Deoxys in Pokemon Go

Deoxys has been the EX raid boss for some time in Pokemon Go, and now, as part of the Ultra unlock, it has come and gone in regular raids. It has four forms; normal, defense, attack, and speed. It is not the best Pokemon, and certainly does not live up to the legacy set by its predecessor in EX raids, but some of it's forms have certain niche uses.
Deoxys, being a psychic type Pokemon, is weak to Bug, Dark, and Ghost type attackers. The best counters to use will slightly vary by form, move set, and weather, but generally you will want to front load with glass cannons such as legacy Gengar and Weavile, and follow these with bulkier counters such as Giratina-Origin, Tyranitar, and Shadow Ball Mewtwo.
Normal:
Normal Form Deoxys has a max CP of 3160. It has a massive attack stat of 345, a defense stat of 115, and a stamina, or health stat, of 137. 345 is the second highest attack stat in the game; higher than Mewtwo's, and second only to Attack Form Deoxys. This seems like it would make Normal Form Deoxys a monstrous glass cannon; although this is true, it is too frail to be consistent. Even Gengar, perhaps the most iconic glass cannon, has a defense stat of 149 and a stamina stat of 155.
Additionally, Normal Form Deoxys has a relatively poor move set; it has access to the moves Zen Headbutt and Charge Beam, and the charge moves Hyper Beam, Psycho Boost, and Thunderbolt. The only usable charge move it has is Thunderbolt, as on a Pokemon as frail as Normal Deoxys, Hyper Beam and Psycho Boost are too slow to be considered.
However, Normal Form Deoxys does have one niche use; it is the highest DPS electric type attacker in Pokemon Go. The only problem is it is incredibly frail, and there are options such as Electivire that do the same job with far more bulk and without costing rare candies. It's probably best to leave Normal Form Deoxys collecting dust.
On the raid side of things, Normal Form Deoxys can be beat by 2 trainers at ultra friends using level 30-35 counters with relative ease.
Defense:
Defense Form Deoxys has a max CP of 2274. A relatively low attack stat of 144 keeps it from performing in PvE, but a massive defense stat of 330 and a stamina stat of 137 allow it to perform extremely well in PvP.
Defense Form Deoxys has access to Counter and Zen Headbutt for fast moves, and Psycho Boost, Rock Slide, and Thunderbolt for charge moves. Counter will be your fast move of choice, as it is a phenomenal PvP move, dealing 4 Damage Per Turn, or DPT, and earning 3.5 Energy Per Turn, or EPT. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Zen Headbutt is a terrible PvP move, dealing just 2.7 DPT and earning a abysmal 2 EPT.
For charge moves, you will want Psycho Boost, and can chose between Thunderbolt and Rock Slide for extra coverage if adding a second move.]
Defense Deoxys can be beat by 4-5 players using level 30-35 counters at ultra friends with some difficulty, or 3 players using level 40 counters at best friends.
Attack:
Attack Form Deoxys has a max CP of 2580. It has an insane attack stat of 414, the highest in the game, but a defense stat of 46, one of the lowest in the game; 677th out of 681, to be exact. A low stamina stat of 137 doesn't help it's bulk much. It has the highest DPS in the game, but absolutely abysmal TDO prevents it from being usable in all but some very select, niche situations.
It has access to the fast moves Poison Jab and Zen Headbutt. STAB makes Zen Headbutt the fast move of choice.
It has access to the charge moves Zap Cannon, Psycho Boost, and Dark Pulse. Zap Cannon is a one-bar move that may never be used, and Psycho Boost has a long cool down during which Attack Deoxys could faint. Dark Pulse is the charge move of choice.
Speed:
Speed Form Deoxys has a max CP of 2879. It has a attack stat of 230, and a defense stat of 219. It has a Stamina stat of 137.
It has access to the fast moves Zen Headbutt and Charge Beam.
It has access to the charge moves Psycho Boost, Swift, and Thunderbolt.
Speed Deoxys is terrible in Pokemon Go. It has very balanced stats, already putting it behind as Go favors extremes, and it's main selling feature doesn't exist in Pokemon Go: speed. There is no speed stat in Pokemon Go, leaving Speed Deoxys very mediocre.

Psystrike Buff

Today, something incredible happened; Psystrike, Mewtwo's signature move, received a massive buff in Pokemon Go. Previously, it had fairly good stats, being a two-bar psychic type move dealing 100 base damage, similar to Shadow Ball. However, it had one major drawback; a ridiculous cool down of 4.4 seconds, and a damage window of 3 seconds. Damage window is when the damage is applied to the Pokemon, so that if you faint before the cool down ends the damage is still dealt. For reference, Hyper Beam, a notoriously slow one-bar move, has a cool down of 3.8 seconds and a damage window of 3.3 seconds.
However, after the buff, it is a far better move. It is still a psychic type two-bar move. However, it now deals 90 damage, 10 lower than before. This seems more like a nerf than a buff, but the cool down was reduced to 2.3 seconds and the damage window was reduced to 1 second. This seems relatively insignificant, especially with the 10 damage reduction, but it makes Psystrike incredibly powerful.
Psystrike Mewtwo now deals 20.918 DPS with Confusion, and 20.884 DPS with Psycho Cut. The only Pokemon in the game with higher DPS, Attack Deoxys, deals 21.856 DPS. However, even this small DPS difference is negated by the fact that Attack Deoxys has 140.6 Total Damage Output, and Psystrike Mewtwo has 654.9 TDO.
There is one major drawback, however; Psystrike is a move exclusive to this week. Get out there and raid! The best counters to use are Giratina Origin, Gengar, Tyranitar, Weavile, and of course, Shadow Ball Mewtwo!

