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Cinderace is coming to Pokemon Scarlet & Violet as part of the game’s second Mightiest Mark Tera Raid event. The event will once again put players’ skills to the test as they look to get past a super-powered starter Pokemon.
With the Mightiest Mark Charizard event now done in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet, fans get to turn their attention to the next big Tera Raid challenge. After the Christmas Delibird Tera Raid event that offers bonus Tera Shards, a Year of the Rabbit celebration will begin starring Cinderace.
As with the Mightiest Mark Charizard, the event will feature a familiar fire-type starter with a new but thematically appropriate Tera Type. Players will have the opportunity to catch this Pokemon that can’t normally be found in the Paldea region and then breed it for trading and shiny hunting purposes.
When is the Fighting Cinderace Tera Raid Event?
The fighting Tera Type Cinderace raid event is broken up into two parts, the first of which starts on December 30, 2022. The event is structured in the same way as the Charizard Tera Raid event, with the Pokemon appearing in raids on two weekends.
- Friday, December 30, 2022, at 00:00 UTC to Sunday, January 1, 2023, at 23:59 UTC
- Friday, January 13, 2023, at 00:00 UTC to Sunday, January 15, 2023, at 23:59 UTC
The previous event allowed players to catch exactly one Charizard across both weekends but allowed players to farm rewards as many times as they liked. There’s no word on whether this will be the case with Cinderace, but it’s likely that players will only be able to catch one.
Mightiest Mark Cinderace Moves
Cinderace uses an assortment of physical moves, including a pair of STAB options in Pyro Ball and High Jump Kick. Perhaps even more troublesome is the move Bulk Up, which boosts Cinderace’s attack and defense stats. Here is its full lineup of moves:
- Pyro Ball
- High Jump Kick
- Acrobatics
- Iron Head
- Bulk Up
Cinderace goes all-in on physical attacks, with four moves that players will need high defense to deal with. Though players were speculating that Azumarill would be able to dominate Cinderace, Bulk Up makes it that much more difficult without dedicated support to lower its defenses.
Best Counters for Mightiest Mark Cinderace
Slowbro, Espathra, and Armarouge rank among the best counters for the fighting-type Mightiest Mark Cinderace Tera Raid boss. All three are psychic-type special attackers that can deal damage even after multiple Bulk Ups.
Slowbro
Slowbro resists three out of Cinderace’s four attack and can work around its Bulk Up defense boosts by attacking it on the special side. Its high defense and HP stats let it tank Cinderace’s high-octane offense while still being able to deal super-effective damage with psychic attacks.
Armarouge
As with Slowbro, Armarouge resists three of Cinderace’s attacks and has a high defense and HP stat that can keep it from being knocked out with any regularity. It’s initially immune to fire-type attacks thanks to the Flash Fire ability as well, which players can couple with Lava Plume to deal solid damage with a 30% chance to burn. Both Armarouge and Slowbro are best served by having a psychic Tera Type to guarantee steady, consistent damage.
Espathra
Espathra is the ideal support option for this battle. The only move it resists is High Jump Kick, but it has access to the moves Lumina Crash and Feather Dance. Lumina Crash is a Sp. Attack-based move that hits hard and drops the defending Pokemon’s Sp. Def stat by two stages, which sets up party members to do even more damage. Meanwhile, Feather Dance drops the opponent’s attack stat by two stages, which counters Cinderace’s regular use of Bulk Up.
How to Get Scorbunny, Raboot, and Cinderace in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet
Cinderace will be available in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet thanks to its Mightiest Mark Tera Raid event, while Raboot and Scorbunny are available through breeding. No Pokemon from this evolutionary line is normally available in the Paldea region, which makes Cinderace an event-exclusive Pokemon at this point in the lifespan of Pokemon Scarlet & Violet. After catching Cinderace, players can breed it with a Ditto to receive a Scorbunny, which evolves to Raboot at level 16.
Following the event’s conclusion, it’s likely that Cinderace and its lower forms will be available via trade. Though Charmander, Charmeleon, and Charizard weren’t usable online in the days after their initial release, they were eventually unlocked in both raids and trading. That’s likely to be the case with Cinderace as well, so players who miss the event will likely be able to get one via trade at some point in early 2023.
Pokemon Scarlet & Violet are available now, exclusively on Nintendo Switch.