Your journey across Galar in Pokémon Sword & Shield is full of extremely difficult challenges, from encountering legendary Pokémon to completing the game’s massive Pokédex. The greatest challenge in the game’s story, though, as you take on all sorts of trainers and Gym Leaders in your mission to become champions and save the world.
Of the hundreds of battles you run into in this Pokémon game, ten of them stand as the biggest obstacles in you progressing through this game. These are the strongest trainers you’ll face, and some tips on how to make each of these battles a walk in the park.
10 Chairman Rose (Energy Plant)
The primary villain of the game is fond of some powerful Steel-types, and acts somewhat like a ninth Gym Leader with this mono-type team. With exceptionally bulky Pokémon like Ferrothorn and Copperajah that are far more physically defensive than most other battles in the game, this can feel like
Unfortunately, the Chairman is fairly easy to take down thanks to many of his Pokémon taking double or quadruple damage from Fire-type moves, and suffering from low Special Defense stats. He can be tricky for most Pokémon, but any partner with Fire Blast or Flamethrower can take down this tricky battle surprisingly easily.
9 Melony (Circhester Stadium)
This Gym Leader is exclusive Pokémon Shield, with Pokémon Sword having the Rock-type expert Gordie in this slot. But while a massive list of weaknesses makes Gordie a cakewalk, Melony stands out by having an Ice-type team with much higher stats than the other Gym Leaders.
While it’s not one of the most high-level battles, this battle is difficult relative to how strong your party should be at this point. She might have some high weaknesses to Fire and Rock-type moves, but her Galarian Darmanitan, Frosmoth, and Lapras are much more competitive Pokémon than most other gym leaders.
8 Sordward (Energy Plant)
You meet the tall-haired Sordward during the post-game quest, and if you’re playing Pokémon Sword you will get to face him a few times. Your fight with him at the Energy Plant is his most difficult, but each of your three encounters with him will need a strong team to take him on.
Sordward’s team are just like his hair, in that both are well-suited for physical combat. With no distinct type-preference besides having two Steel-type Pokémon, this fight can be somewhat tricky if you aren’t prepared for it. With some Pokémon with high physical defense and a wide range of attacks, he can be taken down slowly but easily.
7 Morimoto (Circhester Hotel)
Another fight after you’ve become Champion, this is more of a special hidden fight, against Game Freak’s own Morimoto, who’s worked on the development team for several Pokémon games since the beginning. Once beating him in the Hotel, he also gives you a unique gift of an Oval Charm that causes eggs to hatch sooner, so he’s worth taking on when your team’s ready for a strong opponent.
His team is full of Pokémon with massive Health, Defense, and Special Defense stats, but also sports the alarmingly fast and strong new Dragon-type Dragapult. Don’t be caught off guard by this oddity, and make sure to have at least one Pokémon with a strong Ice or Ghost-type move for it.
6 Bede (Ballonlea Stadium)
Starting as your rival and becoming Gym Leader Opal’s replacement over the game’s story, you unfortunately don’t get to face Bede for your badge. Nonetheless, you do get to take him on after he takes his new job, and with his Psychic and Fairy-type team he’s able to do a lot of fast damage.
What makes this battle especially difficult is that it’s unexpected, as it occurs in the post-game while you’re traveling to stop Dynamaxed Pokémon that are causing damage across Galar. When you go to Ballonlea in this quest, make sure you’re ready for this trainer battle and not just another raid battle.
5 Marnie (Spikemuth)
Bede isn’t the only new Gym Leader you get to face after taking the new job, as you can also return to Spikemuth to take on Marnie after she’s taken over for Piers. As with that fight, you aren’t going to be able to Dynamax your Pokémon in this location, so this battle takes away one of the key tools that you normally have against Gym Leaders.
Similar to Melony, Marnie’s team does have a consistent set of weaknesses, as Marnie uses an entirely Dark-type team. That said, her Pokémon has a large variety of secondary types like Poison and Electric that make her more difficult to counter. It’s best to treat her as your rival still, and not so much as just another gym leader.
4 Hop (Slumbering Weald)
Your last battle in the post-game takes place after you’ve taken down Sordward and Shielbert. At this point your rival will also have befriended one of the legendary Pokémon of the game, making him have a Pokémon on his team with higher stats than nearly any trainer in the game.
If you’re playing Pokémon Sword he’ll have Zamazenta, a defensive Fighting and Steel-type that will likely take a few hits to bring down. If you’re playing Pokémon Shield, though, be ready for his much more offensively fast and powerful Zacian, who’s a much more challenging Steel and Fairy-type Pokémon that can quickly demolish your weaker Pokémon.
3 Raihan (Hammerlocke Stadium)
Raihan is a fitting final Gym Leader, and his challenge comes in two forms. The first is his Pokémon, which are themed both around Dragons and also the Sandstorm weather condition. As a result, you’ll need a wider variety of moves to take him down, as well as a way to either prevent or survive the repeated Sandstorm damage.
The more challenging part of this battle, though, is that Raihan prefers Double Battles to make a better show for the crowd. While fast and non-defensive Pokémon might excel in other Gym Battles, having two opponents at once makes your fragile party members much more of a liability, and finding some support Pokémon to defend your glass cannons is a must.
2 Hop (Wyndon Stadium)
While the Slumbering Weald is the last you see of Hop in the story, there’s still one more battle that manages to top it in difficulty during a Wyndon Stadium rematch. This fight includes his unique legendary Pokémon, but unlike the last battle, he now has the power to Gigantamax his Corvinight, making for an additional bulky threat.
Thankfully, you have your Dynamax power in this fight too, so making sure to use it wisely is important. Firing it against either the Corvinight or his legendary Pokémon is going to make things much easier, and you could be in trouble if you waste it on his other far weaker party members.
1 Leon (Battle Tower)
The hardest battle might only be at Level 50, but the battle restrictions that come with the Battle Tower make this fight with Leon the absolute most challenging in the game. Without access to healing items, and being unable to switch out after defeating a Pokémon, this fight can be far more challenging for trainers without a competitive team.
The best trick for him is to be prepared for his Gigantamax Charizard, which he will have any time you encounter him. So long as you have a Pokémon that can resist its power and speed, or at least deal a massive Super Effective attack, you should be able to take on his team in this less typical style of battle.
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