Mewtwo's Moves in Pokemon Go

Today we will be discussing Mewtwo in Pokemon Go. More specifically Mewtwo's moves. With shiny Mewtwo's release in about a week, along with it's signature move, psystrike, I thought that this would be an excellently timed topic to discuss. Additionally, please note that I will only be discussing Mewtwo's use in PvE, and not PvP. However, before we get into the main point, let's look at Mewtwo itself.

A legendary Pokemon, originally only obtainable through special EX raids, and only in regular raids at one point for a month, Mewtwo is relatively hard to obtain. This is for good reason, as it is incredibly powerful.
Mewtwo has an attack stat of 300 in Pokemon Go, unparalleled by any other with bulk enough to perform well- I'm looking at you Deoxys. It has a defense stat of 182, a stamina, or health, stat of 214, and a max CP of 4178.
Psycho Cut and Confusion make up it's two fast moves. Neither is necessarily better, and both have specific uses. Since Psycho Cut has better energy gain, whereas Confusion has better damage output, generally use Confusion verses Pokemon weak to Psychic and Psycho Cut against everything else.
Now, on to the main topic; what charge moves to use.
Mewtwo has access to 7 total charge moves; 5 in its current move pool, and 2 legacy moves. Its legacy moves are Hyper Beam and Shadow Ball. Flamethrower, Thunderbolt, Ice Beam, Focus Blast, and Psychic make up its currently accessible move set. Psytrike will join the party in about 2 weeks.
Hyper Beam:
Hyper Beam is a 1 bar normal type move. It has a base power of 150, and deals 1.5 damage per energy. A cooldown of 3.8 seconds means that you will wait an eternity before using another Psycho Cut or Confusion, and being normal type it can never be super effective. Hyper Beam is a flat out bad move and has absolutely no use on Mewtwo.
Shadow Ball:
Shadow Ball is a 2 bar ghost type move. It deals 2 DPE, and has a base power of 100. A cooldown of 3 seconds seals the deal on it being a direct upgrade from Hyper Beam. It deals super effective damage against Psychic and Ghost type Pokemon. Shadow Ball is a fantastic move, and has the best neutral DPS of Mewtwo's charge move. Mewtwo with Shadow Ball is the 3rd best Ghost type attacker in Pokemon Go. If you have a legacy Shadow Ball Mewtwo, it is an excellent choice.

Flamethrower:

Flamethrower is a 2 bar fire type move. It has a base power of 70 and deals 1.4 DPE. It has a cooldown of 2.2 seconds and is super effective against  Grass, Bug, Ice, and Steel type Pokemon. Flamethrower is a relatively poor move, and brings little to the table for Mewtwo as many fire types beat it out for raids. Additionally, there are few common gym defenders weak to fire types. It's probably best to avoid Flamethrower. 

Thunderbolt:

Thunderbolt is a 2 bar electric type move. It deals 1.6 DPE and has a base power of 80. It has a cooldown of 2.5 seconds, and is super effective against flying and water type Pokemon. Thunderbolt makes Mewtwo the 6th best electric type attacker for raids, and water types are fairly common gym defenders. Thunderbolt is not the most optimal Mewtwo charge move, but as a second move for gym sweeping or to sure up a electric team it can be used.

Ice Beam:

Ice Beam is a ice type two bar move. It has a base power of 90 and deals 1.8 DPE. It has a cooldown of 3.3 seconds, and is super effective against grass, ground, dragon, and flying type Pokemon. Ice Beam makes Mewtwo the fourth best ice type for raids, and dragons are regularly seen as gym defenders. Ice Beam is a decent first choice, but powering up a Mewtwo specifically to fulfill a ice type role is somewhat foolish as it is beat out by more easily obtained Mamoswine, Weavile, and Glaceon. However, as a second move, Ice Beam is a excellent choice.

Focus Blast:

Focus Blast is a one bar fighting type move. It has 140 base power and deals 1.4 DPE. Focus Blast is super effective against normal, ice, steel, dark, and rock type Pokemon, and has a cooldown of 3.5 seconds. For raids, Mewtwo with Focus Blast is not relevant. Focus Blast should not be your move of choice on Mewtwo on it's own. However, normal types are common, powerful gym defenders. As a second move for gym sweeping, Focus Blast is a interesting and viable choice.

Psychic:

Psychic is a one bar psychic type move. It has a base power of 100 and deals 1 DPE. It is super effective against poison and fighting type Pokemon, and has a cooldown of 2.8 seconds. Objectively, Psychic is a bad move. However, Psychic does get STAB, and is Mewtwo's only current psychic type move. Additionally, Mewtwo will likely never be outclassed as a psychic type attacker.

Psystrike:

Psystrike is Mewtwo's signature move. It is not currently available, but will be in about a week. Please note that because it is not yet released, it's stats are subject to change. It is a 2 bar psychic type move. It deals 100 base damage and 2 DPE. It has a cooldown of 4.4 seconds. It will beat out Psychic, but not by much. It's main problem is it's long cooldown.

Mewtwo has some phenomenal moves, and some less optimal moves. All considered, my top single moves would be Psychic/Psystrike, Shadow Ball, and Ice Beam. My top double move sets would be Psycho Cut, Ice Beam and Shadow Ball, Psycho Cut, Shadow Ball and Thunderbolt, and Confusion, Ice Beam and Psychic/Psystrike. The main reasons I don't have more occurances of Psychic/Psystrike within this moveset are that psychic types are not commonly used, and Shadow Ball does not synchronize well with Psychic/Psystrike because often times Pokemon weak to Shadow Ball resist psychic types, so Psycho Cut is far preferable for use with Shadow Ball. Another possible move set would be Psycho Cut, Shadow Ball and Focus Blast for sweeping gyms.