Pokemon GO Raid Guide: Countering Claydol

Claydol is one of the new Raid Bosses in Pokemon GO this week. As such, many players may be searching for one of the best ways to take down the Clay Doll Pokemon.

Claydol has been a part of the Pokemon franchise since the third generation of main series games. In those games, Claydol was a part of Steven, the Hoenn region champion's team. Claydol is also the signature Pokemon of the trainer Buck in Pokemon Diamond and Pearl, as well as Platinum. In those games, Buck could be encountered at Stark Mountain and accompanied the player to stop Team Galactic from disturbing Heatran, the legendary Pokemon that resides there.

Knowing more about a Raid Boss in Pokemon GO can be the key to taking it down. Players interested in adding a Claydol to their collection now have the chance to take it down can catch it afterwards.

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Beating Claydol in Pokemon GO

Claydol's Pokedex entry states that its body is made of mud. It also melts if it's left in the rain and protects itself by using its psychic powers (Image via The Pokemon Company)

The first thing to note regarding Claydol in Pokemon GO is its type. Claydol is a Ground and Psychic-type Pokemon. This gives Claydol a lot of weaknesses. Claydol is weak to Bug, Grass, Water, Ghost, Ice, and Dark-type attacks while only resisting Electric, Fighting, Poison, Rock, and other Psychic-type attacks.

Claydol's stat spread in Pokemon GO indicates that it is more fit for defence than offence, with attack being its lowest stat. Claydol's defence stat is its highest sitting at an above-average 229 and a stamina stat of 155. This means that Claydol may have a high defence, but it does not have a very deep health pool to protect, meaning that it may only take a few super effective charged attacks to do it in.

The number of players recommended to take on this Raid Battle is between 2 and 3. Players can take it on solo but only with a very specific powered up team. Due to Claydol's high defence, it is currently the hardest 3-Star Raid Boss to take on solo in Pokemon GO at the moment.

In terms of the best Pokemon to use, a Galarian Darmanitan in its Zen form from Pokemon GO's Ultra Unlock event would be the best option. However, due to the event's conclusion back in September, many players may not have access to one. Another great option to bring to this Raid Battle is either Chandelure or Gengar. However, both of these Pokemon share a weakness to Ground-type attacks, so caution should be expressed before using them.

While many players may feel that Claydol can be a challenging Pokemon to take down in Pokemon GO, with the combination of the right allies and powerful Pokemon, Claydol can quickly be taken care of. This Raid Battle can be very valuable for trainers who have yet to add a Claydol to their collection and are encouraged to challenge this Raid due to the possibility of catching it afterwards.