Team Go Rocket Balloons Guide for Pokemon Go

You probably saw the emails sent out by Team GO Rocket Grunt over the past few days. In case you didn’t, the emails contain some confidential plans mistakenly sent to players. There is also a promo code to redeem, which was a bribe so that players would forget about the email. These emails pertain to an in-game event with Team Go Rocket Balloons.

What are Team GO Rocket Balloons?

What we know so far is that this event is similar to doing battles at Poke Stops. Players will either go up against the grunts, team leaders, decoys, or Giovanni. Who you go up against depends on where you are in your Rocket Radar setup. With no Rocket Radar, you will end up facing a grunt. After getting a Rocket Radar built, the next step is to get leaders to show up.

You do not need to battle leaders you don’t want to face. Instead, you can exit, and the balloon will go away and come back again later. There seems to be an hour timer between Rocket balloons spawning. After defeating the leaders, you can build a Super Rocket Radar to go against Giovanni or the decoy. 

1. Tap a balloon to battle Team GO Rocket: Be ready for a challenge! Tap a Team GO Rocket balloon, pick your battle party, and defeat Team GO Rocket to rescue their Shadow Pokémon. Team GO Rocket balloons will hover near you for a limited time, so be sure to check the map for balloons and tap them before they fly away!

2. Equip your Rocket Radar to encounter balloons with Team GO Rocket Leaders: When you have a Rocket Radar equipped, you can find Sierra, Cliff, or Arlo piloting a Team GO Rocket balloon.

3. Equip your Super Rocket Radar to encounter Giovanni: It appears that even the boss of Team GO Rocket himself can be found riding in a Team GO Rocket balloon! If you activate and equip a Super Rocket Radar, Giovanni’s balloon is certain to appear.

via Pokemon Go

Team GO Leaders

• Executive Arlo
  • Shadow Mawile
• Executive Sierra
  • Shadow Beldum
• Executive Cliff
  • Shadow Pinsir
• Giovanni
  • 1. Shadow Persian
  • 2. Shadow Kingler, Shadow Rhyperior, Shadow Steelix
  • 3. Shadow Entei

This event essentially brings Poke Stops to users who cannot travel. It’s an excellent feature for trainers who live in rural areas or those who cannot leave the house.