The Best Mega Evolutions in the Master League

On May 22nd 2022, Pokemon GO posted a tweet suggesting that Mega Evolution is coming soon to GO Battle League.

To add, Pokemon GO announced earlier in the Interlude Season that on May 29th, there will be a “Mega Stardust Surprise” for us on GO Battle Day. Therefore, it’s reasonable to assume that Mega Pokemon will be eligible in GO Battle League within the next week. To help prepare Trainers for the soon Mega Master League Meta, we whipped up a list highlighting the current best Mega Evolutions for Master League PvP, along with the one Mega that is currently viable in the Great and Ultra Leagues. 

If you’d prefer this information in an audio/visual format, the Pokemon Master and confirmed oracle RyanSwag has you covered.

Imagine Master League Premier Classic Gyarados’s power and utility, remove the Rock-type weakness, add Dark and Ghost-type resistances, give Crunch STAB, inject in more Stat Product than Lugia, and you have Mega freaking Gyarados. Like Dialga, it’s a Dragon Breath user that isn’t weak to Dragon Breath. Like Palkia, it’s a Dragon Breath user with a neutral early activation Charge Move in Aqua Tail. By the way, Mega Gyarados destroys both Dialga and Palkia. 

In the current state of the Master League, Mega Gyarados’s primary weakness is to Fairy-type Pokemon. Despite this, it can take Togekiss down into the red in the 0 shield scenario and threatens to KO Zacian if it gets enough of an energy lead or has a shield advantage. Aside from Fairy-types, you have Yveltal hoping it can land Focus Blast and Zarude hoping its IVs aren’t scuffed. Needless to say, Mega Gyarados brings the Master League meta to its knees (as if it had any to begin with). 

While Dragon Tail and Dragon Breath are Mega Gyarados’s best Fast Moves, there is a case to be made for Waterfall. Waterfall can improve Mega Gyarados’s Fairy-type matchups, enabling it to KO Zacian when at a shield disadvantage. This may weaken Mega Gyarados’s Dragon-type matchups, but this beast still manages to KO most of them in the 2 shield scenario. Over 9000 Stat Product boosted Waterfalls will do that to a Dragon. 

In our Best Mega Evolutions for Master League article from 2 years ago, Mega Gyarados was slotted at #5. The addition of Mega Lucario and Mega Gardevoir will do a lot to rein in Mega Gyarados’s power. Until their release, Mega Gyarados’s reign over the Master League meta is absolute.

Mega Charizard Y is the Dragon Breath user that isn’t weak to Dragon Breath with an added twist- It resists Charm. Despite Dragon Breath being resisted, Mega Charizard Y can defeat Togekiss, Sylveon, Shadow Gardevoir, and Primarina (Hydro Cannon or otherwise) straight Blast Burn. Only the future Mega Gardevoir can hope to Charm Mega Charizard Y into submission, but may still be felled with shield baiting. 

Mega Charizard Y may not have the raw power and versatility of Mega Gyarados, but it is able to manage Mega Gyarados’s threats well and may subdue Mega Gyarados in the 2 shield scenario. To add, Mega Charizard Y can flip the script on several matchups with an energy lead, enabling it to reach Blast Burn sooner. While Mega Charizard Y isn’t the king right now, the additions of Mega Lucario and Mega Gardevoir will put Mega Gyarados behind and could pull Mega Charizard Y ahead in ranking.

As with Waterfall Mega Gyarados, Mega Charizard Y having access to Fire Spin, Ember, Wing Attack, and Air Slash gives it 4 other Fast Move options to surprise opponents with. In the current meta, Mega Charizard Y probably wants to stick to Dragon Breath, as the alternative Fast Moves only appear to have significant advantages against future Mega Pokemon. 

Important Note: Best Buddy Dialga and Zekrom can get a Dragon Breath breakpoint on Mega Charizard Y, flipping the 2 shield scenario. This can be countered by your own Best Buddy on Mega Charizard Y.

So what about Mega Charizard X? As Mega Gyarados and Dialga have proven, being a Dragon Breath user that isn’t weak to Dragon Breath is how you dominate the Master League. Mega Charizard X’s Dragon-type holds it back in that respect. Mega Charizard X is held back further by its lower Stat Product as well. It’s kind of ironic, after all these years of Charizard wishing it had a Dragon sub-type, it turns out it’s stronger without it. 

Mega Gengar lacks the raw power of Mega Gyarados and Mega Charizard Y, but can make up for it with its mystery box of Charge Moves. Is Mega Gengar using Shadow Punch with Shadow Ball, Focus Blast, or Sludge Bomb? Is Mega Gengar using Shadow Punch at all? Your opponent won’t know until it’s too late. To add to Mega Gengar’s versatility, it is one of the few Charm resistors in the Master League that isn’t a Steel or Fire-type Pokemon. While that isn’t terribly impressive in the current state of the game, this could give Mega Gengar extra avenues in a future Master League meta. 

Mega Gengar’s greatest hangup in the current state of the game is that Mega Gyarados is just too powerful and will likely be very common. Without a significant energy advantage, Mega Gengar won’t reach Focus Blast before Mega Gyarados reaches Crunch. If shields are used, Mega Gyarados’s Aqua Tail is even faster and can be just as deadly due to Mega Gengar’s low bulk. This problem is even worse when you consider how much Focus Blast can limit Mega Gengar in other matchups as well. Until Mega Gyarados’s reign ends, Mega Gengar feels like a risky pick with little payoff.  

