Tips to decode ‘Pokemon Go’ Go Battle League and help trainers succeed

Having trouble in "Pokemon Go's" Go Battle League? Trying to find tips but you can't cut through the jargon? Here is an explanation about what terms such as energy farming, piggybacking and safe-switching means.

The techniques are just tricks that experienced players have learned after hours of playing. They come after fielding a team and knowing the Pokemon matchups in and out. That comes with experience and knowing when to use a charge move, when to shield and when to switch. That's important now because the Go Battle League is how many players interact with the game during the coronavirus pandemic. It's also one of the best and safest methods of catching legendaries such as Cobalion and the only way to get rarer Pokemon such as Rufflet.

With that said, let's start with the basics.

1. What are the best Pokemon? If you played enough, you'll see the same Pokemon over and over again. There's a reason for that. These pocket monsters stand up well in most matchups. They have a great combination of stats and moves that make them devastating against the likes of Butterfree or Tyranitar. How the masses pick their Pokemon is regarded as the "meta." It's the state of the game, or in other words "What's trending," but that can change as new moves are added or players discover new team combinations.

At the moment, most trainers will run across Altaria, Azumarill, Registeel, Defense Deoxys, and Skarmory . My advice is to find one of them and power them up to below 1500 CP for the Great League. Ideally, find ones with low attack stats and high defense and stamina for the Great League and Ultra League. In player vs. player, it's more important to max out those two stats rather than attack, which skews the combat power higher.

2. Figure out the team makeup. Once you determined what Pokemon you want, it's best to narrow it down to a specific team. A good one will have multiple charge moves with ones that will cover the weakness of an ally. Nothing is more frustrating than going against a Pokemon and finding that all the attacks do nothing against it.

I follow Zyonik's advice and build around a lead, cover and safe switch. That means players need a strong Pokemon that can set the tone, another pocket monster that can protect it if the initial matchup is bad and final creature that complements both while also being able to take a hit. Personally, I build a team around anchor that is good against most Pokemon (See tip No. 1) and add allies that augment it.

Now for the in game strategy:

3. Know when to use your charge moves. A big part of the strategy in Go Battle League is understanding when it's best to use the charge moves. That's the bread and butter for a Pokemon as charge moves deal damage or in some cases lower or raise attack or defense. Usually, I have a few simple rules for when to use a charge move.

The first is that I never use a charge move when an opponent is down to a sliver of health. It's almost always better to save that move for the next Pokemon.

The second is that there are instances when firing a great charge move is better than an excellent one. I look at an opponent's health and if it's a third or less, I deal great attacks in order to leave them with a sliver of health. Doing that will lead to extra fast attacks and more energy for another charge attack.

The third is for situations, in which I'm in a favored matchup and the opponent is locked in with a weaker Pokemon. Because they can't switch them out, I can take advantage of that and defeat their Pokemon with all fast moves while saving my charge moves for an emergency. The process of gathering energy for charge moves is called "energy farming." A case I run into is my Bastidon with Smackdown versus a Altaria that only has Sky Attack. A smart trainer would knock out the flying Pokemon with only fast moves and save two charged move for the next Pokemon. Firing off two charge attacks in a row without giving an opponent to get energy is called "self-piggybacking."

In close matches, the moves you perform in the margins are often the difference between victory and defeat.

4. Know when to switch. Switching is the other side of the coin for charge moves. Swapping out a Pokemon at the perfect moment can turn the tide of battle. The big issue with this is timing. It takes a while to figure out how long to keep one Pokemon in and when to switch out. Ideally, trainers should switch out their Pokemon when a person fires off a charge move. Do it correclty and the new Pokemon that comes will act as a shield and absorb the damage with minimal pain.

One smart thing to do is save a Pokemon with a sliver of health and use it to absorb a charge attack for another Pokemon. This often happens at the end of a match. The injured pocket monster takes the hit but it could save the one you are depending on. This technique is called a "Third Shield" takes timing and feel. Players have to predict when their opponent is going to fire off a charge attack and toss in the weak Pokemon before that happens.

Another tactic is "sacrificial swapping." This is when players purposely put a Pokemon that has a bad matchup against a rival so that it can quickly die and players can bring in a better Pokemon and kill the one that threatens the team. I wouldn't do it all the time, but in certain battles when players know their other teammates are vulnerable, it's a good idea to take out the threat.

5. Know when to use shields. I often use shields as an extra layer of armor for Pokemon. Sometimes trainers run into a bad matchup on an important Pokemon and it's often better to stall and wait for a switch by using shields. On the opposite end, I often use shields aggressively as a way to augment certain Pokemon's offense. In the case of Shadow Pokemon, I take advantage of 20 percent damage boost while using shields to protect them against charge attacks that would normally kill them in one blow because of their 20 percent weakness. I find that the offense and getting rid of threats is more important than the shields, which I burn to keep them alive.

Another scenario I burn shields quickly is to protect Pokemon with special moves that have boosts to stats or hurts a rival's stats. In the case Mantine, it's surprisingly effective because Bubble Beam lowers an attack stat. It can weaken a rival enough so that players can send in another teammate to knock it out without much worry. In addition, Bubble Beam charges quickly and players can fire it off repeatedly, pressuring opponents to use shields. This is called "Shield Baiting."

Lastly, I have this piece of advice:

6. Keep playing no matter what: No matter what tips I offer, experience is the best teacher in Go Battle League. If trainers settle on a team, they should figure out everything about their Pokemon. They need to get the feel for when to shield, when to use a charge move and when to switch out.

The most important lesson from battles is learning the matchups. With experience, trainers will know what movesets are popular, which matchups are bad and what they head-to-heads they can take advantage of. Play enough and you can assess a situation and figure out the best course of action while the battle is going on. You'll know how long to leave in a Pokemon and when to take it out. You can even pull of a safe switch or you'll predict that a Mantine can handle a grass-type given enough shields and expertly timed Ice Beam.

Trainers should expect to be frustrated with Go Battle League on "Pokemon Go." The system isn't perfect. Players will lose because they are outclassed or the lag prevents them from attacking. It happened to me plenty of times, but I don't let that discourage me. I just take a deep breath and press on because you learn with every matchup and as long as you're a better player than you were the day before, you'll know you're on the right path. Mamba Mentality.