Pokémon Scarlet and Violet: Best route to take

There are 18 total challenges in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, which can be tackled in any order, and this is the best way to go about it

With 18 challenges, spread across gym challenges, Titan fights, and Team Star bases, Pokémon Scarlet and Violet has a little something for every Pokémon type in the game. You can choose to take each of these paths one-by-one, but most people will want to do a little bit of everything as they progress through the game.

With so many things to do, finding the best route through it all can be daunting, so we’ve put together a master guide showing you the best order to go through the entire game, based on Pokémon level, relative challenge, and ease of progression. Granted, this order will have you zipping all across Paldea, but that just means you’ll get to see more of the region and all it has to offer.

1. Cortondo Gym - Katy the Bug-type Gym Leader

The gym in Cortondo is the best place to start, offering the lowest level Pokémon and by far the easiest challenge. She uses Bug-type Pokémon, which should be a breeze to take down with Fire, Flying, and Rock-type Pokémon, of which the latter two are fairly common in the early game.

2. Klawf, the Stony Cliff Titan - Rock-type Titan

Klawf is the lowest-level Titan in the game, a pure Rock-type Pokémon that shouldn’t take too much of a challenge to take down – unless you picked Fuecoco as your starter. If you did, you’ll want to pick up an early-game Grass or Water-type Pokémon. There are a few around, but any of them are a good pick… except Budew.

3. Artazon Gym - Brassius the Grass-type Gym Leader

The Artazon gym should be the next step on your journey; his Grass-type Pokémon are a small step up from Katy’s Bug-types in challenge, but shouldn’t offer too much difficulty. Players who pick Fuecoco should see a clean sweep through Brassius’ team, and Flying-type Pokémon shine here, too – just watch out for his Sudowoodo’s Rock moves.

4. Bombirdier, the Open Sky Titan - Flying-type Titan

Bombirdier is a big step up in difficulty from Klawf, a Flying/Dark-type Pokémon that packs a bit of a nasty punch. The second phase of the fight is fairly simple, but getting through the first can be tough if you’re not equipped with a Rock, Ice, or Electric-type Pokémon. If you happened to pick up a Klawf while you were over by the first Titan, it’s a pretty solid bet here, and Pawmi or its evolutions can do a good enough job, too. Just be careful if you’re a Sprigatito-owner, it won’t last long here.

5. Giacomo of the Segin Squad - Dark-type

Despite all marketing suggesting otherwise, Mela is not actually the best Team Star boss to take down first. Instead, it’s Giacomo, whose challenge revolves around Dark-type Pokémon. Dark-types are weak to Fighting-type moves, but this early in the game it’s unlikely you’ll have many of those. Instead, you’ll want to pick up a Bug-type Pokémon – there are absolutely plenty to choose from – and take him down that way. It’s not too difficult, as long as you make sure none of the first three Pokémon in your party are weak to Dark – those are Ghost and Psychic-types.

6. Levincia Gym - Iono the Electric-type Gym Leader

You all know Iono from the trailers, she’s the amped-up gym leader/influencer whose whole life is one big Twitch stream. The challenge starts to pick up a little bit here, with none of the starter Pokémon offering any effectiveness against her Electric-type Pokémon. Ground types are the only option here, and players who pick Quaxly should be extra careful – her Pokémon can pack a punch.

7. Mela of the Schedar Squad - Fire-type

Mela is a very straightforward challenge, only higher in the list because her levels are much higher than Giacomo’s. Fire-type Pokémon have a ton of common weaknesses – Rock, Water, and Ground – and by this point in the game you should have access to many of them. Finizen is a good bet here, as is Klawf, but frankly anything that can dish out attacks of those three types should do just fine. It’s probably best not to use Sprigatito or its evolutions for this, however.

8. Orthworm, the Lurking Steel Titan - Steel-type Titan

This can be a bit of a tough one if you go in unprepared. Steel is a tricky type to work with – sure, it’s got a few common weaknesses like Fighting, Fire, and Ground-types, but Orthworm is pretty well prepared for most of these possibilities. A Primeape is a good bet here, it’s strong enough to hit hard and tanky enough to take a few hits. Paldean Tauros – any of the three forms – are a great option too, adding some much-needed speed to the equation.

9. CascarrafaGym - Kofu, the Water-type Gym Leader

Kofu’s Water-type Pokémon are pretty tough, but players who picked Sprigatito should have at least evolved it once by now, offering a distinct advantage. Hopefully, by now, you’ll also have somewhat of a healthy team balance, but just in case you don’t, Electric and Grass-type moves are the way to go to take out his team.

