Forum:Route 17

Warning: Using a Ditto or Mew to Transform into Zapdos will NOT work. Neither Zapdos's Thunder nor Zapdos's Drill Peck affect Zapdos. Moreover, Transforming into Zapdos or using your own Zapdos does not grant the Transform user immunity to Zapdos's attacks.

It's relatively easy to defeat Zapdos with Yawn and super-effective moves. As long as you switch your Pokémon around continuously to match with Zapdos' movements, it is possible to defeat this route with 3 Pokémon.

Dragon Rage will always deal 40 damage. Another option is to bring the following Pokémon with you with the following moves:
 * Blastoise - Blizzard/Ice Beam, Iron Defense, Rain Dance
 * Nidoking - Helping Hand, Blizzard/Ice Beam
 * Rhydon - Stone Edge/Rock Tomb
 * Golem - Stone Edge
 * Magneton - Zap Cannon
 * A Grass-type Pokémon - Sleep Powder, Poison Powder

Place Blastoise near Gary using Rain Dance and place all your other Pokémon in the field to attack Zapdos. Make sure when the rain starts Blastoise uses Iron Defense. Nidoking may just be put on top near Gary or on the attacking field to make sure to help reduce Zapdos's power. Don't mind Zapdos's spinning for it will only attack Blastoise whose health will be immediately restored by Gary. Once a Pokémon gets down to low health, quickly drag it to Gary and after healing place it at the bottom to prevent it from being attacked. Here are the moves: Nidoking using Helping Hand and switches to Blizzard/Ice Beam, Rhydon uses Stone Edge/Rock Tomb, Golem uses Stone Edge since it gives Golem STAB and Critical Hit which gives a total of a power of 300 (once Critical Hit), Magneton uses Zap Cannon and the Grass Pokémon uses Poison Powder and then Sleep Powder. Use Sleep Powder when Zapdos stops. If some Pokémon faint, send out Blastoise using the Ice type move. Just keep on using this strategy and you're sure to defeat Zapdos.

Also, a team of Stone Edge Golem would be good as they are resistant to Flying and Electric moves and Stone Edge is 2x effective against Zapdos.

Another good strategy is to use Vaporeon in 1 slot: have it use Aqua Ring straight away then Blizzard and don't move it for the rest of Pokémon just use either Lapras or Jynx with their STAB Ice Beam. Lapras also have a very high level of HP so they don't need to be healed as often. Just move them around following the Zapdos and you should kill it fairly easily. The freezing effect of Ice Beam is also useful because it gives you time to drag your Pokémon to Gary to get them healed.

In version 6.2, the level cap was increased so a Pokémon 91+ can use Perish Song, Destiny Bond, Sheer Cold, and Horn Drill on Zapdos.