You've finally beaten Giovanni. Your fingers are literally shaking as you tap through the catch screen, praying the white circles don't betray you. Then, you see it. The appraisal bars hit the far right. Red. Solid red. You just landed a Shadow Kyogre hundo CP—specifically, 915 CP at level 8 or 1144 CP if the rain was pouring during your encounter. Honestly, most players will never see this screen in their lifetime.
It's rare. It’s expensive. It is, without a single doubt, the most devastating Water-type attacker ever coded into the game.
But here’s the thing: owning a hundo Shadow Kyogre isn't just a flex. It’s a massive resource sink that requires a specific roadmap if you don't want to waste those 15/15/15 IVs. Most people see the "shadow" aura and think it’s just a purple glow, but we’re talking about a 20% attack boost that fundamentally breaks how raids work. When Kyogre is in its shadow form, its base attack stat effectively jumps from 270 to an eye-watering 324. That’s higher than almost every Mega Evolution in the game, including Mega Swampert and Mega Blastoise.
What is the Shadow Kyogre hundo CP exactly?
If you’re looking at your screen right now and wondering if you got the "perfect" one, the numbers are static. For a non-weather-boosted encounter at level 8, the Shadow Kyogre hundo CP is 915. If the weather in your app shows raindrops, it’s boosted to level 13, and the hundo CP is 1487.
Wait. Why does that matter?
Because if you see 1487, you just saved yourself a handful of Rare Candy XL. If you see anything lower, you’ve still got the strongest Pokémon in your bag, but the grind is just beginning. At level 40, a hundo Shadow Kyogre hits 4115 CP. If you’re a whale—pun intended—and push it all the way to level 50 with XL candy, you’re looking at 4652 CP.
Compare that to a regular hundo Kyogre, which caps at 4652 as well. The CP doesn't change because of the shadow status, but the performance does. A Shadow Kyogre with 0/0/0 IVs still out-damages a 15/15/15 regular Kyogre. So, having a shadow that is also a hundo? That's what we call a "trophy of trophies." It basically means you’ve reached the ceiling of what is possible for Water-type DPS (Damage Per Second).
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The Origin Pulse Problem and Frustration
You can't just TMs away Frustration whenever you want. This is the biggest hurdle for your new 15/15/15 prize. You have to wait for a Team GO Rocket Takeover event. Only then can you use a Charged TM to get rid of that useless move.
And once you do? You need an Elite Charged TM.
Don't even bother running Surf as your primary move long-term. While Surf is actually a fantastic, snappy move for Shield baiting in Master League, the real power of the Shadow Kyogre hundo CP lies in Origin Pulse. This is Kyogre’s signature move. It’s slow. It’s clunky. But when it hits, it’s like a freight train hitting a bicycle. Against a Primal Groudon raid boss or a Mega Tyranitar, Origin Pulse from a Shadow Kyogre deletes chunks of health bars so fast it almost looks like the game is lagging.
Is it actually good in the Master League?
Here is where it gets nuanced. In Raids, the Shadow Kyogre is the king. No debate. In the Master League, however, the "hundo" status is mandatory because you need to win the CMP (Charged Move Priority) tie against other Kyogres.
But being a Shadow is a double-edged sword. You get that 20% attack buff, sure, but you also take 20% more damage. Kyogre is already somewhat vulnerable to the ubiquitous Dialga and Giratina. In the Master League, a regular Kyogre can sometimes tank an extra hit that the Shadow version cannot. Honestly, most top-tier PvPers prefer the regular (or Primal) Kyogre for the bulk.
But we aren't talking about "most" Pokémon. We're talking about a hundo shadow. The sheer intimidation factor of a 4600+ CP Shadow Kyogre is often enough to force shields early. If you can align it against a Ho-Oh or a Landorus, it’s over. One Waterfall usually chunks them for 15% of their health. It’s brutal.
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To Purify or Not? (The Short Answer: NO)
I see this question in Discord servers every single day. "Should I purify my Shadow Kyogre for the hundo?"
If you already have the Shadow Kyogre hundo CP, the question is moot. But if you have something like a 13/13/13 and you’re tempted to purify it to get that 15/15/15 badge? Don't. Please.
