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Pokémon Sword and Shield Watts, Rotom Rally and where to spend Watts, including the Digging Duo, explained

Everything you need to know about the new currency in Pokémon Sword and Shield.

Watts are a new currency introduced in Pokémon Sword and Shield.

You can earn Watts by completing certain activities, like a Rotom Rally, in the Wild Area and you can also spend them there.

Watts can be spent on a variety of items, including Wishing Pieces, and services, such as the Digging Duo. It's a good idea to collect a large amount of Watts, because many of the items will help you complete the Galar Pokédex.

On this page:

Cover image for YouTube videoPokémon Sword & Pokémon Shield – Overview trailer
Pokémon Sword & Pokémon Shield - Overview trailer

How to earn Watts in Pokémon Sword and Shield

There are three main ways to earn Watts in Pokémon Sword and Shield.

The first is by investigating the Pokémon Dens scattered across the Wild Area.

Before you complete the main storyline of the games, Pokémon Dens that contain Max Raids will give you 200 Watts and empty Dens will give you 50 Watts. After you complete the game, this will be increased to 2,000 Watts for Dens containing Max Raids and 200 Watts for empty Dens.

You can earn Watts by investigating Pokémon Dens.

Pokémon Dens that contain Max Raids are the one emitting pillars of red light. You don't have to battle in these raids to collect the Watts either, simply interact with the Pokémon Den in question and the Watts will be yours.

If you do decide to battle in the Max Raids and complete every one that is currently in your Wild Area, the Pokémon Den will reset. This means that you can collect more Watts from the Pokémon Dens, which will allow you to quickly stock up on Watts.

You can also receive Watts by battling, defeating and catching (if you manage it) Brilliant Pokémon.

Brilliant Pokémon are Pokémon that appear with a yellow aura. They are quite rare, however, so don't be surprised if you don't see them very often.

The third and final way to earn Watts is by completely Rotom Rallies.

Rotom Rally explained in Pokémon Sword and Shield

A Rotom Rally is a timed race that will spend you from one corner of the Wild Area to another. To take part in a Rotom Rally, you must have first received the Rotom Bike by saving the doctor from Team Yell at Route 5.

You can start a Rotom Rally by talking to one of the seven Rotom Rallyists that can be found across the Wild Area. Each Rallyist will have between four to six races for you to choose from and each race has a different time limit.

Here are the locations for each Rotom Rallyist, including the rallies they offer you:

  • At the Meetup Spot
    • East Lake Axewell - 40 seconds
    • The Bridge Field - 120 seconds
    • The Giant's Cap - 130 seconds
    • The Hammerlocke Hills - 160 seconds
  • Near the cliff wall, between two berry trees, in Dappled Grove
    • The Meetup Spot - 50 seconds
    • East Lake Axewell - 50 seconds
    • The Bridge Field - 130 seconds
    • The Giant's Cap - 160 seconds
    • The Hammerlocke Hills - 190 seconds
  • By the entrance to Motostoke
    • The Meetup Spot - 40 seconds
    • The Dappled Grove - 50 seconds
    • The Bridge Field - 80 seconds
    • The Giant's Cap - 110 seconds
    • The Hammerlocke Hills - 140 seconds
  • Next to the bridge in Giant's Seat
    • The Meetup Spot - 50 seconds
    • East Lake Axewell - 50 seconds
    • The Dappled Grove - 80 seconds
    • The Bridge Field - 90 seconds
    • The Giant's Cap - 100 seconds
    • The Hammerlocke Hills - 130 seconds
  • In front of the Pokémon Nursery in Bridge Field
    • The Giant's Cap - 60 seconds
    • The Hammerlocke Hills - 60 seconds
    • East Lake Axewell - 80 seconds
    • The Giant's Seat - 90 seconds
    • The Meetup Spot - 120 seconds
    • The Dappled Grove - 130 seconds
  • Underneath a tree, near the lake, in Giant's Cap
    • The Hammerlocke Hills - 30 seconds
    • The Bridge Field - 60 seconds
    • East Lake Axewell - 110 seconds
    • The Giant's Seat - 100 seconds
    • The Meetup Spot - 130 seconds
    • The Dappled Grove - 160 seconds
  • By the entrance to Hammerlocke
    • The Giant's Cap - 30 seconds
    • The Bridge Field - 60 seconds
    • East Lake Aexwell - 140 seconds
    • The Giant's Seat - 130 seconds
    • The Meetup Spot - 160 seconds
    • The Dappled Grove - 190 seconds

After picking your rally of choice, you'll find yourself on your Rotom Bike, waiting for the countdown to end. When you see the word 'Go' it's time to get to the finish line as quickly as possible.

