Pokemon Scarlet/Violet: Alfornada Gym (Psychic Type) Guide

The player in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet‘s new open-world video game attends as a transfer student at a large school in the Paldea Region. In the game, only the player has the liberty to pursue any goal: whether to find the new Titan Pokemon, defeat every Pokemon Gym, become the champion, and be the very best like no one ever was, defeat the mysterious Team Star, or simply to complete the Pokedex and catch them all!

In this article, we will discuss beating Pokemon Gyms, which are a part of the “Victory Road” quest line, specifically the Psychic type gym in Alfornada City!

Alfornada Gym

The Alfornada Gym can be found in the northeastern part of Alfornada City (or southwest of Cortondo or way west of Los Platos and South Province Area Four), which can be found in the southwesternmost part of the Paldea region. 

Alfornada can be reached by following the main path west of Cortondo up until the West Province (Area One) – Central Pokemon Center, take the path that leads south at the junction ahead, head inside Alfornada Cavern in South Province (Area Six), head up the cliffs to find the exit which will be on the western side of South Province (Area Six), follow the path to the east, and the player will reach Alfornada!

It is worth noting, however, that the player’s Koraidon or Miraidon (depending on the player’s version) must have learned to perform a high jump to successfully traverse Alfornada Cavern. This is because the cliffs inside the cavern are slightly high and do not have ramps to get up on them. The ability to jump higher can be learned after defeating Orthworm, the Lurking Steel Titan in East Province (Area Three).

Gym Test

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet introduce a new mechanic where the player must first pass a Gym Test to demonstrate their mettle before engaging in battle with the Gym Leader of a Pokemon Gym. Every Pokemon Gym has its Gym Test, and the Gym Test in the Alfornada Gym is to be the opening act to warm up the audience for the main event!

To start the Alfornada Gym Test, let the player head inside the Alfornada Gym and talk to the receptionist just ahead of the entrance. Then the receptionist will tell the player that the player must first complete the Gym Test to face the Gym Leader, Tulip, which means working up a sweat with the Emotional Spectrum Practice, a special exercise. The receptionist will then explain that Gym Leader Tulip herself created the Emotional Spectrum Practice, and the player must simply complete it to pass the Gym Test.

Afterward, head outside of the gym, head to the eastern side of the building, and there the player will find a large open space with a woman wearing a black tracksuit. Talk to the tracksuit lady, who is the battle studies teacher in the academy named Dendra, and, after telling a little story about her and Gym Leader Tulip, she will explain the rules of the Emotional Spectrum Practice, or ESP for short, which is that she will show the player a certain movement and all the player needs to do is to copy it. Dendra will then ask if the player is ready to start the Gym Test, so select ‘Yes’ on the prompt.

Then, the Gym Test has now started! All the player needs to do is look at the emotion conveyed by Dendra’s Medichamp through the colored icon above, then copy it by pressing the appropriate button: the A button for yellow or joy, the B button for blue or surprise, the Y button for green or excitement, and the X button for red or anger. The player must copy the emotion and press the appropriate button before the timer around the colored icon runs out.

In between the Emotional Spectrum Practice rounds, the other participants will challenge the player in Pokemon Battles!

Gym Test Battle 1

For the first Battle, the player will battle against a young trainer named Emily, who will only use two Pokemon: a Level 43 Gothorita and a Level 43 Kirlia. With that in mind, it is important to note that Gothorita is a Psychic type Pokemon with a weakness to the Bug-type, Dark-type, and Ghost-type moves (super effective) and resistance to Fighting-type and Psychic-type moves (not very effective).

Kirlia is a Psychic and Fairy-type Pokemon that has a weakness to Ghost-type, Poison-type, and Steel-type moves (super effective), a resistance to Psychic-type and especially Fighting-type moves (not very effective), and immunity to Dragon-type moves (no effect). Also, Emily’s Kirlia has the Ability called Trace, which copies the opposing Pokemon’s Ability.

After defeating Emily, another round of the Emotional Spectrum Practice will start!

Gym Test Battle 2

After that, another participant will challenge the player in a Pokemon Battle.

