A beginner walkthrough of every POCKET MYTH gym

Starter choice

At the start of the game you can pick any one of the three starters, and all of them can be caught later.

• Bulbasaur: good defense and sustain, and it can learn support moves such as Sleep Powder and Leech Seed, which makes Rock, Water and Electric gyms easy.
• Mudkip: after evolving its Water and Ground typing is strong. Early on it beats the Rock gym, and after evolving its Ground typing also handles the Electric gym.
• Torchic: weak against the Water gym, but after evolving its Fighting typing covers that weakness, and after Mega Evolution it becomes much stronger.

Must-dos at the start

• Prioritise main quests: do not waste fatigue and stamina on side quests early on; focus on main quests to level quickly and unlock features. With luck you can reach level 40 on day one, and after 40 you can farm the Eevee dungeon for rare resources.
• Wild catching at Mt. Moon: it opens with the level 25 main quest, and there you can catch Garganacl, Aerodactyl and others. Garganacl is the core of a sandstorm team, so catch the unevolved form to cut training costs. Lavender Town lets you catch the Gengar family, and the map also has shiny Gyarados and shiny Dratini to catch.
• Safari Zone: opens at level 20 and is available daily from 10-12 and 20-22. Enter the Battle Center from the map to catch popular Pokémon such as Gholdengo, and with luck a legendary.
• Pokémon gacha: 9 generations in total (Generation 3 Groudon and Kyogre first). Pity UR at 100 pulls, and the pity counter is shared across generations.
• TM gacha: pity SSR at 10 pulls and pity UR at 100. Pull these first once you have Pokémon.
• Held item gacha: pity SSR at 10 pulls and pity UR at 100.

Earning and spending resources

• Gold: from quests and selling items. Prioritise levelling and evolving your main Pokémon. Do not buy ordinary healing items in bulk early on, since battle drops cover the need, though later you can buy some to top up your stock.
• Diamonds: from top-ups, events and achievements. Do not spend diamonds on ordinary Pokémon pulls, since the value is poor. Spend them on stamina and fatigue, or on rare items and Pokémon fragments in limited-time events.
• Stamina and fatigue: stamina goes on dungeons, and dungeons with evolution materials and high EXP come first (later you can stock stamina for the weekend double dungeon). Fatigue is for meeting wild Pokémon and for the Safari Zone, so allocate it as needed. A resource trap to avoid: you can get Shiny Perfume from quests, and 8,000 to 10,000 saved fatigue is just enough for ten minutes.

Raising Pokémon

• Level ups: through battles, quests and EXP items. Prioritise main quests, and also join daily events and explore dungeons. Distribute EXP items sensibly so the level gap between Pokémon does not grow too wide.
• Move learning and upgrades: choose moves to match typing and battle needs, spend materials to upgrade and learn them, or use TMs. Using moves well raises your win rate.
• Evolution: level-based evolution, friendship evolution or item-stone evolution.

Fast story clearing tips

• Learn type matchups: check the enemy Pokémon's types before a battle and send out a type that counters them. For a Grass gym, for example, bring Water and Fire Pokémon.
• Use moves in the right order: lead with control moves (sleep, paralysis) to restrict the opponent, then hit with high-damage attacks. Watch the order and timing, for example applying a Defense-drop move before your damage move.
• Use abilities: every Pokémon's ability is different, such as Pikachu's Static, which can paralyse on contact. Knowing and using abilities gives you an edge in battle.

When an NPC blocks your progress

• Level up: farm EXP in low-level dungeons or use EXP candy to raise your Pokémon's level and base stats.
• Adjust the lineup: analyse the NPC's team and swap your Pokémon. If the NPC has many physical attackers, send out high-Defense Pokémon; if the NPC has many control moves, bring Pokémon with status-clearing moves or abilities.
• Targeted training: level the Pokémon, max out V IVs, and use Tera to change its typing. EVs and friendship also raise combat power.

Gym battle handbook

Gym challenges are one of the core systems in POCKET MYTH. They test not only how well you have raised your Pokémon, but also team composition and the use of type matchups. Here is an in-depth guide to gym battles.

Team building principles

• Core damage dealer: pick a Pokémon with high attack and strong moves as the core. Gyarados, for example, combines Waterfall and Dragon Dance to boost itself and then hit hard. Fire attackers such as Charizard are clearly favoured against Grass and Ice gyms. Make sure your core has enough speed or survivability that it is not taken out first or lost too early.
• Defensive tank: the team needs a tank that can absorb damage, such as Snorlax or Blastoise. Snorlax uses its high HP and solid defenses to soak damage up front and create space for its teammates, while Blastoise resists Fire and Ground attacks well. Tank moves should lean towards defense boosts and recovery, such as Iron Defense and Rest.
• Support and disruption: these Pokémon buff the team or disrupt the opponent. Jumpluff, whose Chlorophyll doubles its speed in sunshine, can lead with Cotton Spore to slow the opponent and also use Leech Seed to drain HP. Gengar is another excellent support: Hypnosis puts the opponent to sleep, and Dream Eater deals damage and heals Gengar while the target sleeps.
• Type coverage: keep a variety of types in the lineup so a single type cannot counter you. If your team has a Grass Pokémon for Water gyms, adding an Electric Pokémon covers both the Water and the Grass gyms and makes the team more adaptable.

