G Max Lapras July 2025 Guide
Introduction
G-Max Lapras returns to Max Battles. With its duel typing (water & ice), stats (165 ATK / 174 DEF / 277 STA), and Max attack (G Max Resonance), this powerful Pokémon gets a score of A tier for its niche play.
A tier Pokemon tend to do their job well, but are not the best at it or they also tend to be outclassed on as more Max Pokémon are released.
G-max Lapras at this time can function as top ice attacker, a healer, tank, and a shielder.
It double resist ice and single resist water while taking supper effective damage from grass, electric, fighting, and rock.
Counters
—The letter next to the Pokémon’s name is a tier indicator (C to S). The higher the tier, the more useful the Pokemon is across the whole Max meta. The lower the tier, the less useful they are in the meta or they might be a one trick pony. A full tier list can be found here.
ATTACKERS
DPS
—Relevant factors that impact damage output: Max attack type (D/G), base attack stats, Attack IVs, Pokémon level, Max Attack level, STAB(Y/N), weakness / resistance, and weather boost(Y/N)
—Calculations are made assuming all Pokemon are the same level with the same IVs and max attack at level 3
Best DPS Attacker List
Gigantamax Rillaboom (S)
w/ Scratch
#1
Max Move
G-Max Drum Solo
Damage
600
Percent to Best
100.00%
Gigantamax Machamp (S)
w/ Counter
#2
Max Move
G-Max Chi Strike
Damage
588
Percent to Best
98.00%
Gigantamax Toxtricity (A+)
w/ Spark
#3
Max Move
G-Max Stun Shock
Damage
565
Percent to Best
94.17%
Gigantamax Venusaur (A+)
w/ Vine Whip
#4
Max Move
G-Max Vine Lash
Damage
503
Percent to Best
83.83%
Dynamax Urshifu - Single Strike (A)
w/ Rock Smash
#5
Max Move
Max Knuckle
Damage
495
Percent to Best
82.50%
Dynamax Urshifu - Rapid Strike (B+)
w/ Rock Smash
#6
Max Move
Max Knuckle
Damage
495
Percent to Best
82.50%
Dynamax Zapdos (A)
w/ Charge Beam
#7
Max Move
Max Lightning
Damage
493
Percent to Best
82.17%
Dynamax Raikou (A)
w/ Thunder Shock
#8
Max Move
Max Lightning
Damage
471
Percent to Best
78.50%
Select “Show All” under “Best Attackers”
—Weather can severely alter these rankings. The most notable being rainy weather; a Max attack level 2 Gmax Toxtricity, will surpass a max attack level 3 Gmax Rillaboom given all other factors are the same. This is relevant because XL candy for Toxricity is hard to come by. Trainers may only be able to get it’s max attack to level 2.
—Sunny weather would boost the grass type attackers and shake up the ranking list. It actually boost D-max Rillaboom to the #5 spot.
—Cloudy weather boosts the fighting type. G-max Machamp comes in at #1.
— Remember that the list assumes the Pokemon are all at the same level. You may have a Pokemon from lower on the list but because of its high level level, it’s your best DPS attacker. This tool can assist with comparing your Pokémon’s max attack damage output.
— I would recommend to build one of the top 3. If you already have a high level G-max Venusaur, you might not need to invest into a new build.
— The only attackers I recommend powering up past level 30 would be the one with an S tier rating. They sport higher raw attack stats and are considered generalist. This means when leveled up enough they can do more damage than a rank 1# DPS attacker at level 30, so long as the S tier mon hits for neutral damage.
DEFENDERS
Tanks
—These Pokemon are ranked based on Survivability, which is found by looking at the percent of total HP lost when hit by a large or targeted move from the max boss. This shows how many hits it can take before it faints or requires a heal.
—The score used shows the average percent damage taken per hit across all possible move combinations for level 40, percent IV Pokémon
—Tanks need to have 0.5 second fast move. They will be on the field during the raid phase to take hits but also to generate max energy as quick as possible. Avoid using charged moves and fast moves more than 0.5 seconds.
—Large Tankiness is the tankiness of the Pokémon with their Large Move. This number represents the Damage taken from one Large Attack.
—Target Tankiness is the average tankiness of the Pokémon against the best attackers. This number represents the Damage taken from one Targeted Move when dodged, averaging between best (x0.4 reduction) and worst (x0.7 reduction) case scenario.
—Tank Score is the average of Large Tankiness and Target Tankiness.
