Pokemon Go
Pokemon GO Wiki - Guide & Tips
Giovanni Counters & Guide - How To Beat

Pokemon Go | Giovanni Counters & Guide - How To Beat

Last Updated:
Pokemon Go | Giovanni Counters & Guide - How To Beat - GameWith

Read this Pokemon Go guide on how to defeat Team Rocket's Giovanni! Find out all the counters for his Pokemon for March 2020, including his Persian, and how to get Shadow Entei.

Shadow Entei Coming In March!

Entei
Event DurationMarch 1st - ???

During March, you'll be able to obtain a Shadow Entei by successfully defeating Giovanni! Clear Giovanni's special research and catch Shadow Entei quickly!

Check Out Other Events Happening Now!

Table of Contents

Giovanni's Pokemon

▼Giovanni's 2nd Pokemon will be randomly chosen from one of the 3 listed here.

Giovanni's First Pokemon

How To Beat Persian

Persian
Regular MoveCharge Move
Scratch
Feint Attack
Foul Play
Power Gem
Play Rough

React To Its Moves

Persian has two main normal moves; Scratch and Feint Attack. It can be difficult to take it out if you don't resist its damage, so make sure to swap your Pokemon to one that resists its move immediately!

Switch To A Fighting Type For Feint Attack

If Giovanni's Persian uses Feint Attack, swap out for a Fighting type. Not only will you resist the attack, but you'll be able to deal super-effective damage to Persian as well!

Lucario Can Deal With Both

Lucario's Steel/Fighting type lets him resist damage from both Normal and Dark moves. If you have one, definitely consider bringing it!

Counter Pokemon Examples

PokemonNormal Move
Charge Move
LucarioLucarioCounter
Power-Up Punch
MachampMachampCounter
Dynamic Punch

Counter Scratch With Giratina

Both Forms Work Well

FormRecommended Move
Giratina (Altered Forme)Giratina (Altered Forme)Dragon Breath
Dragon Claw
GiratinaGiratina (Origin Forme)Dragon Tail
Dragon Pulse

Ghost types work well because they resist Normal type moves, so we strongly recommend Giratina if Persian uses Scratch. Altered Forme is better defensively, so we suggest bring it instead of Origin.

Altered Forme Can Win Without Boosts

You won't need to boost your Giratina - as long as it was obtained during a weather bonus, you should be able to take out Persian. You shoud have roughly 2500 CP to do this.

▲Our Japanese Pokemon Go team using Giratina VS. Persian. Using Dragon Breath to charge up Dragon Claw ASAP is particularly important.

Giovanni's Second Pokemon

Three Possible Pokemon

Kingler's Moves

Normal MoveCharge Move
Bubble
Metal Claw
Vise Grip
X-Scissor
Water Pulse
Crabhammer

Steelix's Moves

Normal MoveCharge Move
Iron Tail
Dragon Tail
Thunder Fang
Earthquake
Heavy Slam
Crunch

Rhyperior's Moves

Normal MoveCharge Move
Mud-Slap
Smack Down
Surf
Earthquake
Stone Edge
Skull Bash
Superpower

The 3 Have No Common Weakness

Unfortunately, Giovanni's 2nd Pokemon are diverse enough that they lack a common weakness. However, Fighting, Ground, Water, and Grass will all be super effective against at least 2 of the 3. Bring these moves to be safe.

Example Pokemon To Bring

We recommend the following 3 Pokemon, as they cover multiple weaknesses of Giovanni's second Pokemon.

PokemonNormal Move
Charge Move
Pokemon It Counters
LucarioLucarioCounter
Aura Sphere
・Rhyperior
・Steelix
SwampertSwampertMud-Slap
Hydro Pump(※)
・Steelix
・Rhyperior
VenusaurVenusaurVine Whip
Frenzy Plant(※)
・Rhyperior
・Kingler

(※) Indicates a Legacy move which is no longer obtainable

Giovanni's Third Pokemon

How To Beat Entei

Entei
Normal MovesCharge Moves
Fire Fang
Fire Spin
Flamethrower
Fire Blast
Overheat
Iron Head

Use Water, Ground, or Rock Types

Entei is a pure Fire type, meaning its weak to the above mentioned 3 types. We recommend Water and Rock types, as they resist Fire moves.

