The stalwart Ground-type, weak to Grass, Ice, and Water, is a mainstay in manyPokémon GOteams for its consistent damage and helpful resistance to annoying types like Electric, Poison, and, to a lesser extent, Rock. There are tons to pick from, though some stand out above the rest in one way or another. Despite Ground-type’s general power,the strongest Ground-types tend to be dual-typed, giving them more versatility and better advantages in type matchups.
Ground-type is most commonly dual-typed with earth-focused types like Steel, Rock, and Fighting, but can also duo with interesting types like Bug and Psychic. Findingagood dual-typing canincrease your team’s overall resistance coverage, allowing you to rest assured that you won’t get one-shot by a super-effective Charged Attack. Even though Ground-types are highly reliable, some should be avoided. Others are must-picks for your Raid and PvP teams, though they won’t help you much whiletaking down Sierra inPokémon GO.
10Shadow Mamoswine
An Excellent Attacker With Unfortunate Weaknesses
Shadow Mamoswine is an Ice and Ground-type Pokémon with a pretty well-balanced stat line, making it capable of attacking and defending. Itsbest combination of attacksis Mud-Slap and Avalanche, although High Horsepower is a pretty good Charged Attack to have as well. Mamoswine gets a STAB from both, meaning that this combination will be extra powerful.
STAB stands for Same Type Attack Bonus, and it occurs when the type of an attack matches up with the type of a Pokémon, giving it a slight boost in power and, in turn, damage.
Unfortunately, Ice and Ground-types have weaknesses that make them easier to counter than some other dual-typed ‘mons: Fighting, Fire, Grass, Steel, and Water. All of these are pretty common, which means thatMamoswine has to be faster than its opponents. Thankfully, Mud-Slap earns energy for your Charged Attack pretty fast, so those stronger attacks should come online quickly.
9Mega Swampert
As Long As It Doesn’t Face A Grass Type, It’s Good
Mega Swampert is a Water and Ground-type that’s even better than its regular form. Unfortunately, it is exceptionally weak to Grass types, taking 256% more damage from Grass-type attacks. Additionally, it’s resistant to Electric-, Fire-, Poison-, Rock, and Steel-type attacks, giving it many more use cases than its debilitating Grass weakness might suggest.
4975 CP
283 ATK
218 DEF
Stamina
225 HP
Trainers using Mega Swampert for their Ground-type needs shouldlook for one that knowsMud Shot and Earthquake or Mud Shot and Hydro Cannon.Mud Shot is a pretty low-power attack, but it’s also pretty fast, allowing you to charge up to your Charged Attack pretty quickly. Earthquakes take a lot of energy to pull off, but Swampert’s 218 defense can take the hits it needs to power up the attack.
Find Mega Swampert inPokémon GOby taking it down in a Raid when it comes up in the monthly rotation.
8Shadow Excadrill
Incredible Feats Of Resistance
Being a Steel and Ground type means, like other dual types, Shadow Excadrill has quite a few interactions with other types. It’sweak to Fighting, Fire, Ground, and Waterbut resistant to most other types in the game. The full list is as follows:
Alongside its laundry list of resistances, Shadow Excadrill has some well-balanced stats that lend well to its prowess in battle. While its stats aren’t the highest by far, they’re good enough to get aMetal Claw (or Mud-Slap) and Scorching Sands combooff the ground. Look for these two attacks along with a high-rated Shadow Excadrill to add to your Ground-type roster.
7Groudon
Weaker Than Its Primal And Shadow Forms, But Still A Hard-Hitter
When armed with its signature attack, Precipice Blades, this Legendary Pokemon of the Earth is a super useful Pokemon for your team. Precipice Blades is a unique attack that takes an Elite Charged TM to unlock but takes normal Groudon from a mid-tier to a high-tier Ground-type Pokemon. Without this special attack,Earthquake isn’t enough for Groudon to keep up with other Ground-types.
Pokémon GO Garchomp Weaknesses & Best Counters
The fan-favorite Garchomp, in Pokémon GO, has become one of the best Dragon- and Ground-type Pokémon for higher-level Raids and battles.
For Fast Attacks, you should look for Mud Shot, which has a really fast attack speed as well as pretty respectable energy generation, letting you pop the nuke that is Precipice Blades often enough to be a nightmare for your opponents.Groudon is great in PvP for baiting shields and tanking a few hits,too. Don’t be afraid to take a few hits on this super strong Ground-type.
Similar to Mega Evolution, Groudon can be upgraded in a process called Primal Revision, which transforms it into a stronger version of itself.
