Pokemon Go Solgaleo Raids: Best Counters, Weaknesses, And More Tips

The legendary Sun Pokemon makes its raid debut in a limited-time appearance, offering trainers a crucial opportunity to capture this powerful creature through battle rather than evolution. This marks a significant shift from previous acquisition methods that required evolving Cosmog through Cosmoem.

Solgaleo serves as the mascot for Pokemon Sun and represents one of the most formidable Steel/Psychic types available in Pokemon Go. Its raid debut provides accessibility for players who missed previous Cosmog research tasks or special events.

As with most legendary encounters, Solgaleo presents a challenging battle that requires strategic team building and coordination with other trainers. Understanding its movepool and defensive capabilities will dramatically increase your success rate.

Solgaleo appears as a five-star raid boss from July 8 to 14, creating a narrow seven-day window to capture this legendary before Terrakion assumes the raid spotlight. Proper timing and preparation are essential for maximizing your chances.

While Solgaleo raids occur periodically throughout this timeframe, your optimal opportunity arrives during the dedicated Solgaleo Raid Hour on July 9. During this concentrated period from 6 to 7 PM local time, the legendary Pokemon dominates most gym locations, providing multiple battle opportunities within a short timeframe.

Solgaleo’s Steel/Psychic typing creates distinct offensive vulnerabilities that skilled trainers can exploit. The Pokemon takes super effective damage from Fire, Ground, Ghost, and Dark type moves, making these your primary focus when building counter teams.

Understanding type effectiveness multipliers is crucial—super effective attacks deal 1.6x damage, while same-type attack bonus (STAB) provides an additional 1.2x multiplier. Combining these factors with weather boosts can create devastating damage output.

Fire-type counters benefit from sunny weather conditions, which boost their fire-type moves by 20%. This makes Mega Charizard Y and Reshiram particularly potent choices when the forecast aligns with your raid timing.

Ground-type specialists excel in clear weather and can exploit Solgaleo’s double weakness to ground attacks. Primal Groudon stands as the premier ground-type option with its massive attack stat and powerful Precipice Blades charged move.

Ghost and Dark types perform optimally in foggy weather, though this condition is relatively rare. These types provide valuable coverage against Solgaleo’s psychic-type moves while dealing super effective damage.

Building an optimal raid team requires understanding not just which types work, but which specific Pokemon and movesets deliver maximum performance. Prioritize Pokemon with high attack stats, optimal movesets, and mega evolution capabilities when available.

Fire-type analysis: Mega Charizard Y delivers the highest fire-type DPS but lacks bulk. Reshiram provides excellent balanced performance with its dragon typing offering additional resistances. Heatran’s steel typing grants valuable defensive utility against Solgaleo’s psychic moves.

Ground-type specialists: Primal Groudon stands uncontested as the premier ground-type attacker. Mega Garchomp provides excellent alternative coverage with its dragon typing. Excadrill offers accessibility for players lacking legendary options.

Ghost-type considerations: While ghost types deal super effective damage, several share psychic typing that creates vulnerability to Solgaleo’s psychic moves. Prioritize ghost types without psychic secondary typing for improved survivability.

Dark-type advantages: Dark types resist Solgaleo’s psychic moves while dealing super effective damage. Mega Tyranitar provides exceptional bulk alongside powerful dark-type moves, making it a reliable anchor for raid teams.

Equally important to knowing what works is understanding which types to avoid. Solgaleo’s defensive typing grants it resistance to numerous common attack types, making certain Pokemon nearly useless in this raid encounter.

Psychic-type attacks deal only 39% of their normal damage due to Solgaleo’s dual resistance. This makes traditionally powerful psychic types like Mewtwo extremely inefficient choices despite their high stats.

Normal, Grass, Ice, and Fairy types all deal neutral damage at best, but more importantly, several take super effective damage from Solgaleo’s potential movesets, creating significant survivability issues.

Common mistakes include using Pokemon based solely on their combat power without considering type effectiveness. Veteran players often fall into this trap when rushing to assemble teams from their most powered-up Pokemon regardless of typing.

Defensive strategy: Solgaleo can learn dangerous charged moves like Fire Blast, Solar Beam, and Psychic Fangs. Understanding its potential coverage moves helps you prepare appropriate defensive counters that can withstand unexpected attacks.

Shiny Solgaleo represents one of the most sought-after variants in Pokemon Go, featuring a striking color scheme with golden accents instead of its standard white and blue coloration. The shiny variant became available alongside Solgaleo’s initial release in 2022.

The shiny encounter rate for legendary raid bosses typically follows a 1 in 20 probability, though this isn’t guaranteed and may vary during special events. The shiny chance applies only upon successful capture, not during the battle itself.

Catch optimization: To maximize shiny encounter opportunities, focus on completing as many Solgaleo raids as possible during the limited availability window. The Raid Hour on July 9 provides the most efficient method for multiple attempts.

Visual identification: Shiny Solgaleo displays noticeable golden mane and tail accents instead of standard blue highlights. The body coloration shifts from pure white to a slightly warmer ivory tone.

Solgaleo possesses the unique capability to fuse with Necrozma, creating the immensely powerful Dawn Wings Necrozma. This fusion process requires specific items and conditions that go beyond standard Pokemon evolution mechanics.

The fusion process demands Necrozma and a special fusion item typically obtained through special research tasks or limited-time events. The fusion isn’t permanent and can be reversed, allowing trainers to switch between forms as needed.

Stat changes: Upon fusion, the resulting Pokemon gains significant stat boosts, particularly in attack and defense, making it one of the most formidable creatures in Pokemon Go.

Strategic advantages: Dawn Wings Necrozma gains the Psychic/Ghost typing, which provides different offensive and defensive characteristics compared to standard Solgaleo.

Fusion requirements: Beyond possessing both Pokemon, you’ll need specific fusion items that may require completing challenging research tasks or participating in exclusive events. Planning ahead ensures you meet all prerequisites before the fusion window closes.

Understanding fusion mechanics can help you plan your resource allocation, similar to how strategic planning benefits players in our Class Guide for optimal team composition.

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