head-to-head comparisons

Two of the highest-damage attackers in the game. Which one wins depends on the target.

The weather trio mirror: Water vs Ground. Each is the other's hard counter.

Dragon-type kings — Rayquaza is the legendary, Salamence is the F2P alternative.

Rock-type glass cannon vs the bulkier Rock/Dark dual-STAB option.

The Tao duo: Dragon/Fire vs Dragon/Electric. Different raid targets.

Top Dark attackers — legendary glass cannon vs F2P-friendly bulky pick.

Two Hoenn pseudo-legendaries. Steel/Psychic vs Dragon/Flying.

The two most-used Ghost attackers in-game.

Top Fighting attackers — Machamp is the cheap option, Conkeldurr is the upgrade.

Two F2P Dragon attackers. Garchomp has Earthquake; Dragonite has Outrage.

Two Ice attackers — Mamoswine is bulk, Weavile is glass cannon DPS.

Two top Electric attackers. Magnezone has Steel typing for raid bulk.

Top Grass attackers. Roserade is glass DPS; Tangrowth is tanky.

Fighting attackers compared. Blaziken doubles as a Fire attacker.

Charizard vs Mega Charizard Y. The single biggest Mega bonus in the game.

F2P vs legendary Water attacker. Crabhammer Kingler vs Origin Pulse Kyogre.

Two legendary Fire attackers. Ho-Oh is Sacred Fire; Reshiram is Fusion Flare.

Top Ground attackers. Excadrill is Steel/Ground; Rhyperior is Ground/Rock.

Fighting attackers compared. Lucario has Aura Sphere; Machamp has Dynamic Punch.

Standard vs Mega Rayquaza — the biggest single attacker boost in raid history.

Mega Salamence vs standard. Dragon DPS gap quantified.

Mega Gengar makes Ghost raids trivial — measured against standard.

Mega Charizard X (Fire/Dragon, Dragon DPS) vs Y (Fire/Flying, pure Fire). Two different jobs.

Mega Mewtwo X (Fighting type added) vs Y (pure Psychic boost). Different raid targets.

The +20% Fighting / Normal damage boost on Mega Lopunny — when does it matter?

Mega Beedrill is the cheapest Mega in the game. When is the Bug/Poison boost worth using?

Shadow Tyranitar adds +20% damage but loses defense. Top-tier Dark/Rock attacker comparison.

Shadow Machamp is the top Fighting raid attacker. Damage gap vs standard quantified.

Shadow Metagross is the apex Steel attacker. Worth the dust to power-up?

Shadow Gardevoir for Fairy / Psychic raids. The bulk loss vs damage gain calculation.

Shadow Dragonite is a Dragon meta lift. Worth the trade-off in raids and Master League?

Shadow Rhyperior tops Rock and Ground attacker charts. Always-on rec for raids.

Two Mewtwo counters compared — Gardevoir (Charm spam) vs Roserade (Razor Leaf DPS).

Top Rock counters for Rayquaza. Tyranitar has bulk; Rampardos has raw damage.

Top Water counters for Groudon. Kyogre is the legendary; Swampert is the F2P pick.

Two Fighting attackers for Tyranitar raids. Machamp is cheap; Lucario is the upgrade.

Dragon counters for Zekrom raids. Rayquaza out-damages Dragonite but is harder to get.

Baxcalibur (Gen 9) vs Mamoswine — does the new Ice/Dragon make Mamoswine obsolete?

Gen 9 starter Meowscarada vs the long-standing top Grass attacker Roserade.

Gen 9 Fire starter vs Hisuian Typhlosion (Fire/Ghost). Both have STAB Shadow Ball.

Gen 9 Water starter Quaquaval (Water/Fighting) vs Feraligatr. Coverage moves matter.

Iron Hands (Future Paradox) vs Conkeldurr. Both top Fighting picks; Iron Hands has Electric coverage.

Alolan Marowak (Fire/Ghost) vs standard. Alolan is a top Fire / Ghost dual-coverage attacker.