— If the shield trainer is doing their job, then a tank really onlya need a to be concerned about Large Tankiness damage
Best Tanks in general
Dynamax Blissey (S++)
w/ Pound (0.5s)
#1
Large Tankiness
12.57
Target Tankiness
7.34 / 15.07(avg. 11.20)
Tank Score
11.89
Gigantamax Lapras (A)
w/ Psywave (0.5s)
#2
Large Tankiness
14.19
Target Tankiness
8.40 / 16.95(avg. 12.68)
Tank Score
13.43
Resists (Ice X2, Water)
Zamazenta - Crowned Shield (S+)
w/ Metal Claw (0.5s)
#3
Large Tankiness
14.52
Target Tankiness
8.56 / 17.50(avg. 13.03)
Tank Score
13.77
Resists (Ice, Normal, Dragon)
Dynamax Chansey (N/A)
w/ Pound (0.5s)
#4
Large Tankiness
16.48
Target Tankiness
9.61 / 19.76(avg. 14.68)
Tank Score
15.58
Zacian - Crowned Sword (S)
w/ Metal Claw (0.5s)
#5
Large Tankiness
16.58
Target Tankiness
9.93 / 19.87(avg. 14.90)
Tank Score
15.74
Resists (Ice, Normal, Dragon 3X)
Dynamax Metagross (A+)
w/ Fury Cutter (0.5s)
#6
Large Tankiness
18.52
Target Tankiness
10.80 / 21.99 (avg. 16.40)
Tank Score
17.46
Resists (Ice, Normal, Dragon)
Gigantamax Snorlax (A+)
w/ Lick (0.5s)
#7
Large Tankiness
18.61
Target Tankiness
10.87 / 22.33 (avg. 16.60)
Tank Score
17.60
Make sure that…
- “Prioritise Fastest Attacks for Tanks” is toggled on
- “Tank Ranking shown” is set to “ HP% taken from an Attack”
G-max Lapras has access to 6 different moves but 4 different typings. Here are modified list to compare tankiness vs a certain attack typing .Make sure that…
“Best Tank” is showing as a header instead of “ Best Tank in general”
—While is losses it’s #1 spot with certain attack typing, D-max Blissey is still the go to general tank. I would advise to level this one up to level 40
Chansey should only be used if you do not have the candy to create 2 Blisseys.
— G-max Lapras takes the number #1 spot in ice type attacks as lapras double resist ice, but it’s tier score would call to only leveling this Pokémon to level 30
—Crown Shield Zamazenta takes the #1 spot in Normal, and #2 spot in Dragon. Worth leveling up to 40
—Crown Sword Zacian takes the #1 spot in Dragon. I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND BUILDING THIS ONE AS A TANK. Use resources for attack on this one
—Remember that the list assumes the Pokemon are all at the same level. You may have a Pokemon from lower on the list but that is so leveled up, it’s your best Tank. This tool can assist with comparing your Pokémon’s Tank Score
!Blissey, Lapras and Zamazenta are all great pick for tanks!
Healers
—Above is a more in depth explanation of the healer. The key takeaway is that Max Spirit heals a percentage of the user’s HP to all Pokémon currently on the field. The amount of healing increases with the level of the move.
Level 1: 8% of user's HP per use
Level 2: 12% of user's HP per use
Level 3: 16% of user's HP per use
—Best way to rank healers is to sort all max Pokémon by HP. Which you can do for your collection in the official app. Here is a good database for all Pokemon. Search “Max” then sort by STA.
—Healers need a 0.5s fast move with little exception
—The Max boss does not impact healing. The rankings will always be the same. I tend to only look at healers that are also on the tank list. If it cannot survive, it cannot heal.
—Score is calculated on level 30 Pokemon with 10/10/10 IVs and level 3 heals.
Best Healer List
Dynamax Blissey (S++)
w/ Pound (0.5s)
#1
Heal Per Use
59HP
Dynamax Chansey (N/A)
w/ Pound (0.5s)
#2
Heal Per Use
58HP
Dynamax Wailord (N/A)
w/ Pound (0.5s)
#3
Heal Per Use
41HP
Gigantamax Snorlax (A+)
w/ Lick (0.5s)
#4
Heal Per Use
39HP
Gigantamax Lapras (A)
w/ Psywave (0.5s)
#5
Heal Per Use
33HP
—Blissey is the clear choice here. It is the Pokémon with the largest HP base stat, period. It will never be surpassed in the Max Healer meta. I highly recommend having at least 2 of these.
—If resources are tight, I would recommend building two Chaney at level 30
—Snorlax is just Blissey/Chansey but worse. It can function if you want less healing ability and more attack during the max phase when heals are not needed / when only a small heal is needed
-I would skip out on Wailord for now as it doesn’t after anything more than you cancer out of missed or Snorlax
—Remember that the list assumes the Pokemon are all at the same level. You may have a Pokemon from lower on the list but that is so leveled up, it’s your best Healer. This tool can assist with comparing your Pokémon’s heal amount per use.
