Pokemon Go Brings Back Its Most Formidable Gym Defender as a Research Reward

Pokemon Go announced that players who complete a Research Breakthrough in July will have a chance to capture a Snorlax with the move Body Slam.

Each month, Pokemon Go gives players a chance to capture a rare Pokemon if they complete Field Research tasks on seven different days. For the first three months of this new Research Breakthrough mechanic, players could catch one of the Legendary Birds, Pokemon that were previously only available as a Raid Boss and hadn't made an in-game appearance in month.

Pokemon Go is switching up its Research Breakthrough rewards for July by giving players a chance to capture Snorlax, a Pokemon that can already be found both in the wild and from eggs. However, this Snorlax comes with the move Body Slam, a move it hasn't been able to learn in over a year.

The Body Slam Snorlax is considered one of the most powerful Gym Defenders in the game. Body Slam is notoriously hard to dodge, and Snorlax can spam Body Slam in quick succession. Couple with Snorlax's insane Stamina and above average attacks, the Body Slam Snorlax is one of the few Pokemon that might actually be able to stop a player from taking a gym.

Noting the sheer power of Body Slam Snorlax, Pokemon Go nerfed Body Slam back in 2017 and eventually pulled the move from Snorlax's moveset. Now, Snorlax can only learn Hyper Beam, Earthquake, or Heavy Slam, all of which are powerful...but much easier to dodge.

For players worried about the sudden abundance of Body Slam Snorlax in gyms, remember that the Research Breakthrough Pokemon are Level 15 and would require a ton of Candies and Stardust to power up. While some players are going to pour resources into their new Snorlax, plenty of other players will be stockpiling Stardust for trades instead. Also, Snorlax can be countered by Machamp and Hariyama, which players should have from May's Fighting-Type event.

If you're looking to quickly stockpile Candies to power up Snorlax, players should probably look to trade some of their Body Slam Snorlax to friends. Players get Candies with each trade, and players should have a few Snorlax to spare if they complete their Field Research task every day.

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