Pokémon Go Galar Cup best team recommendations

Galar Cup restrictions in Pokémon Go explained

For those new to Pokémon Go, or its PVP modes, Galar Cup asks you to put together a team of three Pokémon that hail from the Galar region, that fit within the CP requirements.

First, all Pokémon must be at or below 1500 CP to be eligible.

Second, all Pokémon must be from Galar. This means that as long as they were in the Pokédex in Pokémon Sword and Shield, they’re eligible.

Like with the Great League proper, there’s a huge upside to playing a cup with a 1500 CP limit: putting a team together is extremely cheap and easy - particularly in terms of Stardust.

This also means that you don’t need to worry about Mythical and Legendary Pokémon coming to ruin your day as they’re generally caught at much higher CPs, making them ineligible here. There’s nothing here that you would need to worry about - the top three Pokémon in the meta will be Diggersby, Mandibuzz and Clefable - all very much average Pokémon in terms of rarity!

The downside, of course, is that we’re picking from a relatively shallow pool of Pokémon, and we defy anyone to reel of the Sword and Shield Pokédex in order. At best the average player will be able to tell you the starter Pokémon from that generation, not whether Quagsire was part of the game... This means that putting a synergistic team together can be a little more complicated. We’ll give you a clue though - Galar is based on the UK, so just go for anything with a tophat and monacle, and you'll be sorted.

No matter which League you participate in, remember you are after Pokémon with a decent amount of bulk (the ability to survive charged moves - type weakness depending - so you can fire off a few of your own) and those that best counter or expose weaknesses in the current meta (which is a term for what the community is using at present).

Though there are specific Pokémon and types that dominate the meta, remember with the Go Battle League (and PVP battles in general) you'll be going in blind; so even if you cover yourself with a wide range of offence and defence options, no team is invincible. Ultimately, there is an element of Rockruff-paper-Scizor to this.

Still - even with a few of the below Pokémon in your team, you should be able to fare better than if you just selected those as close to the 1500 CP cap as possible.

The Dual Destiny Season is here! It brings the Holiday Part 2 event with it. You can now catch Dynamax Pokémon through Max Battles. First, however, you need to visit Power Spots to collect Max Particles and complete the To the Max! quest. Don't forget to try out Routes, Gift Exchange and Party Play while you're hunting down rare Pokémon, fighting in the Go Battle League or competing in PokéStop Showcases.

Our Galar Cup Remix recommendations from Clefable to Toxapex

There is no one 'best' team you can choose since, as mentioned previously, you don’t know what you are up against and not everyone has access to every type of Pokémon.

Instead, here is a general list of recommended Pokémon to build a team from, with a wide range of sources that should suit all players, whether you've been collecting creatures since day one or just started playing.

Remember you want to build a team with different type strengths and defences. For example, if you build a team with all Fire-types, you’ll be especially open to Water-types - a single Sobble will wreck your squad.

As always, it's also worth noting that if you want to really compete, each of your Pokémon need two Charged moves. This not only allows you options, but in some cases allows you to run an attack that beats the Pokémon yours is weak against. If you want to skimp on Stardust and only run the one move, do so at your own peril - you have been warned.

Our Galar Cup recommendations in National Pokédex order:

Clefable

Type: Fairy
Recommended IVs: 0/13/15
Recommended moves: Fairy Wind (Fast), Swift (Charged), Moonblast (Charged)
Clefable weaknesses: Poison and Steel

The very first Pokémon in our list of recommendations for the Galar Cup originally hails from Kanto. This is something of a theme in this cup - there’s only one Pokémon that we recommend that was actually new in Galar. No points for guessing which one it is (spoiler warning, it has Galar in the name).

Embarrassing, we know, but we don’t set the rules. But do you know who enforces them? Clefable. This spammy Pokémon can lay down some pretty impressive shield pressure, thanks to fast-charging Fairy Wind playing into Swift as a shield bait. Moonblast is there a nuke that occasionally (10% of the time) drops the opponent’s attack by a stage

In terms of match-ups, you can expect Clefable to beat Mandibuzz, Shadow Alolan Ninetales, Shadow Quagsire, Shadow Drapion and Charjabug. Losses, meanwhile, will come from Toxapex, Ninetales, Diggersby, Ferrothorn and Gastrodon.

