Conquering Pokémon GO's Team GO Rocket Leaders: Sierra, Arlo, and Cliff
Whether you're aiming for research completion or seeking powerful Shadow Pokémon, defeating Team GO Rocket Leaders in Pokémon GO can be challenging. Their boosted Shadow Pokémon and ever-shifting lineups make predicting their strategies difficult. This guide provides the information you need to overcome Sierra, Arlo, and Cliff, regardless of who appears in your area.
Quick Links:
- Locating Team GO Rocket Leaders
- Sierra's Current Team & Counters
- Arlo's Current Team & Counters
- Cliff's Current Team & Counters
Finding Team GO Rocket Leaders
Unlike Grunts, encountering Team GO Rocket Leaders requires defeating six Grunts first. Each defeated Grunt yields a Mysterious Component. Six components combine to create a Rocket Radar. Grunts appear randomly at PokéStops, and a hot air balloon containing a Grunt spawns every six hours, following you for 20 minutes. Once you have a Rocket Radar, Leaders replace Grunts at darkened PokéStops and in hot air balloons.
Sierra's January 2025 Team & Counters
Sierra's January 2025 team presents a varied challenge:
| Pokémon 1 | Pokémon 2 | Pokémon 3 |
|---|---|---|
 Skorupi Bug/Poison |  Sableye Dark/Ghost |  Houndoom Dark/Fire |
 Steelix Ground/Steel |  Nidoqueen Ground/Poison | |
 Milotic Water |  Gardevoir Fairy/Psychic |
Effective counters include:
| Pokémon | Moves |
|---|---|
 Terrakion | Smack Down Rock Slide |
 Gengar | Shadow Claw Shadow Ball |
 Excadrill | Metal Claw Iron Head |
Arlo's January 2025 Team & Counters
Arlo's January 2025 team:
| Pokémon 1 | Pokémon 2 | Pokémon 3 |
|---|---|---|
 Alolan Grimer Poison/Dark |  Hypno Psychic |  Metagross Steel/Psychic |
 Charizard Fire/Flying |  Scizor Bug/Steel | |
 Gyarados Water/Flying |  Snorlax Normal |
Recommended counters:
| Pokémon | Moves |
|---|---|
 Tyranitar | Bite Brutal Swing |
 Blaziken | Fire Spin Blast Burn |
Excadrill | Mud Slap Drill Run |
Cliff's January 2025 Team & Counters
Cliff's January 2025 team:
| Pokémon 1 | Pokémon 2 | Pokémon 3 |
|---|---|---|
 Cubone Ground |  Venusaur Grass/Poison | Tyranitar Dark/Rock |
 Marowak Ground |  Obstagoon Dark/Normal | |
 Aerodactyl Rock/Flying |  Crobat Poison/Flying |
Top counters:
| Pokémon | Moves |
|---|---|
 Mamoswine | Powder Snow Avalanche |
 Lucario | Force Palm Aura Sphere |
Blaziken | Counter Blast Burn |
This guide will be updated as Team GO Rocket Leader lineups change. Pokémon GO is available now on mobile devices. Last updated 1/14/2025.
