Shadow Shards and Purified Gems in Pokémon GO Shadow Raids Guide

Shadow Raids in Pokémon Go bring a new kind of challenge – and the secret to mastering them lies in Shadow Shards and Purified Gems. Learn how to gather these rare materials and use their power to weaken enraged Shadow Pokémon before they overpower your team.

Here’s how to get Shadow Shards in Pokémon Go, turn them into Purified Gems, and use them in Shadow Raids.

How to get Shadow Shards in Pokémon Go

Shadow Shards are obtained by defeating Shadow Raid bosses at Team GO Rocket-controlled Gyms. The amount of shards you receive depends on the raid tier-higher-tier Shadow Raids grant more. You can also earn extra shards from certain event bonuses or limited-time research tasks tied to Shadow Raids. Once you’ve gathered enough, these shards can be combined in your inventory to create a Purified Gem, which helps weaken enraged Shadow Pokémon during raids.

Shadow Shards are rewards from defeating Team Go Rocket members in Pokémon Go.

You will earn the following number of Shadow Shards by defeating the following:

• Go Rocket Grunts: 1 Shadow Shard per encounter
• Leaders: 3 Shadow Shards per encounter
• Giovanni: 4 Shadow Shards per encounter
• Shadow Raids: Up to 5 per encounter

The above drops won’t replace any other rewards from Team Go Rocket encounters – such as Mysterious Components – and you will get a recap of how many Shadow Shards you have once the battle ends.

When you have gathered enough Shadow Shards, you can then use them to make Purified Gems.

How to get Purified Gems in Pokémon Go

Purified Gems are crafted by collecting four Shadow Shards, which are dropped by defeating Shadow Pokémon during Shadow Raids. After gathering enough shards, combine them using Professor Willow’s Shard Refiner tool to create a Purified Gem. These gems can then be used during Shadow Raids to weaken the enraged Shadow Boss, making it easier to defeat and catch. Regular participation in Shadow Raids increases your chances of collecting the shards needed for crafting more gems.

Purified Gems are formed by collecting enough Shadow Shards. To make a Purified Gem, you must have four Shadow Shards. It will then automatically be used to make a Purified Gem using the Shard Refiner – in other words, there’s no need to manually convert one into the other, as the game will do that for you.

You can hold up to 10 Purified Gems at one time. From there, it’s time to use them during Shadow Pokémon Raids…

How to use Purified Gems in Shadow Raids

During a Shadow Raid Battle, deploy Purified Gems from the bottom left of the screen once the Raid Boss turns enraged, shown by a purple glow and label above its health bar around one-third or half HP loss. This action weakens the boss by removing attack and defense boosts. Multiple trainers using up to five gems each stack the effect for greater impact, subduing the boss faster.​

Purified Gems have a single purpose – to counter the “enraged” status of a Shadow Pokémon during a raid, an effect which makes them stronger and thus harder to defeat.

Once the Pokémon has become enraged (you can tell they are because they will glow purple and have the word “enraged” appear over their health bar) tap the on-screen button in the lower left to use a Purified Gem to help revert the Pokémon back to its non-enraged state.

According to Niantic, the effects of a Purified Gem will stack if multiple trainers use one, and each individual trainer can use up to five Purified Gems per battle.

How effective are Purified Gems on ‘enraged’ Shadow Raid Pokémon?

Purified Gems weaken the enraged state of Shadow Raid Pokémon, reducing their attack strength and making battles more manageable. Using several Purified Gems in succession gradually lowers the Pokémon’s rage, allowing players to deal more consistent damage. Coordination among raid participants helps maintain this calm state for longer periods, giving teams a better chance to defeat the powerful Shadow Pokémon before the timer runs out.

How useful are Purified Gems in Shadow Raids? On the item’s debut, community findings were few and far between, but we wanted to test not using any in a solo Shadow Raid against Croconaw (a Tier 3 raid, which, in theory, we should be able to take down alone using strong counters) to gauge their impact.

The resulting battle saw the “enraged” status kick in around halfway through the Pokémon’s health bar, which slowed down progress enough that we couldn’t finish the encounter before the timer ran out.

Best counters for common Shadow Raid bosses

Common Shadow Raid bosses in Pokémon Go include frequent rotations like Shadow Regice, Shadow Raikou, Shadow Groudon, and Shadow Absol, which require type-advantaged counters to handle their boosted damage.​​

Top Counters by Boss

Use these high-DPS Pokémon with ideal movesets for solo or small-group clears, prioritizing Shadows, Megas, and Legendaries when possible.​

General Tips

Prioritize Pokémon at level 40+ with Best Buddy boosts for maximum damage output during enrage phases.​
Team with others using Purified Gems to remove shields, and check Pokebattler for weather-adjusted rankings.​
Shadow counters often outperform regulars due to higher attack stats.​

Which Shadow raid bosses are most common right now

As of January 20, 2026, Shadow Raids in Pokémon Go rotate frequently, with lower-tier bosses appearing most commonly across gyms worldwide due to their high spawn rates.​

Current 5-Star Shadow Boss

Shadow Cresselia (Psychic-type) is the featured 5-star Shadow Raid boss, available daily from January 2 to February 1, demanding Dark or Ghost counters like Giratina or Tyranitar.​

Common Lower-Tier Shadow Bosses

These rotate with Team Go Rocket events and appear most often in gyms, making them the “most common” for everyday farming of Shadow Shards.​

Rotation Tips

Lower tiers refresh often during Rocket Takeovers, while 5-stars like Cresselia dominate weekends for higher rewards.​
Check in-game or sites like Pokebattler for real-time gym scans, as availability varies by location.​