Minior makes its Pokémon GO debut in the Orionids Minior Shower, which runs from Monday, October 19 at 5:00 p.m. to Saturday, October 24 at 11:59 p.m. local time. The best time to hunt is 5:00 to 9:00 p.m. local time every evening, when shooting stars light up the in-game sky and Minior spawns more often. It appears in the wild in its Meteor Form, catching it gives extra Stardust, and it can’t be Shiny yet.
Here’s the full schedule, what each hour of the event does, Minior’s battle stats and form change, and what else is running in Pokémon GO that week. Times and details were checked on October 18, 2026 (UTC) against the official Pokémon GO announcement.
Table of Contents
Quick answer: Pokémon GO Minior Showers (Orionids)
- Dates: October 19, 5:00 p.m. to October 24, 11:59 p.m., your local time.
- Peak hours: 5:00 to 9:00 p.m. local time each day. That’s six evenings and 24 boosted hours in total.
- Where: wild spawns only. No raids or research are listed for Minior.
- Bonus: extra Stardust for every Minior you catch. Scopely hasn’t said how much.
- Shiny: not available at launch.
- Core colour: one of Minior’s seven cores debuts in the Orionids, but which one hasn’t been announced.
- Next chances: Leonids (November 14-19) and Geminids (December 11-16).
Minior's Meteor Form and its seven cores. One new core debuts with each Minior Shower through August 2027. Image: Pokémon GO / Scopely
Pokémon GO Minior event dates and times
Minior Showers are timed to real meteor showers, so the event repeats six times between October 2026 and August 2027. According to the official announcement, every shower starts at 5:00 p.m. on its first day and ends at 11:59 p.m. on its last day, in local time. You don’t need to convert anything: 5:00 p.m. where you are is the start. Each shower adds a new core colour, and the Geminids in December add two, one for the Northern Hemisphere and one for the Southern Hemisphere, as Pokémon GO Hub explains.
| Minior Shower | Dates (local time) | Boosted evenings | New core colours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Orionids | Oct 19, 5:00 p.m. to Oct 24, 11:59 p.m., 2026 | 6 | 1 (Minior debut) |
| Leonids | Nov 14 to Nov 19, 2026 | 6 | 1 |
| Geminids | Dec 11 to Dec 16, 2026 | 6 | 2 (one per hemisphere) |
| Eta Aquariids | May 3 to May 8, 2027 | 6 | 1 |
| Southern Delta Aquariids | Jul 28 to Aug 2, 2027 | 6 | 1 |
| Perseids | Aug 10 to Aug 15, 2027 | 6 | 1 |
That adds up to seven cores over six showers: Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo and Violet. If you miss one this week, the official page frames the schedule as yearly (“during the following meteor showers each year”), so a colour you miss should come back. Scopely hasn’t confirmed which colours return when.
How to find Minior in Pokémon GO
Minior is a wild spawn, and the event doesn’t list a habitat or biome. The most useful thing you can do is plan around the evening window.
- Play between 5:00 and 9:00 p.m. The official post says the in-game sky fills with shooting stars during those hours and your chance of meeting Minior goes up. Outside them, Minior can still spawn, just less often.
- Walk somewhere with lots of spawns. Parks and busy streets with plenty of PokéStops give you more wild spawns to look through. On Leek Duck’s event page, Minior is the only Pokémon listed under spawns, so the evening sky is the main draw.
- Use an Incense or Lure if you’re stuck at home. The event doesn’t say Incense or Lures attract Minior, but they increase wild spawns in general, so they’re the best bet when you can’t go out.
- Catch every Minior you see. Each one gives bonus Stardust, and the core colour you get may matter later (see the next section).
- Come back each evening. Six evenings give you 24 boosted hours. If you can only play one hour a day, make it that window.
Minior is Rock and Flying type, so Partly Cloudy and Windy weather boost it, which raises its catch CP. GO Hub lists those boosts in its Minior database entry.
Which Minior core is in the Orionids?
As of October 18, nobody outside Scopely knows. The official announcement lists all seven cores and says one makes its debut in each shower. Leek Duck notes that “the core colors available during each shower have not been announced”, and Polygon’s schedule (published October 17) says the same. Players will find out when the first Minior appear on the evening of October 19 in the earliest time zones, which means New Zealand and the Pacific islands. Once players in those regions share their catches, you’ll know the colour before your own evening starts.
Can Minior be Shiny in Pokémon GO?
No, not yet. Polygon states that “Minior is not available shiny yet”, and GO Hub’s database lists Shiny Minior as unreleased. Scopely’s announcement doesn’t mention a Shiny at all, so don’t spend extra Ultra Balls hoping for one this week.
