How to Use Gholdengo to Solo Tera Raids

Learn how to catch and build Gholdengo for soloing 5 and 6 Star Tera Raids in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet. Master the Metal Sound, Nasty Plot, and Steel Beam strategy.

Alright, so you've been diving into those tough 5 and 6 Star Tera Raids, huh? They can be a real pain, especially when you're trying to tackle them solo with the AI teammates – let's be honest, they're not always the brightest bulbs. Even online can be tricky if your squad picks Pokémon that just don't cut it. You might have heard about Iron Hands being a solid choice for soloing, and it is, but it's a Violet exclusive. If you're playing Scarlet and can't trade, that option's out. That's where Gholdengo shines!

Gholdengo is available in both games, but getting it is a bit more of a journey than Iron Hands. First things first, you need to catch a Gimmighoul. Make sure you're grabbing the chest form, not those roaming ones you'll stumble upon all over Paldea. The real grind is evolving it: you'll need to collect 999 or more Gimmighoul Coins. It sounds like a lot, but focusing on the Gimmighoul Chests helps a ton – each battle against them nets you 50-60 coins, speeding things up considerably. You can find a guide to all the chests if you want to hunt them down!

Once you've got your coins, grab your Gimmighoul and level it up. Using Exp. Candies or even a Rare Candy works great. Pro tip: try to catch a higher-level Gimmighoul to start with, like the level 50 one found east of Casseroya Falls on top of the watchtower. When you level it up with the coins in your inventory, you'll get Gholdengo and keep all those hard-earned coins!

Ideally, you'll want to get your Gholdengo to max level (Level 100, if possible) and use Hyper Training to boost its stats even further. Now, let's talk about what makes Gholdengo so awesome for raids:

• Recover: This is your bread and butter for staying alive. It's a Normal-type move that heals you for 50% of your HP. Gholdengo learns this at Level 42, and sadly, there's no TM for it.
• Nasty Plot: This is crucial for boosting your attacking power. It raises your Special Attack by 2 stages, and you can stack it up to 6 stages (three uses). You can get the TM for Nasty Plot from Ms. Raifort in the Staff room after beating the Midterms and starting her Bonding Quest (which involves catching the 4 Ruinous Legendaries). Alternatively, you can find a TM pickup in Area Zero, up the ledges behind Research Station 2.
• Metal Sound: This move is key for debuffing your opponents. It harshly lowers the target's Special Defense by 2 stages, making your attacks hit way harder. Gholdengo learns this naturally at Level 28.
• Steel Beam: This is your main offensive move. You'll need to find the TM for it; it's located in a cave west of the Fairy Crew base.

Don't forget to equip your Gholdengo with the Metal Coat item! You can buy this at the Delibird Presents Store in Levinicia. It boosts the power of Steel-type moves, and Steel Beam is definitely one of those.

Here's the strategy in action for most Tera Raids:

1. Use Metal Sound three times to max out the target's Special Defense reduction.
2. Use Nasty Plot twice to get your Special Attack up by 4 stages.
3. Unleash Steel Beam to deal massive damage!

This setup lets Gholdengo absolutely carry you through Tera Raids solo, or be a powerhouse in online battles. Remember, the higher your Gholdengo's level and stats, the easier these raids will be!