Winona (Fortree City Gym)

Gym Leader Winona
Pokémon	Swellow Lv.33	Pelipper Lv.33	Skarmory Lv.33	Altaria Lv.35
Type	Normal / Flying	Water / Flying	Steel / Flying	Dragon / Flying
Ability	Guts	Keen Eye	Keen Eye	Natural Cure
Held Item	None	None	None	None
Moves	Quick Attack Aerial Ace Double Team Endeavor	Water Pulse Roost Protect Aerial Ace	Sand Attack Air Cutter Steel Wing Aerial Ace	Earthquake Dragon Breath Cotton Guard Roost

The Fortree City Gym is the sixth gym in the Hoenn League. Winona, the Fortree Gym Leader, specializes in Flying-type Pokémon.

For a quick refresher, here’s the weaknesses and resistances of Flying-type Pokémon, and which Pokémon are vulnerable to Flying-type attacks:

Prerequisites

To challenge Winona you must first:

• Obtain the fifth Gym Badge from Norman, Petalburg City’s Gym Leader
• Deal with Team Aqua/Magma in the Weather Institute to gain access to Fortree City
• Acquire the Devon Scope from Steven on Route 120 to reveal the Kecleon blocking the path to the Fortree Gym

Fortree Gym Puzzle Solution (Step-by-Step)

The Fortree City Gym features a puzzle featuring an array of rotating wooden doors that will block your path. Move these rotating doors in the correct direction to create a path that leads to Gym Leader Winona.

Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to complete the puzzle and reach Winona.

Step 1: From the entrance, move eastwards and go through the rotating door to proceed upstairs.

Step 2: At the top of the stairs, push the next rotating door upward and head north.

Step 3: After rotating the door, battle Bird Keeper Jared and Picnicker Kylee up ahead. Just follow the path along and you can then turn the next door to the right.

Bird Keeper Jared
Pokémon	Swellow Lv.30	Skarmory Lv.30
Type	Normal / Flying	Steel / Flying

Picnicker Kylee
Pokémon	Swablu Lv.31
Type	Normal / Flying

Step 4: Once you’ve pushed the door right, you’ll want to circle all the way around and pass Picnicker Kylee again – then head south, following the path you just opened.

Step 5: Proceed to the west side of the gym from here. Climb the staircase going west and push the nearby rotating door upwards.

Step 6: Head up and make a left turn, then get ready for a battle with Camper Terrell. From there, follow the narrow path turning the corner towards the right and prepare to battle with Bird Keeper Will.

Camper Terrell
Pokémon	Doduo Lv.28	Pelipper Lv.30
Type	Normal / Flying	Water / Flying

Bird Keeper Will
Pokémon	Dodrio Lv.32
Type	Normal / Flying

Step 7: After you win, go eastward until you come across the last set of rotating doors. Go all the way to the right-hand side and push the smaller door upward.

Step 8: Walk upward and then battle Bird Keeper Bran in the corner. Then push the larger rotating door downward.

Bird Keeper Bran
Pokémon	Pelipper Lv.32
Type	Water / Flying

Step 9: Then go back to the bottom-right corner near the small door and push it left.

Step 10: Once you’ve done that, walk down & around so you’re back in the bottom-right corner again. Then give the small rotating door one last push upwards.

Step 11: With the path to Winona now open, head westward.

Step 12: Finally, head up the stairs to reach Winona.

Tips on Defeating Winona

Here are some tips and strategies to help you win this fight:

• Utilize a Variety of Super Effective Moves. Electric, Ice, and Rock type moves can all deal a lot of damage to Winona’s Pokémon. But since her Pokémon are all dual-types, no single type will be super effective against all of them. Prepare multiple super effective moves, such as Manectric’s Shock Wave or Solrock’s Rock Slide.
• Play Around Winona’s Roost. Both Pelipper and Altaria have the move Roost which allows them to heal half their HP and lose their Flying typing on use. As a result, her Pokémon will lose their weakness to Rock-type moves temporarily. However, Pelipper will still be weak to Electric and Altaria will still be weak to Ice.
• Use Special Attacks Against Skarmory and Altaria. Winona’s Altaria uses Cotton Guard and her Skarmory uses Steel Wing to boost their Defense. And since these Pokémon are naturally bulky, it‘s better to use Special Attacks to prevent yourself from being walled.
• Avoid Inflicting Status Conditions. Winona’s Swellow has the ability Guts that boosts its Attack when it has a status condition. Her Altaria also has Natural Cure, which heals status conditions when switched out. So don’t rely on Toxic or Will-O-Wisp to gradually wear down her team.
• Use the Gift Castform. After defeating Team Aqua/Magma at the Weather Institute, a scientist will give you a Castform. During the Hail weather, Castform transforms into its Snowy Form, becoming an Ice-type. This form can use a powerful Ice-type version of Weather Ball, a move that Winona’s Altaria is 4x weak to.

Pokémon Team Suggestions

If you’re looking for new teammates to add to your party to help you defeat Winona, you can consider using the following Pokémon found on nearby Routes:

Recommended Pokémon:
Pokémon	Castform (Snowy Form)	Manectric	Solrock	Lunatone
Type	Normal Form: Normal Snowy Form: Ice	Electric	Rock / Psychic	Rock / Psychic
Location	Gift in the Weather Institute	Evolve Electrike found on Route 110 and Route 118 – 40%	(OR) Meteor Falls – 25%	(AS) Meteor Falls – 25%

Rewards for Defeating Winona

After defeating Winona, you’ll be rewarded with the following:

• P4,200
• TM19 Roost
• The Feather Badge – this allows you to use the HM02 Fly outside of battle. It also allows all Pokémon up to level 70 to obey you, including traded Pokémon.