Pokemon GO Poliwrath raid (December 2022): Best counters, weaknesses, and more

Pokemon GO's Mythic Blade event will be underway on December 6, 2022, and Poliwrath will emerge as a 3-star raid boss. This presents an excellent opportunity for trainers to capture the fully-evolved creature without first powering up and evolving a Poliwag/Poliwhirl.

As a 3-star raid boss, Poliwrath will receive a substantial boost to its CP and combat capabilities compared to lower-ranking 1-star bosses. With this in mind, trainers will want to assemble a decent battle team to take advantage of the Pokemon's weaknesses.

Players will want to deal as much damage as they can and leave as much time left on the raid clock as possible. Doing so will yield higher rewards, which is certainly a goal worth shooting for.

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Poliwrath takes super-effective damage from Grass, Electric, Fairy, Flying, and Psychic moves in Pokemon GO

Grass-types like Kartana can perform well against Poliwrath in Pokemon GO (Image via Niantic)

In Pokemon GO, Poliwrath takes super-effective damage from Grass, Electric, Fairy, Flying, and Psychic moves. If a trainer uses Pokemon that match these move types, they'll also be able to take advantage of the game's Same Type Attack Bonus (STAB) to increase their damage output even further.

With more damage being dealt to Poliwrath, the boss will faint sooner, and better rewards can be gained as a result.

Top Pokemon counters against Poliwrath

• Mewtwo
• Hoopa
• Kartana
• Xurkitree
• Lunala
• Zekrom
• Galarian Articuno
• Thundurus
• Zarude
• Deoxys
• Alakazam
• Tapu Lele
• Espeon
• Azelf
• Latios
• Raikou
• Gardveoir
• Metagross
• Roserade
• Rayquaza
• Exeggutor
• Latias
• Tapu Bulu

Top move counters against Poliwrath

• Confusion
• Razor Leaf
• Thunder Shock
• Charge Beam
• Psycho Cut
• Volt Switch
• Wing Attack
• Vine Whip
• Zen Headbutt
• Air Slash
• Extrasensory
• Bullet Seed
• Psystrike
• Psychic
• Leaf Blade
• Power Whip
• Wild Charge
• Brave Bird
• Thunderbolt
• Sky Attack
• Zap Cannon
• Future Sight
• Grass Knot
• Hurricane

In addition to picking the right team to counter Poliwrath, Pokemon GO players may want to bring along a few fellow trainers into the raid. This will help speed up the process of defeating Poliwrath, allowing players to collect their rewards and move on to other activities.

Retrying the raid is also a good idea. Defeating Poliwrath multiple times may yield the opportunity to capture one with great IV stats or moves. Unfortunately, trainers won't be able to receive a shiny Poliwrath at the moment, as it is yet to be included in the popular mobile title.

As preparation for trainers who may not have the best Pokemon to counter Poliwrath, it's also a good idea to stock up on healing items like Potions and Revives.

As an empowered raid boss in Pokemon GO, Poliwrath can deal some serious damage on its own, and it can sometimes cause members of your battle party to faint. Using Revives and Potions will ensure that your best Pokemon won't stay out of the fight for long and can get back into the thick of things with minimal time lost on the raid clock.

In addition to Poliwrath, Pokemon GO trainers can take on a plethora of different raid bosses during the Mythic Blade event. This includes the likes of Aerodactyl, Terrakion, Virizion, and Mega Aggron.