The Master League, Pokemon Go’s hardest PvP competition, is brimming with Legendaries and extraordinary creatures, so here are the ones you should use to build the best team in the Battle League.
The latest Delightful Days season changed the Battle League’s meta, forcing players who want to rise to the top of the ranks to rebuild their best teams.
Unlike the Great and Ultra tiers, the Master League has no CP cap, which means any Pokemon – including the mighty Legendaries – can compete.
Given that there are over 60 Legendary creatures in Niantic’s game, here are the ones you should consider, including some other incredible fighters.
Best team for the Pokemon Go Master League
Currently, the best team that trainers can use in the Great League includes Crowned Sword Zacian, Origin Forme Palkia, and Landorus Therian Forme, as these are three of the strongest fighters, and they all offer good coverage against most of the major Great League opponents.
| POKEMON | FAST MOVE | CHARGED MOVES | TYPE | RESISTANCES | WEAKNESSES | ALTERNATIVES |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crowned Sword Zacian | Metal Claw | Close Combat & Behemoth Bash | Fairy/Steel | Dragon, Bug, Rock, Psychic, Poison, Normal, Ice, Grass, Flying, Fairy, and Dark | Fire and Ground | Xerneas / Crowned Shield Zamazenta |
| Origin Forme Palkia | Dragon Breath | Aqua Tail & Spacial Rend | Water/Dragon | Water, Fire, and Steel | Dragon and Fairy | Gyarados / Dragonite |
| Landorus Therian Forme | Mud Shot | Sandsear Storm & Stone Edge | Ground/Flying | Ground, Poison, Fighting, Electric, and Bug | Ice and Water | Groudon / Swampert |
Zacian’s Crowned Sword is considered almost unstoppable due to having the highest CP, plenty of resistances, an outstading Attack stat, and an incredibly powerful move pool.
As a Fast Move, Metal Claw is just average, but has good energy generation and benefits from STAB. This will allow players to reach the signature move Behemoth Blade, which is cheap and ridiculously strong. Those who can afford a secondary Charged Move can add Close Combat to expand the coverage and deal even faster, high damage.
Palkia Origin Forme has incredible Defense and HP and an outstanding Attack stat. This creature is a charger that works perfectly for leading or closing a battle, thanks to its powerful moveset.
Dragon Breath is stronger than Dragon Tail, so go with it as a Fast Move. For Charged Moves, similar to Dialga Origin Forme, its signature move Spacial Rend is the ultimate attack to use, while also using Aqua Tail to spam.
Even though it’s not as bulky as other Ground-type Pokemon, Landorus Therian Forme has good coverage against a wide variety of types. Plus, it can access its Charged Moves quickly, which pressures opponents to waste their shields.
As with Groudon, the Fast Move Mud Shot will let you access the Charged Moves quickly, thanks to its brilliant energy generation. Even though Sandsear Storm requires an Elite TM, it’s worth it thanks to its debuff, while Stone Edge works as a powerful coverage nuke.
If you don’t have access to either of those three Pokemon or you come across an opponent that targets your team’s weaknesses, we have a long list of other powerful creatures that can help you dominate the Great League.
Best Pokemon for Pokemon Go Master League
Tapu Lele
- Fast Move: Astonish
- Charged Moves: Psyshock and Nature’s Madness
- Type: Psychic/Fairy
- Resistances: Fighting, Dragon, and Psychic
- Weaknesses: Ghost, Poison, and Steel
Tapu Lele’s type combination and varied move pool make it one top Fairy-type Pokemon, though if you’re going to use this Legendary, you must take into consideration that it is kind of fragile.
Astonish is by far the best option for a Fast Move, as it has been getting constant buffs and is currently a top attack in the game. It has high damage while also boasting good energy generation.
For the Charged Move, go with Tapu Lele’s signature move – Nature’s Madness – as it deals good Fairy-type damage for a fair cost. For the secondary option, use its cheapest attack, Psyshock. This way, Tapu Lele has Ghost, Fairy, and Psychic coverage.
Meloetta (Aria Forme)
- Fast Move: Quick Attack
- Charged Moves: Psyshock and Dazzling Gleam
- Type: Normal/Psychic
- Resistances: Ghost and Psychic
- Weaknesses: Bug and Dark
Since its addition to the game, Meloetta has been ruling the Master League due to its strong resistances, extreme bulkiness, and the shield pressure extortion it exerts.
This Pokemon happens to be one of the few that can take down champions like Zacian, Palkia, and Kyurem, so take this under consideration when you build your team.
For its moveset, Quick Attack has fast charge, which means Meloetta will reach its Charged Moves sooner. As for those, go with the well-rounded and cheap Psyshock. Pair it with Dazzling Gleam, a powerful coverage nuke that gives you the upper hand against Dark-type Pokemon, one of Meleotta’s weaknesses.
