Pokemon trainers who are itching to add another legendary member to their team have the opportunity to capture Raikou.

The Pokemon Company announced that Raikou of the Legendary Beast trio will be the reward for the August field research quests during the month. Typically these quests include catching a certain number of Pokemon, battling in gyms and visiting Pokestops.

Image via Al Stover

Trainers who collect enough stamps will advance to the Research Breakthrough stage where they will have an opportunity to catch Raikou. While trainers can only complete one stamp per day, they can complete the tasks ahead of time and acquire a stamp once per day.

Raikou was introduced in Pokemon Go with the other Generation 2 legendary Pokemon in raid battles. Trainers who have struggled to capture Raikou in raids will have a chance to add the Pokemon to their team on their own.

Raikou was introduced in the second generation of the Pokemon games as a member of the Legendary beasts, along with Entei and Suicune. The trio have one of the more darker origin stories as they were Pokemon who perished in the fire that consumed the Brass Tower and were resurrected by Ho-oh. There’s also speculation among fans that these Pokemon were Flareon, Vaporeon and Jolteon before their deaths. 

Being an electric-type Pokemon, Raikou is said to represent the lightning that ignited the fire that consumed the tower. 

Below is Raikou’s Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire Pokedex entry:

Raikou embodies the speed of lightning. The roars of this Pokémon send shock waves shuddering through the air and shake the ground as if lightning bolts had come crashing down.

Raikou hasn’t made many appearances in the Pokemon anime. It was the focus of the episode “The Legend of Thunder,” where Team Rocket members Attila and Hun attempted to capture it. A shiny version of Raikou appeared in the movie “Zoroark: The Master of Illusions.”

Bulbapedia has some interesting trivia about Raikou. The website states it may be based on thunder and lighting gods in different cultures. One potential source of inspiration for Raikou is it is based on a thunder demon from Japanese lore whos is the companion of the god Raijin.

While the demon could take the shape of different animals, it is speculated Raikou is based on its tiger form. Its stripes and tail appears similar to lighting bolts.

Raikou is an agile and powerful Pokemon. Trainers who prefer to use lightning type Pokemon in battle will want to have Raikou by their side.

Raikou is not the only exciting news for August. Trainers who love the Pokemon Eevee and its various Eeveelutions – Flareon, Vaporeon, Jolteon, Umbreon and Espeon – will have a chance to catch multiple Eevee. Pokemon Go is having its August Community Day(s) Aug. 11-12.

This is the first time Pokemon Go has held a Community Day on both days. There will be three hour blocks on both Aug. 11 and Aug. 12, beginning at 2 p.m. EST, where more Eevee will appear. Trainers will also earn three-times stardust when they catch Pokemon.