DEXERTOThe exciting and unique Retro Cup is returning to Pokemon Go‘s Battle League, so check out its particular set of rules as well as the best team to dominate the competition.
Besides the very well-known Great, Ultra, and Master League competitions, Niantic regularly introduces new and remixed Cups to the Battle League to offer trainers fresh challenges.
As part of the current Tales of Transformation season, the Retro Cup: Great League Edition is being celebrated, but just for one week!
This limited-time event has been described as a “throwback” competition for longtime trainers, as only the first 15 types can participate. This means Dark, Steel, and Fairy-type Pokemon cannot fight. So, here are our recommended fighters.
Best team for the Pokemon Go Retro Cup: Great League Edition
One of the best team combinations for the Retro Cup includes Regidrago, Giratina (Altered Forme), and Kingdra, as they are some of the strongest Pokemon with wide coverage.
However, as with the rest of the Go Battle League, it’s hard to say what a ‘best team’ looks like because you’ll never know what Pokemon you’re going up against. You can have a very solid team, but a lot of it comes down to type combinations.
Still, there are a few that can perform well in most situations, which we’ve listed below alongside their optimal movesets and weaknesses.
Best Pokemon for the Retro Cup: Great League Edition
Furret
DEXERTO- Fast Move: Sucker Punch
- Charged Moves: Swift and Trailblaze
- Type: Normal
- Resistances: Ghost
- Weaknesses: Fighting
The tiny Furret from Gen 2 might not seem like a threat to any League opponent. However, its very high Stamina stat and single weakness can help it survive a very long time, serving as a good switcher.
Since the addition of Swift and Trailblaze, Furret is considered a useful teammate. First, use Sucker Punch as your Fast Move to benefit from its very high damage and reduce the enemy’s HP.
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Then, set Swift as your main Charged Move, as it is incredibly spammy and cheap. Use Trailblaze as your secondary Charged Move to boost your Attack stat by 25%, expand your coverage, and sweep every opponent.
Araquanid
Niantic / The Pokemon Company- Fast Move: Bug Bite
- Charged Moves: Water Pulse and Bubble Beam
- Type: Water/Bug
- Resistances: Fighting, Ground, Ice, Steel, and Water
- Weaknesses: Electric, Flying, and Rock
Araquanid is a tanky creature that is brilliant for the Retro Cup. With resistances to both Water and Steel-types, it’s a huge threat to most of the meta.
A combination of Bug Bite as a Fast Move and Bubble Beam as a primary Charged Move to decrease your opponent’s Attack stat by 20% is the way to exploit this spider. Throw in the low-cost Water Pulse for extra (and cheap) Water-type damage.
Dusknoir (Shadow)
NIANTIC- Fast Move: Astonish
- Charged Moves: Shadow Punch and Dynamic Punch
- Type: Ghost
- Resistances: Normal, Fighting, Poison, and Bug
- Weaknesses: Dark and Ghost
This Pokemon works best as the lead or charger of a team. Plus, it has the necessary Defense to stand its ground while dealing good damage.
Astonish is a very spammy move that will allow it to access its Charged Moves fast while also getting rid of the opponent’s shields. The key to Dusknoir making it into the League is mainly because of Shadow Punch, an excellent Ghost-type move, and Dynamic Punch, a Fighting-type attack that expands its coverage.
Gyarados (Shadow)
Niantic / The Pokemon Company- Fast Move: Dragon Breath
- Charged Moves: Aqua Tail and Crunch
- Type: Water/Flying
- Resistances: Ground, Bug, Fighting, Fire, Steel, Water
- Weaknesses: Electric and Rock
The tried and true Gyarados is a strong contender in the Master Premier League thanks to its versatile moveset, which can take down Rhyperior, Dragonite, and even Feraligatr.
Its move pool includes fantastic Water, Dark, and Dragon-type attacks. However, due to its regular Defense stat, you might want to save a shield to protect Gyarados from an incoming attack.
Use Dragon Breath as a Fast Move to take advantage of its high damage and decent energy generation. Pair it with a cheap Charged Move like Aqua Tail to get rid of your opponent’s shields. You can add Crunch as a secondary Charged Move to expand Gyarados’s coverage.
Galarian Corsola
NIANTIC/DEXERTO- Fast Move: Astonish
- Charged Moves: Night Shade and Power Gem
- Type: Ghost
- Resistances: Normal, Fighting, Poison, and Bug
- Weaknesses: Dark and Ghost
Since its debut, Galarian Corsola has climbed the PvP ranks on the Battle League thanks to its bulkiness and strong moveset, which benefits from STAB.