Shielders
—Max Guard adds additional HP in front of the user’s HP. The amount it adds increase with the level of the move
Level 1: 20 HP per use
Level 2: 40 HP per use
Level 3: 60 HP per use
—Attacks from the max boss will drain the guard HP first.
—A Pokemon can only hold 3 shields at a time. So if they are level 3, that would be 180 extra HP. That is more HP than most pokemon have.
—The max boss will only use the targeted attack to Pokemon with shields up. If no shields are up, anyone can get hit with the targeted attack.
—The role of the shielder is to have shields up at all times and keep the targeted attacks away from everyone else.
—Targeted attacks can be, and should be dodged as much as possible
—Needs 0.5 sec fast move with little exception
—Does not need to be a good tank but most of the time it still will be
—Ranking shield score shows the average raw damage taken per hit across all possible move combinations for level 40, perfect IV Pokemon.
Best Shielders in general
Zamazenta - Crowned Shield (S+)
w/ Metal Claw (0.5s)
#1
Large Tankiness
23.75
Target Tankiness
14.00 / 28.63 (avg. 21.31)
Shield Score
22.53
Resists (Ice, Normal, Dragon)
Zacian - Crowned Sword (S)
w/ Metal Claw (0.5s)
#2
Large Tankiness
27.13
Target Tankiness
16.25 / 32.50 (avg. 24.38)
Shield Score
25.75
Resists (Ice, Normal, Dragon 3X)
Dynamax Metagross (A+)
w/ Fury Cutter (0.5s)
#3
Large Tankiness
30.00
Target Tankiness
17.50 / 35.63 (avg. 26.56)
Shield Score
28.28
Resists (Ice, Normal, Dragon)
Max Blastoise G(A+) D(B+)
w/ Bite (0.5s)
#4
Large Tankiness
31.13
Target Tankiness
18.38 / 37.25 (avg. 27.81)
Shield Score
29.47
Resists (Ice, Water)
Gigantamax Lapras (A)
w/ Psywave (0.5s)
#6
Large Tankiness
32.75
Target Tankiness
19.38 / 39.13 (avg. 29.25)
Shield Score
31.00
Resists (Ice X2, Water)
Make sure that…
- “Prioritize Fastest Attacks for Tanks” is toggled on
- “Tank Ranking shown” is set to “ HP taken from an Attack”
G-max Lapras has access to 6 different moves but 4 different typings. Here are modified list to compare tankiness vs a certain attack typing .Make sure that…
“Best Tank” is showing as a header instead of “ Best Tank in general”
I highly recommend viewing these links. The match ups change up a lot and Pokémon not mentioned here somehow become top tier. It’s worth the click
— Zamazenta is the best choice here. It’s #1 overall and for Vs both the Ice & Normal Attacks. It’s #3 vs the Dragon attack, which has Zacian miles ahead of everyone else // Hatterene at #2 (a one trick pony that you should disregard).
Where they may be a concern is vs the Water attacks since there is a 50 percent chance of getting a water move. It ranks #7 and is 85% effective as the rank 1, MaxBlastoise.
Here is the thing; the simulation is not accounting for the fact that Zamazenta starts off with one shield and can hold 4 shields at a time. The simulations only ranks the Pokémon by how much damage they take per hit. We really want to rank them by how many hits they can take before they lose all their shields. 3 to 4 shields is a 33.33( repeating of course) increase in number of hits that can be taken. So zamazentas’s score should be reviewed with a 33.33 increase. Since it’s only 15 percent behind Max Blastoise, it’s still technically better than Max Blastoise.
One last note on Zamazenta. If you lose all shields then you can only hold up to 3 shields. It is important to protect Zamazenta to keep some sort of shield up. This is more important in that first round. Of course you want to open with Zamazenta so that your team starts with a shield but you should use the simulation to see if your Zamazenta’s one shield can survive two large attacks. If not, start with a different shielder.
—Zacian: I would not waste the XL candies to level up its shields. It’s a better attacker anyways. Might be more helpful if the max boss had more dragon moves.
Zamazenta is a better generalist shield and tank that can fit into most match ups, where Zacian is a specialist when it comes to dragon moves.
—Metagross: Finally making its tank debut. It’s always had the stats and typing to be an absolute monster of a tank/ shielder but lacked the needed fast now. Until now. It’s also has great attack stats making it a top tier dps attacker in the steel and psychic category. It has all the makings of a great TDO shielder…..but it’s a D max pokémon and its max attack is locked to its fast move.
Let me explain
Its fast moves for steel and psychic are not 0.5 second fast moves. It can’t function as a tank with those moves so it can not be a TDO in that regards.
