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How to defeat Giovanni in Pokemon Go — December 2021

What are the best counters for Giovanni’s Pokemon, including shadow Lugia?

Updated: Dec 20, 2021 10:33 am
How to defeat Giovanni in Pokemon Go — December 2021

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As part of another Team Go Rocket event in Pokémon Go, Giovanni is back. This time, he brings with him a sturdy team headed up by Shadow Lugia, so let’s take a look at how to defeat Giovanni in Pokémon Go in December 2021.

Best counters to beat Giovanni in Pokémon Go

We’ll take a look at some of the best Pokémon to take into battle with Giovanni. Beating the Team Go Rocket boss is essential for completing the Misunderstood Mischief research before November 26th, so you’ll need to make sure you’re prepared.

This is only a rough guide as Giovanni can take a different second Pokémon into battle, and all Pokémon can have a different moveset. Be sure to make note of the Pokémon and moves that Giovanni uses in case you have trouble taking him on first time round.

Giovanni’s First Pokémon — Persian counters

defeat giovanni best persian counters

As always, Giovanni will start your battle with his trusty sidekick, Persian. Persian can have a number of different movesets, but will most likely have Dark and Normal moves. As such, a strong fighting Pokémon should handle Persian well. On top of being strong against Dark and Normal type Pokémon, Fighting-type Pokémon will also be resistant to Rock-type move Power Gem which Persian could also enter battle with.

Best overall Persian counters

  • Lucario with Counter and Power-Up Punch (Fighting)
  • Machamp with Counter and Cross Chop (Fighting)
  • Shadow Machamp with Counter and Cross Chop (Fighting)
  • Conkuldurr with Counter and Dynamic Punch (Fighting)

Defeat Giovanni’s second Pokémon

For your second opponent, Giovanni can take in one of three Pokémon. At the moment, this could be Kingler, Nidoking or Rhyperior. Again, each of these Pokémon will be able to enter battle with a range of movesets, so here’s a general guide to what might be your best counter overall.

Best overall shadow Kingler counters

defeat giovanni kingler counters

The strongest probability is that Kingler will enter battle with a combination of Steel and Water-type moves. Electric-types are great overall to take in against Kingler due to their resistance against Steel and effectiveness against Water. Grass-moves are also super-effective against Water, so should also be a consideration.

  • Mega Ampharos with Volt Switch and Thunder Punch (Electric)
  • Magnezone (Steel/Electric) with Spark and Wild Charge (Electric)
  • Ludicolo with Razor Leaf and Leaf Storm (Grass)
  • Torterra with Razor Leaf and Solar Beam (Grass)

Best overall shadow Nidoking counters

defeat giovanni nidoking counters

Shadow Nidoking will likely enter battle with a Poison or Steel fast move. Your best bet will be resisting this with a Steel-type Pokémon as Steel is resistant to both Poison and Steel itself. Then, as Nidoking is weak against Ground and Psychic-type moves, you should try and utilise these to take Nidoking down ASAP.

  • Excadrill (Steel/Ground) with Mud Shot and Drill Run (Ground)
  • Jirachi with Confusion (Psychic) and Doom Desire (Steel)
  • Metagross with Bullet Punch and Meteor Mash (Steel)

Best overall shadow Rhyperior counters

defeat giovanni rhyperior counters

As Rhyperior is a Ground and Rock-type Pokémon, it will be most resistant to Grass-type and Water-type moves. Other weaknesses you may also already have in your arsenal include Ground, Fighting and Steel-types.

  • Shadow Torterra with Razor Leaf and Frenzy Plant (Grass)
  • Torterra with Razor Leaf (Grass) and Sand Tomb (Ground)
  • Gyarados with Waterfall and Hydro Pump (Water)
  • Mega Gyarados with Waterfall and Aqua Tail (Water)

Best overall Giovanni counters for second Pokémon

When you first go up against Giovanni, you may want to take in something more generic as you won’t know which of the above Pokémon you’ll be battling against. As such, you may want to look at taking a strong Grass-type as this could be a worthy contender against both Kingler and Rhyperior. You could then look at taking in a strong Ground-type, as this will hold up against Nidoking or Rhyperior.

  • Excadrill (Steel/Ground) with Mud Shot and Drill Run (Ground)
  • Torterra with Razor Leaf and Solar Beam (Grass)
  • Mega Venusaur with Vine Whip and Solar Beam (Grass)

Best counters for Shadow Lugia

defeat giovanni lugia counters

Finally, if you survive the first two battles, you’ll be up against Shadow Lugia. As a Psychic and Flying-type Pokémon, Lugia is weak to a number of types including Dark and Bug. However, your best bet will be to take a Pokémon into battle with Rock or Electric-type moves. A Steel-type Pokémon would also be good due to its resistance against both Flying and Psychic.

  • Melmetal (Steel) with Thunder Shock (Electric) and Rock Slide (Rock)
  • Magnezone (Steel/Electric) with Spark and Wild Charge (Electric)
  • Raikou with Volt Switch and Wild Charge (Electric)
  • Tyranitar with Smack Down (Rock) and Crunch (Dark)

Best team to defeat Giovanni — December 2021

In conclusion, the best team you can take in against Giovanni will depend on which three Pokémon he will be attacking with. However, to start with, you can certainly utilise a good combination of the above. For example:

  • Lucario with Counter and Power-Up Punch (Fighting) — Persian/Rhyperior
  • Magnezone (Steel/Electric) with Spark and Wild Charge (Electric) — Kingler/Lugia/Nidoking
  • Shadow Torterra with Razor Leaf and Frenzy Plant (Grass) — Kingler/Rhyperior

Can shadow Lugia be shiny in Pokémon Go?

Lugia can be shiny in Pokémon Go, which means that you have a chance of encountering a shiny Shadow Lugia when you defeat Giovanni. As always with shiny Pokémon, though, the chances are slim, so good luck!


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