DEXERTOFrom time to time, Pokemon Go offers trainers the chance to take part in the Jungle Cup: Great League Edition, so we’ve broken down the best team they can bring along when the time comes.
Besides the very well-known Great, Ultra, and Master League competitions, Niantic regularly introduces new and remixed Cups to the Battle League to offer trainers different challenges.
As part of the current Tales of Transformation season, the Jungle Cup: Great League Edition is back. However, to participate, all Pokemon must be at or below 1,500 CP and belong to a determinate type.
So, here are the cup’s rules and restrictions, along with our recommended fighters.
Best team for the Pokemon Go Jungle Cup: Great League Edition
One of the best team combinations for the Jungle Cup includes Altaria, Forretress, and Cradily, as they are some of the strongest Pokemon with wide coverage.
DEXERTOHowever, as with the rest of the Go Battle League, it’s hard to say what a ‘best team’ looks like because you’ll never know what Pokemon you’re going up against. You can have a very solid team, but a lot of it comes down to type combinations.
Still, there are a few that can perform well in most situations, which we’ve listed below alongside their optimal movesets and weaknesses.
Best Pokemon for the Jungle Cup: Great League Edition
Zweilous
- Fast Move: Dragon Breath
- Charged Move: Body Slam and Dark Pulse
- Type: Dark/Dragon
- Resistances: Dark, Electric, Fire, Ghost, Grass, Psychic, and Water
- Weaknesses: Bug, Dragon, Fairy, Fighting, and Ice
This Dark/Dragon-type Pokemon is already a standout in other tiers of the Battle League, and it performs even better in this cup.
The combination of the excellent Fast Move Dragon Breath and the low-cost Charged Move Body Slam means Zweilous can dish out plenty of damage, while Dark Pulse gives it a secondary attack that gets STAB and provides extra coverage.
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Runerigus
DEXERTO- Fast Move: Shadow Claw
- Charged Moves: Rock Tomb and Brutal Swing
- Type: Ground/Ghost
- Resistances: Poison, Normal, Fighting, Electric, Rock, and Bug
- Weaknesses: Dark, Ghost, Grass, Ice, and Water
The very strange-looking Runerigus is a great choice, thanks to its particular dual Ground/Ghost type combination and high Defense stat.
To play this Pokemon correctly, you should teach it the Fast Move Shadow Claw. It benefits from STAB and has a good balance between damage and energy generation.
Even though it doesn’t benefit from STAB, pair Shadow Claw with Brutal Swing. It expands coverage, but mainly can help you bait enemy shields to leave them defenseless early on. For the secondary Charged Move, go with Rock Tomb to decrease the target’s Attack stat by 20%.
Togekiss
Niantic / The Pokemon Company- Fast Move: Peck
- Charged Moves: Aura Sphere and Psyshock
- Type: Fairy/Flying
- Resistances: Bug, Dragon, Fighting, Ground, Dark, and Grass
- Weaknesses: Electric, Ice, Poison, Rock, and Steel
Togekiss is another great all-rounder to bring into the League, thanks to its amazing type coverage – it has access to six different types in its Charged Move pool.
We recommend using Peck as a Fast Move as it is fast and cheap. For the Charged Moves, go with Aura Sphere to expand your coverage and bait the opponent’s shields. Then, use the nuke Dazzling Gleam to deal devastating Fairy-type damage with STAB or Psyshock to expand your coverage even more.
Dunsparce
NIANTIC/DEXERTO- Fast Move: Rollout
- Charged Move: Drill Run and Rock Slide
- Type: Normal
- Resistances: Ghost
- Weaknesses: Fighting
Even though it looks harmless, Dunsparce has incredible bulk, only one weakness, and a solid move pool to pick from.
Rollout is a very good Fast Move, so go with it to benefit from its high energy gains, STAB, and good synergy with the Charged Moves. As for those, Drill Run and Rock Slide offer good damage for a fair price, and combined, they offer solid coverage.
Scizor (Shadow)
DEXERTO- Fast Move: Bullet Punch
- Charged Moves: Night Slash and Trailblaze
- Type: Bug/Steel
- Resistances: Grass, Poison, Bug, Dragon, Fairy, Ice, Normal, Psychic, and Steel
- Weaknesses: Fire
Gen 2’s Scizor is a spammy and fast Pokemon that can exert pressure on the opponent. However, it’s a bit of a glass cannon, so use it as a lead or switch when you still have shields to protect it with.
