Niantic has made significant changes with the new update in Pokémon GO where they basically nerfed virtually all Fast moves in the game. With the changes in Pokémon's basic movesets (both legacy and new), the list for the top tiered attackers and defenders was considerably revamped as well. Today, with the help of a fight simulator, we have now the updated list of the best attackers and defenders in the game.
Pokémon GO: How To Determine The Best Attackers and Defenders
Goptimiz, is a platform that provides tools, guides and information about Pokémon GO and one of its features is its fight simulator which uses all possible instances (fights) in Pokémon GO. By doing so, it determines the Pokémon's offensive and defensive capabilities which is then stacked up and ranked. To cut to the chase, here are the lists for the best attackers and defenders with the recent balance update (Fast Moves):
Pokemon GO: Best Attackers
Dragonite - currently sitting at the top spot is the classic Dragonite. However, the one currently ranked 1 is that of which that has Dragon Tail and Outrage. This is then followed by Dragonite that has Dragon Tail and Hurricane (ranked #3). The one that has Dragon Breath and Dragon Claw is now currently ranked 19. (*Note that this list contains a total of 127 top attackers with Pokémon appearing multiple times but with different movesets).
Tyranitar - despite the nerf on Bite, the recently introduced Gen 2 Pokémon, Tyranitar that has moveset of Bite and Stone Edge, is now shining at the number 2 spot as the best attacker across all gyms in the world. This is then followed by a Tyranitar with Bite and Crunch (ranked #5). The one with Iron Tail and Stone Edge is currently sitting at the #52 spot.
Machamp - sitting at the #4 spot is Machamp with movesets Counter and Dynamic Punch. This is then followed by Machamp that has Counter and Close Combat which is currently sitting at #38. It appears that the buff on the Counter has significantly boosted Machamp's overall prowess in battle.
Pokemon GO: Best Defenders
Blissey - The newly introduced Gen 2 Pokémon Blissey, is now taking the spotlight as the best Defender in the game. With the Pokémon's incredible Stamina and Defense stats added with its endearing moveset, Pound and Dazzling Gleam, it is definitely an enemy not to be trifled with.
Snorlax - used to be considered as the best defender in the game, Snorlax is now ranked #2 in the world. But do not fret though as Snorlax is still as effective as it used to. The best moveset for this Pokémon in defense is Zen Headbutt and Hyper Beam.
Dragonite - Another popular Pokémon from Gen 1 is Dragonite. By far, this Pokémon is considered as one of the best-rounded Pokémon in the game as it excels in all departments: attacking, defending and countering. Dragonite is currently sitting at the third spot as the best defender in the game, with moveset Dragon Tail and Hurricane.
Goptimiz Fight Simulation
In order to obtain such ranks, the fight simulator simulates and tests all possible fights in the game. This means that it parse data from each Pokémon with each moveset being simulated (both offense and defense). This amounts to a total of 2,891,904 fights simulations. The formula used to determine the damage dealt by a move is as follows: floor (0.5 × [Atk (attacker)/Def (defender)] × Power move × STAB × Efficiency) + 1. More details about the fight simulation can be found here. Check back for more Pokemon GO News and Updates!
