
Doable at trainer level 30 with proper counters
HP | 15,000 | ATK | 197.57 | DEF | 146.20 |
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CP Range | |||
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Lvl 20 | 2073 - 2160 | Lvl 25 | 2591 - 2701 |
Notable Weather
Fast Move Difficulty
Move | Difficulty |
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Tackle | Easy |
Zen Headbutt | Intermediate |
Charge Move Difficulty
Move | Difficulty |
---|---|
Moonblast | Easy |
Close Combat | Intermediate |
Megahorn | Intermediate |
Giga Impact | Challenging |
Thunder | Challenging |
Overview
Xerneas is Pokemon Go's unfortunate new poster-child for unfulfilled potential, but that doesn't necessarily mean that it's a cake-walk to take down. Despite being limited to nothing but 100-energy cost charged moves and fast moves that aren't the best against many of its counters, the Life Pokemon's impressively wide movepool makes it a potentially dangerous threat in raids. A Duo is possible, but due to the fact that its viability can vary greatly depending on what moveset Xerneas is packing, this guide will focus on the Trio instead.
Approach
Team composition
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Xerneas only has two weaknesses: Steel and Poison.
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Steel Types tend to have superior performance in general, especially with a Steel Type Mega Evolution on the field
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Poison Types have lower average performance, but are frequently weather boosted in many areas.
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Shadow Metagross is the general top pick, with normal Metagross not far behind
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Try to work with your raid team in order to ensure that players use the two types with proper timing if respective Mega Evolutions are going to be on the field
Battling strategy
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Re-entering may be necessary; strong lineups won’t have to re-enter
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Dodging is recommended.
Best Raid Boss Counters
Mega Evolution Counters

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Lick | Sludge Bomb | Best |
Shadow Claw | Sludge Bomb | Best |
Basically Mega Beedrill but better. This is the prime choice if you want to pack a Poison Type.

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Poison Jab | Sludge Bomb | Best |
Mega Beedrill is the glass-cannon Mega for this raid, sporting great DPS but dubious survivability. It's a solid choice, but really should only be picked if you know that your raid team is invested heavily into Poison Pokemon.

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Vine Whip | Sludge Bomb | Best |
A bit of a weak pick, Mega Venusaur can deliver, but it's best used as a budget option due to its lower DPS/TDO potential.

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Bullet Punch | Iron Head | Best |
A bit light on the DPS side, Mega Scizor is a prime candidate for boosting Steel Types while on the field. It also has the advantage of being a Steel Type that's not weak to Close Combat, so it can win the TDO war with mega Aggron in some cases.

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Iron Tail | Heavy Slam | Best |
Mega Aggron trades a little DPS for a fair bit of TDO when compared to Mega Scizor, making it ideal for spreading around the Steel Type STAB bonus for larger teams. It's a solid Pokemon on every front, but Close Combat can cut its onslaught short without proper dodging.
Supreme Counters

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Bullet Punch | Meteor Mash | Best |
Shadow Metagross is one of the strongest things in this game, so naturally it's going to top this list with ease. It sports resistances to Tackle, Moonblast, and Giga Impact alongside a double resistance to Zen Headbutt, and it has no actual weaknesses among Xerneas' moves. If you're lucky enough to have this monster, then put it to work here!

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Bullet Punch | Meteor Mash | Best |
Basically the same story as Shadow Metagross, but still not quite as good. Still objectively great, but not quite as crazy.
Good Counters

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Acid | Sludge Bomb | Best |
The top non-Mega Poison Type and a fairly new face to Pokemon Go as of this writing, Nihilego is a top choice for any Poison team, and it can definitely put in work here. It's basically a weaker Metagross with a different typing and a weakness to Zen Headbutt, but it's also the best choice if you know that your team is going to bring a number of Mega Gengar/Mega Beedrill to the raid.

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Bullet Punch | Iron Head | Best |
An overall good Steel Type, Shadow Scizor has the advantage of not having any weaknesses in this raid, but the fact that Metagross has a similar claim means that it's relegated to utility only in the absence of its superior, or possibly if Xerneas is packing Megahorn.

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Metal Claw | Magnet Bomb | Best |
Basically a worse Shadow Scizor, Genesect doesn't really have much merit beyond standing as a backup.

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Metal Claw | Iron Head | Best |
A solid Steel Type for this raid, Excadrill's main competency here is the fact that it double-resists Thunder, which can make it valuable for some runs.

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Lick | Sludge Bomb | Best |
The old classic, Gengar is a glass-cannon here that can put up a fight, but isn't exactly outstanding. It's held back by its lack of a Poison Type Fast Move, but it's still not a bad Pokemon by any means.

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Iron Tail | Heavy Slam | Best |
My how times have changed. We have not one, but two Aggrons on this list! Shadow Aggron can break through its low attack stat to a certain degree thanks to the Shadow bonus, but it's still wrecked by Close Combat in particular.
Tank Counters

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Metal Claw | Iron Head | Best |
Despite its fame as a Dragon Type tank, Dialga can moonlight in Steel Type damage as well. That said, it doesn't even have the TDO of most of the top attackers on this list, but it's still decent for staying in the battle.

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Charge Beam | Doom Desire | Best |
Jirachi is strictly on this list due to Doom Desire, which makes it just good enough to be worth considering. It's definitely not the best here but it's comparable with most of the Glass counters, ironically.
Glass Counters

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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On average, Shadow Victreebel sports the highest DPS among the Glass counters on this list. However, it's still behind all of the Supreme counters while having significantly lower TDO.

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Psycho Cut | Psystrike | Best |
A testament to just how much of a monster it is, Shadow Mewtwo is perfectly fine for this raid. In fact, it has better average performance than Roserade despite dealing neutral damage, which says a lot for how devalued Poison actually is.

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Acid | Sludge Bomb | Best |
Take Shadow Victreebel and trade a bit of DPS for a little TDO and VIOLA! You've got Shadow Vileplume!

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Poison Jab | Sludge Bomb | Best |
The original "good" Poison attacker, Roserade is perfectly fine here.

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Poison Sting | Sludge Bomb | Best |
A bit of an oddity, Overqwil is usable here. Not much else to say, honestly.

Fast Move | Charge Move | Rating |
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Bullet Punch | Heavy Slam | Best |
The Champ pumps iron, and punches with Steel fists.