Ninetales

Type: Fire
Recommended IVs: 0/15/15
Recommended moves: Fire Spin (Fast), Weather Ball (Fire, Charged), Overheat (Charged)
Ninetales weaknesses: Ground, Rock and Water

Both Ninetales are decent in Galar Cup, though the Kantonian fox is better than the Alolan one.

This spammy Pokémon is incredibly good at laying down both Fast move and shied pressure. Fire Spin into Weather Ball is a great way at burning through shields and the opponent’s life. The only issue is that your second charged move, Overheat is a Hail Mary that will nuke both their life and your attack. Make sure you know what you’re doing when you pull that move out.

In terms of match-ups, you can expect Ninetales to beat Ferrothorn, Shadow Alolan Ninetales, Clefable, Shadow Drapion and Mandibuzz - all very good to hear. Losses will come from Toxapex, Gastrodon, Shadow Quagsire (and now you know that it is indeed in the Galarian Pokédex, you’re welcome), Diggersby and Shadow Machamp.

Galarian Weezing

Type: Poison / Fairy
Recommended IVs: 0/14/14
Recommended moves: Fairy Wind (Fast), Brutal Swing (Charged), Play Rough (Charged)
Galarian Weezing weaknesses: Ground, Psychic and Steel

We did it, we found the one Galarian Pokémon in the Galar Cup! Good job everyone, it’s a wrap, we can all go home.

Jokes aside (we weren’t even joking about the top hat), Galarian Weezing is actually very good in this cup. Fairies and their natural enemy (Poison) are a huge feature of this cup. In this case, we’re running Fairy Wind as a fast-charging move to get into the spam that is Brutal Swing. This lays down huge shield pressure very quickly, as anyone who has ever played a Dark Pokémon in PVP knows. Oh, and you also have Play Rough just in case.

There’s not much to complain about here. You can smile as you bear Shadow Machamp, Shadow Drapion, Ferrothorn, Mandibuzz and Shadow Alolan Ninetales. Losses come from Gastrodon (secretly a Ground-type), Toxapex, Diggersby (also secretly a Ground-type), Ninetales and Clefable.

Togetic

Type: Fairy/Flying
Recommended IVs: 0/14/14
Recommended moves: Fairy Wind (Fast), Aerial Ace (Charged), Dazzling Gleam (Charged)
Togetic weaknesses: Electric, Ice, Poison, Rock and Steel

Continuing the theme of Fairy go brrr, Togetic hits hard in this league. Fairy Wind is an incredible Fast move, Aerial Ace is cheap and Dazzling Gleam is a great nuke. On top of all of the usual good stuff - spammy and shield pressure - Togetic is actually a bit of a tank.

If you want to run the Togetank, you can look forward to win against Shadow Machamp, Mandibuzz, Gastrodon, Diggersby and Clefable. Beating Diggersby is pretty huge in this meta. Losses will come from Ninetales, Toxapex, Charjabug, Shadow Alolan Ninetales and Shadow Drapion.

Gastrodon

Type: Water/Ground
Recommended IVs: 1/15/14
Recommended moves: Mud Slap (Fast), Body Slam (Charged), Earth Power (Charged)
Gastrodon weaknesses: Grass (2x)

What takes down both Fairy and Poison Pokémon and has no relevant weaknesses? Yep, Gastrodon.

There are Grass-types in the meta - Whimsicott, Abomasnow and Ferrothorn are the big three - but if you see something brandishing a leaf, you can simply swap out. The upsides to running the slappiest of slugs are just too good to pass up.

To wit, Mud Slap hits surprisingly hard while also generating decent energy. Body Slam is shield bait (and not because a slug hurling itself at you is the most disgusting thing to be on the receiving end of), and Earth Power just hits really hard - especially when you look at the meta and see who’s weak to Ground. The fact that it drops the opponent’s defense 10% of the time is simply occasional upside.

So when it comes to match-ups, you beat the Poison-types and meta-relevant Fairy Pokémon, but you lose to Grass. You also lose to Mandibuzz and Diggersby (which is actually relevant).

Shadow Drapion

Type: Poison/Dark
Recommended IVs: 2/15/14
Recommended moves: Poison Sting (Fast), Aqua Tail (Charged), Crunch (Charged)
Drapion weaknesses: Ground

Both Shadow and regular Drapion are worth running in Galar Cup, though the Shadow is a fraction better. The only notable difference is that the Shadow loses to Clefable, so if the original Fairy Pokémon is a potential issue, be aware of that.