6Shadow Rhyperior
Stronger Than Its Base Form And A Reliable Ground-Type Defender
Shadow Rhyperior benefits, like all Shadow Pokemon, from the Shadow bonus that increases its attack. This bonus, on top of its respectable 241 attack, 190 defense, and 251 stamina, Shadow Rhyperior can take a hit as well as dish them out. Speaking of attacks,its best attack combo is Mud-Slap and Rock Wrecker.Like other strong Charged Attacks, Rock Wrecker requires an Elite Charged TM but is well worth the cost.
5Therian Forme Landorus
Legendary Power, Legendary Moveset
Therian Forme Landorus was introduced in 2022 as a Raid boss, taking advantage of its high attack stat and powerful moveset to take down enemies.Mud Shot combined with Sandsear Storm deal an average of 18 damage per secondwhen attacking as fast as possible, and Mud Shot’s fast attack speed means Sandsear Storm generates quickly as well.
The only downside to this Legendary is its dual typing.It’s a Flying- and Ground-type, making itweak to Water and doubly weak to Ice attacks. Thankfully, this doesn’t tend to be a huge deal, as you’ll most likely be sending Ground-types like Therian Forme Landorus out to deal with an Electric-type. Therian Forme Landorus is a mainstay on tons of Ground-type teams, so find one with good enough IVs to warrant adding it to yours.
4Shadow Garchomp
Mostly Dragon Type Attacks, But Fast-Charging Ground Attacks
Though Shadow Garchomp only learns a few Ground-type attacks, its Mud Shot/Earth Power combo still puts it high up on the list of Ground-type attackers. This combo outputs almost 19 DPS, which is on the high end for any attacker.Earth Power has a 10% chance to decrease the enemy Pokemon’s defense by 20%, allowing your attacks to be that much more effective.
4479 CP
261 ATK
193 DEF
239 HP
On top of Earth Power’s special effect, it charges fairly quickly, considering its power. Between its defense reduction, its damage, and its low charge time, you should have no trouble taking down even tankier enemies likeMax Moltres inPokémon GOwith Shadow Garchomp, even without perfect IVs. Shadow Pokemon can be tricky to find, but well worth the trouble for the power they bring to the team.
3Shadow Groudon
Like Its Base Form, Just Shadow-Boosted
As mentioned previously, Shadow Pokemon get a bit of a boost to their attack once they’ve been purified. Shadow Groudon also benefits from this, and you’ll want tolook for the same moveset as with regular Groudon.Mud Shot and Precipice Blades allow Shadow Groudon to deal about 19.5 damage per second, making him a powerful Pokemon to have on your roster.
2Mega Garchomp
High Power, High Defense, High Stamina Makes Mega Garchomp A Machine
After Mega-Evolving, Garchomp’s stats are much higher than even Shadow Garchomp’s, putting it high up in the rankings of Ground-type Pokémon inPokémon GO. You’re going to want tolook for Mud Shot and Earth Powerjust like you did with Shadow Groudon, taking advantage of Earth Power’s defense reduction powers. It only has a 10% chance of activating this effect, but with how quickly you can attack with Mud Shot, you should be able to get it pretty fast.
Mega Garchomp, like other Mega Evolutions, can be obtained by Mega-Evolving Garchomp after it has been caught. If you’re looking for the shiny version of this Pokémon, you’ve missed out on your best chance: taking it down in a Mega Raid. Whether you have the shiny or normal-colored version, Mega Garchomp will take you where you need to go.
1Primal Groudon
Technically A Repeat, But Primal Outpaces Regular By A Mile
Primal Groudon is a beefier version of regular Groudon, but it and Origin Pulse Kyogre, one of thestrongest Water-types inPokemon GO, beat out other Ground-types in almost every circumstance.You’re looking for Precipice Blades and Mud Shot, just like with regular/Shadow Groudon, but it’s got by far the strongest stats of the three:
One Of Pokémon’s Rarest Episodes Had Its Most Epic Legendary Battle
Kyogre and Groudon had an epic face-off in the Pokémon anime, but many anime fans have never had a chance to see it due to the episode’s rarity.
Primal Groudon is a powerhouse both as a Fire-type and a Ground-type, making it useful in most circumstances. Being a Fire and Ground-type means that itcovers a wide range of type matchupsand allows trainers to have a Pokemon that’s a threat offensively and defensively on their roster. Unsurprisingly, this Legendary is one of the biggest Ground-type threats inPokemon GO,so grab one when you get the chance.