This season they have metagross a 0.5 sec bug fast move, making its max move a bug type, with no STAB attack bonus. So now it qualifies as a tank mon but is weak ish on the attack side. And bug is kinda a useless attacking type.
I’ve already talked too much on this. Use the links to see how it stacks up with each attacking type moves.
TLDR- Metagross is still a good tank / shielder in this match up. It just has no potential as a TDO in the future.
—Both forms of Max Blastoise make for a good shielder. It’s #1 on paper vs the Water types moves or #2 if you consider what was said in the Zamazenta section. Since G-max Lapras has 3 water moves out of its 6 available moves, Blastoise is a great choice. It’s better than it appears on paper. It also appears on most shield tier list regardless of match up, so it would be worth the investment.
—G-max Lapras is good vs Ice type moves, but I would not build one new for this event.
Roles & Strategy
ROLES
Trainer are placed into groups of four. Energy generation, max boss attacks, Max Guard, and max spirt will only have impacts within the group.
Damage to the max boss will show for the whole lobby / all groups.
Instead of all trainers acting like attackers, healers and shielders, you break the roles down to be worked by one or two trainers
2 attack focused trainers,1 Shield focused trainer, and 1 heal focused trainer.
—————Attack Trainer————
Sample team
(Lead- tank) (Backline- tank) (special- Dps)
Two Blisseys and a G-Rillaboom
Modifications can be made. Most notable would be to adding some shields or heals to the lead.
—————Heal Trainer—————
Sample teams
(Lead- tank healer) (backline- tank healer) (special-tank healer)
Three healing Blisseys++
Or change the special to a DPS attacker and use when heals are not needed. You would need to talk to your team right before the max phase to see if anyone needs heals and switch if possible.
——————Shield Trainer—————
Sample teams possibilities:
(Lead-tank/shielder) (backline- shielder)(special- shielder) pick from the list
(Lead-tank/shielder) (backline-shielder)(special-DPS) pick from the list
I advise to build as many Zamazentas as you can then fill in with Metagross and/or Blastoise (Most people should have a shield Blastoise built now. As it always on tier list)
STRATEGY
First Raid Phase
The battle opens with first raid phase and we have all 4 trainer/ Pokémon generating energy with only 0.5 sec fast moves.
First Max Phase
Shield trainer should switch in their TDO shielder if applicable and use all three shields(. It really is not applicable for this match up) !!!Otherwise, keep your starter in!!!
Attack trainers should switch to their DPS if their tanks did not take damage / very little damage. If you keep the tank in for heals, let your heal trainer know, and use this max phase to hit weak max attack, or shield your tank up.
Heal Trainer- listen to your team. Most times, you will heal in the first max phase.
Additional Raid and Max Phases
Repeat raid phase. Attacker put their tanks back in, healers keep the same mon in, and shielders keep their shielders in.
From here….
Attack trainers should only really look to heal their first tank if the max boss still have way more than half their health. You want your tanks to last half the battle. You are an attack trainer, focusing on healing too much might let you get to the enraged phase after 5/ 6 minutes, but if you didn’t enough damage, you will be one shotted and the battle will be over.
Shielder- Your top priority is to keep shields up, attacking should come after that. Do not be afraid to get risky. If the you are running a TDO team, switch to your back up shield if your TDO shielder is running low on HP. Once the backup shielder goes down, you can
Healers! keep tanking and healing. Attack if possible.
Repeat repeat repeat….. win
If everyone uses the correct moves in the raid phase, each team should be able to get 12 max phases in before the max boss starts dropping nukes. You might be able to get another max phase or two after that.
Miscellaneous Tip
-Trainer playing shields or heals can use Zamazenta's adventure effect to increase defense stat for your Pokemon
-Trainer playing the attacker role can use Zacian’s adventure effect and a mushroom to increase the attack stat of your attacking pokemon.
-If the max boss’s moveset is not ideal, everyone can back out and start over. It will reset the boss’s moves
Conclusion
1. Review this guide and links to get an idea of the team you want to to build
2. Review your existing pokemon and see what you have.
3. Reach out to others and try to plan a team ahead of time
4. DO NOT USE anything more than a 0.5 sec fast move in the raid phase. This causes you to stay in the raids phase for double the amount of time if all trainer use 1+ sec fast moves. This means more damage done to your tanks per round with less chances to heal and shield.
5. Max mushrooms should only be used by trainers in the attack role or those running a TDO shielder team.
6. Use level 30 or higher Pokémon with at relevant moves unlocked and leveled up.
7. Build two level 30 Blisseys. From there, level up their max spirit to level 3. From there level the max attack and max guard to level 2
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