Pokémon Go Mega Ampharos counters, weaknesses and moveset explained

Mega Ampharos, the Mega Evolved form of the Light Pokémon, is far from exciting in the world of Pokémon Go.

Despite being one of only two Mega Electric Pokémon in the game, it is notably weaker of the two. When you consider that the other, Mega Manectric, isn't even best-in-class for Electric types? And Dragons? It is easily the worst Mega Dragon.

So, Mega Ampharos takes the crown as the worst Electric-type and Dragon-type Mega Pokémon in the game. That's... unfortunate. Mega Ampharos is definitely one of those Pokémon you’re going to register to the Pokedex and then forget about.

Like all Mega Evolutions, Mega Ampharos can’t be caught directly and isn’t always available in Pokémon Go. Instead, you need to keep defeating it in Mega Raids until you’ve collected enough Mega Energy for its temporary evolution.

Below you’ll find Mega Ampharos’s counters and weaknesses to help you succeed in Pokémon Go - just remember you need to have a Ampharos in your Pokémon storage to perform its Mega Evolution.

On this page:

• Mega Ampharos counters and weaknesses
• Mega Ampharos CP
• Best Mega Ampharos moveset
• Everything we know about Ampharos

Mega Ampharos counters and weaknesses in Pokémon Go

The fastest way to collect Mega Ampharos Energy is to defeat one in a Mega Raid. Below you’ll find the counters and weaknesses for Mega Ampharos to help you achieve this:

• Mega Ampharos types - Electric and Dragon-type
• Mega Ampharos is weak against - Dragon, Fairy, Ground and Ice-type attacks
• Mega Ampharos is resistant to - Fire, Flying, Grass, Steel and Water-type attacks
• Mega Ampharos is super resistant to - Electric-type attacks
• Mega Ampharos Mega counters - Mega Rayquaza is always going to be king when Dragon is a weakness. Primal Groudon follows, along with Mega Garchomp and Mega Salamence.
• Mega Ampharos non-Mega counters - Speaking of Dragons, Origin Forme Dialga and Origin Forme Palkia are huge here. After this, we're looking at Therian (sky cat) Landorus, Garchomp, Haxorus and Rayquaza.

• Number of players to beat Mega Ampharos - You’re looking at three Trainers with fully optimal 40 counters at the bare minimum. Aim for seven and you should be fine.
• Tactics - The tactics here are pretty simple. Bring your biggest Dragons and use them to bonk Mega Ampharos on its big fluffy head!

Mega Ampharos CP in Pokémon Go

Below you’ll find the CP levels for battling for Mega Ampharos and, if defeated, catching an Ampharos after the fight in Pokémon Go:

• Mega Ampharos Raid CP - 43,282 CP
• CP range for catching Ampharos - 1554 to 1630 CP
• Weather (Rainy) when being caught - 1943 to 2037 CP

The Max Out Season is here and includes a new global event, Wild Area. Currently, the Simply Groundbreaking event is running.You can now catch Dynamax Pokémon through Max Battles. First, however, you need to visit Power Spots to collect Max Particles and complete the To the Max! quest.Don't forget to try out Routes, Gift Exchange and Party Play while you're hunting down rare Pokémon, fighting in the Go Battle League or competing in PokéStop Showcases.

Best Mega Ampharos moveset in Pokémon Go

Mega Ampharos is pretty awful, ranking as both the worst Mega Electric and Mega Dragon-type attacker in Pokémon Go. Unfortunately, Ampharos is pretty awful in Go Battle League, too. Unless you're a new player and don’t have an army of better Pokémon, you can consider this Dex filler.

That said, if you do plan on using Mega Ampharos, you'll need to know its best moveset in Pokémon Go. Mega Ampharos ideally runs Volt Swich (Fast) and Brutal Swing (Charged). This a spammy moveset, which is great. Brutal Swing is incredibly powerful and Volt Switch is a decent move.

As mentioned, Ampharos isn't worth running in Go Battle League, so you really shouldn't spend resources on unlocking a second Charged move. If you feel you absolutely must, you're looking at the Electric-type move Zap Cannon for raids, or the Grass-type move Trailblaze for PVP.

Here are all the Fast and Charged moves Mega Ampharos can use in Pokémon Go:

Fast Moves:

• Charge Beam (Electric)
• Volt Switch (Electric)

Charged Moves:

• Brutal Swing (Dark)
• Focus Blast (Fighting)
• Power Gem (Rock)
• Thunder (Electric)
• Thunder Punch (Electric)
• Trailblaze (Grass)
• Volt Switch (Electric)

Legacy Charged Moves:

• Dragon Pulse (Dragon)

Everything we know about Ampharos

The Light Pokémon, Ampharos, is the final evolution of Mareep - the answer to the question: 'What if you take the static out of your wooly jumper and made it a Pokémon?'

The Wool Pokémon, Mareep, is clearly based on a sheep. Its etymology is subject to debate, with some claiming origins in the nursery rhyme 'Mary had a little lamb', while others note that Mareep is in anagram of ampere (a unit of electrical current and an amp if you bother writing out the whole word).

Mareep evolves into Flaaffy - a Pokémon so hard to spell that the anime frequently got it wrong (it missed one of the 'f's). It's the only pink Electric type that isn't shiny. It also acts as the middle evolution - it stands up on its hind legs and has started the shearing process.

Finally, we have Ampharos, the fully sheared Pokémon... There's not a great deal to say here, other than that it is clearly the living embodiment of a lighthouse. Also, the Mega Evolved version of this Pokémon is thought to be based on a Chinese dragon, with its gems and flowing locks, which is pretty cool.

If you want to learn more about the Ampharos family, you can read their official Pokédex entries below:

• Mareep: 'If static electricity builds in its body, its fleece doubles in volume. Touching it will shock you. Its fleece grows continually. In the summer, the fleece is fully shed, but it grows back in a week.'
• Flaaffy: 'As a result of storing too much electricity, it developed patches where even downy wool won’t grow. Because of its rubbery, electricity-resistant skin, it can store lots of electricity in its fur.'
• Ampharos: 'The bright light on its tail can be seen far away. It has been treasured since ancient times as a beacon. When it gets dark, the light from its bright, shiny tail can be seen from far away on the ocean’s surface.'
• Mega Ampharos: 'Excess energy from Mega Evolution stimulates its genes, and the wool it had lost grows in again. Massive amounts of energy intensely stimulated Ampharos’s cells, apparently awakening its long-sleeping dragon’s blood.'

It's also good to know that shiny Mareep is in the game, which means that shiny Mega Ampharos is in the game too! As you can see below, Shiny Mareep is pink!

Weirdly, shiny Flaaffy seems to have been ignored by the shiny department at Pokémon HQ, which obviously should have made it yellow, since the rest of the family nicks its colouring. Ampharos, meanwhile simply does like Mareep and turns a pinkish purple colour. As for the Mega, it simply copies Ampharos's notes.

Thanks to Reddit users Chrales and sandpaperblues for the handy previews!

Good luck defeating Mega Ampharos in Pokémon Go!