Overview
The Super Rocket Radar is a special tracking device that locates Team GO Rocket Boss Giovanni and opens the path to his Shadow Legendary Pokémon reward encounter. Team GO Rocket encounters unlock at Trainer Level 8 under the current leveling system, and using this radar requires earning one from a qualifying reward. Unlike a standard Rocket Radar—which is assembled from six Mysterious Components to locate Arlo, Cliff, or Sierra—a Super Rocket Radar cannot be crafted from Mysterious Components or bought as a standalone Shop item.
Instead, it is awarded through specific progression tracks, shifting in 2026 from traditional Team GO Rocket Special Research to event GO Pass rewards. Once equipped from your Item Bag, it marks nearby PokéStops that hold either Giovanni himself or a disguised decoy Grunt. Because current 2026 rules place Giovanni exclusively at PokéStops rather than in Team GO Rocket Balloons, you must travel to marked PokéStops to track him down.
How to get it
Earn one from a reward that explicitly lists a Super Rocket Radar. Older Team GO Rocket Special Research and Timed Research granted it, while recent 2026 takeover events have supplied it through free and paid GO Pass tracks with strict claim deadlines.
It cannot be assembled from Mysterious Components or purchased as a standalone item in the in-game Shop.
How to use it
Equip it from your Item Bag to reveal possible Giovanni hideouts at nearby PokéStops; some marked stops are staffed by decoy Grunts in disguise.
Defeat Giovanni at a PokéStop to consume the Super Rocket Radar and start an encounter with his current Shadow Legendary Pokémon.
Worth knowing
Battling decoy Grunts does not consume the Super Rocket Radar, so you can farm them for extra Shadow Pokémon encounters, Stardust, and Mysterious Components, or unequip the radar from your Item Bag until you are ready to face Giovanni.
Giovanni’s reward Pokémon changes over time; the radar itself does not lock in the Legendary shown when you first earned it.
Decoys and Giovanni are different encounters
When you tap the equipped Super Rocket Radar icon below the compass on the Map View, it highlights several nearby PokéStops. Only some of those stops hold Giovanni's actual hideout; the rest are guarded by decoy Grunts disguised as the boss. Spinning or inspecting a marked PokéStop reveals who is waiting there, and defeating a decoy Grunt does not consume your Super Rocket Radar.
Many Trainers intentionally keep a Super Rocket Radar equipped to battle decoy Grunts at PokéStops for additional Shadow Pokémon encounters, Stardust, and Mysterious Components before finally defeating Giovanni.
Older guides and legacy support pages describe finding Giovanni in Team GO Rocket Balloons whenever a Super Rocket Radar is active. That rule changed in June 2026 with the Flying Taxi: Taken Over announcement, and subsequent events such as October 2026's Harvest Festival: Taken Over have kept the same restriction: Giovanni can now only be found at PokéStops. Do not wait for a balloon encounter while holding an active Super Rocket Radar.
When you do track him down at a PokéStop, his reward Pokémon follows the active takeover rotation—such as Shadow Reshiram in June 2026 or Shadow Zekrom starting in October 2026—rather than the date you earned the item.
Saving a radar and committing to a battle
How you earn a Super Rocket Radar affects how you store it. Beginning in 2026 with Steeled Resolve: Taken Over, Flying Taxi: Taken Over, and Harvest Festival: Taken Over, new takeover rewards moved from seasonal Special Research to event GO Pass tracks, where the free track grants one Super Rocket Radar and upgrading to GO Pass Deluxe allows you to earn an additional one.
Unlike Special Research, which never expires once received, an unlocked GO Pass reward disappears if you leave it unclaimed past the pass's claim deadline. Always claim the Super Rocket Radar before the GO Pass window closes. Once claimed, the item goes directly into your Item Bag, never expires, and can be stacked with other Super Rocket Radars or unequipped from the Item Bag while you decide when to use it.
Opening a hideout, battling or defeating a decoy Grunt, or losing a battle to Giovanni does not consume your Super Rocket Radar. Only defeating Giovanni uses one Super Rocket Radar from your Item Bag. If you lose a match against him, you can heal your team, adjust your counters, and rematch him at the same PokéStop without losing the item.
Before delivering the final win, make sure you have open space in your Pokémon Storage and Item Bag so your post-battle rewards and Shadow Legendary encounter start without interruption.
Always check which Shadow Legendary Pokémon Giovanni is currently using before completing a battle against him. Saving a Super Rocket Radar lets you skip an unwanted rotation and spend the item on a future boss lineup, such as waiting until Shadow Zekrom rotated in during October 2026, but an older radar never lets you pick a retired Shadow Legendary from the past.
Keep in mind that a regular Rocket Radar still locates only the Team GO Rocket Leaders—Arlo, Cliff, and Sierra—and cannot be used to trigger Giovanni.