Dusk Mane Necrozma
- Fast Move: Shadow Claw
- Charged Moves: Sunsteel Strike and Dark Pulse
- Type: Psychic/Steel
- Resistances: Psychic, Poison, Steel, Rock, Normal, Ice, Grass, Flying, Fairy, and Dragon
- Weaknesses: Dark, Fire, Ghost, and Ground
Dusk Mane Necrozma’s dual Psychic/Steel type combination offers plenty of resistances to exploit in the Master League, as this Pokemon can take hits from fan favorites Zacian, Xerneas, Palkia, and Dialga.
This strong attacker checks all the boxes a player needs to add a Pokemon to their team as Dusk Mane Necrozma is both bulky and strong, with a great move pool that can benefit from STAB and force opponents to use their shields early.
As for the moves per se, Shadow Claw offers coverage, hits hard, and helps access the Charged Moves quickly. Sunsteel Strike is its signature move, and it’s a powerful Steel-type nuke, while Dark Pulse is another strong move that offers even more coverage.
Urshifu (Single Strike Style)
- Fast Move: Sucker Punch
- Charged Moves: Dynamic Punch and Payback
- Type: Fighting/Dark
- Resistances: Dark, Rock, Psychic, and Ghost
- Weaknesses: Fairy, Fighting, and Flying
The moment Urshifu made its Pokemon Go debut, it quickly climbed the Master League ranks. However, not both forms. Because there are already many established Water-type Pokemon in the current meta, only Urshifu Single Strike Style has managed to establish itself as a top choice.
Urshifu Single Strike Style might be very similar to Pangoro, but with the addition that it can take down Master League rulers: Black Kyurem, both Palkia formes, Dusk Mane Necrozma, and many more.
For this newcomer to work, players have to use Sucker Punch as its Fast Move, as it provides higher energy generation than Counter. Then, set Dynamic Punch for a wider coverage, high DPE, and low cost, and if you can afford a secondary Charged Move, go with Payback. It might be expensive, but it’s worth it if you want to take down Ghost and Psychic-type opponents. Plus, all of them benefit from STAB.
Ho-Oh
- Fast Move: Incinerate
- Charged Moves: Brave Bird and Sacred Fire
- Type: Fire/Flying
- Resistances: Ground, Fighting, Steel, Fire, Fairy, Bug, and Grass
- Weaknesses: Rock, Water, and Electric
The always beautiful Ho-Oh is one of the most balanced Pokemon in the Master League, as it is as bulky as it is powerful.
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Its Fast Move Incinerate deals a lot of damage, but its Ho-Oh’s Charged Moves the extremely amazing ones, as both are considered to be some of the strongest moves in the whole game. Plus, Sacred Fire has a 50% chance to debuff the enemy’s Attack stat.
Lunala
- Fast Move: Shadow Claw
- Charged Moves: Shadow Ball and Moonblast
- Type: Psychic/Ghost
- Resistances: Fighting, Normal, Psychic, and Poison
- Weaknesses: Dark and Ghost
Gen 7’s Legendary, Lunala, is an incredibly powerful addition to any Go Battle team, as it is extremely bulky. But that’s not all, as it has a very high Attack stat as well as a strong and versatile move pool to deal plenty of damage.
Teach the Moone Pokemon Shadow Claw as its Fast Move for energy generation. Lunala recently gained access to it, and thanks to that, it can reach its expensive Charged Moves earlier. Mooblast is a nuke that also decreases the target’s Attack stat by 20%, while Shadow Ball has high power.
The whole moveset benefits from STAB. Plus, it offers the Legendary near flawless coverage.
Zygarde (Complete Forme)
- Fast Move: Dragon Tail
- Charged Moves: Crunch and Earthquake
- Type: Dragon/Ground
- Resistances: Poison, Rock, Fire, and Electric
- Weaknesses: Ice, Dragon, and Fairy
With a super bulky HP stat and a great balance between resistance and damage, Zygarde is one of the most desirable creatures in Pokemon Go since it debuted in July 2023.
Not only is this Pokemon incredibly difficult to take down, but it is the perfect counter for the many Dragon-type creatures going around this rank, as well as others like Giratina, Dusk Mane Necrozma, and Mewtwo.
More so, its ideal moveset deals plenty of damage with both Dragon Tail and Earthquake, while Crunch can help with your strategy as it baits shields.
