Pokemon Sword and Shield's first expansion, The Isle of Armor, has arrived. The DLC introduces an entirely new area to games, the eponymous Isle of Armor, which is home to an assortment of new and returning Pokemon, and features a new cast of characters to meet and storyline to follow.

　　Although the Isle of Armor provides plenty of new things to do to after conquering the Pokemon League, you don't need to finish the main storyline to access it; you can venture to the island at any point in the game after you first reach the Wild Area Station, and the level of the foes and Pokemon you meet there will somewhat scale based on how many badges you've earned. Here's how to travel to the Isle of Armor.

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How To Access Isle Of Armor

Since the island lies off the coast of Galar proper, it's inaccessible from the mainland, so you'll need to take a Flying Taxi from Wedgehurst Station to get there. After installing the expansion, you'll automatically receive the Armor Pass; show that to the attendant inside Wedgehurst Station and you'll be shuttled to the island at no charge. Once you've visited the Isle of Armor for the first time, you'll be able to fast travel back to it even from the mainland.

　　

Level Scaling

As previously mentioned, you can access the Isle of Armor at any point in the game after you've reached the Wild Area Station, so you don't need to have all eight Gym Badges or be Pokemon League Champion to travel there. Since you're free to go to the island at any point, the wild Pokemon and rival trainers you meet there will scale depending on your progress in the main game to keep things fair, much like in the Wild Area. If you already have all eight badges, the foes and wild Pokemon you meet in the Isle of Armor will all at least be level 60.

　　

How To Purchase Isle Of Armor

Isle of Armor is the first of two planned expansions for Pokemon Sword and Shield. The second, titled The Crown Tundra, is slated to release this fall. You can't purchase the expansions individually; they're bundled together as part of the Sword and Shield Expansion Pass, which costs $30 USD.

　　You can pick up the Expansion Pass from the Switch Eshop. There's also a link to the storefront in the menu screen in Sword and Shield, so you can view and purchase the DLC directly from your game. You'll get a few bonuses for buying the expansion pass, including some exclusive trainer items like Leon's cap and tights.

　　However, there's one thing to be aware of before purchasing the DLC. Each version has its own Expansion Pass, so you'll need to buy the one that matches the game you own; for example, you'll need to purchase the Pokemon Sword Expansion Pass if you own a copy of Pokemon Sword. If you have both versions and want to access the expansions in each, then you'll need to purchase an Expansion Pass for each title. Given that the content is largely the same for both games, however, we'd recommend only picking up an Expansion Pass for the version you play more. You can learn more in our Pokemon Sword and Shield expansion pre-order guide.

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