Purifying a Shadow Kyogre is effectively deleting the rarest and most powerful version of that Pokémon. You can always get a regular hundo Kyogre from raids. They come back every year. You can trade for them. You can get them from Lucky Trades. You can only get a Shadow Kyogre when Niantic decides to let Giovanni have one, which is incredibly rare.
A 0/0/0 Shadow Kyogre deals more damage than a 15/15/15 non-shadow. By purifying, you are trading a massive damage bonus for a tiny bit of bulk and a cheaper power-up cost. It’s a bad trade. Every single time.
The Resource Grind: What it Costs
Let's talk numbers. This is where the "Expert" part of content writing gets real. To take your 915 CP prize to its maximum potential, you need:
- 248 Candy to reach level 40.
- 296 Candy XL to reach level 50.
- Approx. 500,000+ Stardust.
- 1 Elite Charged TM for Origin Pulse.
If you aren't walking this thing as your buddy or dumping every single Rare Candy from raids into it, it’s going to sit in your storage looking pretty but doing nothing. Because Shadow Pokémon cost 1.2x the resources to power up, you are looking at a long-term project.
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Understanding the "Waterfall" Meta
Kyogre relies on Waterfall. It's a slow, heavy-hitting fast move. In a raid, this generates energy reasonably well, but the real magic is the chip damage. Most raid bosses weak to water (like Fire, Rock, or Ground types) have high defense. Shadow Kyogre’s boosted Waterfall cuts through that defense like a hot knife through butter.
I’ve seen duos of Primal Groudon made possible simply because both players had high-IV Shadow Kyogres. It changes the math of the game. If you have the hundo, your "Time to Win" (TTW) stats on PokeBattler will consistently be at the top of the charts.
Real-World Performance Example
Look at a Tier 5 raid against something like Mega Camerupt. A standard Level 40 Kyogre is great. But the Shadow Kyogre hundo CP at Level 40 performs about 15-18% faster in terms of raw damage output. In a game where every second counts to get those extra Premier Balls or Energy, that's the difference between a successful raid and a "Time's Up" screen.
How to use your Hundo Shadow Kyogre
- Wait for the Takeover: Do not try to use it with Frustration. It's a waste of a slot.
- Double Move it: Even though it’s expensive (120 Candy and 120k Dust for Shadows), you want Origin Pulse and Surf. Surf gives you flexibility in raids if the boss is almost dead and you don't want to waste energy on a slow Origin Pulse.
- Buddy Up: Start walking it immediately. You need those XL candies, and since Kyogre is a 20km-per-candy buddy, you’ll want to keep it "Excited" using Poffins to drop that to 10km.
- The Primal Caveat: Remember, you cannot "Primal Revert" a Shadow Pokémon. If you want the Primal Kyogre (which is technically higher CP), you have to use a regular one. This is why the Shadow Hundo is so special—it occupies a completely different niche. You can have one Primal Kyogre on your team and five Shadow Kyogres. That is the "Golden Team" for Water-types.
Actionable Steps for New Owners
If you just caught this beast, your priority list is simple. Stop spending Rare Candies on anything else. Save your Elite TMs. Check the "News" tab in Pokémon GO daily to see when the next Team GO Rocket event is scheduled so you can wipe Frustration.
Don't rush to power it up to level 50 if you don't have the resources. A level 30 Shadow Kyogre is already better than a level 50 Vaporeon or Blastoise. Incrementally level it up as you get the dust. Focus on hitting the "breakpoints"—the specific levels where your Waterfall fast move does exactly one more point of damage against common raid bosses. Usually, for most Legendaries, this happens around level 35 to 38 depending on your IVs. Since you have the hundo, you hit these breakpoints at the lowest possible level.
Maximize your investment. This is a once-in-a-game catch. Treat it like the literal god of the sea it is.
Keep an eye on the weather boost. If you're raiding and it starts raining, your Shadow Kyogre becomes an absolute nuke. The 20% Shadow boost stacks multiplicatively with the 20% Weather boost. That's when you'll truly see why people obsess over these stats. You aren't just playing the game at that point; you're rewriting the rules of the encounter.