Hello students! My name is Professor Geekbeak, and today, I wish to draw attention to Azelf. The Lake Trio as a whole are all not particularly useful, but they are regional dex slots, so if you happen to be on an opportune vacation and can catch one that you can’t normally catch, now is a good time. Grab your notebooks, class is in session. For those who wish to do their research independently, our raw data can be found here. And for those who wish for a simple visual guide, go ahead and take a look at the below visual guide by CaptGoldfish.

NOTE: Despite there being 3 separate articles for the Lake Trio, there is only 1 Goldfish made infographic. This is because the 3 legendaries have similar counter pages, and can be consolidated well. The infographic might seem a bit wrong compared to the article, but it shall work at a glance.

Course Schedule

This raid will be taking place from August 5th to August 11th. It will be preceded by Mega Aggron and Kyurem, coincide with Mega Blaziken, and be followed by Mega Garchomp and Groudon. I’d also like to note the aformentioned regional quality of the Lake Trio. Azelf can only be found in North America, Central America, South America, and Greenland.

Note that Azelf knows Fire Blast, which is not in its typings. Besides that, the weaknesses and resistances will remain the same for pure Psychic.

Effectiveness	Types
Double Resist (0.4x)	—
Resist (0.6x)	Fighting Psychic
Neutral	Normal Flying Poison Ground Rock Steel Fire Water Grass Electric Ice Dragon Fairy
Super Effective (1.6x)	Bug Ghost Dark
Double Super Effective (2.6x)	—

Azelf’s moveset includes the following charge moves:

• Fire Blast
• Swift
• Future Sight

The Dean’s List consists of the top 5 counters to Azelf. As always, the Valedictorian, Salutatorian, and the Third Ranked will have their best moveset alternatives in a table with their rankings and a table detailing their defensive prowess against the charge moves listed above.

Necrozma - Dawn Wings A

Best Moveset: Shadow Claw / Moongeist Beam

DPS★★★★★

Tank★★★★★

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Quick Move	Charge Move	Efficacy
Shadow Claw	Moongeist Beam	100%
Psycho Cut	Moongeist Beam	96%
Metal Claw	Moongeist Beam	89%
Shadow Claw	Dark Pulse	64%
Shadow Claw	Future Sight	54%
Shadow Claw	Iron Head	54%

Mega Tyranitar A

Best Moveset: Bite / Brutal Swing

DPS★★★★★

Tank★★★★★

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Quick Move	Charge Move	Efficacy
Bite	Brutal Swing	100%
Smack Down	Brutal Swing	84%
Bite	Crunch	84%
Dragon Breath	Brutal Swing	80%
Iron Tail	Brutal Swing	77%
Bite	Stone Edge	75%

Shadow Tyranitar A

Best Moveset: Bite / Brutal Swing

DPS★★★★★

Tank★★★★☆

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Quick Move	Charge Move	Efficacy
Bite	Brutal Swing	100%
Smack Down	Brutal Swing	84%
Bite	Crunch	83%
Dragon Breath	Brutal Swing	81%
Iron Tail	Brutal Swing	78%
Bite	Stone Edge	74%

Defensive Grades for Top 3

Boss Move
Fire Blast	—	🛡	🛡
Future Sight	🛡	🛡🛡	🛡🛡
Swift	🛡🛡	🛡	🛡

Shadow Hydreigon A

Best Moveset: Bite / Brutal Swing

DPS★★★★★

Tank★★★★☆

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Mega Mewtwo Y A

Best Moveset: Psycho Cut / Shadow Ball

DPS★★★★☆

Tank★★★★☆

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Also Noteworthy: A: Shadow Darkrai

We here at Pokebattler Pokémon Research Institute can’t expect you to have the best counters every time. So, here are some of our other best options, most of which will be easier to find than the members of the Dean’s List.

Mega Houndoom A

Best Moveset: Snarl / Foul Play

DPS★★★★☆

Tank★★★☆☆

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Mega Mewtwo X A

Best Moveset: Psycho Cut / Shadow Ball

DPS★★★★☆

Tank★★★☆☆

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Shadow Giratina Origin Form A

Best Moveset: Shadow Claw / Shadow Force

DPS★★★☆☆

Tank★★★☆☆

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Mega Absol A

Best Moveset: Snarl / Brutal Swing

DPS★★★☆☆

Tank★★★☆☆

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Mega Rayquaza A

Best Moveset: Dragon Tail / Dragon Ascent

DPS★★★☆☆

Tank★★★☆☆

Reliability★☆☆☆☆

2

Trainers
(Lvl 40)

Of course, besides our 10 best counters, there are plenty of Pokémon that also work against Azelf. Here are a few star choices, worthy of praise.

A	Shadow RegigigasLunalaTyranitarHydreigonMega SalamenceDarkraiShadow MewtwoShadow SalamenceMega GyaradosMega GengarShadow HoundoomMega HeracrossMega BanetteBlack KyuremNecrozma - Dusk ManeMega AlakazamGiratina OriginShadow AbsolZamazenta - Crowned Shield

Sometimes, the weather can be your most powerful ally. In certain weather conditions, certain Pokémon on our list excel. The most transformative cases are noted below.

Fog

Shadow Darkrai (1.2)Mega Houndoom (1.3)Mega Mewtwo X (1.3)

Overall, Azelf is a simple raid. Being a single type, with only 1 move out of the psychic type, makes Fire Blast the only worrying thing to watch out for. Of course, if you wish to do more research on your box’s best Pokémon for the job, Pokebattler.com itself can be a great help! Speaking of, we have rolled out a new system that will give a discount to our subscriptions, and I have been graciously granted a code! So, for those lucky readers who make it all the way down here, the code is GEEKBEAK20. This code not only supports the owner of Pokebattler, but also me! And, to be honest, in real life, the presidigious Professor Geekbeak is a broke college student, so I would really appreciate the support. Thank you! Remember, the best counter is the one you have powered up and ready to go. I grant extra credit to those who use their best friend bonus and the weather to their advantage. Class dismissed!