The 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid returns to Pokémon Scarlet and Violet from October 23 to October 29, 2026, bringing back Garchomp with the Mightiest Mark and a Ground Tera Type. This is one of the returning powerhouse raids in the new weekly run of black crystal events, so players who missed the original encounter have another chance to clear it and catch the event Pokémon.
Because the 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid is a rerun of an established Mightiest Mark encounter, there is already a clear picture of the moves, scripted actions and counters that matter. The important catch rule also carries over: this event Garchomp can only be caught once per save data, and anyone who caught the same Unrivaled Garchomp during its previous event can still battle it for rewards but cannot catch a second one.
7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid schedule and key details
7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid Image The Pokémon Company
The 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid is a level 100 black crystal battle in Paldea. Garchomp has the Rough Skin Ability, a Jolly Nature and the Ground Tera Type, which is the typing you need to plan your damage around rather than simply countering Garchomp’s normal species typing. The established encounter uses an unusually large raid HP multiplier of about 25x, so a build that can survive and scale is more useful than a glass cannon that only looks strong for one turn.
| Detail | 7-star raid information |
|---|---|
| Event dates | October 23 to October 29, 2026 |
| Tera Type | Ground |
| Ability | Rough Skin |
| Nature | Jolly |
| Level | 100 |
| Mark | Mightiest Mark |
| Catch limit | One per save data across the original event and this return |
The full run is tracked in our Pokemon Scarlet Violet 7 Star Tera Raid Schedule, which is worth keeping open if you plan to farm several of these returning bosses. You can also use our Pokémon Scarlet Violet Pokédex for species and evolution coverage outside the event raids.
Garchomp moveset and raid mechanics
The returning Garchomp encounter uses Earthquake, Poison Jab, Liquidation, Fire Fang as its regular move set. It can also use scripted actions including Breaking Swipe, Swords Dance, which means the 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid is not a fight where type advantage alone is enough. You need to account for the extra actions, the shield and the points where the boss can reset stat changes.
The main danger is the way those scripted actions can change the pace without costing Garchomp the same kind of turn a player would spend. A good solo build therefore needs a reliable damage plan, a way to control the most dangerous boosts or attacks, and enough recovery to survive after the shield appears. The 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid rewards patient setup much more than throwing a random super effective attacker at the crystal.
Best counter for 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid
A strong solo answer for the 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid is Sinistcha. Sinistcha is built for long physical raids. Strength Sap heals while cutting Garchomp’s Attack, Reflect reduces incoming physical damage for the whole side, and Matcha Gotcha both attacks and can add a burn. Covert Cloak is valuable because it protects Sinistcha from irritating secondary effects from moves such as Fire Fang and Poison Jab while the setup comes together. The set below is designed around the established raid rather than ordinary competitive battling, so the EVs, held item and support moves are all there for raid consistency.
| Build slot | Sinistcha setup |
|---|---|
| Tera Type | Grass |
| Nature | Modest |
| Ability | Hospitality or Heatproof |
| Held item | Covert Cloak |
| EVs | 4 HP / 252 Def / 252 Sp. Atk |
| Moves | Matcha Gotcha, Nasty Plot, Reflect, Strength Sap |
For the 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid, level the counter to 100 and make sure the important moves and EVs are in place before entering the raid. A half-finished build can still look fine in the opening minute, then collapse once the shield, resets and scripted actions begin. That is especially frustrating in a timed raid because repeated knockouts remove time as well as momentum.
How to beat 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid solo
The safest approach to the 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid is to treat the opening turns as control and setup rather than a damage race. Get Reflect up early, then use Strength Sap whenever Garchomp’s Attack or your HP starts moving in the wrong direction. Nasty Plot supplies the special attack boost you need to turn Matcha Gotcha into real raid damage. An Intimidate ally makes the first few turns easier, but Sinistcha can continue controlling Attack with Strength Sap once the fight is underway. After Terastallizing into Grass, keep the pressure on with Matcha Gotcha and avoid overcommitting to setup right before Garchomp resets player stat changes. Keep an eye on the raid text so you know when stat changes have been removed, because blindly repeating the previous turn after a reset can waste the advantage you just built.
Once the counter is stable, the goal is to keep enough offensive pressure that the timer continues moving in your favour without giving away avoidable knockouts. Terastallizing at the right point is important because it improves damage against the Ground Tera target and lets you keep attacking into the shield. If the 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid is consistently knocking you out before that stage, fix the defensive side of the build first rather than adding more raw damage.
Other counters for the Garchomp 7-star raid
There is more than one workable answer to the 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid, especially in multiplayer where one Pokémon can focus on support while another deals damage. These alternatives are worth considering if you already have them trained or if the recommended solo build is awkward for your save.
- Venusaur and Victreebel can both offer Grass damage with useful status or stat control.
- Slowbro can function as a bulky alternative in coordinated teams, although the Ground Tera target rewards strong Grass pressure.
Whichever route you choose, build for the actual Ground Tera Type and the established moveset rather than the usual weaknesses of wild Garchomp. That distinction is what catches players out in 7-star raids, where the Tera Type determines the boss’s defensive weakness while its original move coverage can still punish an apparently obvious counter.
How to find the 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid
To make the 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid appear, connect Pokémon Scarlet or Violet to the internet and refresh the latest Poké Portal News by opening Poké Portal > Mystery Gift > Check Poké Portal News. Players who have completed the required postgame progression can find the event at black Tera Raid crystals in Paldea. If you have not unlocked black crystals on your own map yet, you can still join an eligible host through multiplayer.
The official Pokémon event announcement confirms that this returning series begins with Dragonite and that the raids are held in succession. The 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid is only active during its listed weekly window, so make sure your Poké Portal News is current before assuming a missing crystal is a bug.
Can you catch Garchomp again?
You cannot catch a second copy of this same Unrivaled Garchomp if you already caught it during the previous event. The catch limit applies to the returning 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid as the same special event Pokémon, not as a fresh one-per-rerun allowance. You can still defeat the raid as many times as the event permits and collect its item rewards, which gives returning players a reason to farm it even when the catch itself is unavailable.
Is the 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid worth farming?
Yes, the 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid can still be useful after you have used your one catch. Seven-star black crystal raids are valuable sources of high-level reward items, including experience items, Tera Shards and chances at rarer materials, while the first clear of an event raid can also include fixed rewards. Farming is much quicker once you have a stable counter because you avoid losing time to repeated failed attempts.
If your only goal is the Mightiest Mark Garchomp, one clear is enough. If you are building several raid Pokémon for the rest of this ten-week run, repeated clears can help fund the next counter with experience, bottle caps, ability items and Tera resources. That makes the 7 Star Garchomp Tera Raid part of a useful preparation loop rather than an isolated weekly boss.
