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As part of the Season of Alola’s Spring into Spring event, Pokémon GO is having a beginner-friendly GO Battle Day, and there’s never been a better time to get into Pokémon GO PvP.
While you can of course participate in Pokémon GO’s PvP mechanic any day, there will be bonus rewards for participating in this one-off GO Battle League day. What’s more, two Cups have been specifically chosen for the duration of the Spring into Spring event, including the Go Battle Day, that are particularly beginner-friendly; The Great League and the Little Cup.
A beginner’s guide to the GO Battle League
First off, know that you will only be able to take three Pokémon into battle, unlike the six in a Raid Party. You’ll also have two Shields that you can use at any time to defend against an opponent’s Charged Attack. In other words, the mechanics of a PvP Battle are very similar to that of a GO Rocket Battle, but you’ll probably find your real-life opponent is more difficult to defeat.
Finally, familiarize yourself with Pokémon type strengths and weaknesses – here’s the official Niantic type chart. You’ll want to know which of your Pokémon’s moves will be strong against your opponent’s Pokémon, and which of your Pokémon might be weak to your competitor’s moves. You will have the chance to change your Pokémon if you have another in your party that would be better, but beware that you will then be briefly timed out from changing out your Pokémon again.
Great League restrictions
The Great League has no restriction other than that your Pokémon must not have a CP higher than 1,500. This means you can use any of your favorite Pokémon, and there are no type restrictions.
You’ll want to make sure your three Pokémon have a good range of move types, you may even want to consider a second move for this reason, so that you won’t get any nasty surprises from your competitor. Also make sure you’re familiar with your Pokémon’s charged moves, and how quickly they charge. A good technique is having a fast charging move that you can use twice in a row very early on, forcing your opponent to use their shields.
Best Great League Pokémon
Jellicent
Jellicent is a strong force in the Pokémon GO Battle League. Thanks to the Fast Move Hex, you can ready your Charged Move quickly, while also doing the most DPE (damage-per-energy) of any Pokémon GO move. The best Charged Move to use with Jellicent is Shadow Ball, but Ice Beam is also worth using due to its effectiveness against Grass, Ground, Flying and Dragon types.
Bastiodon
Bastiodon has also been a fan-favorite in the GO Battle League for some time due to its excellent defensive stat. Go in with Smack Down and Stone Edge for the best defence while still packing a decent punch. To make it even better, and increase the types it will be effective against, you could also add the Fire move Flamethrower to its arsenal as a second move.
Trevenant
Play Trevenant early, as it’s not the best in defence, but it is a hard hitter with a wide variety of resistances. New to Pokémon GO in Halloween 2021, Trevenant quickly earned its place in GO Battle Parties thanks to its Grass and Ghost typing. This means it’s resistant to Normal, Fighting, Water, Ground, Grass and Electric. Its best moveset is Shadow Claw and Shadow Ball.
Azumarill
Azumarill is a great closer, so place it in third place on your team. It has a really strong defence, so can hold up when you have no shields left. Meanwhile, it can deal a decent amount of damage with the moves Bubble and Hydro Pump.
Little Cup restrictions
The Little Cup, meanwhile, is very restricted, but much more fun. Not only can your little Pokémon have no more than 500CP, but you are also restricted by species, as well. You can view the full list of eligible in-game, by heading to the Battle screen, clicking Battle (don’t worry, you won’t be taken into a Battle yet), selecting Little Cup, and hitting the question mark button in the top right-hand corner. You’ll still be able to back out from here without committing to a Battle. In short, though, they are Pokémon that haven’t yet been evolved, including baby Pokémon.
Here’s our top six Pokémon from that list, though, that you could add to your Little Cup Battle Party. Again, though, don’t forget your type effectiveness, and round out your team with as many types and moves as possible.
Best Little Cup Pokémon
Cottonee
Cottonee is a firm favorite in the Little Cup, as well as its sister Cup, the Little Jungle Cup. Not only does Cottonee’s Charged Move Grass Knot charge up quickly with Fast Move Grass Knot, but the combination of Grass and Fairy-type moves will already give you effectiveness against six Pokémon types; Fighting, Dragon, Dark, Water, Ground and Rock. Be careful though, as Cottonee will also be weak to Poison, Steel, Bug, Flying, Ice and Fire type moves.
Bronzor
Bronzor is a firm favorite in the Little Cup, and you’ll likely see many opponents bringing it into battle due to its strong resistance to multiple types. Confusion and Heavy Slam is the ideal moveset for Bronzor, but you might want to double up with Psyshock or Payback as a second move.
Lickitung
As a normal type Pokémon, Lickitung is a great addition to your team as it only has one weakness, Fighting. With the Fast Move Lick and Charged Attack Power Whip, the Ghost and Grass combo will provide additional effectiveness against Water, Ground, Rock, Psychic and Ghost type Pokémon.
Deino
Deino has an excellent Attack stat, so is another great little Pokémon to take into the Little Cup. You’ll want to make sure it has the fast move Dragon Breath, with Crunch as its Charged Move. This will make Deino strong against Psychic, Ghost and Dragon types, and is completely immune to Fairy-type moves, so is great against the likes of Cottonee.
Go Battle Day bonuses
As well as each of your wins counting towards the ongoing GO League Research event (see below), there are a couple of additional bonuses only available during Go Battle Day.
Firstly, the number of sets per day that you can participate in will be increased from 5 to 20. A set is each group of five matches you play (win or lose), meaning you can play a total of 100 PvP matches on GO Battle Day.
Once Trainers complete just one set on GO Battle Day (five matches, win or lose), will be rewarded for taking part with the Gladion’s Hoodie avatar item. The only exception to this is if you’ve previously earned the Hoodie.
Go Battle League Limited Research event
You can still grab yourself a free ticket to participate in the Go League-themed Limited-Time Research Story; Battle. Get the ticket from the in-game shop – you won’t need to part with any Pokécoins – and every win you get from the Battle League will count towards earning a bunch of bonus XP.
When is Pokémon GO Battle Day?
Beginner’s Paradise, the Pokémon GO Battle Day, will take place on April 17, 2022, between 12am and 11:59pm local time, so you’ll have the whole day to hone your Battle skills. Don’t forget to pick up that ticket from the shop first, and have fun!
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