Pokemon Go best Great League team | Go Battle League: Shared Skies season

Battle League is the most popular PvP format in Pokemon Go, and dominating every competitive battle is no easy feat. To help you build the most balanced team, here are the best Pokemon you can put in your Great League roster for the newest season.

The Go Battle League is Pokemon Go’s PvP mode that allows you to compete with Trainers from all across the globe. Through the course of the season, players can rise through the ranks — Great League, Ultra League, and Master League — and earn some great rewards along the way.

The Great League differs from the Ultra League and Master League because of one simple rule: Only Pokemon lower than 1500 CP can enter, which rules out many of the most powerful Pokemon from the competition.

So let’s take a look at the best Pokemon to take into the Great League. This is typically the first league of each season, and it usually appears again later down the line, so there are plenty of chances to take part.

Contents

• Best team for Pokemon Go Great League Remix
• Best team for Pokemon Go Great League
• Best Pokemon for Pokemon Go Great League
• Pokemon Go Great League start & end date

Best team for Pokemon Go Great League Remix

From May 3-10, 2024, Niantic will introduce the Great League Remix to Pokemon Go. The CP cap (1,500) will remain the same, but the top 20 Pokemon being used by Ace Trainers and above will not be permitted. These Pokemon include:

• Alolan Sandslash
• Altaria
• Azumarill
• Bastiodon
• Charjabug
• Clodsire
• Deoxys (Defense)
• Galarian Stunfisk
• Lanturn
• Likitung
• Medicham
• Registeel
• Skarmory
• Skeledirge
• Talonflame
• Trevanant
• Umbreon
• Vigoroth
• Whiscash
• Wigglytuff

For the Great League, a team of Carbink, Mantine, and Mandibuzz is poised to be an elite team in the Great League Remix. All three are rated in the top 20 per PvPoke and each has weapons in their arsenal to take down the rest of the competition.

Carbink is a dominant Pokemon on its own and its access to Rock Slide and Moonblast should help with taking down Flying and Dark-types. Mantine, meanwhile, can be a strong counter to Annihilape, Poliwrath, Gligar, and others thanks to its access to Steel Wing, Drill Peck, and Hydro Cannon.

There are several high-powered Water types for this format such as Feraligatr, Pelipper, and Quagsire, so Mandibuzz can be a key counter.

Best team for Pokemon Go Great League

One of the best teams Trainers can use in the Great League is Cresselia, Lickitung, and Annihilape, as these are three of the strongest fighters and they’ll offer good coverage against most of the major Great League opponents.

It’s hard to say what a definitive ‘best’ team for the Great League looks like, though, as you’ll never know what types you’ll be up against. For example, a strong Cresselia can make light work of Azumarill, but it will likely fall against Registeel.

Despite this, there are some Pokemon that are solid options in almost any situation. Choose a few different types from our recommendations below for optimal coverage, and you should be on your way to victory.

Best Pokemon for Pokemon Go Great League

Guzzlord

• Fast Move: Dragon Tail
• Charged Moves: Dragon Claw and Crunch
• Resistances: Ghost, Fire, Water, Grass, Electric, Dark, and Psychic
• Weaknesses: Fairy, Fighting, Bug, Ice, and Dragon

This dual Dark/Dragon-type Ultra Beast has climbed the ranks in the League and sits at the top thanks to its powerful moveset and massive HP stat. Despite having a very low defense, Guzzlord is the perfect ‘mon to lead a battle or to use as a charger.

All of the moves mentioned above can deal a lot of damage, mostly when they are combined. More so, all of them benefit from the Same Type Attack Bonus, which gives Guzzlord 20% extra damage during fights.

Medicham (XL)

• Fast Move: Counter
• Charged Moves: Dynamic Punch and Ice Punch
• Resistances: Rock and Fighting
• Weaknesses: Fairy, Flying, and Ghost

The dual Fighting/Psychic-type Medicham is a very bulky Pokemon to add to your roster, as it has high Defense and Stamina stats.

More so, using the selected Fighting and Ice-type moves, it can target Grass, Ground, Dragon, Normal, Rock, Dark, and Steel-type Pokemon, while also hitting one of its weaknesses, the Flying-type ‘mons.

Mantine

• Fast Move: Wing Attack
• Charged Moves: Aerial Ace and Ice Beam
• Resistances: Fighting, Bug, Steel, Fire, Water, and Ground
• Weaknesses: Electric and Rock

One of the best features about Mantine is that its dual Water/Flying type combination leaves this Pokemon with plenty of useful resistances and just two weaknesses to types that are not used very often in Great League. Additionally, the Johto manta ray has a decent Defense stat, so it can take hits pretty well.

