Hello students! My name is Professor Geekbeak, and today, I wish to draw attention to Shadow Giratina. Giratina may have fallen a bit from grace due to better dragons and darks releasing, but there is still great value in Giratina as a whole, so Shadow Giratina is nice and strong. Grab your notebooks, class is in session. For those who wish to do their research independently, our raw data can be found here. And for those who wish for a simple visual guide, go ahead and take a look at the below visual guide by CaptGoldfish.

Course Schedule

This raid will take place from August 5th to September 8th. This raid was preceded by Shadow Palkia.

Shadow Giratina is pretty normal, except for the inclusion of Ancient Power, a rock move. So, if your counter of choice is weak to rock, be wary of your Shadow Giratina throwing a rock at it.

Effectiveness	Types
Double Resist (0.4x)	Normal Fighting
Resist (0.6x)	Poison Bug Fire Water Grass Electric
Neutral	Flying Ground Rock Steel Psychic
Super Effective (1.6x)	Ghost Ice Dragon Dark Fairy
Double Super Effective (2.6x)	—

Shadow Giratina’s moveset includes the following charge moves:

• Ancient Power
• Shadow Sneak
• Dragon Claw
• Frustration
• Shadow Force

The Dean’s List consists of the top 5 counters to Shadow Giratina. As always, the Valedictorian, Salutatorian, and the Third Ranked will have their best moveset alternatives in a table with their rankings and a table detailing their defensive prowess against the charge moves listed above.

Eternatus A

Best Moveset: Dragon Tail / Dynamax Cannon

DPS★★★★★

Tank★★★★★

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

3

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Quick Move	Charge Move	Efficacy
Dragon Tail	Dynamax Cannon	100%
Poison Jab	Dynamax Cannon	79%
Dragon Tail	Dragon Pulse	64%
Poison Jab	Dragon Pulse	49%
Dragon Tail	Sludge Bomb	47%
Dragon Tail	Flamethrower	44%

Mega Rayquaza A

Best Moveset: Dragon Tail / Breaking Swipe

DPS★★★★★

Tank★★★★★

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

3

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Quick Move	Charge Move	Efficacy
Dragon Tail	Breaking Swipe	100%
Dragon Tail	Outrage	89%
Dragon Tail	Dragon Ascent	84%
Air Slash	Breaking Swipe	78%
Dragon Tail	Hurricane	73%
Air Slash	Outrage	73%

Black Kyurem A

Best Moveset: Dragon Tail / Freeze Shock

DPS★★★★★

Tank★★★★★

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

4

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Quick Move	Charge Move	Efficacy
Dragon Tail	Freeze Shock	100%
Shadow Claw	Freeze Shock	89%
Dragon Tail	Blizzard	79%
Dragon Tail	Outrage	77%
Shadow Claw	Outrage	70%
Shadow Claw	Blizzard	68%

Defensive Grades for Top 3

Boss Move
Dragon Claw	⚔	⚔	⚔
Shadow Sneak	—	—	—
Ancient Power	—	⚔	⚔

Mega Garchomp A

Best Moveset: Dragon Tail / Breaking Swipe

DPS★★★★☆

Tank★★★★☆

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

4

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Necrozma - Dawn Wings A

Best Moveset: Psycho Cut / Moongeist Beam

DPS★★★★☆

Tank★★★★☆

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

4

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Also Noteworthy: A: White Kyurem

We here at Pokebattler Pokémon Research Institute can’t expect you to have the best counters every time. So, here are some of our other best options, most of which will be easier to find than the members of the Dean’s List.

Shadow Haxorus A

Best Moveset: Dragon Tail / Breaking Swipe

DPS★★★★☆

Tank★★★★☆

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

4

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Shadow Garchomp A

Best Moveset: Dragon Tail / Breaking Swipe

DPS★★★★☆

Tank★★★☆☆

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

4

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Mega Tyranitar A

Best Moveset: Bite / Brutal Swing

DPS★★★★☆

Tank★★★★★

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

4

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Mega Mewtwo Y A

Best Moveset: Psycho Cut / Shadow Ball

DPS★★★★☆

Tank★★★★☆

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

4

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Shadow Tyranitar A

Best Moveset: Bite / Brutal Swing

DPS★★★☆☆

Tank★★★★☆

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

4

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Of course, besides our 10 best counters, there are plenty of Pokémon that also work against Shadow Giratina. Here are a few star choices, worthy of praise.

A	Mega Mewtwo XShadow DialgaMega GengarMega SalamenceShadow HydreigonShadow PalkiaZacian - Crowned SwordShadow DarkraiMega AbsolPalkia - OriginMega DragoniteBaxcaliburShadow Giratina Origin FormMega LatiosShadow ReshiramDialga - OriginRayquazaShadow DragoniteMega Gardevoir

Sometimes, the weather can be your most powerful ally. In certain weather conditions, certain Pokémon on our list excel. The most transformative cases are noted below.

Windy

Shadow Garchomp (3.0)Shadow Haxorus (3.0)Shadow Dialga (3.1)

Snow

White Kyurem (3.0)

Fog

Mega Tyranitar (3.0)Mega Mewtwo Y (3.1)Mega Gengar (3.1)

Overall, Shadow Giratina is a simple raid. Having a few weaknesses always makes these raids simple. But, not that the average number of trainers with well optimized is 3, so there is definitely some difficulty with taking the master of the distortion realm down. Of course, if you wish to do more research on your box’s best Pokémon for the job, Pokebattler.com itself can be a great help! Speaking of, we have rolled out a new system that will give a discount to our subscriptions, and I have been graciously granted a code! So, for those lucky readers who make it all the way down here, the code is GEEKBEAK20. This code not only supports the owner of Pokebattler, but also me! And, to be honest, in real life, the prestigious Professor Geekbeak is a broke college student, so I would really appreciate the support. Thank you! Remember, the best counter is the one you have powered up and ready to go. I grant extra credit to those who use their best friend bonus and the weather to their advantage. Class dismissed!