Gym battles were overhauled in the recent Pokémon Go update. Trainers can now bring six Pokémon to battle at friendly gyms. The CP of the Pokémon that you are battling may be temporarily adjusted lower for your training session.
Some trainers would have already known that Raticate is an undeniably good attacker to gain prestige in friendly gyms. But for those that are not aware yet, we will reveal why Raticate is such a good choice as a gym prestiger.
The Strength Of Raticate
Raticate is often overlooked since it has a terrible CP scaling due to Raticate’s low base stats. This might sound bad but is actually what makes it perfect to train at friendly gyms.
1. Amazing Moveset
| Optimal Moveset | Fast Attack | Special Attack |
|---|---|---|
| Raticate | Bite | Hyper Beam |
The moveset is what really makes Raticate shine. Raticate with Bite and Hyper Beam can dish out so much damage despite its low base stats. Bite (12 DPS) is preferred over Quick Attack (9.4 DPS even with STAB) as it can deal more damage and has a shorter move length which will make dodging easier.
Hyper Beam is typically a special attack for extremely rare Pokémon like Mewtwo, Chansey, Snorlax, Dragonite, and Aerodactyl with Raticate being the exception. It is one of the best special attack in Pokémon Go and Raticate also gains STAB for using Hyper Beam.
2. Raticate is a Normal Type
Normal type only has one weakness which is Fighting type. Raticate being a Normal type ensures that it has no glaring weaknesses as the best gym defenders are not Fighting type.
3. Raticate Soft Counters Exeggutor
Exeggutors are often seen in gyms as it is a top tier gym defender. However, Raticate’s fast attack, Bite which is a Dark type is super effective on Exeggutor. Other top tier defenders like Dragonite and Snorlax which have a higher CP scale will usually placed higher than the Exeggutor, This makes training a friendly gym easier by using the Raticate strategy on those bottom Exeggutor.
4. Raticate has a Low CP Scale
With the new update, this will actually be an advantage. Since trainers have to bring six Pokémon to battle at friendly gyms, Raticate which typically has a low CP is the perfect option for slot fillers.
The new gym update since version 0.41.2 for Android and 1.11.2 for iOS calculates prestige gain for friendly battles based on the highest CP of the six Pokémon used for attacking. Having attackers that are of lower CP than the defenders will give you 500 to 1,000 CP gain for each battle won. Raticate fits nicely in any situation when you have extra attacking slots.
The Weaknesses Of Raticate
Raticate’s advantage in the new gym system is also its weakness. Remember that Raticate has low base stats. Even if you dodged successfully, Raticate will still take a lot of damage due to its fragile defense and HP.
So try to get in as many fast attacks as possible between dodges. Be careful that you don’t fire Hyper Beam knowing that the opponent has a Special attack available. Hyper Beam is best used as a final attack to finish off the opponent. Raticate’s fragility will also mean that less potions are needed after each battle.
