Pokemon Scarlet & Violet make a lot of big changes to the series' long-standing formula, including things like Tera and Paradox Pokemon and an expanded Mark system. Perhaps one of the biggest changes, however, comes in the way that gym battles work, with players now able to take on gym leaders in any order that they like rather than being forced down a linear route as has been the case in previous Pokemon games.
This newfound choice is a little misleading though, as certain gym leaders are much more powerful than others, both in terms of the number of Pokemon in their teams and the levels of their Pokemon. As a result, there is an optimal route of sorts, making the game feel a lot more like its predecessors than the developers would perhaps have hoped. Thankfully for players, the best gym order in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet is fairly easy to work out.
What's the Best Order to Visit the Gyms in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet?
1 Cortondo Gym - Katy (Bug-Type)
- Nymble (Level 14)
- Tarountula (Level 14)
- Teddiursa (Level 15)
2 Artazon Gym - Brassius (Grass-Type)
- Petilil (Level 16)
- Smoliv (Level 16)
- Sudowoodo (Level 17)
3 Levincia Gym - Iono (Electric-Type)
- Wattrel (Level 23)
- Bellibolt (Level 23)
- Luxio (Level 23)
- Mismagius (Level 24)
4 Cascarrafa Gym - Kofu (Water-Type)
- Veluza (Level 29)
- Wugtrio (Level 29)
- Crabominable (Level 30)
5 Medali Gym - Larry (Normal-Type)
- Komala (Level 35)
- Dundunsparce (Level 35)
- Staraptor (Level 36)
6 Montenevera Gym - Ryme (Ghost-Type)
- Mimikyu (Level 41)
- Banette (Level 41)
- Houndstone (Level 41)
- Toxtricity (Level 42)
7 Alfornada Gym - Tulip (Psychic-Type)
- Farigiraf (Level 44)
- Espathra (Level 44)
- Gardevoir (Level 44)
- Florges (Level 45)
8 Glaseado Gym - Grusha (Ice-Type)
- Frosmoth (Level 47)
- Beartic (Level 47)
- Cetitan (Level 47)
- Altaria (Level 48)
Who is the Hardest Gym Leader in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet?
Though Grusha is the strongest gym leader on paper, it really depends on which Pokemon players have in their teams. For example, those who choose Fuecoco as their starter will likely have no trouble overcoming Grusha's Ice-type team, yet may struggle with the much lower-leveled Water-types at Cascarrafa Gym. It's for this reason that choosing the right starter Pokemon in Scarlet & Violet is so important, so players should give the matter some serious thought before they begin their adventure through Paldea.
Pokemon Scarlet & Violet are available now for the Nintendo Switch.