Pokemon Sword and Shield’s Calyrex Legendary Breaks Established Lore
The Crown Tundra introduces the Legendary Calyrex to Pokemon Sword and Shield, and fans have noted something peculiar about its Dynamax situation.
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Pokemon Sword and Shield have both been available for some time now, but Trainers have only been able to explore Galar’s Crown Tundra since earlier this Fall. The second part of the game’s two-fold Expansion Pass introduced not only an entirely new sector of Galar, but also several new Legendary Pokemon, one of which wears the Tundra’s figurative crown.
Calryex, the High King Pokemon, is a Psychic/Grass-type Legendary Pokemon. It can change into two alternate forms by combining with one of two other Crown Tundra Legendaries, Glastrier or Spectrier, and has the capacity to Dynamax. That being said, when Calyrex Dynamaxes in Pokemon Sword and Shield, it bears a trait shared by no other Pokemon, and which easily raises more questions than it answers.
Once The Crown Tundra DLC became available and players started to meet and befriend the elusive Calyrex, fans of the series quickly began to point out a strange feature. When Dynamaxing, Calyrex seems to employ a blue-colored energy. Even the small clouds circling Dynamax Calyrex are blue, instead of the usual red. The only two other Pokemon in the game that currently possesses this blue Dynamax energy are Ice Rider Calyrex and Ghost Rider Calyrex, which is to say: Calyrex is the only Pokemon that uses blue energy to Dynamax.
Why Is This Important?
To understand why fans are bewildered by the notion of “blue Dynamax energy,” one should understand the basic underlying principles of Dynamaxing. Much like how Z-Power, and Sun and Moon’s Totem Pokemon’s auras, ultimately emanate from the Prism Pokemon, Necrozma, Dynamax Energy originates from the alien Poison/Dragon-type Generation VIII Legendary Pokemon, Eternatus. This heightened form of evolution is said to occur when Pokemon come into contact with Eternatus’ energy, and is thusly notorious for being rather unstable and erratic.
When Pokemon Dynamax, they often simply expand in size; some Pokemon gain entirely new forms, but regardless of this, all Dynamaxed Pokemon share two traits: a glowing red aura, and a ring of red clouds. These two visual traits are generally understood to be residual Dynamax Energy. Given that Dynamax Energy is quite literally Eternatus’ energy, it’s also generally accepted lore that Dynamaxing is a result of Pokemon drawing upon Eternatus’ energy. That is to say, without Eternatus’ special red energy, Pokemon cannot Dynamax.
These facts tie nicely into the lore behind Galar’s Zacian and Zamazenta too. Neither of Sword and Shield’s “cover” Legendaries are capable of Dynamaxing, or in other words, both Zacian and Zamazenta are immune to the polluting effects of Eternatus’ energy.
Zacian and Zamazenta are also both known to have locked away Eternatus with the help of two champions: a Fairy King, and a Fighting Master. Keep these details in mind moving forward, as they become increasingly suspicious and relevant; regardless though, the noteworthiness of Calyrex’s blue aura should be clear by now. While the Warrior Pokemon, Zacian and Zamazenta, are able to shirk the effects of Eternatus’ energy, Calyrex seems to be able to mimic, or replicate them, using a mysterious blue energy.
The Source of Blue Dynamax Energy
While there’s still no official verdict as to the source of Calyrex’s blue Dynamax energy, most player’s tend to arrive at the conclusion that it’s probably Calyrex itself. In all likelihood, Calyrex has figured out how to use its own magically potent energy to replicate Eternatus’ ability to Dynamax.
Before even beginning to detail this theory, it’s important fans understand the known past relationship between Eternatus and Calyrex. While some of Eternatus’ nitty-gritty details remained ambiguous in Sword and Shield, The Crown Tundra DLC, fortunately, shed some much-needed light on the so-called Gigantic Pokemon.
As per information presented throughout Galar, Eternatus is an alien Pokemon that crash-landed on Galar on a meteorite. Roughly 3,000 years before the events of Sword and Shield, it’s said to have awoken and immediately gone on a rampage. In attempts to recharge its core, it wildly and indiscriminately absorbed every nearby source of energy, in what is referred to throughout the game as the “Darkest Day.” Zacian and Zamazenta, alongside the two abovementioned heroes, thankfully defeated Eternatus and imprisoned it, though its energy still managed to leak out into the Galarian atmosphere. This leakage of Eternatus’ energy is responsible for the rise of Max Raid Dens and Dynamax Pokemon in Galar.
This is all great, but apparently, some key details to the story were actually missing. Thanks to flavor text found in The Crown Tundras (some from NPCs, but most from stone tablets found throughout the icy region), players now know that the noble Calyrex actually partook in the fight against Eternatus at one point. Although it’s never explicitly said it was the same occasion, Crown Tundra confirms that Calyrex attempted to fend off Eternatus at some point in the distant past, and that in response, it moved an entire forest for the sake of protecting its inhabitants.
Pokemon devouts are beginning to speculate that there are many lines to be drawn between Calyrex’s lore text and the entire Eternatus/Warrior Legendary Pokemon scenario. Specifically, Slumbering Weald, especially given its proximity to The Crown Tundra, would be a particularly suitable candidate for the “forest” moved by Calyrex – perhaps this was Eternatus’ original landing site, if not nearby? Perhaps the returning “King Arthur” figure in the Zacian/Zamazenta Galar lore puzzle is actually Calyrex, the High King Pokemon.
Moreover, whereas players had simply assumed the Fairy King and Fighting Master to be Pokemon Trainers with a special connection to the Fairy and Fighting-type Zacian and Zamazenta, this new information arouses suspicion that this could be a red herring (and an elaborate reference to Calyrex and the other Expansion Pass “cover” Legendary, Urshifu).
Fans have pointed out that while Calyrex isn’t a Fairy-type Pokemon, it is a highly whimsical, and certainly fairy-Esque Pokemon, and as per its official lore, it is royalty. Calyrex possesses incredibly high levels of intelligence and is said to have ruled over the entirety of Galar at one point in time. Urshifu, on the other hand, is undeniably a Fighting Master, as the sparring champion, and figurative “armor” of the Isle of Armor. Zacian and Zamazenta are said to be the Sword and Shield of the Fairy King and Fighting Master, respectively, so could this all have been an incredibly early nod to the DLC’s titular Legendary Pokemon?
If this theory were true, it would mean that Calyrex, Zacian, Zamazenta, and Urshifu, all teamed up against Eternatus in ancient times. While Calyrex was able to move Slumbering Weald out of harm’s way, the group was able to defeat and seal away Eternatus, stopping the Darkest Day from spiraling out of control. To boot, although Zacian and Zamazenta are/were unaffected by Eternatus’ energy, Calyrex either learned how to tame and wield it or learned how to match it using its own, as per Calyrex’s blue energy.
Given that Calyrex’s Radiant Flower, and the Radiant Petal that ultimately helps form the Reins of Unity, are both the same blue color as this energy, and that so is the magic used by Calyrex to help its steeds’ carrots grow, it’s not a stretch to believe that Calyrex’s Dynamax Energy actually stems from itself. This begs the question though, can Calyrex help other Pokemon Dynamax, and if so, would “Blue Dynamaxing” imply any additional/different consequences?
Pokemon Sword and Shield, and the Isle of Armor and Crown Tundra DLC Expansion Passes, are available now on Switch.
Source: The Pokemon Company
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