Pokemon Go Cliff Counters September 2022 - Dexerto

Contents

• 1

  Cliff Pokemon Go lineup (February 2026)

• 2

  How to beat Cliff in Pokemon Go

• 3

  Cliff Pokemon Go counters – Phase 1

  • Magikarp encounters

• 4

  Cliff Pokemon Go counters – Phase 2

  • Annihilape counters

  • Skarmory counters

  • Cradily counters

• 5

  Cliff Pokemon Go counters – Phase 3

  • Tyranitar counters

  • Gallade counters

  • Camerupt counters

• 6

  Best team to beat Cliff in Pokemon Go

• 7

  Every Cliff Shadow Boss ranked by difficulty

• 8

  How to find Cliff

Cliff is a really challenging opponent in Pokemon Go, so we’ve compiled all the information you need to win, including his lineup, weaknesses, and the most effective counters to beat him.

Taking out all six Team Go Rocket Grunts in Pokemon Go and collecting their Mysterious Components will enable you to create a Rocket Radar. This high-tech tool lets you square off against one of the fearsome Team Go Rocket Leaders: Cliff, Arlo, or Sierra.

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Don’t be fooled, though, as these aren’t your typical Grunts that hang around the PokeStops – these Leaders pack a real punch, and their team lineup remains a mystery until you step onto the battlefield.

So, here’s everything you need to know to take down Cliff, earn some sweet rewards, and get a chance to catch a Shadow Pokemon in the process.

Cliff Pokemon Go lineup (February 2026)

Cliff will always send out Shadow Magikarp first, followed by two of six potential options across phases two and three. Here’s his current lineup in Pokemon Go:

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• Phase 1: Shadow Magikarp
• Phase 2: Shadow Annihilape / Shadow Skarmory / Shadow Cradily
• Phase 3: Shadow Tyranitar / Shadow Gallade / Shadow Camerupt

As of February 2, 2026, Cliff’s lineup remains the same following the Precious Pals: Taken Over event from the Precious Paths season. We will update this guide every time a Taken Over event occurs.

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How to beat Cliff in Pokemon Go

To take down Cliff, you’ll need to make sure you’re taking different Pokemon into battle to cover various Pokemon types.

Let’s take a look at the weaknesses of all the ‘mon that Cliff can use in battle and the best counters to bring home the win! The sections below include a mix of rare and more accessible counters, so every trainer should have a decent chance against him.

Related

How to beat Leader Arlo in Pokemon Go (February 2026) – Counters & lineup

How to beat Leader Sierra in Pokemon Go (February 2026) – Counters & lineup

How to beat Giovanni in Pokemon Go (February 2026)

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Cliff Pokemon Go counters – Phase 1

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Magikarp encounters

Magikarp is a pure Water-type, which means it’s weak to Electric and Grass-type attacks. It also resists Fire, Ice, Steel, and Water-type moves, so avoid using those. 

Here are some of the best counters against Shadow Magikarp:

Pokemon	Best Moveset
Thundurus (Therian Forme)	Volt Switch & Wildbolt Storm
Kartana	Razor Leaf & Leaf Blade

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Cliff Pokemon Go counters – Phase 2

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Annihilape counters

Annihilape is a dual Fighting/Ghost-type Pokemon, so its weaknesses are Fairy, Flying, Ghost, and Psychic-type attacks, while its resistances are Poison, Rock, Bug, Fighting, and Normal-type moves. 

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Here are some of the best Shadow Annihilape counters to use:

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Pokemon	Best Moveset
Mewtwo	Psycho Cut & Psystrike
Dawn Wings Necrozma	Psycho Cut & Moongeist Beam

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Skarmory counters

Skarmory is a dual Steel/Flying-type Pokemon, which makes it weak against Electric and Fire-type attacks. It’s also resistant to a lot of different types: Bug, Dark, Fairy, Flying, Grass, Ground, Normal, Poison, Psychic, Steel, and Rock-type moves.

Here are some of the best counters for Shadow Skarmory:

Pokemon	Best Moveset
Charizard	Fire Spin & Blast Burn
Thundurus (Therian Forme)	Volt Switch & Wildbolt Storm

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Cradily counters

Cradily is a dual Rock/Grass-type, which means it’s weak against Bug, Fighting, Ice, and Steel-type attacks, and resistant to Electric and Normal moves. 

Here are some of the best Shadow Cradily counters to use:

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Pokemon	Best Moveset
Crowned Sword Zacian	Metal Claw & Behemoth Blade
Lucario	Force Palm & Aura Sphere

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Cliff Pokemon Go counters – Phase 3

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Tyranitar counters

Tyranitar is a dual Rock/Dark-type Pokemon, so it’s weak against Fighting, Bug, Fairy, Grass, Ground, Steel, and Water-type attacks. However, it’s resistant to Psychic, Dark, Fire, Flying, Ghost, Normal, and Poison-type moves.

