GamePress

The Best Generation 8 Pokémon for Trainer Battles

Submit Feedback or Error

Introduction

Now that Ultra Unlock 3 has started, we’ve got a few Galarian Pokémon added to GO. More interestingly though, we got movesets for every other gen 8 Pokémon as well, and that means we can start making real educated guesses as to how useful (or otherwise) some of these Pokémon are going to be!

Important note: there are a lot of Pokémon where different evolution stages have identical movesets. A lot of other Pokémon have fewer moves than you might expect. This implies that they might just be placeholders, so don’t get too attached to anything that isn’t actually in the game yet!

Thanks so much to the Poke Miners for getting us this info as soon as it hits Game Master, and to PvPoke for implementing it so soon into its battle simulator! Couldn’t do it without y’all!

So, a brief note on what you're about to get into. This piece is split into 3 sections: Released NowMight Be Cool Later, and Might Be Bad Later. Released Now is just for the Pokémon that are part of the Ultra Unlock event. Might Be Cool Later is for the Pokémon that seem like they'll have real potential to be useful once they get released. Might Be Bad later is basically everything else: we've looked at its stats, and its moveset, and we don't think it's gonna be that useful without some real changes.

Things That Are Getting Released Right Now

                                                       
Base AttackBase DefenseBase HPMax @40Max @50Type
25423619238294329

Moves

Fast Moves Metal Claw, Snarl, Quick Attack, Fire Fang
Charged Moves Play Rough, Iron Head, Wild Charge, Close Combat
Recommended Set Snarl + Close Combat and Play Rough
Zacian is the first real big Fairy-type in Master League, and that immediately gives her a lot of potential. Access to Close Combat (with reliable energy generation via Snarl) means she also has a way to answer the ever-prevalent Steel-types in the format. If you pair that with Play Rough to hit Dragons, you get a pretty fine pokémon. She lacks the raw stats to reliably beat behemoths like Dialga, Kyogre and Groudon in a clean 1v1 matchup, but she could work around that issue, finding her best niche as a safe swap or a closer. Ho-Oh is the only relevant pokémon to resist both Fighting and Fairy in the Master League, so against pretty much everything else, Zacian will put up a decent fight, especially if it manages to get an energy or shield advantage. In fact, while up in shields it only really loses to Ho-Oh, which is a quite impressive feat. Don’t expect her to be a meta-warping pick, but she'll still be one that you’re most likely going to see, and definitely one you have to be prepared to face.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
254 236 192 3829 4329

Moves

Fast Moves Metal Claw, Snarl, Quick Attack, Ice Fang
Charged Moves Moonblast, Iron Head, Crunch, Close Combat
Recommended Set Snarl + Close Combat and Crunch or Moonblast
Despite having the same exact base stats and a very similar moveset, he will likely just live in the shadow of his Sword-themed sister. The Fighting typing is not quite as coveted as Fairy in the current Master League meta, and makes it struggle a lot more against all Dragon-types and Yveltal, while also getting quickly deleted by Togekiss and Mewtwo. The only important matchup where it outperforms Zacian is against Melmetal, thanks to the resistance to Rock Slide. Overall, Zamazenta unfortunately looks like a very underwhelming legendary. Hopefully the Crowned form will redeem it, whenever that comes out. Close Combat seems mandatory. Crunch makes you Bad Yveltal, and Moonblast just slows you down a lot.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
160 156 260 2370 2679

Moves

Fast Moves Tackle, Bite, Bullet Seed
Charged Moves Body Slam, Crunch
Recommended Set Bullet Seed + Body Slam and Crunch
In many cases, Greedent just ends up looking like a worse version of Snorlax. They have comparable bulk, and a fairly comparable role (Body Slam spam with anti-Psychic/Ghost coverage), but frustratingly it isn’t really an upgrade in Great or Ultra. This is in large part due to the loss of Snorlax’s versatility in its secondary moveset. Superpower, in particular, helps Snorlax out a lot against the ever-present Steel-types, which Greedent can’t really answer. Notably, though, the chipmunk does perform far better against the mudboys due to that Bullet Seed damage adding up.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
159 198 176 2191 2478

