Guide

Rocket Leader Arlo Counters

November 9, 2019

Arlo Pokemon GO — Arlo is a Team GO Rocket member in Pokemon GO

498 Shares

Arlo Pokémon GO counters are Pokémon that will help you defeat him with ease, regardless of which line-up Arlo uses. Remember that you can rematch Arlo if you lose the first time. Use this guide in combination with knowing Arlo’s Pokémon to ensure a victory. Be aware that many consider Arlo to be the most difficult GO Rocket leader.

This guide is heavily based on LanAkou’s excellent write up on reddit.

Arlo’s Pokémon Line-Up

Arlo always uses a Scyther as his first Pokémon. Arlo’s second Pokémon can be a Magnezone, a Crobat or a Gyarados. His third Pokémon can be a Scizor, a Dragonite or a Charizard.

Pokemon #1	Pokemon #2	Pokemon #3
Scyther	Magnezone	Scizor
	Crobat	Dragonite
	Gyarados	Charizard

Counters recommendation

The following Pokemon are good Arlo counters, no matter which Pokémon line-up he has:

Slot #1	Slot #2	Slot #3
Melmetal	Mewtwo	Blaziken
Thunder Shock	Psycho Cut	Counter
Rock Slide	Psytrike	Blaze Kick
Thunder Bolt	Ice Beam	Focus Blast

Melmetal covers Scyther, Gyarados, Crobat and Dragonite
Mewtwo covers Crobat and Dragonite (Ice Beam)
Blaziken covers Magnezone and Scizor (weak to Fire)

Countering Arlo’s Pokémon

Scyther

Scyther uses Flying and Bug fast moves, but has access to Night Slash as a charge move. Tyranitar is not a good option against Scyther, as Fury Cutter and X Scissor deal increased damage to Dark types. Use Pokemon that can burn through Arlo’s shields quickly.

Recommended Scyther counters

Pokémon	Fast move	Charge move
Melmetal	Thunder Shock	Rock Slide
Golem	Rock Throw	Rock Blast
Zapdos	Thunder Shock	Ancient Power

Charge move choice is based on the ease to activate, rather than damage. We want to burn Arlo’s shields as fast as possible here. For later fights, Melmetal and Zapdos feature different charge moves.

Arlo’s second Pokémon will be Gyarados, Magnezone or Crobat.

Gyarados

Gyarados uses Water and Dark fast move, and Water, Dark and Dragon type charge moves. As you probably know, Gyarados is double weak to Electric moves, which is something you should observe when picking counters.

Recommended Gyarados counters

Pokémon	Fast move	Charge move
Zapdos	Thunder Shock	Thunderbolt
Melmetal	Thunder Shock	Thunderbolt
Raikou	Thunder Shock	Wild Charge
Hydreigon	Dragon Breath	Dark Pulse

Magnezone

Magnezone uses Electric fast moves, and Electric and Steel charge moves. Magnezone is double weak to Ground, which is quite handy if you’re not planning to use a Fire type counter.

Recommended Magnezone counters

Pokémon	Fast move	Charge move
Garchomp	Mud Shot	Earthquake
Groudon	Mud Shot	Fire Blast Earthquake
Mamoswine	Powder Snow	Bulldoze
Rhyperior	Mud Slap	Surf
Swampert	Mud Shot	Hydro Cannon
Blaziken	Counter	Blaze Kick

Crobat

Crobat uses Dark and Flying fast moves, and Ghost, Flying or Poison charge moves. You’re probably familiar with Crobat from GO Rocket ground encounters. Use strong Electric or Rock types to counter it confidently.

Recommended Crobat counters

Pokémon	Fast move	Charge move
Raikou	Thunder Shock	Wild Charge
Zapdos	Thunder Shock	Ancient Power Thunderbolt
Melmetal	Thunder Shock	Thunderbolt Rock Slide
Tyranitar	Smack Down	Stone Edge
Regirock	Lock On	Stone Edge
Mewtwo	Psycho Cut	Psystrike

Arlo’s last Pokémon will be either Charizard, Scizor or Dragonite.

Charizard

Charizard uses a Fire or Flying fast move, and Dragon or Fire charge attack. Charizard is double weak to Rock, but also weak to Electric and Water.

Recommended Charizard counters

Pokémon	Fast move	Charge move
Regirock	Lock On	Stone Edge
Golem	Rock Throw	Rock Blast
Zapdos	Thunder Shock	Ancient Power
Giratina (Altered)	Shadow Claw	Ancient Power

Dragonite

Dragonite uses a Dragon or Steel fast move, and Dragon, Flying or Normal charge move. Double weak to Ice and weak to Rock, but again, no Tyranitar recommendation.

Recommended Dragonite counters

Pokémon	Fast move	Charge move
Dialga	Dragon Breath	Draco Meteor
Regice	Lock on	Blizzard
Mewtwo	Psycho Cut	Ice Beam
Metagross	Bullet Punch	Meteor Mash
Zapdos	Thunder Shock	Thunderbolt

Scizor

Scizor uses a Steel or Bug fast move, and Steel, Dark and Bug charge moves. Its double weak to Fire, which is exactly where Fire types come into play here.

Recommended Scizor counters