Zapdos
Fast
Charge
PvE Analysis
Of the initial 3 legendary species released in Pokemon GO, Zapdos was arguably the best at the time. But the introduction of Raikou dethroned the avatar of Team Instinct, and it's slowly slipped farther and farther into obscurity with each passing generation. It's still a viable Electric Type attacker for sure, but it's not a top-pick for the role any longer.
Zapdos’s Flying typing gives it an advantage in a small subset of matchups, but the extra weaknesses, particularly to the Ice Type attacks that Water Type raid bosses frequently carry, can render the dual typing more of a curse than a blessing.
Best PvE Offensive Moveset
Thunder Shock* or Charge Beam + Thunderbolt | Best |
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Thunder Shock* has slightly more DPS than Charge Beam, but it might not be worth spending an Elite TM on.
Thunderbolt is more flexible and consistently outperforms Zap Cannon in relevant match-ups.
- Thunder's low power renders it the worst charge move.
- Drill Peck does benefit from STAB, but doesn't really synergize with Zapdos' fast moves.Â
- Ancient Power has no use on Zapdos.Â
- Return is basically worthless.
PvP Analysis
Thunder Shock* + Drill Peck and Thunderbolt |
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The legacy Thunder Shock performs better than Charge Beam due to faster energy gains.Â
Drill Peck fills a dual role here, both as Zapdos's cheapest move (enabling baiting) and just as a solid STAB move. Pair this with Thunderbolt for the most consistent Electric damage option. If you're feeling spicier, consider running Drill Peck + Zap Cannon. This leaves you significantly more reliant on careful baiting, but if you can land it then there's no better nuke in Zapdos's kit.
Great League | 1.5 / 5 |
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Zapdos almost has potential in Great League. When almost every was Azumarill + Registeel, it was able to fill an interesting antimeta role in somewhat being able to handle both. However, with the rise of Galarian Stunfisk (which completely walls out Zapdos), the mon is significantly more difficult to run. Sadly, this thunderbird is not go. | |
Ultra League | 2.5 / 5 |
Zapdos isn't bad per se in the Ultra League; it unfortunately just doesn't have a real place in the current meta. It does resist Registeel's charged moves, and deals super effective damage to the likes of Togekiss, Lapras and Poliwrath, but it can still struggle at beating them, and has really bad matchups against other major threats such as Giratina and Swampert. Zapdos has its niche use, but there are superior choices. | |
Master League | 3.5 / 5 |
Zapdos shines brightest in the Master League, where its high CP leaves it unbound as a top Electric-type pick for the tier. The list of threats that it can eliminate grows in this tier, granting it niches against Kyogre and Togekiss in particular. However, once again, many other threats see it as a paper doll. Poor matchups against Melmetal, Giratina, and of course Dialga all leave Zapdos a fairly strong Pokémon in some contexts that just isn't worth the slot in GBL. |