A comprehensive guide on how to defeat Team GO Rocket Leader Arlo in Pokémon GO. We got you covered with the best Pokémon to use against Arlo, 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 Team GO Rocket leader.
💡 Note: In Trainer Battles, counters need not always be Pokémon that do super-effective damage. We include Pokémon that are more viable to defeat Arlo, rather than those who do maximum damage.
On this page
Arlo’s Pokémon Line-Up
Arlo uses Shadow Exeggcute as his first Pokémon. Arlo’s second Pokémon can be Shadow Dragonite, Shadow Alolan Exeggutor or Shadow Salamence. His third Pokémon can be Shadow Scizor, Shadow Gardevoir or Shadow Steelix.
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Countering Arlo’s Shadow Pokémon
Exeggcute
Arlo’s Shadow Exeggcute is a Grass and Psychic type that should be fairly easy to take down. It is double weak to Bug, and also weak Dark Fire Ghost Ice and Poison.
It will be worth considering what other Pokémon Arlo has next, and potentially using an Ice type as a Dragon is up next.
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You need to get those shields down quickly, but an Ice or Fairy type will help you potentially get some hits off on those following Dragons. We will not be listing many specific Ice types here, but Mamoswine or Darumaka are good choices.
Arlo’s Second Pokémon
All of Arlo’s second Pokémon can be countered with Ice and Fairy types. We offer some other recommendations below, but powerful Ice and Fairy types are a great place to start.
Dragonite
Arlo’s Shadow Dragonite is a tough opponent, but Fairy and Ice types come to the rescue for most move sets. In case of Steel Wing (Steel), switch to Dialga, Magnezone, Zekrom and Palkia.
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Salamence
Arlo’s Shadow Salamence is very similar to Dragonite, with Fairy and Ice types countering most move sets. In case of Fire Fang, Palkia, Garchomp and Giratina Origin win easily.
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Alolan Exeggutor
Arlo’s Shadow Alolan Exeggutor is a Grass and Dragon type that is double weak to Ice. It is also weak to Bug Dragon Fairy and Poison.
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Arlo’s Final Pokémon
The final set of Pokémon Arlo has is much trickier, as they don’t share many weaknesses. The easy route we had with Arlo’s second Pokémon is gone here.
You may find you need to find out what Pokémon they have, then attempt the battle again, because no Pokémon will cover all of the potential Pokémon in their line up thanks to that pesky Gardevoir.
Scizor
Arlo’s Shadow Scizor is his signature Pokémon and this Bug and Steel Pokémon is only weak to the Fire type (2x).
Most of the counters you want to use are Strong fire types, like Ho-Oh, Heatran, Reshiram and Moltres. Other options include Chandelure, Entei, Emboar, Flareon and Charizard.
In some cases, switching to meta-relevant Pokémon like Kyogre, Melmetal and Swampert makes sense as well.
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Gardevoir
Arlo’s Shadow Gardevoir is a Psychic and Fairy type that hits hard. It is weak to Ghost Poison and Steel. Both Charm and Confusion as fast moves are going to hit hard no matter what Pokémon you use, so you need to be prepared!
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Steelix
Arlo’s Shadow Steelix is a Steel and Ground type, with a scary wide move pool, high defence and strong damage output. Steelix is weak to Fighting, Fire, Ground and Water moves.
Picking counters will heavily depend on which Fast move it has. Available fast moves are Thunder Fang (Electric), Dragon Tail (Dragon) and Iron Tail (Steel).
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More Team GO Rocket Guides
- GO Rocket Grunts Guide: Counters and Lineups
- Giovanni Counters Guide
- Arlo Counters Guide
- Sierra Counters Guide
- Cliff Counters Guide
