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Does Killing 60 Pokémon Increase Shiny Odds? The Truth Behind Mass Outbreaks

Yes, defeating or capturing 60 Pokémon in a Mass Outbreak in games like Pokémon Scarlet and Violet significantly increases your chances of encountering a Shiny Pokémon. This is a popular and effective strategy for shiny hunters, but there are nuances to understand for maximizing your success. Let’s dive into the details.

Understanding Mass Outbreaks and Shiny Odds

Mass Outbreaks are events in specific Pokémon games where a large number of a single species of Pokémon appear in one location. These events provide a unique opportunity to increase your odds of finding a Shiny Pokémon due to a mechanic tied to the number of Pokémon you defeat or capture within the outbreak. The game essentially rolls the shiny dice more often the more Pokemon you have defeated in the outbreak, thereby exponentially increasing your odds of finding a shiny.

The 60 Pokémon Threshold

The key number is 60. Once you have defeated or captured 60 Pokémon in a single Mass Outbreak, the game applies a significant boost to your shiny odds for the remaining Pokémon in that outbreak.

Stacking the Odds: Shiny Charm and Sparkling Power

The benefit of defeating or catching 60 Pokemon can be further increased by using other mechanics as well. You can further enhance your chances by combining this strategy with other methods like the Shiny Charm and Sparkling Power sandwiches.

Shiny Charm: This item, obtained by completing the Pokédex, provides a passive boost to shiny odds, essentially tripling your base shiny rate.
Sparkling Power Sandwiches: Crafting or purchasing sandwiches with Sparkling Power can further increase your shiny odds. Level 3 Sparkling Power sandwiches provide the highest boost.

The Resulting Shiny Odds

Base shiny odds (without any bonuses): 1/4096
Mass Outbreak rate (after defeating/capturing 60 Pokémon): Approximately 1/1365
Shiny Charm: 1/1365.67
Shiny rate with Lv. 3 Sparkling Power sandwich: 1/1024.38
Mass Outbreak rate (after 60 Pokémon) with Shiny Charm: 1/819.6
Mass Outbreak rate (after 60 Pokémon) with Lv. 3 Sparkling Power sandwich: 1/683
Mass Outbreak rate (after 60 Pokémon) with Shiny Charm and Lv. 3 Sparkling Power sandwich: Approximately 1/512

As you can see, combining all these methods gives you the best possible chance of finding a Shiny Pokémon in a Mass Outbreak. This information is important because it allows you to make the correct preparations to better capitalize on the shiny hunting experience.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Shiny Hunting and Mass Outbreaks

Here are some frequently asked questions about the process, its elements and tips about how to maximize its effectiveness:

1. Does killing 60 Pokémon only work in outbreaks?

Yes, the increased shiny odds associated with defeating or capturing 60 Pokémon specifically apply to Mass Outbreaks. The game has built in mechanics that make this only viable during mass outbreaks.

2. How do I know when I have defeated 60 Pokémon in an outbreak?

The game doesn’t provide a direct counter. A good way to know when you’ve cleared 30 or 60 is to keep count as you clear 30 or 60, then clear a few extra. Clear until the “not many [Pokémon] left” message, which usually appears after defeating at least 60.

3. What are the shiny odds after killing 60 Pokémon in a mass outbreak without a shiny charm or sandwich?

After defeating 60 Pokémon in a Mass Outbreak, the shiny odds are approximately 1 in 1365. This is a significant improvement over the base odds of 1 in 4096.

4. Do outbreaks always increase shiny odds, even if I don’t defeat 60?

Yes, outbreaks inherently have slightly increased shiny odds compared to regular encounters, even before reaching the 60 Pokémon threshold. However, the boost is much smaller.

5. Can you reset outbreaks for shiny?

In some older game versions, resetting outbreaks was possible. However, some games have fixed this “exploit.” In current games with mass outbreaks, it is not possible to save at the gate in the village and then reset if you don’t get a shiny in the mass outbreak.

6. What is the rarest shiny in Pokémon GO?

Shiny rarity in Pokémon GO is influenced by availability, event exclusivity, and whether the Pokémon is permanently boosted. Some of the rarest shinies include:

Unown
Heracross
Pawniard
Shellos (East & West)

This is influenced by the fact that these are all Pokémon that have limited spawn locations.

7. Is there a trick to catching shiny Pokémon once you encounter one?

While there is no guaranteed method, using higher-quality Poké Balls, applying status conditions like paralysis or sleep, and reducing the Pokémon’s HP can increase your chances of a successful capture. However, this will be highly dependent on what is in your current load out and the environment you are in.

8. How do you get shinies in games like Pokémon Scarlet and Violet outside of outbreaks?

You can boost your Shiny Odds in Scarlet and Violet in a few ways, namely the following:

Eat Sandwiches for Sparkling Power.
Get the Shiny Charm.
Use the Masuda Method when breeding Pokémon.

9. Are Shinies always a 100 percent catch rate?

If a Shiny Legendary is found after completing a Raid, it has a 100% catch rate. But in the wild, Legendary Pokémon are difficult to catch, even if they are Shiny. In general, it’s best to prepare for an encounter with any pokemon whether it’s shiny or not.

10. Do shiny sandwiches work on Eggs?

Shiny Sandwiches will not help with the chance for an egg to be Shiny, so players should prepare other sandwiches for their eggs. Players will need to repeat this until they have hatched a shiny Pokemon, though there are a few things they can do to further increase their chances.

11. Is it worth keeping multiple shiny Pokemon?

Since they are so hard to come by, it is completely worth keeping shiny pokemon. If you were tossing one out it is almost like throwing a legendary in the garbage. Even if you do not want that shiny, there is a great chance that somebody else might want that one and you can trade it for something good too! The game’s economy is directly connected with your ability to barter for needed goods.

12. What sandwich attracts shiny Pokemon of a specific type?

For instance, if players combine an avocado with a Salty Herba Mythica and a Spicy Herba Mythica, they will have a sandwich that increases their chance of encountering a dragon type Pokemon, as well as increasing the chance that the encountered Pokemon will be a shiny Pokemon. This is due to the fact that dragon-type sandwiches are very strong.

13. How long do shiny sandwiches work?

The amount of time that a meal power lasts is for 30 minutes of real-time play, giving players a half-hour to take advantage of their meal powers.

14. Can you auto battle shinies?

No, you cannot auto battle shinies. The game is specifically built to avoid this due to the demand for rare and shiny Pokemon. I can confirm you cannot auto battle shinies. It does not matter how strong the pokemon is, shiny pokemon are not auto battled in modern games.

15. What is the Masuda method?

The Masuda Method is a classic breeding strategy to boost the players’ chances of obtaining a Shiny Pokémon with optimal chances in play. Theoretically, it consists of putting two Pokémon from different regions of the real world together to breed, with its offspring having higher odds of being a Shiny.

Conclusion

Defeating or capturing 60 Pokémon in a Mass Outbreak does significantly increase your shiny odds. By understanding the mechanics of Mass Outbreaks, utilizing the Shiny Charm, and crafting Sparkling Power sandwiches, you can maximize your chances of encountering a Shiny Pokémon and adding it to your collection. Happy shiny hunting!

Does killing 60 Pokemon increase shiny odds?