Getting Ready to Battle Mega Rayquaza in 'Pokémon GO'? Here Are the Best Counters
Published Aug. 18 2023, 2:04 p.m. ET
Making its debut with the annual in-person Pokémon GO Fest, Mega Rayquaza will have a Mega Raid that Trainers can enter during the festivities to battle the evolved Legendary Pokémon.
But if you can’t make the in-person event in New York City this weekend, developer Niantic plans to launch the serpentine Pokémon globally between August 26–27.
Mega Rayquaza will be a challenging foe to take on, so if you’re looking for some advice on the best counters to use against it and what move types to expect during the encounter, here’s a guide with everything you need to know.
Here's our Mega Rayquaza raid guide for ‘Pokémon GO.’
In Pokémon GO, Mega Rayquaza is a Dragon and Flying-type Mega Legendary Raid boss resistant to Bug, Fighting, Fire, Grass, Ground, and Water moves. Obviously, you’ll want to avoid bringing Pokémon it’s resistant to, especially those vulnerable to its Dragon and Flying-type attacks.
As for what Pokémon types to bring, Mega Rayquaza is weak against Dragon, Fairy, Ice, and Rock-type moves. With a team of 6–7 high-level Trainers, assemble a crew of Pokémon from these types that can take some hits if needed and deal solid damage.
Players need to pick the best counters against Mega Rayquaza in ‘Pokémon GO.’
If you have a massive collection of Pokémon, you may already have some of the best counters against Mega Rayquaza. Here’s a look at the counters we recommend and their movesets.
| Pokémon | Moves |
|---|---|
| Mega Gardevoir | Charm and Dazzling Gleam |
| Mega Abomasnow | Powder Snow and Weather Ball |
| Mega Glalie | Frost Breath and Avalanche |
| Mega Tyranitar | Smack Down and Stone Edge |
| Mega Salamence | Dragon Tail and Outrage |
| Mewtwo | Psycho Cut and Ice Beam |
| Mamoswine | Powder Snow and Avalanche |
| Mega Aerodactyl | Rock Throw and Rock Slide |
| Darmanitan | Ice Fang and Avalanche |
| Mega Latios | Dragon Breath and Dragon Claw |
Can you catch Mega Rayquaza in ‘Pokémon GO’?
As with other Mega Pokémon, you can’t simply catch a Mega Rayquaza through a raid battle. Instead, Trainers must battle Mega Rayquaza multiple times to get enough Mega Rayquaza Energy to Mega-Evolve a base-form Rayquaza.
Also, the base-form Rayquaza must know the Dragon Ascent attack. You can use a Meteorite acquired from completing research questlines during the GO Fest to teach it the move.
It will take a while to meet all these requirements, but once you’ve done everything, your Rayquaza can temporarily Mega-Evolve when the form shift ability isn’t on cooldown.
