You've seen the blue glow. You've seen the Unrivaled Mark. But honestly, the Quaquaval 7 star raid is kind of a nightmare if you walk in thinking it’s just another Water-type fight. It’s not. This isn’t a leisurely stroll through the Paldea region; it's a high-speed dance-off where the duck always seems to have the lead.
Most people are losing because they underestimate Moxie.
If you let this thing get even one knockout on your team—or your NPCs—it’s basically game over. Quaquaval’s Attack stat starts climbing, and before you know it, Aqua Step is hitting like a literal truck while simultaneously boosting its Speed. You’re stuck in a loop. It gets faster, it gets stronger, and you’re just sitting there watching your HP bar vanish. It’s frustrating.
What You're Actually Up Against
This Quaquaval sports the Flying Tera Type. That’s a massive curveball for anyone who thought they could just bring a Grass-type and call it a day. If you bring a Meowscarada, you’re going to get hit with a Tera Blast or an Aerial Ace that will send you back to the lobby before you can even say "Flower Trick."
The moveset is punishing. You’re looking at Aqua Step, Brave Bird, Close Combat, and Low Kick. It covers its weaknesses way too well. The AI also loves to script in Swords Dance early on. If you don't have a way to clear those buffs or ignore them, you are toast. Period.
Let’s talk about the shield. In 7-star raids, the shield trigger usually happens around the 80% HP mark or after a certain amount of time. Quaquaval is aggressive with it. It’ll also wipe your team’s buffs and its own debuffs at very specific intervals. If you’ve spent five turns setting up a Belly Drum or Nasty Plot only to have it wiped the next second, you know the pain.
The Miraidon Trap and Better Alternatives
"Just use Miraidon," they said. "It’s a Flying type, use Electric moves," they said.
Well, they were half right. Miraidon is decent, but it’s squishy. If Quaquaval gets a Swords Dance off, Miraidon struggles to stay on the field. You need sustainability. Honestly, the most consistent wins I’ve seen haven’t come from the "box legends" at all. They’ve come from support-heavy builds and niche counters that people usually ignore.
Bellibolt is actually a sleeper hit here. It’s bulky. It has the Electromorphosis ability, which means every time it gets hit, its next Electric move is doubled in power. Give it a Metronome or a Magnet, spam Parabolic Charge, and you’re basically an unkillable battery. It’s slow, sure, but in a raid, that doesn’t always matter as much as staying alive.
Then there's Miraidon, but you have to play it perfectly. You need Parabolic Charge for healing and Metal Sound to drop its Special Defense. But remember: Quaquaval has a high Attack. If you aren't running Reflect or someone on your team isn't handling the physical damage mitigation, Miraidon is a liability.
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Why Shell Bell is Your Best Friend
Forget Choice Specs. Forget Life Orb. In a 7-star raid against a Moxie user, staying at full health is your only priority.
The Shell Bell heals you based on the damage you deal. Since these raid bosses have massive HP pools, even a moderately strong attack will heal you back to 100%. If you aren't using a healing move like Parabolic Charge or Drain Punch, the Shell Bell is mandatory. Seriously. Don't go in without it.
Stop Bringing These Pokémon
Please, for the love of Arceus, stop bringing Iron Hands.
I get it. Belly Drum + Drain Punch is the "meta" for everything. But Iron Hands is weak to Flying. Quaquaval has Brave Bird and a Flying Tera Type. You are literally just feeding its Moxie. Every time you faint, the boss gets stronger. You are sabotaging the raid for everyone else.
The same goes for most Grass types. Unless you’re running something incredibly specific like a physically defensive Appletun with Reflect and Iron Defense, you’re just going to get pecked to death.
The Secret Sauce: Support Roles
Everyone wants to be the hero. Everyone wants to see the big numbers. But the secret to winning the Quaquaval 7 star raid consistently is the boring stuff.
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Someone needs to run Chilling Water.
Chilling Water lowers the target's Attack stat 100% of the time. Even through the shield. If you have one person on the team just spamming Chilling Water, Quaquaval’s Moxie boosts don't matter. You’re effectively neutralizing its entire gimmick. Pair that with a Reflect at the start of the match, and suddenly the "Unrivaled" duck is hitting like a wet noodle.
Corviknight is an underrated pick here too. With the Mirror Armor ability, any stat drops Quaquaval tries to inflict get reflected back. More importantly, Corviknight can run Screech to drop Defense and use Iron Defense/Body Press to deal decent damage while being a literal brick wall.
Timing Your Tera
Don’t Tera too early.
You need to break that shield, and you can only do real damage to the shield if you are Terastallized. If you Tera too early and get knocked out, you lose your Tera energy and you’re basically useless for the rest of the fight. Wait until you’ve landed three attacks, the shield is up, and you’re at a healthy HP range.
Exact Steps to Win Right Now
- Check your stats. Your Pokémon must be Level 100. No exceptions. Max out your HP and either Defense or Special Attack EVs depending on your build. Hyper Train your IVs in everything except the stat you aren't using.
- Pick a survivor. If you're soloing, Bellibolt with Parabolic Charge and Acid Spray is your safest bet. If you're in a group, ensure someone is dedicated to Attack reduction (Chilling Water or Charm).
- Turn one strategy. Don't attack. Use Reflect or a Defense Cheer. Quaquaval hits hard right out of the gate.
- Manage the Moxie. If an NPC or a teammate dies, you must prioritize lowering Quaquaval's Attack immediately. If it gets to +3 or +4 Attack, the raid is likely over.
- Hold the Shell Bell. If your Pokémon doesn't have a built-in healing move, this item is the difference between winning and watching the "You were blown out of the cavern" screen.
- Patience over Power. It’s better to take two extra turns to set up debuffs than to rush in and die. The timer is generous if you aren't dying, but every death chunks a massive amount of time off the clock.
This raid is a test of attrition, not a sprint. Respect the Moxie, bring a physical wall, and stop feeding the duck.
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Once you catch it, Quaquaval comes in a Mightiest Mark form with its Hidden Ability, Moxie, and a perfect 6IV spread. It’s a monster in competitive play, especially if you enjoy the snowball playstyle. Just make sure you’re the one doing the snowballing, not the one getting rolled over in the raid den.