There comes a time in every Pokemon GO branching research path where players have to make a choice. And this time around, Pokemon GO hasn’t given us many clues as to whether helping Spark or Sierra will be the best fit for our Holiday Part 1 goals.
Oddly enough, the official Niantic post about the Holiday Part 1 event doesn’t make mention of the free event research story, noting only Field Research and the Paid Timed Research option. However, the event does feature a free research path for all trainers, which begins on December 17 and ends on December 22 at 9:59 AM local time.
This event research path is called Holiday Part 1 and has three total sections to complete. After finishing the first set of tasks, players will need to choose whether to help Team Instinct’s Spark with his Pokemon Research or to track down Team GO Rocket‘s Sierra. So, which should you choose?
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Like most branching research paths, the differences between the two choices aren’t too extreme. Your decision will come down primarily to which type of Pokemon you want to focus on catching and which reward encounter you prefer. Let’s break down the differences between Spark and Sierra to help you decide.
If you choose Spark, your tasks for Parts 2 and 3 of the event research will focus on catching Ice-type Pokemon. Your reward encounter for completing the second set of tasks will be the Ice-type Alolan Vulpix. Here are the tasks for this research path:
| Research Task | Reward |
|---|---|
| Catch 10 Ice-Type Pokemon | 10 Pinap Berries |
| Take 5 snapshots of different wild Pokemon | 20 Poke Balls |
| Complete 5 Field Research Tasks | 500 Stardust |
| Complete All Three Tasks | Alolan Vulpix encounter 2000 XP |
| Research Task | Reward |
|---|---|
| Catch 25 Ice-Type Pokemon | 10 Ultra Balls |
| Power Up Ice-Type Pokemon 10 Times | 1 Golden Razz Berry |
| Collect MP from 3 Power Spots | 100 Max Particles |
| Complete All Three Tasks | Sandygast Encounter 3000 XP 2000 Stardust |
While the type of Pokemon you catch and power up in Part 3 differ depending on whether you choose Spark or Sierra, the rewards are the same. This includes the Sandygast encounter.
The main difference in choosing to track down Sierra is that you’ll focus on the Fire-type half of this fire and ice-themed event. Tasks will involve catching Fire-type Pokemon, and your Part 2 reward encounter will be with a Shadow Vulpix. Here are the tasks if you choose the Sierra branch of the Holiday Part 1 Pokemon GO event research:
| Research Task | Reward |
|---|---|
| Catch 10 Fire-Type Pokemon | 10 Pinap Berries |
| Take 5 snapshots of different wild Pokemon | 20 Poke Balls |
| Complete 5 Field Research Tasks | 500 Stardust |
| Complete All Three Tasks | Shadow Vulpix encounter 2000 XP |
| Research Task | Reward |
|---|---|
| Catch 25 Fire-Type Pokemon | 10 Ultra Balls |
| Power Up Fire-Type Pokemon 10 Times | 1 Golden Razz Berry |
| Collect MP from 3 Power Spots | 100 Max Particles |
| Complete All Three Tasks | Sandygast Encounter 3000 XP 2000 Stardust |
Ultimately, your choice between Spark and Sierra comes down to two factors – which Vulpix encounter you want, and which Pokemon type you want to focus on catching during the Holiday Part 1 event.
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