Bullet Punch deals more damage than Fury Cutter, so it’s better to go with it. For the Charged Moves, use Night Slash to bait the opponent’s shields and increase your Attack stat by 50%. Then add Trailblaze to target Rock and Water-type enemies while increasing your Attack stat by 25%.
Guzzlord
NIANTIC- Fast Move: Dragon Tail
- Charged Moves: Brutal Swing and Dragon Claw
- Type: Dark/Dragon
- Resistances: Psychic, Water, Grass, Ghost, Fire, Electric, and Dark
- Weaknesses: Fairy, Bug, Dragon, Fighting, and Ice
The Ultra Beast known as Guzzlord is one of the spammiest creatures in all of the Battle League, and as if that was not enough, it has massive Stamina that will keep it alive for a very long time.
Dragon Tail is a Fast Move that generates energy extremely quickly, so Guzzlord will be able to access its Charged Moves very soon.
The Charged Move Brutal Swing might now deal great damage, but it is incredibly spammy, so use it as much as you can. Meanwhile, Dragon Claw can deal very good damage for a very cheap price.
Steelix (Shadow)
NIANTIC- Fast Move: Thunder Fang
- Charged Moves: Psychic Fangs and Crunch
- Type: Steel/Ground
- Resistances: Poison, Rock, Electric, Steel, Psychic, Normal, Flying, Fairy, Dragon, and Bug
- Weaknesses: Fighting, Fire, Ground, and Water
Steelix, like every other Steel-type Pokemon, has an incredible amount of resistances, which is always wonderful to have. It also has a really good Defense, so it can be either used as a lead or a switch, as it will endure the damage.
As a lead, Steelix can push the enemies’ shields by spamming Thunder Fang, a very fast move with heavy damage. Moreover, both Charged Moves are very cheap and fast, and can decrease the opponent’s Defense stat by 20% while targeting different types.
Piloswine
DEXERTO- Fast Move: Powder Snow
- Charged Move: Icicle Spear and Stone Edge
- Type: Ice/Ground
- Resistances: Electric and Poison
- Weaknesses: Fighting, Fire, Grass, Steel, and Water
The previous stage of the terrifying Mamoswine, Piloswine, is a very spammy Pokemon that can leave any opponent defenseless at very early stages of the battle.
For the Fast Move, use Powder Snow instead of Ice Shard. It is a fast charge move, so it will unlock your Charged Moves faster. Then, go with Icicle Spear to bait the opponent’s shields and finish them off with Stone Edge, an incredible coverage nuke.
Cradily
Niantic / The Pokemon Company- Fast Move: Acid
- Charged Moves: Grass Knot and Rock Tomb
- Type: Rock/Grass
- Resistances: Electric and Normal
- Weaknesses: Bug, Fighting, Ice, and Steel
The surprise star of this cup is Cradily, which has never really had any viability in the Pokemon Go Battle League before but is currently ranking at number one on PvPoke. This is most likely thanks to a very strong moveset and bulkiness.
While Bullet Seed and Infestation have fast energy generation, Acid is pretty decent and can help Cradily mainly against Grass-type opponents. Meanwhile, Rock Tomb is effective against Fire types and decreases the target’s Attack stat by 20%, and Grass Knot can take care of Water enemies. Plus, both benefit from STAB.
Corviknight
NIANTIC/DEXERTO- Fast Move: Sand Attack
- Charged Moves: Air Cutter and Payback
- Type: Flying/Steel
- Resistances: Bug, Grass, Poison, Dragon, Fairy, Flying, Normal, Psychic, Steel, and Ground
- Weaknesses: Electric and Fire
Like most Steel-type Pokemon, one of Corviknight’s advantages is the many resistances it has. That, along with its very good Defense and Stamina stats, makes this a very difficult creature to take down.
Even though it’s the only Fast Move that doesn’t benefit from STAB, Sand Attack offers great coverage and has a very fast energy gain.
As for the Charged Moves, Air Cutter is quite spammy, so it can help you take down the opponent’s shields. Plus, it benefits from STAB and has a 30% chance of boosting your Attack stat by 25%. Payback, on the other hand, is a coverage nuke all trainers using Corviknight should have as a secondary choice.
Forretress
DEXERTO- Fast Move: Bug Bite
- Charged Moves: Rock Tomb and Sand Tomb
- Type: Bug/Steel
- Resistances: Poison, Grass, Steel, Psychic, Normal, Ice, Fairy, Dragon, and Bug
- Weaknesses: Fire
Forretress is one solid choice for any team as it boasts a ton of useful resistances, and it’s only weak to one type (Fire), which is not being played a lot during this season. Plus, it has a great Defense stat.