Type matchups in practice

Using single-type advantages:

Water beats Fire and Ground. Against a Fire gym, Water moves such as Hydro Pump and Surf deal double damage, so bringing Blastoise, Quagsire and similar Pokémon crushes the Fire gym easily. Grass beats Water and Ground. When challenging a Water gym, Grass Pokémon such as Venusaur and Tropius using Leaf Storm and Solar Beam gain a clear advantage.

Handling dual-type opponents:

Electric and Fire beats Water, Flying and Ice, but fears Ground and Grass. If the gym leader's Pokémon are Electric and Fire, bring Ground Pokémon such as Excadrill: its Ground moves hit hard and it is immune to Electric damage. Water and Dragon beats Fire, Ground and Dragon. Against a Water and Dragon gym, bring Electric and Grass Pokémon to take the initiative.

Gym challenge tips

• Know the leader's Pokémon: before challenging, learn the gym leader's Pokémon species, levels and moves from in-game information or other players, and adjust your lineup accordingly. If the leader has a high-level Psychic Pokémon, bring Dark or Bug Pokémon to counter it.
• Switch Pokémon sensibly: switch in response to the opponent's moves and types during battle. If the opponent uses Electric moves, switch in a Ground Pokémon to take no damage and hit back; if one of your Pokémon is low on HP with no way to heal, switch it out promptly so it is not knocked out and does not leave you in a bad position.
• Timing your moves: get the timing right on key moves. Use boosting moves when the opponent cannot deal meaningful damage, and use control moves such as Hypnosis and Stun Spore just before the opponent is about to fire a high-damage move, breaking their rhythm.

Gym-by-gym notes

1. Rock gym. Leader: Brock. Leader's Pokémon: mainly Rock type.

Rock gym Pokémon generally have high Defense but low Speed. Brock's Pokémon are mostly Rock type, weak to Water, Grass, Fighting, Ground and Steel moves. You can choose Water Pokémon such as Squirtle and Blastoise with Hydro Pump and Surf; Grass Pokémon such as Bulbasaur and Venusaur with Razor Leaf and Leaf Storm; or the Fighting Pokémon Machamp with Seismic Toss and Close Combat, all of which deal solid damage.

2. Water gym. Leader: Misty. Leader's Pokémon: mainly Water type.

Misty's gym is mostly Water Pokémon, and Water is countered by Grass and Electric. This favours players who chose Bulbasaur, who can attack hard with Grass moves. Watch out for her final Starmie, though: it is Psychic type, and Bulbasaur's Poison typing is countered by Psychic. Electric Pokémon such as Pikachu and Raichu also deal double damage to Water Pokémon, and Thunderbolt and similar moves are good choices.

3. Electric gym. Leader: Lt. Surge. Leader's Pokémon: Electric type.

Electric gym Pokémon hit hard and move fast. Ground Pokémon are immune to Electric moves and are the first choice, such as Sandshrew, Diglett and Excadrill. Ground moves such as Earthquake and Dig hit Electric Pokémon effectively. Without a Ground Pokémon, Grass or Dragon Pokémon also resist Electric somewhat, and can be tried with high-damage moves.

4. Grass gym. Leader: Erika. Leader's Pokémon: Grass type.

Grass gym Pokémon often have recovery and disruption moves. Grass is countered by Fire, Ice, Flying, Poison, Bug and Steel. Choose Fire Pokémon such as Charmander and Charizard with Flamethrower and Fire Blast; the Ice Pokémon Articuno with Ice Beam and Blizzard; or Flying Pokémon such as Pidgey and Pidgeot with Brave Bird and Air Slash, all of which counter Grass Pokémon effectively.

5. Poison gym. Leader: Koga. Leader's Pokémon: Poison type.

Poison gym Pokémon often inflict poison. Poison is countered by Ground and Psychic. Ground Pokémon such as Nidoking and Nidoqueen with Earthquake and Earth Power; Psychic Pokémon such as Alakazam and Kadabra with Psychic and Psybeam can break through the Poison gym. Also watch out for Crobat's Flying typing, and avoid being targeted by its Flying moves.

6. Psychic gym. Leader: Sabrina. Leader's Pokémon: Psychic type.

Psychic gym Pokémon have high Special Attack. Psychic is countered by Dark and Bug. Dark Pokémon such as Houndoom and Tyranitar with Dark Pulse and Crunch; Bug Pokémon such as Beedrill and Heracross with Poison Sting and Close Combat. The Psychic gym may also have special mechanisms in its terrain: once inside, first press the button to the right of the two statues, then the button in the bottom right corner, then the top right button, then the bottom left button, then step on the top right button, and in the next scene step on the top right button, then the bottom left button, and in the scene after that keep stepping on the bottom left button to finish the quest. Knowing this in advance helps the challenge go smoothly.

7. Fire gym. Leader: Blaine. Leader's Pokémon: Fire type.

Fire gym Pokémon have high attack. Fire is countered by Water, Ground and Rock. Water Pokémon such as Squirtle and Blastoise with Hydro Pump and Surf; Ground Pokémon such as Golem and Rhydon with Earthquake and Rock Slide; Rock Pokémon such as Onix and Aerodactyl with Rock Tomb and Stone Edge can handle the Fire gym effectively.

8. Ground gym. Leader: Giovanni. Leader's Pokémon: Ground type.

Ground gym Pokémon have high Defense and HP. Ground is countered by Water, Grass and Ice. Water Pokémon such as Blastoise and Quagsire with Hydro Pump and Muddy Water; Grass Pokémon such as Venusaur and Tropius with Leaf Storm and Solar Beam; Ice Pokémon such as Articuno and Dewgong with Ice Beam and Blizzard.