Neo

Battle Tycoon Palmer

Battle Matron Argenta

Factory Head Thorton

Castle Valet Darach

Arcade Star Dahlla

Like in most of the pokemon games, the Battle Tower is fairly straightforward. Choose

your battle, go through a 7 round battle to complete one streak, and move on. The Battle

Tower in Platinum is no different than it is in D/P.

The frontier brain is still Palmer like in D/P. Complete 20 rounds without losing and

he will challenge you on your 21st round. He comes with a fairly strong team of Dragonite,

Milotic, and Rhyperior. Dragonite uses a Dragon Dance combo to start, so take it out

quickly with a strong dragon type or ice move. Milotic shouldn't pose much of a threat as

long as you have an electric or grass move. Milotic likes to use Hypnosis to put your

pokemon to sleep, so watch out for that. Rhyperior shouldn't be any problem since most

pokemon are faster than it. A simple water or grass move will make short work of this

pokemon. However if you continue and don't lose a round up to round 48, Palmer will

challenge you again on round 49. He comes with a new team of Cresselia, Regigigas, and

Heatran(yes you can use these pokemon in the Battle Frontier too). Cresselia has high

defensive stats which is hard to get around. Get out a good steel type or strong dark type

to make quick work of it. Regigigas isn't that strong at first with its Slow Start

ability, but after 5 turns it becomes a strong opponent. Take it out before the 5 turns

ends to end up with as little trouble as possible. Heatran's type Fire/Steel makes ground

moves almost 1HKO it every time.

A good pokemon to use here is Metagross since it has multiple resistances and can

learn Earthquake. Also start with a fast pokemon like Crobat or Gengar to assess the

opponent's team and get in some status effects like sleep or poison. Another solid

addition is a strong special attacker(Gengar can double as one) or a strong physical

attacker(Metagross works well here). However a special attacker is more utilized since

special attack can't be lowered by many attacks, while physical attack can(i.e.

Will-O-Wisp, Intimidate, Charm etc.)

This new addition tests the strength of an individual pokemon on your team rather

than the team itself. So here you'll want a pokemon that can tackle almost all of the 17

types with its 4 moves. The Battle Hall features the choice of battling whatever type

pokemon you want. So you think it would be easy to choose an electric type and face flying

as your opponent. Occasionally the game will throw you off by sending in dual types. For

example Gligar/Gliscor are flying, but also ground type making it immune to electric

attacks. You'll have to be prepared for that throughout your match. Also instead of the

usual 7 win streak, the Battle Hall comes in 10 win streaks. Each type has 10 total ranks

you can face against starting from rank 1. You must complete 10 rounds before exiting the

premises. You also don't have to complete one type during one streak. You can hope around

from a rank 5 match to another type match of rank 1. Unfortunately you must use the same

pokemon throughout the entire time or your current streak will be lost(the game always

makes it difficult, but adds a challenge). Oh if you aren't good at math there are a total

of 170 rounds to beat. Don't worry since the pokemon are fairly easy game until you reach

ranks 7-10.

The frontier brain Argenta will first challenge you after your 59th win, making her

the 60th match. Her pokemon's level matches your own so you'll be on even ground. She also

comes with a random pokemon from any type so be prepared for the worst if anything. She'll

challenge you a second time on your 170th win steak. It seems like a long way off, but its

actually shorter and easier than the Battle Tower if you're trying to reach a 100 win

steak respectively.

Technically there is no actual pokemon to use here. Try to use something with a high

base stat and multiple ranges of attack. Electivire is quite effective here, but it will

need some training before taking on the later ranks. Pokemon with multiple resistances is

also another strategy to look at, but its more recommended to focus more on attack based

on the levels you'll find when battling trainers.

The Battle Factory is the exact same thing in Emerald Version. You'll have the

ability to use rental pokemon and use them in battle. This tests your knowledge to use

different combinations on pokemon rather than your normal team. This can be quite

challenging for a trainer new to the game, but a seasoned trainer will find it fun and

interesting to use pokemon out of their comfort zone. The battle streaks here are the same

as in Battle Tower, following 7 battles to complete one win streak.

The frontier brain here is Thorton. He challenges you on your 21st match. Like

Argenta, he uses any random pokemon each time you face him, so he'll use different pokemon

every time you battle. Thorton will challenge you again if you don't lose up to your 49th.

The same rules apply here as well.

Seeing as all rentals will be different every time, stick to what you know best. If

you're looking for some tips, I have a few that may help.

- The chances of finding a rental pokemon used for status effects are rare, so stick to

attacking pokemon. If you come across one with status inducing moves, ignore it.

-Speedy pokemon are key. Always try to keep pokemon with a high base speed stat on your

team. This can be helpful if you find yourself in a tight spot.

-Diverse moves. Try to rent pokemon with a diverse move set. This pretty much means find

pokemon with more than one type attack move. Some pokemon that may have multiple moves are

Flygon and Alakazam, if you ever come across them.

This unique addition to the Battle Frontier tests your ability to battle smart. You

can use your own pokemon here, but unlike the other facilities your pokemon won't be

healed between matches. Actually after every match you win, you'll receive CASTLE POINTS.

Castle points are only to be spent in the Battle Castle facility. Using castle points you

can choose to heal your pokemon, select items for use, or rank up. Ranking up allows more

selections to be made for purchase. While these battle conditions are new and unfamiliar,

the system isn't. You'll follow the standard 7 battle steak and face the frontier brain on

rounds 21 and 49.

On your 21st round, frontier brain Darach will confront you. His team is fairly easy

to beat, the only think to take into account is your current status. That being your teams

health, PP, and status afflictions(if any). Be sure you save up your castle points for

healing in this occasion. He has an Empoleon, Staraptor, and Houndoom the first time

around. He'll challenge you once again on round 49 except with a few changes. He'll swap

two of his pokemon for the legendary Entei and a Gallade.

This isn't much different from the Battle Tower except the ability to not be healed.

So if you're confident with your Battle Tower team, use the same for Battle Castle. A

strong ground type can wipe him out easy. Electivire once again fits the bill with the

ability to learn Earthquake and its fairly high speed stat compared to his pokemon.

Thunderpunch and Ice Punch/Cross Chop(egg or tutor move) can also come in handy every now

and then.

The outcomes of battles are based purely on luck as a roulette decides the battle.

When you are about to battle the screen changes to a random Draw point. These draws

determine what kind of occurrence goes on in the battle. If you want something to happen,

you'll have to quickly select what you want on the touch screen. It takes some time

getting used to. There are multiple possibilities ranging from weather change, status

afflictions, pokemon's stats being heightened or lowered, berry distribution, health

outcome, switching pokemon with your opponent, or even nothing happening at all. Once

again one thing stands the same, the streak and wins to face the frontier brain.

Your 21st and 49th match will make you face the frontier brain. She has set pokemon

here, so strategy can be used. Her first team will consist of Dusknoir, Medicham, and

Ludicolo. The second match will hold Togekiss, Blaziken, and Zapdos. Some strategy can be

used, but make sure her pokemon lose health every turn. The second time around is the same

in strategy, except the roulette is sped up making things a bit more difficult.

Since this facility is based on luck there isn't much I can help with here. I can

only name a few tips you may be able to use:

-Make sure the opponent's pokemon lose health every turn.

-When the chance presents itself, try to get status afflictions on your opponent's

pokemon/team.

-Avoid weather effects unless it benefits your team

-Avoid using Trick Room teams even though it is an available roulette option.

-Pray that luck is on your side.