How to beat Sierra in Pokémon GO (December 2024)

Tom Bull

Tom Bull

Need to take down Sierra in Pokémon GO in October 2024? Here’s everything you need to know.

Team GO Rocket Leader Sierra is one of the three Team GO Rocket bosses in the game. The Rocket bosses are a real challenge in Pokémon GO. You'll need a strong team of the best counters in order to beat Sierra in Pokémon GO. Here's what you need to know to beat Sierra in October 2024.

We've gathered all the information you need about her most recent line-up's, their weaknesses and the best counters you can use to take them down.

All esports.gg Team GO Rocket guides:

How to find Sierra in Pokémon GO

In order to find Sierra in Pokémon GO, or any of the other Team GO Rocket Leaders, you need a special item to help you track them down. That item is the Super Rocket Radar.

You can get a Super Rocket Radar in a few ways:

  • Defeating 6 Team GO Rocket Grunts to collect enough Mysterious Components to build one.
  • Purchasing a Super Rocket Radar directly in the in game shop, or as part of a box.
  • As a reward for completing Timed and Special Research quest lines.

Once you have a Super Rocket Radar, pressing on it will bring up a map of nearby Team GO Rocket Leader hideouts. Leaders will also appear in Hot Balloons once your Radar is active too.

You cannot see which Leader is in a Stop or Balloon until you click on it. So, to find the Team GO Rocket Leader you want, you might have to check several.

Leader Sierra Lineup - December 2024

Here is the current line up for Sierra in Pokémon GO as of October 2024. There are three phases.

  • Phase 1: Shadow Ralts
  • Phase 2: Shadow Sableye or Shadow Milotic or Shadow Steelix
  • Phase 3: Shadow Gardevoir or Shadow Houndoom or Shadow Nidoqueen

Pokémon GO reshuffle the Team GO Rocket Leader lineups whenever there is a Team GO Rocket Takeover event in the game. This shuffle just happened as of October 8, so this will be the Sierra line-up for some time.

How to beat Sierra in Pokémon GO

In order to beat Sierra in Pokémon GO, you'll need to have a Super Rocket Radar, locate Sierra at a PokéStop or a Team GO Rocket Balloon, and defeat their Pokémon.

Shadow Pokémon do a lot of damage, and Sierra's Pokémon are a lot higher CP than normal Pokémon. You'll need a finely tuned team of strong counters in order to take Sierra down.

In addition, Sierra can have a range of Pokémon, with a different set every time you fight her. Ideally, you want Pokémon that can cover multiple potential Pokémon in Sierra's lineup. Here are all the Pokémon you might face and the best counters to take them on.

Best Sierra counters in Pokémon GO:

For the first Pokémon, this will always be the same Pokémon no matter how many times you take on Sierra. This is also the Pokémon that you will encounter after the battle, with a 1/256 chance of being shiny.

Shadow Ralts Counters

Ralts is a Fairy and Psychic-type Pokémon. That gives it a weakness to Ghost, Poison and Steel-type attacks. Here are the best Shadow Ralts counters in Pokémon GO:

Dusk Mane Necrozma
Metal Claw & Sunsteel Strike
Dawn Wings Necrozma
Shadow Claw & Moongeist Beam
Mega Gengar
Shadow Claw & Shadow Ball
Origin Forme Giratina
Shadow Claw & Shadow Force
Dialga
Metal Claw & Iron Head

The Shadow Ralts 100% IV CP is 200 CP.

