Following Groudon and Kyogre on the raid roster, the gen 4 legendary Water- and Dragon-type Palkia is set to take the stage in Pokemon GO at 1:00 pm PST, January 29 until 1:00 pm, February 28. This is the second of the three Gen 4 mascot legendaries to appear on the roster, as the Ghost- and Dragon-type Giratina appeared not too long ago.

Because these mascots are usually closely knit, it would seem players could expect the next (or soon thereafter) raid boss to be Dialga, meaning those who beat and catch Palkia (and have Giratina) will only need to wait to complete the legendary set. And for those Pokemon GO players having troubles with this legendary Pokemon, we’ve put together this guide.

Palkia’s CP (Raid and Capture)

Pokemon GO’s latest raid boss has a max raid boss CP in the range of 50,019, which means Palkia is no laughing matter. Once caught, Palkia’s max CP is 2280 for a normal encounter under normal weather conditions or 2850 under Windy or Rainy weather conditions. Because of the immense power of Palkia, the recommended number of players is AT LEAST 3-5 high-level players, but there’s no going wrong by having more players.

Palkia’s Move Set

Due to its dual Water- and Dragon-type nature, Palkia can know any of the following in Pokemon GO:

  • Dragon Tail (fast Dragon-type move) Dragon Breath (fast Dragon-type move) DRACO METEOR (charged Dragon-type move) Hydro Pump (charged Water-type move) Fire Blast (charged Fire-type move)

Best case scenario, Fire Blast Palkia counters will only need to worry about the fast moves, but that is not the biggest qualm. Draco Meteor, on the other hand, is a devastating move capable of knocking out several of Palkia’s counters in one hit. No matter what, if Pokemon GO players are going up against a Draco Meteor Palkia, be sure to pull out all the stops. This is a terrible move to go up against; that said, Hydro Pump is not much better.

Hydro Pump is a solid move in Pokemon GO, especially when used by a raid boss. A Hydro Pump Palkia is preferable to a Draco Meteor Palkia, however. The best way to circumvent this move is to avoid counters weak to Water-type moves, so players only need to worry about the ever-powerful Draco Meteor.

Weather

Weather can be a dual-edged sword with Pokemon GO raid battles. On the one hand, Palkia will be much easier to beat under certain weather conditions (Windy or Cloudy). But on the other, Palkia will be much stronger if caught under other weather conditions (Rainy or Windy). As noted, Windy might be neutral ground for this Pokemon GO legendary, as it’ll boost all Dragon-type moves (Palkia’s and the trainer’s).

Counters

There is no mistaking that Palkia is an absolute monster with its killer move set and massive CP. That said, the Pokemon GO legendary is weak to Dragon and Fairy-type moves but super effective against other Dragon-types, which is its most common counter.

In descending order (best to worst), the following Pokemon are the best to take against this latest Pokemon GO raid boss:

  • Rayquaza (Dragon Tail/Outrage) Draco Meteor Dragonite (Dragon Tail/Draco Meteor) Salamence (Dragon Tail/Draco Meteor) Latios (Dragon Breath/Dragon Claw) Gardevoir (Confusion/Dazzling Gleam) Kingdra (Dragon Breath/Outrage) Togekiss (Air Slash/Dazzling Gleam)

Notably, there are a few other Dragon-type Pokemon that can be used as counters, but those working in smaller groups will want to stick the above Pokemon. While it is certainly a rough battle, beating Palkia means Pokemon GO players will have the chance to add the Water- and Dragon-type legendary to their roster. Considering there are still a number of Gen 4 Pokemon missing from the game, it’s understandable why players would want to stay on top of the legendaries, and hopefully, this guide helps that happen.

Pokemon GO is out now in select regions for Android and iOS devices.

Source: Pokemon GO Hub