Posted in: Games, Mobile Games, Niantic, Pokémon GO | Tagged: pokemon, Precious Paths, thundurus

Shadow Incarnate Thundurus Teams With Giovanni in Pokémon GO

Team GO Rocket will invade Pokémon GO once again. The Precious Pals event will be taken over as Giovanni has corrupted Incarnate Thundurus.

Published Sun, 18 Jan 2026 10:12:10 -0600

by Theo Dwyer

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Article Summary

Giovanni debuts Shadow Incarnate Thundurus in Pokémon GO’s Precious Pals: Taken Over event, Jan 23–25, 2026.
Defeat Giovanni for a one-time Shadow Thundurus encounter and unlock Special Research for a Super Rocket Radar.
Look for new Shadow Pokémon and lineup changes for Team GO Rocket leaders, with more Shiny opportunities.
Event bonuses include boosted Team GO Rocket spawns, easier Evolutions, and rare Shiny encounters in wild and eggs.

A shadow descends over the Precious Pals event in Pokémon GO as Giovanni captures a new Legendary. Let's get into the details.

Shadow Incarnate Thundurus in Pokémon GO. Credit: Niantic — Shadow Incarnate Thundurus in *Pokémon GO*. Credit: Niantic

Here's what's happening for the Precious Pals: Taken Over event in Pokémon GO:

Date and time: Friday, January 23, at 12:00 a.m. to Sunday, January 25, 2026, at 8:00 p.m. local time
New Pokémon:
- A new Legendary gets the Shadow treatment. Giovanni will be using Shadow Incarnate Forme Thundurus for the first time. Battling and defeating Giovanni will lead to a one-time encounter with Shadow Incarnate Forme Thundurus. You can find Giovanni with a Super Rocket Radar. Niantic writes:
  - Special Research will be unlocked at the beginning of this event. Progress through it to receive a Super Rocket Radar and chase down Giovanni! You can claim this Special Research until the end of Pokémon GO: Precious Paths on March 3, 2026, at 9:59 a.m. local time.
- More Shadow Pokémon will be available for the first time through Grunt battles, including Shadow Chespin, Shadow Fennekin, and Shadow Froakie.
Shiny release: Team GO Rocket leaders Sierra, Cliff, and Arlo are getting a change to their line-up, so it is likely that at least one of them will feature a Shadow that has not yet been available in its Shiny form. When battling one of the Team GO Rocket Leaders, defeating them will always lead to an encounter with the Shadow Pokémon that they use first.
Wild Spawns: Goldeen (can be Shiny), Zorua (can be Shiny), Wimpod (can be Shiny), Fidough (can be Shiny), and more. Espurr (can be Shiny) will be a rare spawn.
Event bonuses:
- Team GO Rocket will appear more frequently at PokéStops and in balloons.
- You can use a Charged TM to help a Shadow Pokémon forget the Charged Attack Frustration.
- Pokémon caught via one-star and three-star Shadow Raids during the event will have a wider variance of Attack, Defense, and HP.
- Additional Candy XL when walking with your Buddy Pokémon.
- Earn additional hearts with your Buddy Pokémon.
- Increased chance to encounter Shiny Goldeen.
- Increased chance to hatch Shiny Goldeen and Shiny Fidough.
- Limited-time Evolution requirement: Evolve Eevee into Sylveon after earning 20 hearts with Eevee as your buddy. These Evolution requirements will return to the usual requirements on Sunday, January 25, 2026, at 8:00 p.m. local time.
- Limited-time Evolution requirement: Evolve Pancham into Pangoro after catching ten Dark-type Pokémon with Pancham as your buddy. These Evolution requirements will return to the usual requirements on Sunday, January 25, 2026, at 8:00 p.m. local time.
- Limited-time Evolution requirement: Evolve Pawmo into Pawmot after exploring 5 km with Pawmo as your buddy. These Evolution requirements will return to the usual requirements on Sunday, January 25, 2026, at 8:00 p.m. local time.
Eggs:
- 2 KM: Goldeen (can be Shiny), Togepi (can be Shiny), Happiny (can be Shiny), Riolu (can be Shiny), and Fidough (can be Shiny).