The Luminous Legends Y event is now active inPokemon GO. A large focus of this event is onTeam GO Rocketand their new Shadow Pokemon that players can rescue and purify. Because of this, the leaders of Team GO Rocket have brand new teams that require new counters in order to defeat.
Cliff is one of the Team GO Rocket leaders inPokemon GOto gain a brand new party of Pokemon for this event. Compared to his previous team, only one Pokemon has remained consistent with it being his Tyranitar.
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While players aren’t required to fight Cliff and Team GO Rocket’s other leaders in order to play normally, facing Cliff is required for theLuminous Legends Y timed research tasks. Players will additionally be able to rescue a Shadow Pokemon after Cliff’s defeat.
Cliff’s First Pokemon - Seedot
When battling Cliff, his first Pokemon will always be Seedot. This Pokemon is apure Grass-type, making it weak to Fire, Flying, Poison, Bug, and Ice-type moves while also resisting damage from Water, Grass, Electric, and Ground-type moves.
Seedot is very easy to deal with. Players can use this first battle as a chance to force Cliff to waste all of his Protect Shields or just breeze through Seedot onto the next Pokemon. For those wanting a quick encounter, the best Pokemon against Seedot are:
Galarian Darmanitan- Ice Fang and Avalanche
Reshiram- Fire Fang and Overheat
Chandelure- Fire Spin and Overheat
Unovan Darmanitan- Fire Fang and Overheat
Yveltal- Gust and Hurricane
Cliff’s Second Pokemon - Makuhita
Cliff has a pool of three possible Pokemon that he can use in his second party slot. The first possibility for his second Pokemon is Makuhita, a pureFighting-type Pokemon. Its type makes it weak to Fairy, Flying, and Psychic-type moves while also letting it resist Bug, Rock, and Dark-type moves.
Compared to the other Pokemon that can be in Cliff’s second party slot, Makuhita is likely the easiest to deal with. Some of the best counters when going up against this Pokemon include:
Rayquaza- Air Slash and Hurricane
Therian Tornadus- Gust and Hurricane
Delphox- Zen Headbutt and Psychic
Mr. Rime- Confusion and Psychic
Cliff’s Second Pokemon - Poliwrath
Another Pokemon that Cliff can use against players as a second Pokemon is Poliwrath. This Pokemon is a dual Water and Fighting-type, making it weak to Fairy, Flying, Psychic, Electric, and Grass-type moves. It also resists Steel, Water, Bug, Rock, Ice, Dark, andFire-type moves.
With Poliwrath having both many weaknesses and making resistances, its easy to have at least something to counter it. If players know that Poliwrath is to be expected however, the best Pokemon to use against it in battle are:
Attack Deoxys- Zen Headbutt and Zap Cannon
Mewtwo- Confusion and Psystrike
Therian Thundurus- Thunder Shock and Thunderbolt
Alakazam- Confusion and Psychic
Espeon- Confusion and Psychic
Cliff’s Second Pokemon - Kingler
The last Pokemon that Cliff can use in his second party slot is Kingler, a pureWater-type Pokemon. Its typing makes it only weak to Grass and Electric-type moves while also resisting Steel, Water, Ice, and Fire-type moves.
While Kingler only has two weaknesses, Grass andElectric-type movesaren’t difficult to come by even with non-Grass or Electric-type Pokemon. If players are struggling against Kingler, the best counters to use against it are:
Zekrom- Charge Beam and Wild Charge
Electivire- Thunder Shock and Wild Charge
Roserade- Razor Leaf and Solar Beam
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Cliff’s Third Pokemon - Sharpedo
Moving on, Cliff has three more Pokemon that can be used for his third and final party slot. The first of these Pokemon is Sharpedo, a dual Water and Dark-type. Its type makes it weak to Fairy, Bug, Electric, Grass, and Fighting-type moves while also letting it resist damage from Ghost, Steel, Water, Ice, Dark, Fire, andPsychic-type moves.
While Sharpedo can be intimidating defensively, there are still plenty of Pokemon that have moves that allow for an easy counter and victory. Some of the best ones for the job are:
Machamp- Counter and Dynamic Punch
Raikou- Volt Switch and Wild Charge
Sirfetch’d- Counter and Close Combat
Cliff’s Third Pokemon - Tyranitar
Another possibility for Cliff’s final Pokemon is Tyranitar, a veteran from his previous Pokemon lineup before theLuminous Legends Y event. Tyranitar is a dual Rock and Dark-type, making it weak to Fighting, Fairy, Ground, Bug, Steel, Water, and Grass-type moves. It however also resists Dark, Normal, Poison, Ghost, Flying, Fire, and Psychic-type moves.
Tyranitar has a lot of potential to cause a lot of trouble for players' own teams of Pokemon. If players know that Cliff will be using Tyranitar in the battle, the best Pokemon that can be used to counter it are:
Lucario- Counter and Aura Sphere
Conkeldurr- Counter and Dynamic Punch
Breloom- Counter and Dynamic Punch
Blaziken- Counter and Focus Blast
Cliff’s Third Pokemon - Torterra
The last possible Pokemon that Cliff can use in the battle against him is Torterra. This Pokemon is a dual Grass and Ground-type making it weak to Ice, Fire, Flying, andBug-type moves. It meanwhile also resists damage from Rock, Ground, and Electric-type moves.
With Torterra’s weaknesses being pretty easy to come by, most players should have at least some good counters against it type-wise. Some examples of great counters include:
Mamoswine- Powder Snow and Avalanche
Weavile- Ice Shard and Avalanche
Glaceon- Frost Breath and Avalanche
After defeating Cliff’s third and final Pokemon, players will be able to rescue a Shadow Pokemon. For Cliff, players will be able to rescue a Shadow Seedot. Although Seedot will appear normal in the actual battle against Cliff, there is a small chance that it will appear in its shiny form when attempting to rescue it. When comparing a normal Seedot to a shiny Seedot, shiny Seedots are a much more reddish brown than the tan of a normal Seedot.
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