Moves

Fast Moves Tackle, Take Down
Charged Moves Body Slam, Wild Charge, Payback
Recommended Set Tackle + Body Slam and Wild Charge
Dubwool had a lot of potential. Being a bulky Normal-type with (hypothetical) access to Counter and Body Slam (and Wild Charge on top of that), Dubwool had a real shot at just being the New Vigoroth. That didn’t happen, though. It got Tackle + Take Down, rendering it New Miltank instead. This one’s super disappointing. At least Wooloo’s still adorable. We’ll always have that.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
193 170 163 2357 2665

Moves

Fast Moves Counter, Rock Smash
Charged Moves Superpower, Brick Break, Megahorn
Recommended Set Counter + Superpower and Megahorn
Falinks’s biggest issue is honestly Other Counter Users. We’re in a world with a ton of powerful and viable Fighting-types, and Superpower + Megahorn just doesn’t cut it. Even within the niche of “Counter users that can hit Psychic-types” it’s outclassed by Primeape and Payback Machamp. The fact that it’s stuck with Superpower as its primary source of damage hurts too much when your opponent still has shields. It’s not horrible, and you could use it if you want to, but it’s not gonna be your best way to get wins.

Things That Aren’t Out But Might Be Cool Later

Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
163 192 221 2457 2777

Moves

Fast Moves Steel Wing, Air Slash
Charged Moves Drill Peck, Iron Head, Brave Bird
Recommended Set Air Slash + Drill Peck and Brave Bird
It’s Skarmory 2.0! In the Great League they even have almost identical stats, becoming effectively interchangeable. The few different matchups generally end up in Corviknight’s favor, thanks to Drill Peck sometimes taking one less fast move to charge. For example, it can tank 2 Ice Beams from Azumarill and get to Drill Peck twice plus a final Brave Bird to win at a shield disadvantage — something that not even a rank 1 Skarmory can do. That said, keep in mind that Drill Peck isn’t quite as good as Sky Attack on its own, so it may end up slightly more reliant on landing Brave Birds. In the Ultra League, though, the gap widens: Corviknight is far bulkier than Skarm there, as it can actually reach the 2500 CP threshold. Most of their simulated 1v1 matchups are still quite similar, but in practice the higher tankiness will almost certainly make the new bird in town the superior one.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
146 198 242 2352 2659

Moves

Fast Moves Smack Down, Incinerate
Charged Moves Rock Blast, Rock Slide, Flame Charge
Recommended Set Smack Down or Incinerate + Rock Slide and Flame Charge
Despite the atrocious typing (the same as Magcargo, with double weaknesses to Water and Ground) this goofy mine monster has got plenty of bulk and an incredibly powerful moveset to make up for it. In the Great League it could be the first actually relevant Fire-type since Alolan Marowak — along with the pre-evolution Carkol, which has the same stats but is much more expensive to build (requiring Level 50 instead of ~Level 24). Of course, Coalossal can’t handle Fighting-types, but it can beat Marowak itself, take down Galarian Stunfisk quite cleanly with Incinerate, and power through most neutral matchups, even tougher ones like Umbreon. It might be even more interesting in the Ultra League, once players manage to gather enough XL candies to bring it there: it’s one of the few pokémon to rival Umbreon in tankiness there! Just to give you an idea, that means it can sometimes survive a doubly super effective Earthquake from Galarian Stunfisk… yeah. It should also be viable with both fast moves to fill slightly different roles, which only adds to its merits.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
148 195 181 2065 2335

Moves

Fast Moves Powder Snow
Charged Moves Icy Wind, Weather Ball Ice, Surf
Recommended Set Powder Snow + Surf and Icy Wind or Weather Ball Ice
Only slightly less tanky than Dewgong, it’s very comparable to it. Losing the Water typing has its pros (against Grass and Electric) and cons (against other Water-types), and they kind of balance out. Powder Snow does a little less damage than Ice Shard, but the energy generation it picks up should be worth it, especially since Surf is so much better than Water Pulse. Also, unlike Dewgong, it won’t cost you two Elite TMs!
Worth noting, though. Eiscue isn’t always this bulky. In the main series, its ability Ice Face makes it very bulky until it takes a hit, at which point it changes to No Ice mode. If that’s the version of Eiscue we get, you can basically disregard everything written above. The No Ice version lacks the bulk to be good.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
224 140 181 2601 2941

