ML Guides | Palkia

ML Guides | Palkia

Type: Water/Dragon

Base Stats:
Attack: 280

Defense: 215

HP: 189

Level 40 / 41:

Max CP: 3991 / 4041

Max Stat Product: 6823 / 6952

Level 50 / 51:

Max CP: 4512 / 4565

Max Stat Product: 8192 / 8339

Overview

Need a Dragon-type Pokemon that can also destroy Groudon, Excadrill and Landorus Therian? Palkia is the perfect Pokemon for the job! Thanks to a combination of largely unresisted STABs and a spammy moveset with good closing potential, Palkia is a force to be reckoned with. However, Palkia’s potential is limited by its weaknesses to a number of very common threats, as well as its costly secondary Charged Attacks.

Viability: 4/6 - Open Meta Viable. You're likely to see a Palkia at least once in a day's worth of GBL. However, while it is good, it is neither meta centric nor is it meta warping.

Recommended Moveset 

Dragon Breath or Dragon Tail + Aqua Tail and Draco Meteor or Fire Blast

Fast Attacks

Both Dragon Breath and Dragon Tail are viable Fast Attack options. They share a similar DPT and the same EPT. Dragon Tail is a 3-turn move, while Dragon Breath is a 1-turn move. Dragon Tail’s DPT is slightly higher than Dragon Breath, but as we’ll see shortly, this does not always mean Dragon Tail is stronger. Due to damage rounding (and consequently, breakpoints), it is possible for 3 Dragon Breaths to outdamage one Dragon Tail in some matchups. Here’s a breakdown on which Pokemon take more damage from which Fast Attack.

More often than not, Dragon Tail will outdamage Dragon Breath. However, it does not conclusively mean that Dragon Tail is the superior move. Dragon Breath being a 1 turn move allows Palkia to be more responsive. For example, if it wants to try to switch to catch an opponent’s Charged Attack, it can do so with much greater freedom. A smart opponent can try to time their Charged Attack in the middle of Dragon Tail to eliminate this option entirely. Dragon Breath’s 1-turn nature also allows Palkia to be more precise with its own Charged Attack timing. On the other hand, Dragon Tail’s 3-turn nature can strongly punish opponents who do not time their Charged Attacks well.

Summing it all up, there is no clear winner. Dragon Tail will outperform on average, but Dragon Breath’s responsiveness may be worth losing a tiny amount of damage.

Charged Attacks

This is the MUCH simpler part of Palkia’s moves.  Aqua Tail is necessary - it is Palkia’s only low cost move and provides it with the means of dealing reliable damage to Steel- and Fairy-type Pokemon, while smashing apart Ground- and Fire-type Pokemon. Draco Meteor is often Palkia’s secondary Charged Attack of choice, as it is the cheapest of Palkia’s nuclear options, and can tear down anything that doesn’t resist it, especially Dialga. Fire Blast is more expensive, but it can be used to torch Steel-type Pokemon and deal heavy damage to Togekiss and Zacian. Hydro Pump is Palkia’s best option against Fairies, but choosing this option sacrifices coverage against Dialga.

Role and Teammates

Role:  Corebreaker, Kyogre Counter

Common Teammates: Metagross, Excadrill, Landorus Therian, Zacian, Ho-Oh, Lugia

Thanks to its Water/Dragon typing and reliable damage, Palkia can give certain cores issues, particularly those involving Giratina Origin. The spooky dragon is often paired with Excadrill or Ho-Oh, and Palkia can defeat them all. Although Palkia’s resistances are few, they are relevant and can provide Palkia with valuable buffers. Its double resistance to Water is especially powerful against Kyogre, while its double resistance to Fire allows it to catch and tank a Sacred Fire from Ho-Oh.

Palkia’s toughest adversaries are Fairy-type Pokemon, Dialga, and Lugia. Steel-type Pokemon are excellent at buffering against these, although Zacian can cause problems due to its Close Combat. Ho-Oh can protect Palkia against Zacian if it lacks Wild Charge. Landorus Therian, Lugia and Zacian provide more neutral options against all of them. In turn, Palkia can protect them against Kyogre and Giratina Origin.

Drawbacks

Palkia’s reliance on Aqua Tail can cause it to struggle against opposing Dragon-type Pokemon, and can force it to use Draco Meteor to securely finish off Kyogre. Its secondary Charged Attacks are more expensive when compared to other Dragon-type Pokemon’s coverage options, such as Zekrom’s Wild Charge and Reshiram’s Overheat. Furthermore, Palkia is somewhat glassy - a single Brave Bird from Ho-Oh can almost bring it to red HP. 

Issues against the best Pokemon in the game, Zacian and Dialga, on top of being almost hard countered by Lugia and Charmers, can sometimes give Palkia little room to breathe. In the past, the combination of Palkia and Excadrill could cover any threat in the metagame, but the release of Zacian broke the core. Since then, there is no single best fit partner for Palkia. 

Matchups

Key Positive matchups 

Kyogre, Giratina Origin, Excadrill, Ho-Oh, Landorus Therian, Groudon (Mud Shot), Mamoswine

Checks & Counters 

Fairy-type Pokemon: Thanks to their double resistance to Dragon and access to super effective STAB moves, Togekiss, Primarina, and Zacian all have no problems disposing of Palkia. Primarina in particular resists every single one of Palkia’s attacks.

Dialga: Neutrality to Dragon and resistance to Aqua Tail allow Dialga to tank Palkia well, while it can shred back with super effective Dragon Breath. However, Dialga can almost be OHKOed by Draco Meteor, so it needs to take care against a farmed Palkia.

Lugia: Lugia’s titanic bulk can allow it to absorb even Palkia’s Draco Meteor with plenty of HP to spare. With a super effective Dragon Tail by its side (or…behind?), Lugia can easily take down Palkia, even at a shield disadvantage.

Unconventional Counters: Tapu Bulu resists Palkia’s STABs and deals heavy damage back with Bullet Seed + Grass Knot, and can even outright OHKO it with Dazzling Gleam. However, Tapu Bulu must be wary of Fire Blast.

IV considerations

Attack:

14 + Best Buddy: Dragon Breath breakpoint vs Excadrill*

14 + Best Buddy: Dragon Tail breakpoint vs Yveltal

15: Dragon Tail breakpoint vs Garchomp and Zarude

Defense:

15 + Best Buddy:  Dragonite (DB)

15: Opposing Best Buddy Palkia (DT), Sylveon

14: Togekiss

*Additional note: In Master League Classic only, this breakpoint allows Palkia to farm down Excadrill in the 2s and conserve energy.

Future

Palkia has a signature move, Spacial Rend. This move is currently not in Pokemon GO.

In Pokemon: Legends Arceus, Palkia received an Origin Forme, much like Giratina. This Forme has a slightly higher overall stat product. However, until it is released in other main series games, Palkia Origin cannot learn Dragon Breath or Dragon Tail. Until then, its only viable Fast Attack is Shadow Claw. It does, however, have a large number of viable charged Attacks to choose from, with a movepool not too different from that of regular Palkia.