Since Pokemon games are now following the game design of Pokemon Arceus because of its success, beating gyms are a lot less linear now.
You might find yourself lost on what to do because you can literally go from the first gym to the fourth or fifth gym in the story progression.
This guide will show you how to beat the 1st gym in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet and also teach you where to go next, so you don’t have to struggle in getting lost out in the big world.
Story Recap
The story isn’t that far, but you should have already picked your starter pokemon and leveled it up a bit. Once the tutorial teaches you about the UI, you will be led to the area of the first gym.
Battle all the trainers on the way, and try to catch as many Pokemons as you can. It is good to fill up your lineup early to level them up or to help you in battle.
You can go to the gym immediately, but you should know that it can be difficult if you rush through it.
Finishing the Gym Test
Once you get to the gym, you will need to finish the gym test first. Talk to the person at the counter, and they will direct you to the gym test on your map.
Go outside the gym and take the gym test just near it. You can mark it on your map.
The first gym test is the Olive Roll challenge.
You will need to physically roll the olive through the maze all the way to the end.
As the challenge begins, you will be on top of a platform with the olive in front of you. Peek to your left, and you should see the maze from a topside view.
Plan your path and roll the olive through the maze. Trainers and blockades cannot be passed through. Those trainers won’t fight you, so don’t worry about them.
Mount up by pressing the “+” button. You can push the olive with your mount so you can push it farther with each bump.
Preparing for Gym Leader Katy
- Nymble Lvl 14
- Tarountula Lvl 14
- Teddiursa Lvl 15
The trick to fighting and beating the first gym is simple. These Pokemons are all bug types.
Since you don’t have a lot of options to prepare, like capturing a good Pokemon, you don’t have to level up for battle. You can still beat Katy with your starter Pokemon.
If you choose Sprigatito (grass type), you will be weak against all these bug Pokemons. For Quaxly and Fuecoco, you should have no problems. In fact, Fuecoco can blast through all the Pokemons single-handedly because it is strong against bug types.
You can beat Katy easily with your starter Pokemon once they reach 16 or above. They would have evolved already in their second evolution stage.
For Sprigatito, you need a bit of extra work. You can continue to grind up to level 18 or above, but the main thing is catching Pokemons to fill up your roster.
How to Beat Gym Leader Katy
If you followed the preparation on catching Pokemons to fill up your roster and leveling up, you should be fine if you are using Quaxly or Fuecoco.
If you have Sprigatito, this will be your strategy in beating Katy.
Use Sprigatito as your first Pokemon and battle Katy’s Pokemon. Use Bite or Quick Attack because grass-type attacks are going to be weak.
You could one of Katy’s Pokemon, but you will get hurt in the process.
Once you beat a Pokemon, switch out to a random Pokemon and use healing items on Sprigatito.
Don’t worry about speed. Using items always comes first before abilities or skills.
Repeat the process until you get Sprigatito back up to beat the next Pokemon.
On the last fight, you can use your Tera power, as Katy will also use hers.
The whole strategy is easily done as long as you meet the requirements in the preparation section.
You can always get a Growlithe to the east of the academy and level it up. There are other fire Pokemons out there too, but this strategy is probably for the lazy one who just wants to get through each gym without getting anything specific.
It is doable, and it is probably faster this way too.
What to Do Next
Once you’ve beaten the first gym, it’s worth planning out where you want to go next and taking stock of where your team is at. It’s good to check out the various leveling methods that exist in the game so that you can get your team prepared for the next challenge.
Keep tabs on your Pokemon and their Friendship levels, too. It’s a good idea to monitor this as you progress throughout the game as it can improve how your Pokemon perform in battles.