Moves

Fast Moves Acid, Spark, Poison Jab
Charged Moves Acid Spray, Discharge, Wild Charge, Power-Up Punch
Recommended Set Poison Jab + Power-Up Punch and Wild Charge
The unique Poison/Electric typing leaves Toxtricity with only a double weakness to Ground and a single one to Psychic. Its moveset is just as unique, and although that likely won’t be enough to overtake Nidoqueen as the current premier Poison-type, this punk-looking frog still holds some potential as a spicy glass cannon. Power-Up Punch and Wild Charge is a powerful combo on paper, though it will probably be tough to work with in practice, as it relies quite heavily on shield baiting and smart charged move timing, and Toxtricity’s low bulk isn’t very forgiving in that regard.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
239 185 172 3067 3468

Moves

Fast Moves Metal Claw, Dragon Tail
Charged Moves Dragon Claw, Flash Cannon, Hyper Beam
Recommended Set Dragon Tail + Dragon Claw and Flash Cannon
While Duralodon may have the same incredible Dragon/Steel typing as Dialga, capping out under 3100 CP means it’s definitely not going to make a splash in Master. In Great and Ultra League, it has bulk comparable to Dragonite, with the same Dragon Tail + Dragon Claw moveset. That said, while the Steel secondary typing is absolutely advantageous in Master, it’s significantly less so in Great and Ultra where we’re actually flush with strong Counter users. It may be an interesting and spicy alternative to Altaria and Dragonite, but it’s likely not replacing them any time soon.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
266 170 204 3532 3993

Moves

Fast Moves Dragon Tail, Hex
Charged Moves Shadow Ball, Outrage, Dragon Pulse
Recommended Set Dragon Tail or Hex + Shadow Ball and Outrage
Take Giratina-Origin. Make it a lot less bulky. Stop it from baiting with Ominous Wind. Now you’ve got Dragapult. It absolutely hits hard, but lower bulk and loss of speed really don’t do it any favors. That said, Giratina isn’t allowed into Master Premier, so that might be where Dragapult gets to see play. Definitely not in the lower formats, though. Far too squishy there.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
171 185 207 2447 2767

Moves

Fast Moves Powder Snow, Water Gun
Charged Moves Brine, Avalanche, Ancient Power
Recommended Set Powder Snow + Avalanche and Ancient Power
While Brine and Ancient Power aren’t the most exciting moves in the world, Arctovish is still able to perform on par with the other top Water/Ice-type Pokémon we already have (Dewgong in Great League, Lapras in Ultra). Certainly a mon to keep an eye out for.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
190 166 207 2566 2901

Moves

Fast Moves Powder Snow, Thunder Shock
Charged Moves Discharge, Avalanche, Ancient Power
Recommended Set Powder Snow or Thunder Shock + Avalanche and Discharge
Arctozolt has decent bulk, unique typing, and a solid moveset. While it doesn’t really do anything particularly special in terms of matchup spreads, it seems like it could certainly be a solid pick in both the Great and Ultra Leagues.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
195 165 207 2621 2964

Moves

Fast Moves Dragon Tail, Thunder Shock
Charged Moves Discharge, Dragon Pulse, Ancient Power
Recommended Set Dragon Tail + Discharge and Ancient Power or Dragon Pulse
This weird looking critter is a little bit lacking in the charged move department. That said, it’s a pretty interesting mon, bringing Zekrom’s rare typing down to the lower leagues. Its main use would probably be with Dragon Tail in Ultra, sorta like Kingdra or Dragalge (with whom it has comparable bulk). It might even see play in some Great League limited formats.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
214 144 172 2466 2788

Moves

Fast Moves Bullet Seed, Dragon Breath
Charged Moves Fly, Seed Bomb, Dragon Pulse, Outrage
Recommended Set Dragon Breath + Fly and Seed Bomb
Interesting typing, interesting moveset… but very glassy. Because there are better Grass-types and better Dragon Breath users, it’ll probably end up stuck as a spicy (or just bad) pick, potentially outside of some restricted formats. More interesting, though, is its other evo branch, Appletun.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
178 146 242 2452 2772

Moves

Fast Moves Bullet Seed, Astonish
Charged Moves Energy Ball, Seed Bomb, Dragon Pulse, Outrage
Recommended Set Bullet Seed + Seed Bomb and Outrage
Appletun is a lot bulkier than Flapple, leaving it a little tankier than Nidoqueen and Alolan Muk. That helps it a lot. Its Grass/Dragon typing is pretty interesting as well. The coverage leaves it totally walled out by Steel-types, but it does really well against, say, Swampert.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
176 161 134 1931 2183

