Our champion this time around is none other than Iris, the former gym leader of Opelucid City! I honestly was not expecting this turn out for the champion. I don’t know the story behind how she obtained the position (obviously she battled her way up to the top, but I’d like to know the nitty gritty details when the game is released), but I’m happy with the surprise. She was pretty strong in the previous installment, so it’s not shocking at how she obtained the prestigious title of Champion. She holds up to the title well, because she’s got a strong lineup for you to contend against!

Iris still holds true to her preferred type; Dragon. The Pokémon that aren’t dragon types are dragon/prehistoric-esque in design. Her team has a glaring weakness to ice and water types, so make sure to bring some along with you specifically for this fight (or at least a water type of Ice Beam or an equivalent). Hopefully you still have some Full Restores and Max Revives left over from the Elite 4 battle, because you’ll probably be using some!

First up we have Iris’ level 57 Hydreigon, the dragon/dark type Pokémon. This dark hydra proves to be a formidable foe and useful teammate, sporting solid offensive stats and above average in defenses, HP and speed. Iris’ Hydreigon comes with a wide variety of moves, including Charge Beam, Flamethrower, Dragon Pulse and Surf. The thing I love about using Hydreigon is that his moves are so diverse! You never know what types of moves that will be used during this fight, so it’s difficult to switch into something that’ll take it out. Factor in its high stats and you’ve got quite a threat on your hands. Thankfully, it’s typing isn’t too suited for the defensive, since it comes with the common fighting and bug weaknesses in addition to dragon and ice.

As for the rematch against Hydreigon, I’m going to list off the changes that the rematch/challenge mode will present to you. What I’m impressed with the E4 rematch/challenge mode is that not only are there more high leveled Pokémon, but they also come with useful items equipped. Hydreigon. Iris’ hydra is now at the high level of 81. Charge Beam and Flamethrower are replaced with Fire Blast and Focus Blast, which are both much stronger than the predecessors. Not only that, but it’s equipped with the Wise Glasses, which will increase the wearers’ special attack moves by 10%. Each of Hydreigon’s moves have at least 90 base power, so it’ll make this dark hydra even more powerful!

Next up is Iris’ level 57 Druddigon, the pure dragon type Pokémon. I won’t spend too much time on this one as we’ve mentioned it in the Opelucid City gym article, so refer back to that if you would like some of my opinions regarding this Pokémon. Its moves, though, are quiet different than the version you fought earlier! First off, it comes with Rock Slide, Flamethrower, Dragon Tail and Focus Blast, so be careful when switching to anything that’s of the ice type. It also comes equipped with the Life Orb item, which increases the power of the holder’s moves by a whopping 30%. However, each time it attacks, 10% of its max HP is drained. Use this chip damage to your advantage to defeat it quickly!

Now, for the rematch/challenge mode, Iris replaces Druddigon with an even stronger partner; a level 81 Salamence, the dragon/flying type! Salamence is incredibly strong and has a dangerous movepool containing high powered, diverse attacks. Its attack soars at a base 135 and its speed peaks at a high of 100, so its proven to be quite the dangerous sweeper. This particular Pokémon can use Fire Blast, Earthquake, Crunch and Draco Meter which can dent any Pokémon, even if it’s a neutral hit. Take advantage of its 4x ice weakness and move in for the KO!

Next up is Iris’ level 57 Archeops, the rock/flying type Pokémon. Archeops has amazing offensive stats with its physical and special attack clocking in at 140/112. It’s also quite quick as its speed stat is capped at 110. At first glance, Archeops is a must-have on any team. However, it’s cursed with the worst ability in the game; Defeatest. Once Archeops’ HP drops below 50%, its physical and special attack stats are halved, rendering it useless. Due to its weak defenses, getting it to low health even with a neutral attack is fairly simple. Its attacks consist of Acrobatics, Rock Slide, Dragon Claw and Endeavor. The prior two are the strongest since they have increased power due to STAB. The challenge mod/rematch Archeops uses Stone Edge instead of Rock Slide, which makes it much more dangerous. It also comes equipped with the Flying Gem. This is a one-time consumable item that increases a single flying attack by 50%. Acrobatics becomes exceedingly more deadly after this, so be careful. Thankfully Archeops comes with a plethora of weaknesses, namely water and electric, so it shouldn’t be easy to distinguish.

