Mastering Cynthia: Strategies for Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl

Our complete guide for Pokémon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl picks up right after you defeat Elite Four Lucian in the Pokémon League. Now, it’s time to challenge Champion Cynthia, the final hurdle before you enter the esteemed Hall of Fame.

Having encountered her multiple times during your adventure, it’s no shock that Cynthia is the Champion of the Sinnoh Pokémon League. She’s considered one of the best trainers in Pokémon history, and it’s clear why she has returned for the fourth generation in Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl.

Updated December 26, 2024, by Andrew Scariati: Taking down Cynthia in BDSP is quite a challenge. You’ll need to choose your Pokémon wisely to stand a chance against her formidable team. Below, we’ve outlined key strategies and recommended Pokémon to help you succeed in defeating Cynthia in BDSP. A team example is also provided to assist your preparations.

Cynthia’s Team in Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl

Before we dive into what makes Cynthia such a formidable opponent, let’s take a quick look at her Pokémon lineup. Don’t get overwhelmed—we’ll break down strategies to counter her team, so you’ll be well-prepared to become Sinnoh’s newest Champion.

Cynthia’s Complete Team

How to Defeat Cynthia’s Spiritomb

While Spiritomb may initially seem unassuming, it’s a solid choice for slowing down your progress.

It has only one weakness: Fairy-type moves. With impressive Defense and Special Defense stats, Spiritomb can handle most non-STAB Fairy attacks effortlessly. Its constant use of Shadow Ball and Dark Pulse can chip away at your Pokémon’s Special Defense, making it a formidable opponent unless you come prepared.

You need a Pokémon that can resist Spiritomb’s attacks while delivering damage without taking much in return.

Togekiss can strike back with STAB Fairy-type attacks, taking down Spiritomb quickly. Any heavy hitters like Tyranitar, Gyarados, Dialga, or Palkia can also deal significant damage with STAB moves, especially if you can set up a move like Swords Dance or Dragon Dance beforehand.

How to Defeat Cynthia’s Roserade

Roserade is much simpler to handle. It has impressive speed and can hit your Pokémon hard with STAB Sludge Bomb, but it can also be taken down quickly by powerful Fire, Flying, Ice, or Ground moves.

While you only need one hit to take it down, make sure you’re not receiving heavy damage in the process.

How to Defeat Cynthia’s Gastrodon

Gastrodon is one of Cynthia’s weaker links.

Keep in mind that in the latest games, Cynthia’s Gastrodon has the Storm Drain ability, unlike its previous form with Sticky Hold ability.

Gastrodon is capable of hitting hard with moves like Rock Tomb, so make sure to bring strong counters.

It would be prudent to use either Roserade or Torterra against Gastrodon, as both can knock it out with STAB Grass-type moves that deal quadruple damage.

How to Defeat Cynthia’s Lucario

Surprisingly, Lucario isn’t too intimidating. While it’s a strong Pokémon overall, it’s the least troublesome on Cynthia’s team.

Most Pokémon recommended earlier can hit Lucario with powerful STAB moves, giving you a significant advantage in battle.

How to Defeat Cynthia’s Milotic

Milotic is a master of stalling tactics.

Though it appears to be at a disadvantage with a Flame Orb now equipped, it gains strength from its signature ability, Marvel Scale, which increases Defense when it has a status ailment.

Just be cautious, as Milotic knows Ice Beam and can easily take down Grass-type Pokémon. Roserade with Giga Drain can be a viable option since it allows you to recover health, but beware—a critical hit could be disastrous.

How to Defeat Cynthia’s Garchomp

At last, we come to Cynthia’s ultimate Pokémon: Garchomp. Garchomp is notorious among fans for its overwhelming power.

What complicates matters is that this Garchomp can use Swords Dance, boosting its Attack and making it capable of taking down almost any Pokémon you use against it.

If your Garchomp is at a higher level, it can hold its own. Otherwise, Weavile can take it out with a STAB Avalanche if you can outspeed it and hold a Focus Sash.

Mamoswine can withstand a hit, counter with Ice Fang or Avalanche, and use Ice Shard for priority on the next turn.

If you prefer not to use Ice-type moves, Togekiss from earlier can reliably resist Garchomp’s attacks while hitting it back with strong Moonblasts or Dazzling Gleams.

Pokémon Team for the Entire Elite Four

This concludes our comprehensive guide on how to counter Cynthia’s tough team in Pokémon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl.

If you need help with selecting six Pokémon to take on the entire Elite Four, consider a balanced mix of the following:

• Your fully evolved starter
• Togekiss
• Roserade
• Gyarados
• Staraptor
• Dialga
• Palkia
• Tyranitar
• Houndoom
• Garchomp
• Magnezone
• Luxray
• Salamence

If you have a lot of these Pokémon in your collection but face difficulty forming them into a strong team, here’s a suggested lineup:

1. Your Starter
2. Roserade
3. Togekiss
4. Garchomp
5. Houndoom
6. Staraptor

This team provides a powerful combination of attack moves and solid resistances, setting you up to defeat Cynthia in BDSP.

Now that you’ve earned your place in the Hall of Fame, check out our postgame guides for tips on catching Legendary Pokémon, shiny hunting, competitive battles, breeding, and much more.