Gen 6's most iconic Pokemon destroys Pokemon Legends: ZA Battles

Pokemon Legends: ZA is undoubtedly one of the most revolutionary Pokemon games at all, as it dramatically changes the way creature battles play out and where player agency goes. Normally in a turn-based environment, the Pokémon players choose and the moves they use have a specific function that changes depending on the overall strategy, the format of the battles (i.e. singles, doubles, etc.), and what role each creature should fill. Pokemon Legends: ZA it has all these elements, but they are completely shifted both during the main story and in online battles. Now, one particular Gen 6 Pokemon is ruining the experience for most fans, making some battles outright unplayable.

While not all Mega Evolutions in the series are back in the game, Pokemon Legends: ZAThe best teams are usually run by the usual suspects like Metagross, Gyarados, Greninja and other popular mons. However, with the release of Season 2 a week ago, the online landscape has changed considerably due to Xerneas. This is for several reasons:

Xerneas became playable in ranked battles with Season 2 along with Yveltal and Mega Delphox, as Delphoxite is a reward for reaching Rank S. This means that using Xerneas is new Pokemon Legends: ZA.
Xerneas is one of the best Fairy-type Pokémon in the series, and even without his signature ability, he still has incredible stats and a powerful move in Geomantie. IN REPTILESGeomancy is particularly powerful as it also increases Xernease's movement speed, meaning he can more easily dodge attacks without homing.
A dragon-type Pokemon Pokemon Legends: ZA they're extremely common in online battles, meaning it's easy to lead with Xerneas and take care of them or force opponents to transition.
Xerneas has incredible coverage moves and great accompanying stats, meaning he can handle even some of his best counters.
One of the best Xerneas counters right now is Metagross. However, most Metagross movesets run Heavy Slam, which deals little damage to Xerneas due to its weight. Since it's often not optimal to use two steel moves, Xerneas can dodge Heavy Slam with increased movement speed and leave Metagross hanging.

Xerneas is probably the most iconic Pokemon of Gen 6, as it is the mascot for Pokemon X, which surpassed Pokemon Y upon release.

Say hello to the best Pokémon in Legends: ZA's Ranked Battles

For starters, Xerneas has a BST of 680, which is incredible even for some of the best legendary Pokemon. With 126 HP, 131 Attack, 95 Defense, 131 Sp. Attack, 98 Sp. Defense and Speed 99, Xerneas has better stats than most creatures even when using Mega Evolution.

Since Xerneas has high attack and special attack, it can be built with both, but Special Attack is a better choice if you're using Geomancy, which you should always be. Giving Xerneas a special attack and special defense buff with geomancy while increasing his movement speed is extremely easy as all you need to do is focus on an enemy mon and press the button associated with geomancy.

Unlike turn-based games, Geomancy offers a 1-phase buff to Sp. Attack and Sp. Defense instead of 2 ranks and increases movement speed instead of speed. It also takes a bit longer to use than normal moves, but doesn't take a full turn to charge like it normally does.

With Sp. Investing in attack, HP, and maybe points in defense or special defense, Xerneas are very hard to take down, even with super effective moves. Pokemon Legends: ZAPlus Moves help Xerneas further as he can use them regardless of not having Mega Evolution, making certain attacks more lethal. Optimum movement set for Xerneas in REPTILES would be:

Geomancy
Moonburst
Focus Blast
Flash

Best Xerneas Counters in Pokemon Legends: ZA Explained

There are various ways to counter Xerneas, but it can be difficult even for the best team compositions in the game. Pokemon Legends: ZAMega Scizor is a good token for Xerneas because Xerneas doesn't have access to fire moves that are 4x effective on Scizor. Bullet Punch is also a good move to use against Xerneas, which Metagross also learns, as it is a priority attack that also moves the user towards the target very quickly.

Physical attackers with Dig and Fly can find success against Xerneas as they are homing moves that track the target and then hit. for this reason Pokemon Legends: ZAMega Skarmory and Mega Excadrill are perfect choices as they have access to Fly and Dig, and then can use steel move to secure the KO. This is especially true if they use Swords Dance. All in all, best Xerneas counters Pokemon Legends: ZA include: