Pokémon Go Electric Cup best team recommendations

Things to know about putting together an Electric Cup team in Pokémon Go

The best thing about the 1500 CP limit is that, like the Great League, putting a team together is relatively cheap and easy on Stardust.

The obvious downside to this specific cup is that the pool of eligible choices is only 49 Pokémon deep – and that’s including the utterly useless ones like Elekid and Oricorio. This should come as no surprise, given that Electric is actually one of, if not the shallowest pool by typing.

So, how do you pick Pokémon for an element–based cup? It starts and ends with what that type is weak and resistant to. Electric–types are resistant to Flying, Steel and Electric–type attacks, so don’t bring those, and hence why Oricorio is worse than useless here – shocking, we know.

Next, we need to look at what weaknesses we can exploit. Unsurprisingly for anyone with an appreciation of electronics, the obvious safety net is grounding yourself – just as water extinguishes fire, Electric types are weak to Ground–type attacks.

However, there are no Ground–type Pokémon in this meta, which means that you can’t simply rely on Mud Shotting your way to victory. Instead, you need to build around the resistances, and plan for which other types you think your opponent will throw into the mix – remember, as long as one of the Pokémon’s types is Electric (and it’s not on the banned list), it’s a safe inclusion in the Electric Cup.

Speaking of which, the full banned list is below:

• Stunfisk
• Charjabug
• Heliolisk
• Vikavolt

Given the low CP limit of 1500, there are no Mythical Pokémon to be concerned about here, so don’t worry about that if you’re new to competitive play. You can easily take part and win in this meta without any rare Pokémon at all.

Remember, although there are specific Pokémon that dominate this meta, with the Go Battle League (and player–versus–player battles in general) you’ll be going in blind; so even if you cover yourself with a wide range of offence and defence options, no team is invincible.

Still – even with a few of the below Pokémon in your team, you should be able to fare better than if you just selected those as close to the 1500 CP cap as possible.

The World of Wonders season has come to Pokémon Go. Wiglett can now be caught as part of Rediscover Kanto, but don't forget to complete the World of Wonders quest. Don't forget to try out Routes, Gift Exchange and Party Play while you're hunting down rare Pokémon, fighting in the Go Battle League or competing in PokéStop Showcases.

Our Pokémon Go Electric Cup recommendations

There is no single 'best' team you can choose – since, as mentioned previously, you don’t know what you are up against – and not everyone has access to every Pokémon species.

Instead, here is a general list of recommended Electric Cup Pokémon to build a team from, with a wide range of sources that should suit all players, whether you’ve been collecting creatures since day one or just started playing. Plus, even if you don’t have a Victini, you can still be very competitive in this cup, as (for once) none of our picks have any exclusive or Community Day moves. As long as you have the Pokémon and enough resources to power it up, you should be good to go!

Remember you are only allowed one of each in the Go Battle League, and ideally, you’d want to build a team with different type strengths and defence. For example, if you build a team with all mono–Electric types, your opponent’s entire team will resist yours.

It’s also worth noting that if you want to really compete, each of your Pokémon need two Charged moves. If you want to skimp on Stardust and only run the one move, do so at your own peril – you have been warned.

Our Pokémon Go Electric Cup team recommendations in order of their appearance in the National Pokédex — while there is some overlap with the Great League guide, make sure you read the full entry as we may be recommending some move changes:

Electrode

Both Electrodes are similarly excellent in this meta, but let’s start with Kantonian and then move onto the shiny new version in a second. Both have different attacks and perfect IVs, along with match-ups, so don’t treat them as interchangeable.

Kantonian Electrode is a spammy, if clumsy, Pokémon that helps you apply a lot of shield pressure. Foul Play is there for hitting repeatedly with a Charged move, and Hyper Beam simply wallops the opponent with a huge amount of damage.

This translates into wins against Togedemaru, Magnezone, Minun, Lanturn and Luxray, although you will lose to the entire Alolan Geodude family, Galvantula and Manectric.

Hisuian Electrode

The new and shiny Hisuian Electrode shakes things up by adding Grass typing, and thus wins against the Alolan Geodude family, along with Luxray, Minun and Lanturn. On the flip side, it loses to Manectric, Galvantula, Togedemaru and its Kantonian cousin, Electrode.

Hisuian Electrode is a spammy Pokémon that applies decent shield pressure, if low Fast move pressure, and is ultimately hamstrung by being a technically difficult Pokémon to use, thanks to the likes of Wild Charge. To be blunt, you’re probably better off treating it as a slightly worse Minun, rather than an Electrode-adjacent Pokémon. Still, it’s a very respectable pick if you’re out of minus mouses.

Lanturn

Lanturn is one of those Pokémon you shouldn’t be surprised to see — not only is it great in normal Great League, but it actually comes in as top of this meta thanks to its lack of natural weaknesses – being an Electric-type itself, it only takes neutral damage from these attacks instead of the weakness you’d get if it was mono-Water.

What makes Lanturn great in other leagues is reflected here: great bulk combined with respectable agility. The downside is that it doesn’t apply a great deal of shield pressure — still, when you stick around as long as Lanturn does, that’s less of an issue.

In terms of match-ups, you can expect to beat anything in the Alolan Golem family, along with the likes of Manectric. Losses, on the other hand, include Galvantula, Togedemaru, Luxray, Electrode and a sneaky Minun with its Grass-type attacks

Minun

The spammy minus-mouse makes probably its only real showing in Go Battle League in the Electric Cup, where Grass Knot is a lot more powerful than you might otherwise expect.

The fast-charging Quick Attack into Grass Knot will take down pretty much any of the Water and Rock-types in the meta, while Discharge is there to just spam the enemies that would otherwise be resistant. Underestimate this Pokémon at your peril.

Minun comfortably takes out the Alolan Geodude family, along with Lanturn, Luxray and Togedemaru. Losses, meanwhile, come from Manectric, Galvantula, Magnezone and Electrode.

Luxray

What is this meta particularly weak to? Luxray’s Fast attack, that’s what.

While Hidden Power is generally a low-quality move, typing makes a huge difference, and this move along will help you beat a good chunk of the competition. On top of this, Luxray’s Community Day move, Psychic Fangs, will apply a lot of shield pressure because it’s cheap and debuffs the opponent’s defence, which helps make up for its status as a glass cannon – lean into this with a Shadow Luxray if you can. Last, we have Wild Charge — use this as a Hail Mary because while it hits hard, it will leave your defence in tatters.

In terms of match-ups, you can we’re looking at wins against Manectric, Togedemaru Alolan Graveler and Lanturn. Losses, meanwhile, include the likes of Hisuian and Kantonian Electrode, Galvantula, Minun and Luxio (Luxray’s previous evolution stage).

Galvantula

Galvantula holds two impressive accolades here: first, it’s great in Go Battle League, and so is expectedly great here; and second, it’s not weak to Ground-type attacks.

This makes the spammy spider one well worth considering — especially when you scan down to the match-ups below. Fury Cutter is a fast charging move that leans into Lunge pretty nicely, as it strips away the opponent’s attack, while Energy Ball is a Grass-type move that offers great coverage against the likes of Lanturn.

Speaking of which, you can expect to beat that, both Electrodes, Luxray and Minun. However, you will struggle against Alolan Graveler, Manectric, Togedemaru and Magnezone.