At the time of writing, the Battle League currently requires you to put out your best Pokemon Go Master League team. This means there is no CP limit whatsoever; any Pokemon you have in your collection, you can send out to fight against players from all over the world in Pokemon Go and earn those sweet Pokemon Go Battle League rewards. Just picking your highest CP Pokemon isn't the way to go however, because you have to take into account the current Pokemon Go Master League meta and the Pokemon you're likely to come up against. So without further ado, here are our top ten choices for your Pokemon Go Master League best team.
Dialga
(Image credit: The Pokemon Company)
Type: Steel/DragonWeakness: Fighting, Ground
Dialga is one of the most common Pokemon you'll come up against in the Pokemon Go Master League, largely due to its typing and moveset. Steel is resistant to a lot of the types you'll encounter, while Dragon is strong against well, other Dragon-types. Dialga is also one of the highest CP Pokemon you can get with a ceiling of 4,038 CP, placing it in the top 10.
When it comes to moves, Dragon Breath should be your top choice for the fast move thanks to dealing four damage per turn (DPT) and generating three energy per turn (EPT), while you have the choice of Iron Head or Draco Meteor when it comes to the charged move. Iron Head requires much less energy to use, whereas Draco Meteor deals 150 damage per use. The only downside is that Draco Meteor debuffs Dialga's attack stat by two stages after each time you use it, so you should only be using Draco Meteor to finish off a battle.
Giratina (Origin preferred, Altered if not)
(Image credit: The Pokemon Company)
Type: Ghost/DragonWeakness: Dark, Dragon, Ghost, Ice, Fairy
There's one key reason Giratina (Origin forme) is preferred over the Altered variant, and that's simply because it has a higher max CP. It can go up to 3,683 as opposed to 3,379 for Altered, which can be a crucial difference in a league where there is no CP limits. Just like how Giratina stomps the Ultra League, it is an incredibly powerful force here too, with its main weaknesses being types you'll rarely come up against.
No matter which forme you're using though, the best moveset is very similar. Opt for Shadow Claw as the fast attack because it has 3 DPT and 4 EPT, while Shadow Ball should be one of your two charged attacks if you're using Origin. You can then choose from either Dragon Pulse or Ominous Wind for the second charge move; Ominous Wind would mean you have three Ghost-type moves which you may want to steer away from, but it does have high damage output. Meanwhile, Dragon Pulse is less efficient, but will give you a Dragon-type move to compliment your Ghost-type heavy moveset.
If you've got the Altered form of Giratina, go for Shadow Claw again, then compliment that with Dragon Claw. It costs the least amount of energy so you can use it repeatedly, then for a harder-hitting charged move, grab Shadow Sneak. Ancient Power isn't recommended because it was nerfed recently.
Togekiss
(Image credit: The Pokemon Company)
Type: Fairy/FlyingWeakness: Poison, Steel, Electric, Ice, Rock
Another Ultra League competitor that excels in Master League, Togekiss may not have the highest CP potential at 3,332, but it is favoured in a lot of the type matchups you'll face off against. It is excellent against Giratina and Dialga thanks to its double Dragon-type resistance, plus Giratina is weak to Fairy types.
When it comes to moves, Charm is a must-have. It is the second-best fast move in the game in terms of DPT and while it doesn't have great EPT, this shouldn't be a problem since it's mainly used to counter the two legendaries. Despite the nerf to Ancient Power, it's still a great charged move choice for Togekiss, while it should be complimented with Aerial Ace. Flamethrower and Dazzling Gleam are your other two options, but both require too much energy to be viable with Charm as the fast move.
Kyogre
(Image credit: The Pokemon Company)
Type: WaterWeakness: Electric, Grass
Another legendary to add to the list but this time, it's one that has been available fairly frequently. Kyogre isn't the best counter to popular choices like Dialga and Giratina, but it can perform spectacularly against some of the other popular Pokemon you'll come up against like Snorlax, Togekiss, and Heatran.
Moveset wise, Waterfall is on everyone's Kyogre because that's the only fast move it can know (Dragon Tail was removed shortly before the Pokemon was released). That's not necessarily a bad thing because it sports 4 DPT, but only 2.66 EPT. When it comes to charged moves, Surf is vital because it has a low energy cost and deals impressive damage. Blizzard can be favoured as an alternative because it's strong against Dragon-types, but it has a high energy cost and is a waste of a move if it hits a shield. Thunder can also be considered because it costs less than Blizzard, but isn't as favourable when it comes to typing.
Mewtwo
(Image credit: The Pokemon Company)
Type: PsychicWeakness: Bug, Dark, Ghost
Did you know Mewtwo's highest CP is 4,178? This puts it in the top five highest potential CP Pokemon at the time of writing (there's some debate on its exact placement in the top five) and attack is by far its strongest stat. It also has a significantly varied moveset… when it comes to charged moves anyway.
