Best Pokemon for the Master League Classic in Pokemon Go

Pokemon Go’s Master League Classic is mostly the same as the Master League, except you won’t be able to use any XL Pokemon, meaning the ‘best team’ looks a little bit different.

As the Master League comes back into rotation during Season 9 of the Go Battle League, it’s joined once again by the Master League Classic, which lets players take part in the Master League as they remember it from the old days.

In this twist on the regular Master League, Trainers won’t be able to use XL Candy-boosted Pokemon, making it more accessible to those who haven’t yet climbed above Level 40 or earned enough XL Candy to power up their best fighters.

While this doesn’t completely turn the league on its head like the Remixes do, it does relegate some Master League favorites like Togekiss and Mamoswine slightly to the sidelines as they aren’t quite as useful without the XL boost.

Here, you’ll find our top recommendations for non-XL Pokemon you can use during the Master League Classic in Pokemon Go.

Best team for the Master League Classic in Pokemon Go

For the best chance at success in the Master League Classic, we’d recommend a team consisting of Groudon, Melmetal, and Garchomp. They’re very powerful and offer good coverage for most opponents you’ll meet.

• Read More: All current Raid Bosses in Pokemon Go

As with any league or cup in the Go Battle League, though, it’s hard to say what is truly the ‘best team’ to take into battle as it all depends on what Pokemon you’re up against, and you won’t know that until you’re in the battle.

However, there are a few standout Pokemon that will have a good chance at success in almost any situation you’ll find yourself in. Below, you’ll find the best Master League Classic Pokemon and their optimal movesets.

Best Pokemon for the Master League Classic

Groudon

• Fast Move: Mud Shot
• Charged Moves: Earthquake and Fire Punch
• Resistances: Electric, Rock, and Poison
• Weaknesses: Grass, Ice, and Water

Groudon has long been considered one of the top must-have Legendaries in Pokemon Go, and it really comes to the forefront in the Master League Classic, where it can take down the likes of Dialga, Melmetal, and even Mewtwo.

Mud Shot has higher energy generation than Dragon Tail, so choose that for your Fast Move. Then, you’ll be able to access the powerful Charged Moves Earthquake (which benefits from STAB) and Fire Punch (a low-cost move) much faster.

Melmetal

• Fast Move: Thunder Shock
• Charged Moves: Rock Slide and Superpower
• Resistances: Poison, Bug, Dragon, Fairy, Flying, Grass, Ice, Normal, Psychic, Rock, and Steel
• Weaknesses: Fire, Fighting, and Ground

The Mythical Melmetal is one of the best all-rounder choices for the Master League Classic, as it has both bulk and high damage, as well as a massive amount of type resistances. All of this makes it incredibly hard to take down.

Thunder Shock is the only Fast Move available for Melmetal, so your Charged Move choices are even more important. Make sure you have Rock Slide as it’s easy to spam, while Superpower will allow you to deal some huge damage.

Lugia

• Fast Move: Dragon Tail
• Charged Moves: Sky Attack and Hydro Pump
• Resistances: Fighting, Ground, Grass, and Psychic
• Weaknesses: Dark, Electric, Ghost, Rock, and Ice

The Johto region’s Legendary Lugia is incredibly bulky and has some great moves, making it one of the top contenders in Pokemon Go’s Master League Classic. It’s especially useful as a counter to Kyogre, Groudon, Dragonite, and Togekiss.

With the Fast Move Dragon Tail and the Charged Move Sky Attack (which has low cost and STAB damage) under your belt, you’ll be able to deal some serious damage with Lugia. If you can afford a second Charged Move, go with Hydro Pump.

Dialga

• Fast Move: Dragon Breath
• Charged Moves: Iron Head and Draco Meteor
• Resistances: Poison, Grass, Bug, Electric, Flying, Normal, Psychic, Rock, Steel, and Water
• Weaknesses: Fighting and Ground

Dialga is the reigning champion of Pokemon Go’s standard Master League. While it may not be at the very top in the Master League Classic, it’s still one of the best options thanks to great type resistances and some incredibly powerful moves.

Dragon Breath is an excellent Fast Move that deals great damage to some of the biggest players in the Master League Classic. As for Charged Moves, Iron Head can be spammed while Draco Meteor is a devastating last resort.

Garchomp

• Fast Move: Mud Shot
• Charged Moves: Outrage and Earth Power
• Resistances: Electric, Fire, Poison, and Rock
• Weaknesses: Dragon, Fairy, and Ice

PvP favorite Garchomp is pretty much the only non-Legendary and non-Mythic Pokemon that can hold its own against the big players in the Master League Classic. Keep in mind that it works best as a closer when your opponent is out of shields.

Mud Shot has great energy generation, so you’ll want that as Garchomp’s Fast Move. This unlocks the path to two brilliant Charged Moves: Outrage and the Community Day/Elite TM-exclusive Earth Power. If you don’t have the latter, go for Earthquake.

Mewtwo

• Fast Move: Psycho Cut
• Charged Moves: Psystrike and Focus Blast
• Resistances: Fighting and Psychic
• Weaknesses: Bug, Dark, and Ghost

The Legendary Mewtwo might not be as dominating as its popularity would suggest, but it’s still one of the top choices in the Master League Classic. With the right moveset, it can easily take down big players like Dialga, Melmetal, and Kyogre.

Go with Psycho Cut as Mewtwo’s Fast Move, as it has optimal energy generation. Then, if you have access to it, employ Psystrike as your primary Charged Move, as it’s very cheap but still deals great STAB damage. Focus Blast is a good secondary choice for extra coverage.

Pokemon Go Master League Classic date & time

The Pokemon Go Battle League’s Master League Classic will begin on Monday, September 27, at 1PM PDT (4PM EDT/9PM BST) and run until Monday, October 11, at 1PM PDT.

As a nice bonus, you’ll receive 3x Stardust from Go Battle League win rewards during this period, although this doesn’t include end of set rewards.

That’s it for our Master League Classic recommendations. If you’re looking for more challenges in the Pokemon Go Battle League, check out our standard Master League suggestions.