Ever stared at a giant purple door in the side of a cliff in Pokémon Scarlet and wondered why on earth it’s chained up? Honestly, most players stumble onto the Grasswither Shrine long before they have a clue what to do with it. You probably saw those weird glowing purple sticks in the ground and pulled one out, only for it to vanish into thin air.
Those are the purple stakes.
To get your hands on Wo-Chien, the legendary snail that basically looks like a pile of soggy leaves and ancient tablets, you need all eight. Finding Wo Chien stake locations isn't just about wandering through South Province; it’s about knowing exactly which cliff to scale and which "shortcut" is actually a dead end.
Where Most Players Get Stuck
The problem with hunting these stakes is that Paldea is massive, and the purple ones are scattered across the Southeast. You’ve got some in South Province Area One, others near Artazon, and one or two that are tucked away in places you’d never look unless you were specifically hunting for them.
You need your Koraidon or Miraidon to have some skills. Technically, you can cheese some of these with "backwards jumping" (a weird physics exploit where you hop up slopes you shouldn't be able to), but having the Climb and Glide abilities from the Titan Pokémon makes this ten times less frustrating.
If you don't have those yet, you're going to be doing a lot of platforming gymnastics.
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Stake 1: The One High Above the Shrine
There is a stake literally right above the shrine. If you’re at the Grasswither Shrine—which is southeast of the Poco Path lighthouse—don't just stand there looking at the door. You need to climb the cliff directly over it. It’s sitting right there on a grassy ledge overlooking the ocean. Most people miss this because they’re too busy trying to interact with the door itself.
Stake 2: The Waterfall Near Los Platos
Head south of Los Platos. You’ll find a mountain with a small lake and a waterfall. The stake is sitting right by a rock near that water source. It’s a pretty chill spot, honestly. Just fly to the Los Platos Pokémon Center and head uphill toward the South Province Area One boundary.
Stake 3: The Spiral Plateau
This one is a bit of a trek. Northeast of Los Platos, there’s this weird, layered circular mountain. It looks like a giant spiral on your map. You have to get all the way to the very top. If you have the climb ability, it’s a five-second job. If not, you’re winding your way up like a slow-motion race car.
Stake 4: The South Province (Area Five) Heights
This stake is sort of in the middle of nowhere. It’s on the highest plateau in South Province Area Five. If you fly to the Area Five Pokémon Center, head west and start climbing. It’s overlooking the ocean and the surrounding fields. It’s easy to walk right past it if you aren't looking for that purple glow.
Stake 5: The Bridge Lookout
Go to the South Province (Area Three) gate, right near the path that leads out of Mesagoza’s East Gate. There’s a stone bridge area. Below the bridge, on a small ledge, is the fifth stake. It’s near where you might find a Gimmighoul coin just chilling.
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Stake 6: The Rocky Hill East of Mesagoza
Leave Mesagoza through the East Gate and head into South Province Area Three. There’s a rocky hill right in the first section of this area. Climb up, and you’ll see the stake tucked away. It’s a desert-adjacent area, so look for the brown, rocky terrain rather than the lush green stuff.
Stake 7: The Artazon Border
This one is right outside the city of Artazon (the place with all the Sunflora). Fly to the Artazon West Pokémon Center and look south. There’s a small dirt hill. The stake is right on top. It’s probably the easiest one to find because it’s so close to a major landmark.
Stake 8: The North Border Ravine
The final stake is way up on the northern tip of South Province Area Three, right where it touches East Province Area One. It’s lodged into the ground on a cliff overlooking a deep ravine. If you see a bunch of steep drops and jagged rocks, you’re in the right place.
The Mystery of the Grasswither Shrine
Once you pull that eighth stake, the game gives you a little text box saying you heard a mysterious cry coming from the shrine. That’s your cue.
Wo-Chien is a Dark/Grass type. It’s Level 60.
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A lot of people think they can just roll up and catch it with a few Great Balls, but Wo-Chien is a defensive monster. Its ability, Tablets of Ruin, automatically drops your Pokémon’s Attack stat by 25%. If you’re using physical attackers like Garchomp or Lucario, you’re going to feel like you’re hitting a brick wall.
Catching Strategy That Actually Works
Don't use Fire-type moves. Wo-Chien is 4x weak to Bug, and 2x weak to Fire, Ice, Fighting, Poison, and Flying. You want to chip it down, not vaporize it.
I’d honestly suggest using a Pokémon with False Swipe and a way to inflict Sleep or Paralysis. Gallade is a personal favorite for this because it can learn both False Swipe and Hypnosis.
- Turn off Autosave. This is the big one. If you accidentally KO it, you want to be able to restart right in front of the door.
- Stock up on Timer Balls. These are better than Ultra Balls once the fight goes past 10 turns.
- Dusk Balls are your best friend if you’re hunting at night (or because the shrine is technically "indoors" or "dark enough" in some cases).
What Most People Get Wrong About the Ruinous Four
There’s a rumor that if you pull all the stakes before talking to Raifort (the history teacher at the Academy), the shrine won’t open. That’s actually not true. You don't need the history class to unlock the legendary, but it helps because she marks the shrine locations on your map.
If you’ve pulled all eight stakes and the door is still chained, you probably missed one of the locations listed above. They all look identical, and it's incredibly easy to think you grabbed the one near Los Platos when you actually grabbed the one near the bridge.
Also, Wo-Chien’s moveset includes Ruination. This move always does damage equal to half of your Pokémon's current HP. It doesn't matter how high your level is; it will chunk you. Bring plenty of Max Potions or a Pokémon with a recovery move.
Actionable Next Steps
- Check your mount abilities: Beat the Stony Cliff Titan (Klawf) and the Open Sky Titan (Bombirdier) at the very least to make navigation easier.
- Fly to Artazon West: Start with the easy stakes to build momentum.
- Manual Save: Stand in front of the purple door in South Province Area One and save your game before you press "A" to interact.
- Prepare your team: Bring a "catcher" Pokémon that isn't reliant on physical Attack, or be prepared for the long haul due to Tablets of Ruin.
Once you’ve secured Wo-Chien, you’ve officially finished one-quarter of the Ruinous quartet. The others—Chien-Pao, Ting-Lu, and Chi-Yu—require their own sets of stakes (Yellow, Green, and Blue), so you’ve got a lot more climbing to do if you want the full set.