Movesets – An In-Depth Explanation

April 21, 2019

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In Pokémon GO, the term “Movesets” refers to the available moves each monster can learn. These movesets directly impact how useful that Pokémon will be in the meta game. The goal of a moveset is to optimize a Pokémon’s Damage per Second (DPS) for its dedicated purpose, be it attacking rival gyms, defending gyms for the glory of your respective team, battling your friends in Train Battles, or defeating the fierce raid bosses! That being said, movesets break down into two parts: Fast moves and Charged moves.

Fast Moves

The most common move a Pokémon will use is its Fast move. The purpose of this skill is to deal consistent damage to a defender while generating energy quickly to deliver devastating blows with its Charged moves. A Pokémon’s Fast move can be changed by using a Fast TM item. These moves can be found in game on a Pokémon’s info page as the first move from the top.

There are a couple things to keep in mind when selecting a Fast move for a Pokémon:

Damage Per Second (DPS)

The formula for calculating this in Pokémon Go is Floor(1/2 * Power *Atk/Def * Effective) +1 (see more at Damage Mechanics in Pokemon GO)

Energy Gain Per Second (EPS)

The formula for calculating this in Pokémon Go is Energy Gain = Energy of move/ Time (in seconds)

These calculations allow Trainers to determine which Fast moves do the most damage and generate the most energy the quickest.

Sceptile	Damage	Cast Time	DPS	Energy	EPS
Bullet Seed Grass	8	1.10s	8.7	14	12.7
Fury Cutter Bug	3	0.40s	7.5	6	15

We can see in the above example that Sceptile has two viable Fast move options with Bullet Seed and Fury Cutter, and though they are very close in overall DPS, Fury Cutter generates more EPS which usually makes it the better option for this Pokémon.

Consideration should also be given to the fact that utilising Type Advantage will almost always result in more damage than any other factor, i.e. if you’re planning to mainly use your Sceptile against Water, Rock, or Ground type Pokémon, then the 1.6x damage multiplier could far outweigh a move’s lack of energy generation, particularly if the Charged move is also going to be Super Effective.

Charged Moves

Charged moves are much more powerful and are available once a Pokémon has generated enough energy from its Fast moves. Although, these moves are used less often than your Fast moves, they play a huge factor in how successful your Pokémon will be in battle. A Pokémon’s Charged move can be changed by using a Charged TM item. These moves can be found in game on a Pokémon’s info page below the Fast moves; these will have charge meters underneath them as well.

Since the introduction of Trainer Battles (PvP) you can also now unlock a second Charged move. This allows Pokémon to be much more diverse in their type coverage. One of the best examples of this is a Blastoise which is weak to Grass type moves, but can now deal super effective damage back to a grass type, by having it’s second charged move set to, the normally overlooked, Ice Beam.

There are a few calculations that assist Trainers to determine the optimal Charged move(s) for a Pokémon:

Damage Per Second (DPS)

The formula for calculating this in Pokémon Go is Floor(1/2 * Power *Atk/Def * Effective) +1 (see more at Damage Mechanics in Pokemon GO)

Damage Per Energy (DPE)

The formula for calculating this in Pokémon Go is Damage * Number of Charge uses / 100

Casting Time

The formula for calculating this in Pokémon Go is Animation Time (in seconds) * Number of Charge Uses

Taking these calculations into account, we can now look at our example of Sceptile once again:

Sceptile	Damage	Cast Time	DPS	Energy	DPE
Leaf Blade Grass	70	2.40s	35	-33	2.1
Earthquake Ground	120	3.60s	33	-100	1.2
Aerial Ace Flying	55	2.40s	22.9	-33	1.65

Sceptile has access to three very different Charged moves that can be used for different purposes, however, the highest DPS option is Leaf Blade. Although the use of all three of the Leaf Blade Charged moves takes a total 7.20 seconds, a single strike does comparable damage to Earthquake while benefitting from Same Type Attack Bonus (STAB), and uses substantially less energy.

Defending Movesets/Type Coverage:

Some Pokémon have found their place in the meta game as dedicated Gym Defenders. These Pokémon typically have dedicated movesets using the DPS formula with a focus on taking down the specific types to which they are weak. Blissey Normal, for example, is currently the best gym defender in the game. It has amazing stats and access to both a Fast and Charged move that are Super Effective against its only weakness, Fighting.

By becoming familiar with your Gym Defenders and their weaknesses you can optimize their movesets based on their available moves.