Moves

Fast Moves Thunder Shock, Water Gun, Poison Jab
Charged Moves Discharge, Thunderbolt, Bubble Beam
Recommended Set Poison Jab or Thunder Shock + Bubble Beam and Discharge
Poison Jab and Bubble Beam give this thing an interesting niche compared to other Electric-types. However, keep in mind that it will likely end up playing second fiddle to the actual Poison/Electric-type, Toxtricity. Pinchurchin is a bit bulkier, but it lacks the raw power, which very well may hold it back.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
230 155 172 2728 3084

Moves

Fast Moves Powder Snow, Bug Bite
Charged Moves Icy Wind, Ice Beam, Hurricane, Bug Buzz
Recommended Set Powder Snow + Icy Wind and Hurricane or Bug Buzz
This movepool might have you impressed at first, but Frosmoth is extremely squishy and not even Powder Snow and Icy Wind could be enough to save it. As an Ice-type not weak to Fighting it ends up filling a similar role to Alolan Ninetales and Froslass, which are tough to surpass. Still worth catching Snom though. They’re so cute!


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
268 246 205 4235 4788

Moves

Fast Moves Confusion, Take Down
Charged Moves Avalanche, Energy Ball, Psyshock, Psychic
Recommended Set Confusion + Avalanche and Energy Ball
Ice Rider Calyrex has hella stats. Capping out at 4235 CP at Level 40, a significant amount of its performance is just due to how big it gets. A big downside to it, though, is its typing. Ice/Psychic is terrible defensively, and it kinda shows. You lose to Melmetal, Kyogre, Mud Shot Groudon, Ho-Oh, and Giratina-Origin. That said, we don’t wanna downplay its wins, either. You manage to beat a lot of the non-Dialga Dragons super consistently, as well as Togekiss, Giratina-Altered, and Yveltal. If it sees play, it will be because it can just outstat things. Keep in mind that we’re running Confusion + Avalanche and Energy Ball here, since Avalanche has great neutral coverage and Energy Ball gives you a useful hit against Kyogre.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
324 194 205 4540 5132

Moves

Fast Moves Confusion, Take Down
Charged Moves Shadow Ball, Energy Ball, Psyshock, Psychic
Recommended Set Confusion + Psyshock and Shadow Ball
If you thought Ice Rider’s stats were impressive then do I have a mon for you. Shadow Rider Calyrex caps out at 4540 CP, at 40, with the 9% nerf. So. That said, it actually seems to perform worse in practice. Shadow Ball’s good, don’t get us wrong, but Avalanche is a lot more impressive. Due to Confusion’s poor coverage and average energy generation, Shadow Rider Calyrex seems to have a tendency to fold in shielded scenarios. That’s not to mention a brutal double weakness to Ghost and Dark, leaving it very unhappy when presented with, like, Giratina and Yveltal. Interestingly, Shadow Rider might be more reliant on getting its signature move Astral Barrage than Ice Rider is on Glacial Lance.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
254 177 225 3606 4077

Moves

Fast Moves Counter, Rock Smash, Waterfall
Charged Moves Close Combat, Brick Break, Dynamic Punch, Aqua Jet
Recommended Set Counter + Close Combat and Brick Break
So, technically, Rapid Strike Urshifu has Water-type coverage in its charged moves. In practice, Aqua Jet is so horrible that it isn’t even worth running. This means you’re probably running a full Fighting moveset. That isn’t necessarily bad, though. Urshifu (in both of its forms) is notable in that it’s the first Counter user that has the CP to realistically compete in Master League. The Water form is notable in that it has solid resistances against Kyogre, stopping it from getting just out-statted like many Master League wannabe threats. It also resists Dialga’s Iron Head, which...might matter sometimes? Rapid Strike Urshifu does have a signature move in Surging Strikes, a powerful Water-type attack. So if Aqua Jet gets buffed, or Surging Strikes gets implemented, it’ll likely look even better.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
254 177 225 3606 4077

Moves

Fast Moves Counter, Rock Smash, Sucker Punch
Charged Moves Close Combat, Brick Break, Dynamic Punch, Payback
Recommended Set Counter + Close Combat and Payback
This other Urshifu variant does have a strong coverage move in Payback, which allows it to strike back very hard against Giratina. That comes at the cost of a weakness to Fighting itself, and being more relegated to the role of a closer if running Payback means giving up the much weaker, but more consistent damage and baiting potential from Brick Break. All in all, these martial artist bears all perform very similarly to each other, and both look like pretty fun additions to a future Master League format. Much like Rapid Strike, Single Strike has a signature Dark-type move in Wicked Blow. If it’s better than Payback, Urshifu will look even more impressive!


