Best Pokemon Go 2024 Halloween Cup teams – Go Battle League: Max Out season
NIANTIC/DEXERTOPokemon Go‘s Halloween Cup happens only once a year. To help you build the perfect team to win both tournaments during the Max Out season, here are the best Pokemon for Little & Great League editions.
The Battle League is the most popular PvP mode in Niantic’s game, as it allows you to compete with other trainers from around the world. Besides the usual Great, Ultra, and Master leagues, there are some other special tournaments like the Halloween Cup.
The Halloween Cup this year is divided into two levels – Little & Great League – and in either one, trainers are only allowed to use Poison, Bug, Ghost, Dark, and Fairy-type Pokemon. Additionally, only Pokemon under 500 CP can participate in the Little Cup, while the Great League has a maximum of 1500 CP.
So, following those conditions, let’s take a look at the best Pokemon to use in the Halloween Cup Little & Great League editions.
Best teams for Pokemon Go Halloween Cup Little & Great League editions
One of the best teams you can use for the Halloween Cup: Little Edition is Shuckle, Marill, and Clodsire. These are some of the most powerful Pokemon under 500 CP that can be obtained right now that also follow the type conditions.
For the Halloween Cup: Great League Edition, you can go with Clodsire, Azumarill, and Greninja. Those are some of the strongest Poison, Fairy, and Dark creatures under 1500 CP in the game, which means they are eligible for battle.
Best Pokemon for Halloween Cup: Little Edition
1. Shuckle (XL)
NIANTIC/DEXERTO- Fast Move: Rock Throw
- Charged Moves: Rock Blast and Stone Edge
- Resistances: Poison and Normal
- Weaknesses: Rock, Steel, and Water
Despite being a dual Bug/Rock-type Pokemon, it’s smarter to play Shuckle as a single Rock-type creature and go with the mentioned attacks.
As a Fast Move, Rock Throw can deal heavy damage at a very low cost. Because of how cheap and fast it is, you’ll be able to quickly access your Charged Move Rock Blast. Due to how spammy Rock Blast is, you’ll then have the chance to destroy your opponent’s shields early on, to finally finish them with the nuke Stone Edge.
2. Marill (XL)
NIANTIC/DEXERTO- Fast Move: Tackle
- Charged Moves: Aqua Tail and Body Slam
- Resistances: Dragon, Water, Ice, Fire, Fighting, Dark, and Bug
- Weaknesses: Electric, Grass, and Poison
The dual Water/Fairy-type Marill is an excellent choice for any team as it can play any role, from lead to closer. Plus, it’s super bulky with both big Defense and Stamina stats.
Marill’s best Fast Move is Tackle, and even though it doesn’t benefit from STAB, it is extremely fast. For Charged Moves, the three options cost the same, so go with Aqua Tail, as it deals a little bit more damage than Bubble Beam and does benefit from STAB.
3. Clodsire
NIANTIC/DEXERTO- Fast Move: Poison Sting
- Charged Moves: Sludge Bomb and Earthquake
- Resistances: Poison, Electric, Rock, Fighting, Fairy, and Bug
- Weaknesses: Ground, Ice, Psychic, and Water
Clodsire has been consistently ranking high in most of the leagues and cups during the Max Out season and the Halloween Cup is no exception.
This dual Poison/Ground creature works fine as a charger thanks to its good Defense, but mostly its massive Stamina that allows it to take hits without dying fast. Plus, it has access to five different move types, making it very hard to target and take down.
The blob Clodsire might exert low Fast Move pressure, but it still manages to reach its incredible Charged Moves early on in the fight. Sludge Bomb is not only one of its cheapest Charged Moves but it also deals great damage, benefits from STAB, and pairs nicely with Poison Sting. For more coverage and power, Earthquake is available.
4. Skorupi
NIANTIC/DEXERTO- Fast Move: Poison Sting
- Charged Moves: Cross Poison and Aqua Tail
- Resistances: Grass, Fighting, Poison, Fairy, and Bug
- Weaknesses: Fire, Flying, Psychic, and Rock
Similar to Clodsire, Skorupi might exert low Fast Move pressure with Poison Sting, but it is a quick attack that unlocks your Charged Moves early.
While Cross Poison is cheap, fast, and benefits from STAB, it doesn’t deal much damage, so it’s better to use it to bait shields. Then, use something like Aqua Tail if you need to expand your coverage, or go with Sludge Bomb for a powerful Poison move.
5. Greninja
NIANTIC/DEXERTO- Fast Move: Water Shuriken
- Charged Moves: Hydro Cannon and Night Slash
- Resistances: Psychic, Water, Steel, Ice, Ghost, Fire, and Dark
- Weaknesses: Bug, Electric, Fairy, Fighting, and Grass
Greninja is and will always be considered a glass cannon due to its lousy Defense stat. However, its powerful attack and plenty of useful resistance can always come in handy.
Out of all its Fast Moves, Water Shuriken boasts the greatest energy generation, so you’ll be able to exert more frequent shield pressure at the beginning of the encounter. Hydro Cannon is extremely strong for how cheap it is and Night Slash will allow you to expand your coverage.
