Pokémon Go Fest 2025 is here, and Niantic has delivered one of the most impactful battle upgrades the game has ever seen. Enter: Crowned Shield Zamazenta and its Adventure Effect, Behemoth Bash, a game-changing mechanic that boosts your team’s defenses in Raid Battles.

What Is a Crowned Shield Zamazenta

Zamazenta, the legendary warrior of the Galar region, gets a major power boost this Go Fest with its Crowned Shield form, now debuting in Pokémon GO. When transformed and equipped with the correct move, Zamazenta can activate Behemoth Bash, a defensive Adventure Effect designed specifically for Raids. Crowned Shield Zamazenta offers tangible stat boosts to your team that can turn the tide in tough battles.

What Are Adventure Effects

Adventure Effects are special powers reserved for particular Pokémon, typically Legendaries, during special occasions like GO Fest. These effects alter gameplay beyond standard combat interactions and can provide catch bonuses, freeze time for items, or grant broad buffs like Zamazenta’s raid-wide stat increases. Zamazenta and Zacian are the first Pokémon to introduce purely battle-focused Adventure Effects, and they’re already reshaping Raid strategy.

How Behemoth Bash Works

Behemoth Bash is Zamazenta’s exclusive Adventure Effect, accessible when it meets the following requirements:

Requirements:

• A Crowned Shield Zamazenta
• The Charged Attack: Iron Head

Once those two boxes are checked, you can activate Behemoth Bash directly from the Pokémon’s summary screen.

Cost to Activate:

• 5,000 Stardust
• 5 Zamazenta Candy

Effect Duration:

• 6 minutes per activation
• Stackable by doubling the resources for up to 12 minutes

Effect Details:

• +10% Defense boost for your Pokémon in Raids
• +5% Defense boost in Max Raids

This makes Zamazenta the ultimate raid support tank, perfect for boss fights that demand survivability over speed.

How to Activate Zamazenta’s Adventure Effect

1. Transform Zamazenta into its Crowned Shield form (available during GO Fest 2025).
2. Teach it Iron Head (Charged Attack).
3. Open the Pokémon’s Summary Page.
4. Scroll to the Adventure Effects section.
5. Tap Use Behemoth Bash.
6. Confirm resource use and go crush some Raids.

Resource Management 

In Pokémon Go, using Adventure Effects incurs a cost, particularly for Legendary Pokémon like Zamazenta. Each use of Behemoth Bash requires 5,000 Stardust and five Zamazenta Candy which can turn into quite the problem if you aren’t stocked up. Since Legendary Candy is harder to obtain than the regular types, it’s wise to gather resources ahead of time. You can earn more Zamazenta Candy by walking him as a Buddy, participating in his raids, or exchanging Rare Candy if you have some saved up. Players should be cautious about when they choose to activate Behemoth Bash as well. Doubling the cost to extend the duration effect to 12 minutes is possible but only recommended during multiple back-to-back raid sessions. For everyone else, activating it right before entering high-difficulty Raids often provides optimal value without resource wastage.

Strategic Use in Raids

Behemoth Bash aims to offer your team a defensive advantage for Raids, especially in scenarios where survival trumps damage dealt. At the higher tiers of Raids, particularly in Max Raids 1-2, the bosses deal great amounts of damage that quickly wipe out teams. Activating Zamazenta’s Adventure Effect provides a moderate defense boost which enables your Pokémon to endure better and require less regrouping, making the whole battle more efficient. This is particular crucial for harder raid bosses in lower player lobbies where every second and every Pokemon is imperative. Players with Zacian’s offensive Behemoth Blade can now pair it with Behemoth Bash allowing players to construct raids that enhance coexistence of both damage dealt and taken. As always strategy and coordination will be critical especially in Max Raids were modest stat boosts might change outcomes greatly.

Crowned Shield Zamazenta is more than just a new Legendary form, it's a support power with long-term utility for serious raiders. With the debut of Adventure Effects like Behemoth Bash, Pokémon Go Fest 2025 is redefining how trainers approach group battles.