Pokemon Go Xurkitree raid guide (November 2022): Best counters, weaknesses, and more

The latest event to arrive in Pokemon GO is the new Ultra Beast Arrival event. Players will face various Ultra Beasts in challenging Raid Battles alongside other trainers. One of these creatures is Xurkitree. Although this odd creature might resemble a tree and even has the word 'tree' in its name, it's anything but a Grass-type.

This event will last only a day, November 27, 2022 from 11:00 am to 5:00 PM local time. The guide given below covers the basics of the Xurkitree Ultra Beast for the ongoing raids. This includes how to battle it, any counters, and how to catch it.

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Here's how to deal with Xurkitree in the current raid event for Pokemon GO

Here's the rundown for Xurkitree:

• Type: Electric
• Potential Fast Moves: Thundershock, Spark
• Potential Charged Moves: Discharge, Dazzling Gleam, Thunder, Power Whip
• Strong Against: Water, Flying
• Weak to: Ground

Since Xurkitree is a pure Electric-type, it only has one solid counter: Ground-type Pokemon. There are plenty of great Pokemon that players can use in their party to defeat this beast easily. The counters for Xurkitree include:

• Landorus: Mud Shot, Earthquake
• Rhyperior: Mud-Slap, Earthquake
• Excadrill: Mud-Slap, Dril Run
• Garchomp: Mud Shot, Earthquake
• Groudon: Mud Shot, Earthquake

Since Xurkitree could have Grass Knot, it can be a problem for Ground-types as this particular move is super effective against them. This may not be as problematic for Groudon as this Generation 3 legendary is both Fire and Ground type, thus negating the super-effectiveness of Grass-type moves. But as a whole, a full Ground-type team with a handful of dual-type monsters is the way to go to beating Xurkitree.

On the other hand, Xurkitree's Thunder and Discharge moves are Electric-Type, so trainers should be careful not to use any Flying or Water-type Pokemon. Note that Flying/Water Pokemon with the second type being Ground will fare better, but it's still better to rely on the monsters listed under the counters for Xurkitree.

Note that players will be able to use a six-creature team to fight in raids. Successful raid ventures will allow trainers to catch it. In this case, players will be provided Beast Balls to catch them, which are unique Pokeballs built specifically for capturing the Ultra Beasts. When trying to capture them, it's recommended that players feed them Silver Pinap Berries for the highest chance to capture them. Otherwise, Golden Razz Berries will also work as a decent alternative.

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What are Ultra Beasts in Pokemon lore?

Ultra Beasts were first introduced in Pokemon Sun and Moon. They appeared through wormholes in the Alola region, where the Nintendo 3DS games (and their alternate retellings, Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon) take place. They come from other worlds, which is why they have designs that are quite different from traditional monsters and are rather alien-like in comparison.

These only recently arrived in GO, thanks to ongoing support from developer Niantic for the popular mobile game. Besides Xurkitree, players will be able to catch the following Ultra Beasts while the Raids are live: Nihilego, Pheromosa, Buzzwole, Guzzlord, Kartana, and Celesteela. Each of them has their own types and movesets to win against, so players will need to prep their teams accordingly.