It’s been five years since Pokemon GO introduced Player vs Player battling and almost three years since Niantic first released the “GO Battle League,” the online PVP matchmaking system. Since then, a lot has been learned about how the game-mode functions. This guide is meant to dive into the mechanics of PVP, including not only the basics, but also the advanced tactics that are present within the game.
General Rules
Before actually entering PVP, the first things a player needs to understand is how the battling system works. While the gameplay is generally simple, there are also more complex mechanics that need to be understood in order to fully grasp the game.
Basic Gameplay
The rules of PVP are quite simple. There are three different levels of competition: Great, Ultra, and Master. Great League has a CP (Combat Power) cap of 1500, Ultra league has a CP cap of 2500, and Master League has no CP cap. A player brings in any 3 Pokemon that fit into the desired league parameters, they are put against another trainer, and then the battle begins. Each individual Pokemon has one Fast Attack and one or two Charged Attacks, with each Pokemon having their own unique pool of fast attack moves and charged moves to pick from. To use a fast attack, a player must simply tap anywhere on the screen. As they use fast attacks, the Pokemon begins to gain energy, which is the resource used to perform a Pokemon’s charged attack. Once a player has filled up their charged move button, they simply tap it to begin charging the move. Once activated, players must perform a ‘Fruit-Ninja’-style swipe mechanic where the player slides their finger over many circular symbols that appear and disappear on the screen. The more the player gets, the stronger the attack will be. During this time, the opponent cannot attack but can choose to use one of their two shields to block the damage completely. At any point of the fight, both players also have the option to switch to a different Pokemon. However, once a player chooses to do this, they have a 60 second cooldown until this ability can be activated again. This is the framework for which the entire battle takes place and concludes when one of the players have all their Pokemon faint or when a forfeit takes place.
Turn-Based Combat
Despite its appearance, PVP in Pokemon GO is technically turn-based just like the original Pokemon games. The game operates on half-second interval “turns” even though gameplay is not halted. Each available turn, a player must choose between three things: use a fast move, use a charged move, or switch Pokemon. If nothing is selected, the player forfeits that turn and does nothing until the next half second interval. Using a charged move and switching Pokemon only take one turn, but fast moves vary depending on the fast move used. For exampe, the fast move “Bite” only takes a one-move interval while “Incinerate” takes five turns. Knowing this mechanic helps a player tremendously because these turns play a crucial role in the timing of some techniques that will be discussed later.
Stat-Change Stages
Some charged moves have a chance to buff or debuff the user as well as the opponent. For example, the charged move “Ancient Power” has a 10% chance to increase the user’s defense and attack by one “stage”, while the move “Psychic Fangs” has a 100% chance to decrease the opponent’s defense by one “stage.” At the beginning of a battle, each Pokemon’s stats can be represented by the fraction 4/4 (100%). If a Pokemon’s stats are buffed by one stage, either to attack or defense, a number is added to the first number. So a one stage buff to attack increases it to 5/4 (125%), two stages is 6/4 (150%), three stages is 7/4 (175%), and four stages is 8/4 (200%). When a stat is debuffed, a number is added to the second number. So a one stage debuff to attack decreases it to 4/5 (80%), two stages is 4/6 (66%), three stages is 4/7 (57%), and four stages is 4/8 (50%). A Pokemon’s stats cannot be changed by more than four stages, so that is as much as a buff or debuff can do. In game, it does not show by how many stages a stat changes. It only uses the terms “fell” or “rose” to indicate one stage, “harshly fell” and “sharply rose” to indicate two stages, and “severely fell” to indicated three stages (there’s no move currently in the game that buffs by three stages). This stat change, however, is not permanent. Once a Pokemon is switched out for another, all stats go back to 4/4 (100%).
How to Succeed in PVP
Knowledge of the rules is very important in understanding how the battling system works which in turn will help a player excel in the GBL. The following section highlights the next steps a player should take in order succeed in PVP from most important to least important.