Tackle is a really bad option, so pick Astonish for your Fast Move, as it is the only Ghost-type attack and has great synergy with Night Shade.
Night Shade is a very cheap Charged Move with decent damage per energy, so go with it. Complement it with Power Gem, as it will expand your coverage, thanks to its affordability.
Aurorus
NIANTIC- Fast Move: Powder Snow
- Charged Moves: Weather Ball (Ice) and Meteor Beam
- Type: Rock/Ice
- Resistances: Poison, Normal, Ice, and Flying
- Weaknesses: Fighting, Steel, Grass, Ground, Rock, and Water
Aurorus made it to the list mainly because of its outstanding Stamina (214) and Ice typing, which is offensively valuable as it hits a specific niche.
This dual Rock/Ice-type Pokemon works ideally as a lead as it can push the enemy shields with its spammy Fast Move Powder Snow and then devastate them with Weather Ball or the nuke Meteor Beam, depending on the coverage.
Dragonair (Shadow)
Niantic / The Pokemon Company- Fast Move: Dragon Breath
- Charged Moves: Aqua Tail and Dragon Pulse
- Type: Dragon
- Resistances: Electric, Fire, Grass, and Water
- Weaknesses: Dragon, Fairy, and Ice
Although Dragonite can be eligible for the Retro Cup if its CP is low enough, the best Dragon-type Pokemon to use here is actually its pre-evolution, Dragonair, which is great news for trainers on a budget, as it’s a lot cheaper to evolve.
Dragon Breath is a brilliant Fast Move, with good STAB damage and energy generation. As for Charged Moves, go with Aqua Tail for a low-cost option to bait shields, followed up with Dragon Pulse for some huge damage potential.
Players can also switch Dragon Pulse for Wrap to decrease the target’s Defense stat by 20%.
Altaria
Niantic / The Pokemon Company- Fast Move: Dragon Breath
- Charged Moves: Sky Attack and Dragon Pulse
- Type: Dragon/Flying
- Resistances: Fighting, Water, Bug, Fire, Grass, and Ground
- Weaknesses: Ice, Fairy, Dragon, and Rock
Altaria is one of the most time-consuming evolutions in Pokemon Go, as it costs a whopping 400 Candy, and its pre-evolution, Swablu, isn’t exactly a common spawn. But if you’re lucky enough to have one under 1500 CP, you should definitely consider giving it a spot on your Cup team.
When it comes to Altaria’s moveset, you’ll want Dragon Breath as a Fast Move for its big damage potential, followed up with Sky Attack as a low-cost shield-baiting Charged Move. Add Dragon Pulse as your secondary Charged Move to deal massive Dragon-type damage for very little energy.
Lapras
DEXERTO- Fast Move: Psywave
- Charged Moves: Sparkling Aria and Ice Beam
- Type: Water/Ice
- Resistances: Ice and Water
- Weaknesses: Electric, Fighting, Grass, and Rock
Besides its great bulk, Lapras has an impressive move pool, with four Fast Moves and seven Charged Moves to pick from.
Even though focusing only on Water and Ice moves to benefit from STAB would be the logical thing to do, for the Fast Move, it is best to go with Psywave. It offers the most energy generation out of all the options, and it expands Lapras’s coverage.
Skull Bash, Blizzard, and Hydro Pump are quite expensive moves, and with a few other options available, they are just not worth it. Instead, use Sparkling Aria for a solid Charged Move with STAB. It costs the same as Surf but does five more damage.
As for the secondary Charged Move, Ice Beam will offer more coverage against Grass, Dragon, and Flying opponents while also benefiting from STAB.
Oranguru
DEXERTO- Fast Move: Confusion
- Charged Moves: Brutal Swing and Trailblaze
- Type: Normal/Psychic
- Resistances: Psychic and Ghost
- Weaknesses: Bug and Dark
Dual Normal/Psychic-type Oranguru might not be the first Pokemon that comes to mind when thinking about great fighters for the Go Battle League.
However, thanks to its type combination, coverage, bulkiness, and spammy moves, Oranguru earned a solid place on our list.
While all of its Fast Moves benefit from STAB, Zen Headbutt and Yawn are really low-quality options, so go with Confusion for good damage output. Then, for the Charged Moves, use Trailblaze to increase your Attack stat by 25% and then hit hard with Brutal Swing.
