Polished Crystal Elite Four & Champion Guide: Teams, Levels & Counters

Introduction

The Polished Crystal Elite Four run is Will, Koga, Bruno, Karen, then Champion Lance. Their teams run from level 48 through Lance's level 60 ace, so this is more than a “bring one super-effective move” check. Use the battle sections below for exact teams, the threats worth respecting, and counters that fit each matchup.

Before you enter

• Aim for a team in the low-to-mid 50s; level 55 is comfortable but not mandatory.
• Bring Full Restores, Revives, and status healing. Hypnosis, confusion, paralysis, hazards, and setup moves show up throughout the run.
• Carry answers for Psychic, Poison, Fighting, Dark, and Dragon matchups rather than relying on a single sweeper.
• Use the Team Builder to check type coverage, and keep the Type Chart handy if a matchup is unfamiliar.

Preparation

The level range and item advice above are the baseline. The individual sections call out the specific control moves and setup threats to prepare for.

Will (Psychic)

Team Overview

Will's team is all Psychic-type, though some dual-types add coverage. His Pokémon range from level 48–51.

Key Pokémon:

• Wyrdeer (Normal/Psychic, Level 48) - Opens with Calm Mind and Hypnosis
• Jynx (Ice/Psychic, Level 49) - Uses Nasty Plot, Draining Kiss, and Ice Beam
• Exeggutor (Grass/Psychic, Level 50) - Defensive with Leech Seed and Reflect
• Alakazam (Psychic, Level 50) - Sets up with Calm Mind and Light Screen
• Slowbro (Water/Psychic, Level 49) - Bulky special attacker with Surf
• Xatu (Psychic/Flying, Level 51) - Fast with Future Sight and Confuse Ray

Strategy & Tips:

Psychic-types are weak to Bug, Ghost, and Dark moves. Will's team has good Special Bulk, especially with Light Screen and Reflect up. Dark-type moves are particularly useful here since Dark is immune to Psychic attacks. Watch out for Hypnosis from Wyrdeer and Confuse Ray from Xatu - they can really mess up your momentum!

AI Behavior: Will isn't shy about using Max Potions and will occasionally switch out. He likes to set up Light Screen and Reflect early to minimize damage, then sweep with Calm Mind-boosted Pokémon.

Recommended Counters:

• Umbreon/Houndoom - Dark-types are immune to Psychic moves
• Scizor - Bug/Steel resists Psychic, and Bug moves are super effective
• Tyranitar - Dark/Rock with high stats
• Any Pokémon with Crunch, Shadow Ball, or Bug moves

Koga (Poison)

Team Overview

Koga specializes in Poison-types with a focus on status effects and hazards. His team levels range from 50–53.

Key Pokémon:

• Venomoth (Bug/Poison, Level 50) - Fast special attacker with Bug Buzz and Toxic
• Clodsire (Poison/Ground, Level 50) - Sets Toxic Spikes, uses Earthquake
• Forretress (Bug/Steel, Level 52) - Sets Spikes, can use Explosion
• Muk (Poison, Level 51) - Minimize + Gunk Shot strategy
• Weezing (Poison, Level 51) - Will-O-Wisp and Sludge Bomb user
• Crobat (Poison/Flying, Level 53) - Very fast with Super Fang

Strategy & Tips:

Poison-types are weak to Ground and Psychic attacks. Koga loves to wear opponents down with Toxic, Toxic Spikes, and Will-O-Wisp. Steel-types can't be poisoned and resist many of Koga's attacks. Be careful - Forretress and Weezing might use Explosion as a last resort! Clodsire is Poison/Ground with Water Absorb, so don't bother with Water moves OR electric moves!

AI Behavior: Koga uses Full Heals and Full Restores, making him tough to wear down with status. He'll set up hazards quickly with Toxic Spikes and Spikes, then try to stall with evasion and Minimize.

Recommended Counters:

• Steelix/Scizor - Steel-types are immune to poison and resist most attacks
• Espeon/Alakazam - Psychic moves are super effective
• Earthquake users - Ground moves hit most of his team hard
• Steel or Poison-types - Immune to Toxic and poison status

Bruno (Fighting)

Team Overview

Bruno uses Fighting-types with some coverage Pokémon. His team levels range from 51–55.

Key Pokémon:

• Hitmontop (Fighting, Level 51) - Uses Pursuit and Close Combat
• Sneasler (Fighting/Poison, Level 53) - Swords Dance sweeper
• Hitmonlee (Fighting, Level 51) - High Jump Kick with Sucker Punch
• Hitmonchan (Fighting, Level 51) - Elemental punches (Thunderpunch, Fire Punch, etc.)
• Onix (Rock/Ground, Level 53) - Physical bulk with Earthquake
• Machamp (Fighting, Level 55) - Cross Chop and Bulk Up

Strategy & Tips:

Fighting-types are weak to Flying, Psychic, and Fairy moves. Bruno's team hits hard physically but has lower Special Defense. Sneasler is especially dangerous after using Swords Dance. Hitmonchan has elemental punches for coverage. Onix provides physical defense and resists Flying moves.

