Pokemon GO Heatran raid guide (June 2023): Best counters, weaknesses, and more

Pokemon GO's upcoming Dark Flames event will take place from June 29, 2023, to July 2, 2023. During this time, several Dark and Fire-type Pokemon will be obtainable at a higher rate, and Fire/Steel-type legendary species Heatran will return in 5-star raids. This should provide players with ample opportunity to raid, defeat, and capture Heatran and maybe even snag its shiny variant along the way.

Although joining the event and raiding Heatran is one thing, Pokemon GO players likely won't get far without a plan. As a 5-star raid boss, Heatran is no pushover, and trainers that don't take advantage of its vulnerabilities may end up failing the encounter.

Fortunately, there are plenty of moves and creatures in Pokemon GO that should be able to help trainers clear the raid as many times as they need to.

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What are the best Pokemon to counter Heatran in Pokemon GO?

As a Fire/Steel-type species in Pokemon GO, Heatran is weak to Fighting, Ground, and Water-type moves/Pocket Monsters. However, since both its Fire and Steel typings are weak to Ground-type attacks, these moves are also the most effective at dealing large amounts of super-effective damage in a short span of time.

When entering Heatran's 5-star raid, trainers should have a battle party that heavily leans on Ground-type Pokemon. Alternatively, if players don't have that many Ground-type picks with high CP and IV stats, they can also opt to exploit Heatran's two other elemental weaknesses.

Even if Pokemon GO players are using Fighting and Water-type counter picks, they should be able to defeat Heatran. That is as long as the counters are powered up as much as possible and have quality stats. Otherwise, they may not deal optimal damage, and the raid may resultingly take longer overall.

Top Pokemon counters to beat Heatran raids

• Groudon/Primal Groudon
• Mega Blaziken
• Mega Blastoise
• Mega Gyarados
• Mega Lopunny
• Mega Slowbro
• Landorus
• Garchomp
• Kyogre/Primal Kyogre
• Rhyperior
• Excadrill
• Mamoswine
• Krookodile
• Golurk
• Donphan
• Golem
• Swampert/Mega Swampert
• Terrakion
• Flygon
• Seismitoad
• Keldeo
• Hippowdon
• Nidoking
• Ursaluna
• Alolan Dugtrio
• Gastrodon
• Lucario
• Kingler
• Conkeldurr
• Heracross
• Galarian Zapdos

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What are the best moves to beat Heatran raids in Pokemon GO?

As mentioned above, Pokemon GO players who wish to counter Heatran effectively will want to stick to Ground, Water, and Fighting-type attacks. Even better, if trainers match these moves to a Pokemon of the same type, they'll naturally increase their damage output, thanks to the Same Type Attack Bonus (STAB).

Even if players don't have any creatures that can trigger stab, another useful tactic is to utilize strong Pokemon that at least have access to Ground/Fighting/Water-type moves, as this will still do super-effective damage. Ground-type moves will do the most damage out of all of Heatran's weaknesses, but players have to work with what they've got.

Top moves to beat Heatran raids

• Mud Shot
• Precipice Blades
• Earthquake
• Mud-Slap
• Earth Power
• Waterfall
• Hydro Pump
• Hydro Cannon
• Origin Pulse
• High Horsepower
• Double Kick
• Focus Blast
• Counter
• Low Kick
• Sacred Sword
• Rock Smash
• Close Combat
• Dynamic Punch
• Crabhammer
• Aura Sphere

In addition to using the right moves and Pokemon, trainers will likely want to invite some fellow players into the raid as well. Although it's true that some trainers may be able to beat Heatran solo, most fans will want some backup from other players.