Saturday, April 01, 2017

Gym defenders, the lineup

So, which are the essential defenders that you should have.

The big five are, in order:


  • Blissey
  • Chansey
  • Snorlax
  • Vaporeon
  • Lapras

Of these you should concentrate on pushing one blissey to max, and after that two snorlax. The reason for this is that you're likely to have twice the candy for snorlax.

As the gym battles are implemented now, Zen Headbutt and Body Slam for a snorlax is a monster. There is nothing in the game that can match that combination for damage done to an attacker before the defender goes down. Anything 80 IV or higher with that combination is worth pushing.

One maxed out lapras is probably what you already have. It's enough, even though you'll eventually end up with enough candy to push number two. Nice but not needed since it'll end up in the bouncer role.

Vaporeon is easy to get. Three or four of these shouldn't be a problem. You could probably go as far as only pushing 93, or even 96 or better IV vaporeon.


The above six are the backbone of your defensive lineup. As you slowly level up add one exeggutor and three of your pick of the shitty four:

  • Tyranitar
  • Dragonite
  • Rhydon
  • Gyarados

While crap defenders they work well in gyms that don't change owners that often.


While you're getting these ten defenders you'll collect a decent number of secondary defenders. Most likely snorlax in the 2700 CP range and dragonite or tyranitar in the 2800 CP range. Add a few gyarados and rhydon, also in the 2700 CP range.

As you're closing in on the extreme end game at level 38 and onwards a few extra vaporeon and possibly an extra snorlax / blissey or two should pop up as well.

Eventually you'll end up with the ratio 1:2:6 for blissesy, snorlax and vaporeon, unless you made an effort to have it otherwise.

If you make an effort, and if you walk a lot, always remember that the buddy function is your best friend. Two or three extra candy daily doesn't sound much, but it adds up surprisingly fast. If you're running for level 38 or more then you're collecting 60 or more candy monthly from your buddy.

4 comments:

  1. I have a 93% ZH/HB maxed out. Which one would you recommend for my second:
    96% L/E (2183 CP)
    91% L/HB (1897)
    91% L/BS (1792)
    87% ZH/BS (1042)
    As I understand from the post, you would go for ZH/BS... But it's a long way up. I have enough candies, but would be quite broke afterwards.

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  2. I'd still go for that ZH/BS. Lick is a crappy defensive primary, and Earthquake didn't exactly make things better.

    That leaves the two at IV 91, but a 3% extra isn't much.

    The price penalty for a CP 1042 compared to a CP 2183 snorlax should be less than 50 candy, and the extra stardust cost, 30K or less.

    Check those numbers exactly, but the gist is that you pay very little for pushing a snorlax from 1K CP to 2K CP.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks for the input. I maxed the ZH/BS one out yesterday! Another struggle I can't seem to decide on:

    I have: 89% Pupitar (1213 CP) 96% Larvitar (256 CP) (165 Larvitar candies currently)
    I'm struggling which way to go here. Should I;
    A, Evolve and powerup the Larvitar (285 candies and 165k stardust)
    B, Evolve and powerup the Pupitar (180 candies and 84k stardust)
    C, Wait for a 90%+ Larvitar with higher CP

    ReplyDelete
  4. While you might end up with poor attacks, the chance for doing so is exactly the same for the larvitar and pupitar, so we're just talking a difference in cost.

    You won't get much better than 96%, for rather obvious reasons, so it all boils down to if you live in a area where you're likely to find larvitar decently often. We're talking 15 extra larvitar caught at seven candy each, plus the ones that will run away.

    If you feel certain you'll collect those fifteen in a month it's a no-brainer. Go for the 96 IV. If you think it'll take two months, flip a coin. Longer and I'd start with the 89 IV.

    ReplyDelete