How many trainers can join a Max Battle in Pokémon GO?

Regular Max Battles allow up to four trainers. Gigantamax battles scale up to 40 trainers, split into teams of four. There is no remote participation — you must be at the Power Spot.

Do you lose Max Particles if you fail a Max Battle?

No. Max Particles are only consumed when you win, so you can retry a boss as many times as you like without paying again. Costs are 250 particles for one-star battles, 400 for three-star, and 800 for five- and six-star battles.

How do you get your first Dynamax Pokémon?

The 'To the Max!' Special Research gives you Dynamax Wooloo and Dynamax Skwovet to start with. After that, every Dynamax or Gigantamax boss you catch in a Max Battle can Dynamax in future battles.

What do Max Spirit and Max Guard do?

They are support Max Moves available while Dynamaxed. Max Spirit heals your Pokémon and your allies, while Max Guard reduces incoming damage — ideal when the boss prepares its attack that hits the whole party.

Max Battles in Pokémon GO Explained: Power Spots, Particles and Max Moves

Home › Pokémon › Max Battles in Pokémon GO Explained: Power Spots, Particles and Max Moves

Pokémon GO's Max Battles are where Dynamax and Gigantamax Pokémon crash into the real world. Fought at glowing Power Spots rather than gyms, they borrow the co-operative shape of raids and then twist it: your own Pokémon can Dynamax mid-battle, healing and shielding become active decisions, and the biggest fights scale up to 40 trainers at once.

What Are Max Battles and Power Spots?

Power Spots are temporary locations that appear on the map and host a Dynamax or Gigantamax boss. You can find them through the Power Spot tab in the Nearby radar, bottom-right of the screen, which lists each nearby spot, its boss and how long it will stay. Power Spots rotate regularly, and your first interaction with one each day pays out bonus Max Particles, so checking the tab daily is worthwhile even on days you do not battle.

Regular Max Battles support up to four trainers. Gigantamax battles are the headline events: up to 40 trainers take part, organised in teams of four. Unlike raids, there is no remote option — you have to be standing at the Power Spot.

Max Particles: The Entry Fee That Refunds Itself

Entry costs Max Particles, which you collect by walking and by visiting Power Spots:

Battle Tier	Max Particle Cost	Base XP Reward
One-star	250	5,000 XP
Three-star	400	7,500 XP
Five- and six-star (incl. Gigantamax)	800	Up to 25,000 XP

The friendly part: particles are only consumed when you win. A failed attempt costs you nothing but time, so you can retry a stubborn boss, adjust your team and go again. You will need at least one Dynamax-capable Pokémon to take part — the "To the Max!" Special Research hands you your first ones, Dynamax Wooloo and Skwovet, and every boss you catch can Dynamax in future battles.

How a Max Battle Plays Out

You bring a team of up to three Pokémon. The fight starts like a raid — tap for Fast Attacks, fire Charged Attacks — but a Max Meter fills at the top of the screen as you deal damage and grab the energy orbs that appear. Fill it, and your active Pokémon Dynamaxes for three turns, switching the battle to a turn-based rhythm where everyone picks a move at once.

During those turns you choose between three Max Moves. Your main attack's type follows your Fast Attack's type. Max Spirit heals your Pokémon and your teammates' — timing it well is often the difference between a win and a wipe in Gigantamax fights. Max Guard cuts incoming damage, and it is the correct answer when the boss winds up its big party-wide attack. The boss also throws targeted attacks at individual players: when three lines appear above your Pokémon, swipe to dodge.

Rewards and the Catch

Victory pays out Golden Razz Berries, Revives, Rare Candy and — at higher tiers — Rare Candy XL, Max Revives and guaranteed Candy XL for trainers level 31 and up, alongside the XP in the table above. Then comes the catch phase, where your Premier Balls are temporarily powered up. Win or lose, you can also leave one of your Pokémon stationed at the Power Spot afterwards: stationed Pokémon raise the attack bonus for later battlers, and at Gigantamax spots they can even draw special wild encounters to the area. It is a small way of paying the next group forward.