Minior’s form change in battle explained
This is the part that makes Minior different from any other Pokémon in GO. The official announcement says Minior starts every battle in its Meteor Form. When its HP drops below 50%, its shell breaks and it switches to its exposed core.
- Meteor Form: higher Defense, lower Attack.
- Core exposed: higher Attack, lower Defense.
At first, the form change only happens in the GO Battle League and in battles against Team GO Rocket and the team leaders. The announcement also says Minior won’t be eligible for the 2027 Latin America International Championships. It doesn’t say how Minior behaves in Gyms, raids or Max Battles.
Minior stats and moves in Pokémon GO
Scopely hasn’t published stats. The numbers below come from GO Hub’s database, which is built from game data and can change before or after release.
| Form | Attack | Defense | HP (Stamina) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meteor Form | 116 | 194 | 155 |
| Core form (e.g. Red Core) | 218 | 131 | 155 |
The same database lists Take Down and Rollout as fast moves, and Acrobatics, Ancient Power and Power Gem as charged moves. In practice the swap works like a built-in shield followed by a damage boost. Opponents chip through a bulky Meteor Form, then face a much harder-hitting core for the second half of the fight. How strong that is in GO Battle League won’t be clear until players have used it for a while, so it’s worth catching a few with good IVs now rather than powering one up straight away.
Its Rock and Flying typing makes Minior weak to Electric, Ice, Rock, Steel and Water attacks. Keep that in mind if you meet one on an opposing PvP team.
What else is on in Pokémon GO during the Minior Shower
The Orionids week overlaps with a few other events, so evenings with Minior can be stacked with other goals. All dates are from official Pokémon GO news posts.
| Event | When (local time) | Why it matters this week |
|---|---|---|
| Pokémon TCG 30th Celebration (US retail) | Until Oct 20, 10:00 p.m. | Last days to collect the in-store Timed Research at Best Buy, GameStop and Target in the US |
| GO Pass: October | Until Nov 3, 10:00 a.m. | Runs through the whole shower (Kyogre and the Lucky Trinket); no daily GO Points cap on Oct 31-Nov 1 |
| Dynamax Uxie, Mesprit and Azelf Max Battle Day | Sat Oct 24, 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. | Ends right as the final Minior evening begins at 5:00 p.m. |
| Halloween 2026 Part I | Starts Tue Oct 27, 10:00 a.m. | Starts three days after the shower ends |
Dynamax Mesprit, Azelf and Uxie debut on Max Battle Day, October 24, 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. local, just before the last Minior evening. Image: Pokémon GO / Scopely
October 24 is the busiest day. Max Battle Day runs from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m., with Dynamax Azelf in the Americas and Greenland, Mesprit in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and India, and Uxie in Asia-Pacific. The last Minior evening starts as soon as it ends. Our Pokémon GO Halloween 2026 guide covers the costumes, Shiny Greavard and the October 31 Chandelure raid day that follow.
Is the Minior event worth playing?
Yes, if you want a complete collection. Minior is a new Pokémon with seven collectible cores spread over ten months, and the only way to get the first one is in the wild this week. The Stardust bonus is a nice extra if you’re saving up for trades or powering up for the GO Battle League. It’s a light event, though. The announcement lists no ticket, no research and no Shiny, so an hour or two in the evening covers it.
If you’re also juggling other mobile games this month, TiMi’s Capcom-licensed Monster Hunter Outlanders lands on October 29. For days when you can’t get outside, our list of the best offline mobile games covers games that need no signal at all.
FAQ
When does the Pokémon GO Minior event start?
The Orionids Minior Shower starts on Monday, October 19, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. your local time and ends on Saturday, October 24 at 11:59 p.m. local time.
Where do you find Minior in Pokémon GO?
In the wild, in its Meteor Form, during Minior Showers only. Spawns are more common from 5:00 to 9:00 p.m. local time each day of the event.
Which Minior core colour comes first?
It hasn’t been announced. One of the seven cores debuts in the Orionids, and players will see which one when the event goes live on October 19.
Does Minior evolve in Pokémon GO?
No. Minior has no evolutions in the Pokémon games. Its two looks are battle forms: Meteor Form and its exposed core.
When is the next Minior Shower after the Orionids?
The Leonids run from November 14 to 19, 2026, followed by the Geminids from December 11 to 16, both starting at 5:00 p.m. local time.
Sources: Pokémon GO (official): Minior Showers; Leek Duck: Minior Showers: Orionids 2026; Polygon: Pokémon Go Minior Shower schedule; Pokémon GO Hub: Minior Showers guide; GO Hub database: Minior; official Pokémon GO news posts for the Max Battle Day, GO Pass: October, TCG 30th Celebration and Halloween Part I.
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Featured image: AI-generated illustration
