How to Beat Cliff in Pokemon GO (July 2024)

Anybody who has played Pokemon GO knows about the leader Cliff and how difficult he can be to deal with. One of the prominent Pokemon GO leaders, Cliff is one you will need to defeat during his rotation. So, if you plan on tracking down the elusive Pokemon GO leader Cliff, here’s how to defeat him.

Table of Contents

Leader Cliff Pokemon Lineup (July 2024)

As of July 2024, the Pokemon GO Cliff Boss fight comprises three phases, each featuring a different boss Pokemon. The initial phase showcases the shadow form of the Fighting-type Pokemon Machop. Machop is a well-known fighting Pokemon from the video games and the anime series, often featured alongside Machamp.

In phase two, depending on luck and your opponent, you’ll encounter a random shadow variant of Kingdra, Aerodactyl, or Gallade. After defeating these two Pokemon, you’ll face the final boss, the shadow variant of Tyranitar, Cradily, or Crobat. Here are the Pokemon GO leader Cliff bosses:

• Phase 1: Machop
• Phase 2: Kingdra/Aerodactyl/Gallade
• Phase 3: Tyranitar/Cradily/Crobat

You fight Cliff after you build a Rocket Radar out of six mysterious components. This will help you track yourself to a Team GO Rocket hideout in Pokemon GO, where you can find Cliff.

How to Beat Cliff in Pokemon GO

In order to beat Cliff in Pokemon GO, you must beat the current Pokemon lineup in-game: Here’s how to win against all the Pokemon in each phase.

Cliff Phase 1: Shadow Machop

The popular fighting-type Pokemon Machop is the first you must defeat in Pokemon GO. As such, to beat him, tap into its weakness. Machop is weak to Psychic, Fairy, and Flying-type attacks. Hence, the best Leader Cliff phase 1 counters are:

• Mewtwo or Shadow Mewtwo: Confusion & Psystrike
• Alakazam or Mega Alakazam: Psycho Cut & Psychic
• Gardevoir: Confusion & Synchronize

These three Pokemon are the perfect to bring over, as they have the necessary skills to take down a Machop. Once you defeat him, it is time for the second phase of the fight.

Cliff Phase 2: Shadow Variant of Kingdra, Aerodactyl, or Gallade

In the second boss fight, you can fight between either a Kingdra, an Aerodactyle, or a Gallade, all in their shadow forms. As such, here are some counters for each of these Pokemon:

Kingdra Counters

Kingdra is a water/dragon-type Pokemon. As such, its weaknesses include a Fairy or a Dragon-type Pokemon. So, tap into their weakness and bring these Pokemon if you have them. The best Kingdra counters for Cliff’s phase 2 boss fight are:

• Rayquaza: Dragon Tail and Breaking Swipe
• Togekiss: Charm and Dazzling Gleam
• Gradevoir: Charm and Dazzling Gleam

Aerodactyl Counters

Aerodactyl is a Rock/Flying-type Pokemon. As such, its weakness includes Rock, Electric, Water, Ice, and Steel-type Pokemon. Hence, tap into its weakness and bring any Pokemon belonging to these elements. Alternatively, the best Shadow Aerodactly counters are:

• Blastoise or Mega Blastoise: Water Gun & Hydro Cannon
• Kyogre: Waterfall & Origin Pulse
• Zekrom: Charge Beam & Wild Charge

Gallade Counters

Gallade is a Psychic/Fighting-type Pokemon. As such, their weakness includes Fairy, Flying, and Ghost-type Pokemon. Hence, tap into its weakness and bring any Pokemon belonging to these elements. Alternatively, the best Shadow Gallade counters are:

• Gengar: Shadow Claw & Shadow Ball
• Gradevoir: Charm & Dazzling Gleam
• Mewtwo: Psycho Cut & Shadow Ball

Once either of these three Pokemon is defeated, we move to the final phase of the Cliff boss fight in Pokemon GO.

Cliff Phase 3: Shadow Variant of Tyranitar, Cradily, Crobat

The final boss fight will make you fight between a Tyranitar, a Cradily, or a Crobat, all in their shadow forms. As such, here are some counters for each of these Pokemon:

Tyranitar

Tyraanitaar is a Rock/Dark-type Pokemon. Hence, they are weak to Bug, Fairy, Fighting, Grass, Ground, Steel, and Water-type attacks. So, you can either bring in a strong Pokemon belonging to these elements or bring these Pokemon to the fight:

• Lucario: Counter & Aura Sphere
• Machamp: Counter & Dynamic Punch
• Swampert: Mud Shot & Water Cannon

Cradily

Cradily is a Rock/Grass-type Pokemon. Hence, they are weak against Fighting Bug, Ice, and Steel-type attacks. So, you can bring any Pokemon belonging to these elements to fight the Cradily, or bring these Pokemon if you have them:

• Terrakion: Double Kick & Sacred Sword
• Lucario: Counter & Aura Sphere
• Metagross: Meteor Mash & Flash Cannon

Crobat

Crobat is a Poison/Flying-type Pokemon. Hence, they are weak against Psychic, Electric, Rock, and Ice-type attacks. So, either bring a strong Pokemon belonging to these elements or bring these three Pokemon:

• Mewtwo: Psycho Cut & Shadow Ball
• Alakazam or Mega Alakazam: Psycho Cut & Psychic
• Gradevoir: Charm and Dazzling Gleam

Pokemon GO Leader Cliff Rewards

Once you successfully defeat Cliff in Pokemon GO, you get some handy rewards. On successfully defeating this GO Rocket member, you’ll receive the following:

• 1,000 Stardust for leveling or powering up your Pokemon.
• ONE random drop of two items from 4x revive, 2x max revive, 4x hyper potion, 2x max potion, 1x Unova Stone, 1x 12 km egg. It can be a mix of any of these.
• A chance to encounter a Shadow Pokemon used by Cliff.

If your egg inventory is empty, the 12 KM egg is an almost confirmed drop alongside a randomized item from the list above. Otherwise, it will be two randomized drops.

And that is how you defeat Leader Cliff in Pokemon GO. With these tips, I hope you can track down this boss and have a great time beating him. Let me know if you’ve found and fought Cliff in the comments below.