Pokemon GO Team Leader Quests Guide — Blanche, Spark & Candela Events (May–June 2026)

Niantic is giving all three Pokemon GO team leaders their moment in the spotlight, and honestly? It’s about time. Starting May 26 and running all the way through June 15, 2026, Pokemon GO is rolling out three consecutive limited-time quests — one for each team — packed with unique wild encounters, special egg pools, raid lineups, Field Research rewards, and leader-themed GO Pass encounters. Whether you’re rocking blue, red, or yellow, there’s something in this event lineup for you.

Here’s a full breakdown of every quest, every Pokemon, every date, and what to expect from the GO Pass rewards tied to each week.

What Are the Pokemon GO Team Leader Quests?

These are three back-to-back, week-long events that each spotlight a different team leader. Each quest runs for exactly one week before passing the torch to the next leader. The structure rotates through Team Mystic, Team Instinct, and Team Valor in that order, with each week bringing a completely different roster of wild spawns, special encounters, and gameplay focus. Think of it as a mini summer festival for every team before the bigger GO Fest 2026 action kicks in.

Each week also comes with its own GO Pass — a free and paid progression system where you earn GO Points by playing and rank up for rewards. The highlight reward of each week is a themed encounter exclusive to that leader’s quest.

Week 1: Blanche’s Quest for Knowledge (May 26 – June 1)

Team Mystic gets first dibs, and Blanche is leaning hard into her researcher identity. This week is all about Field Research tasks and Incense encounters, so if you’re someone who actually does your daily research stamps, this is your week to shine.

Wild Spawns

During Blanche’s quest, the following Pokemon will appear more frequently out in the wild:

• Squirtle (Shiny available)
• Alolan Vulpix (Shiny available)
• Krabby (Shiny available)
• Staryu (Shiny available)
• Galarian Zigzagoon (Shiny available)

Keep your eyes peeled in the wild too — Lapras, Vaporeon, and Larvitar have a higher than usual chance of popping up as rarer encounters during this window.

Incense Encounters

Pop an Incense during this event and you’ll be pulling from a much better pool than normal. The following Pokemon will be attracted to Incense:

• Cubone
• Horsea
• Lapras
• Vaporeon
• Larvitar
• Sableye
• Clamperl
• Cubchoo

Field Research Encounters

Complete Field Research tasks during Blanche’s week and you’ll be able to encounter all the Pokemon listed above, plus two bonus additions: Sinistea and Tandemaus. Both are worth grabbing if you still need candy for their evolutions.

GO Pass Reward: Blanche-Themed Lapras

The headline reward for this week’s GO Pass is a special encounter with a Blanche-themed Lapras, along with a Team Mystic-inspired background card. Both the free and paid versions of the GO Pass are active during this week, so even if you don’t drop any money, you can still rank up and grind toward that encounter.

Week 2: Spark’s Caretaking Quest (June 2 – 8)

Next up is Team Instinct’s Spark, and his quest flips the script completely. Forget Field Research — Spark wants you out there hatching eggs and discovering Pokemon the old-fashioned way. This is the week for anyone with a bag full of 7km eggs they’ve been sitting on.

Wild Spawns

During Spark’s week, the wild encounter pool shifts to a whole new set of Pokemon:

• Bulbasaur
• Alolan Raichu
• Drowzee
• Jolteon
• Dratini
• Houndour
• Lileep
• Combee

7km Egg Pool

This is where Spark’s quest gets interesting. During the Team Instinct week, hatching 7km eggs can give you access to some genuinely solid and unusual Pokemon:

• Pichu
• Elekid
• Shinx
• Varoom
• Galarian Corsola
• Hisuian Qwilfish

Galarian Corsola and Hisuian Qwilfish are both worth hunting for evolving into Cursola and Overqwil respectively, and Varoom is always a solid pull for anyone still building that dex. Stack up on 7km eggs now so you’re ready to hatch them the moment June 2 rolls around. If you need help with egg strategy in general, check out our guide on what’s happening in the broader gaming world while you walk those kilometers.

Field Research Encounters

Just like Blanche’s week, Field Research tasks during the Team Instinct period will also give you access to all the Pokemon mentioned above — giving you another reliable route to track down specific ones without relying purely on RNG in the wild.

GO Pass Reward: Spark-Themed Elekid

The GO Pass special encounter for this week is an Elekid wearing a Spark-themed accessory, paired with a Team Instinct background card. It’s a clean collector item for any Yellow team loyalist.

