Why you shouldn't use Charged Attacks during Pokemon GO Gigantamax battles

Pokemon GO Gigantamax battles are one-of-a-kind in many ways. Their scale and the sheer amount of challenge they pose to players are matched by no other mechanic in the game. Interestingly, there is another small detail that makes these challenges unique — the fact that Charged Attacks are useless here.

The mechanic was introduced in late September 2024, with the three Kanto starters. Since then, players have learned more and more about it, resulting in a better understanding of how the Dynamax Energy meter charges. This ties in directly with why using Charged Attacks is discouraged when it comes to Pokemon GO Gigantamax battles, and this article will elaborate on that.

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Using Charged Attacks in Pokemon GO Gigantamax battles slow you down

Every attack in a G-Max battle gains 1 Dynamax Energy (Image via TPC)

To understand why this is, you must first understand how Dynamax Energy is calculated in G-Max battles. It is generated every time your Pokemon attacks. This applies to both Fast and Charged Attacks. The charge increases based on a ratio of the damage you deal to the maximum HP of the Power Spot boss. However, it can never be less than 1.

Considering G-Max bosses have a max HP of approximately 100,000, no matter how big the damage is — and the biggest damage outside of Max Moves would be dealt by Charged Attacks — the ratio will always be less than 1. So whether you use a Fast Attack that deals 5 damage or a Charged Attack that deals 180 damage, the amount of Dynamax Energy you get for a single attack will always be 1.

You may already know that Fast Attacks in Pokemon GO PvE battles have a minimum cooldown of 0.5 seconds. This means that you can use two such Fast Attacks within 1 second. Charged Attacks (with the exception of Return, which is useless in PvE battles) have a minimum cooldown of 1 second. Many of the best moves in the game have cooldowns in the 2-3.5 second range.

Therefore, given that you can only get 1 Dynamax Energy for every attack you use in a Pokemon GO Gigantamax battle, it is best to use Fast Attacks — especially ones with a 0.5-second cooldown. This way, you will get to use Max Moves (which deal the majority of the damage in G-Max Battles) more often.

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FAQs about using Charged Attacks in Pokemon GO Gigantamax Battles

Max Moves deal the most damage in a G-Max battle (Image via TPC)

Will not using Charged Attacks in Pokemon GO Gigantamax battles reduce total damage output?

While it might seem that you are forgoing damage output by not using Charged Attacks, you are actually going to get extra Dynamax turns by using only Fast Attacks. Since Max Moves in Pokemon GO are much stronger than regular Charged Attacks, you are guaranteed to deal more damage over the course of the battle.

Will using Max Mushrooms have an impact on what moves you should use?

No, using Max Mushrooms doesn't mean you should use Charged Attacks. Stick to using only Fast Attacks to get to as many Dynamax Phases as possible. During this time, you can hit the opponent with the double-powered Max Attacks to deal even more damage.

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Check out our other Pokemon GO guides:

• Ditto disguises
• Buddy Evolution Adventure Together guide
• Best Fast Attacks in Pokemon GO
• Sierra counters
• Cliff counters
• Arlo counters
• Giovanni counters
• Team GO Rocket Grunts
• Pokemon Go Evolution Calculator
• Pokemon Type Calculator