To help you along your way, a number of balloons will appear in front of you. These balloons will both guide you to your destination and provide a variety of helpful boosts.

The white balloons provide speed boosts, though will still be able to use your Rotom Bike's turbo boost, while also guiding you through the Wild Area. You don't need to burst these balloons, but they will certainly help you complete the race faster.

White balloons will boost your speed.

The red balloons will increase your time limit. Do not miss these balloons, because, even if your bike is fully upgraded, it's very unlikely that you'll be able to complete the rally without them.

Red balloons supply you with extra time.

Make sure that you avoid any and all Pokémon during your rally. You can't enter a Pokémon battle, but, if you hit a Pokémon, your bike will spin out of control for a few seconds, lowering your rally score.

Once you complete the rally, you'll be given your score, based off how long it took you to complete it, and your rewards.

You will always be rewarded with a certain number of Watts, depending on your rally score, but there are three rewards that you can only receive after completing a special condition.

These rewards are:

ConditionReward
First time you complete a Rotom RallyTM14 Thunder Wave
Obtain a 20,000 score or higherTM 80 Volt Switch
Complete 11 Rotom Rally runsFast Ball

With it finally in the wild, here's how to start the Crown Tundra DLC and our full Pokémon Crown Tundra walkthrough. Plus, here's how to catch Calyrex, Glastrier and Spectrier, the Regieleki and Regidrago puzzle solution and Regirock, Regice, Registeel locations, details on how to catch Legendary Birds Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres in the Crown Tundra, the Ultra Beasts and Necrozma adventure, Dynamax Adventures, including the legendries you can catch on these adventures, and the new Crown Tundra Pokédex and returning Pokémon explained. For Isle of Armor players, here's how to find the Slowpoke, where to find Max Mushroom locations, and how to get Kubfu, become best friends and evolve it, plus all Diglett locations too! For the base game, here's info on the ability to transfer Pokémon to Pokémon Home, the Wild Area, lists of all TM locations and TRs, all Galarian forms and finally our main Pokémon Sword and Shield walkthrough for the whole game.


What can you spend Watts on in Pokémon Sword and Shield

There are a variety of activities and items you can spend your Watt collection on throughout the Wild Area.

Digging Duo

Near the Pokémon Nursery in the Bridge Field location of the Wild Area, you'll find the Digging Duo.

For 500 Watts, these two brothers will dig into the ground to uncover a variety of special items for you. These could be anything from Evolution Stones, such as Dusk Stones, to the fossils needed to create fossil Pokémon.

The brother on the left is known for his skill, meaning that he can find far rarer items than his sibling. While the right-hand brother has far more stamina, meaning he can bring you more items, but they won't be as rare.

The brother on the left is more skilled, while the brother on the right has more stamina.

Every time you use the brother's service, they will save your game. This means you can't save your Watts by reloading the game if you don't get the item you want. Instead, it's a good idea to save a large amount of Watts, before visiting the brothers.

The brothers also have a different item pool depending on their level of skill.

Here's the item pool, including the level of rarity, for the skilled (left-hand) brother:

ItemRarity
Bottle CapVery rare
Comet ShardCommon
Dawn StoneUncommon
Dusk StoneUncommon
Fossilized Bird(Only in Pokémon Sword) Common
(Only in Pokémon Shield) Very rare
Fossilized Dino(Only in Pokémon Sword) Common
(Only in Pokémon Shield) Very rare
Fossilized Drake(Only in Pokémon Sword) Very rare
(Only in Pokémon Shield) Common
Fossilized Fish(Only in Pokémon Sword) Very rare
(Only in Pokémon Shield) Common
Gold Bottle CapVery rare
Ice StoneUncommon
Iron BallUncommon
Lagging TailUncommon
Light ClayRare
Metal CoatUncommon
Moon StoneUncommon
Normal GemRare
Rare BoneCommon
Shiny StoneUncommon
Sticky BarbRare
Sun StoneUncommon
Wishing PieceUncommon