As a lead, Mantine can reach its Charged Moves quickly thanks to Wing Attack, which also benefits from STAB. As for the Charged Move, instead of going for a Water-type move, it is better to use Aerial Ace for targeting Fighting and Grass types, and Ice Beam for Ground, Flying, and Dragon.

Bastiodon (XL)

• Fast Move: Smack Down
• Charged Moves: Stone Edge and Flamethrower
• Resistances: Dragon, Ice, Psychic, Fairy, Bug, Rock, Flying, Normal, and Poison
• Weaknesses: Ground, Fighting, and Water

Even when compared to Legendaries and other powerful Pokemon, Bastiodon still has one of the best Defense stats in Pokemon Go. Its Attack stat pales in comparison, but that doesn’t stop it from excelling in the Great League.

Smack Down as a Fast Move hits hard, while Stone Edge is a powerful Rock-type Charged Move that takes advantage of Same Type Attack Bonus (STAB), and Flamethrower can be used against other Steel-types.

Azumarill (XL)

• Fast Move: Bubble
• Charged Moves: Hydro Pump and Ice Beam
• Resistances: Bug, Fighting, Water, Ice, Fire, Dark, and Dragon
• Weaknesses: Electric, Grass, and Poison

It’s fair to say the dual Water/Fairy-type Azumarill is probably a Pokemon you wouldn’t expect to see near the top of this list. However, its impressive bulk and diverse moveset make it one of the best options for the Great League.

Azumarill’s best Fast Move is Bubble. As for Charged Moves, Hydro Pump hits hardest while Ice Beam will help negate its weakness against Grass. Azumarill can be quite costly to power up, but it’s worth it.

Swampert (Shadow)

• Fast Move: Mud Shot
• Charged Moves: Hydro Cannon and Earthquake
• Resistances: Electric, Steel, Rock, Poison, and Fire
• Weaknesses: Grass

This is a well-rounded Water/Ground-type Pokemon, meaning it only has one weakness and is a great counter to the Fire and Steel types that dominate the Great League. However, Swampert is doubly weak to Grass, which can be dangerous.

Mud Shot is the best Fast Move here, but where Swampert really excels is when it has access to Hydro Cannon, a deadly Community Day Charged Move that can quickly be charged and spammed. Earthquake is a good second choice for massive damage.

Feraligatr (Shadow)

• Fast Move: Shadow Claw
• Charged Moves: Hydro Cannon and Ice Beam
• Resistances: Steel, Fire, Water, and Ice
• Weaknesses: Grass and Electric

This happy crocodile works perfectly as a charger or closer thanks to its stats and moves. Despite its weaknesses, it can resist very used Pokemon types such as Stee and Fire, which is very handy.

Additionally, its move pool helps it reach Charged Moves faster, so it can force the enemy to use its shields early on.

Lickitung (XL)

• Fast Move: Lick
• Charged Moves: Body Slam and Power Whip
• Resistances: Ghost
• Weaknesses: Fighting

Pokemon like Lickitung, with bulky HP and a strong DEF stat, are a must in any team, as they will endure tough and long battles.

Another strong characteristic of this particular ‘mon is its move pool, which thanks to its variety, can provide wide coverage. While Lick is the default Fast Move, players can go for Body Slam if they use an Elite TM or Hyper Beam which deals a lot of damage. More so, in case of needing a Grass move, Lickitung can learn Power Whip.

Quagsire (Shadow)

• Fast Move: Mud Shot
• Charged Moves: Aqua Tail and Stone Edge
• Resistances: Electric, Poison, Rock, Steel, and Fire
• Weaknesses: Grass

Shadow Quagsire climbed the ranks once again and sits at the top 10 of the Great League thanks to its good Attack and Defense stats, as well as a solid Stamina that can keep this dual Water/Ground-type Pokemon in the battle for a while.

The best use players can give Quagsire is as a lead or charger thanks to two factors: it reaches its Charged Moves fast and its typing can hit a wide variety of types in the League. Mud Shot and Aqua Tail benefit from STAB, and Stone Edge is a wonderful nuke that expands its coverage.

Mandibuzz

• Fast Move: Snarl
• Charged Moves: Dark Pulse and Aerial Ace
• Resistances: Ghost, Grass, Dark, Ground, and Psychic
• Weaknesses: Rock, Electric, Ice, and Fairy

Despite its lack of outstanding moves, and having fewer resistances than other Great League recommendations, Mandibuzz does make up for that with a very high Defense stat and a solid Stamina stat.

Snarl has quicker energy generation than Air Slash, so we’d recommend using that Fast Move. Mandibuzz’s best Charged Move is Dark Pulse, as it deals good damage and benefits from STAB. In case you’re looking for more coverage, Aerial Ace is a good choice.

