Many have a love-hate relationship with legacy moves. They are great for the collectors, and many have powerful raid DPS. To the PvPer, legacy moves can be even more influential, though. For those not entirely familiar with the concept, legacy moves are those that are no longer obtainable by evolution or TM. They were available for a limited time, either in the early game or during an event. Community Day moves are a specific kind of legacy usually referred to as a CD move.
Legacy moves can be a blessing or a curse. If you have the one you want, they can feel great. If you are on the outside looking in, then they can feel like a barrier to playing or at least winning.
The Precedent
Last December we had Community Weekend instead of Community Day. Spawns for every CD Pokemon were boosted for the whole weekend. (Although shinies were only boosted for a limited window) The biggest deal for those on the hunt for CD moves is that ALL CD Pokemon for the year could be evolved for the whole weekend and obtain their special moves.
December 2019
What I haven’t seen is anyone talking about the 2-day CD on Dec. 14th &15th. Currently we have no facts or evidence about what Niantic has planned for these days, so let’s make some educated guesses.
- Niantic has shown a penchant for patterns. Niantic has also shown a willingness to bring back legacy moves (Re: Lapras Raid Day).
- Outside of last December, only Eevee had special treatment on a CD. Even Gallade/Gardevoir got jammed together.
- That being said, I believe that Niantic will have another Community Weekend. Again, this is conjecture, but it fits. If they allow CD moves for this year to be unlocked, there’s a strong possibility that last year’ will be available as well.
- Maybe I am dead wrong, but for a little effort, you could be ready to roll out some sweet new great league candidates for yourself and as trade bait for your friends.
The Targets
Let’s look at which Pokemon you should be focusing on evolving for Great League:
- Venusaur with Frenzy Plant
A great league staple as a very powerful grass type. The CD move is required for it to be useful! - Charizard with Blast Burn
Another solid option in the great league. Perhaps not as strong as Venusaur in open formats, but it really shined in the [Silph Cups](https://silph.gg/) for Season 1. - Blastoise with Hydro Cannon
Blastoise really has not been a staple in open play and was only eligible in 1 Silph Cup, but it has respectable bulk and Hydro Cannon is the most efficient charge move in pvp. - Umbreon with Last Resort
One of the rarer options from last year, and a very good one. Umbreon has incredible bulk and with Last Resort has at least neutral coverage against almost everything.- An important not here is that the naming trick only works once. After that, Umbreon will require walking 10km (registering 2 candy!) and evolving at night. Eevee must be your buddy when you evolve to get Umbreon. **You can walk Eevee ahead of time and rebuddy it later to evolve it!** this could allow for multiple Umbreon evolves easily, but you must rebuddy before attempting to evolve. Also, ensure that the picture (or shadow if its new) displays Umbreon!
- Meganium with Frenzy Plant
Another strong grass option with great bulk and coverage in the form of Earthquake. - Typhlosion with Blast Burn
Not as strong as a pure fire type, Shadow Claw as fast move makes this an interesting pick worth stashing. - Tyranitar with Smack Down
More of a role player in specific metas, but worth it if you can get one. This requires a low level larvitar. *Even research larvitar are too high.* At level 15, a best friend trade is too high for Great League. - Blaziken with Blast Burn
A powerful, but fragile, fighting/fire hybrid. Basically, counter is the best fast move in the game, paired with the ultra powerful CD gives this a lot of…*ahem*…firepower. - Swampert with Hydro Cannon
A high damage “mud boi” that can fire off Hydro Cannon incredibly quickly with Mud Shot. What it lacks in bulk, it makes up for with damage output and speed. - Gardevoir/Gallade with Synchronoise
The usefulness of Synch is somewhat determined by what fast move you’re running. If running confusion, Synch is redundant and the coverage that the other charge moves provide is preferred. If either is running Charm, it might be worth running Sync situationally. Thus, it is probably worth having two of each Pokemon, one each with Synchronoise. - Metagross with Meteor Mash
Like Ttar, not a top tier option, but one with some niche uses.
Note: Many of these have value in Ultra/Master league. If you have a good candidate that will evolve too high for GL, don’t despair. If you have the candies to spare, consider evolving for later use in higher leagues.
Search String to evaluate what you have to evolve for each potential legacy: 1,2,4,5,7,8,133,152,153,155,156,246,255,256,258,259,280,281,374,375