Team Go Rocket Leader Arlo is a difficult opponent to take down in Pokemon Go, and going up against his Shadow squad requires the perfect team. To help out, here are his lineup details, including their weaknesses and best counters as of June 2025.
Players who go up against Team Go Rocket Grunts can collect Mysterious Components to build a Rocket Radar that will lead them to one of the Leaders: Cliff, Sierra, and this guide’s focus, Arlo.
Those who win these fights will get the chance to capture a Shadow Pokemon, which can either be ‘purified’ for a CP boost or left as is with higher attack stats if you’re competitive-minded or looking to master Raid battles.
So, here is Arlo’s current lineup of Pokemon, their weaknesses, and the best counters you can use on your team to defeat them.
Arlo Pokemon Go lineup (June 2025)
Arlo’s lineup most recently changed as part of the Crown Clash: Taken Over event from May 2025, where he’ll always send out Shadow Horsea first, followed by two of six potential creatures (one across each of the two phases).
As of June 2, 2025, his current lineup remains the same — so here’s every Pokemon he can send out:
- Phase 1: Shadow Horsea
- Phase 2: Shadow Slowbro / Shadow Crobat / Shadow Steelix
- Phase 3: Shadow Alolan Muk / Shadow Scizor / Shadow Alakazam
How to beat Arlo in Pokemon Go
To defeat Team Go Rocket Leader Arlo in Pokemon Go, you’ll need to utilize a variety of different types to counter his Shadow Pokemon. We’ve featured a mix of stronger Legendaries and more common alternatives, so there should be something here to meet every trainer’s needs – and all of them are solid choices.
Let’s look at the weaknesses of all the Pokemon that Arlo could choose to send out during your battle, and which counters should be used to beat him.
Arlo Pokemon Go counters phase 1
Horsea counters
Horsea is a pure Water-type, which means it’s weak to Electric and Grass-type attacks. It’s also resistant to Fire, Ice, Steel, and Water moves, so don’t use those.
Here are some of the best Shadow Horsea counters:
| POKEMON | BEST MOVESET |
|---|---|
| Sceptile | Fury Cutter (Fast Move) & Frenzy Plant (Charged Move) |
| Kartana | Razor Leaf (Fast Move) & Leaf Blade (Charged Move) |
| Raikou | Thunder Shock (Fast Move) & Wild Charge (Charged Move) |
| Zekrom | Charge Beam (Fast Move) & Fusion Bolt (Charged Move) |
| Magnezone | Volt Switch (Fast Move) & Wild Charge (Charged Move) |
| Venusaur | Vine Whip (Fast Move) & Frenzy Plant (Charged Move) |
Arlo Pokemon Go counters – Phase 2
Slowbro counters
Slowbro is a dual Water/Psychic-type Pokemon, which means it’s weak against Bug, Dark, Electric, Grass, and Ghost-type attacks. On the other hand, it’s resistant to Fighting, Fire, Ice, Steel, Water, and Psychic-type moves.
Here are some of the best counters to take down Shadow Slowbro:
| POKEMON | BEST MOVESET |
|---|---|
| Dawn Wings Necrozma | Shadow Claw (Fast Move) & Moongeist Beam (Charged Move) |
| Sceptile | Fury Cutter (Fast Move) & Frenzy Plant (Charged Move) |
| Tyranitar | Bite (Fast Move) & Brutal Swing (Charged Move) |
| Gengar | Lick (Fast Move) & Shadow Ball (Charged Move) |
| Kartana | Razor Leaf (Fast Move) & Leaf Blade (Charged Move) |
| Raikou | Thunder Shock (Fast Move) & Wild Charge (Charged Move) |
Crobat counters
Crobat is a dual Poison/Flying-type Pokemon, which makes it weak against Electric, Ice, Psychic, and Rock-type attacks. On the other hand, it’s resistant to Fairy, Ground, Poison, Bug, Fighting, and Grass-type moves.
Here are some of the best counters to use against Shadow Crobat:
| POKEMON | BEST MOVESET |
|---|---|
| Mewtwo | Psycho Cut (Fast Move) & Psystrike (Charged Move) |
| White Kyurem | Ice Fang (Fast Move) & Ice Burn (Charged Move) |
| Rhyperior | Smack Down (Fast Move) & Rock Wrecker (Charged Move) |
| Alakazam | Confusion (Fast Move) & Psychic (Charged Move) |
| Tyranitar | Smack Down (Fast Move) & Stone Edge (Charged Move) |
| Magnezone | Volt Switch (Fast Move) & Wild Charge (Charged Move) |
Steelix counters
Steelix is a dual Steel/Ground-type Pokemon, which means it’s weak against Fighting, Fire, Ground, and Water-type attacks. This sturdy creature also boasts a long list of resistances, including Bug, Dragon, Fairy, Flying, Normal, Psychic, Steel, Electric, Rock, and Poison-type moves.
Here are some of the best counters to take down Shadow Steelix:
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| POKEMON | BEST MOVESET |
|---|---|
| Primal Kyogre | Waterfall (Fast Move) & Origin Pulse (Charged Move) |
| Primal Groudon | Mud Shot (Fast Move) & Precipice Blades (Charged Move) |
| Lucario | Force Palm (Fast Move) & Aura Sphere (Charged Move) |
| Charizard | Fire Spin (Fast Move) & Blast Burn (Charged Move) |
| Blaziken | Fire Spin (Fast Move) & Blast Burn (Charged Move) |
| Swampert | Water Gun (Fast Move) & Hydro Cannon (Charged Move) |
Arlo Pokemon Go counters – Phase 3
Alolan Muk counters
Alolan Muk is a Poison/Dark-type Pokemon, which means it’s only weak to Ground-type attacks and resistant to Dark, Ghost, Grass, Poison, and Psychic-type moves.
