How to beat Rayquaza in Pokemon Go: weakness, counters, Raid guide

Brent Koepp
Legendary Pokemon Rayquaze above clouds next to Pokemon Go logo.

Pokemon Go’s Weather Week marks the return of Gen III Legendary Rayquaza in the mobile title. Here is how to catch the Hoenn Dragon after defeating it in 5-star Raids. 

Niantic surprised players when they revealed that Emerald Legendary, Rayquaza, would be making its return to Pokemon Go for a limited time as a finale to the Weather Week event.

The Gen III Dragon will take over 5-star Raids starting March 27 at 10:00 AM local time. Here are the best counters that will bring down the epic beast and have you catching it in no time.

Screenshot of Legendary Pokemon Rayquaza in Pokemon Go Weather Week.
Rayquaza is making its return to Go during Weather Week.

Pokemon Go Rayquaza weakness

First introduced in 2005’s Pokemon Emerald, Rayquaza has since become one of the most beloved Legendaries in the franchise. The epic Flying/Dragon-type is the master of the Hoenn region’s Weather Trio.

Due its dual typing, the Gen III creature is open to a variety of weaknesses. Its main counter in the mobile game is Ice-type, with Dragon, Fairy, and Rock-type being just below it in terms of maximum damage.

While staggering in size and power, Rayquaza is fairly easy to bring down with the right team of Pokemon. Below, we will outline the best counters you can bring into battle to beat the Legendary with ease.

Pokemon Go Rayquaza counters

In the series’ lore, Dragon ‘mon were initially weak to Dragon and Fairy-types. However in 2021, the species’ greatest weakness is Ice, receiving almost double the damage from the type in Go

Top Rayquaza counters

Name Pokemon Move
Galarian Darmanitan Galarian Darmanitan Pokemon Go Dex. Fast: Ice Fang 

Charge: Avalanche

Mamoswine Mamoswine Pokemon Go Dex Fast: Powder Snow

Charge: Avalanche

Weavile Weavile Pokemon Go Dex Fast: Ice Shard
Charge: Avalanche
Glaceon Glaceon Pokemon Go Dex Fast: Frost Breath

Charge: Avalanche

Mewtwo Mewtwo Pokemon Go Dex Fast: Psycho Cut

Charge: Ice Beam

Budget Rayquaza counters

Name Pokemon Move
Cloyster Cloyster Pokemon Go Dex Fast: Frost Breathe

Charge: Avalanche

Rampardos Rampardos Pokemon Go Dex Fast: Smack Down

Charge: Rock Slide

Lapras Lapras Pokemon Go Dex Fast: Frost Breathe
Charge: Blizzard
Dragonite Dragonite Pokemon Go Dex Fast: Dragon Tail

Charge: Outrage

Electivire Electivire Pokemon Go Dex Fast: Thunder Shock

Charge: Ice Punch

Trainers interested in catching Rayquaza will need to mark their calendars as the Gen III Legendary is only going to be in 5-star Raids for 33 hours. The ‘mon will officialy start appearing on March 27 at 10:00 AM and will leave the game on March 28 at 8:00 PM local time.

Players also set on getting the highly-sought after Shiny version of the Weather Trio Dragon will need to do multiple Raids. Like all Legendaries, it has a 1 out of 20 chance to be the alternative variant which actually isn’t all that bad compared to the mainline series. Being prepared with a team of Ice-type counters will certainly help.

About The Author

Brent is a former writer at Dexerto based in the United States, who covered topics such as Pokemon, Gaming, and online Entertainment.