Team GO Rocket leader Sierra is back with her formidable team ready to defeat unprepared Trainers in December 2024 Pokémon GO. Following The Wild Area Global event, players will be eager to compete against the best AI trainers they can and earn significant rewards along the way. The Team GO Rocket leaders remain one of the most difficult challenges, so it’s important to choose the best lineup to counter their Pokémon.
You can compete against three Team GO Rocket leaders: Arlo, Cliff and Sierra. To challenge any of the three, you have to have it initially defeated six of the Team GO Rocket Grunts. Once you’ve done this, you can randomly find one of Team GO Rocket’s leaders by spinning PokeStops or rocket balloons in the sky.
Sierra’s team and counterattack in Pokémon GO (December 2024)
An unchanged team for December
Sierra’s team has remained the same since November, although this may change throughout the month as the current playing season is expected to come to an end. She will always be a leader Fairy and Psychic type Ralts again before using one of three Pokemon for her next two picks. Thirra can utilize a wide range of life-ups in each fight, making it harder to know who to counter her. Your second Pokemon will be one of Steelix, Milotic, or Sableye. For her final choice, she will use either Gardevoir, Houndoom, or Nidoqueen.
Wave |
Pokémon and types |
Weaken |
counter |
---|---|---|---|
1 |
Ralts – fairy and clairvoyant |
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2 |
Steelix – floor and steel |
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2 |
Milotic – Water |
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2 |
Sableye – Darkness and Spirit |
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3 |
Gardevoir – clairvoyant and fairy |
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3 |
Houndoom – Darkness and fire |
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3 |
Nidoqueen – ground and clairvoyant |
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If you start a game and see that Sierra’s team has a bad matchup, you can leave the game and select a different lineup to counter them.
I’ve found that the easiest way to counter Sierra is to choose Pokemon that are extremely effective against multiple members of her team. It’s best to start with a Pokemon that is extremely effective against Ralts, as this will always be your first opponent. Gengar is a great option for that. Since it is a Ghost-type Pokémon, it also has an advantage over Gardevoir when selected.

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Another good type is a strong fighting type like Machamp or Lucario. The former is a good option, with quick moves that can evolve into a charged attack to remove Sierra’s shields. Machamp is extremely effective against both Steelix and Houndoom. It can easily be switched to Gengar once Ralts is defeated.
For a final selection: every Pokémon with Water-type attacks like Swampert, can cover two of Sierra’s possible options, including the dangerous Nidoqueen. However, due to the wide range of Pokémon types covered by Sierra’s team, it is difficult to choose a team of three Pokémon that will be extremely effective against all of them. Milotic and Sableye can both cause problems, but the aforementioned team will still overwhelm them if either of them is selected as Sierra’s second choice.
Rewards for defeating Sierra in Pokémon GO
Rewards make the hard fight worthwhile
Once you defeat Sierra, you’ll receive a number of rewards, including the chance to catch a rare Shadow Pokémon. If you defeat Sierra in December 2022 Pokémon GOImmediately after the battle, you’ll get the opportunity to catch their first Pokémon, Shadow Ralts. While it’s not the strongest, it’s a rare catch, and the chance of finding the shiny version is about 1 in 64. There’s also still time to earn rewards in the Max Out Finale event, which runs until the end of the current season is running.
You will also receive a special red Team GO Rocket 12km egg. These can only be obtained by defeating a Rocket Leader, offering the chance to hatch some extremely rare Pokémon. Trainers will receive 1,000 Stardust every time you defeat Sierra or another GO Rocket Leader in December 2024. This can be used to strengthen and increase the CP of Pokémon, which can prove crucial in raids or PvP battles.
You need space in your egg population to accommodate the 12 km long red eggs.
Finally, you will receive two more items, randomly selected from a list of five options. These are x4 revives, x4 hyper potions, x2 maximum revives, x2 maximum potions or a Unova Stone. Sierra presents another big challenge in December, but if you choose the right team to counter their lineup, you can easily emerge victorious and earn some great rewards Pokémon GO.