How to Beat Lapras in Pokémon GO

A mysterious and majestic Pokémon, Lapras was lauded for its rarity in the early days of the franchise. Back in the earliest Pokémon games, you could only ever receive a single Lapras, and it was only from a trade; they couldn’t be found in the wild. I guess it’s fitting, since it’s inspired by the Loch Ness Monster, a rather nebulous creature. These days, though, they’re much more common, which is why you’ll need a good strategy beforehand if you wanna fight one. Here’s how to beat Lapras in Pokémon GO.

Lapras is a dual Water/Ice type, which means, in a rare instance, that its weaknesses actually outweigh its resistances. Here are Lapras’ affinities:

• Weaknesses: Fighting, Rock, Electric, Grass
• Resistances: Water, Ice

Despite these multiple weaknesses, however, Lapras has a natural defense: half of the types it’s weak against are themselves weak to moves Lapras knows. Grass types are weak against Ice moves, and Rock types are weak against Water moves, so attempting to counter a Lapras with Rock or Grass types is inadvisable. What’s left, then?

How to Beat Lapras in Pokémon GO

Your best course of action is to employ a Fighting-type, the best choices of which being Lucario or, to a lesser extent, Conkeldurr. Both of these Pokémon can use Counter for their Quick Move, while Lucario can utilize Aura Sphere and Conkeldurr Dynamic Punch. Lucario is definitely the better choice if you have one, as Aura Sphere provides higher DPS than Dynamic Punch.

If legendaries are on the table, Zekrom is a decent choice, as its powerful Electric type attacks can absolutely decimate Lapras’ Water weakness. Remember, though, that Zekrom is a dual Dragon/Electric type, and Dragons are weak against Ice. If you bring a Zekrom along, you’ll want to try and finish the fight as quickly as possible, lest Lapras lay down an Ice Beam. Raikou is a decent substitute legendary, as its pure Electric typing will keep it safe, though its lessened damage compared to Zekrom means the fight will take a little longer.

Remember, though, Lapras is a big and sturdy Pokémon, and it won’t go down without a fight. Don’t try to take one of these things on solo, as it simply has too much health for one Pokémon to handle on its own. Try to assemble a raid team of at least three trainers, and you should be fine.