Pokemon Platinum - 0 Exp Run Part 10: Byron (Ninja Approved)
22Challenge playlist:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLbSv8zSDR9c2Ou_dZZ5hjDdZH4wlLX0gV
On every run I play, Byron always turns out to be the weakest gym leader by far - maybe it's the typing of the Pokemon chosen, or perhaps the susceptibility to common moves like Surf. I imagine if he added some tougher Pokemon to his team, like Bronzong, Skarmory or Scizor (who's still easy if you have a fire-type, and Platinum introduces a few more of these for people who didn't start with Infernape), then he'd be much harder to deal with.
Magneton is the lead in the Platinum version, with Bronzor no longer on his team. Some teams might not have a ground-type Pokemon/move (unlikely seeing how you get an Earthquake TM very early in this version) and have some trouble, but we do have some grounds to choose from in the 0 exp challenge. Quagsire is immune to Thunderbolt and also resistant to Flash Cannon, so he's pretty much the perfect switch-in - only Tri-Attack can hurt him with a minor chance to do something nasty like a freeze or a burn (he's holding my Amulet Coin and not a restorative berry for status so we don't want this to happen).
I think the real reason Magneton is the lead is because of Magnet Pull. You might have noticed all the Steelixes in the gym and deduce that a water-type will do the job here, and those who picked Piplup as a starter will find their fancy water/dual Empoleon stuck and unable to exit the battlefield. At least I like thinking that's what they had in mind with this!
Steelix is next.
At this point, Choice Specs is available, which means special-oriented Pokemon are suddenly more desirable than their physical brethren (if I go back to every single 0 exp run I've done, I will mostly find teams of physical hitters).
A Pokemon that makes particularly effective use of Choice Specs at this point would be Golduck. High speed and special attack - not so much in themselves, but due to Surf opening options of catching Pokemon up to level 40. It takes a lot of patience to get a Pokemon at lv. 40 exactly, and with decent enough nature / IVs (I do have a full spectre of Ralts with Synchronise for getting the stuff I want with the best natures at this point), but lv. 37-39 will definitely do for a while.
Some of the Surfers are not really wanted much, like Golbat, Tentacruel (idk, could be useful at some point) or Gastrodon, but Golduck and Quagsire are really damn good, and nobody quite comes close for a while. With Water Absorb, Quagsire is a perfect double battle team mate for Specs!Golduck, too.
Byron's speciality is his bulky Bastiodon. Two 4x weaknesses, but packing defences hard enough to wall most hits, including effective ones.
Now, to my surprise, both Quagsire's 4x effective EQ and Golduck's Specs-powered SE Surf don't OHKO, and what's worse they leave these two open to being OHKO'd back by Metal Burst (this wasn't there on Byron's Bastiodon in Diamond/Pearl - seriously, did they shit out these two games in a rush or something? Platinum is a tremendous improvement if you ask me).
Quagsire handles this the best - a mirrored Surf (for 1.5x damage) will not KO Quaggy back, so Surf followed by Earthquake ends the battle. Stone Edge is resisted, Taunt wastes a turn, and Iron Defence is more or less just a reason to switch Golduck back in and finish Bastiodon off with a Surf instead.
Easy peasy japanesey.
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