Now, on with the last Elite 4 member! You’ll be facing Marshal, a black belt who uses fighting type Pokemon. I’m glad fighting types have received boost over the past few generations (Conkeldurr, Infernape, Gallade, and Lucario to name a few), and I find myself actively seeking one for my teams. They’re great offensive teammates and have a plethora of useful moves like Hi Jump Kick, Aura Sphere and Close Combat. Marshal fits this fighter niche quite well, but I’m rather bored with the plain fighter  look. Bruno was far more intimidating in my personal opinion! His electronic boxing ring gym is interesting to say the least.

Now to prep for this fight, it’s recommended to have a hard hitter (either specializing in physical moves or special moves). His teammates have mixed defenses so it might even be helpful to have both. Fighting types are weak to psychic and flying, which are both so-so when it comes to battling. Teammates such as Reuniclus, Victini, Tornadus and Sigilyph can be quite helpful. All I used was my defense Serperior and I was fine, so you don’t need to prep much for the battle.

Marshal has the typical four teammates;  his three level 48s include Sawk, Throh and Conkeldurr while his level 50 is Meinshao. His Throh is a defensive powerhouse that has a few moves you should watch for, which include Stone Edge (to take care of those pesky flying types) and Bulldoze, which reduces your speed stat and can damage any Emboar users out there. Throh is quite slow, so take advantage of this opportunity by striking quickly with a powerful attack. This particular Throh comes with Guts, which doubles his attack when inflicted with a debilitating status move, so refrain from those useful Toxics or Thunder Waves!

After you take care of Throh, you’ll face his counterpart Sawk. Sawk is offensive just like his fighting brother, but he sacrifices his defense for speed. He also comes with Stone Edge, which can easily take out a flying type, but he also can use Grass Knot; a special grass move that does damage based off the opponent’s weight. Random, right? Especially since Sawk has a whopping special attack of 30. Throh is far more dangerous, so I don’t see him being a problem. He does come with Sturdy, so you can basically count on him getting an attack in unless you land a KO with a multi hit or poison move.

Next up is the concrete wielding Conkeldurr. This guy is a beastly powerhouse sporting outstanding attack and solid defense stats. His HP is quite good as well, which makes him even more threatening. He also comes with Stone Edge which will be a guaranteed KO against anything weak to it. His other moves aren’t nearly as threatening, although Hammer Arm can dent a few unsuspecting teammates. I’m not sure why, but he also comes with Grass Knot (and his special attack is as equally abysmal as Throh’s).

Lastly you’ll face one of my favorite Pokemon, Meinshao! Meinshao is a great Pokemon. Sporting high attack, great speed, decent special attack and a diverse movepool makes this fighter quite formidable. Marshal’s Meinshao comes with Jump Kick (while not as powerful as Hi Jump Kick, it’s still quite dangerous) and Rock Slide (same comment in regards to Stone Edge). While Meinshao gains high attack and speed points, his defense and HP stats are lacking. You’ll be able to take him out easily with a powerful physical or special attack. Using a psychic or flying type move will do him in quickly!

Marshal comes with some powerful teammates in his rematch. Sawk has Close Combat while Throh has Superpower and Earthquake, which can both be quite devastating if mishandled. Meinshao now has Hi Jump Kick and Acrobatics which are both dangerous moves that can blow holes through any team. Conkeldurr is now his highest level teammate, but his only major change is that he comes with Earthquake. While still powerful, you shouldn’t have much trouble following the same tactics as you did before.

Marshal’s major changes are that he now has Breloom, the infamous grass/fighting type. He comes with Spore, which sticks a guaranteed sleep status on any unsuspecting opponents. Thankfully his moves aren’t too dangerous aside from Sky Uppercut (thank goodness he doesn’t come with Focus Punch!), so take advantage of his low speed and KO him with a grass or fire move! Toxicroak, the poison/fighting type, is his next new teammate. He can poison you with Toxic then do some heavy damage with Venoshock or Earthquake, so be careful not to fall under his status. His defenses are pretty meager, so KO it with a super effective psychic attack to seal the deal!