Team Building
Building the right team is one of the most important aspects of PVP. Just like in the mainline games, each Pokemon has a variety of different stats and movesets that make some better than others. A Pokemon should have a strong combination of both stats and good moves to make them a true powerhouse. On top of this, the Go Battle League (GBL) releases Cups that limit the Pokemon allowed to be used. Sometimes this limit is based on region like the ‘Hoenn Cup’ and sometimes it’s limited to certain types of Pokemon like the ‘Weather Cup.’ Others are even more creative. For example, the ‘Love Cup’ released for Valentine’s Day only allows Pokemon that are red or pink. For each of these unique cups, there are Pokemon that rise to the top and Pokemon that fall behind. One of the best resources for Pokemon GO PVP is the website www.pvpoke.com. This website similates battles with each Pokemon, changing factors such as moveset and IVs. It then ranks the Pokemon for each specific cup based on which Pokemon generally perform the strongest. Top rankings, however, aren’t the end-all-be-all. Sometimes a Pokemon not in the top list catches opponents by surprise, making it difficult to go against you since they do not have much experience against that specific Pokemon. Team composition is also incredibly important when creating a team. A player wants a well-balanced team so that they have answers to many different scenarios. For example, Mandibuzz and Umbreon are both ranked #17 and #18 respectively in the Great League. While they’re both quite powerful, having both on a team would be unwise because they operate the same sort of roll. Their typings, movesets, and bulk are too similar and offer little in terms of typing coverage. Another thing to keep in mind is the meta, that is to say what Pokemon are most popular. Dragonite is very popular in the Ultra League, so to prepare for that, a team could deploy a Sylveon which does super effective damage against Dragonite. A good way to test a team composition is using Pvpoke’s team builder function that rates based on four categories: coverage, bulk, safety, and consistency. Using this tool, a player can easily find a variety of different teams and builds they can use.
Move Sets
Once the right team is built, movesets are the next most imporant thing. Each move is not created equal. Some moves are better in certain situations, while some moves are almost never viable in any scenario. Each attack present in Pokemon GO has several attributes that can be looked at when making the decision of what moves to run. For fast moves, the two main stats are Damage Per Turn (DPT) and Energy Per Turn (EPT). There are certain scenarios in which it is best to prioritize DPT as opposed to EPT, and vice versa. For example, the fast move “Razor Leaf” does an incredible amount of damage, but results in relatively low energy gained. This moveset on Victreebel makes it a damage dealing powerhouse even if it can’t use charged moves often. On the other hand, the fast move “Lock on” does very little damage, but creates the highest EPT in Pokemon GO. This moveset on Registeel allows it to access some of the hardest hitting charged moves in the game that it normally wouldn’t because they cost too much energy. Every Pokemon when caught has access to one charged move. However, a player can spend stardust and candy to get a second charged move. This is incredibly important in PVP, because a second charged move adds to that Pokemon’s coverage. A Gyarados that has the charged move “Crunch” is hard to play against, but as soon as the opponent has a pokemon that resists dark-type moves, then “Crunch” is rendered useless. Adding the second charge move “Aqua Tail” to the Gyarados allows it to succeed in matchups it would otherwise lose. To understand what charged moves to pick, a player should look at two main stats: Energy Required (ER) and Damage Per Energy (DPE.) While charged move viability mostly leans towards the latter stat DPE, sometimes a spammy moveset with a low ER is the most helpful. A good way to see what moves are generally the best is once again using Pvpoke. In the ranking list, they also show the best possible moveset for each Pokemon. However, just like with choosing Pokemon, this shows the moveset that wins most regularly, which is not necessarily always the best choice. Choosing a move that is not usually used can catch an opponent by surprise and give a player the upperhand. Being able to find optimal moveset, as well as the team builder and the ranking list, makes Pvpoke an invaluable resource for competitive Pokemon GO players. Once a player finds what moves they want to run, they can use Fast TMs and Charged TMs which will change the Pokemon’s move to a random different one of their possible movepool. Some Pokemon have a relatively small pool of available moves, while others have a large list, so how many TMs a player needs will vary. Certain moves, called Legacy Moves or CD Moves, are only available during certain times. For example, Swampert’s best moveset includes the charged move “Hydro Cannon” which can only be learned by evolving a Marshtomp to a Swampert on Mudkip Community Day. The only other way to get these moves is by using an Elite Fast TM or an Elite Charged TM, but these items are very rare, making the use of them up to the player’s discretion.
