Pokémon Go Catch Cup – Rising Heroes Edition: Best Pokémon

Top the competition with these monsters and moves

Contents

1. Pokémon Go Catch Cup – Rising Heroes Edition: Best Leads
2. Pokémon Go Catch Cup – Rising Heroes Edition: Best Safe Switches
3. Pokémon Go Catch Cup – Rising Heroes Edition: Best Closers
4. Pokémon Go Catch Cup – Rising Heroes Edition: Best Attackers

The Catch Cup – Rising Heroes Edition in Pokémon Go, running from May 24 to June 1, 2023, is all about adapting and making the most of what you’ve got on hand. Throw careful and long-laid plans out of the window, because you won’t get to use them.

There are no restrictions on what type of Pokémon you can field (aside from Mythical Pokémon being banned), though there is a maximum limit on competition points (CP) these creatures can possess. In Catch Cup – Rising Heroes Edition, this is set at 1,500 CP. That also means that this competition is very easy on your Stardust and Candy XL budget, as you won’t have to power up your Pokémon all too much.

Here’s the catch – pardon the pun: You may only use Pokémon caught during the Rising Heroes Season, which started on March 1, 2023.

We’ve put together a list of the best Pokémon Catch Cup – Rising Heroes Edition to get you started on your team building process. Our choices are based on statistics and simulations provided by PvPoke.com for Great League, which is the closest competition to Catch Cup rules-wise – depending on where you are, you were able to catch different kinds of Pokémon in the eligible time window, so these rankings may or may not be representative of your choices.

Pokémon Go Catch Cup – Rising Heroes Edition: Best Leads

The Pokémon in this class are aggressors, able to apply pressure on your opponent right from the start of a battle. They can also drag out tough battles for a long time thanks to their bulk. This allround effectiveness makes them perfect to open a match up, enabling you to score an early knockout or set up a strong counter play.

1. Scrafty (Counter, Foul Play, Power-Up Punch)
2. Pelipper (Wing Attack, Weather Ball (Water), Hurricane)
3. Shadow Luxray (Spark, Wild Charge, Psychic Fangs)
4. Sneasler (Shadow Claw, Close Combat, X-Scissor)
5. Trevenant (Shadow Claw, Seed Bomb, Shadow Ball)
6. Swampert^(S) (Mud Shot, Hydro Cannon, Earthquake)
7. Shadow Charizard (Wing Attack, Blast Burn, Dragon Claw)
8. Pidgeot (Wing Attack, Feather Dance, Brave Bird)
9. Galarian Stunfisk (Mud Shot, Rock Slide, Earthquake)
10. Medicham^(XL) (Counter, Ice Punch, Psychic)

Pokémon marked with (S) perform very similarly in their Shadow and regular versions. Pokémon marked with (XL) require Candy XL to reach their maximum potential.

Pokémon Go Catch Cup – Rising Heroes Edition: Best Safe Switches

If you’re not happy with the initial pairing, you should consider switching out your lead for another Pokémon. That’s the role of a Safe Switch. They are either strong leads themselves or are specialized in countering some of the most popular leads. Putting them in will let you score an elimination, disrupt your opponent’s game plan, or at least preserve your lead for the later stage of the match.

1. Pelipper (Wing Attack, Weather Ball (Water), Hurricane)
2. Sableye^(XL) (Shadow Claw, Foul Play, Return)
3. Shadow Drapion (Poison Sting, Crunch, Aqua Tail)
4. Gliscor^(S) (Wing Attack, Earthquake, Night Slash)
5. Dubwool (Double Kick, Body Slam, Payback)
6. Shadow Walrein (Powder Snow, Icicle Spear, Earthquake)
7. Shadow Charizard (Wing Attack, Blast Burn, Dragon Claw)
8. Lickitung^(XL) (Lick, Body Slam, Power Whip)
9. Noctowl (Wing Attack, Sky Attack, Shadow Ball)
10. Medicham^(XL) (Counter, Ice Punch, Psychic)

Pokémon Go Catch Cup – Rising Heroes Edition: Best Closers

These Pokémon come in quite handy when there are no shields left in play on either side – they are incredibly tough thanks to their high bulk and many resistances or they can end battles quickly due to their access to powerful charge attacks.

1. Shadow Electivire (Thunder Shock, Ice Punch, Wild Charge)
2. Galarian Stunfisk (Mud Shot, Rock Slide, Earthquake)
3. Altaria (Dragon Breath, Sky Attack, Moonblast)
4. Staraptor (Wing Attack, Brave Bird, Close Combat)
5. Trevenant (Shadow Claw, Seed Bomb, Shadow Ball)
6. Bastiodon^(XL) (Smack Down, Stone Edge, Flamethrower)
7. Froslass (Powder Snow, Avalanche, Shadow Ball)
8. Togedemaru (Thunder Shock, Fell Stinger, Wild Charge)
9. Skarmory (Air Slash, Brave Bird, Sky Attack)
10. Chesnaught (Vine Whip, Frenzy Plant, Superpower)

Pokémon Go Catch Cup – Rising Heroes Edition: Best Attackers

This class is specialized in fighting an opponent who still has shields, while you no longer have any yourself. They combine strong resistances and potent fast attacks to compensate for this disadvantage. For that reason, you rarely see Shadow forms in this role – they take more damage than their regular counterparts, making them a risky card to pull out at this stage of a match.

1. Bastiodon^(XL) (Smack Down, Stone Edge, Flamethrower)
2. Galarian Stunfisk (Mud Shot, Rock Slide, Earthquake)
3. Scrafty (Counter, Foul Play, Power-Up Punch)
4. Wobbuffet^(XL) (Counter, Return, Mirror Coat)
5. Mantine (Wing Attack, Bubble Beam, Ice Beam)
6. Medicham^(XL) (Counter, Ice Punch, Psychic)
7. Umbreon (Snarl, Foul Play, Last Resort)
8. Lanturn (Spark, Surf, Thunderbolt)
9. Mandibuzz (Snarl, Foul Play, Aerial Ace)
10. Pachirisu^(XL) (Volt Switch, Thunder Punch, Thunderbolt)

Good luck catching the right things on time! If you’re not planning on moving up the ranks any further this season, it may be beneficial to simply sit this competition out and save the Stardust and other resources you’d need to create a team for this tournament. The next season is almost here, after all.

For more Pokémon Go, check our overviews for the weekly Spotlight Hours, all 5-Star Raids, and this month’s Field Research Tasks.