10. Atticus of the Navi Squad - Poison-type

Atticus is a tricky fight. The first phase of this challenge, clearing the base, isn’t too difficult as long as you remember to heal your Pokémon up at vending machines throughout the base. The second phase, the actual fight against Atticus, is a bit of a nightmare, owing largely to the fact that his Starmobile throws out Poison Spikes whenever it gets hit. This means that any Pokémon switching in will get poisoned or badly poisoned, putting a pretty harsh time limit on the fight. To counteract this, I’d suggest finding a Steel-type Pokémon like Tinkatink or Orthworm, as Steel-types can’t be poisoned. It can be a slow, tedious fight, but keep yourself healed up – maybe use a couple of X items – and you should get through it.

11. Medali Gym - Larry, the Normal-type Gym Leader

Normal-type Pokémon only have one weakness: Fighting. They’re also resisted by Steel and Rock-type Pokémon, and Ghost-types are immune altogether. Gastly is plentiful throughout Paldea at nighttime, and you should have access to at least a couple of Fighting-types by now.

12. Montenevera Gym - Ryme, the Ghost-type Gym Leader

The Montenevera Gym is where the gym challenge starts to get tough. Ryme is a powerful gym leader, and her Ghost-type Pokémon don’t mess around. They’re weak to other Ghosts, as well as Dark-types, which gives a strong advantage to fully-evolved Fuecoco and Sprigatito. Quaxly-users aren’t so lucky, but there are plenty of good Pokémon out there to make the fight easier.

13. Great Tusk/Iron Treads, the Quaking Earth Titan - Ground-type Titan

This is the one Titan that will be different depending on which version you play. Scarlet players will go up against Great Tusk, a Ground/Fighting-type, while Violet players will face Iron Treads, a Ground/Steel-type. Of the two, Violet has the easier time, since most players would have picked up something good against Steel to take down the last Titan. Scarlet players should look for a strong Flying-type, like Bombirdier or Kilowattrel – a double threat, because Flying is strong against Fighting, and also immune to Ground-type attacks.

14. Alfornada Gym - Tulip, the Psychic-type Gym Leader

This writer went to the Alfornada gym before the Montenevera gym. That was a mistake. Tulip carries a team of incredibly powerful Psychic-type Pokémon, and if you’re not prepared, you’ll end up in a bad spot. Think carefully about your team, bring some Ghost, Dark, or Bug-types (there are plenty of Bugs around), and heal up when you need to.

15. Glaseado Gym - Grusha, the Ice-type Gym Leader

And finally, we come to Grusha. Ice-types have traditionally been a little bit on the weaker side, owing to a bunch of weaknesses and a generally lower speed stat. Grusha’s high-level Pokémon make this a harsh challenge, but by this point in the game, you should easily have the tools to take them down. Bring a Fire, Fighting, or Steel-type Pokémon, and enjoy earning your last gym badge.

16. Ortega of the Ruchbah Squad - Fairy-type

Fairy-type Pokémon are the newest in Pokémon lore, and there aren’t many options for dealing with them. Steel and Poison-type moves are very effective, but Poison-type Pokémon tend to be frail, and Steel-types are on the rarer side. Still, the battle against Ortega isn’t too bad, all things considered. Dunsparce and its evolution can learn Poison Tail, which isn’t strong but absolutely gets the job done, and you might want to have an Electric-type up your sleeve for Ortega’s lead, Azumarill. His other two Pokémon are reasonably frail, and his Starmobile can’t do much in the way of gimmicks, so it should be a straight shot to victory, even if you’re not packing a party full of Steel-types.

17. Tatsugiri and Dodonzo, the False Dragon Titan - Dragon- and Water-type Titan

This is one of the more difficult challenges in Scarlet and Violet, not just for the Titan path, but for the entire game. That’s because it’s actually two separate challenges that both have different requirements. First, you’ll face off against Dodonzo, a hulking Water-type Pokémon. It’s an incredibly defensive Pokémon, so taking it down can be a challenge, but any good Grass or Electric-type Pokémon should get you by.

After that, however, you’ll be taking on Tatsugiri, a Dragon/Water-type Pokémon that’s a lot tougher than it looks. Fairy-type moves are really your only choice here, unless you can find something with decent Dragon-type attacks. Azumarill is a surprisingly good choice here, as its bulk and type keep it alive, and it gets access to a decent pool of Fairy-type moves. Tatsugiri isn’t particularly tanky, but it does hit harder than you’d think.

18. Eri of the Caph Squad - Fighting-type

Taking down Eri is probably the hardest challenge of the game, depending on how you’ve played up to this point. Fighting-type Pokémon are susceptible to Psychic, Fairy, and Flying-type moves, but just bringing those types to the fight won’t get you far, since she has a solid answer for all of them. Having said that, half of her team is weak to Ground, and getting those out of the way is a great place to start. After that, it’s just a battle of attrition. If you can find a good, tanky, Fairy-type Pokémon you should be good to go once Toxicroak is down, or you can go in with a fully-evolved Fuecoco and blast your way through with its absurd signature move.