The Battle Tower is supposed to be the Ultimate test for a Pokémon Trainer but, although it surely needs top skills to have 100+ wins in a row, even the best players have trouble with it. The reason is not the lack of skill, but the “cheap ways” that the game uses to defeat you. They may not work most of the time, but when they work (and they will, at least once during the 100 battles) they defeat you in a ridiculous way and they cripple your record (and nerves).
Having that in mind, a true guide cannot be created for the Battle Tower. What we can give you though is a fair ammount of information and suggestions in order to make this difficult task easier for you. Before I give you the information and advice about the game itself, I would like to say some truths:
– There is no team that can surely defeat all the Pokémon of the Battle Tower. What we are trying to do is to minimize the possibilities of losing.
– Some people say that with a really good team you will have 100+ wins once in every 5 times you try the Battle Tower challenge. This is not a fact supported by some kind of evidence, but it is a phrase that will give you the general idea of what you can expect from your team.
– Having the above phrase in mind you should understand that you need a lot patience. It is very hard to have 100+ wins from the first time. You might sometimes lose at the 99th battle. This is very annoying, but you have to keep playing because remembering the Pokémon that are used is essential for your strategy the next time you enter.
– You may have to use Pokémon with different movesets compared to the ones that are used in the Standard Metagame. What you need to use here is moves that will take advantage of the AI of the game. Such moves are Destiny Bond, Trick, Whirlwind and some more (I will explain later). You should also have in mind that you are fighting against THREE Pokémon each time and not six. This is very important for your strategy.
So, you may wonder what Pokémon can you expect from your opponent. There is actually a total amount of 950 Pokémon used by opponents (there are a lot of same Pokémon with different movesets) so you can’t really “study” them and create a team that can counter them all (don’t forget you are only using three Pokémon). The Pokémon used are separated into tiers. There are four of them:
– The first tier contains the weakest Pokémon, like Charmander and Pidgeotto, and you will encounter them in Battles 1-13. Each Pokémon has one moveset. You shouldn’t have trouble beating them.
– The second tier has more powerful Pokémon, like Hitmonlee and Rotom, but still not very difficult. You will encounter them in battles 7-27. Each Pokémon has two possible movesets.
– The third tier has powerful Pokémon, like Salamence and Scizor. Most of them are those we call OverUsed. You may encounter them in every battle after the 21st. Each Pokémon has four possible movesets.
– The last tier contains every legendary Pokémon allowed in the Battle Tower. That means that there are no Uber Pokémon except for Latias and Latios which are generally considered to be Ubers. You may encounter them in every battle after the 49th. Each Pokémon has four possible movesets.
– Finally, there is Palmer the Tower Tycoon that always uses the same Pokémon but in random order. These Pokémon are:
Battle 21:
– Milotic @ Salac Berry. Effort Points in Defense and Speed. It uses the moves: Hydro Pump, Dragon Pulse, Recover and Hypnosis.
– Rhyperior @ Expert Belt. Effort Points in Attack and Special Attack. It uses the moves: Rock Wrecker, Ice Beam, Thunderbolt and Flamethrower.
– Dragonite @ Wide Lens. Effort Points in HP and Attack. It uses the moves: Dragon Rush, Aqua Tail, Iron Tail and Stone Edge.
Battle 49:
– Cresselia @ Leftovers. Effort Points in HP and Defense. It uses the moves: Calm Mind, Moonlight, Psychic and Shadow Ball.
– Heatran @ Brightpowder. Effort Points in HP, Attack and Special Attack. It uses the moves: Explosion, Magma Storm, Dark Pulse and Flash Cannon.
– Regigigas @ Chople Berry. Effort Points in HP and Attack. It uses the moves: Crush Grip, Ice Punch, Stone Edge and Brick Break.
If you want to take a better look at the Pokémon used in the single battles of the Battle Tower click here. It is suggested that you take a look through that list and try to remember some Pokémon that may pose a threat, like Focus Sash users (Ctrl+F is your friend here).
Please note that the Natures are determined RANDOMLY. They are not always going to be like the ones that are listed above. Also, note that the EPs are always distributed equally. If the Pokémon has EPs in 2 stats, it has 255 EPs in these stats. If it has EPs in three stats, it has 170 EPs in each.
Now we are going to look through the various aspects that you need to take care of when you are creating a “single battle” Battle Tower Team.
- As I said before, it is very important to remember that you are going to use only three Pokémon. That means that you have to put a lot of thought when creating a team because you should be able to counter as many Pokémon as possible. Furthermore it is more difficult to play defensively because if your opponent luckily defeats your Pokémon (and they will in many occasions) you will be left with no defene and no offense as well. It is more helpful to have an agressive team that will defeat your opponent before they can react.