Bug-type moves are not good at all in Pokemon Go, but Bug Bite can deal heavy damage and benefits from STAB.
For the Charged Move, use Rock Tomb to decrease your opponent’s Attack stat and bait their shields. Then you can finish them up with Sand Tomb, which will also decrease the enemy’s Defense stat by 20%, making it easier to take it down.
Crustle
Niantic / The Pokemon Company- Fast Move: Fury Cutter
- Charged Moves: X-Scissor and Rock Wrecker
- Type: Bug/Rock
- Resistances: Normal and Poison
- Weaknesses: Rock, Steel, and Water
Crustle has never been a PvP star in Pokemon Go, but the new meta and the addition of Rock Wrecker to its move pool allowed it to rise in the Jungle Cup.
Fury Cutter is the optimal Fast Move for energy generation. Then, with a combination of X-Scissor (used to bait enemy shields) and Rock Wrecker (strong and very cheap) as Charged Moves, Crustle will be able to take down plenty of the Cup’s biggest players like Kingdra, Cradily, and Forretress with no problem at all.
Clodsire
NIANTIC- Fast Move: Poison Sting
- Charged Moves: Earthquake and Stone Edge
- Type: Poison/Ground
- Resistances: Poison, Electric, Rock, Fighting, Fairy, and Bug
- Weaknesses: Ground, Ice, Psychic, and Water
Clodsire appeared out of nowhere and stole a high spot in our ranking basically because it is good at everything. This dual Poison/Ground creature works fine as a lead, switch, or closer thanks to its good Defense, but mostly its massive Stamina of 209.
The blob Clodsire might exert low Fast Move pressure with Poison Sting, but it still manages to reach its incredible Charged Moves. Earthquake is one of the best moves of all time, and Stone Edge is a coverage nuke that allows it to hit hard. Clodsire’s access to 5 different types of moves makes it very hard to target and take down.
Diggersby
NIANTIC- Fast Move: Quick Attack
- Charged Moves: Fire Punch and Scorching Sands
- Type: Normal/Ground
- Resistances: Ghost, Electric, Rock, and Poison
- Weaknesses: Fighting, Grass, Ice, and Water
Even though Diggersby is not a great attacker, it is an extremely bulky Pokemon with a unique and useful type combination.
In Diggersby’s case, having access to Fire Punch helps this enormous rabbit fight Grass types, which is one of its main weaknesses in this tournament. As if it were not enough, Scorching Sands is a wonderful Ground-type move that deals very high damage for low energy.
Altaria
Niantic / The Pokemon Company- Fast Move: Dragon Breath
- Charged Moves: Sky Attack and Flamethrower
- Type: Dragon/Flying
- Resistances: Fighting, Water, Bug, Fire, Grass, and Ground
- Weaknesses: Ice, Fairy, Dragon, and Rock
Altaria is one of the most time-consuming evolutions in Pokemon Go, as it costs a whopping 400 Candy, and its pre-evolution, Swablu, isn’t exactly a common spawn. But if you’re lucky enough to have one, you should definitely consider giving it a spot on your team.
When it comes to Altaria’s moveset, you’ll want Dragon Breath as a Fast Move for its big damage potential, followed up with Sky Attack as a low-cost shield-baiting Charged Move. Add Flamethrower as your secondary Charged Move to deal high damage and expand your coverage.
Pokemon Go Jungle Cup rules & restrictions explained
The Jungle Cup is a very unique and fun challenge in the Go Battle League. However, to participate, all Pokemon must be at or below 1,500 CP.
Moreover, only those with Normal, Grass, Electric, Poison, Ground, Flying, Bug, and Dark can enter the tournament. While this does limit your options when compared to the open League tiers, remember that dual types like the Dragon/Flying Altaria can take part, which does make forming a team a little bit easier.
Keep in mind that this time around, both Gligar and Galarian Stunfisk are banned from the competition.
Jungle Cup: Great League Edition start & end date
The latest Pokemon Go Battle League season will run from September 2, 2025, until December 2, 2025.
During what’s left of it, the Jungle Cup will be featured in the following week:
- From November 4, 2025, until November 11, 2025, along with the regular Ultra League.
With the Jungle Cup having been held also in October, players will have a total of two weeks to dominate this Go Battle League cup and work their way to the top.
Those are the best Pokemon you can add to your Jungle Cup: Great League Edition team during this Pokemon Go season. For more content, check our guide with the Battle League schedule and rewards, as well as all the best attackers, defenders, and PvP champions.