Pokémon Sleep’s October New Moon Day runs from October 10 at 4:00 a.m. to October 13, 2026, at 3:59 a.m. local time. Both Mew and Darkrai can appear across all research areas, and Pokémon will be less likely to become full during the first snack time of each day.
This is New Moon Day #18, with the new moon falling on Sunday, October 11.
Dates and bonuses
| Event day | Starts | Ends |
|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | October 10, 4:00 a.m. | October 11, 3:59 a.m. |
| New moon day | October 11, 4:00 a.m. | October 12, 3:59 a.m. |
| Day 3 | October 12, 4:00 a.m. | October 13, 3:59 a.m. |
All times are local. The bonuses apply throughout the three event days:
- Mew and Darkrai have special appearance rates.
- Pokémon are less likely to become full during the first snack time.
- Each special-rate Mythical encounter adds three friendship points.
- The announcement also highlights Shiny Pokémon encounters, without publishing exact odds.
Official October event announcement
Where can Mew and Darkrai appear?
Both can appear in every research area, regardless of your sleep type. You do not need to visit Snowdrop Tundra for Darkrai or choose another island for Mew.
That distinction matters if you’ve read older guides. The island split mentioned in the Reddit megathread was superseded by the change announced for New Moon Day #13. Choose your island around the other Pokémon and resources you want to research.
There are a few rules to keep in mind:
- At most one special-rate Mythical can appear in the first sleep research of the day.
- Neither will appear through this event’s special rates in the second research session.
- Their encounter chances gradually increase when you miss a special-rate encounter.
- Mew and Darkrai have different encounter chances; the game does not publish a guaranteed encounter schedule.
A Mythical is an extra encounter, added to the Pokémon your research would otherwise produce. With Pokémon incense or Good Camp Tickets, the total can reach 11.
The practical takeaway: tracking a second session does not give you another Mythical encounter roll that day. Plan any event-focused incense around your first research session.
Encounter rules and the all-area change
You can make progress without spending biscuits
Every time Mew or Darkrai appears through the event’s special rates, that Pokémon gains three friendship points automatically. You can feed biscuits to add more, but you don’t need to spend one just to make progress.
This is an established bonus, introduced in the version 3.0.0 update, rather than a new addition for October. If your biscuit supply is low, an encounter still gets you closer to befriending the Pokémon or earning another Eureka Seed.
Official explanation of the friendship-point bonus
Why repeated encounters give Eureka Seeds
You can befriend one of each Mythical species. Filling the friendship meter again develops the Pokémon you already have through Eureka Seeds, rather than adding another copy to your box.
Darkrai
Darkrai’s All specialty combines berry, ingredient and skill capabilities. Its main skill, Bad Dreams (Charge Strength M), increases Snorlax’s Strength while reducing the Energy of teammates that are not Dark types.
When first befriended, Darkrai lacks sub skills and its additional ingredient slots. Eureka Seeds (Darkrai) let you gradually unlock and change its sub skills and ingredients. That makes it a longer-term project than an ordinary Pokémon whose full set of traits is already visible.
Official Darkrai overview · GO Hub’s Eureka Seed explanation
Mew
Mew also has the All specialty. Its Versatile main skill activates the selected skill effect and additionally provides candy for one Pokémon on your team.
It starts with Metronome. Eureka Seeds (Mew) can unlock another main skill at random or switch to one already learned, without changing the main skill level. Options include Charge Strength, Tasty Chance S, Cooking Power-Up S and Berry Burst.
Mew’s seeds can also unlock or change sub skills and ingredients. Mew and Darkrai use separate Eureka Seeds, so progress on one does not supply seeds for the other.
One older bonus no longer applies: the extra friendship points tied to the original Mew Snapshot Surprise photos were available only through August’s New Moon Day. October still has the regular three-point encounter bonus.
Practical tips from the community
The New Moon Day megathread has useful advice beneath its outdated island information:
Don’t feel obliged to use a Master Biscuit. The thread recommends building Mythicals gradually rather than spending heavily to rush Eureka Seeds. That is a resource-management recommendation, not a game restriction. Collecting your favourite Pokémon sooner may matter more to you.
Use the feeding bonus for other targets, too. A Pokémon that needs several biscuits to befriend may be a worthwhile priority. Reduced fullness makes longer feeding sessions more likely, but it does not guarantee unlimited feeding.
Save a species incense for something you actually want. The event is an opportunity to research a favourite Pokémon while taking advantage of the feeding bonus. Neither incense nor the event guarantees a Shiny.
New Moon Day Bundle Vol. 18
The optional bundle costs 1,200 diamonds, with one purchase per user, and contains:
| Item | Quantity |
|---|---|
| Ultra Biscuit | 1 |
| Great Biscuit | 3 |
| Poké Biscuit | 10 |
| Friend Incense | 3 |
The sale spans October 9–14, 2026. Check the in-game shop for the exact opening and closing times displayed for you.
Which sleep sessions count?
The event day resets at 4:00 a.m., and eligibility depends on when the sleep was tracked.
Saving pre-event sleep data and reviewing it during the event will not activate the bonuses. Sleep tracked during the event remains eligible if you review it after the event ends.
Bonuses do not apply during the tutorial. When overlapping events offer the same type of bonus, the larger effect applies rather than the effects stacking, including overlapping Shiny-chance bonuses.