Crustle
Niantic / The Pokemon Company- Fast Move: Fury Cutter
- Charged Moves: X-Scissor and Rock Wrecker
- Type: Bug/Rock
- Resistances: Normal and Poison
- Weaknesses: Rock, Steel, and Water
Crustle has never been a PvP star in Pokemon Go, but the new meta and the addition of Rock Wrecker to its move pool allowed it to rise in the Retro Cup.
Fury Cutter is the optimal Fast Move for energy generation. Then, with a combination of X-Scissor (used to bait enemy shields) and Rock Wrecker (strong and very cheap) as Charged Moves, Crustle will be able to take down plenty of the cup’s biggest players like Oranguru and Altaria with no problem at all.
Kommo-o
DEXERTO- Fast Move: Dragon Tail
- Charged Moves: Clanging Scales and Upper Hand
- Type: Dragon/Fighting
- Resistances: Water, Rock, Grass, Fire, Electric, Dark, and Bug
- Weaknesses: Fairy, Dragon, Flying, Ice, and Psychic
The mighty Kommo-o is a solid option for the Retro Cup due to its decent overall stats and spammy moves.
Between its two Fast Moves, going with Dragon Tail is the obvious choice, as it is the one that benefits from STAB and has very strong damage output and good energy generation.
For the Charged Moves, Clanging Scales is one of the cheapest attacks, and even though it is slower than other options, it can deal massive damage. Then, you can use Upper Hand to deal even more damage for very low energy. Plus, both benefit from STAB, so Kommo-o will hit harder.
Kingdra
DEXERTO- Fast Move: Dragon Breath
- Charged Moves: Swift and Outrage
- Type: Water/Dragon
- Resistances: Fire, Water, and Steel
- Weaknesses: Dragon and Fairy
Kingdra has really well-balanced stats, a good move pool, but mainly has a great type combination that leaves it with few weaknesses (not very used in the current meta) and can key resistances that are actually being exploited this season.
Drago Breath is the best Fast Move for Kingdra as it benefits from STAB, is fast, and strong. Pair it with Swift as the Charged Move to expand your coverage and bait enemy shields. Then, add the nuke Outrage as your secondary Charged Move to deal massive Dragon-type damage at a very low cost.
Giratina Altered Forme (Shadow)
DEXERTO- Fast Move: Dragon Breath
- Charged Moves: Dragon Claw and Ancient Power
- Type: Ghost/Dragon
- Resistances: Normal, Fighting, Bug, Electric, Fire, Grass, Poison, and Water
- Weaknesses: Dark, Dragon, Fairy, Ghost, and Ice
The bulky and devastating Giratina (Altered Forme) is the ultimate choice in the Retro Cup since it recently got its Shadow version. It does have quite a few powerful counters, but if you can avoid them, it will have no problem taking down the majority of the Go Pokedex.
Drago Breath has a good balance of damage and energy gain, so opt for that as your Fast Move. Dragon Claw is the superior Charged Move, as it has STAB and can be spammed, while Ancient Power has a 10% chance of boosting your Attack or Defense stat by 25%.
Regidrago
DEXERTO- Fast Move: Dragon Breath
- Charged Moves: Dragon Energy and Hyper Beam
- Type: Dragon
- Resistances: Electric, Fire, Grass, and Water
- Weaknesses: Dragon, Fairy, and Ice
The Legendary Regidrago might be a tad hard to get, but those who have one can exploit its good Attack stat, massive Stamina, and powerful Dragon-type moveset in the Battle League.
Go with Dragon Breath (multipurpose) and Dragon Energy (cheap and incredibly strong) for a powerful Dragon-type moveset that benefits from STAB. Then add the nuke Hyper Beam as a secondary Charged Move for more coverage.
Pokemon Go Retro Cup rules & restrictions explained
The Retro Cup is one of the most unique challenges in the Go Battle League, as all Pokemon at or below 1,500 CP can enter.
Moreover, Dark, Steel, and Fairy types are banned from the competition, as this is a “Retro” tournament where only the original 15 Pokemon types can participate.
Retro Cup: Great League Edition start & end date
The latest Pokemon Go Battle League season will run from September 2, 2025, until December 2, 2025.
During those three months, the Retro Cup will run from September 2, 2025, until September 9, 2025, along with the regular Great League.
This means you’ll have just one week to dominate this Go Battle League cup and work your way to the top.
Those are the best Pokemon you can add to your Retro Cup: Great League Edition 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.