Easiest way to beat Unrivaled Hisuian Samurott Tera Raids in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet

The Unrivaled Hisuian Samurott Tera Raids are proving to be quite challenging in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, but there are certain ‘Pokémon ‘mons and strategies to help you clear the seven-star raid with ease.

From Nov. 23 at 6:00pm CT until Nov. 26 at 5:59pm CT, and again from Nov. 30 at 6:00pm CT to Dec. 3 at 5:59pm CT, players have the opportunity to challenge and catch Unrivaled Hisuian Samurott in Scarlet and Violet in a special Tera Raid event. As with all seven-star raid bosses, Hisuian Samurott won’t go down without a fight, and this battle might be exceptionally difficult if you don’t bring the right Pokémon.

How to easily beat Unrivaled Hisuian Samurott Tera Raids in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet

The simplest way to beat Unrivaled Hisuian Samurott is to use Sky Forme Shaymin with Worry Seed and Seed Flare, as seen in a quick raid video by Pokémon YouTuber 1Darkknight.

What makes Hisuian Samurott so difficult is its Sharpness ability, which gives all of its slicing moves a 50-percent damage boost. Sky Forme Shaymin is the perfect counter to this because it can remove Sharpness from the equation with Worry Seed. This will immediately reduce the damage from all of the raid boss’ attacks (aside from Bulldoze). And thanks to Sky Forme Shaymin’s Grass/Flying typing, it doesn’t have to worry about taking super-effective damage until after Samurott Terastallizes.

After using Worry Seed, Sky Forme Shaymin can just keep spamming Seed Flare, a 120 base power Grass-type attack with a high chance to harshly lower the target’s Special Defense. Once you get a few Special Defense drops on Hisuian Samurott, you and your allies will be dealing even more damage with special moves. And since this move only has five PP by default, you’ll need to use PP Ups or a PP Max to get the total PP up to eight so you won’t run out during the raid. 

As easy as this strategy sounds, there are a few downsides. One issue is Seed Flare’s 85-percent accuracy. If you get unlucky and keep missing, you might not have enough Seed Flare PP to clear the raid. 

The other issue is Shaymin’s availability in the Gen IX games. The only way to obtain Shaymin in Scarlet and Violet is by transferring it via Pokémon HOME. In other words, if you didn’t catch Shaymin in other games like Legends: Arceus, this strategy isn’t an option for you. 

Appletun is a similar Grass-type substitute I used to solo Hisuian Samurott by simply spamming Apple Acid, but it doesn’t have access to Worry Seed like Shaymin to remove that annoying Sharpness ability. I was fortunate enough to have NPCs with Grassy Terrain, Intimidate, and burns to help my Appletun out significantly. Using Appletun won’t be as consistent as Shaymin, but it’ll get the job done if you have luck and RNG on your side.