6. Golett
NIANTIC/DEXERTO- Fast Move: Mud-Slap
- Charged Moves: Shadow Punch and Night Shade
- Resistances: Poison, Normal, Fighting, Electric, Rock, and Bug
- Weaknesses: Dark, Ghost, Grass, Ice, and Water
The dual Ground/Ghost-type Golett might be less bulky and may target fewer types than the other Pokemon on our list, but it is consistent and has a strong moveset.
Out of the two Fast Moves, Mud-Slap gives Golett coverage against types that cannot be covered by its Charged Moves, plus it deals very high damage. Shadow Punch, on the other hand, provides a strong low-cost STAB move to bait your opponent’s shields.
Best Pokemon for Halloween Cup: Great League Edition
1. Clodsire
NIANTIC/DEXERTO- Fast Move: Poison Sting
- Charged Moves: Earthquake and Stone Edge
- Resistances: Poison, Electric, Rock, Fighting, Fairy, and Bug
- Weaknesses: Ground, Ice, Psychic, and Water
As mentioned before, Clodsire is a trailblazer due to its bulk and killer move pool. Plus, while in Little Edition it worked great as a charger, in Great League it is useful in any position (lead, switch, closer, etc).
Poison Sting is still its best Fast Move thanks to its quick energy generation that allows you to reach Earthquake early on. Even though Earthquake is expensive, Clodsire’s massive bulk will keep it alive until it can be reached. For more coverage, use Stone Edge.
2. Carbink (XL)
NIANTIC/DEXERTO- Fast Move: Rock Throw
- Charged Moves: Power Gem and Moonblast
- Resistances: Dragon, Normal, Flying, Fire, Dark, and Bug
- Weaknesses: Steel, Grass, Ground, and Water
Carbink can be hard to get in the game, but adding this dual Rock/Fairy-type creature to your Halloween Cup Great League edition team is a must.
This Pokemon’s Fast Move by default is Rock Throw, as it deals heavy damage and benefits from STAB. When it comes to Charged Moves, go with Power Gem 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.
3. Greninja
NIANTIC/DEXERTO- Fast Move: Water Shuriken
- Charged Moves: Hydro Cannon and Night Slash
- Resistances: Psychic, Water, Steel, Ice, Ghost, Fire, and Dark
- Weaknesses: Bug, Electric, Fairy, Fighting, and Grass
Greninja doesn’t change much from the Little edition to the Great League edition. It’s still a glass cannon with massive damage that benefits from a moveset with STAB.
Both Fast Move and Charged Moves are the same, with Water Shuriken giving you access to Hydro Cannon early on in the fight.
4. Azumarill (XL)
NIANTIC/DEXERTO- Fast Move: Bubble
- Charged Moves: Play Rough and Ice Beam
- Resistances: Bug, Fighting, Water, Ice, Fire, Dark, and Dragon
- Weaknesses: Electric, Grass, and Poison
Azumarill is without a doubt one of the best Fairy-type Pokemon ever. This is mainly due to its solid moveset, great coverage, and massive bulk that allows it to take down Dark types easily and outlast most other opponents.
Bubble is the best Fast Move to use, with a good balance between damage and energy generation. Play Rough is the Charged Move you need, as it’s cheap and powerful. Plus, it benefits from STAB and will target Dark and Poison-type opponents. For some extra coverage, use Ice Beam.
5. Galarian Weezing (Shadow)
NIANTIC/DEXERTO- Fast Move: Fairy Wind
- Charged Moves: Brutal Swing and Play Rough
- Resistances: Fighting, Dragon, Bug, Grass, Fairy, and Dark
- Weaknesses: Ground, Psychic, and Steel
Galarian Weezing not only sports a unique dual Poison/Fairy type combination but also has access to a versatile move pool that includes Dark and Fire attacks. This way, it can target Fighting, Dragon, Dark, Psychic, Ghost, Grass, Ice, Bug, and even Steel, which Galarian Weezing is weak against.
Fairy Wind is the only Fast Move that benefits from STAB. Plus, as a fast charge move, it will allow you to use your Charged Moves sooner. Play Rough is cheap, strong, and gives good coverage, while Brutal Swing can bait shields and expand the neutral coverage even further.
6. Qwilfish
NIANTIC/DEXERTO- Fast Move: Poison Sting
- Charged Moves: Aqua Tail and Sludge Wave
- Resistances: Water, Steel, Poison, Ice, Fire, Fighting, Fairy, and Bug
- Weaknesses: Electric, Ground, and Psychic
The dual Water/Poison-type Qwilfish has a powerful type combination that gives it plenty of resistances, including Poison, Fairy, and Bug, which are great for the Halloween Cup.
While both Fast Moves are quite similar, Poison Sting targets better the type of Pokemon in this particular tournament and has amazing energy generation. On the other hand, Aqua Tail is a wonderful Charged Move that can deal great STAB damage but also is good at baiting enemy shields.
Pokemon Go Halloween Cup start & end dates
The Halloween Cup: Little Edition began on Tuesday, October 15, 2024, and will run until Tuesday, October 22, 2024.
Subsequentially, the Halloween Cup: Great League Edition will begin on Tuesday, October 22, 2024, and will last until Tuesday, October 29, 2024.
Those are the best Pokemon and ideal teams for the Halloween Cup in Pokemon Go. If you like battling, check the Pokemon you should use for the Great, Ultra, and Master Leagues, too.