Hisuian Zoroark (Normal/Ghost) vs standard (Dark). Different typing, different counters.

Two Mega Fire attackers compared. Mega Charizard X adds Dragon STAB; Mega Houndoom doubles up on Dark coverage.

Mega Charizard Y (pure Fire Flying) vs Mega Blaziken (Fire Fighting). Blast Burn vs Blast Burn — different secondary jobs.

Mega Water attackers compared. Mega Swampert adds Ground coverage; Mega Blastoise has the cleaner Water DPS.

Mega Grass attackers. Mega Venusaur tanks raids; Mega Sceptile is glass-cannon Grass DPS with Dragon coverage.

Two Mega Rock attackers. Mega Tyranitar adds Dark damage; Mega Aerodactyl is glass-cannon Rock with Flying STAB.

Mega Water alternatives. Mega Gyarados leans Dark via Bite; Mega Kingler (when released) brings pure Water Crabhammer DPS.

Top Mega Ghost attackers. Mega Gengar has higher raw DPS; Mega Banette is the cheaper-to-mega secondary pick.

Mega Psychic vs Mega Psychic Fighting. Alakazam is the pure Psychic nuke; Medicham doubles as a Mega Fighting attacker.

Two Mega Fighting picks. Mega Lopunny also boosts Normal; Mega Medicham boosts Psychic too.

Steel Rock vs Steel Ground mega attackers. Mega Aggron wins on raw Steel DPS; Mega Steelix brings Ground coverage.

Three top Fighting attackers. Machamp is F2P cheap, Conkeldurr is the meta upgrade, Keldeo adds Water coverage.

Ghost attacker tier list in three: Gengar (cheap), Chandelure (current top non-mega), Mega Gengar (boss-melter).

Mixed Fairy / Grass / Psychic comparison — Gardevoir for Charm, Roserade for Razor Leaf, Sylveon for pure Fairy.

Top three Rock attackers. Rampardos glass-cannons damage; Tyranitar tanks; Rhyperior balances both.

Top three Ice attackers. Mamoswine is the cheap pick; Glaceon adds Avalanche; Galarian Darmanitan is the F2P legendary-tier nuke.

Electric attacker comparison. Electivire is fragile DPS; Magnezone gets Steel resists; Zekrom is the legendary nuke with Dragon coverage.

Swords of Justice trio. Terrakion is Fighting Rock DPS; Cobalion brings Steel coverage; Virizion adds Grass.

Top Ground attackers ladder. Excadrill is F2P; Rhyperior is balanced; Groudon is the legendary apex.

Top Bug attackers compared. Volcarona is rare Fire Bug; Pheromosa is Ultra Beast glass cannon; Vespiquen is the budget option.

The apex Fighting attacker debate. Shadow Machamp is widely-available; Shadow Conkeldurr edges raw DPS when accessible.

The two highest-DPS non-Mega raid attackers. Shadow Mewtwo nukes Psychic; Shadow Rayquaza melts Dragon raids.

Two top Rock attackers in Shadow form. Shadow Tyranitar adds Dark; Shadow Rhyperior brings Ground coverage.

Two Shadow Charm users. Shadow Gardevoir hits harder on Psychic too; Shadow Togekiss is bulkier with Flying STAB.

Two top Steel attackers in Shadow form. Shadow Metagross is the raid king; Shadow Melmetal is the ML PvP nuke.

Two Shadow Fire attackers. Shadow Victini is rare mythic; Shadow Reshiram brings legendary Dragon coverage.

Two top Shadow Ice attackers. Shadow Mamoswine tanks; Shadow Weavile is pure glass-cannon DPS with Dark too.

Two legendary Shadow Water picks. Shadow Suicune for UL PvP; Shadow Kyogre for ML and raids.

Two top Shadow Electric attackers. Shadow Zapdos brings Flying STAB; Shadow Magnezone gets Steel resists.

Gen 9 Ice Dragon vs the Eeveelution. Baxcalibur adds Dragon DPS; Glaceon stays pure Ice with Avalanche.

