Best Battle Frontier Teams in Emerald (by Facility)

You don’t need rare Pokémon to clear the Battle Frontier. You need three Pokémon that cover each other’s weaknesses, hit hard with reliable moves and don’t fall apart to bad luck. These three teams do that, and every Pokémon on them can be obtained in Emerald itself. Every moveset has been checked against the game’s learnset data, and works at level 50.

How to train them is covered in the training guide. Moves marked “tutor” come from move tutors: Rock Slide from the Battle Frontier tutors, paid for in BP (see the Battle Points guide), and Explosion from the one-time tutor in the Pacifidlog Town Pokémon Center.

Items: Leftovers, Choice Band and BrightPowder are sold for BP at the Frontier’s Exchange Service Corner. The Shell Bell is made for you in Shoal Cave from four Shoal Salt and four Shoal Shells. Chesto Berries grow on Berry trees across Hoenn.

Team 1: Salamence, Metagross, Swampert

A balanced team with three attacking types each and very few shared weaknesses. It’s the safest all-round choice for the Tower, Dome and Arena.

Pokémon	Item	Nature	Moves
Salamence	Shell Bell	Naive	Dragon Claw, Earthquake, Rock Slide (tutor), Flamethrower
Metagross	Choice Band	Adamant	Meteor Mash, Earthquake, Rock Slide (tutor), Explosion (tutor)
Swampert	Leftovers	Relaxed	Surf, Earthquake, Ice Beam, Protect

Salamence is a mixed attacker: Dragon Claw and Flamethrower are special in Gen III, Earthquake and Rock Slide physical. Naive raises Speed without lowering either attack. Intimidate weakens physical opponents every time it comes in.
Metagross hits very hard with a Choice Band and has no weakness to Ice, Dragon or Rock. Meteor Mash comes late: Metang learns it at level 50, Metagross not until 55. Keep Metang from evolving (press B) until it reaches 50, then let it evolve. If you’d rather not use Explosion, Brick Break is a safe replacement.
Swampert has only one weakness (Grass). It resists Fire and is immune to Electric, so it can take the Fire attacks aimed at Metagross. Swap Protect for Rock Slide (tutor) in the Arena, where Protect costs points.

Getting them: Bagon is in the inner rooms of Meteor Falls (you need Waterfall). Steven leaves a Beldum in his house in Mossdeep City after you enter the Hall of Fame. Swampert is the Mudkip starter.

Team 2: Latios, Starmie, Gyarados

A faster team built around two special attackers with Recover and a physical Dragon Dance sweeper. Very strong in the Tower and against the AI in general.

Pokémon	Item	Nature	Moves
Latios (or Latias)	BrightPowder	Timid	Calm Mind, Psychic, Dragon Claw, Recover
Starmie	Leftovers	Timid	Surf, Thunderbolt, Ice Beam, Recover
Gyarados	Shell Bell	Adamant	Dragon Dance, Return, Earthquake, Taunt

Latios is allowed in every facility (it isn’t on the ban list) and is one of the best Pokémon you can use. Calm Mind plus Recover lets it outlast most special attackers, and BrightPowder makes it harder to hit, which is exactly how Anabel uses hers. Latias plays the same way, a little bulkier and a little weaker.
Starmie has four attacking types between Surf, Thunderbolt, Ice Beam and Psychic-type STAB on Latios, plus Recover. If it has Natural Cure (one of its two possible abilities), its status is cleared whenever it switches out.
Gyarados learns Dragon Dance at level 50 exactly. Intimidate softens physical attackers, and after one Dragon Dance it outspeeds almost everything. Taunt stops opponents setting up against it.

Getting them: after you enter the Hall of Fame, a TV report in your house asks about a Pokémon’s colour, and the answer decides whether Latios or Latias then roams Hoenn. Staryu is caught with the Super Rod in Lilycove City. Magikarp can be fished almost anywhere.

Team 3: Milotic, Skarmory, Swampert

A bulky team that heals itself and shrugs off status. It’s built for the Battle Pike, where status rooms and lost HP end most streaks, and works well in the Battle Pyramid, where you can’t count on held items.

Pokémon	Item	Nature	Moves
Milotic	Leftovers	Bold	Surf, Ice Beam, Recover, Toxic
Skarmory	Chesto Berry	Impish	Steel Wing, Aerial Ace, Toxic, Rest
Swampert	Shell Bell	Relaxed	Surf, Earthquake, Ice Beam, Rock Slide (tutor)

Milotic’s Marvel Scale raises its Defense when it has a status condition, so a status room often makes it stronger. Recover keeps it healthy between battles.
Skarmory is a Steel type, so it can’t be poisoned, and it has Sturdy or Keen Eye. Its huge Defense walls physical attackers, and the Chesto Berry wakes it straight up the first time it uses Rest.
Swampert is a Ground type, so the Pike’s Thunder Wave never paralyses it. Rock Slide gives it an answer to the legendary birds at the top of the Pyramid.

In the Pyramid, your Pokémon can’t enter holding items. Recover and Rest matter even more there, and the items in the table are what to give them once you find them. See the Battle Pyramid guide for planning the Battle Bag.

Getting them: Feebas lives on only a few water tiles of Route 119 and evolves into Milotic when its Beauty is high enough (feed it Blue Pokéblocks). Skarmory is a rare find in the grass on Route 113.

Best teams by facility

Facility	Best team	Why
Battle Tower	Team 1 or 2	No gimmicks, so raw strength and coverage win.
Battle Dome	Team 1	You pick two of your three each match after seeing the opponent, so three flexible Pokémon is ideal.
Battle Palace	Team 1, re-natured	Moves are chosen by nature. Use Hasty or Hardy attackers and read the natures explainer.
Battle Arena	Team 1	Strong attacks every turn win the judging. Replace Protect with an attack (judging explained).
Battle Factory	None	You use rentals. See the rentals explainer.
Battle Pike	Team 3	Status immunities and recovery survive the rooms.
Battle Pyramid	Team 3	No held items at the start, so recovery and bulk carry the run.

What makes a good Frontier team

Coverage over power. Three Pokémon with two or three attacking types each handle almost any opponent.
Reliable moves. Surf over Hydro Pump, Thunderbolt over Thunder, Ice Beam over Blizzard. A miss in battle 69 ends the streak.
Few shared weaknesses. If two of your three are weak to the same type, one opponent can beat both.
A plan for status. A status immunity, a Chesto Berry with Rest, or Natural Cure.
Different held items. The Frontier doesn’t allow two Pokémon holding the same item, so plan items for the whole team.

FAQ

What is the best Pokémon for the Battle Frontier in Emerald?

Latios and Metagross are the strongest you can get in Emerald without trading, and Salamence and Swampert aren’t far behind. Each needs good teammates, though: no single Pokémon carries a 70-battle streak on its own.

Can I use legendary Pokémon?

Some. Mew, Mewtwo, Lugia, Ho-Oh, Celebi, Kyogre, Groudon, Rayquaza, Jirachi and Deoxys are banned. Latios, Latias, the Regis and the legendary birds and beasts are allowed.

Do I need to breed for a good team?

Not to start. Caught Pokémon with good natures and trained EVs can take you a long way. For the gold symbols, breeding for good IVs helps, and the training guide explains how.