Switch/Shield Usage and Timing
Once a player has the right team with the right moves, they still need to battle wisely in order to win. Knowing when to shield moves and when to switch Pokemon is crucial. Shields and Switches are a player’s most valuable assets in a battle and poor usage of either could turn the tides of a match. Due to its very long cooldown, switches should only be used when necessary. There are certain matchups that are so unfavorable, it is best to switch Pokemon immediately as to not allow too much damage. Even if the opponent also switches and puts the player in another bad match up, there is a good chance it is still better than the original situation and, if the player gets lucky, their opponent might not have anything in their lineup to combat the new Pokemon. Some matchups are unfavorable, but still shoudn’t be switched out immediately for fear of a worse matchup waiting in the backline. The goal of these matchups is to waste as many of the opponent’s resources as possible. Even if the player’s pokemon will ultimately lose, if it is able to take a shield from the opponent, a player can still turn the negative play into a positive play. Shield usage is the same sort of concept, although it can be a bit more mentally demanding. A player only has five seconds during their opponent’s charged move to decide if they will use a shield or not and there is much to think about during this time. Will the opponent use its shield bait move? Do they have enough energy to use their most powerful charged move? Is it worth the risk to not shield? How tanky is the player’s Pokemon? If not shielded, will the player’s Pokemon have enough health to get another charged move off? Two charged moves off? Will the rest of the player’s Pokemon require a shield later in the battle? If the player’s Pokemon faints because of this move, is there another Pokemon in the lineup that can deal with the opponent’s Pokemon? All of these questions must be answered carefully. While all of this seems overcomplicated and maybe too difficult, it really boils down to one thing that will make or break a player’s PVP experience. Practice.
Practice
While it sounds mundane, practicing is the only way to truly understand Pokemon GO’s PVP. Knowing how to play certain matchups, when to switch Pokemon, when to shield, when to tank a charged move, when to use a charged move, all of this comes from practicing and studying. The more a player battles, the more they understand the game. While this sounds like the simplest thing to do, it is often the hardest. Mindless practicing won’t help a trainer in the long run. It is best to use each game to better understand the strategies. Figure out what went well on a win, and contemplate what went wrong on a loss. Using each game to influence the next will take a player from decent at the game and elevate them to becoming a formidable foe.
PVP IV Optimization
IVs, Individual (stat) Values, have always been a grueling way to min-max in the mainline games, and Pokemon GO is no different. While this is easily the least important of any of the aforementioned tips, a proper set of PVP IVs can certainly sway matchups. There are three stats in Pokemon GO: Attack, Defense, and Stamina, and each stat can be as low as 0 and as high as 15. While the concept of IVs are not foreign to the Pokemon community, which IVs work best in PVP is. For Master League, which has no CP limit, you want the highest possible stats, which is a 15 across the board. However, for leagues with a CP cap like the Great and Ultra Leagues, generally speaking, the best IVs are a low attack stat, followed by a high defense stat and high stamina stat. While this seems counter-intuitive, there is a very practical albeit complex reason for wanting a low attack stat. The attack stat weighs into the CP of a Pokemon more than any other stat. Because of this, when you level up a high attack stat Pokemon, it will hit the CP cap faster than if you had a low attack stat. Conversely, a Pokemon with low attack and high defense and stamina can level up more before it reaches the CP cap, giving it a stronger total stat spread. The bulk of a Pokemon is very important because being able to tank a couple extra hits might make the difference of match. While having a high attack stat does flip very specific matchups, it is almost always better to have high defense and stamina instead. One of the best ways to check the total stat spread is using the Rank Checker tool on www.stadiumgaming.gg and inputting a Pokemons IVs. For example, a Poliwrath in the Great League with IVs of 10-10-10 is ranked #2917 out of all possible Poliwrath combinations, while the best possible has IVs of 0-14-15. A player knowing this can check the IVs of the Poliwraths they catch and look out for ones with a similar IV spread.
Advanced Methods
Once a player understands and executes the above strategies, they will become quite skilled at PVP. While many players will stop there, for those wishing to take their skills above and beyond, there are even more advanced methods that can be implemented to turn one into a true Pokemon GO Master.
