Hello students! My name is Professor Geekbeak, and today, I wish to draw attention to Zapdos. Zapdos is more outclassed than most old legendaries, but can still find use in certain matchups. Grab your notebooks, class is in session. For those who wish to do their research independently, our raw data can be found here. And for those who wish for a simple visual guide, go ahead and take a look at the below visual guide by CaptGoldfish.

NOTE: Some visual guides will be outdated for the duration of GO FEST. They will remain mostly accurate, but lack modern counters, such as the Mega Mewtwo duo, or Eternatus.

Course Schedule

This counter is one of many GO FEST raids. There are too many to put a coherent schedule here, but rest assured, pretty much every legendary, mega, and shadow under the sun will be going at some point. Look to your local GO FEST event or the Pokebattler.com raid schedule to see exactly what raids will be going.

While Zapdos’s dual type neutralizes its ground weakness, it still is weak to Rock and Ice. It can know a Rock type charge move though, so be careful.

Effectiveness	Types
Double Resist (0.4x)	—
Resist (0.6x)	Fighting Flying Ground Bug Steel Grass
Neutral	Normal Poison Ghost Fire Water Electric Psychic Dragon Dark Fairy
Super Effective (1.6x)	Rock Ice
Double Super Effective (2.6x)	—

Zapdos’s moveset includes the following charge moves:

• Drill Peck
• Heat Wave
• Ancient Power
• Thunder
• Thunderbolt
• Zap Cannon
• Return

The Dean’s List consists of the top 5 counters to Zapdos. As always, the Valedictorian, Salutatorian, and the Third Ranked will have their best moveset alternatives in a table with their rankings and a table detailing their defensive prowess against the charge moves listed above.

White Kyurem A

Best Moveset: Ice Fang / Ice Burn

DPS★★★★★

Tank★★★★★

Reliability★★★★★

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Quick Move	Charge Move	Efficacy
Ice Fang	Ice Burn	100%
Dragon Breath	Ice Burn	84%
Ice Fang	Blizzard	80%
Steel Wing	Ice Burn	76%
Dragon Breath	Blizzard	66%
Ice Fang	Fusion Flare	62%

Black Kyurem A

Best Moveset: Dragon Tail / Freeze Shock

DPS★★★★☆

Tank★★★★☆

Reliability★★★★★

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Quick Move	Charge Move	Efficacy
Dragon Tail	Freeze Shock	100%
Shadow Claw	Freeze Shock	91%
Dragon Tail	Blizzard	78%
Shadow Claw	Blizzard	69%
Dragon Tail	Stone Edge	67%
Dragon Tail	Fusion Bolt	65%

Shadow Rhyperior A

Best Moveset: Smack Down / Rock Wrecker

DPS★★★★☆

Tank★★★★★

Reliability★★★★☆

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Quick Move	Charge Move	Efficacy
Smack Down	Rock Wrecker	100%
Smack Down	Stone Edge	89%
Mud-Slap	Rock Wrecker	80%
Smack Down	Breaking Swipe	78%
Smack Down	Skull Bash	75%
Smack Down	Surf	75%

Defensive Grades for Top 3

Boss Move
Zap Cannon	🛡	🛡	🛡🛡
Thunder	🛡	🛡	🛡🛡
Thunderbolt	🛡	🛡	🛡🛡
Ancient Power	⚔	⚔	🛡
Heat Wave	—	—	🛡
Drill Peck	—	—	🛡

Shadow Regigigas A

Best Moveset: Hidden Power / Crush Grip

DPS★★★★☆

Tank★★★★☆

Reliability★★★★☆

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Mega Diancie A

Best Moveset: Rock Throw / Rock Slide

DPS★★★★☆

Tank★★★★☆

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Also Noteworthy: A: Mega Mewtwo Y

We here at Pokebattler Pokémon Research Institute can’t expect you to have the best counters every time. So, here are some of our other best options, most of which will be easier to find than the members of the Dean’s List.

Shadow Tyrantrum A

Best Moveset: Rock Throw / Meteor Beam

DPS★★★★☆

Tank★★★★☆

Reliability★★★☆☆

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Shadow Mamoswine A

Best Moveset: Powder Snow / Avalanche

DPS★★★★☆

Tank★★★★☆

Reliability★★★☆☆

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Shadow Rampardos A

Best Moveset: Smack Down / Rock Slide

DPS★★★★☆

Tank★★★★☆

Reliability★★★★☆

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Mega Tyranitar A

Best Moveset: Smack Down / Stone Edge

DPS★★★★☆

Tank★★★★☆

Reliability★★★★☆

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Mega Mewtwo X A

Best Moveset: Psycho Cut / Ice Beam

DPS★★★★☆

Tank★★★★☆

Reliability★★★☆☆

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Of course, besides our 10 best counters, there are plenty of Pokémon that also work against Zapdos. Here are a few star choices, worthy of praise.

A	Shadow GigalithEternatusShadow TyranitarGlimmoraRhyperiorMega RayquazaPrimal KyogreMega AerodactylTyrantrumRegigigasShadow AurorusBaxcaliburRampardosNecrozma - Dawn WingsShadow LandorusShadow MewtwoMamoswineTerrakionShadow Aggron

Sometimes, the weather can be your most powerful ally. In certain weather conditions, certain Pokémon on our list excel. The most transformative cases are noted below.

Partly Cloudy

Shadow Tyrantrum (1.6)Mega Tyranitar (1.6)Shadow Rampardos (1.6)

Windy

Mega Mewtwo Y (1.6)Mega Mewtwo X (1.7)Eternatus (1.8)

Snow

Mega Mewtwo Y (1.6)Shadow Mamoswine (1.6)Mega Mewtwo X (1.7)

Overall, Zapdos is quite the easy raid. There are plenty of strong Rock and Ice Pokemon. Just be aware of charge moves and this bird will go down. Of course, if you wish to do more research on your box’s best Pokémon for the job, Pokebattler.com itself can be a great help! Remember, the best counter is the one you have powered up and ready to go. I grant extra credit to those who use their best friend bonus and the weather to their advantage. Class dismissed!