Hello everyone and welcome back to Secret Strategies, the monthly article where we take a deep dive into the strategies that we here at GamePress have been using the the greatest success in Go Battle League over the past month.
As we’re currently battling it out in Ultra League, you’ll have to check back next month to see the strategies we’re currently using. This is done to ensure that us GamePress staff at first crack at those delicious, sweet rating points, not because Ultra League and Master League are incredibly stale.
The Intimidation Factor
It’s no secret by now that Go Battle League is almost entirely determined by intimidation. In a game of quick decisions, the games are generally decided by the first player to make a mistake. Obviously, the first mistake most players make is choosing the wrong lead Pokemon. Seriously, some of you guys suck.
Using a lead Pokemon that Intimidates is a tried and true strategy of Pokemon battling in the main series games, and that strategy directly applies here too.
Picking a lead Pokemon isn’t just about “winning matchups.” It’s about picking a lead that throws your opponent off their game. None is a scarier face to see across the battlefield from you than…
For our inspiration here, we simply Googled “most intimidating Pokemon” and saw that this guy appeared in the thumbnail of a YouTube video. Maybe there’s some better options out there, but we haven’t found them yet. Google is a great resource when looking into potential GBL teams. We recommend Googling “GamePress PvP Tier Lists” as a first step for any hopeful trainers out there!
Analyzing The Data
While some decisions should come down to pure emotion, it can also occasionally be useful to take a look at the data. Here at GamePress, our writers have 200+ collective years of professional Go Battle League experience.
Our next Pokemon featured in this month’s team should be no surprise to Go Battle League vets. We’ve looked at the data and run the numbers. After carefully analyzing over 9,000 individual matches, the top performing Pokemon is…
Now, we know this is an expensive investment, but it’s one that’s worth all of the Stardust and Rare Candy you have. Some players will shy away from overused/Legendary Pokemon but there’s no doubting the numbers.
Mind, Body, and Soul
Our lead Pokemon is about getting into our opponent’s mind. Bibarel clearly brings the bod. All that’s missing for the perfect PvP team is… the soul. As mentioned in our team building guides, that’s quite an important step!
Today marks the 2 year anniversary of this Pokemon’s shiny release in Pokemon Go. In fact, it’s completely reasonable to jump to the conclusion that the concept for this article started with “let’s play Honchkrow and some other stupid Pokemon in the Go Battle League as a way to celebrate its 2 year shiniversary.”
To see these powerhouses in action, don’t forget to check out this companion video showcasing this team. If nothing else, this shows almost any team CAN win in Go Battle League. We’ll see you next month where we discuss our super Secret Strategies of Giratina in the Ultra and Master League 😮
Stunfisk
As Stunfisk was just released today, it couldn't be included in this article. Turns out that guy's actually great in PvP! It's intimidating nature makes it a great leading Pokemon, rivaling the likes of Quagsire!