If you are reading this guide currently, chances are you already beat Pokémon X & Y‘s first gym leader, Viola. If not, check out this guide and get to it before even thinking about challenging the leader of the Cyllage City Gym, Grant!
Grant is really big into fitness. You find this out when you first encounter him just after he wins a bike race. He invites you to his gym which is a puzzle based around rock climbing.
Know Your Enemy
If the rock climbing bit wasn’t enough to give it away, Grant is a rock-type trainer. Make sure you have a few Pokémon in your party equipped to break some stones before going into this gym.
According to Bulbapedia, mono rock-types are weak to fighting, grass, ground, water, and steel. If you picked a Froakie, Squirtle, Chespin, and/or Bulbasaur, you will probably be set if they are in their later 20s.
Mono rock-types are also only going to deal half-damage to fighting, ground, and steel. This means that you will have to rely on your normal defenses if you are using the aforementioned starters.
They are strong against bug, fire, flying, and ice. This means that if you let your birds carry you through Viola’s gym, you will want to level up something else. Same thing if you have been using Vivillon or any of the other bug-types. They will only take half-damage from normal, fire, flying, and poison.
The dual-types in the gym will be discussed in the next section. Read up on them and choose your fighters wisely before entering the gym.
Turning Rocks into Pebbles
The puzzle to solve in this gym requires you climbing the right paths. There are no consequences if you mess up other than it taking a bit longer than it would have if you picked the right path from the start. Feel free to take your time.
There are four followers to fight aside from the leader himself. These rock-type trainers are Rising Star Didier, Hiker Craig, Rising Star Manon, and Hiker Bernard. Hiker Craig is the only optional fight in this gym. It is advisable to beat his booty down to get as much experience as possible.
Update: Contributor TheDoctor_13 informed me that he “went in through the side” and did not have to fight any of these trainers.
Note that some of these Pokémon may have moves that are not recorded in Professor Neckbeard’s research. This is because I cheesed them all with my Frogadier’s water moves, just like you should be doing, too!
Rising Star Didier
Dwebble (lvl. 21)
- Sturdy
- Feint Attack
- Weaknesses: rock, steel, and water
Relicanth (lvl. 21)
- Rock Tomb
- Weaknesses: fighting, ground, grass, and electric
Hiker Craig
Roggenrola (lvl. 24)
- Sturdy
- Mud-Slap
- Smack Down
- Weaknesses: fighting, grass, ground, water, and steel
Rising Star Manon
Solrock (lvl. 22)
- Rock Throw
- Weaknesses: bug, ghost, steel, water, grass, and dark
Lunatone (lvl. 22)
- Rock Throw
- Weaknesses: bug, ghost, steel, water, grass, and dark
Hiker Bernard
Bernard is the last obstacle in your path before your badge fight. He will try and throw you off the mountain with his three Pokémon: a level 21 Rhyhorn that went down without making a move, a level 21 Nosepass with thunder wave and tackle, and a level 21 Onix that will die in one hit from a strong enough water move.
Rhyhorn and Onix are ground/rock which means they are both weak to fighting, ground, steel, ice, and especially grass and water. Nosepass is mono-type rock.
Rhyhorn (lvl. 21)
- Weaknesses: fighting, ground, steel, ice, and especially grass and water
Nosepass (lvl. 21)
- Thunder Wave
- Tackle
- Weaknesses: fighting, grass, water, ground, and steel
Onix (lvl. 21)
- Weaknesses: fighting, ground, steel, ice, and especially grass and water
Grant
Amaura
- Smack Down
- Thunder Wave
- Aurora Beam
- Weaknesses: water, grass, ground, rock, and especially fighting and fairy
Tyrunt
- Bite
- Rock Tomb
- Weaknesses: water, grass, ground, rock, fairy, steel, and especially fighting
- Immunities: psychic
After kicking Grant’s butt, he will reward your victory with the Cliff Badge and TM39 Rock Tomb. Rock Tomb will be a valuable addition to almost any rock-type Pokémon’s move list, so, don’t be afraid to use it.
Need more help with your game? I’ve got you covered with Professor Neckbeard’s Pokemon X Y Walkthrough.
