Countering Drapion in Pokemon GO

The release of Pokemon GO's Halloween Cup has given a lot of Pokemon who have gone overlooked a chance in the spotlight. The restrictions of only Pokemon under 1,500 combat power as well as only allowing Bug, Poison, Dark, Ghost, and Fairy type Pokemon to compete, takes the current meta and spins it on its head.

One of these Pokemon to be given a second chance in the current seasonal metagame is Drapion. This menacing scorpion Pokemon made its debut in Pokemon Diamond and Pearl on the team of the Elite Four member Aaron.

With its presence in the new metagame that is Pokemon GO's Halloween Cup, players may be at a loss as to how to counter this terrifying Pokemon with the limited pool of Pokemon they have to choose from.

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Best Counters for Drapion in Pokemon GO

Drapion as it appears in the anime (Image via The Pokemon Company)

Drapion owes its strong presence to its great defensive typing of Poison and Dark. Even outside the restrictive Halloween Cup Poison and Dark can be one of the most difficult types to counter in Pokemon GO due to it only being weak to Ground type attacks.

Drapion's stat spread in Pokemon GO also grant it very bulky defensive prowess with a sturdy defense stat of 202 and a stamina stat of 172. Drapion also has access to powerful Poison and Dark type attacks like Crunch and Sludge Bomb for charged attacks and Poison Sting and Bite for fast attacks which come off of an attack stat of 180.

Halloween Cup is also set up in a very particular way as to allow these types of Pokemon like Drapion and Skuntank to have almost full control over the tier due to a distinct lack of many Ground type Pokemon. This allows these Pokemon to run free and dominate Halloween Cup as their defensive stats paired with their lack of weaknesses makes them almost undefeatable.

There are a few distinct weaknesses with Drapion that a prepared player can easily take advantage of. Drapion's below average stamina stat can leave it open to powerful charged attacks as well as chip damage from any fast attack.

Alolan Marowak is a great Pokemon to use as it has access to the Ground type attack Bone Club which hits Drapion super effectively. Nidoking and Nidoqueen are also one of the few Ground type Pokemon to be in the tier. With their access to Earth Power, they can make quick work of Drapion. Krookodile and Golurk also make an appearance in Pokemon GO's Halloween Cup and have access to powerful Ground type charged attacks.

Drapion may appear unstoppable to many Pokemon GO players, especially those who are unprepared. In reality, for players who analyze the Halloween Cup and look at all of the Pokemon eligible for it, Drapion's many counters become very apparent.