Pokémon Sword And Shield Post Game Features Explained

So you’ve taken on the Gym Challenge in Pokémon Sword and Shield, earned eight badges and replaced the current reigning champion. What now? Fortunately for you, this is where the real adventure begins.

As per tradition, Game Freak has ensured that the latest entries in its globally popular RPG series have a robust endgame befitting that of your new title. Once you’ve seen the credits roll and returned to your hometown of Postwick for some well-deserved rest and recreation, it won’t be long before the promise of adventure comes knocking once more. In terms of the priority of what to do first, there’s no such hard enforcement, though, for efficiency’s sake, we’ve taken the liberty of organizing each major side quest into a specific order.

Let’s get started.

Gigantamax Charmander

A number of Pokémon in Galar have access to Gigantamax forms. Unlike Dynamaxing – which is accessible to every Pokémon – only specific versions of a particular creature can undergo the size and form change of the former. Charizard is one of those lucky few, though in order to get your hands on one, you’ll have to become Galar’s champion. With that feat achieved, simply head over to Leon’s home in Postwick and head upstairs. Waiting for you on his desk will be a Poké Ball containing none other than the iconic Gen 1 starter.

Once the fire-type hits level 36 and evolves, you’re good to go.

Master Ball 

Pretty straightforward, this one. Once you’ve reached post-game, head over to Professor Magnolia’s lab and strike up a conversation. She’ll recognize your skill and hand over the coveted Master Ball. As always, the powerful Poké Ball has a 100% capture rate on any Pokémon and is the only one in the game, so use it wisely!

Legendary Hunting

A special story episode centered around Galar’s legendaries will open up when you’re done with the Gym Challenge. It’s here that Zacian or Zamazenta (Sword and Shield exclusive respectively) will finally be obtainable, as well a third, Eternatus. For the sake of avoiding spoilers, we’ll leave you to discover the rest.

Rare League Cards

By revisiting any of the eight Gyms you conquered in the climb to champion status, you’ll be able to participate in a series of battles against extremely powerful Dynamax Pokémon. For all intents and purposes, these can be considered single-player Max Raid Battles and award rare League cards of each respective gym leader when defeated.

Battle Tower

A returning feature from previous games, the Battle Tower is overflowing with strong Trainers intended to test the best of the best. By defeating Galar’s top Trainers, you’ll be awarded with Battle Points that can be spent in shops around the region. It’s here that some of the best competitive items can be bought.

And there you have it, folks. Pokémon Sword and Shield have plenty of content to keep you glued to your Switch once the primary quest is over, and those are just the highlights. Breeding, multiplayer raids and Shiny hunting are all present and accounted for, too, the latter of which we just put together a guide for. Check it out over here.