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
278 192 268 4429 5007
Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
251 505 452 8187 9255

Moves

Fast Moves Dragon Tail, Poison Jab
Charged Moves Cross Poison, Dragon Pulse, Flamethrower
Recommended Set Dragon Tail + Cross Poison and Flamethrower
We saved the best for last in this section. Whenever Niantic decides to drop it, Eternatus will be absolutely huge, both literally (it’s canonically the biggest pokémon discovered so far) and figuratively, as a Master League threat. Well, maybe we should say king instead of threat… Sitting at 4429 CP at level 40, and a whopping 5007 at level 50, it will easily surpass Lugia as the bulkiest pokémon in the format. On top of that, it’s a Dragon-type with a very solid moveset. That means that it will just obliterate most things, sometimes even the ones that it really shouldn’t, like Zacian, Togekiss or (with some baiting luck involved) Dialga, Excadrill and Groudon. Much like Dialga, as long as it keeps the current movepool, it looks like one of those pokémon for which you either bring a dedicated counter, or you bring your own and go into the mirror match, or you just have a really bad time… But maybe that’s a good thing. Dialga has reigned alone for way too long in the Master League.
Eternatus has a second form, “Eternamax.” It’s never been released to the players in main series, and hopefully that holds here. Eternamax Eternatus caps out at 8187 CP at Level 40, and has a literal 100% winrate against every single Pokémon. Even at a 2-shield disadvantage. With a stat product nearly 4x as high as Lugia’s, this thing absolutely cannot be allowed to see play.


Things That Aren't Out But Might Be Bad Later

Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
239 168 225 3324 3758
Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
238 163 190 3018 3412
Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
262 142 172 2964 3351

Rillaboom Moves

Fast Moves Scratch, Razor Leaf
Charged Moves Energy Ball, Grass Knot, Earth Power
Recommended Set Razor Leaf + Grass Knot and Earth Power

Cinderace Moves

Fast Moves Tackle, Ember
Charged Moves Flame Charge, Flamethrower, Focus Blast
Recommended Set Ember + Flame Charge and Focus Blast

Inteleon Moves

Fast Moves Pound, Water Gun
Charged Moves Water Pulse, Surf, Shadow Ball
Recommended Set Water Gun + Surf and Shadow Ball
Inteleon? Trash. Rillaboom? Trash. Cinderace? You guessed it. For whatever reason, every single one of the starters got stuck with a horrible moveset, and unless they get some meaningful changes, none of them are going to be worth a second glance. Not even with their signature moves in Hydro Cannon, Frenzy Plant, Blast Burn.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
156 240 155 2223 2513

Moves

Fast Moves Confusion, Struggle Bug
Charged Moves Psychic, Bug Buzz
Recommended Set Confusion + Psychic and Bug Buzz
Orbeetle’s pretty bulky. It’s also pretty slow. Psychic and Bug don’t complement each other defensively at all, either. It’s not going to make waves in either Great or Ultra, but it might have a shot in some limited format?


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
220 158 225 2990 3381

Moves

Fast Moves Ember, Bug Bite
Charged Moves Heat Wave, Bug Buzz, Crunch, Lunge
Recommended Set Ember or Bug Bite + Crunch and Lunge
Centiskorch is held back in a couple ways. First, its fast moves are pretty mediocre, and its only really good move is Lunge. Second, Fire/Bug typing is just asking to get eaten alive by the Great League meta. If you need a Fire-type that resists Fighting, just run Alolan Marowak or Charizard. If you need a Bug-type that beats other Bug-types, just run Crustle instead.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
172 164 172 2136 2415

Moves

Fast Moves Quick Attack, Snarl
Charged Moves Night Slash, Play Rough
Recommended Set Snarl + Night Slash and Play Rough
If we lived in a world without Umbreon, Thievul might be quite exciting. However, when we have such a powerful bulky Dark-type available in Great and Ultra, Thievul just doesn’t cut it. Like, even with Play Rough, you can still lose to Last Resort Umbreon. That’s not good.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
148 211 155 1995 2255

