Trainers' School

Conquer the Trainers' School final lesson in Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon! Learn strategies to defeat Black Belt Duane and Principal Asuka and claim your King's Rock reward.

Alright, so you've made it to the postgame and you're ready to take on the final challenge at the Trainers' School. It's not just a place to learn, but a place to prove you've learned everything you need to be a Champion! You'll face two tough trainers: Black Belt Duane and Principal Asuka. Let's break down how to beat them.

Black Belt Duane

First up is Black Belt Duane. He's all about that Fighting-type power!

Duane's Team:

• Primeape — Level 56, Fighting-type
• Heracross — Level 56, Bug/Fighting-type

Duane's Primeape is a pure Fighting-type, so it's a sitting duck for Flying, Psychic, or Fairy-type attacks. Just bring something that resists Fighting or hits those types super effectively, and you should be able to take it down pretty quickly.

Heracross is where things get a little more interesting. It's a Bug/Fighting type, which means it's doubly weak to Flying-type moves! That's your best bet. Fire, Psychic, and Fairy-types are also good options. Just be careful with Heracross's signature move, Megahorn – it hits hard, especially if you're using a Psychic-type Pokémon.

Principal Asuka

After Duane, you'll head through the door and meet the principal herself, Asuka. She's got a solid team ready to test your Champion mettle.

Asuka's Team:

• Granbull — Level 57, Fairy-type
• Stoutland — Level 57, Normal-type
• Arcanine — Level 57, Fire-type

Here's a key thing to watch out for: all three of Asuka's Pokémon have the Intimidate Ability. This means they'll lower your Pokémon's Attack stat as soon as they switch in. To counter this, it's a great idea to use special attackers, as their damage output won't be affected by Intimidate. Alternatively, if you have a Pokémon with the Competitive, Defiant, or Contrary Ability, you can actually get stat boosts when they use Intimidate – pretty funny!

Let's look at her individual Pokémon:

• Granbull: This Fairy-type is weak to Poison and Steel-type attacks.
• Stoutland: This Normal-type has a varied movepool, including Fire, Thunder, and Ice Fang. It can also use Retaliate, which is strong against Rock and Steel-types. As a Normal-type, it's naturally weak to Fighting-type moves.
• Arcanine: Arcanine has the move Reversal, which can be dangerous for Rock-types. Because of this, Water or Ground-type Pokémon are your best bet against it.

Once you've shown Principal Asuka what a true Champion looks like, she'll reward you with a King's Rock. This is a pretty useful item! If a Pokémon holds it, there's a small chance its attacks will cause the target to flinch, potentially interrupting their moves. Plus, it's essential for evolving Poliwhirl and Slowpoke into their alternate forms (Politoed and Slowking, respectively) when traded while holding it. Pretty neat reward for passing the final lesson!