Here are some of the best Shadow Tyranitar counters to use:

Pokemon	Best Moveset
Primal Kyogre	Waterfall & Origin Pulse
Blaziken	Counter & Focus Blast

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Gallade counters

Gallade is a dual Psychic/Fighting-type Pokemon, which means it’s weak against Fairy, Flying, and Ghost-type attacks. On the other hand, it’s resistant to Fighting and Rock-type moves.

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Here are some of the best counters to take down Shadow Gallade:

Pokemon	Best Moveset
Rayquaza	Air Slash & Dragon Ascent
Dawn Wings Necrozma	Psycho Cut & Moongeist Beam

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Camerupt counters

Camerupt is a dual Fire/Ground-type Pokemon, which means it’s weak against Water and Ground-type attacks. Meanwhile, it’s resistant to Bug, Fairy, Fire, Poison, Steel, and Electric-type moves. 

Here are some of the best Shadow Camerupt counters for your team:

Pokemon	Best Moveset
Primal Kyogre	Waterfall & Origin Pulse
Primal Groudon	Mud Shot & Precipice Blades

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Pokemon Go boss guides

For more guides like this, check out our other boss guides (and bookmark them) because we update them each time their lineup changes in the game:

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• How to beat Giovanni
• How to beat Leader Sierra
• How to beat Leader Arlo
• How to beat Leader Cliff
• How to beat all Rocket Grunts

Best team to beat Cliff in Pokemon Go

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One of the best teams to defeat Cliff’s current lineup in Pokemon Go consists of Thundurus (Therian Forme), Gardevoir, and Lucario.

• You’ll want a strong Electric-type on your team like Thundurus (Therian Forme) – or something easier to access like Raikou, Electivire, or Magnezone – because they counter several creatures on Cliff’s team: Magikarp and Skarmory.
• A powerful Fairy-type is a must, so you can go with Gardevoir (or its Mega form) to pit it mainly against Annihilape and Gallade, and help out with Tyranitar too.
  • If you don’t have a powerful Fairy-type creature, you can go with your strongest Flying or Ghost.
• Finally, you can take care of Cradily and Tyranitar with a Fighting type like Lucario, Blaziken, or Heracross – or their Mega forms if you have the required Mega Energy.
• The trickiest part of Cliff’s lineup is Camerupt in Phase 3 because it’s only weak against Water and Ground. If you come across it, you’ll have to rework your team to add Primal Kyogre, Primal Groudon, Garchomp, or Swampert. This slot will also help with Tyranitar, though.

If you don’t have one of the Pokemon suggested here, or in any of the suggestions higher up, we’d suggest taking your strongest Electric, Fairy, and Fighting-type ‘mons in with you for battle – as they’ll give you the best chance of succeeding through pure force.

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Remember that if you lose against Cliff, you’ll be able to challenge him to a rematch as many times as you need until you win. This is ideal when he throws out something you’re not prepared for, as you can rework your team before heading back into battle.

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Every Cliff Shadow Boss ranked by difficulty

Team Go Rocket first appeared in Pokemon Go back in 2019, and since then, their teams have had plenty of rotations to challenge the players and keep them interested. Unlike the Grunts, the Team Go Rocket Leaders – Arlo, Cliff, and Sierra – can be quite tough to beat, mainly due to their final Shadow Pokemon used in Phase 3.

After analyzing Cliff’s team over the years, along with his final Pokemon’s stats, bulk, moveset, and other factors, here’s how tough to beat he’s been so far, with Dusknoir taking a clear lead, with Machamp and Swampert trailing behind:

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DEXERTO

When a new Takeover rolls around and a new lineup is introduced, we’ll update this table with details on the current Shadow Boss and its placement.

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How to find Cliff

The only way to track down Cliff (or any Team Go Rocker Leader) is to beat six Team Go Rocket Grunts and earn all six parts of the Mysterious Component. Once you have the six parts of the device, they’ll combine to assemble a Rocket Radar.

• With a Rocket Radar active, you can encounter Team Go Rocket members either at Poke Stops or by clicking on a Team Go Rocket Balloon.
• Keep tapping on these encounters until you see Cliff’s avatar.
• Once his avatar appears, you’ll then be able to battle and defeat him to earn yourself a Shadow Magikarp.

That’s all you need to know about defeating Cliff in Pokemon Go and the best counters to use alongside its weaknesses. For additional help, make sure to check out how to play Pokemon Go, the current Raid bosses, events schedule, and the Max Mondays and Spotlight Hour schedule.

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