DEXERTOThe Fossil Cup is a unique challenge in the Pokemon Go Battle League, and it’s back during the Delighful Days season. Here are the best team recommendations that should take you straight to victory!
Competitive players looking for a fresh challenge outside of the traditional Great, Ultra, and Master Leagues should check out the Fossil Cup.
However, the meta for this limited-time tournament changes with every season, forcing players to rethink their strategies. Plus, only Water, Rock, and Steel-type Pokemon at or below 1,500 CP can participate.
While the choices seem slim, there are still plenty of strong Pokemon in Niantic’s game to build a winning team. So, here are the top-performing creatures you can use.
Best team for the Pokemon Go Fossil Cup: Great League Edition
Currently, the best team that trainers can use in the Fossil Cup includes Gastrodon, Scizor, and Registeel, as these are three of the strongest fighters, and they all offer good coverage against most of the major opponents being featured in the cup.
DEXERTO| POKEMON | FAST MOVE | CHARGED MOVE | TYPE | RESISTANCES | WEAKNESSES | ALTERNATIVES |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Gastrodon | Mud Slap | Body Slam & Earth Power | Water/Ground | Steel, Rock, Poison, Fire, and Electric | Grass | Whiscash / Quagsire |
 Scizor | Fury Cutter | Night Slash & Trailblaze | Bug/Steel | Poison, Grass, Steel, Psychic, Normal, Ice, Fairy, Dragon, and Bug | Fire | Forretress / Genesect |
 Registeel | Lock On | Focus Blast & Zap Cannon | Steel | Poison, Bug, Dragon, Fairy, Flying, Grass, Ice, Normal, Psychic, Rock, and Steel | Fighting, Fire, and Ground | Steelix / Perrserker |
Gastrodon is an incredibly powerful choice for the Fossil Cup as its move pool can target two of the three types allowed in the tournament: Rock and Steel. Plus, it has very high Stamina and only one weakness.
Out of both Fast Moves, Mud-Slap is stronger, cheaper, and benefits from STAB. Body Slam is Gastrodon’s cheapest Charged Move, and due to how fast it is, it can be used to force the enemy shields while Earth Power hits extremely hard.
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.
While Bullet Punch deals more damage, it’s better to go with Fury Cutter as it is faster. For the Charged Moves, use Night Slash to bait the opponent’s shields and increase your Attack stat by 50%. Use Trailblaze to target Rock and Water-type enemies while increasing your Attack stat by 25%.
With solid bulk and an incredible amount of type resistances that include two of the three types that are eligible for the Fossil Cup – Steel and Rock – it’s no surprise that Registeel rises to the top of the ranks here.
You’ll need Lock-On as a Fast Move for Registeel to perform at its best. This will give it faster access to two brilliant (though expensive) Charged Moves: Focus Blast and Zap Cannon. Just watch out for Water-types.
If you don’t have access to either of those three Pokemon or you come across an opponent that targets your team’s weaknesses, we have a long list of other powerful creatures that can help you dominate the Great League.
Best Pokemon for the Fossil Cup: Great League Edition
Steelix
NIANTIC- Fast Move: Thunder Fang
- Charged Moves: Psychic Fangs and Breaking Swipe
- 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 while Psychic Fangs decreases the target’s Defense stat by 20%, Breaking Swipe has a 50% chance of doing the same to the opponent’s Attack stat.
Lanturn
Niantic / The Pokemon Company- Fast Move: Spark
- Charged Moves: Surf and Thunderbolt
- Type: Water/Electric
- Resistances: Fire, Flying, Ice, Steel, and Water
- Weaknesses: Grass and Ground
Lanturn is definitely one to watch in the Fossil Cup, as its Water/Electric typing means it can easily take down fellow Water types while resisting them.
Spark as a Fast Move and Thunderbolt as a Charged Move will help when facing off against other Water-type opponents, while Surf will give you that extra coverage against other participants with different secondary types. Even better, all of these moves benefit from STAB.
Whiscash (Shadow)
Niantic / The Pokemon Company- Fast Move: Mud Shot
- Charged Moves: Mud Bomb and Scald
- Type: Water/Ground
- Resistances: Steel, Rock, Poison, Fire, and Electric
- Weaknesses: Grass
Even though it doesn’t look menacing at all, Whiscash can be very useful due to its massive Stamina stat and unique weakness. For those who don’t have a strong Gastrodon, the Whiskers Pokemon is a great alternative.
It has the super-fast charging Mud Shot in its move pool, so set it as its Fast Move. This will allow you to reach the Charged Moves sooner. As for those, Mud Bomb is a must due to its low cost.
Once you’re done destroying your opponent’s shields with Mud Bomb, switch to Scald to expand your coverage and decrease your target’s Attack stat by 20%.
