Team GO Rocket steps into Pokémon GO. The villains come with new monsters – what can you expect at the event?
When does the Rocket takeover start? The Team GO Rocket takeover started on Wednesday, February 1 at 00:00 local time. It runs until Sunday, February 5, 2023, at 23:59 local time.
It is thus embedded in the current “High Voltage” event and also runs on Community Day with eF-eM in February.
What happens in the Rocket takeover? The villains from Team GO Rocket will generally appear more frequently at PokéStops and in balloons. Additionally, there will be a few other bonuses.
- You can unlearn the move “Frustration” from your Crypto Pokémon with a Charged TM. This is only possible during such Rocket events and should be utilized.
- For which Crypto monsters it is worth unlearning Frustration, you can see here.
- Giovanni is changing his Pokémon. Read here the assessment of Crypto-Registeel.
- The Rocket Grunts also come with new monsters, some of which are already known.
- In the new Special Research, you will encounter Giovanni – All tasks and rewards at a glance
- The Rocket bosses Sierra, Arlo, and Cliff will also change their Pokémon.
You are up against Team Rocket and want the best counters against the new teams of the bosses? Then check here:
How strong are the new Crypto Pokémon for the Rocket takeover?
Which new Crypto Pokémon are coming? Niantic officially announced 5 new Crypto Pokémon for the takeover. They are
- Crypto-Registeel
- Crypto-Alola-Vulpix
- Crypto-Spoink
- Crypto-Elezeba
- Crypto-Wattzapf
As a result, the following Crypto evolutions will also come into play:
- Crypto-Alola-Vulnona
- Crypto-Groink
- Crypto-Zebritz
- Crypto-Voltula
More Crypto Pokémon will be added during the event. Among other things, the bosses are likely to get new monsters.
Which monsters are worth it? From the announced monsters, none are particularly strong for raids or arena battles, they do not currently make it to the list of best attackers in Pokémon GO.
However, some of them have a niche in the battle league. User “JRESeawolf”, PVP analyst from Pokémon GO Hub, and user “ThePokeGOHunter” have joined forces to share an appropriate analysis in the subreddit “TheSilphRoad”:
In his analysis, JRE47 provides insights into the monsters in PvP. You can find his complete analysis here (via reddit). We summarize the results here:
- Crypto-Registeel is a good monster in the PvP league, but regular Registeel is even better, as being a Crypto weakens its strong defense, which is what makes the monster in PvP.
- You can find the normal Registeel in raids, here are the best counters against Registeel in Pokémon GO.
- Crypto-Voltula is described as a “glass cannon”, which already does not excel in defense – so the loss does not make a big difference. However, it benefits from the damage bonus and is a strong monster for the Super League.
- Crypto-Alola-Vulnona is interesting in two forms: as an ice attacker for the Super League, and with “Knuddler” as a fairy attacker for the Super League and Hyper League. For JRE47, Alola-Vulnona is the most exciting Pokémon in PvP from the new selection.
- Additionally, Crypto-Alola-Vulpix would also be interesting for smaller cups, with CP limits of 500.
- Crypto-Zebritz is categorized as “nice to have” and can be interesting in certain situations in the Hyper League. But it is not a top candidate.
- Crypto-Groink is considered uninteresting for the PvP league according to JRE47.
It remains to be seen which other monsters will show up in the Rocket takeover.
What makes Crypto Pokémon special? Crypto Pokémon have a few peculiarities:
- You can only obtain them from the Rockets.
- They have an attack boost of 1.2, dealing 20% more damage than normal monsters.
- At the same time, they lose defense and are defeated faster.
- They cost more stardust when leveling up.
- They always know the Charged move “Frustration”, which is not particularly strong. This can only be removed at certain events with a Charged TM – as is the case now with the takeover.
- You can redeem Crypto Pokémon. Then they lose their attack bonus but get an upgrade to their IV values and cost less dust when leveling up. However, it is often worthwhile retaining them in their Crypto form for the bonus for many strong attackers.
Finally, Pokémon GO announced another event: At the end of February, Rayquaza returns for the “Proto-Growling” event.