Psycho Cut needs to be your choice for fast move. It has less damage than Confusion, but has the second highest energy generation in the game with 4.5 EPT. Now when it comes to charged moves, prepare yourself because there's a lot of different options. Flamethrower, Ice Beam, and Thunderbolt are all vastly different typed moves that can be useful in a pinch, but you'll want to combine them with one of either Psystrike or Shadow Ball. Psystrike was exclusive to the legendary raid hour back in October 2019, while Shadow Ball is a legacy move and is no longer able to be learned. If you do have one of them though, then you're in luck. If you don't I'd recommend opting for something other than Mewtwo, because Focus Blast is the next best move and isn't particularly great.
Dragonite
(Image credit: The Pokemon Company)
Type: Dragon/FlyingWeakness: Ice, Rock, Fairy, Dragon
Thanks to it being around since the very start of the game, every long-term player should have a Dragonite by this point. Its strength against other Dragon-types is killer and it just misses out on the top 10 highest CP with a max of 3,792.
You'll want to go all-in on the Dragon-type moves, so opt for Dragon Breath as the fast one. 4 DPT and 3 EPT make it an excellent choice thanks to Dragonite's attack stats. Dragon Claw should be one of your charged move options too because it has a low energy requirement and you can dish out the damage frequently. For the other charged move (if you have two), you can choose between Outrage and Draco Meteor. The former has 110 power compared to the latter's 150, but is slightly cheaper and doesn't have Draco Meteor's attack debuff after use. Outrage would be my pick, unless you need a definitive closer, which Draco Meteor is best at.
Garchomp
(Image credit: The Pokemon Company)
Type: Dragon/GroundWeakness: Ice, Dragon, Fairy
Garchomp is one of the rarest non-legendary Pokemon in the game thanks to the elusive nature of Gible, but if you've got your hands on a decent one, put it to use in the Master League. Dragon-type again makes it strong against all the other Dragon-types in the meta, while the secondary Ground-type makes it strong against multiple, including Poison, Rock, and Electric-types.
Mud Shot has to be your top choice for Garchomp's fast move because it has top tier energy gain at 4.5 EPT. That's vital when you consider how expensive the two options for charged moves are; Earthquake and Outrage. Both are high power, medium cost, so Garchomp is absolutely brutal when closing a match out. If you have two charged move slots but you're missing one of the above, Sand Tomb can also be used.
(Image credit: The Pokemon Company)
Type: SteelWeakness: Fighting, Fire, Ground
Getting a Melmetal is no easy task because you need to complete the Let's Go, Meltan special research or obtain one from Pokemon Let's Go (all is explained in our how to get Meltan in Pokemon Go guide). You then need 400 candies to evolve it into Melmetal but when you do, you have a tanky Steel-type Pokemon great for use in the Master League.
Thundershock is the only fast move available and thankfully it's not too bad because it generates energy fairly quickly. Rock Slide is the best charged move because it only costs 45 energy to use, while Superpower is our suggestion for the other charged move. The only problem is that, like Draco Meteor, Superpower gives Melmetal a debuff to both attack and defence after usage, meaning it's better at closing out battles. Thunder Shock is also an option if you want extra Electric-type damage.
Snorlax
(Image credit: The Pokemon Company)
Type: NormalWeakness: Fighting
Snorlax is a classic, ain't it? As its… *ahem* size would imply, Snorlax is a defensive beast, helped by the fact it only has one major weakness which isn't particularly popular in the Master League meta. The downside is that as a Normal-type, it's not got any type advantages either.
Lick should always be your choice for Snorlax's fast move; it has 3 DPT and EPT which is solid, plus the other options are not great at all. There's a lot of choice with the charged moves though; Body Slam is the best at shield baiting if you're using Snorlax as an opener, while Earthquake is strong against Steel-type Pokemon. Then there's Superpower which is slightly cheaper than Earthquake but does a similar job. Finally, if you're lacking in Dragon-type moves elsewhere in your team, go for Outrage.
Darkrai
(Image credit: The Pokemon Company)
Type: Dark Weakness: Bug, Fairy, Fighting
Another legendary Pokemon to finish things off, Darkrai is absolutely excellent against Giratina. It's resistant to Ghost-type moves while Giratina is weak to Dark-type ones, making it a wonderful counter. Just make sure you don't use Darkrai against Togekiss because it won't go well.
Snarl is the top choice for the fast move since Feint Attack isn't very good at all, then you definitely want Dark Pulse for one of your charged moves. The second charged move is debatable; Shadow Ball can deal with some popular choices in Master League since it is a Ghost-type move, while Focus Blast is an expensive choice but sees off other types like Steel, Normal, and Rock, which Shadow Ball can't do much about.
That's it for our guide to the Pokemon Go Master League meta; if it changes significantly we'll be sure to update this guide with some fresh choices. Good luck in the Battle League, trainer!
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The show premiered on TV Tokyo and its affiliates on November 17, two days after the Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield games shipped worldwide. The series is airing on Sundays at 6:00 p.m., the same timeslot as Pokémon Sun & Moon.
The Buddy Up event focuses on boosting relationships between trainers and their Pokemon. The goal should be to reach best friends so players get the level bonus. (Niantic) 