Cliff is one of the leaders of Team GO Rocket Pokemon GO. A tough opponent, you get a chance to face him after defeating a series of grunts. Using a variety of Shadow Pokémon can make defeating Cliff a chore. Here’s how to beat Cliff Pokemon GO at the Team GO Rocket Takeover event.
Team GO Rocket leader Cliff’s team
As part of Team GO Rocket Takeover, you must defeat Cliff along with Arlo and Sierra to complete Timed Research.
Cliff’s team starts with shadow larvitar, which is of the Rock/Ground type. Water, Fighting, Ice, Steel, and Grass-type Pokémon are the strongest. Ideal Pokemon to have on your team to deal with Larvitar are Roserade, Swampert, Conkeldurr, and Zarude.
The 2nd Pokemon on Cliff’s team can be Kingdra, Sceptile or Skarmory.
- Kingdra is weak to Dragon and Fairy as it is a dual Water/Dragon type. Gardevoir and Dragonite would be best.
- scourge is a Grass-type Pokémon, so any Poison, Fire, Flying, Ice, or Bug moves will do. Nihilego, Darmanitan, Honchkrow, and Chandelure are good for your team.
- counteract skarmoryuse Fire or Electric type Pokemon like Electivire, Darmanitan, Chandelure or Zekrom.
Image via Niantic
The last Pokemon for Cliff’s team could be Gyarados, Swampert or Tyranitar.
- While Gyarados It appears to be a Dragon-type Pokemon, it is actually a Water/Flying-type Pokemon, making it extremely weak to Electric moves. It’s also weak against Rock-types, but that’s riskier when using a Water-type move. Zekrom, Electivire, or Rhyperior are good options.
- flooded is a water/ground type and leaves the way wide open for a Grass-type Pokémon to counter it. Roserade, Zarude and Kartana would be good to include.
- Give Tyranitar a good hit, you should use a Pokemon that knows Fighting, Ground, Steel, Water, Grass, Bug, or Fairy moves. Conkeldurr and Pheromosa are good choices for your team.
When assembling a team to fight Cliff, it’s worth looking at the possible combinations his team could have, as well as the most common weaknesses. Grass and Fire would do best against more opponents, with a niche Pokemon for your third place.
You also need to be aware that your first two charge attacks will be blocked with a shield. If you fail, you can always upgrade your team and play another game.
Rewards for defeating Cliff
Once you’ve eliminated all of Cliff’s Pokémon, you’ll receive 1,000 Stardust, a higher tier of your Hero’s Medal, and two of the following:
- 4x revives
- 2x max revive
- 4x hyper potions
- 2x Max Potions
- 1x You become stone
- 1x 12km egg
If Cliff wasn’t the last boss you faced, you’ll need to repeat the encounter process to face off against Sierra or Arlo. If he was the last leader, you have the option to defeat Giovanni. For help with Beat Sierra or other battles, look at ours Pokemon GO instructions page.
Featured image via Niantic
