How to Catch and Counter Palkia in Pokémon Go

Sinnoh’s latest Pokémon is here— so how can you go about catching it?

Another legendary Pokémon hailing from the Sinnoh region was recently added to Pokémon Go’s raid function, giving trainers another Pokémon to go out and capture to add to their Pokédexs.

This Pokémon, of course, is Palkia, Pokemon Pearl’s flagship pocket monster, and the controller of space. His inclusion likely means that Dialga is the next Pokémon to join the mobile game— but we will get to that when he is released.

Palkia can be found across the world in level-five raid battles and searching for him should be easy. Battling and capturing him, however, won’t be that simple.

To help you on your quest, here are some simple tips to help bolster your ranks.

Battling Palkia

The first thing you need to do to take down Palkia is team up with other trainers from around your local area. Niantic has always said that legendary raids should be taken on by at least 10 people, so be sure to go into battle with the right team.

Trainers will then have roughly around two minutes to try to beat Palkai in a battle with their team of Pokémon, so be sure to use Pokemon that have strong Dragon or Fairy-type moves as these are the moves that are strongest against Palkia.

Some Pokémon you could consider using include Gardevoir, Togekiss, and Clefable. While Dragon-type Pokemon are also effective, Palkia might also know a Dragon-type move which could wreck your Dragonites—so only use them as a last resort.

You’ll definitely need your strongest lineup of Pokemon regardless what you have, so just do your best and keep tapping away until its defeated. If you need to run, then run, don’t risk fighting a battle you can’t win.

Catching Palkia

If you thought fighting Palkia was tough, wait till you get to catching it.

Once a raid battle ends, each trainer who participated earns individual in-game items and rewards for beating the raid boss. Then, trainers are given a small amount of Pokeballs to try to catch a weaker version of the Pokémon they just beat.

Here, you want to be cautious with each throw and try to get an excellent throw to increase your chances of a successful capture. You might also want to use any Golden Razz Berries you have in your bag to slightly increase the chances of capturing Palkia.

If you use all your Pokéballs and don’t capture it, then tough luck. You’ll need to go and find another raid with Palkia, fight it again, and hope that luck is on your side this time.