I received an ex-raid pass in Pokemon Go to battle Mewtwo. This would be my 6th time to battle Mewtwo, if ever, and catch it eventually. So how did I get? By simply battling a gym that Niantic will choose to provide ex-raid. In a way, Niantic will give it to random gyms, but they have set some clues on where they will usually give it.
First, it would be a sponsored gym, usually found in malls in our place. Niantic placed it there because of it is accessibility. The good thing about these gyms are they are usually in a good temperature area (cold, thus prevents sweating ). It’s also generally safer in malls and people will just not mind you if you are raiding the gyms. Sometimes, though, we will miss our opportunity to battle that gym if the malls are still closed (usually they open 9 am to 10 am). Still, we strive to have our attendances check so that the opportunity is still there.
Next areas are parks. Again, it’s chosen because of its accessibility. More Pokemons usually appear in parks, thus, possible ex raids will also there. In our area, there are like 2 parks that I’ve known so far were given ex-raid passes. Maybe they will increase it in the future, depending on the participation.
Other gyms would be those that had high participation. I’ve read somewhere that it is based on street maps and there are certain distances that gyms will be provided. If a certain gym is provided with ex-raid pass, the near gyms would likely not be given, thus, trainers would focus on battling gyms that is outside that area. Also, there should be lots of accounts/trainers that have battled in that gyms for it to be triggered, consistent to their team promotions in the game. So we really have to band together to activate that gym.
Still, if you were able to battle the gym, it’s not a guarantee that you will receive and ex-raid pass. I’ve had those cases before where I battle with my colleagues only to find out that they were given ex-raid and I was not. It was frustrating at first, but what can we do. It’s is really random. We can increase our chances by battling in those gyms that you have gold status, but at the end of the day, it’s still luck. Other factors may include prioritizing those that have never caught Mewtwo or Trainers will lower levels and weak monsters.
So tomorrow I’ll be meeting with my colleagues to battle Mewtwo. I’ll give the result of our raid afterwards so hopefully we’ll have a good outcome for our catch rate.