Pokemon Sword and Shield Isle of Armor DLC: How to Catch Wailord
After first starting the Isle of Armor expansion, you'll notice a huge Wailord dominating the horizon. Here's how to catch him and make this titan a part of your team.
The Pokemon Sword and Shield Isle of Armor DLC brings a lot of Pokemon back to the series, none more notable than Wailord, the largest Pokemon ever. You'll see one not long after starting, though it's a long way off and more than a little intimidating. Not to worry, as we'll explain how to catch Wailord and how good it is in a team.
On this page:
- How to Catch Wailord in Pokemon Sword and Shield Isle of Armor DLC
- Where to Find Wailord
- Catching Wailord
- Does Wailord Respawn?
- How Strong is Wailord?
How to Catch Wailord in Pokemon Sword and Shield Isle of Armor DLC
To catch Wailord in the Isle of Armor expansion you'll first need to get the ability to cross water, as Wailord is far out in the ocean and won't come near the shore for any reason. This means you'll need to upgrade the Rotom Bike to move over water, a process we've outlined at this guide here.
Where to Find Wailord
As far as we know there's only one Wailord in all of the Isle of Armor expansion, the huge one floating on the horizon. You can find it immediately after starting the DLC by leaving the station and looking out to the right, across the ocean (referred to as the Workout Sea). It might seem like a long way off - and it is - but you can get there by using your bike to cross the water. Just look out for the Sharpedos along the way and crash into Wailord when you're ready to fight.
Catching Wailord
Wailord is a powerhouse Pokemon of level 80, one of the most powerful Pokemon in the game. However, it's not quite as resilient as you might expect, and it's all-too-easy to beat it by accident, especially if you're using moves that Water-type Pokemon are weak to. Your best option is to have powerful Pokemon use weak attacks, tanking Wailord's powerful Water attacks and reliably chipping damage off it. It also knows Rest, so you'll want to hit it with Paralysis or Sleep to lessen the chance of that, not to mention making it easier to catch. Once its health is in the red, start throwing Ultra Balls (you should have at least 20 on you going into this fight).
Does Wailord Respawn?
Bad news if you beat it by accident: as far as we know this high-level Wailord is one-of-a-kind and won't reappear if defeated, meaning you'll have to trade for another one, or catch a Wailmer and level it up. Fortunately you can find Wailmer on the other side of the Isle of Armor, in the waters around the tiny Honeycalm Island. If you've found the Tower of Waters, you should see a flowery island in the ocean behind it. Wailmer can be found near there (though they're not hugely common) and once it hits level 40 or up, it'll evolve into your own Wailmer.
How Strong is Wailord?
Wailord's biggest strength is its massive HP stats, along with a good Attack and Special Attack to go along with it. Unfortunately its defensive stats are surprisingly poor, and only being Water-type means that it can't learn a very diverse pool of moves. Still, when confronting a gym, trainer or raid battle where Water would have the advantage, Wailord is a solid choice, able to take damage, recover with Rest, and do hugely powerful attacks like Hydro Pump and Water Spout.
Pokemon is something we've all mastered here at USG. Eric's written about the Isle of Armor's greatest horror here, or enjoy some of Nadia's thoughts on how Pokemon: Twilight Wings is expanding on less-considered aspects of the franchise.