Posted in: Games, Mobile Games, Niantic, Pokémon GO | Tagged: Articuno, Niantic, Niantic Labs, pokemon, pokemon go

Articuno Raid Guide: Legendary Birds In Pokémon GO

To say it has been a long time since Articuno has been in Pokémon GO raids is an understatement. It was featured in the Research Breakthrough back in December 2019 and was available as a Shadow Pokémon through Giovanni and, later, the GO Fest 2020 Research. However, this one-time raid mainstay hasn't been in raids since 2018. Now, as Cresselia prepares to leave raids, Articuno will finally reign as the Legendary Raid boss for a week. With our Raid Guide, trainers will be able to build teams with the best counters to battle and defeat this Legendary bird… and perhaps even catch a Shiny Articuno.

Top Articuno Counters

Pokebattler, which calculates all possible combinations of Pokémon and moves, lists the top 10 Articuno counters as such:

• Shadow Tyranitar (Smack Down, Stone Edge)
• Rampardos (Smack Down, Rock Slide)
• Mega Charizard Y (Fire Spin, Blast Burn)
• Rhyperior (Smack Down, Rock Wrecker)
• Terrakion (Smack Down, Rock Slide)
• Shadow Omastar (Rock Throw, Rock Slide)
• Tyranitar (Smack Down, Stone Edge)
• Charizard (Fire Spin, Blast Burn)
• Shadow Metagross (Bullet Punch, Meteor Mash)
• Gigalith (Smack Down, Rock Slide)

It is recommended to power up your counters as much as possible and creating that amount of strong Shadow Pokémon or Megas with their moves unlocked is a tall order for even the most practiced players. Here are ten additional non-Shadow and non-Mega counters that can help take down Articuno with efficiency.

• Omastar (Rock Throw, Rock Slide)
• Darmanitan (Fire Fang, Rock Slide)
• Alolan Golem (Rock Throw, Stone Edge)
• Aggron (Smack down, Rock Slide)
• Excadrill (Metal Claw, Rock Slide)
• Aerodactyl (Rock Throw, Rock Slide)
• Metagross (Bullet Punch, Meteor Mash)
• Golem (Rock Throw, Stone Edge)
• Reshiram (Fire Fang, Stone Edge)
• Crustle (Smack Down, Rock Slide)

How Many Trainers Are Needed?

Those who were frustrated with the incredibly tanky Cresselia can breathe easy. Articuno, when using the top counters above with maxed CP, can be duoed. However, if trainers cannot guarantee top counters, four trainers of reasonable strength should have no issue.

Catching Articuno

Articuno is one of those Flying-type Legendary Pokémon that likes to travel up and down the screen, so the key to catching it will be patience. Its catch circle isn't huge, so it may take some practice to get those "Excellent" throws down. The best bet to catch Articuno is to use the circle lock technique along with Golden Razz Berries every time.

Using the circle lock technique, players can hold down the ball until Articuno's catch circle shrinks. Releasing when the circle is at its smallest point allows the circle to lock in place, guaranteeing an "Excellent" throw if the ball can hit that point. To make sure that can be done, throw the ball when Articuno is finishing its attack. Articuno's attack is a very simple dart forward and back. As it is about to settle into position, throw the ball. "Excellent" throws, paired with Golden Razz Berries, should lead to a successfully caught Articuno.

Shiny Articuno odds

The Shiny rate for Legendary Pokémon is one in twenty. If you want the icy blue Shiny Articuno, the best bet is to do twenty or more raids.

100% IVs

When looking for a Pokémon with the best stats, the 100% IV Articuno will have a CP of 1743 in normal weather conditions and 2179 in boosted conditions. We hope this Raid Guide helps you catch this Legendary Bird.

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