The best Pokemon Go Cliff, Sierra, and Arlo counters frequently change thanks to their tendency to alter their lineups in Pokemon Go, so you need to stay on the ball. The three Team Rocket Leaders are the trio you need to defeat before you can take on Giovanni (read more in our how to beat Giovanni in Pokemon Go guide) so if you’re struggling at all, we’ve got the guide for you. From the best Pokemon Go Sierra, Arlo, and Cliff counters to how to find Arlo, Sierra, and Cliff in the first place, read on for everything you need to know.
How to beat Cliff in Pokemon Go
Pokemon Go Cliff counters
Pinsir counters
First up is Pinsir, which is solely a Bug-type Pokemon. This means it’s weak to Fire-, Flying-, and Rock- type moves, but it can still deal some serious damage with its Fighting-type moves, so the following counters are the best choices.
| Pokemon | Moveset |
|---|---|
| Moltres | Fire Spin/Overheat |
| Blaziken | Fire Spin/Blaze Kick |
| Chandelure | Fire Spin/Overheat |
| Volcarona | Fire Spin/Overheat |
Tyranitar counters
Tyranitar is infamously one of the strongest Pokemon in Pokemon Go PvP, and for good reason. It uses Dark- and Steel-type quick moves, with Fire-, Rock-, and Dark-type charge moves. Thankfully, it has a double weakness to Fighting-type moves, which makes Pokemon like Lucario and Machamp excellent choices.
| Pokemon | Counter |
|---|---|
| Lucario | Counter/Power-Up Punch |
| Machamp | Counter/Cross Chop |
| Conkeldurr | Counter/Dynamic Punch |
| Virizion | Quick Attack/Close Combat |
Articuno counters
Cliff has the legendary ice bird Articuno in his possession, so it’s a tough fight. It’s double weak to Rock-type moves though, along with having a standard weakness to Electric-, Fire-, and Steel- types. Don’t use Ground-type Pokemon under any circumstance because it has a double resistance, while Grass- and Bug- types also won’t fare well.
| Pokemon | Moveset |
|---|---|
| Heatran | Fire Spin/Stone Edge |
| Tyranitar | Smack Down/Stone Edge |
| Melmetal | Thunder Shock/Rock Slide |
| Aggron | Smack Down/Stone Edge |
How to beat Sierra in Pokemon Go
Pokemon Go Sierra counters
Beldum counters
Beldum may look easy to defeat, but don’t be fooled. This dual Steel-/Psychic-type is weak to Fire-, Dark-, Ground-, and Ghost-type moves, but resistant to a staggering amount of other types. As a result, you absolutely need one of the following to dispatch of Beldum effectively.
| Pokemon | Moveset |
|---|---|
| Giratina | Shadow Claw/Shadow Sneak |
| Gengar | Shadow Claw/Shadow Punch |
| Drifblim | Hex/Shadow Ball |
| Groudon | Mud Shot/Fire Punch |
Houndoom counters
Opting for Groudon against Beldum is a great shout because when it survives, it’s also useful against Houndoom. Otherwise you’ll want to be using Fighting-, Ground-, Rock-, and Water-type Pokemon, and avoiding pretty much everything else because Houndoom also has a lot of resistances.
| Pokemon | Moveset |
|---|---|
| Swampert | Mud Shot/Hydro Cannon |
| Poliwrath | Bubble/Dynamic Punch |
| Hariyama | Counter/Superpower |
| Haxorus | Counter/Surf |
Zapdos counters
Finally, Sierra has Zapdos. This Electric/Flying-type legendary is weak to only Ice- and Rock-type moves, but resistant to a lot of other types. Hopefully you’ll be entering this fight with your second Pokemon still up to give you the best chance.
| Pokemon | Moveset |
|---|---|
| Mamoswine | Powder Snow/Avalanche |
| Rhyperior | Smack Down/Rock Wrecker |
| Golem | Rock Throw/Stone Edge |
| Hippowdon | Ice Fang/Stone Edge |
How to beat Arlo in Pokemon Go
Pokemon Go Arlo counters
Mawile counters
What’s this? Another Pokemon with a long list of resistances? Yeah, you’re going to want to use Fire- or Ground-type moves with Mawile, because the Steel-/Fairy-type is resistant to most other types.
| Pokemon | Moveset |
|---|---|
| Magmortar | Fire Spin/Fire Punch |
| Entei | Fire Spin/Overheat |
| Heatran | Fire Spin/Stone Edge |
| Chandelure | Hex/Overheat |
Scizor counters
Scizor is a Bug-/Steel-type, so Pokemon veterans will know there’s only one type for the job; Fire. Fire-type moves deal double damage, so you just want to throw out the strongest Fire-type Pokemon you have, as long as both the fast and charged move are Fire-type.
| Pokemon | Moveset |
|---|---|
| Blaziken | Fire Spin/Blaze Kick |
| Reshiram | Fire Fang/Overheat |
| Moltres | Fire Spin/Overheat |
| Infernape | Fire Spin/Blast Burn |
Moltres counters
Then there’s Moltres, the Fire-/Flying-type legendary bird from the first generation. While Moltres is weak to Electric- and Water-type Pokemon, you’ll want to use Rock-type moves because they deal double damage.
| Pokemon | Moveset |
|---|---|
| Rhyperior | Smack Down/Stone Edge |
| Golem | Rock Throw/Rock Blast |
| Omastar | Rock Throw/Rock Slide |
| Regirock | Rock Throw/Stone Edge |
When you’ve beaten all three Team Rocket leaders, you can take on Giovanni! Click on the link in the intro at the top of the page for more details on how to take down the Team Rocket boss.
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