Here are some of the top Shadow Alolan Muk counters you can use:
| POKEMON | BEST MOVESET |
|---|---|
| Primal Groudon | Mud Shot (Fast Move) & Precipice Blades (Charged Move) |
| Garchomp | Mud Shot (Fast Move) & Earth Power (Charged Move) |
| Excadrill | Mud-Slap (Fast Move) & Scorching Sands (Charged Move) |
| Rhyperior | Mud-Slap (Fast Move) & Earthquake (Charged Move) |
| Landorus Therian Forme | Mud Shot (Fast Move) & Sandsear Storm (Charged Move) |
| Mamoswine | Mud-Slap (Fast Move) & High Horsepower (Charged Move) |
Scizor counters
Scizor is a dual Bug/Steel-type Pokemon, which means its only weakness is Fire-type attacks. It has loads of resistance, including Bug, Dragon, Fairy, Ice, Normal, Psychic, Steel, Grass, and Poison-type moves.
Here are some of the best Shadow Scizor counters you can use:
| POKEMON | BEST MOVESET |
|---|---|
| Charizard | Fire Spin (Fast Move) & Blast Burn (Charged Move) |
| Blaziken | Fire Spin (Fast Move) & Blast Burn (Charged Move) |
| Heatran | Fire Spin (Fast Move) & Magma Storm (Charged Move) |
| Reshiram | Fire Fang (Fast Move) & Fusion Flare (Charged Move) |
| Emboar | Ember (Fast Move) & Blast Burn (Charged Move) |
| Darmanitan | Fire Fang (Fast Move) & Overheat (Charged Move) |
Alakazam counters
Alakazam is a pure Psychic-type Pokemon, which means it’s weak against Bug, Dark, and Ghost-type attacks. This powerful creature is also resistant to Fighting and Psychic-type moves.
Here are some of the best counters to take down Shadow Alakazam:
| POKEMON | BEST MOVESET |
|---|---|
| Dawn Wings Necrozma | Shadow Claw (Fast Move) & Moongeist Beam (Charged Move) |
| Tyranitar | Bite (Fast Move) & Brutal Swing (Charged Move) |
| Gengar | Lick (Fast Move) & Shadow Ball (Charged Move) |
| Houndoom | Snarl (Fast Move) & Foul Play (Charged Move) |
| Pinsir | Fury Cutter (Fast Move) & X-Scissor (Charged Move) |
| Mewtwo | Psycho Cut (Fast Move) & Shadow Ball (Charged Move) |
Pokemon Go boss guides
For more guides like this, check out our other boss guides (and bookmark them) because we update them each time their lineup changes in the game:.
- How to beat Giovanni
- How to beat Leader Sierra
- How to beat Leader Arlo
- How to beat Leader Cliff
- How to beat all Rocket Grunts
Best team to beat Arlo in Pokemon Go
One of the best teams you can take into battle against Arlo in Pokemon Go right now is the trio of Raikou, Dawn Wings Necrozma, and Primal Groudon (if you don’t have the required Primal Energy, go with their regular form.
Between them, they can take down multiple of the Leader’s lineup, depending on what you get.
- Horsea and Crobat are fairly easy Pokemon to take down, so a common Electric-type like Raikou or Magnezone will stomp them. It can also be helpful if you go up against Slowbro.
- As a powerful Ground-type, Primal Groudon (or its regular version) is the ideal Pokemon to take care of Steelix and Alolan Muk.
- For Slowbro and Alakazam, a good Dark or Ghost-type Pokemon like Dawn Wings Necrozma, Tyranitar, or Gengar will work nicely.
- The tricky addition to this team is Scizor, which is only weak to Fire-type moves. If you happen to come across one, add a Charizard or Blaziken to your team. They will also help if you have to battle Steelix.
If you’ve only got a few of the creatures on our list – or just don’t have any of our recommendations – our best advice is to take in your strongest Pokemon into battle, to have a chance of winning through sheer force. With this method, even if you lose, you’ll be able to understand Arlo’s lineup to plan a better team using the counters in this guide.
Every Arlo Shadow Boss ranked by difficulty
Ever since Arlo and Team Go Rocket joined Pokemon Go, each boss has had a wide range of party members and Shadow Boss ‘mon. Over the years there have been plenty of Pocket Monsters to fight, including tough opponents like Scizor, Charizard, Magnezone, and more.
So, considering stats, bulk, moveset, and other factors, we’ve made a handy graph explaining just how tough every single one of Arlo’s Shadow Boss Pokemon has been so far – and Registeel remains the most difficult by far:
How to find Arlo
The only way to track down Arlo is to beat at least six different Team Go Rocket Grunts and earn six different Mysterious Component parts, which combine to assemble a Rocket Radar.
- With a Rocket Radar active, when you encounter Team Go Rocket members either at Poke Stops or by clicking on a Team Go Rocket Balloon, you’ll encounter either Sierra, Cliff, or Arlo.
- Keep clicking on these encounters until you find Arlo.
- Once you’ve found his avatar, you can then battle and defeat Arlo to earn yourself a Shadow Horsea.
That’s everything you need to defeat Leader Arlo in June 2025. For more on all things Pokemon Go, check out our regularly updated Spotlight Hour, events schedule, and current Raid bosses guides. And if you’re brand new to the game, our how to play Pokemon Go guide will get you up to speed.