Either way, you’re looking at a spammy, dynamic Pokémon that lays down great shield pressure due to the fast-charging Poison Sting into a very cheap Aqua Tail. Your second Charged move, Crunch, is only one Sting more expensive (five instead of four), and offers a 30% chance to drop the opponent’s defense by 1 stage. All in all, this is a great choice.

Running the Shadow variant, you can look forward to wins against Whimsicott, Ferrothorn, Shadow Alolan Ninetales, Toxapex and Clefable. Beware Gastrodon, Shadow Quagsire, Diggersby, Shadow Machamp and Mandibuzz.

Shadow Dusknoir

Type: Ghost
Recommended IVs: 0/14/13
Recommended moves: Astonish (Fast), Shadow Ball (Legacy Charged), Shadow Punch (Charged)
Drapion weaknesses: Dark and Ghost

Again, both Shadow and regular Dusknoir are worth running in Galar Cup, but this time the Shadow version is significantly better.

Astonish hits harder than it has any right to, while generating decent amounts of energy. Shadow Punch is there to spam shields away, and Shadow Ball is there for when you need a nuke. So, we’re looking at both Fast move and Shield pressure in a league with few Pokémon resistant to Ghosts. The downsides are simply that you have no flexibility here, running mono-Ghost, in a type that is notoriously squishy.

How does this look in terms of match-ups? Clefable, Toxapex, Charjabug, Gastrodon and Shadow Alolan Ninetales all cower in fear at your spookiness. You will lose to the likes of Drapion (both types), Mandibuzz, Diggersby and Abomasnow.

Mandibuzz

Type: Dark/Flying
Recommended IVs: 0/13/15
Recommended moves: Snarl (Fast), Dark Pulse (Charged), Aerial Ace (Charged)
Mandibuzz weaknesses: Electric, Fairy, Ice and Rock

If you’re looking for extreme bulk, Mandibuzz has long been one of the most astoundingly tanky Pokémon in Great League. But it’s not all defense - it’s also pretty spammy, running Snarl to quickly charge into Aerial Ace or the slightly slower Dark Pulse.

The downside really is that Snarl is about as damaging as it sounds, so you might find yourself being very thankful for that extreme bulk in longer matchups.

Speaking of, you pretty much lose to anything sparkly and pink, along with Toxapex. If you’re willing to take that hit, Mandibuzz is easily a top-tier pick against Shadow Golurk, Gastrodon, Shadow Quagsire, Shadow Drapion and - importantly - Diggersby.

Diggersby

Type: Normal/Ground
Recommended IVs: 0/15/13
Recommended moves: Quick Attack (Fast), Fire Punch (Charged), Scorching Sands (Charged)
Diggersby weaknesses: Fighting, Grass, Ice and Water

The king of the Galar Cup is, of course, Diggersby. It is extremely bulky, spammy and dynamic, running Quick Attack to charge into Fire Punch. Scorching Sands is there to debuff the opponent’s attack by 1 stage a third of the time. All in all, it’s a very good Pokémon.

So what are Diggersby’s drawbacks? Good question. Moving on…

You should expect to run into a lot of Diggersby in this cup, as they beat Charjabug, Shadow Drapion, Toxapex, Clefable and Gastrodon. They lose to Alolan Ninetales, Whimsicott, Abomasnow and Mandibuzz, and only one of those makes this list...

Toxapex

Type: Poison/Water
Recommended IVs: 0/15/15
Recommended moves: Poison Jab (Fast), Brine (Charged), Sludge Wave (Charged)
Toxapex weaknesses: Electric, Ground and Psychic

Finally on our list, we have Toxapex, an extremely bulky and defensive Pokémon with some interesting match-ups.

But first, Poison Jab is a very good move that deals reasonable damage. The real drawback is that Brine and Sludge Wave are relatively expensive, so you’ll need the aforementioned bulk. Sludge Wave if a great nuke should you need it, especially in a meta with a bunch of Fairy-types that are famously weak to Poison.

So, those match-ups. Look forward to wins against both Ninetales, Clefable, Abomasnow and the similarly bulky Mandibuzz. Losses will come from Shadow Golurk, Gastrodon, Diggersby, Shadow Quagsire and Shadow Drapion.

Galar Cup end date in Pokémon Go

The Galar Cup: Great League Edition will run until 8th October and finish at the following times:

• UK - 9pm (BST)
• Europe - 10pm (CEST)
• East Coast US - 4pm (EDT)
• West Coast US - 1pm (PDT)

Good luck in the Galar Cup!