Moves

Fast Moves Razor Leaf, Bullet Seed
Charged Moves Grass Knot, Energy Ball
Recommended Set Razor Leaf + Grass Knot + Energy Ball
The good: Eldegoss is super bulky, around on par with Meganium. The bad: a totally mono-Grass moveset. It’s aggressively meh, and would need a moveset update to make it not so.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
213 164 207 2838 3209

Moves

Fast Moves Waterfall, Bite
Charged Moves Body Slam, Surf, Rock Blast
Recommended Set Waterfall + Body Slam and Surf or Rock Blast
Take a look at Carracosta. Now, clean your hands after reaching around in the trash to find it, because hoo boy that turtle did not perform. This new one sadly doesn’t look that much better, so there’s a very solid chance it just won’t be playable. Ah well.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
173 163 172 2142 2421

Moves

Fast Moves Water Gun, Peck
Charged Moves Drill Peck, Fly, Hydro Pump
Recommended Set Water Gun + Fly and Hydro Pump
You know what’s cool? Pelipper. You know what’s less cool? Having the same typing but a worse moveset. Remember Swanna? Probably not. Bench this bird too.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
258 127 156 2656 3003

Moves

Fast Moves Waterfall, Bite, Peck
Charged Moves Aqua Jet, Close Combat, Crunch
Recommended Set Waterfall + Crunch and Close Combat
Its moveset is a little interesting, but this thing has Sharpedo-tier bulk, and that’s gonna leave it completely dead on arrival.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
209 162 190 2664 3012

Moves

Fast Moves Rock Smash, Waterfall
Charged Moves Brick Break, Superpower, Ice Punch, Surf
Recommended Set Waterfall + Superpower and Ice Punch or Surf
Unimpressive bulk and being stuck with Rock Smash is gonna leave Grapploct underperforming in every fist fight. Maybe if there’s a limited format where being a non-Water-type with Waterfall?


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
248 189 155 3058 3458

Moves

Fast Moves Hex, Sucker Punch, Astonish
Charged Moves Shadow Ball, Dark Pulse, Psychic
Recommended Set Hex + Shadow Ball and Psychic
When was the last time you saw a Mismagius? We don’t remember either, and Polteageist isn’t that much more exciting.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
237 182 149 2829 3198

Moves

Fast Moves Confusion, Psycho Cut, Charm
Charged Moves Psybeam, Psychic, Power Whip, Dazzling Gleam
Recommended Set (Any) + Psychic and Power Whip
Despite a decent fast move selection it’s just either an alternative to Gardevoir with Confusion or Charm (mostly a downgrade, since it can’t compete with the raw damage of Shadow Gardevoir) or an alternative to Galarian Rapidash with Psycho Cut (mostly a downgrade, since it can’t spam Body Slam). It just doesn’t stand out enough.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
227 139 216 2850 3222

Moves

Fast Moves Bite, Sucker Punch, Low Kick
Charged Moves Power-Up Punch, Foul Play, Dark Pulse, Play Rough
Recommended Set Sucker Punch + Foul Play and Play Rough
Grimmsnarl’s pretty glassy, with really bad fast moves, and that stops it from standing out despite its unique Dark/Fairy typing. It might have a chance to shine in a Dark-type cup, but even there it’s barely able to beat Last Resort Umbreon.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
253 182 155 3063 3463

Moves

Fast Moves Hex, Astonish
Charged Moves Shadow Ball, Brine, Night Shade, Rock Blast
Recommended Set Hex + Shadow Ball and Rock Blast
We have plenty of other Ghost-types with Hex and Shadow Ball, and Cursola doesn’t do anything to stand out. No bulk, no notable secondary typing, and Rock Blast isn’t exactly impressive. This one’s probably a pass.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
203 203 163 2682 3032

Moves

Fast Moves Charm, Tackle
Charged Moves Psyshock, Energy Ball, Dazzling Gleam
Recommended Set Charm + Psyshock and Energy Ball
Another update, another Charm user. This one has got average bulk too, so it will be usable in both Great and Ultra, but doesn’t really stand out.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
192 121 151 1942 2196

Moves

Fast Moves Thunder Shock, Bite
Charged Moves Crunch, Payback, Wild Charge, Thunderbolt
Recommended Set Thunder Shock + Crunch and Wild Charge
Morpeko’s main gimmick is in its ability, Hunger Switch, which changes the type of its signature move Aura Wheel from Electric to Dark. Since PoGo doesn’t have abilities, and Morpeko doesn’t have Aura Wheel, its horrible bulk is likely gonna prevent it from being playable.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
197 131 170 2176 2460

Moves

Fast Moves Spark, Bite
Charged Moves Crunch, Thunder
Recommended Set Spark + Crunch and Thunder
God, really? Like, not even Wild Charge or Volt Switch? That’s kinda sad, dude. Boltund’s definitely disappointing, even when you compare it to something like Luxray (who fills a similar niche and also doesn’t see play).


