Terastallization is the big new battle feature of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Once per battle, one of your Pokémon can turn into crystal and take on a new type, its Tera Type. This phenomenon is unique to Paldea: it comes from the Terastal energy that permeates the region’s ground.
How it works
- You need a Tera Orb, which Nemona gives you in Mesagoza at the start of the game.
- In battle, select the Terastallize option and then your move: your Pokémon Terastallizes before attacking.
- The effect lasts until the end of the battle (or until the Pokémon faints).
- The Orb can only be used once per battle. It recharges at a Pokémon Center or by touching a Tera crystal out in the wild. After The Indigo Disk, it no longer needs to be recharged.
Each Pokémon’s Tera Type
Every Pokémon has a Tera Type, shown on its summary screen. Most of the time, it is one of its original types. But some Pokémon have an unexpected Tera Type:
- Terastallized wild Pokémon, surrounded by a shining aura: they Terastallize during the battle and keep that Tera Type once caught;
- Pokémon from Tera Raid Battles, whose Tera Type is the crystal’s type;
- Pokémon whose Tera Type you have changed (see below).
Babies hatched from an Egg are given one of their original types at random: the Tera Type is not passed down.
Effects in battle
On defense: a single type
A Terastallized Pokémon has only its Tera Type for calculating weaknesses and resistances. It is the ultimate defensive tool: a Charizard (Fire/Flying), which is 4× weak to Rock, no longer has to fear it if it Terastallizes into Water. But it can also be a trap for your opponent, as we saw with Brassius’s Sudowoodo.
On offense: an extra bonus
| Situation | Bonus |
|---|---|
| Move of an original type (without Terastallizing) | ×1.5 |
| Move of the Tera Type, different from the original types | ×1.5 |
| Move of an original type, after Terastallizing into another type | ×1.5 (kept) |
| Move of the Tera Type, identical to an original type | ×2 |
Another advantage: a Tera Type move with a base power below 60 is raised to 60 (except priority moves, multi-hit moves and a few exceptions).
Winning strategies
- Offense: Terastallize into an original type to go from ×1.5 to ×2 on your best attacks. Ideal for finishing off a battle.
- Defense: Terastallize to erase a weakness at the right moment, for example against an attack that would knock out your Pokémon.
- Surprise: an unexpected Tera Type, chosen to turn an unfavorable matchup around.
- Good timing: you only get one Terastallization per battle. Save it for the decisive Pokémon and the decisive moment. Gym Leaders and other opponents, for their part, always use it on their last Pokémon.
Changing a Pokémon’s Tera Type
After passing the Medali Gym test, head to the Treasure Eatery restaurant. In exchange for 50 Tera Shards of one type, the chef prepares a dish that gives your Pokémon that Tera Type. Tera Shards can be picked up from the ground (the colorful shards) and, above all, earned as rewards from Tera Raid Battles: see our guide to raid rewards.
The Stellar type
The Indigo Disk adds a 19th Tera Type: Stellar. A Pokémon that Terastallizes into Stellar keeps its original weaknesses and resistances. However, the first time it uses a move of each type, that move gets a bonus: ×2 for its original types, +20% for the others. Tera Blast becomes Stellar-type and is always super effective against a Terastallized Pokémon. You get the Stellar type from Stellar Tera Shards, or on wild Pokémon in the Terarium.
Academy pop quiz
How many times can you Terastallize per battle?
Once per battle, with the Tera Orb.
What bonus does a move get if the Tera Type is identical to an original type?
×2 instead of ×1.5.
Where do you change a Pokémon’s Tera Type?
At the Treasure Eatery in Medali, for 50 Tera Shards of the desired type.