Example Pokemon To Bring

PokemonNormal Move
Charge Move
SwampertSwampertMud-Slap
Hydro Pump(※)
RhyperiorRhyperiorSmack Down
Mud-Slap
Rock Tomb(※)
(Stone Edge also possible)
GarchompGarchompMud-Slap
Earthquake
FlygonFlygonMud-Slap
Earth Power(※)

(※) Indicates a Legacy move which is no longer obtainable

How To Beat Giovanni

Recommend Lvl 35+

All of Giovanni's Pokemon are high level and pack a punch. We recommend leveling up your Pokemon to close to max. At least 35 should be enough to get a win.

Determine A Pokemon's Level Via Stardust/Candy

PL

It's possible to determine your Pokemon's level by looking at the amount of Stardust and Candy required to level it up. For example, in the above picture, 4000 Stardust and 3 Candies are required to level up, so the Pokemon's level is either 25 or 25.5.

Stardust : Level Chart
LvStardustCandy
1~2.52001
3~4.54001
5~6.56001
7~8.58001
9~10.510001
11~12.513002
13~14.516002
15~16.519002
17~18.522002
19~20.525002
21~22.530003
23~24.535003
25~25.540003
26~26.540004
27~28.545004
29~30.550004
31~32.560006
33~34.570008
35~36.5800010
37~38.5900012
39~401000015

Force Your Opponent To Use Its Shield Quickly

If Giovanni still has shields up, he will use them every time you use a charge move. For this reason, it's better to bring Pokemon with charge move sthat fill up their gauge very fast, and use them quickly.

Effective Pokemon To Bring

PokemonNormal Move
Charge Move
LucarioLucarioCounter
Power-Up Punch
MachampMachampCounter
Dynamic Punch

Pokemon You Can Get By Winning

Get Entei In March

Entei
Event DurationMarch 1st - ???

During March, you'll be able to obtain a Shadow Entei by successfully defeating Giovanni! Clear Giovanni's special research and catch Shadow Entei quickly!

Pokemon You Get Changes Every Month

By defeating Giovanni you can get a chance to catch a different Pokemon every month!

Entei's Max CP

Usual CPWeather BoostBoosted CP
782SunnySunny1290

The level of a Shadow Pokemon caught like this will be 8 (or 13 in boosted weather). The maximum CP for a lvl 8 will be 782!

Pokemon Featured In The Past

PokemonEvent Time
RaikouRaikouFebruary 1st - 29th, 2020
MoltresMoltresJanuary 1st - 31st, 2020
ZapdosZapdosDecember 1st - 31st, 2019
ArticunoArticunoNovember 7th - 30th, 2019

(C)Pokémon.
(C)Nintendo/Creatures Inc. /GAME FREAK inc.
All trademarks, character and/or image used in this article are the copyrighted property of their respective owners.
▶Pokemon Go Official Website

Have some feedback? Click here

Your feedbacks will be checked by our staffs and will be attended to accordingly. Please be advised that we may not reply to every individual feedbacks.


Reader Comments
Max. 300 Characters

By clicking Submit you are agreeing to the Terms of Use.
*Offensive, insulting or inappropriate use of forum may lead to ban/restriction.
To avoid griefing, you will not be able to post or report for the first %d hours upon visiting this forum for the first time.

Close

Looks like nobody posted here yet...

Article Menu
Featured Articles
GO Rocket Guides
Game Systems & Features
Pokemon Battles
Gym Battles
PVP Battles
Starter Guides
Game Database
Raid & Special Research
Pokemon Related Guide