Energy Farming
While a player is able to do a charged move once the energy amount is reached, it is more often than not better to wait instead of immediately throwing out the move. A Pokemon has a cap of 100 energy, but almost every move needs less than that, meaning you can gain past the energy dictated by one charged move. For some moves like “Weather Ball”, a player can get energy for two or close to three charged moves by the time they max out their energy. This is important for three reasons. The first reason is fast move timing. Certain Pokemon have fast moves that take many turns like “Confusion” or “Gust,” both of which take four turns. If a player sends out a charged move at the same time the opponent uses one of those fast attacks, the damage and energy from that fast attack will still go through even while the charged move is being activated. That basically means the opponent gets four turns for free. A better strategy would be to continue to do fast moves until just before the opponent’s four turns are up and then use a charged move. A player doing this wisely can fit one, two, or even three fast moves in the time it takes the opponent to do one, giving the player extra energy, while denying free damage and energy from the opponent. The second reason to energy farm is it allows a player to manage debuffs. For example, the charged move “Wild Charge” decreases the user's defense by two stages. If a player gains enough energy for only one “Wild Charge” and then uses it, their defense goes down and then they need to build that energy back up while also taking increased damage. The better strategy is to gain enough energy to use the charged move twice in a row. That way, the opponent can’t dish out extra damage while the player gains more energy. The third reason is for shield baiting. Many Pokemon’s optimal moveset includes two types of charged moves: a low ER move and a high ER. The low ER move usually does less damage, but can be deployed often, while the high ER move does massive damage, but can’t be used often. For example, Whiscash’s optimal moveset has the two charged moves “Mud Bomb” (Low ER) and “Blizzard” (High ER). Many players just get the energy required for “Mud Bomb” and use it immediately. However, an experienced opponent will know how much energy the player has gained and will therefore know the player only has enough for the low ER move. With this knowledge, the opponent can opt to not use a shield because they know the move does not do a lot of damage. A better strategy would be to gain enough energy for both “Mud Bomb” and “Blizzard” before a move is activated. This way, the opponent does not know which move the player is about to use and may opt to use a shield, not wanting to take the chance that the player used “Blizzard.” In this case, they waste a shield on a very low damaging “Mud Bomb” which will greatly benefit the player, who is now at a shield advantage.
Combat Move Priority (CMP)
If two opposing players tap their charged move on the same turn, CMP is initiated and whichever Pokemon has the higher attack stat gets to go first. For example, if two Snorlaxes are battling one another and both use a charged move at the same time, the Snorlax with the higher attack IV will get to use its move first. However, keep in mind that IVs are not the sole decider of which Pokemon has higher attack. IVs are meant to show variation in the same species of Pokemon, but all Pokemon also have stat spreads inherent to their species. For example, even a max attack IV snorlax still has a far lower attack than a 0 attack IV Scizor. Players can use this knowledge to their advantage. If a player has a Swampert and is facing a Lanturn, they know that no matter what Swampert will go first if they use a charged move at the same time. This means Swampert can farm down the Lanturn until it gets its next move and Swampert will still be able to go first. In the rare case that two Pokemon have the exact same attack stat, the game randomizes who will go first.
Counting Fast Moves
This next technique is incredibly challenging, but also incredibly rewarding when done properly. Once a player knows the Pokemon most commonly used in a league or cup, they can begin counting the enemy’s fast move attacks to determine how much energy they have available at any given point in the battle. For example, Pelipper, a common pick in the Great League, most commonly runs the fast move “Wing Attack” as well as the two charged moves “Weather Ball” (a low ER move that does average damage) and “Hurricane” (a high ER move that does massive damage). A player deploying this strategy knows that Pelipper needs to use “Wing Attack” five times in order to have access to “Weather Ball” and nine times in order to have access to “Hurricane.” As the battle begins, a player counts the amount of times the “Wing Attack” animation goes through before the opponent activates a charge move. If they see them fast attack eight times and then use a charge move, the player knows that they do not have enough energy for “Hurricane” and can safely take the “Weather Ball” damage unshielded. Once the damage goes through and combat begins again, the fast move count goes back down to three since “Weather Ball” takes five fast attacks (8 - 5 = 3). In this way, knowing how much energy the opponent has available puts the player at a massive advantage. However, this technique is quite difficult because the player must have knowledge of the optimal movesets for the most popular Pokemon used in any given league. This technique also fails if the opponent uses a suboptimal moveset, as the player might not know the energy consumption of that specific build.