Gen 9 Grass starter vs the Shadow tank. Meowscarada brings Dark coverage; Shadow Tangrowth has the higher raw Grass DPS.

Future Paradox Rock Electric vs the Dark Rock classic. Different secondary type, different niche.

Paradox vs base — Iron Jugulis (Future) is faster and frailer; Hydreigon is the established Dark Dragon attacker.

Future Paradox Iron Moth (Fire Poison) vs Volcarona (Fire Bug). Different secondary type changes counter math.

Future Paradox Iron Leaves (Grass Psychic) vs Sword of Justice Virizion (Grass Fighting). Coverage choice.

Future Paradox Iron Treads vs Excadrill — both Ground Steel. Iron Treads pulls ahead on attack stats.

Top Mewtwo raid counters. Gardevoir Charm-spams; Roserade out-DPSes with Razor Leaf; Shadow Tangrowth tanks longer.

Top Rayquaza counters. Tyranitar with Smack Down; Rampardos glass-cannons Rock; Mamoswine adds Ice STAB.

Top Kyogre raid counters. Mega Sceptile boosts Grass party-wide; Roserade is the F2P Grass DPS; Zekrom brings Electric.

Top Groudon raid counters. Kyogre is the legendary nuke; Mega Blastoise boosts Water party-wide; Swampert is the cheap pick.

Top Altered Giratina counters. Mega Banette boosts Ghost party-wide; Shadow Mewtwo with Shadow Ball is the raw DPS pick.

Top Origin Giratina counters. Shadow Tyranitar with Bite uses Dark STAB; Shadow Mamoswine brings Ice for Dragon.

Top Zacian raid counters. Mega Banette boosts Ghost; Shadow Mewtwo Shadow Balls; Gengar is the cheap Ghost slot.

Top Yveltal raid counters. Shadow Machamp brings Fighting STAB; Shadow Rhyperior tanks while applying Rock damage.

Top Regice raid counters. Shadow Metagross with Meteor Mash; Shadow Machamp Fighting STAB; both melt the Ice tank.

Top Regirock raid counters. Shadow Feraligatr brings Water STAB; Shadow Machamp doubles up Fighting damage.

Top Registeel raid counters. Mega Blaziken brings Fighting Fire; Shadow Charizard Blast Burns the Steel wall.

Top Heatran raid counters. Shadow Machamp brings Fighting STAB; Shadow Rhyperior adds Ground for double effectiveness.

Top Darkrai raid counters. Shadow Mewtwo Psystrikes; Shadow Machamp Fighting STAB; Tyranitar with Crunch resists Dark.

Top Xerneas raid counters. Shadow Metagross brings Steel STAB super-effective vs Fairy; Shadow Mewtwo nukes with Psystrike.

Top Ho-Oh raid counters. Shadow Tyranitar with Smack Down hits Rock super-effective; Shadow Rhyperior adds bulk.

Sinnoh's creation duo. Both are Master League meta picks.

Two of the most-used Great League leads. Direct matchup explained.

Same species, two forms. Altered is UL meta, Origin is ML meta.

Two of the best defensive picks in Great League. Direct comparison.

Master League meta core. Mewtwo nukes via Psystrike; Dialga walls.

New vs old — Annihilape is GL-meta closer, Conkeldurr is raid Fighting.

UL Ice picks. Walrein is the PvP star; Mamoswine is the raid attacker.

Two Ghost picks. Trevenant is PvP-only; Gengar is raid-only.

Two Origin Forme legendaries. Both Master League meta.

Two Charm-spam Fairy attackers in PvP. Sylveon is newer; Clefable is the OG.

Two Great League safe-swap picks. Sableye is the OG; Toxapex is the newer pivot.

Bulky GL leads compared. Azumarill is the classic anti-meta; Clodsire is the Gen 9 disruptor.

Top GL Steel walls. G-Stunfisk has Mud Shot pressure; Bastiodon has higher defense.

Closer-and-swing comparison in Great League. Lickitung uses Body Slam spam; Altaria uses Sky Attack.

