Ever since Niantic and the Pokémon Company published their articles on Monday, our minds have been racing to figure out the specifics and workings of the new research tasks (quests), specifically as it relates to Legendary and Mythical Pokémon. This article will go over some of our favorite ideas, which we consider one of the best-case scenarios of the new system. Let's begin!
MEW: We already know, in part to an App Store leak overnight, that Mew will be available through Special Research tasks. If Shiny Mew becomes available, that will be the icing on the cake!
MYTHICAL POKÉMON: Mew is, obviously, a Mythical Pokémon and will be available through research tasks. We assume this will also go for Celebi, Jirachi, and Deoxys one day. But will they rotate like Legendary Raid Bosses? Will all Mythical Pokémon be exclusive to Special Research tasks? It's unclear at this point, but we did speculate about this topic back in November.
MASTER BALL: Screenshots that Niantic revealed show that research tasks can have Golden Razz Berries, TMs, and Rare Candy as possible rewards. All of these items have been exclusive to Raid Battles until this point. To keep Field Research tasks more engaging to active Raiders for the longterm, it would make sense to introduce new items that are exclusive to quests.
The Master Ball seems like the obvious one, as we finally have a point to having a Poké Ball with a 100% catch rate. It seems like we won't be limited to a set amount of Premier Balls when catching research task Pokémon. Especially for Shiny, Legendary, and Mythical Pokémon, you'll want to make sure you catch them, and the Master Ball is the best way to do so (just like how we have a 100% catch rate on Shiny Lugia). The Master Ball has been ready to go in the code since day one, so we'll have to wait and see. LEGENDARY POKÉMON: Niantic mentioned that a possible quest reward will be an encounter with a Legendary Pokémon. Legendary and Mythical Pokémon are, through a complex set of technicalities, different classifications. This means that the Legendary Pokémon will no longer be Raid-exclusive, and finally accessible to rural players.
We hope that not every Legendary Pokémon will be available as quests rewards at once. After all, it would make Legendary Raids have less of a purpose if the Raid Boss is not brand-new. Ideally, we'll see about four Legendaries in the reward-pool, which will rotate out every couple of months. This will spread out content, and make it more likely that the first batch of Legendaries can be discovered Shiny.
MEWTWO: Please, Niantic, make Mewtwo available in Research Breakthroughs! We doubt it will happen, but an alternative that would be amazing is if Raid-related research tasks could somehow increase your chances of getting an EX Raid Pass.
THE DIFFERENCE: As we said earlier, the difference between Legendary and Mythical Pokémon is complicated. We've gone over the difference between these classifications before, so we won't bore you again. Below is a list of every known Legendary and Mythical Pokémon from all seven generations. We encourage bookmarking this page for future reference.
MYTHICAL POKÉMON:
Mew
Celebi
Jirachi
Deoxys
Phione
Manaphy
Darkrai
Shaymin
Arceus
Victini
Keldeo
Meloetta
Genesect
Diancie
Hoopa
Volcanion
Magearna
Marshadow
Zeraora
LEGENDARY POKÉMON:
Articuno
Zapdos
Moltres
Mewtwo
Raikou
Entei
Suicune
Lugia
Ho-Oh
Regirock
Regice
Registeel
Latias
Latios
Kyogre
Groudon
Rayquaza
Dialga
Palkia
Heatran
Regigigas
Giratina
Cresselia
Cobalion
Terrakion
Virizion
Tornadus
Thundurus
Reshiram
Zekrom
Landorus
Kyurem
Xerneas
Yveltal
Zygarde
Tapu Koko
Tapu Lele
Tapu Bulu
Tapu Fini
Cosmog
Cosmoem
Solgaleo
Lunala
Necrozma
ULTRA BEASTS: There is also a third subset of "Legendary Pokémon" known as Ultra Beasts. Don't worry about them now, as we won't see them until Generation 7. But, for the sake of a complete list, here are all of the Ultra Beasts:
Nihilego
Buzzwole
Pheromosa
Xurkitree
Celesteela
Kartana
Guzzlord
Poipole
Naganadel
Stakataka
Blacephalon
CLOSING THOUGHTS: While these are our thoughts and hopes, we won't know anything for certain until the new system goes live. Stay tuned to PNN.com and @PNN_APTV on Twitter for more updates about research tasks. Thanks for reading, Trainers!