Sierra Pokémon GO Counters Phase Two:

Shadow Sableye Counters

Shadow Sableye is a Dark and Ghost-type Pokémon. That gives it a weakness to Fairy-type Pokémon. Here are the best Shadow Sableye counters in Pokémon GO:

Gardevoir
Charm & Dazzling Gleam
Xerneas
Geomancy & Moonblast
Tapu Koko
Volt Switch & Natures Madness
Tapu Bulu
Bullet Seed & Natures Madness
Tapu Lele
Astonish & Natures Madness

Shadow Milotic Counters

Shadow Milotic is a Water-type Pokémon. That gives it a weakness to Electric and Grass-type attacks. Here are the best Shadow Milotic counters in Pokémon GO:

Kartana
Razor Leaf & Leaf Blade
Xurkitree
Thunder Shock & Discharge
Zekrom
Charge Beam & Fusion Bolt
Therian Thundurus
Volt Switch & Thunderbolt
Raikou
Thunder Shock & Wild Charge

Shadow Steelix Counters

Shadow Steelix is an Steel and Ground-type Pokémon. That gives it a weakness to Fighting, Fire, Ground and Water-type attacks. Here are the best Shadow Steelix counters in Pokémon GO:

Groudon
Mud Shot & Precipice Blades
Therian Forme Landorus
Mud Shot & Sandsear Storm
Kyogre
Waterfall & Origin Pulse
Mega Swampert
Mud Shot & Hydro Cannon
Terrakion
Double Kick & Sacred Sword

Sierra Pokémon GO Counters Phrase Three:

Shadow Gardevoir Counters

Shadow Gardevoir is a Fairy and Psychic-type Pokémon. That gives it a weakness to Ghost, Poison and Steel-type attacks. Here are the best Shadow Gardevoir counters in Pokémon GO:

Dusk Mane Necrozma
Metal Claw & Sunsteel Strike
Dawn Wings Necrozma
Shadow Claw & Moongeist Beam
Mega Gengar
Shadow Claw & Shadow Ball
Origin Forme Giratina
Shadow Claw & Shadow Force
Dialga
Metal Claw & Iron Head

Shadow Nidoqueen Counters

Shadow Nidoqueen is a Poison and Ground-type Pokémon. This makes it weak to Ground, Ice, Psychic and Water-type moves. Here are the best Shadow Nidoqueen counters in Pokémon GO:

Mewtwo
Psycho Cut & Psystrike
Kyogre
Waterfall & Origin Pulse
Garchomp
Mud Shot & Earth Power
Mamoswine
Mud Slap & Avalanche or High Horsepower
Groudon
Mud Shot & Precipice Blades

Shadow Houndoom Counters

Shadow Houndoom is a Dark and Fire-type Pokémon. That gives it a weakness to Fighting, Ground, Rock and Water-type attacks. Here are the best Shadow Houndoom counters in Pokémon GO:

Terrakion
Double Kick & Sacred Sword
Therian Landorus
Mud Shot & Sandsear Storm
Rampardos
Smack Down & Rock Slide
Kyogre
Waterfall & Origin Pulse
Rhyperior
Mud-Slap & Rock Wrecker

What is the best team to beat Sierra in Pokémon GO? (December 2024)

With so many different Pokémon to prepare for, and lots of different combinations it can be hard to find an ideal catch all team. You want to start your battle with a broad team that covers as many of Sierra's potential Pokémon as possible in Pokémon GO.

The current spanner in the works is Sableye. It only has one weakness, which means a lot of the Pokémon that are good counters for the other Pokémon Sierra can have, won't be good counters. The beauty of taking on Sierra in Pokémon GO is that if you lose, you can keep your Super Rocket Radar or battle Sierra again. Then, you can adjust your team.

Here is the best initial team to use when fighting Sierra in Pokémon GO:

  • Groudon
  • Dusk Mane Necrozma
  • Kyogre

Groudon will be an absolute must-have to take down Sierra in October 2024. So many of her Pokémon have a Ground-type weakness. Dusk Mane Necrozma covers Ralts, Gardevoir and is an overall strong Pokémon. Kyogre also covers a lot of her Pokémon, including Houndoom and Nidoqueen.

This should cover most of the Pokémon that Sierra can throw at you in Pokémon GO at the moment. Stay tuned to esports.gg for the latest esports news and more Pokémon GO guides.