When can you get Zacian in Pokémon Go?

A full round of new Pokémon are arriving in Pokémon Go during the Ultra Unlock Part 3: Sword and Shield event. The event is kicking off on August 20 at 10 AM in your local time zone. When it does, portals will open up worldwide with these Pokémon from the Galar region. A notable Pokémon appearing during the event will be Zacian in its Hero of Many Battles form. When can you get Zacian, and how do you get it in Pokémon Go?

Zacian is a legendary Pokémon, and that means you can only capture it during the five-star raids that appear at Gyms. Of course, you won’t always receive a five-star raid at every Gym that becomes one, but when you do see a five-star egg waiting to hatch during the Ultra Unlock Part 3 event, it will be Zacian. However, the other legendary Pokémon Zamazenta is set to appear during the second half of the event.

Zacian will only appear in five-star raids from August 20 to 26. Once this swap happens, Zamazenta in its Hero of Many Battles form will swap out of any potential five-star raid sites. You want to make sure you jump on the early five-star raids to catch Zacian before it disappears.

If you’re having trouble attempting to find Zacian, take a quick walk around your neighborhood, where you can find several Gyms. A few of them are bound to transition into a five-star raid during the event, and all raids are guaranteed to be five-star during the Raid Hour event on August 25 from 6 PM to 7 PM in your local time zone. You can always reach out to other trainers to participate in a Zacian raid using a Remote Raid Pass.