Rayquaza Raid Counters Guide

Best Rayquaza Counters in Pokémon GO are strong Ice-types such as Mamoswine, Weavile, Ice Beam Mewtwo, and Jynx. Rayquaza is a Tier 5 Boss with 49808 CP. You can catch Rayquaza in the following CP ranges:

• 2102 – 2191 CP at Lvl 20, no weather boost
• 2627 – 2739 CP at Lvl 25 with Windy weather

Since the introduction of Mamoswine and Weavile, Rayquaza can now be easily duoed. We recommend groups of 2-4, for high-level trainers, or 5-20 for lower leveled players. For our Simulator’s list of counters, check here. As well, for a full IV chart, you can check here.

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Rayquaza Counters

The following table shows best Pokemon to use versus a Rayquaza raid boss:

Rayquaza is double weak to Ice and weak to Fairy, Dragon and Rock type moves. Consequently, the list of counters follows this to the letter, with Ice types leading the charge. Back in the day, aka in February 2018 when Rayquaza was first introduced to Pokemon GO, we recommended a mixture of Ice  and Dragon typed counters, as Ice selection was extremely limited.

Today, with Mamoswine, Weavile and Ice Beam Mewtwo being readily available, we can only recommend teams filled with Ice Pokemon. Our ideal setup for Rayquaza duo raids is the same one we would use regularly: a team of six strong Mamoswine with Powder Snow and Avalanche (L30+).

Mamoswine is incredible versus Rayquaza, especially when you consider that our previous best options was Articuno and Cloyster. Not only is it the fastest, it’s also the bulkiest and the most reliable Rayquaza counter. There is really no reason to overthink it: Mamoswine is your go-to option. Even if you have Stone Edge / Ancient Power as your charge move and Powder Snow as fast move, you’ll still be able to be a useful member of your raiding group. Although we don’t advise this for duos.

Rayquaza’s stats and moveset difficulty

Rayquaza Dragon Flying
Max CP 3835
ATK 284		DEF 170		HP 213
Weak to			Strong Against
Dragon Fairy Ice Rock			Bug Dragon Fighting Grass
Fast Moves			Charge Moves
Dragon Tail Dragon Air Slash Flying			Outrage Dragon Aerial Ace Flying Ancient Power Rock

Rayquaza fights generally fall into two categories: versus Outrage and versus anything else. Outrage is a move that can potentially have massive damage output, especially if it’s frequently activated, and it’s the real reason why Dragon types are not preferred Rayquaza counters. Ice types resist Outrage and Dragon Tail easily, especially Mamoswine, and they make the whole fight much easier.

In terms of difficulty, here’s how Ray’s charged moves stack up:

• Outrage is the most difficult, even for Ice types, roughly 20-30% more difficult in terms of KOs
• Ancient Power is the easiest one, especially for teams using Mamoswine and Ice Beam Mewtwo
• Aerial Ace is “middle of the road” difficulty and nothing to worry about

Given a good setup, however, you will tear through Rayquaza like a Snorlax in an all-you-can-eat restaurant.

Rayquaza Duo Guide

Rayquaza is one of the easiest bosses for a duo raid attempt, provided that you are at least Level 30 with good Ice type counters. Let’s see what is the correct approach for Rayquaza duo raids.

Optimal team composition:

• Mamoswine at level 25+ with Powder Snow and Avalanche. Both moves are easily accessible by using Fast and Charge TMs and, luckily, they are not Community Day exclusives
• In case you don’t have access to Mamoswine, you can use Ice types, but they need to be powered up to at least level 30: Ice Beam Mewtwo, Glaceon, Weaville, Jynx, Articuno
• You will need at least two teams of Ice attackers, the teams should be balanced and well rounded. You will need to relobby for sure, so having access to a second team is beneficial
• Remember that Rayquaza is double weak to Ice moves. It may be tempting to use the recommended Dragon types, but they perform worse than low level Ice attackers.

In terms of move set difficulty:

• Dragon Tail / Outrage is the most difficult move set
• Double Flying is the easiest move set
• Outrage is the hardest Charge Move. Please be careful when re-entering the battle, if you get hit by Outrage immediately, that’s one less Pokemon for that attempt
• When faced against Outrage, prepare to die a lot. Outrage deals a ton of damage and will hurt your team regardless of which Pokemon you use. Mamoswine will have a high death count against Outrage as well. Higher level Mamoswine will perform better
• Mewtwo performs well against Outrage, but needs to be a sufficiently high level (30+)
• Weavile, Jynx and Glaceon will have problems against Outrage, and should try to dodge. Their stamina is not high enough to survive it at lower levels.

Weather and Friendship Bonuses:

• Higher Friendship level reduces the level requirement for your team. Best friends can easily use ~27-30 level Pokemon
• Weather bonuses have a strong effect on the difficulty of the fight. You will be able to duo, but it will cost you a ton of potions and revives