Giratina takes over for Mewtwo as Pokemon Go's level 5 raid boss just in time for Halloween! The Ghost/Dragon-type mascot of Pokemon Platinum is a welcome addition to level 5 raids, as Trainers no longer have to put together a huge group just to raid anymore (good riddance, Mewtwo.) In fact, under optimal conditions, a team of three is all that is needed to take down Giratina. That doesn't mean you should take it lightly - Giratina can still wipe the floor with you if you bring anything other than your very best. 

Giratina Raid Basics

Giratina is a level 5 raid boss that spawns at 34987CP. Its catchable CP ranges from 1848 – 1931CP unboosted and 2310 – 2414CP while weather boosted (battled in Foggy or Windy weather.) Here's what moves you might encounter:

Giratina's best moveset is Shadow Claw / Dragon Claw, even though it doesn't have any arms. Its other moves are very underwhelming and do it no favors when considering it for combat. We're not talking Regi-levels of bad here, though, as Giratina is among the bulkiest Dragon-type attackers and is probably the bulkiest Ghost-type, even once the various Gen IV evolutions are released. 

Here's which Pokemon to bring into battle against Giratina:

Giratina Best Counters

Rayquaza

This nasty green dragon is the undisputed king of doing damage to Giratina. Armed with Dragon Tail and Outrage, Rayquaza is what you'll need to bring in order to successfully trio Giratina. A Giratina with Dragon-type moves may cause issues, as well as one with AncientPower, but your Rayquaza army will be melting Tina's beaky little face too quickly to even notice the damage.

Dragonite 

Dragonite also provides a powerful counter to Giratina. The same moveset as Rayquaza applies here as well - Dragon Tail & Outrage. Draco Meteor is also a very acceptable Charge move for Dragonite, but places slightly behind Outrage in DPS. As with the above (and the below,) be careful of Dragon and Rock-type moves, maybe a little more so because of Dragonite's slightly lower damage output.

Salamence

Salamence rounds out our trio of Dragons and provides a pretty decent level of face-melting compared to its bretheren. Dragon Tail and Draco Meteor are your top moves here, as you smack and crash Giratina into a wispy pulp. 

Mewtwo

A Mewtwo with Psycho Cut and Shadow Ball makes a pretty good counter against Giratina if you're lacking the dragons above. Special considerations can be made for Psycho Cut/Ice Beam as well. That being said, Mewtwo should only be used if you know you're facing an AncientPower Giratina. Ghost-type moves will end your poor Mewtwo's time in battle very quickly. 

Gengar

A glass cannon if we've ever seen one, Gengars armed with Shadow Claw and Shadow Ball will do a considerable amount of damage to Giratina. The only problem is, they'll take a ton of damage as well - especially when facing a Giratina with Ghost-type attacks. Be ready to wipe and quickly jump back into the battle if you're using a Gengar army.  

Tyranitar

As someone who lacks multiples of the above Pokemon, I've found Tyranitar to be a very solid counter to Rayquaza. Obviously, Bite/Crunch is your moveset here, but don't expect too much damage to come from the tyrant. Tyranitar vs. Giratina is like an old-school Godzilla giant kaiju slugfest. It's a war of attrition, but one your Tyranitar can win as long as your comrades are doing damage. 

Any Ghost, Dragon, Dark, Ice, or Fairy-Type Pokemon/Attacker

As always, if you're lacking the optimal counters, play to Giratina's weaknesses. Luckily, the Ghost and Dark-type event has made it very easy to get your hands on those Pokemon. Bannette, Gengar (even without Shadow Ball, but Ghost-type moves,) and Houndoom make decent fill-ins to battle Giratina. Absol, a recurring level 4 raid boss, is a glass cannon counter like Gengar. Dragon-types like Latios and Latias provide excellent counters, but many Trainers may not have them in their boxes. Articuno also makes a pretty good counter as an Ice-type, and eventually it will be joined by Mamoswine and Weaville as Ice types that can take down Giratina. A Groudon with Dragon Tail is also a bulky, low damage counter. 

Weather

Giratina is boosted by Foggy and Windy weather. However, its main counters are also boosted by these weather types, so take the good with the bad! Cloudy conditions boost Fairy-type moves, while snowy weather will boost Ice-type moves (for you poor, poor people who have to deal with snow in October.) 

Solo 

Giratina is way too strong to be soloed, but isn't too much of an issue for three or four Trainers with powerful Dragon-types like Rayquaza, Dragonite, or Salamence. The less Dragon-types you have, the more Trainers you'll need, but anything over six solid Trainers is pretty much overkill for Tina. 

Shiny

Shiny Giratina is really, really cool looking, but unfortunately isn't available at the moment. Guess you'll just have to settle for a shiny Shinx. 

Best of luck Trainers! May your Giratinas have high IVs and optimal movesets. With Pokemon Let's Go! right around the corner, you may be wondering how to get your hands on Meltan and its evolution, Melmetal. Well, wonder no more! We've got you covered.