Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness is the second installment in the Orre region, original home of the shadow Pokémon. Unlike Pokémon Colosseum, these Pokémon are shiny locked. But, luckily, there are still some Pokémon that can be hunted. They can be obtained through trades and gifts, or, as a new mechanic in this game, through Poké Spots. These locations work as a wild encounter by leaving bait and waiting until a Pokémon appears, which has the chance of being shiny.

The list of targets is more limited, as there are only 18 of them, but this lower number does not represent their quality, some of them are very special. Overall, their reset time isn’t too long. You don’t need to prepare a different strategy for most of them, and although there are some exceptions, they’re not nearly as long as some shadow hunts in Colosseum.

1. Before choosing a hunt.

1.1. Shiny locked shadow Pokémon.

Normally, shadow Pokémon would get a new trainer ID after catching them, and, due to the TID being part of the calculations affecting the shininess, they have a chance to be shiny. This was not an intended mechanic, and is regarded as a glitch. A lucky glitch for us nonetheless. But this was fixed in Gale of Darkness, as now the game will generate a new personality value if the current one happens to be shiny, locking any attempts to get them.

Like with the main games, there are ways to remove the shiny lock, but I will not go into detail, as I take the games as they are, and modifying them loses some of its purpose in my eyes.

1.2. Poké Spots.

Poké Spots are the locations in the game where the wild encounters take place. There are three types: rock, cave and oasis. All of them have three Pokémon each, going from common (50%), uncommon (35%), and rare (15%). You will attract one of these Pokémon by placing a poke snack in the middle of the spot, which will eventually trigger a call whenever something has fallen for the bait. There’s also a chance for a Munchlax to appear, 10% specifically. Munchlax can’t be hunted or caught. This means that 90% of the time you will have a wild encounter.

Whenever you place a snack, you will go walk around until you get the message (make sure to save a few times before getting it, so you don’t have to do too many steps before you can go to the spot again everytime you reset), and then you can check the Pokémon. If it’s not shiny (or a Munchlax), you can reset and repeat.

2. In-game trades.

These hunts require you to have a specific Pokémon to trade for your target. Unlike most in-game trades in the main games, these can actually be shiny. The ones you can get are Elekid, Larvitar, Meditite, and Shuckle. They get some special moves, and have the nickname, TID, ability, and ID set. The nature and everything else is random.

You can save right in front of the person who trades with you.

Average time per reset: 1 minute.

3. Gift Pokémon.

3.1. Eevee.

As soon as you begin your adventure, you will be welcomed with a cutscene where shadow Lugia kidnaps a ship. After that, a battle will appear (you can skip this by stopping the fight). You will find out that you have been in a practice battle during that time, and you will be able to check your team after the dialog ends. Here you will find your starter. Eevee is one of the most popular targets in this game, as its access to multiple evolutions makes the shiny form eye-catching, althought its yellowish-golden colour is also good.

Overall, the hunt is not too long, but you will have to deal with the inital cutscene everytime you reset. There’s also another detail of this hunt that makes it a bit more difficult. During the battle I mentioned before, you are greeted with a Salamence in your side. This Salamence can be shiny. This means that you may be able to find an uncatchable shiny while hunting for Eevee. But isn’t the challenge part of the fun?

Average time per reset: 2 minutes.

3.2. Johto starters.

After completing the Mt. Battle, you will be able to receive one of the first stage evolutions of the Johto starters. The good news is that you can get all three, just have to beat the trainers again. You will need to save before battling the last trainer. A team of two Kyogre at level 100, holding mystic water, with 252 EVs in special attack, and a modest nature, will tear apart his team by spamming water spout. This is the ideal setup, but you can always use something else as long as you’re knocking out his Pokémon as fast.

The special thing about these starters is that they get access to frenzy plant (Chikorita), blast burn (Cyndaquil), and hydro cannon (Totodile). This would not be possible in any other way in this generation.

Average time per reset: 3-4 minutes.

4. Poké Spots.

Poké spots are the only random hunts in this game. Having a 50, 35, and 15 percent, the targets in these locations vary depending on the biome. The cave poké spot has Zubat (50%), Aron (35%), and Wooper (15%). For the oasis poké spot, there are Hoppip (50%), Phanpy (35%), and Surskit (15%). And for the last one, the rock poké spot, Sandshrew (50%), Gligar (35%), and Trapinch (15%).

You will get access to poké snacks on stores for 300 after you get them first in Duking’s house. You can place up to 10 snacks at once in one spot. When you find a wild Pokémon, you will not be able to escape, the battle will end when you catch or defeat it.

Average time per reset: 1 minute.