Tapu Lele is the new guardian deity to join Pokémon Go, to obtain it, trainers will need to counter it in a Raid Battle. Currently, Pokémon Go is hosting the Season of Alola, a seasonal event where Pokémon that originate from Pokémon Sun and Moon will begin to appear. The starters, Rowlet, Popplio, and Litten are already present and ready to be captured. Since this is a seasonal event, it's broken up into smaller chunks to spread out over the upcoming months. In Pokémon Sun and Moon, the main four islands were separated by a large body of water. In the first Season of Alola event, players were able to capture Pokémon from Melemele Island.
For the upcoming Pokémon Go Lush Jungle event, trainers will be able to capture a handful of Pokémon from Akala Island. Tapu Lele is the guardian deity of this island in Pokémon Sun and Moon. The Lush Jungle event will take place Tuesday, March 22, 2022, from 10:00 a.m. to Tuesday, March 29, 2022, at 8:00 p.m. local time. This is the period where Tapu Lele will be appearing in Five-Star raid battles. Replacing Tapu Koko, it will be the next legendary Pokémon in rotation.
Tapu Lele is a Psychic and Fairy-type Pokémon, giving it weaknesses to Poison, Steel, and Ghost-type attacks. To counter it, trainers should bring along Pokémon with moves of these typings. Since this is a Five-Star raid, it's recommended to collect in a group of at least five trainers. Any less might run out the timer, preventing them from capturing Tapu Lele. Currently, Pokémon Go is giving away free remote raid passes in the shop and trainers can use this to battle against Tapu Lele.
Best Tapu Lele Raid Counters in Pokémon Go
These Pokémon are the strongest to use against Tapu Lele based on their CP and attack stats in Pokémon Go.
- Dialga: Metal Claw and Iron Head.
- Metagross: Zen Headbutt and Meteor Mash
- Drifblim: Hex and Shadow Ball.
- Tyranitar: Iron Tail and Return
- Gigalith: Smack Down and Heavy Slam
- Zapdos: Thunder Shock and Drill Peck
- Shadow Raikou: Thunder Shock and Shadow Ball
- Shadow Muk: Acid and Gunk Shot
- Shadow Cacturne: Poison Jab and Grass Knot.
- Steelix: Iron Trail and Heavy Slam.
It's important to mention that Tapu Lele does not have its Shiny form available in Pokémon Go. This will likely be added years down the line during a future event. Trainers can focus on capturing at least one Tapu Lele before the event is over, otherwise, the player will need to wait until Tapu Lele is in rotation again. Make sure to use a Golden Razz Berry before throwing the Poké Ball as this will make the odds a bit easier for successfully capturing it.
Pokémon Go is available now on iOS and Android.