Mega Latios is the penultimate Dragon Breath + Dragon Claw user in the Master League. The problem is, Mega Gyarados and Mega Charizard Y also use Dragon Breath and aren’t weak to Dragon-type attacks. Unlike the other two Mega Dragon Breath users, Mega Latios can’t even tolerate Dialga in the 2 shield scenario. Then you have Mega Gengar sneaking around, preying upon Mega Latios’s Ghost-type weakness. Theoretically, this Mega Master Meta may also cause Fairy-type and Dark-type Pokemon to rise up further in value as well. 

While Mega Latios being so one-note is a problem, Mega Latios being so wicked powerful can make up for it. If Mega Latios is able to clean up a weakened opponent, it could have more Dragon Claws to throw and could reach Luster Purge more easily. For reference, Luster Purge can flip all Fairy-type matchups if landed (and all non-resisting matchups for that matter). Should an opponent shield Luster Purge, it also has the chance to drop their Defense by 1 stage. So while Mega Latios seems a little underwhelming on paper, its raw power could change the tides of battle if underestimated. 

Looking towards the future, Mega Lucario, Mega Gardevoir, and Mega Mewtwo Y present even more obstacles for Mega Latios. That said, a reasonable energy lead + Luster Purge could even the score. As the meta evolves and shapes around Mega Pokemon, it's hard to say how many opportunities Mega Latios will have to get an advantage. If you haven’t powered up a Latios for Raids or the Master League yet, it may be wise to save your Stardust and see how things shake out. 

Mega Venusaur doesn’t have Dragon Breath. Compared to other Mega Evolutions, Mega Venusaur can’t topple Dragons, struggles against Steel-types, and gets completely demolished by Flying-types. Despite having Sludge Bomb, Mega Venusaur will also often lose to Zarude (provided its IVs aren’t scuffed). So why consider Mega Venusaur? It’s simple: Zacian can’t touch it. 

With all the twists and turns the Mega Master Meta presents, Zacian stands tall as the non-Mega King (well, Queen, technically). There may be no other Pokemon that is safer to swap into than Zacian. Mega Venusaur sends a grim reminder that you’re never safe. Mega Venusaur may also subdue Mega Gyarados and Charm users at a shield disadvantage as well, further adding to its utility. The future Mega Gardevoir? Beware. 

While these advantages are appealing, Mega Venusaur has too many opportunities to have its plans backfire. If you can’t trap Zacian, then you’re basically praying your opponent has Charmers or Mega Gyarados in the back. To that end, Mega Venusaur has too many opportunities to get trapped itself. In short, it’s a very high risk-high reward pick, a shining example of spice. Use with caution or with unbridled love for Venusaur. 

Note: Try to Best Buddy your Mega Vensaur to get Charge Move priority on a 15 Atk IV Zarude.

While Mega Altaria is a bit lackluster in the Master League, it is the only Mega out right now that is viable in the Great League and Ultra League. What makes Mega Altaria unique compared to normal Altaria is that it sheds its Flying sub-type for a Fairy sub-type. If being a Dragon-type that isn’t weak to Dragon-type attacks is good, being a Dragon-type that resists Dragon-type attacks could be even better. 

In the current Great League meta, Mega Altaria will likely struggle as much as normal Altaria does. Registeel, Galar Stunfisk, Walrein, and Shadow Nidoqueen more or less run the show and all of them destroy Mega Altaria. Mega Altaria also has poor matchups against Azumarill, Trevenant, and Medicham, further limiting its utility. Anything it brings to the table ultimately isn’t that much more impressive than what normal Altaria brings. 

The Ultra League is a different story, as Mega Altaria can break up the Talonflame + Scrafty core. Mega Altaria may be a little late to the party though as Tapu Fini already covers that role, beats Mega Altaria and Galar Stunfisk, and can handle Charm users and Registeel better. Mega Altaria’s advantages over Tapu Fini are limited to Empoleon, Galvantula, Toxicroak, and Vensaur. While these Pokemon aren’t as big as what Tapu Fini can handle, Mega Altaria could carve a niche in the Ultra League meta. 

Note: There are 17 IV spreads that enable a Great League normal Altaria to Best Buddy into an Ultra League Mega Altaria.

Mega Evolutions coming to GO Battle League is very exciting. Unfortunately, the current Mega Evolution system only enables players to freely Mega Evolve their Pokemon every 3 days (provided it’s at Mega Level 3, which can take 1-3 months to achieve). While walking a Pokemon that has Mega Evolved in the past can supplement the Mega Energy required to evolve daily, the current state of the game doesn’t feel quite accommodating enough for Megas to get fully added to GBL. Perhaps further updates to the Mega Evolution system will be added soon to help cover this gap, such as Mega Energy dropping from set rewards. Until then, Mega Evolutions may be best suited to one day events like GO Battle Day. 

To add, players that have missed out on specific Mega Pokemon currently have no way to access them. While someone could trade for a Dialga, they can’t trade for a Mega Gyarados. This limitation echoes concerns that Shadow Pokemon bring to the competitive environment, as once they’re out of rotation you can’t possibly obtain them. Hopefully Pokemon GO will implement features to even the playing field for new and returning players.