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A new Ranked Battle Series is coming in Pokémon Sword and Shield that will feature new Pokémon and Gigantamax forms. The Ranked Battle Series 3 will start on Mar. 1 at 4:00 UTC and go to Apr. 30 at 23:59 UTC.

The second Ranked Battle Series only included a select few Gigantamax Forms, and the upcoming series will add quite a few more. The following Gigantamax Pokémon will be legal in VGC and Ranked Battle Series 3:

  • Charizard (Now with both abilities)
  • Butterfree
  • Pikachu
  • Meowth
  • Kingler
  • Lapras
  • Eevee
  • Snorlax
  • Corviknight
  • Orbeetle
  • Drednaw
  • Coalossal
  • Flapple
  • Appletun
  • Sandaconda
  • Toxtricity
  • Centiscorch
  • Hatterene
  • Grimmsnarl
  • Alcremie

Gigantamax Pokémon Sandaconda

What is different about a Gigantamax Pokémon?

Gigantamax Pokémon all have a unique appearance and a special move. These special moves are similar to standard Max moves, but they have a unique effect. An example of this is Butterfree’s G-Max Befuddle, which is a Bug-type G-Max attack that poisons, paralyzes, or sleeps both opposing Pokémon (in doubles battles). This is different from Max Flutterby, which is the standard Bug-type Max move that drops the opponents’ Special Attack by a stage. Gigantamax Butterfree will only have access to G-Max Befuddle, and will not be able to use Max Flutterby.

Since only one Pokémon can Dynamax or Gigantamax per battle, it is important to consider which Gigantamax moves are the most valuable. In some cases, such as Corviknight, players have found that their Gigantamax move is actually worse than the standard Max move. Players tend to prefer running standard Corviknight to get Max Airstream instead of G-Max Wind Rage as a result of this.

Before trying to get a team together for competitive battles, make sure you consider the moves these Pokémon get from Gigantamaxing. It’s also important to consider the Pokémon as well. Eevee may get a decent G-Max move, but it’s still an Eevee with low base stats and a shallow move pool.

Make sure to stay tuned for a future guide on which Gigantamax Pokémon will have the biggest impact on the Sword and Shield metagame!