top Steel-type attacker and the second-best Fairy-type attacker. Its signature move, Behemoth Blade, is incredibly powerful and provides a valuable Adventure Effect, boosting raid attack power.
Conclusion
Crowned Sword Zacian is a powerhouse in Pokémon GO, dominating both raid and PvP metas. Its return for GO Fest 2025 Global, specifically on Sunday, June 29th, presents the prime opportunity to add this top-tier Legendary to your collection. By focusing on strong Fire and Ground-type counters like Primal Groudon and Mega Charizard Y, coordinating with fellow Trainers, and understanding the process to transform the caught Hero form using Crowned Sword Energy (primarily from Sunday raids or the GO Fest Special Research), you can unlock the full potential of this formidable Warrior Pokémon. Don’t miss your chance to raid and obtain Crowned Sword Zacian!
