Pokémon GO is celebrating Diwali with the ‘Festival of Lights’ event, which is set to debut the Generation 6 Pokémon Dedenne and is packed full of bonuses and rewards.
This next big event comes not long after the conclusion of Pokémon GO‘s recent Halloween event, and aims to carry on Hoopa’s ongoing tale with a new addition to the ‘Season of Mischief’ Special Research Story. The event also includes firework displays, a free avatar item, special bonuses, themed spawns, the return of Cobalion, Terrakion & Virizion and more.
We’ve detailed everything you need to know about the Festival of Lights in Pokémon GO below, so you can get the most out of the event!
Festival of Lights Start & End Dates
The Festival of Lights in Pokémon GO starts on Friday, November 5th, at 10 am, local time and concludes on Sunday, November 14th, at 8 pm, local time.
Dedenne’s Pokémon GO Debut: Can Dedenne be Shiny?
Dedenne is an Electric/Fairy-type Pokémon from Generation 6 and will be making its debut in Pokémon GO during the Festival of Lights. Plenty of Dedenne will be appearing in the wild, but you can also obtain them via Field Research Tasks and battling them in 1-Star Raids. Dedenne can not be shiny at the current time, as is usually the case with Pokémon species debuts.
Pokémon GO Festival of Lights Event Bonuses and Extras
Festival of Lights’ bonuses focus on gifts and friendship, some of the themes of Diwali itself. Trainers worldwide can enjoy the bonuses below throughout the entire event:
- Friendship levels will increase twice as fast. (2 friendship points per person, per day.)
- Increased items from Gifts.
- Gifts can be opened up to 45 times per day.
Bonuses exclusive to India
On Sunday, November 7, 2021, from 4 pm. to 7 pm. local time, trainers in India will receive two special bonuses. These include double catch candy and an increase of Dedenne and Blitzle spawns.
Team Rocket Bonuses
Although not much is currently known, Niantic’s blog post announcing the event warned us about a Team Rocket invasion happening on November 9th. Team Rocket will appear more frequently in ballons and at PokéStops, and trainers will be able to use a Charged TM to unlearn ‘Frustration’ from a Shadow Pokémon. This guide will be updated when more information develops. We recommend you read up on Cliff, Arlo and Sierra‘s counters to prepare, as they’ll no doubt be causing trouble.
Fireworks
The first few days of the event will feature in-game fireworks, which can be viewed in the overworld’s sky. It’s likely that the fireworks will last for the five days of Diwali, which represent faith, food, fireworks, family and charity.
Avatar Items
A free Festival of Lights T-shirt will be available for all players in the in-game avatar shop. Dedenne-inspired clothing items will also be purchasable for PokéCoins and include a hat, shoes and bag.
Stickers
Dedenne stickers will be available by spinning PokéStops and opening Gifts. They’re also purchasable in the in-game shop.
Season of Mischief Special Research
A new part of the ‘Season of Mischief Special Research’ has been added. If you complete it, you’ll gain access to a special event at the end of the Season. The tasks are very simple and can be completed quickly. If you’re struggling to find another friend to add, you can unfriend and re-add an existing friend without losing your friendship progress.
- Make a new friend – Meditite*
- Send 10 Gifts to friends – Chinchou*
- Use 20 Berries to help catch Pokémon – 2 Silver Pinaps
Rewards: Blitzle*, 1 Poffin and 10 Dedenne Candy
Pokémon GO Festival of Lights Spawns
Pokémon species related to the Festival of Lights theme, such as Electric- and Fire-type Pokémon will be spawning in the wild. The full list of Pokémon spawns are below:
An asterisk (*) indicates that the Pokémon has a chance to be shiny.
- Pikachu*
- Magnemite*
- Slugma
- Whismur*
- Electrike*
- Blitzle*
- Cottonee
- Tynamo
- Fennekin
- Dedenne
- Darumaka* (Uncommon)
- Litwick (Uncommon)
Pokémon GO Festival of Lights Field Research
The Field Research, tasks you have a chance to receive from Pokétops, for Festival of Lights mostly rewards the same Pokémon that are spawning for the event. The exception to this is Electabuzz, Magmar, Vulpix and Litleo.
An asterisk (*) indicates that the Pokémon has a chance to be shiny.
- Catch 5 Electric-type Pokémon – Magnemite* / Electrike*
- Catch 5 Fire-type Pokémon – Vulpix* / Litleo
- Catch 5 different species of Electric-type Pokémon – Blitzle*
- Walk 1km – 10 Poké Balls / 5 Great Balls
- Defeat 2 Team GO Rocket Grunts – Blitlze*
- Send 5 Gifts to friends – Electabuzz* / Magmar*
- Send 7 Gifts to friends – Darumaka*
- Power up Pokémon 10 times – Dedenne
Pokémon GO Festival of Lights Raids and Eggs
Raids
Darkrai is being replaced by Terrakion, Virizion and Cobalion in five-star raids, while Mega Absol is being swapped for Mega Manectric. If you’re reading this before the event begins, make sure to check out our Absol and Darkrai counter guides before they disappear! You can find a full list of Pokémon appearing in raids below:
An asterisk (*) indicates that the Pokémon has a chance to be shiny.
One-star Raids
- Charmander*
- Vulpix*
- Chinchou*
- Litwick
- Dedenne
Three-star Raids
- Alolan Raichu*
- Electabuzz*
- Magmar*
- Bellossom
Five-star Raids
- Cobalion*
- Terrakion*
- Virizon*
Mega Raids
- Mega Manectric*
Eggs
7km Eggs will have Pokémon related to the Festival of Light spawning, while the rest of the egg groups stay the same as November‘s current pool. A full list of Pokémon hatching from eggs can be found below, along with their rarity.
An asterisk (*) indicates that the Pokémon has a chance to be shiny.
One Egg Rarity
- Alolan Geodude*
- Chinchou*
- Pichu
Two Egg Rarity
- Vulpix*
Three Egg Rarity
- Magby*
- Elekid*
Four Egg Rarity
- Budew*
That wraps it up for our guide to the Festival of Lights event in Pokémon GO! If you want to know what else is happening in November, check out our guide on Pokémon GO’s November Spotlight Hour, Raid and Event Schedule.
Pokémon GO is available for free on Android and iOS devices.