Week 3: Candela’s Quest for Victory (June 9 – 15)

Team Valor closes out the series, and Candela doesn’t come to play. Her week is all about combat — raids, battles, and the kind of high-energy grind that suits a fire-type specialist. If you’ve been slacking on your raid passes, this is the week to start spending them.

Wild Spawns

Candela’s wild pool is loaded with fighters and fan favorites:

• Charmander
• Mankey
• Hisuian Growlithe
• Machop
• Ponyta
• Scyther
• Flareon
• Slugma
• Fletchling

Raid Pool

This is where Candela’s week separates itself from the other two. Raids get a dedicated spotlight, with the following Pokemon appearing more frequently in battle:

• Hisuian Growlithe
• Machamp
• Scizor
• Magcargo
• Scraggy
• Honedge
• Rockruff

Machamp is always a solid attacker for any raid lineup, and Scizor gets regular use in PvP and raids both. Rockruff is worth snagging candy for Lycanroc if you’re still working on that line. This raid pool alone makes Candela’s week worth blocking out time for.

Field Research Encounters

All of the Pokemon in Candela’s wild spawn list are also available through Field Research task completions during this week, giving you multiple avenues to find the ones you actually want.

GO Pass Reward: Candela-Themed Ponyta

The finale GO Pass reward for Candela’s week is a Ponyta wearing a Candela-themed accessory with a unique Team Valor background card. It’s a fitting send-off for the most battle-forward week of the three.

GO Pass: How It Works During These Events

Each week’s quest comes with its own dedicated GO Pass. The GO Pass is a free, limited-time progression system where earning GO Points through regular gameplay — catching Pokemon, completing research, hatching eggs, winning raids — pushes your rank up and unlocks milestone rewards along the way.

Both the free and paid (GO Pass Deluxe) versions are active during each leader’s quest. The free version is automatically added to every account at the start of each event window, so you don’t have to buy anything to participate. The Deluxe version comes with upgraded rewards, additional items, and bonus milestone unlocks for those who want to go deeper. If you’ve been enjoying what the current subscription model trends are doing across gaming in May 2026, the GO Pass Deluxe is honestly one of the better deals in mobile gaming right now relative to what you get back.

One important note: the weekend of May 30–31 during Blanche’s quest week has no daily GO Point cap, meaning you can grind as many points as you want across that entire weekend. That’s a huge window to slam through ranks if you’re trying to hit that Blanche-themed Lapras encounter fast.

Complete Event Schedule At a Glance

• Blanche’s Quest for Knowledge: May 26 at 10:00 a.m. – June 1 at 8:00 p.m. local time
• Spark’s Caretaking Quest: June 2 at 10:00 a.m. – June 8 at 8:00 p.m. local time
• Candela’s Quest for Victory: June 9 at 10:00 a.m. – June 15 at 8:00 p.m. local time

Tips to Get the Most Out of These Quests

A few things worth knowing before you dive in:

• Pre-load 7km eggs before June 2. The Spark week egg pool is great, but you need eggs in incubators going into that window. Stop collecting gifts from PokeStops a day or two before so your egg slots are clear to fill with fresh 7km eggs right at the start.
• Save Incense for Blanche’s week. The Incense pool during May 26–June 1 is legitimately stacked. Don’t burn your Incense stock beforehand if you’re chasing Lapras or Larvitar encounters.
• Stock raid passes ahead of June 9. Candela’s week is raid-heavy. Go into it with Premium Passes saved up so you can actually take advantage of the full raid rotation without burning through free passes on day one.
• Don’t miss the May 30–31 unlimited GO Point weekend. This is the fastest path to ranking up your GO Pass during Blanche’s quest. Set time aside for it.

Overall this is a well-structured event series that gives every team something specific to work toward. The rotating gameplay focus — research, eggs, raids — means no two weeks feel the same, which is exactly the kind of variety that keeps long-term Pokemon GO players engaged heading into summer. With GO Fest 2026 on the horizon, this is also a solid warm-up stretch to stock up on candy, rare regional forms, and key raid picks. Don’t sleep on any of the three weeks, even if you’re not on that particular team. And for more on what’s been happening across gaming this month, check out our coverage of the Sony PS5 tariff lawsuit — it’s a wild story that every gamer should know about.