- The Battle Tower Trainers will use a lot of “cheap” ways to defeat you. That means a lot of OHKO moves (that they magically work when they shouldn’t), a lot of evasion boosting moves (Double Team is everywhere) and a lot of items based on luck, like Quick Claw and Brightpowder, which also work quite often. What you have to do is to use Pokémon, items and moves that can be effective against that types of strategy. Moves that don’t miss are effective against the evasion Pokémon. Focus Sash is an item that will help you survive in many occasions. Gengar and Mismagius are not affected by the most of the OHKO moves (the are only affected by Sheer Cold).
- One of the best ways to defeat your opponents is to take advantage of the AI of the game. The Battle Tower Trainers will switch their Pokémon out only if Perish Song is used. This is one of their weak points as you can pass them Choice items with Trick or Switcheroo. Your opponents will not switch Pokémon and they will be locked in one predictable move. You can use this to set up with your Pokémon of even let your opponent lose using Struggle. You can take advantage of the never switching situation using Roar or Whirlwind to send a Pokémon that has set up dangerously back to its trainer. This way you can prepare your strategy and face it later. Another interesting thing is that your opponent will attack you even if you use Destiny Bond. This way you can defeat some tough enemies by sacrificing a Pokémon that would be KOed anyway.
Now, we are going to take a look at a great team created by a guy called “Team Rocket Elite” which uses all the things that we said above effectively:
Gengar @ Focus Sash
Timid Nature (+Speed, -Attack)
EPs: 6 HP – 252 Speed – 252 Special Attack
– Thunderbolt
– Shadow Ball
– Counter
– Destiny Bond
This Gengar is the perfect example of the type of Pokémon that you need in the Singe Battles of the Battle Tower. You send it out first. Levitate and the Ghost Type provide it with excellent immunities to a lot of dangerous attacks in the Battle Tower. Remember the OHKO moves? Only Sheer Cold can actually affect it, but it won’t defeat it immediately because it holds Focus Sash! Furthermore Gengar cannot be poisoned. With great Special Attack and at least two chances to hit (You will survive the 1st turn) Gengar can defeat a lot of Pokémon. If a Physical Sweeper is against you, use Counter to defeat it. After defeating the first Pokémon, if your HP are low, use Destiny Bond on the next Pokémon and you will have defeated two Pokémon!
Blissey @ Leftovers
Ability: Natural Cure
Bold Nature (+Defense, -Attack)
EPs: 252 HP – 252 Defense – 6 Special Defense
– Seismic Toss
– Counter
– Aromatherapy
– Softboiled
When Gengar has problems with Special Sweepers, it’s time for Blissey to take care of them. Note that you should change only when Gengar faces THE FIRST Pokémon of your opponent and this Pokémon is a Special Sweeper that you can’t deal with. Otherwise you should defeat it with Gengar or, if it is the second Pokémon you should use Destiny Bond. Blissey has a couple of other roles. The most important of them is healing status abnormalities. Having Natural Cure means that Blissey doesn’t care about herself and so she can heal her other partners easily. Finally, Blissey has chances against physical sweepers as she has the biggest HP stat in the game and access to Counter.
Froslass @ Choice Scarf
Timid Nature (+Speed, -Attack)
Evs: 150 HP – 248 Special Attack – 108 Speed – 4 Defense
– Taunt
– Destiny Bond
– Ice Beam
– Thunderbolt
This Pokémon is specifically created for the Battle Tower. Taunt may seem weird with Choice Scarf but it helps you stop annoying and destructive things like Shuckle with Double Team. The main role of this Pokémon is to defeat your opponent’s last Pokémon with Destiny Bond. The only problem could be a Quick Claw if it is activated before the Destiny Bond is used. STABed Ice Beam provides an easy way to defeat Dragons but keep in mind that some of them may hold Yache Berry (Gliscor, Aerodactyl, Salamence and Flygon are the most dangerous Pokémon holding the Yache Berry, however all of them use it on a physical set, meaning that Gengar’s/Blissey’s Counter takes care of them). Generally it is safer to use Destiny Bond.
I believe that these were all the information that I could give you. You are now ready to try the Single Battles Battle Tower challenge. Have courage and creativity. Don’t give up if you lose once. Just keep battling and you will eventually defeat 100 opponents in a row. Just another useful tip: If you want to earn a lot of Battle Points fight until you defeat Palmer on the 21st battle and then lose on purpose. The trainers that you will encounter after Palmer will be a lot more difficult than the first ones, so it is easier and faster to defeat only the first 21 battles. If there is anything that I forgot to mention or anything that you would like to learn, please write it on the comment section. Also, let me know if you liked this guide. Good luck on your Battle Tower Challenge!