Pokémon GO has 151 Pokémon from the original games, but only a handful tend to be used for guarding gyms. Pity, that, because there are some seriously overlooked Pokémon that are low-key powerful, far moreso than they were in the original games and powerful enough to defeat most of the “sexier” gym opponents. Read on for tips on how to get the underrated Pokémon (and why you should use them)!
Nidoqueen and Nidoking are the first of the bunch, and the most obvious answer due to their sky high max CP (2485 for Nidoking and 2475 for Nidoqueen). They are poison and ground types, so they are most likely to show up near wetlands (such as swamps or marshes) as well as urban or suburban, paved-over areas such as roads and parking lots (as a ground type). Or for the more tedious method, spend some time farming for Nidoran candy of both kinds. Both Nidorans can be acquired from 5K Eggs, but Nidorino/rina and Nidoking/queen don’t appear in any egg.
Even more powerful than these two is Muk, at a surprising 2602 max CP. Muk is a pure poison type, and thus the best place to find it (or Grimer, which evolves into Muk) is in a marsh, swamp or other sort of wetland. They have also been known to pop up often in urban areas. Grimer can be acquired from a 5K egg, along with a jackpot of Grimer Candy to evolve it into Muk.
Clefable is one of the few Pokémon to switch types since the original 151, and at 2497 maximum CP, it’s the strongest Fairy-type in the entire game. Fairy types are strong against Dragons, making this the perfect Pokémon to counter Dragonite with. Fairy types are most commonly found around popular landmarks (with or without lures), hospitals, and cemeteries, but don’t enter cemeteries if you can help it. Also look for Clefairiies, and a significant amount of their candy, in the 2k section.
Vileplume is far stronger than it was in the games, almost eclipsing Venusaur with a 2492 maximum CP. It’s a grass and poison type, so it can be found in golf courses, grassy areas such as parks, meadows and grasslands, as well as in wetlands such as swamps and marshes. Drop a lure, or find an Oddish spawn point and farm it until you have enough candy to evolve it into Glume, then Vileplume.
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Finally, Poliwrath is a very-overlooked Pokémon that is water and fighting type. The most obvious place to find it is near water sources, but since it’s also a fighting type, expect to get a pop up every so often among deserts and near casinos and sporting arenas as well as real-life gyms. Poliwag and Poliwhirl are the less-evolved forms, and neither show up near the gym, typically. Poliwrath has often been used by many trainers as a multitask for defeating both normal types (such as Snorlax) and fire types such as Rapidash. Poliwag, the less-evolved form, can often be found, so save up 125 Poliwag Candy, 25 for the initial evolution and 100 for the next one. Poliwag often shows up in 5K eggs.