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
202 207 176 2790 3155

Moves

Fast Moves Mud Shot, Mud Slap
Charged Moves Dig, Bulldoze, Earth Power
Recommended Set Mud Shot + Earth Power
It’s like Kantonian Sandslash, but with even less coverage! Oh boy! Into the trash it goes.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
222 182 225 3218 3638

Moves

Fast Moves Rock Throw
Charged Moves Stone Edge, Rock Slide, Stomp
Recommended Set Rock Throw + Stomp and Rock Slide
Just use Sudowoodo.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
226 126 263 2980 3369

Moves

Fast Moves Rock Smash, Tackle
Charged Moves Dig, Heavy Slam, Iron Head, Play Rough
Recommended Set Rock Smash + Iron Head and Play Rough
I mean… if it had received at least one good move it might be worth a second look, but this is the hardest pass ever.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
175 185 207 2500 2826

Moves

Fast Moves Dragon Breath, Water Gun
Charged Moves Brine, Ancient Power, Dragon Pulse
Recommended Set Dragon Breath + Ancient Power and Dragon Pulse
Sorry, little guy. Kingdra exists.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
202 101 400 2973 3361

Moves

Fast Moves Bite
Charged Moves Outrage, Dragon Pulse, Hyper Beam
Recommended Set Bite + Outrage and Hyper Beam
In the initial Game Master release, Regidrago had Lock On, and Dragon Claw over Hyper Beam. Sadly, it doesn’t actually learn Lock On in the main series games, so now it’s stuck with whatever the hell this is. Totally useless in this state, not worth a second glance.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
250 125 190 2973 3361

Moves

Fast Moves Lock On, Thunder Shock
Charged Moves Thunder, Hyper Beam, Zap Cannon
Recommended Set Lock On + Thunder and Hyper Beam
Like its Dragon brother, Regieleki’s initial moveset looked a lot more interesting. With access to Wild Charge, it could have been a hyper-fast hard-hitter that, uh… had bulk on par with Haunter in the Great League. Anyway, it didn’t look great then, and it looks a lot worse now with only high energy moves. Once again, into the trash it goes. Sorry, new Regis. At least you’re cool in the main series.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
147 147 205 1910 2159

Moves

Fast Moves Confusion, Pound
Charged Moves Psyshock, Psychic, Energy Ball
Recommended Set Confusion + Psyshock and Energy Ball
Calyrex is kind of like Celebi and Exeggutor…and they don’t really see play either.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
246 223 225 3895 4404

Moves

Fast Moves Tackle, Take Down
Charged Moves Avalanche, Icy Wind, Bulldoze
Recommended Set Tackle + Avalanche and Icy Wind or Bulldoze
This horse has no actual fast moves. Bad. Tackle/10.


Base Attack Base Defense Base HP Max @40 Max @50 Type
273 146 205 3385 3827

Moves

Fast Moves Tackle, Take Down
Charged Moves Foul Play, Shadow Ball, Bulldoze
Recommended Set Tackle + Foul Play and Shadow Ball
Like Glastrier, no fast moves. Hopefully this gets fixed before release.


Conclusion

If you actually read all that, hi! Welcome to the end! Gen 8 seems like it's gonna have some really interesting Pokémon, especially in Master League. Odds are we're gonna be a bit away from actually seeing most of these, especially since we're not finished with gen 6, and we don't even have gen 7. That means there's plenty of time for changes. For example, a number of Pokémon here got Brine, which is currently a) totally useless and b) only available as a legacy move on Omanyte.

Enjoyed the article?
Consider supporting GamePress and the author of this article by joining GamePress Boost!
Join!

About the Author(s)

Tyler is a contributing writer for GamePress, primarily focusing on Trainer Battle content. Fan of dogs and fighting games.

Writer and graphic designer for GamePress, from Sicily (Italy). Illustrator since childhood.

Comments