‘Pokemon Go’ analysis: What to catch for the Dragonspiral Descent event

December is for dragons in “Pokemon Go.” With Reshiram and Zekrom dominating the five-star raids, Niantic is adding another creature of the scaly and fanged persuasion to the mix — Druddigon.

As part of the Dragonspiral Descent event, running from 10 a.m. Dec. 7 to 8 p.m. Dec. 12, the Cave Pokemon is making its debut. Best of all, this Pokemon can be shiny. In terms of functionality, it could be seen as a poor man’s Haxorus. It has comparable stats and move sets though it’s attack power is much lower than the rare Axe Jaw Pokemon. Ideally, it could find a role in Great and Ultra leagues thanks to its Dragon Tail Fast Move and the Night Slash and Dragon Claw Charge Moves.

Its shiny variant will be desirable because of its green and yellow color scheme and the Pokemon’s distinct character design. It’s not for everyone but it does stand out. The one notable trait about Druddigon is that it doesn’t have an evolution. Druddigon is available in three-star raids and in Win 3 Raids event tasks.

As for the other elements of the Dragonspiral Descent event, players will find a Collection Challenge that’s easy to clear with the hardest catches likely being Vibrava and Dragonair. Those are somewhat rare but will show up in places. The reward for finishing the collection is 1,000 XP, 3,000 Stardust and an encounter with Druddigon.

The bigger draw will be the wild Pokemon of this event. Players have a chance to encounter the following:
Vulpix (shiny available)
Seel (shiny available)
Dratini (shiny available)
Mareep (shiny available)
Sneasel (shiny available)
Trapinch (shiny available)
Blitzle (shiny available)
Darumaka (shiny available)
Deino (shiny available)
Dragonair
Vibrava

With this roster, I would focus on catching Darumaka, Blitzle, Dratini, Seel and Deino. Darumaka’s shiny variant is rare and it’s somewhat useful in certain raids. Blitzle’s variant is just as hard to find. Dratini is good for the candy so that players can power up their Dragonite for Go Battle League and raids. Finding a good Seel is useful because its evolution, Dewgong, is excellent for Great League. Players will need to use Elite TMs though because they need to put Ice Shard and Icy Wind as its moves.

Lastly, shiny Deino has usurped Gible’s place as one of the most-sought after pseudo-legendaries in “Pokemon Go.” Players have two ways to get it. They can go after it in one-star raids or they can find Win a Raid event quest to earn an encounter. Deino also appears in the wild but it is very rare.

Lastly, players should strongly consider picking up the Event Box for 175 PokeCoins. It has three Remote Raid passes, which is a great deal.