Catching the best possible Pokémon isn’t as random as it used to be. In Pokémon Sword & Shield, there’s a new system that helps you catch quality Pokémon if you’re willing to put in a little time and effort.
‘Brilliant Auras’ are a totally new feature, making powerful Pokémon appear in the overworld that naturally start with better IVs — or Individual Values. Getting max IVs is the ideal, and every Brilliant Aura Pokémon will have at least three max IVs.
IVs aren’t necessarily better stats, but they do help Pokémon grow. A low level Pokémon with max IVs mean they’ll be able to increase their stats better than other Pokémon in the same species. Think of IVs like genes — and Brilliant Aura Pokémon start with very good genes.
More Pokémon Sword & Shield guides:
How To Evolve All The New Galar Region Pokémon | Evolution Guide | What’s Exclusive To Each Version? | How To Catch Shiny Pokémon | Pick This Starter Pokémon For An Early Advantage | How To Easily Evolve Farfetch’d Into Sirfetch’d
Brilliant Aura System | How To Catch Improved Pokemon
Brilliant Aura Pokémon are special Pokémon you’ll see in the Overworld while exploring. Brilliant Aura Pokémon, if you catch them, will always have to special attributes.
- Brilliant Aura Pokémon | What Makes Them Special?
- Guaranteed to have 3 Max IVs.
- Will have a special Move that is usually only obtainable through breeding.
NOTE: To check your Pokémon’s IVs, go to the Stats chart in the Pokémon Menu and press [X].
Brilliant Aura Pokémon have great ‘genes’ so they’ll develop into more powerful Pokémon as they level up. IVs determine the growth rate of the six major stats — HP, Attack, Defense, Special Attack, Special Defense, Speed. You can learn more about how IVs effect Pokémon stats here.
How To Get Brilliant Aura Pokemon
Brilliant Aura Pokémon are found anywhere in the Overworld — they’re just like normal Pokémon, but they have a glowing gold aura around them. When you enter a fight with them, they’ll look like any other Pokémon. The gold aura is just there to tell you that these Pokémon are (very likely) going to be better than any others you find.
How To Make Brilliant Aura Pokémon Appear: You simply you need to defeat the same type of Pokémon. Your global number of specific Pokémon defeats increases your chances of seeing a Brilliant Aura Pokémon in the wild.
EXAMPLE: If you defeat lots of Rookidee, you’re more likely to see a Brilliant Aura Rookidee spawn. The more of the species you defeat, the more likely the Brilliant Aura Pokémon will appear.
Catching them is just like catching any other Pokémon. There’s no extra challenge there — but if you fail to capture the Pokémon, you’ll have to wait for another Brilliant Aura Pokemon to spawn in the Overworld for another chance.
This is a cool little system, and one that Pokémon Sword & Shield really doesn’t explain at all. Now you know, so you can fill your team with the best possible Pokemon.
![Top 20 NEW Games of 2026 [Second Half]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/c46KMTqwRiA/mqdefault.jpg)
