Pokemon GO Blacephalon raid guide: Weaknesses and best counters

Modified Apr 09, 2025 13:33 GMT

A comprehensive Pokemon GO Blacephalon raid guide will help you overcome this Fire- and Ghost-type beast. It will be available in 5-star raids from April 9 - 21, 2025, exclusively in the Western Hemisphere. It will also have Raid Hours in the Western Hemisphere on April 9 and 16, 2025.

Blacephalon debuted in Niantic's mobile game during the Ultra Space Wonders event on May 23, 2024. Blacephalon is an extreme glass cannon. That is, although it hits hard, it can barely take hits. This Pokemon GO Blacephalon raid guide covers everything you need to know about defeating it.

Pokemon GO Blacephalon raid weaknesses

As a Fire- and Ghost-type Pocket Monster, this Ultra Beast is vulnerable to the following elemental typings:

Check out the current Pokemon GO raid bosses that you can encounter in-game

Water (160% increased damage)
Ground (160% increased damage)
Rock (160% increased damage)
Ghost (160% increased damage)
Dark (160% increased damage)

Learn more about Blacephalon's weaknesses and resistances using our Pokemon type calculator.

Blacephalon in the anime (Image via TPC)

Blacephalon's stat distribution and moveset in Pokemon GO

As a 5-star raid boss in Pokemon GO, Blacephalon has the following stats:

Combat Power: 51,600
Attack: 315
Defense: 148
Stamina: 15,000 HP
Fast Attacks: Astonish and Incinerate
Charged Attacks: Mystical Fire, Overheat, and Shadow Ball

Best counters to Pokemon GO Blacephalon raids

Best Water-type counters to Blacephalon

Pokemon	Fast Move	Charged Move
Primal/Shadow Kyogre	Waterfall	Origin Pulse
Mega Swampert	Water Gun	Hydro Cannon
Shadow Kingler	Bubble	Crabhammer
Greninja	Water Shuriken	Hydro Cannon

Best Ground-type counters to Blacephalon

Pokemon	Fast Move	Charged Move
Primal/Regular Groudon	Mud Shot	Precipice Blades
Mega/Shadow Garchomp	Mud Shot	Earth Power
Shadow Excadrill	Mud Slap	Scorching Sands
Shadow Ursaluna	Tackle	High Horsepower

Also read: Which is the best Paldean Tauros Breed in Pokemon GO?

Best Rock-type counters to Blacephalon

Pokemon	Fast Move	Charged Move
Shadow Rhyperior	Smack Down	Rock Wrecker
Mega Diancie	Rock Throw	Rock Slide
Shadow Rampardos	Smack Down	Rock Slide
Shadow/Mega Tyranitar	Smack Down	Stone Edge
Tyrantrum	Rock Throw	Meteor Beam

Best Ghost-type counters to Blacephalon

Pokemon	Fast Move	Charged Move
Dawn Wings Necrozma	Shadow Claw	Moongeist Beam
Mega Gengar	Shadow Claw	Shadow Ball
Mega Banette	Shadow Claw	Shadow Ball
Shadow/Regular Chandelure	Hex	Shadow Ball

Best Dark-type counters to Blacephalon

Pokemon	Fast Move	Charged Move
Mega/Shadow Tyranitar	Bite	Brutal Swing
Mega Houndoom	Snarl	Foul Play
Hydreigon	Bite	Brutal Swing
Darkrai	Snarl	Dark Pulse

Also read: Pokemon GO Spring into Spring event overview

Pokemon GO Blacephalon raid catch CP and shiny availability

Shiny Blacephalon cannot yet be found via Pokemon GO Blacephalon raids (Image via TPC)

Here are Blacephelon's potential catch CP ranges, depending on the weather:

No weather boost: 1,797 - 1,884 CP at level 20 (10/10/10 - 15/15/15 IVs)
Weather boosted (Foggy or Sunny): 2,246 - 2,355 CP at level 25 (10/10/10 - 15/15/15 IVs)

Also read: Dynamax Attackers tier list in Pokemon GO

What are the 100% IV CPs for Blacephalon raids?

No weather boost: 1,884 CP
Weather boosted (Foggy or Sunny): 2,355 CP

Can Blacephalon be shiny in Pokemon GO?

Blacephalon makes its shiny debut on April 9, 2025. Every encounter with it, going forward will have a 1-in-20 or 5% chance of being shiny.

In other news, the details of the Pokemon GO Fest 2025 have been announced.

Check out our other Pokemon GO guides:

About the author

Raunak joined Sportskeeda as a gaming journalist just about a year ago, and he already has 1K+ stories and over 4 million reads to his name. The Pokémon franchise is his chosen specialization, but he also covers Call of Duty, mobile games, MMOs, and esports tournaments.

Raunak completed his Bachelor's in Microbiology and Master's in Biotechnology but could not ultimately resist the beckoning of the video game industry. Having always had a knack for gaming, he had faith that he could write about them too. To ensure accuracy and relevancy, Raunak relies on his first-hand gameplay experiences and researches via reading articles and watching YouTube videos.

Project IGI was Raunak's gateway into video games, and he has been hooked ever since. He loves to play multiplayer titles with his friends but has been enjoying single-player indie horror games a lot lately. He would recommend horror and open-world adventure titles to gaming skeptics, as both these genres tap into the human desire to feel something in the presence of art.

In his spare time, Raunak engages in music production; he plays both guitar and piano.

Know More

🚨 Calculate the Pokemon type effectiveness to win battles with our newly launched Pokemon GO Type Calculator 🚨

Edited by Adarsh J Kumar