How to get Zorua and Zoroark in Pokémon Go

Back when Zorua and Zoroark were first released in Pokémon Go, it was supposed to be a fun surprise for fans. Unfortunately, there was a bug after it was shadow-dropped that forced Niantic to temporarily disable the little black fox. The bug was fixed, and players have since been able to encounter Zorua in the wild.

When it comes to wild encounters, Zorua is a special case. You won’t see it roaming around on your screen like other wild Pokémon, making it a bit trickier to hunt down.

How to get Zorua and Zoroark in Pokémon Go

In the main series Pokémon games, Zorua and Zoroark have access to the unique ability Illusion, which transforms them into the last Pokémon in the player’s party, thus tricking opponents into thinking the fox is actually something else. Pokémon Scarlet and Violet took this one step further by making this ability affect wild Zorua and Zoroark, forcing players to battle them to know if they’re being tricked.

Related: How to get Sigilyph in Pokémon Go

In Pokémon Go, players may sometimes notice that their Buddy Pokémon is on the screen as a wild encounter, even when it isn’t out to play. This is actually Zorua playing a trick on the player, which will transform back into its normal self upon capture.

Once you have your Zorua, you can evolve it into a Zoroark by using 50 Zorua Candy. Since Zorua is a rather rare spawn, players may want to make it their Buddy once they capture it to get Candies at a quicker rate.

And even if you aren’t out hunting for a Zorua, it’s still important to know how its illusion mechanic works and be mindful of it while searching for other rare Pokémon. You wouldn’t want to accidentally waste precious resources like a Master Ball on something that ends up being a mischievous Zorua in disguise.