Many trainers have built a team for the battle league over a long period of time, which can be shaken up by the new update. MeinMMO author Paul Kutzner is one of them.
I have been involved with Pokémon GO since its launch in 2016, catching, collecting, and training my Pokémon diligently, with shorter and longer breaks.
One aspect of the game hardly interested me most of the time: the battle league. Even though I was aware that playing in the battle league brings strong advantages, it simply didn’t appeal to me.
This changed in August 2023. I thought to myself, I’ll give the battle league another chance. And I do not regret it: Besides some hours of fun, there were many special candies and a few raid bosses as a reward for me.
But some of my monsters in the battle league could soon become devalued.
Favorite attackers soon just decoration!?
What changes in the battle league? Due to the new update in the battle league, which brings some changes to the meta, a good part of my team could soon become useless.
While the update reduces the timer for switching monsters, many fast and charge attacks are also changed. This could lead to greater changes in the meta and devalue some Pokémon that I have built up in the last 12 months.
What does my team look like? So far, I am only building Pokémon for the Super League. This mode is cheaper than the Hyper League, and here Pokémon are played that would otherwise have no relevance. I find that quite attractive.
I avoid the Master League completely for these reasons as well.
When naming the Pokémon, I like to note the respective combination of IV values. This means that, for example, the Viscogon from the first image named “GL42” has the 42 best combination of IV values for the Super League (‘Great League’).
How do I build Pokémon? I like to be inspired by pvpoke.com when building my team. Here I check which Pokémon with which attack combination is recommended.
However, I do not rely completely on it, but like to try different attacks and primarily play the combination of Pokémon that suits me best.
Additionally, I do not only focus on Pokémon for the regular Super League, but also like to level up Pokémon for special cups like the Halloween or the Sun Cup.
Which of my Pokémon are affected? With the new data from pvpoke.com, the first Pokémon I have enjoyed playing, which have taken a significant hit with the update, can already be seen.
Crypto-Golbat is a Pokémon I enjoyed using as a starter in battles. With the new update, this Pokémon has dropped to rank 371 in the Super League.
Epitaff and Akkup, which I also liked to use, have also dropped significantly due to the update. While Epitaff was previously found within the top 10, it now sits at rank 144.
Akkup, the small Pokémon with the Bug and Electric types, is now also found in rank 130. This Pokémon has also been used frequently by the best trainers in the Super League.
Whether I will continue to have a lot of fun with these Pokémon in the future in the Super League remains to be seen. I have experienced many good times with these monsters in the battle league and will definitely shed a tear when they soon simply go under against other monsters.
How about you? Which Pokémon did you enjoy using in the battle league that will now be more difficult to play? Feel free to share your opinions in the comments. If you want to know which events are waiting for you in Pokémon GO in September 2024, feel free to check out the suitable overview.
