One of Pokemon GO’s first events of 2026 is going to be a Community Day Classic that puts the Gen IV starter Piplup in the spotlight.
Pokemon Go January 2026 Community DAy Classic Date and Details
Pokemon GO’s January 2026 Community Day Classic will offer fans of the mobile game a chance to catch tons of Piplups, enjoy limited-time bonuses, and hopefully luck into a few shiny encounters.
The Piplup-themed event takes place on Sunday, January 4, 2026, from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. local time. Piplup, the Penguin Pokemon, will be featured during January Community Day Classic and is guaranteed to appear more frequently in the wild during the event hours. Players who are lucky may even encounter a Shiny Piplup or one that has a Special Background, according to the official Pokemon GO update.
Piplup Community DAy Featured Attack and Bonuses
Featured Attack
As always, the Community Day offers a chance to pick up a special attack for the evolved form of the featured Pokemon. This time around, players can evolve Prinplup (Piplup’s Evolution) from the beginning of the event until January 4, 2026, at 9:00 p.m. local time to get an Empoleon that knows the Charged Attack Hydro Cannon.
Hydro Cannon
Trainer Battles: 80 power
Gyms and raids: 90 power
The Charged Attack Hydro Cannon is a powerful move, offering high damage with low energy cost. Players who miss this window will have to wait for an Elite Charged TM to teach Empoleon this top-tier Water-type attack.
Special Bonuses
In addition to the special attack, players can also take advantage of these special bonuses during the event hours:
- 1/4 Hatch Distance when Eggs are placed into Incubators during the event.
- Incense (excluding Daily Adventure Incense) activated during the event will last for three hours.
- Take a few snapshots during Community Day for a surprise.
- Lure Modules will last for one hour and may attract the featured Pokemon. Note that the lure bonus will be live a bit longer and last from 2:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. local time.
Piplup Community Day Special Research and Field Research Details
Pokemon GO players who want to have some quests to focus on during the event can pickup the Special Research and Field Research tasks and earn some valuable rewards. Keep in mind that the Special Research costs real world money to unlock.
Community Day Special Research
For $1.99 (or the equivalent pricing tier in your local currency), you’ll be able to access the Piplup Community Day–exclusive Special Research. Complete this research for even more rewards, including the following:
- 3 encounters with Piplup that have a Special Background
- Additional encounters with Piplup
- 1 Premium Battle Pass
- 1 Rare Candy XL
Field Research
“January Community Day Classic–themed Field Research will be available! Catch Piplup to earn rewards such as Stardust, Great Balls, additional encounters with Piplup, and more! You may even find Field Research that leads to encounters with Piplup that have a Special Background—if you’re lucky!”
Pokemon GO players may want to dedicate some time to inventory and storage management before the event arrives.
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