Shadow Medicham gets +20% ATK but loses bulk — when is it worth it in Great League?

Two Ultra League closers. Cresselia is the bulky Psychic; Talonflame is the new Flying threat.

UL safe-swap legends compared. Cobalion has type coverage; Snorlax has bulk + Body Slam.

Two Brave Bird users in UL. G-Moltres is the legendary; Pidgeot is the F2P pick.

The dominant ML meta pick (Zacian) against the legacy king (Mewtwo).

Two ML Water-types. Kyogre has Origin Pulse; Origin Palkia adds Dragon damage.

F2P-friendly ML Dragons. Dragonite has Draco Meteor; Garchomp has Earthquake coverage.

Two Ground-type ML picks. Groudon is the legendary nuke; Excadrill has Steel coverage.

Gen 9 Steel wall Gholdengo vs the GL meta staple G-Stunfisk.

Paldean Tauros forms: Aqua (Fighting/Water) vs Blaze (Fighting/Fire). Coverage decision.

Iron Bundle (Ice/Water Future Paradox) vs Walrein. UL Ice comparison.

Flutter Mane (Ghost/Fairy Paradox) vs Gengar. Different Ghost niches.

Ting-Lu (Dark/Ground Treasure of Ruin) vs Snorlax. Two ML bulky picks.

UL Ice tier comparison. Iron Bundle is the Paradox addition; Walrein is the PvP star; Mamoswine doubles as raid attacker.

Top Shadow gym defenders. Shadow Snorlax brings bulk + Body Slam pressure; Shadow Blissey is the apex motivation tank.

Two Shadow Ice picks. Shadow Walrein is the UL PvP star; Shadow Articuno is the legendary raid alternative.

Shadow Fighting in Great League. Shadow Machamp wallbreaks; Shadow Medicham keeps GL CP cap viability.

Two top Shadow Great League closers. Shadow Azumarill brings Play Rough; Shadow Altaria gets Sky Attack.

Shadow UL bulky picks. Shadow Snorlax has Body Slam pressure; Shadow Walrein opens with Powder Snow.

Two Shadow Water starters. Shadow Feraligatr is the raid attacker; Shadow Empoleon is the UL PvP pick with Steel coverage.

Two Normal-type bulky picks. Dudunsparce is the Gen 9 newcomer; Snorlax remains the bulk benchmark.

Ogerpon Wellspring (Water Grass) vs the GL meta staple Azumarill. Both lean Fairy moveset, different coverage.

Standard vs Shadow — when does the 20% damage boost outweigh the 20% defense loss?

Johto's legendary tower duo. Lugia is a defender, Ho-Oh is an attacker.

Kanto's legendary bird trio (Articuno vs Zapdos comparison shown).

Kyurem Black vs White: same Pokémon, two different forms.

Necrozma forms compared: Ghost/Psychic vs Steel/Psychic.

Zacian transformations: Crowned Sword (post-Rusted Sword) vs base Hero.

Standard vs Mega Tyranitar — quantify the Mega bonus exactly.

Galarian Articuno (Psychic/Flying) vs standard. Completely different role.

Kanto starters (Venusaur vs Charizard shown). Which one is best for raids?

Hoenn starters compared (Sceptile vs Blaziken).

Sinnoh starters compared (Torterra vs Infernape).

Sinnoh route-1 staples compared. Staraptor (Starly final) vs Bibarel (Bidoof final) — niche use cases.

Unova starter trio compared (Snivy vs Tepig shown). Final-stage Serperior, Emboar, Samurott in raids and PvP.

Kalos starter trio. Chesnaught (Grass Fighting), Delphox (Fire Psychic), Greninja (Water Dark) — each carves its own role.

Alola starter trio. Decidueye (Grass Ghost), Incineroar (Fire Dark), Primarina (Water Fairy) — coverage matters most here.

Galar starter trio. Rillaboom (Grass), Cinderace (Fire), Inteleon (Water) — all three get Max Battle Gigantamax forms.