Here's the item pool, including the level of rarity, for the stamina (right-hand) brother:

ItemRarity
Damp RockRare
Dawn StoneRare
Dusk StoneRare
EverstoneCommon
Fire StoneUncommon
Float StoneUncommon
Fossilized Bird(Only in Pokémon Sword) Uncommon
Fossilized Dino(Only in Pokémon Sword) Uncommon
Fossilized Drake(Only in Pokémon Shield) Uncommon
Fossilized Fish(Only in Pokémon Shield) Uncommon
Hard StoneUncommon
Heat RockRare
Ice StoneRare
Icy RockRare
Iron BallVery rare
Lagging TailVery rare
Leaf StoneUncommon
Light ClayRare
Metal CoatRare
Moon StoneRare
Normal GemVery rare
Rare BoneCommon
Shiny StoneRare
Smooth RockRare
Soft SandUncommon
StardustVery common
Star PieceCommon
Sticky BarbVery rare
Sun StoneUncommon
Thunder StoneUncommon
Water StoneUncommon

Fishers

During your adventures in the Wild Area, you may encounter a Fisher standing near one of the many bodies of water. If you talk to the Fisher, they will offer to sell you the treasures they've fished from the lakes for 100 Watts.

Don't worry - it's not a Magikarp. Instead, you'll receive a random treasure, which could be anything from a pearl to a Wishing Piece.

A Fisher will vanish once you buy an item from them, appearing in a new location the next day.

Here is the full list of treasures, including their level of rarity, that you can receive from the Fishers:

ItemsRarity
Big PearlCommon
2x Big PearlUncommon
3x Big PearlUncommon
3x PearlCommon
Pearl StringUncommon
2x Pearl StringRare
Wishing Piece Rare

Hikers

There are a number of Hikers roaming the Wild Area, who, for 100 Watts, will give you an item that will help raise your Pokémon.

These items are all experience based, either raising your Pokémon's level completely or increasing the amount of experience they currently have.

The item the Hiker gives you is random and the item pool itself changes as you earn more badges, allowing you to receive more effective items.

Once you purchase the Hiker's item, they will vanish, only reappearing in a new location the next day.

Here is the full list of items, including their rarity and when they're unlocked, that you can receive from the Hikers:

ItemsRarity
(Up to 2 Gym Badges)
Rarity
(2 to 8 Gym Badges)
Rarity
(After becoming Champion)
Exp. Candy XSCommonN/AN/A
x2 Exp. Candy XSCommonN/AN/A
x3 Exp. Candy XSCommonN/AN/A
x4 Exp. Candy XSUncommonN/AN/A
x5 Exp. Candy XSN/ACommonN/A
Exp. Candy SRareCommonCommon
x2 Exp. Candy SN/ACommonCommon
x3 Exp. Candy SN/ARareN/A
Exp. Candy MN/ARareCommon
x2 Exp. Candy MN/AN/AUncommon
Exp. Candy LN/AN/ARare
Rare CandyVery rareVery rareVery rare
Wishing PieceRareRareRare

Rotom Rallyists

The Rotom Rallyists don't just reward you for speeding around the Wild Area, they also allow you to spend your stock of Watts.

Each Rotom Rallyist has a Watt Store, where you can buy a variety of TRs, special Poké Balls and Wishing Piece.

Here are the other items, and their Watt cost, which you can purchase from the Rotom Rallyists shop:

ItemPrice
Dive Ball50 Watts
Dusk Ball50 Watts
Heal Ball20 Watts
Luxury Ball 100 Watts
Nest Ball50 Watts
Net Ball50 Watts
Quick Ball50 Watts
Repeat Ball50 Watts
Timer Ball50 Watts
Wishing Piece3,000 Watts
The Rotom Rallyists can also give you a new cycling outfit.

In exchange for Watts, the Rotom Rallyists will also upgrade your Rotom Bike's turbo boost, which will allow you to complete the Rotom Rallys faster.

There are three upgrades the Rallyists can apply to bike, each one shortening the amount of time it takes for your turbo boost to charge.

The Watt cost of the upgrades are:

  • First upgrade - 1,000 Watts
  • Second upgrade - 3,000 Watts
  • Third upgrade - 5,000 Watts

Upgrading your bike is a great way to earn more Watts from completing Rotom Rallys.