Versatility

In some cases, selecting a moveset is based specifically on the moves available and the potential use of that Pokémon. A great example is Kyorge with access to Thunder Electric, it is a decent option for battling against other Water type Pokémon.

By balancing a Pokémon’s typing with its move options, you can create interesting combinations that mean you take reduced damage from your opponent, while dealing Super Effective damage at the same time.

Legacy Moves in Pokémon GO

With meta changes, some Pokémon lost the ability to learn a particular move. These are called legacy moves. For many Pokémon, these were the best moves available for them to date. If you are lucky enough to have a Pokémon with one of these moves, you may want to think twice before changing it with a TM.

Pokémon	Fast move	Charged move
Alakazam		Dazzling Gleam Psychic
Arcanine	Bite	Bulldoze Flamethrower
Beedrill	Bug Bite
Blaziken		Stone Edge
Butterfree	Bug Bite
Chansey		Psybeam
Charizard	Ember Wing Attack	Flamethrower
Charmeleon	Scratch
Clefable	Pound
Cleffa		Psychic Body Slam
Cloyster		Blizzard Icy Wind
Dewgong	Ice Shard
Diglett	Mud Shot
Dodrio		Air Cutter
Doduo		Swift
Dragonite	Dragon Breath	Dragon Claw Dragon Pulse
Dugtrio	Mud Shot
Eevee		Body Slam
Ekans		Gunk Shot
Electrode	Tackle
Elekid		Thunderbolt
Exeggutor	Confusion Zen Headbutt
Farfetch’d	Cut
Fearow		Twister
Feraligatr	Water Gun
Flareon		Heat Wave
Gastly	Sucker Punch	Ominous Wind
Gengar	Shadow Claw	Sludge Wave Dark Pulse
Golbat		Ominous Wind
Golem	Mud Shot	Ancient Power
Graveler	Mud Shot
Grimer	Acid
Gyarados	Dragon Breath Dragon Tail	Dragon Pulse Twister
Haunter	Lick	Shadow Ball
Hitmonchan	Rock Smash	Brick Break
Hitmonlee		Stomp Brick Break
Hypno		Psyshock Shadow Ball
Igglybuff		Body Slam
Jigglypuff		Play Rough Body Slam
Jynx	Pound	Ice Punch
Kabutops	Fury Cutter
Kangaskhan		Brick Break Stomp
Kingdra	Water Gun
Kingler	Mud Shot
Koffing	Acid
Kyogre	Dragon Tail
Lapras	Ice Shard	Dragon Pulse Ice Beam
Loudred		Crunch
Machamp	Karate Chop	Cross Chop Stone Edge Submission
Machoke		Cross Chop
Machop	Low Kick
Magby		Flamethrower
Magneton	Thunder Shock	Discharge
Meowth		Body Slam
Mew		Hurricane Dragon Pulse
Milotic	Water Gun
Moltres	Ember
Omanyte		Rock Tomb Brine
Omastar	Rock Throw	Rock Slide
Onix		Iron Head Rock Slide
Parasect	Bug Bite
Persian		Night Slash
Pichu	Quick Attack
Pidgeot	Wing Attack	Air Cutter
Pikachu		Thunder
Pinsir	Fury Cutter	Submission
Politoed		Earthquake
Poliwhirl		Scald
Poliwrath	Mud Shot	Submission
Ponyta		Fire Blast
Porygon	Quick Attack Tackle Zen Headbutt	Discharge Psybeam Signal Beam
Primeape	Karate Chop	Cross Chop
Raichu	Thunder Shock	Thunder
Rapidash	Ember
Rhydon		Megahorn
Sandshrew		Rock Tomb
Scyther	Steel Wing	Bug Buzz
Seadra		Blizzard
Seaking	Poison Jab	Ice Wind Drill Run
Seel	Water Gun	Aqua Jet
Smoochum	Frost Breath
Snorlax		Body Slam
Spearow		Twister
Starmie	Quick Attack Tackle	Psybeam
Staryu	Quick Attack
Suicune	Hidden Power
Tangela		Power Whip
Togepi	Zen Headbutt
Togetic	Steel Wing Zen Headbutt
Venomoth	Bug Bite	Poison Fang
Voltorb		Signal Beam
Weepinbell	Razor Leaf
Weezing	Acid
Zapdos	Thunder Shock	Discharge
Zubat		Sludge Bomb