Which Pokemon are Shiny locked in the Crown Tundra?

Paul Cot

A lot of trainers are so excited about the Pokemon Sword and Shield Crown Tundra DLC because of the array of returning (and new) Legendary Pokemon. The question is though, which of these Legendary species are Shiny locked?

The missing Legendary Pokemon from Sword and Shield has been well documented. It has left a gap in the Galar region which trainers never really came to terms with.

Fortunately, it appears that the Pokemon Company’s plan all along was to add them via DLC. They may have made us wait nearly a year from the game’s initial release but thankfully all those classic legends can now be added to your Galar Pokedex.

In addition to catching those Legendary ‘mons, their new availability in Pokemon Sword and Shield presents trainers to find their Shiny forms. However, that’s only if they aren’t Shiny locked.

What is ‘Shiny lock’?

The term Shiny lock means a Pokemon cannot be found in its Shiny form unless it’s from a special event. Simply put, no matter how many times you encounter that Pokemon it will not be a Shiny.

Naturally, the majority of trainers don’t like the fact that there are Shiny locked Pokemon. There are a few reasons as to why Shiny locks exist but the main one is to keep the Shiny form of a particular species extra rare. After all, the rarer it is, the more exciting and meaningful it is to finally get it.

Crown Tundra Shiny locks

That begs the question, which of the long list of Legendary Pokemon available in the Crown Tundra DLC are Shiny locked? Fortunately, it’s only a few of them, most can be found in their Shiny form.

According to @mattyoukhana_, a respected figure in the Pokemon community who often shares such interesting details, the following cannot be obtained as a Shiny:

  • Articuno (Galarian)
  • Zapdos (Galarian)
  • Moltres (Galarian)
  • Victini
  • Keldeo
  • Cosmog
  • Poipole
  • Glastrier
  • Spectrier
  • Calyrex
Calyrex Shiny Lock
Calyrex is the featured Legendary Pokemon of the new Crown Tundra DLC…

That means the likes of Regirock, Regice, Registeel, Regieleki, Regidrago (the two new Regimons), Raikou, Entei, Suicune, and many more can be.

It isn’t exactly surprising the new Legendaries – the Galarian birds, Glastrier, Spectrier, and Calyrex are Shiny locked. They will likely be saved for a future date.

To build some excitement for when they are released, here’s what the new form of Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres looks like as a Shiny. In the meantime, there are plenty of Legendaries you can start Shiny hunting, though. The amount of them should keep you busy in the Crown Tundra for a while!