AI Behavior: Bruno uses Max Potions, and unlike other Elite Four members, he doesn't switch much. Instead, he tries to pressure opponents with physical attacks like High Jump Kick and Close Combat.

Recommended Counters:

• Crobat/Pidgeot - Flying-types resist Fighting and hit super effectively
• Espeon/Alakazam - Psychic-types dominate Fighting-types
• Ghost-types - Immune to Fighting moves
• Any Pokémon with Flying or Psychic moves

Karen (Dark)

Team Overview

Karen specializes in Dark-types and other "cool" Pokémon. Her team levels range from 53–57.

Key Pokémon:

• Umbreon (Dark, Level 53) - Defensive wall with Mean Look and Confuse Ray
• Alolan Persian (Dark, Level 53) - Night Slash and Play Rough
• Weavile (Dark/Ice, Level 54) - Swords Dance sweeper with Night Slash and Ice Punch
• Gengar (Ghost/Poison, Level 55) - Shadow Ball, Will-O-Wisp, Curse, Destiny Bond
• Honchkrow (Dark/Flying, Level 55) - Brave Bird and Sucker Punch
• Houndoom (Dark/Fire, Level 57) - Special attacker with Flamethrower and Dark Pulse

Strategy & Tips:

Dark-types are weak to Fighting, Bug, and Fairy moves. Karen's team is diverse with great type coverage. Gengar is very dangerous with Curse (uses 50% HP to deal 25% damage each turn) and Destiny Bond as a fallback. Weavile is super fast and hits hard after Swords Dance. Umbreon is incredibly defensive and uses Mean Look to trap opponents.

AI Behavior: Karen uses Full Heals and Max Potions, giving her serious staying power. She protects her setup sweepers like Weavile and Honchkrow, switching them out when matchups aren't favorable.

Recommended Counters:

• Heracross - Bug/Fighting destroys Dark-types
• Machamp - Fighting moves are super effective
• Togekiss/Clefable - Fairy-types resist Dark and hit super effectively
• Fast Fighting or Fairy-type attackers

Lance (Dragon/Champion)

Team Overview

Lance's team consists of Dragon-type Pokémon and powerful Flying-types. They range from level 57–60.

Key Pokémon:

• Gyarados (Water/Flying, Level 57) - Dragon Dance sweeper with Waterfall and Earthquake
• Dragonite (Dragon/Flying, Level 58) - Special attacker with Fire Blast, Blizzard, Thunder
• Kingdra (Water/Dragon, Level 58) - Focus Energy + Sniper ability for critical hits
• Aerodactyl (Rock/Flying, Level 57) - Fast physical attacker with Rock Slide
• Charizard (Fire/Dragon, Level 57) - Special attacker with Flamethrower and Dragon Pulse
• Dragonite (Dragon/Flying, Level 60, Shiny) - Dragon Dance + Extreme Speed, his ace

Strategy & Tips:

Dragon-types are weak to Ice, Dragon, and Fairy moves. In Polished Crystal, Charizard is Fire/Dragon type instead of Fire/Flying. Lance's team is well-rounded with a variety of types. His shiny Level 60 Dragonite is terrifying - it has Multiscale and uses Dragon Dance behind a Substitute, then follows up with a very fast Extreme Speed. Gyarados has Intimidate, lowering your Attack. The Focus Energy Kingdra also has Sniper, guaranteeing critical hits.

Shiny Dragonite Counter (R1): Rock or Steel types completely wall the first shiny Dragonite battle since they resist both Fly and Extremespeed. Ghost types will be immune to Extremespeed but still take some damage from Fly!

Shiny Dragonite Counter (R2): In the rematch, his shiny Dragonite knows Dragon Dance, Extremespeed, Outrage, and Iron Head. Steel-types counter it: Skarmory (Steel/Flying) takes half damage from all three of those attacks and can Roost the chip damage back off. If you're using the updated types, Mismagius (Ghost/Fairy) is immune to Outrage and Extremespeed, but Iron Head hits it for double damage - and Mismagius can't learn Disable in Polished Crystal, so it can't wall the set on its own.

AI Behavior: Lance uses Full Heals and Full Restores extensively, saving his shiny Dragonite for late game. He switches frequently to get favorable matchups and protect his sweepers.

Note: In Faithful build, Charizard is Fire/Flying instead of Fire/Dragon.

Recommended Counters:

• Ice Beam users - Ice coverage remains valuable, hitting Aerodactyl 4× and Dragonite 2×, but only neutral against Gyarados, Kingdra, and Fire/Dragon forms
• Electric-types - Hit Gyarados hard (watch for Earthquake)
• Rock-types - Stone Edge or Rock Slide hit hard
• Fairy-types - Immune to Dragon moves, super effective against Dragons
• Fast Dragon-types - Can outspeed and use Dragon moves

Bring Full Restores and Revives - This is a long battle and Lance's team is stronger than the Elite Four.