Part V: Jasmine is Arguably The Cutest Gym Leader

In which we beat up a tough karate master in order to save a cute Electric type, then challenge Jasmine.

Side note before we start: Regardless of which route you take through the game, if you didn’t trade for the Machop in Goldenrod, it might be wise to pick up a Machop or Mankey from Route 42 (Gold only) or Mt. Mortar respectively. See the first section of Part VI for that. Also if you did Part IV first you should be way above the recommended levels.

Route 38 & 39

Recommended Level: 24-28

Alright WOO new stuff finally!

Specifically, this new stuff is Magnemite, Miltank, Tauros, Farfetch’d (Morning/Day), and Snubbull for Gold players and all of that plus Meowth for Silver. Magnemite in particular is an excellent pick up if you don’t have an Electric-type yet (though my favorite Electric-type is available starting in the next town), and the Normal-types aren’t absolutely terrible for one more generation either. If you don’t have a Flying-type yet, Farfetch’d is your last chance to pick up a Fly user before you gain access to the move. Be sure to find one with its unique Hold Item however! (It doubles its Attack.)

Anyway, Routes 38 and 39 have literally the same encounter tables (except that 39 lacks the 1% Snubbull encounter), so just proceed through them and get to Olivine.

Olivine City

Recommended Level: 26-30

First things first, there’s a Good Rod here from one of the houses. This unlocks four new Pokémon. Staryu (Night) and Shellder (Harbor) can’t evolve until postgame though, so the ones we’re really looking at are Corsola (Morning/Day) and Chinchou (Harbor). Neither are amazing, but Chinchou evolves into Lanturn, one of my favorite Pokémon.

Anyway, climb the lighthouse for fun and profit. It has a ton of trainers of hugely variant levels (did I mention this game’s level curve is really broken?). Meet Amphy, leader of the Expedition Society and also sole operator of the lighthouse, to find the Gym Leader. Of course, she redirects you to Cianwood before you can fight her. Rude. Westward ho! But before you leave, get the Strength HM from the restaurant west of the Pokémon Center. You need this for the next Gym!

Routes 40 & 41

Recommended Level: 26-30

I’m going to be level with you – Water Routes SUCK. 40 contains literally nothing new and 41 gives Gold players access to Mantine. Also the Trainers are so under-levelled they essentially give no experience. Like, the wild Pokémon are stronger.

Feel free to spam Repels. Thankfully we get Fly after this mess.

Cianwood City

Recommended Level: 27-30

This gym is mandatory to proceed, but it unlocks access to Fly, which gets us around the hell that is Routes 40-41. Be sure to check out the Pharmacy first though!

Cianwood Gym

Recommended Level: 27-30

Chuck uses a Lv27 Primeape and a Lv30 Poliwrath. I’d actually overcompensate for levels here. Saves you trouble later. Flying types help a lot here. Psychic types work too I guess, and Primeape also can’t damage Ghost-types.

Anyway, get the badge and hop on your favorite bird. We’re getting off this silly island.

The level curve of this game (and the location of the Fighting-types needed to deal with Steels) seems to imply that you should go to Part VI now and deal with Jasmine later. If you are underlevelled, this might be a decent plan. In that case, go back to Ecruteak and leave through the east gate. Proceed to Part VI.

If you don’t want to waste time and instead rush to save poor Amphy, fly to Olivine. The level curve explodes here, so don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Olivine City Redux & Olivine Gym

Recommended Level: 30-35

Get back up to the top of the lighthouse and beg on your knees for Jasmine to get back into the gym. If she doesn’t, you forgot to visit the Pharmacy in Cianwood. Go do that.

So remember when I said the level curve here is wonky? You should have had exactly zero battles between Chuck and Jasmine, but her ace is FIVE levels above his.

Jasmine uses the brand new Steel-type. They are weak to Ground, Fire, and Fighting and resist just about everything else. She uses two Magnemite, which are extra weak to Ground. Quilava can burn through them pretty easily as well if you don’t have a Ground-type handy, or if you still have that Machop you traded for a while back that will do the trick as well. Her final Pokémon is a Steelix, and that thing is just plain hard. It is half Ground, which gives Croconaw a way to hit it. However, it has Rock Throw to beat Quilava. However, it has Sunny Day as well (to stop Water-types from killing it), so feel free to send in something else to bait out Sunny Day and then just one shot it with a Fire move. If none of these options work, Golem still exists.

Once we’re finished up here, one of two things happen:

1. You have not completed Part VI – Nothing happens. Go back to Ecruteak and exit east.
2. You HAVE completed Part VI – You should receive a phone call. Proceed to Part VII.