After a long season of waiting, the Pokemon GO Fest 2021 event is finally underway! The annual celebration kicks off today with a ton of challenges, bonuses, and features that are all about the "Catch!" portion of the gameplay, but tomorrow is going to shift the attention to the mobile AR game's Battle Raids.
The "Raid!" day for Pokemon GO Fest 2021 offers players a chance to experience a ton of Legendary Battle Raids as each hour brings a different batch of raid bosses for players to encounter at local Gyms. There are some very meta relevant Pokemon that are going to be hatching from those 5-star Gym eggs, so trainers who have Raid Passes to spare can get in a ton of battles and add some very powerful Pokemon to their collections.
In addition to Mewtwo, Cresselia, and some other very powerful bosses, Rayquaza will also be making a return. Rayquaza will be up for grabs during Thunder Hour, so trainers should take some time today to prepare a strong counter roster for the big fight ahead of time.
Rayquaza is a Dragon- and Flying-type combo, which means that trainers are going to want to use Ice, Rock, Dragon, and Fairy type moves to take advantage of its weaknesses. Rayquaza was in rotation during the early spring season, so some players will hopefully have fairly up-to-date counters ready to go. If not, the best counters can all be found right here...
Best Rayquaza Counters
Mega Abomasnow - Powder Snow/Weather Ball
Galarian Darmanitan - Ice Fang/Avalanche
Mamoswine - Powder Snow/Avalanche
Glaceon - Frost Breath/Avalance
Weavile - Ice Shard/Avalanche
Jynx - Frost Breath Avalanche
Beartic - Powder Snow/Ice Punch
Vanilluxe - Frost Breath/Blizzard
Kyurem - Dragon Breath/Blizzard
Players need to keep in mind that the list above represents the best counters and move sets based on the current meta game. If players don't have those exactly Pokemon or movesets, that doesn't mean that they won't be able to secure victory and earn their encounter. The main thing to keep in mind is that the selected roster should focus on using the best Ice-type Pokemon and move sets available. Don't be afraid to burn a bit of Stardust, TMs, and Candy preparing at least a couple strong counters ahead of time.
Players who manage to team up with a decent group of other friends and avoid Rayquaza's resistances should be able to win the raid and move on to the encounter. Keep in mind that team and damage bonuses can help players secure additional Premium Pokeballs to use during the reward encounter though, so being a top damage dealer has its perks.
In the coming weeks, we should learn more about what other events will be arriving during the rest of the Season of Discovery. Be sure to check back in the near future for more Pokemon GO strategy guides, news, and updates. Until then, good luck out there, trainers!
Pokemon GO is available on Android and iOS.
Source: Pokemon GO Hub