Pokemon GO trainers are facing off against Team GO Rocket once again this month and this time an encounter with a shiny mythical is on the line. Trainers who manage to reach the end of the Distracted by Something Shiny Special Research storyline will be rewarded for their efforts with a brand new shiny Celebi encounter. First, they're going to have to get through a series of Jessie and James battles though.
Most tasks in the Secrets of the Jungle tie-in Special Research are fairly simple and just involve catching or transferring Pokemon, but one of the final tasks requires players to defeat Jessie or James four times in Pokemon GO before moving on to claim the final completion rewards.
Due to some increased sightings of Jessie and James that are on the way, it shouldn't be too hard to run into the iconic Team Rocket duo that many times, but trainers will also need to have some powerful counters ready to take down each of their lineups. Luckily, we know exactly which Pokemon both Jessie and James will be throwing out, so it's pretty easy to make some quick recommendations about how to form a strong counter roster...
Jessie Counters
Against Scyther - Use Fire- or Rock- types
Against Ekans - Use Ground-type
Against Stantler - Use Fighting-type
James Counters
Against Pinsir - Use Fire- or Rock- types
Against Koffing - Use Ground- or Fire-types
Against Grimer - Use Ground- or Fire-types
Because Jessie and James aren't bringing any powerful legendary Pokemon into these fights, players don't need to be too pick about which exact counters they use, as long as they have the right type ready for each counter. For some high level guidance, choices like Charizard, Moltres, Machamp, and Groudon would all be powerful options that (at the right level) could nearly one shot many of the Pokemon that Jessie and James are going to throw out.
Defeating Jessie and James will earn players an encounter with Shadow Scyther and Shadow Pinsir, so these battles are definitely worth powering through, even for players who aren't super interested in the shiny Celebi encounter. That said, the chance to add encounter shiny Celebi likely won't arrive again anytime soon, so players should definitely at least start the Special Research and consider powering through the end of it during the mini Jessie and James balloon event on Christmas day.
As trainers continue working through these amazing events and enjoying the early days of the GO Beyond update, they may want to keep hunting down the best Unova Pokemon in the game if improving their Battle Raid rosters and completing their Pokedex is their primary goal. 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