Charged Move Catching
Building off of the previous technique, this one also requires the player to keep track of the energy gained by their opponent. Move Catching refers to when a player switches Pokemon on the exact same turn that their opponent activates a charged move. A good example of when this is implemented is when a player loses lead, meaning that their leading Pokemon has a losing matchup against the opponent’s leading Pokemon. If the player switches Pokemon immediately, there’s a likely chance that the opponent also switches to another unfavorable matchup. While losing lead always limits a player’s options, move catching helps mitigate the potential harm it causes. For example, if a player’s lead pokemon is a Pidgeot and an opponents leads with a Skarmory, that is a very unfavorable matchup for the Pidgeot. Instead of switching Pokemon immediately, it is better to keep the Pidgeot in until Skarmory is about to use a charged move. Once the player knows Skarmory has enough energy, they switch the Pidgeot out for a Galarian Stunfisk on the same turn the Skarmory uses its attack. This benefits the player three-fold. Galarian Stunfisk take reduced damage from Skarmory’s attack, Skarmory is left with no energy from the previously unfavorable matchup, and the player’s 60-second switch timer starts during the opponent’s charged move which means it’ll be off of cooldown before the opponent (that is, if the opponent decides to switch all). There is chance that the opponent expects this and does not use their charged move to begin with, resulting in them switching to another unfavorable matchup and keeping the energy. However, that may be a worthwhile risk since the player is already in a bad matchup. Another way move catching can be implemented is in a switch sacrifice. This refers to when a player purposefully switches to a Pokemon knowing that the charged move from the opponent would make that Pokemon faint. This technique, also called a “third shield,” can be an incredibly powerful tool especially if the Pokemon the player switches to is already low on health. For example, a player has two Pokemon left, Walrein on the field and a low health Trevenant on the bench and the opponent has their last pokemon Bastiodon on the field. Bastiodon will be able to take down Walrein with one more charged move and since Trevent is so low, that would result in a loss. Walrein could defeat the Bastiodon with an incredibly powerful “Earthquake,” but the player knows they won’t be able to get enough energy for it before Bastiodon uses its charged move. So just as Bastiodon gets its move, the player switches to Trevenant. The bastiodon easily defeats the Trevenant with the move, but now it has no energy remaining. As the Walrein comes back in, it has plenty of time to get the energy to use “Earthquake” and win the match.
Partially Charged Charge Moves
The last, and potentially most situational, technique involves the swiping minigame mechanic that makes charged moves more powerful. In very specific sets of circumstances, it’s actually better to only partially charge up charged moves, ultimately doing less damage to your opponent. The reason a player would do this is usually to “farm down” an opponent’s pokemon with fast moves before it faints. The swiping minigame rewards the amount of symbols collected in four stages: No Bonus, “Nice!”, “Great!”, and “Excellent!” Notice that this wording mirrors the catching mechanic in Pokemon GO. Not swiping any of the symbols during the minigame will result in no bonus and 1/4 damage (25%), swiping until the game shows “Nice!” above the Pokemon results in 2/4 damage (50%), swiping until the game shows “Great!” results in 3/4 damage (75%), and swiping almost all the symbols which will show “Excellent!” results in 4/4 damage (100%). Knowing these thresholds allows a player to plan on less damage, which would allow their Pokemon to farm down the rest of the opponent’s health with fast attacks. For example, a player currently has Sableye out against an opponent’s Vigoroth and each person still has all three Pokemon available. The player hopes to use one more of Sableye’s charged move “Foul Play” to take out Vigoroth’s remaining health before the opponent has enough energy to throw a move. However, they both use a charge move on the same turn and Vigoroth wins CMP allowing it to use its move first. The player decides not to shield and Vigorth uses “Body Slam,” a move that Sableye strongly resists so it barely does any damage. Sableye then begins charging up “Foul Play.” Normally, the player might fully charge this ability which would in turn defeat the Vigoroth. A better strategy in this instance is to only partially charge the move to the “Nice!” or “Great!” thresholds so that it leaves Vigorth with a small amount of remaining health. Now Sableye will be able to fast move until Vigoroth faints since their opponent will not have enough energy to do another move. This allows Sableye to go into the next fight with energy already collected from its previous battle. The player also isn’t worried about the damage of Vigoroth’s fast attacks because Sableye resists the fast attack “Counter” which is the optimal attack for Vigoroth. While this technicique might help a player win certain matchups, it is still very situational and, if not done perfectly, could allow Vigoroth to get to another charged move or do too much damage with its fast move.
Conclusion
With all of this, the truly most important thing to do is have fun. Keep in mind, Pokemon GO is just a game about collecting and battling with magical creatures and it isn’t more than that. Even if a player wants to be more competitive, it is important to keep enjoying the game because, after all, that’s what it’s there for. Fun :)