For the second Battle, the player will battle against an older trainer named Rafael. Rafael will also use three Pokemon: a Level 43 Grumpig, a Level 43 Indeedee (Male),  and a Level 43 Medicham. With that in mind, it is worth mentioning that Grumpig is also a Psychic-type Pokemon with a weakness to the Bug-type, Dark-type, and Ghost-type moves (super effective) and resistance to Fighting-type and Psychic-type moves (not very effective).

Indeedee is a Psychic and Normal-type Pokemon that has a weakness to Bug-type and Dark-type moves (super effective), a resistance to Psychic-type moves (not very effective), and immunity to Ghost-type moves (no effect). Medicham is a Psychic and Fighting-type Pokemon with a weakness in Fairy-type, Flying-type, and Ghost-type moves (super effective) and resistance to Fighting-type and Rock-type moves (not very effective).

After defeating Rafael, Dendra will confirm that the player has completed the Gym Test!

Gym Leader Tulip

After completing the Gym Test, Dendra will tell the player to tell the Gym staff that the player passed. Head back inside the Alfornada Gym building and talk to the receptionist again. The receptionist will congratulate the player and say that the player now has the right to challenge the Gym Leader, Tulip the Bewitching Beautician. The receptionist will then ask the player if you are ready to challenge Gym Leader Tulip. Select ‘Yes’ on the prompt (or ‘No’ if you want to heal up your Pokemon first) to start the battle!

Next, the player will be brought to the battle court, and a cutscene will play where Gym Leader Tulip will enter with two Medichams while talking on the phone. Then, after a few bits of dialogue, the battle against Gym Leader Tulip will commence! As previously mentioned, the Alfornada Gym is a Psychic type Gym, meaning Gym Leader Tulip will mostly use Psychic type Pokemon.

Because Gym Leader Tulip’s Pokemon are Level 44 and 45, It is recommended that the player’s Pokemon be at least Level 45 to defeat Gym Leader Tulip a little bit easier.

Gym Leader Tulip will use four Pokemon: a Level 44 Farigiraf, a Level 44 Gardevoir, a Level 44 Espathra, and a Level 45 Florges with a Psychic Tera type. Gym Leader Tulip will use these Pokemon in this order and terastallize Florges, changing them from a Fairy type to a pure Psychic-type.

With that in mind, it is worth mentioning that Farigiraf is a Psychic and Normal-type Pokemon which means that it has a weakness to Bug-type and Dark-type moves (super effective), a resistance to Psychic-type moves (not very effective), and an immunity to Ghost-type moves (no effect). Tulip’s Farigiraf may use the following moves: Crunch, Zen Headbutt, and Reflect.

Gardevoir is a Psychic and Fairy-type Pokemon that has a weakness to Ghost-type, Poison-type, and Steel-type moves (super effective), a resistance to Psychic type and especially Fighting-type moves (not very effective), and an immunity to Dragon-type moves (no effect). Tulip’s Gardevoir may use the following moves: Dazzling Gleam, Psychic, and Energy Ball.

Espathra is also a Psychic type Pokemon which means that it has a weakness to the Bug-type, Dark-type, and Ghost-type moves (super effective) and a resistance to Fighting-type and Psychic-type moves (not very effective). Tulip’s Espathra may use the following moves: Quick Attack, Psychic, and Shadow Ball.

Florges, because of its Tera type and as Gym Leader Tulip will terastallize it, will become a Psychic type which means it also now has a weakness to the Bug-type, Dark-type, and Ghost-type moves (super effective) and resistance to Fighting type and Psychic-type moves (not very effective). Tulip’s Florges may use the following moves: Psychic, Dazzling Gleam, and Petal Blizzard.

After defeating Gym Leader Tulip, the player will receive the Psychic-type Gym Badge and TM120, a Psychic move. Psychic is a special Psychic type move that, aside from dealing damage, also has a 10% chance to lower the opposing Pokemon’s Sp. Defense stat by one stage. Psychic has 90 Power, 100 Accuracy, and 10 PP.

Now that the player has defeated Gym Leader Tulip and completed the Alfornada Gym, the player is now one step closer to completing the ‘Victory Road’ quest line and becoming the Champion in the Paldea Region!