After you take out the fossil flier Archeops, you’ll be contending with Iris’ level 57 Aggron, the steel/rock type Pokémon! Aggron is an interesting teammate. It comes with a unique typing, extremely high defense and offensive stats (on the physical side of the spectrum), and a vast movepool filled with a variety of flavorful offensive moves (attacks like Aqua Tail, Dragon Rush, Fire/Ice Punch and Outrage are few amongst many). While Aggron might seem good on paper, it comes with two extremely common 4x weaknesses; ground and fighting. Its low special defense stat also makes it vulnerable to special moves such as Force Palm and Earthpower, both easily landing a 1HKO. Iris’ Aggron is littered with offensive moves. Her initial fight as it using Rock Slide, Earthquake, Double Edge and Autotomize. The prior three  attacks are all offensive with Rock Slide providing an extra damage boost from STAB. Autotomize will greatly increase the users’ speed stat while also halving its weight. Aggron’s base speed clocks in at an atrocious 50, so you’ll probably still out speed it even after a boost. The rematch/challenge mode Aggron switches out Rock Slide with Stone Edge/Head Smash (Head Smash for the challenge mode versions), which are just improved versions of Rock Slide. Be careful of these attacks; they’re quite deadly if you’re caught off guard! It also comes equipped with the item Muscle Band, which increases all physical attacks’ power by 10%, which makes them even stronger than they were before. Take Aggron out with a special water, fighting or ground attack and proceed to the next Pokémon!

Iris’ second to last teammate is her level 57 Lapras, the water/ice Pokémon! As much as I love Lapras, I feel that a Dragonite or Flygon would have been much more appropriate, albeit harder to fight. Anyway, Lapras comes with a superb HP stat peaking at 135 and a decent special attack stat of 95. The rest of its stats are decent with the exception of its base 60 speed, which really keeps Lapras from shining. Its secondary typing of ice hinders it as well since it gives it a nasty weaknesses to rock and neutralizes the resistance to fire. Iris’ Lapras comes with a variety of attacks, namely Surf, Ice Beam, Thunderbolt and Sing. The two ladder attacks are particularly powerful while Sing is more of an annoyance (thankfully it has low accuracy, so it shouldn’t be too much of a problem). The rematch/challenge mode Lapras comes with an upgrade to the elemental attacks: Hydro Pump, Blizzard and Thunder. The two ladder attacks are even more fearsome than before. The ferocity of these attacks is heightened due to the Zoom Lens that Lapras is equipped with. This item increases the accuracy of all attacks by 20%, which makes all of its attacks nearly 100% accurate (with the exception of Sing). Take advantage of Lapras’ poor typing and strike it with a swift fighting or steel move!

Lastly, you’ll face the dreaded level 59 Haxorus; Iris’ final Pokémon! I won’t go into too much depth with Haxorus since that stat distribution and whatnot was already mentioned in a previous gym article, but I will repeat that this dragon is STRONG! Iris’ Haxorus is no exception, especially when sporting moves such as Dual Chop and Dragon Dance. The other two moves, Earthquake and X-Scissor, are less powerful but still dangerous. The rematch/challenge mode Haxorus comes with Guillotine and Outrage instead of Dual Chop and X-Scissor, the prior new attack being extremely deadly with Haxorus’ base 147 attack power. It also comes with the Focus Sash, which will keep it at 1HP even after a 1HKO hit against it. This allows it to possibly get off a Dragon Dance, which you want to avoid at all costs!