Among the many discoveries and mechanics of Pokémon GO, some players may be a tad confused, or completely unaware, of a Special Trade. There is a lot to learn for Pokémon GO players, and if they want to be the very best that no one ever was, then they best get to learning about Pokémon GO and the Special Trade that will see them net a neat reward.
Players can’t enter this adventure alone, and as fun as it may be to run around the real world, collecting Pokémon of all different varieties on Pokémon GO, they will need a friend, or an internet ally to help them begin the journey to a Special Trade. Listed below, is all that entails a Special Trade in Pokémon GO.
What Is A Special Trade?
A Special Trade involves two Pokémon GO players that consent to trade a Pokémon. In a Special Trade, players will have cheaper options when it comes to “rare” Pokémon. This means that players will be spending far less Stardust than they would outside a Special Trade.
It’s always a great benefit to players to try and save up to a Special Trade, as each Friendship level with another player will see players reduce the total cost of Stardust. However, it can take months of trading gifts to other players before the Best Friend status is unleashed, so the Special Trade is truly the best thing for Pokémon GO players that want to get the very best Pokémon from their buddies or to gift them out.
What Makes A “Special” Pokémon?
There are many ways in which a Pokémon can be “Special”, and that does not mean the Pokémon has a personal connection to the player, like if the Trainer has a preference over Machamps or Pikachu. Instead, a “Special” Pokémon would be one of four things:
Undiscovered Pokémon
There are over 777 Pokémon that players can catch in Pokémon GO. That’s a lot of Pokémon, and many of these are locked to specific regions. Considering players cannot exactly fly over the world, literally catching them all, a Special Trade is the next best thing. A “Special” Pokémon could very well not be in the Pokédex of the player that currently wants it, hence the absurd price of Stardust outside a Special Trade.
Legendary Pokémon
Perhaps the rarest of the list, Legendary Pokémon are very well sought after. Legendary Pokémon are famed and extremely rare. There is only ever one kind of this Pokémon in each of the main games in the Pokémon series. There are many Exotic Legendary Pokémon that can be found in Pokémon GO. However, unlike others, they can only be claimed from specific Quests, or waiting for each new Legendary Raid each week and month, in the hopes of obtaining them all. Considering the amount, and difficulty of Legendary Pokémon, a Special Trade could well be worth the commitment, especially since multiple Pokémon Trainers will have different Legendary Pokémon to trade.
Shiny Pokémon
Outside of Legendary Pokémon, Shiny Pokémon are probably the rarest of them all. The chance to find one of these is extremely rare, and most players love to brag and show off their Shiny. There are some amazing Shiny Pokémon that can be found, but the odds are entirely random. Players will just need to click each Pokémon in the hopes of getting lucky. However, a Special Trade means that players that do not yet have said Shiny Pokémon can claim it at a reduced price, but only if the owner of said Pokémon is willing to part with it.
Unknown Pokémon Forms
Lastly, players can expect the benefits of Special Trades when it comes to Pokémon that have rare forms, like the Unown type Pokémon, which consists of numbers and alphabet Pokémon. However, the more sought after, and rare Pokémon are those that exist specifically for events and seasons, like the different variations of Pikachu that wear multiple and adorable hats. Pikachu wearing a hat could range from Ash’s cap to a sunflower crown. It’s always cute, and worth a trade to get one of these adorable Pokémon.
How To Make A Trade
To make a Trade, players will need to find someone to make a Friend. This can either be done in person, or by using the active online community on various forums and servers. Once players add each other with their Friend Code, they can trade Gifts with each other once per day to increase their relationship.
By increasing the Friendship level, and acquiring enough Stardust, players can Trade in a multitude of different ways to exchange their prized Pokémon for the common goal of collecting. Players can either physically meet each other to be within trade range, or, they can use the online services to trade remotely. Players will then sit on a trading screen, where they can put their Pokémon up for trade. The trade will only go through if both parties agree to it, so there is no trolling involved.
To make a Special Trade in Pokémon GO, players need to make friends, and can only perform this action once per day. This Special Trade is on a countdown for several reasons, but players can often expect Pokémon GO Fest to feature multiple Special Trades throughout the days.
Players should keep aware that to trade with trainers, the player must be Level 10 or above. This is because some players may have hacked previously vulnerable devices to claim Pokémon well before they should have.
Pokemon GO is available for Android and iOS.