Groudon
- Fast Move: Mud Shot
- Charged Moves: Precipice Blades and Fire Punch
- Type: Ground
- Resistances: Electric, Poison, and Rock
- Weaknesses: Grass, Ice, and Water
Groudon is a brilliant addition to any team in the Master League, thanks to its impressive bulk and a great STAB moveset. But it excels because of its ability to destroy Steel-types like the omnipresent Dialga (either form) and others, including Metagross and Melmetal.
Make sure Groudon has Mud Shot as its Fast Move, as it has brilliant energy generation that will let you access two strong Charged Moves: Fire Punch and Precipice Blades. Both require an Elite TM, but it’s worth it for the low cost, strong power, and shield-baiting potential.
Dawn Wings Necrozma
- Fast Move: Shadow Claw
- Charged Moves: Moongeist Beam and Dark Pulse
- Type: Psychic/Ghost
- Resistances: Fighting, Normal, Psychic, and Poison
- Weaknesses: Dark and Ghost
As soon as it debuted, Dawn Wings Necrozma took a spot in the top 10 due to its Psychic/Ghost-type combination, which gives it key resistances to the many Psychic Pokemon on the Master League ranking.
Dawn Wings Necrozma is a bulky creature that can be used as a lead or charger, as it excels at pressuring opponents to waste their shields early on, thanks to its strong and rapid attack, Shadow Claw.
For the Charged Moves, its signature attack, Moongesit Beam, is a wonderful nuke, while Dark Pulse gives it wider coverage.
Black Kyurem
- Fast Move: Shadow Claw
- Charged Moves: Freeze Shock and Fusion Bolt
- Type: Dragon/Ice
- Resistances: Water, Grass, and Electric
- Weaknesses: Dragon, Fairy, Fighting, Rock, and Steel
Black Kyurem is one of the most powerful creatures in Pokemon Go, which is why it has taken the Master League by surprise with its dual Dragon/Ice typing.
This Legendary is a great attacker and, due to its other solid stats, can perform well in any position – lead, switch, or closer.
Shadow Claw has high energy generation, so you’ll reach your Charged Moves early on. As for the Charged Moves, Fusion Bolt is the cheapest choice, and it widens Black Kyurem’s coverage. Freeze Shock, on the other hand, is an outstanding nuke.
Solgaleo
- Fast Move: Fire Spin
- Charged Moves: Psychic Fangs and Iron Head
- Type: Psychic/Steel
- Resistances: Normal, Flying, Rock, Steel, Grass, Ice, Dragon, Fairy, Poison, and Psychic
- Weaknesses: Ground, Ghost, Fire, and Dark
As a half-Steel-type Pokemon, Solgaleo has a huge amount of type resistances that combine well with its extreme bulk and varied move pool to make it very difficult to take down.
It’s also one incredible counter for Xerneas, Black Kyurem, Dialga, and even Zacian, which is something every Master League team needs.
Solgaleo’s Fast Moves are not that great, but Fire Spin can help expand the coverage and has superior energy gain. As for the Charged Moves, Psychic Fangs is very spammable and can be used to bait shields, while Iron Head can be used to counter Zacian.
Crowned Shield Zamazenta
- Fast Move: Metal Claw
- Charged Moves: Close Combat and Behemoth Bash
- Type: Fighting/Steel
- Resistances: Rock, Poison, Bug, Steel, Normal, Ice, Grass, Dragon, and Dark
- Weaknesses: Fighting, Fire, and Ground
Since they were added to the franchise, Zamazenta has always fallen short compared to Zacian. And while that is still the case in the Go Battle League, the gap between them is smaller than ever.
Crowned Shield Zamazenta has an incredible total damage output thanks to its signature move, Behemoth Bash, and can stand strong in battle due to its massive Defense stat. Plus, it benefits from a good amount of resistances and just needs to look out for three weaknesses.
Similar to its counterpart – Zacian – the best moveset for PvP consists of Metal Claw (for high energy generation), Close Combat (cheap move with good coverage), and Behemoth Bash (cheap signature move with outstanding damage). Plus, they all benefit from STAB.
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Pokemon Go Master League start & end date
The latest Battle League season is underway, running from June 3, 2025, until September 2, 2025. For the rest of its run, the Master League will appear on:
- June 25 – July 1 (along with the Great and Ultra Leagues)
- July 15 – July 22 (along with the Sunshine Cup: Great League Edition)
- July 22 – July 29 (along with the Great and Ultra Leagues)
- August 12 – August 19 (along with the Great and Ultra Leagues)
- August 19 – August 26 (along with the Catch Cup: Great League Edition)
- August 26 – September 2 (along with the Great and Ultra Leagues)
Every Master League week will offer x4 Stardust from win rewards.
Those are the best Pokemon you can use to build your Master League team during this Pokemon Go season. For more content, check our guide with the Battle League schedule and rewards, as well as all the best attackers, defenders, and PvP champions.