Gligar (Shadow)

• Fast Move: Wing Attack
• Charged Moves: Aerial Ace and Dig
• Resistances: Electric, Fighting, Poison, Bug, and Ground
• Weaknesses: Ice and Water

Even though this small creature seems harmless, it is one of the best options for the battle league as it is very dynamic and can work perfectly as a lead, switch, charger, and even closer.

Its move Wing Attack allows it to gain energy fast so it can access its Charged Moves. While Aerial Ace is a more general attack, Dig is super useful and deals a great amount of damage.

Skarmory

• Fast Move: Steel Wing
• Charged Moves: Sky Attack and Flash Cannon
• Resistances: Ground, Dragon, Psychic, Normal, Steel, Flying, Fairy, Grass, Bug, and Poison
• Weaknesses: Fire and Electric

This is a Pokemon you’ll be seeing a lot of in the Great League. Skarmory is fairly well-rounded and its typing makes it resistant to several others. Its only real weaknesses are Electric, Fire, and other Steel types.

Steel Wing is Skarmory’s preferred Fast Move, as it has better energy generation and is effective against Fairy, Ice, and Rock. Sky Attack and Flash Cannon are clearly its best Charged Moves, as Brave Bird isn’t that good.

Carbink (XL)

• Fast Move: Rock Throw
• Charged Moves: Rock Slide and Moonblast
• Resistances: Bug, Dark, Dragon, Fire, Flying, and Normal
• Weaknesses: Grass, Ground, Steel, and Water

A brand-new addition to this list is Carbink, which has quickly shot straight to the top of the Great League rankings. Only Trainers who purchased a Go Fest 2023 ticket before July 5, 2023, will have access to this Pokemon, though, so it’s going to be a fairly rare encounter for now.

Carbink’s best Fast Move is Rock Throw. When it comes to Charged Moves, go with Rock Slide for a relatively cheap Rock-type attack and Moonblast for some huge (albeit expensive) Fairy-type damage. This entire moveset has STAB, which makes it extra powerful.

Annihilape

• Fast Move: Counter
• Charged Moves: Shadow Ball and Ice Punch
• Resistances: Poison, Rock, Normal, Fighting, and Bug
• Weaknesses: Flying, Ghost, Psychic, and Fairy

Despite it being recently added to the game, Annihilape has been climbing the ranks ever since its debut. With Marshadow, these are the only two Fighting/Ghost creatures in the franchise, so this is a type to exploit.

Counter is a great Fast Move in Pokemon Go, so make sure you have that. When it comes to Charged Moves, you’ll want Shadow Ball for a big Ghost-type damage, and Ice Punch as a coverage alternative that can also help you bait shields.

Registeel

• Fast Move: Lock-On
• Charged Moves: Focus Blast and Zap Cannon
• Resistances: Dragon, Ice, Psychic, Normal, Grass, Bug, Steel, Rock, Flying, Fairy, and Poison
• Weaknesses: Fire, Ground, and Fighting

The Steel-type Legendary titan Registeel is an interesting choice for PvP. Its incredible Defense stat makes it very durable, and its type means it has a ridiculous amount of resistances, so it can take plenty of hits.

Registeel should have Lock-On as its Fast Move, as it has a very high Energy-per-Second (EPS) of 16.67 which is required to break out its powerful (and expensive) Charged Moves: Focus Blast and Zap Cannon.

Cresselia

• Fast Move: Psycho Cut
• Charged Moves: Grass Know and Future Sight
• Resistances: Fighting and Psychic
• Weaknesses: Bug, Ghost, and Dark

The single Psychic-type Legendary sits at the top of the ranking as it has proven to be a bulky Pokemon that combines strong stats with good moves.

With Psycho Cut as its Fast Move and Future Sight as its Charged Move, a powered-up Cresselia is a perfect choice to finish up a battle. However, be particularly wary of its weaknesses, mostly to Ghost and Dark types, as those are constantly exploited in the league.

Pokemon Go Great League start & end date

The latest Pokemon Go Battle League season will run from June 1, 2024, until September 3, 2024.

During its run, the Great League will appear on:

• June 1 – June 7
• June 21 – June 28
• June 28 – July 5
• July 5 – July 12 (remix)
• July 12 – July 19 (remix)
• July 19 – July 26
• July 26 – August 2
• August 16 – August 23
• August 23 – September 3

Those are the best Pokemon you can take to the Great League during this season. For more Pokemon Go content, check our guide with the Battle League schedule and rewards, as well as all the best attackers, defenders and PvP champions.