Paldean Tauros (Aqua Breed)
DEXERTO- Fast Move: Double Kick
- Charged Moves: Aqua Jet and Trailblaze
- Type: Fighting/Water
- Resistances: Bug, Dark, Fire, Ice, Rock, Steel, and Water
- Weaknesses: Electric, Fairy, Flying, Grass, and Psychic
Paldean Tauros Aqua Breed is making waves in the Fossil Cup thanks to its unique Water/Fighting typing and efficient moveset. With such different move types like Double Kick, Aqua Jet, and Trailblaze, it pressures threats while covering its own weaknesses.
Double Kick generates energy quickly, letting it access both Charged Moves early on. That way, it can spam Aqua Jet (not too powerful but reliable) to get rid of the opponent’s shields and then hit them full on with Trailblaze, which will target Ground, Rock, and Water-type enemies. Plus, it increases the user’s Attack stat by 25% to build up its strength.
Forretress
DEXERTO- Fast Move: Bug Bite
- Charged Moves: Rock Tomb and Earthquake
- 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 in this cup. 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 Earthquake, a solid Ground-type nuke that benefits from STAB.
Poliwrath
DEXERTO- Fast Move: Counter
- Charged Moves: Scald and Icy Wind
- Type: Water/Fighting
- Resistances: Rock, Bug, Steel, Fire, Water, Ice, and Dark
- Weaknesses: Flying, Grass, Electric, Psychic, and Fairy
This bulky yet dynamic Pokemon remains one of the best Go Battle League competitors with the ability to beat some of the biggest contenders such as Perrserker, Registeel, and Forretress.
The main characteristic of Poliwrath is how good its moveset is. Counter is one of the best Fast Moves in the game, while Scald deals plenty of damage and might decrease the opponent’s Attack stat. Plus, they both benefit from STAB.
On the other hand, if you can afford a secondary Charged Move, you can use Icy Wind to decrease your target’s Attack by 20% with every hit.
Togedemaru
Niantic / The Pokemon Company- Fast Move: Thunder Shock
- Charged Moves: Wild Charge and Fell Stinger
- Type: Electric/Steel
- Resistances: Bug, Dragon, Electric, Fairy, Flying, Grass, Ice, Normal, Poison, Psychic, Rock, and Steel
- Weaknesses: Fighting, Fire, and Ground
Togedemaru gives an average performance in the Great League, but in the Fossil Cup, it gets a proper chance to shine as one of the top contenders in the meta. With a massive 12 resistances and key wins over the likes of Jellicent, Lanturn, Golisopod, Scizor, and more, it’s not hard to see why.
The combination of Thunder Shock as a Fast Move and Wild Charge as a Charged Move gives Togedemaru a brilliant Electric-type offense. However, the latter will decrease your Defense stat by 33.3%, so be careful.
You can back up the full Electric-type moveset with Fell Stinger, which can be used as shield bait while also increasing your Attack stat by 25%.
Jellicent
DEXERTO- Fast Move: Hex
- Charged Moves: Surf and Shadow Ball
- Type: Water/Ghost
- Resistances: Normal, Fighting, Water, Steel, Poison, Ice, Fire, and Bug
- Weaknesses: Dark, Electric, Ghost, and Grass
This gigantic jellyfish offers trainers an incredible bulk, along with a vast list of resistances that will keep it alive during an encounter.
Both of Jellicent’s Fast Moves are great options that benefit from STAB. While Bubble offers stronger Water-type coverage, Hex has slightly faster energy generation.
To balance Hex, go with Surf as your Charged Move. It is not only really cheap, but it deals great damage and benefits from STAB. As your secondary option, use the nuke Shadow Ball. If you need a different type of coverage, you can switch Shadow Ball for Ice Beam.
Ferrothorn
Niantic / The Pokemon Company- Fast Move: Bullet Seed
- Charged Moves: Power Whip and Thunder
- Type: Grass/Steel
- Resistances: Dragon, Electric, Fairy, Grass, Normal, Poison, Psychic, Rock, Steel, and Water
- Weaknesses: Fighting and Fire
As well as being bulky, Ferrothorn has one of the best typings for the Fossil Cup. Being part Steel-type means it has hardly any weaknesses, and being part Grass-type means it has a key advantage over the Water and Rock-types.
With high energy generation, Bullet Seed is the best Fast Move choice here. Power Whip is a great Charged Move that offers solid STAB damage for a relatively low cost, while Thunder allows some extra coverage against other Steel-types.
Pokemon Go Fossil Cup rules & restrictions
The Fossil Cup is one of the most unique tournaments in the Go Battle League, as trainers can only use Water, Rock, and Steel-type Pokemon, which severely limits the team options. Moreover, they must also be at or below 1,500 CP.
It’s worth noting that even though the name suggests this is a fossil-themed tournament, players are free to use any creature they want as long as they meet the requirements mentioned above.
Fossil Cup: Great League Edition start & end date
The latest Battle League season is underway, running from June 3, 2025, until September 2, 2025. For the rest of its run, the Fossil Cup will appear on:
- July 29 – August 5 (along with the Great League)
Those are the best Pokemon you can add to your Fossil 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.
