Is Ampharos with Dragon Pulse good in Pokemon GO PvP?

The Mareep Community Day Classic is here, and it has brought with it a wave of nostalgia and excitement for Pokemon GO players. The original Mareep Community Day took place in 2018 when the shiny variant of this critter and its evolved forms were released. Ampharos also received the Legacy Move Dragon Pulse during this event.

On November 25, 2023, between 2 pm and 5 pm local time, Mareep will be spawning in large numbers in the wild. Evolving Flaaffy during this time and up to three hours after the event will give you an Ampharos that knows Dragon Pulse. This article will give an overview of Dragon Pulse Ampharos' viability from a Pokemon GO PvP perspective.

Note: Some parts of this article are subjective and reflect the writer's opinions.

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Is Dragon Pulse Ampharos worth using in Pokemon GO Battle League?

Ampharos has one of the widest range of Charged Attack options in Pokemon GO, which includes the following moves:

• Zap Cannon - 150 damage - 80 energy - 1.87 DPE
• Focus Blast - 150 damage - 75 energy - 2 DPE
• Thunder - 100 damage - 60 energy - 1.66 DPE
• Power Gem - 80 damage - 60 energy - 1.33 DPE
• Thunder Punch - 55 damage - 40 energy - 1.37 DPE
• Brutal Swing - 65 damage - 40 energy - 1.62 DPE
• Trailblaze - 65 damage - 50 energy - 1.3 DPE
• Dragon Pulse* - 90 damage - 60 energy - 1.5 DPE

Dragon Pulse has one of the highest energy requirements and lowest damage-to-energy ratios among Ampharos' available Charged attacks.

While Ampharos doesn't have excellent results in any of the main Pokemon GO Battle League formats anyway, its performance falls when it uses the Dragon Pulse.

In the Great League, the recommended Charged Attacks for the Light Pokemon are Thunder Punch and Trailblaze. If you replace the latter with Dragon Pulse, Ampharos goes from winning 17 out of 42 matches to winning only 14 with both shields in play. A similar performance downgrade applies to all even shield situations.

In the Ultra League, Brutal Swing and Trailblaze is Ampharos' go-to moveset. Replacing either with Dragon Pulse leads to worse performance. With two shields in play, Ampharos wins 17 of 49 matchups against the Ultra League meta with the best moveset.

Replacing even one move leads to the number of wins falling to 15. The lower the number of shields on each side, the steeper the distinction between the preferred moveset and the ones with Dragon Pulse.

Ampharos has terrible results in Pokemon GO Battle League's Master League unless it has a two-shield advantage. If you are able to set it up with such a scenario by pairing it with extremely tanky Pokemon, Ampharos with Brutal Swing and Dragon Pulse can go 25-11-0 against the Master League meta.

The use of Dragon Pulse Ampharos is extremely limited. While you can add one to your collection for the sake of it, it is by no means a priority.

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How to get an Ampharos that knows Dragon Pulse in Pokemon GO

Evolve Flaaffy during the Mareep Community Day Classic or up to three hours after to get an Ampharos that knows Dragon Pulse. Alternatively, you can use an Elite Charged TM to teach it this move. The latter, however, is not recommended at all.

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Check out the best Mareep IVs to look out for during this event and more in our Community Day PvP and PvE guide.