Pokémon GO is the poster child for a company staying with a game and constantly updating it years after its release. More Pokémon are added to the roster every few months, and with that, the battle possibilities are only multiplying.
In Pokémon GO, not all Pokémon are as strong as others, and there are clear outliers for those in the upper tier. These upper-tier Pokémon make taking a gym much easier. Here are the 10 Pokémon you need to find and strengthen for gym battles.
10/10 Kommo-o
Kommo-o is still a relatively new release in Pokémon GO. He has both high attack and defense, making him a good all-around pick for dealing damage and tanking any oncoming damage.
Kommo-o is a dragon and fighting type, and while he does have access to good moves outside these types, he is best built focusing only on dragon moves. His best moves are Dragon Tail and Dragon Claw. This combo does a good amount of damage and charges up his special attack quickly.
9/10 Raikou![Pokemon Raikou With Electricity]()
Raikou is a legendary Pokémon that is slightly more difficult to get your hands on if you don’t already have him. Raikou is an electric type with a much higher attack than defense, making him perfect for taking a gym.
He is best used with Thunder Shock and Wild Charge. Thunder Shock allows for very quick attacks that deal smaller amounts of damage but, but it will very quickly charge his special attack, Wild Charge, for more damage.
8/10 Lucario![Pokemon Lucario]()
Lucario is a bit more of a glass cannon attacker than most. He has a decent attack but little defense and stamina. He is Fighting and Steel, which leaves him with not double super effective types to counter with.
He is best used with Counter, which does decently high damage for a fast attack. For his charge attack, both Close Combat and Aura Sphere are good options that deal high amounts of damage — and with Counter, they charge up quickly.
7/10 Dragonite![Pokemon Dragonite In Anime]()
Dragonite was one of the first Pokémon in the game and has always had one of the highest attack stats. Being Dragon and Flying, he can quickly be wiped out by Ice-type moves, but he otherwise makes short work of most enemies.
His best build is between Dragon Breath or Dragon Tail, depending on if you like faster or slower Fast attacks. He is also able to learn Draco Meteor from an Elite TM, which is one of the strongest charged attacks in the game.
6/10 Hydreigon![Pokemon Hydreigon]()
Hydreigon is a Dark and Dragon type who has very high attack and lower defense. While he may not last long in combat before fainting, he’s able to do a lot of damage quickly and is a great opener when attacking a gym.
He is best built focusing on Dark-type moves, as he can learn Bite and Dark Pulse. If you have an Elite TM, he is able to learn Brutal Swing, but both Brutal Swing and Dark Pulse are great options for him. He does take incredible amounts of damage from fairy-type attacks and is not recommended to fight anything with them.
5/10 Rayquaza![Pokemon Rayqueza]()
Rayquaza has a very high attack stat but falls behind with his lower defense and medium amount of health. That being said, his high attack stat allows him to easily take out at least one or two defenders before being downed himself.
Being Dragon and Flying, Ice-type attacks will make short work of him. He is best when using Dragon Tail for high damage fast attacks and Outrage. With Rayquaza’s high attack stat, Outrage is able to do as much damage as other more powerful charged attacks on other Pokémon.
4/10 Gyarados![Pokemon Shiny Gyarados]()
Gyarados has been in about every other gym battle since the release of Pokémon GO. Every trainer has him, and every trainer uses him. He doesn’t have an incredibly high attack but is well-rounded enough to allow him to deal solid amounts of damage and stay alive longer than most other attackers.
Being a Water and Flying Type, he receives very high damage from Electric-type attacks, but he excels against anything else. He is best used with Bite for a fast attack that quickly adds up with damage. He is one of the few Pokémon where the charge attacks may not always do more damage than the fast attack, and his can be switched between Aqua Tail or Dragon Pulse.
3/10 Garchomp![Pokemon Garchomp In Anime]()
Anyone who played Diamond or Pearl will have flashbacks to Cynthia’s Garchomp one-shotting their whole team with Earthquake. Garchomp is Dragon and Ground and takes high amounts of damage from Ice types.
Garchomp has very high attack and moderate stamina. He is best used with Dragon Tail, which will do high damage to just about any Pokémon. While he does have many decent charged attacks to choose from, it feels most appropriate to have him use Earthquake, which will usually finish off whatever defender you’re currently fighting.
2/10 Tyranitar![Pokemon Tyranitar]()
While many attackers are best as glass cannons, finishing off an enemy before they themselves faint, Tyranitar does it all. Tyranitar has a high attack, defense, and stamina, allowing him to quickly take out a defender while also taking minimal damage to move on to the next fight.
Tyranitar is Rock and Dark, so Fighting attacks do the most damage against him. He is best used with Bite as high damage fast attack. His charge attack comes to personal preference as both Stone Edge and Crunch do high amounts of damage.
1/10 Mewtwo![Pokemon Mewtwo With Psychic Background]()
Mewtwo has one of the highest attack stats in the game, with only semi-decent defense and stamina. These other stats can sometimes be useless, however, with how quickly Mewtwo can take out enemies.
He is a Psychic type, giving him only a few counters. His best fast attack is Psycho Cut, which attacks very quickly and deals incredibly high amounts of damage over a short time. He has many charged attacks to choose from, all of which deal great damage. Of those, the standouts are Psychic and Psystrike if you have the EliteTM.
