Pokémon Gold and Silver/Route 30-31
Route #30 and Route #31 are relatively uncomplicated roads—unfortunately, you'll have to wander off the path to climb uphill. You'll be wandering through tall grass again, but it will help your Pokémon become strong—if you win.
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Gold | Silver | Crystal |
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New Pokémon to catch
Routes 30 and 31 contain a variety of new Pokémon (especially if you are playing Crystal) so bring many Poké Balls. Bug-type Pokemon are plentiful here in all versions. Caterpie and Spinarak can be found on Gold while Weedle and Ledyba can be found on Silver. Unfortunately, the new families aren't that great, but you can still have some decent utility from Butterfree (can learn Sleep Powder and moves alike) and Beedrill (has a decent attack stat). Bellsprout may be weak at the first gym but it's decent and very useful if you didn't choose Chikorita as your starter. Also, try to catch an extra Bellsprout, not because they're that great, but because they can be used to trade for a very useful Onix in Violet City. Crystal players can get all of the previously mentioned Pokémon, plus three more! Gastly, Zubat and Poliwag can only be found at night and are somewhat rare but worth to catch. They can be found in other places more easily so don't worry if you don't find them here.
Trainer battles begin
When you return to Route #30 after completing your errand, trainers will attack you whenever you make eye contact. As you can see from their rosters below, their Pokémon are weak, but they can wear you down. You can try to avoid them, but it's better to fight when you can: they're the best source of money and EXP in the game.
One new twist is the ability to trade phone numbers with certain trainers once you've defeated them in battle (they will have a phone icon next to their rewards). If you agree, they'll call you periodically to chat, challenge you to rematches, and most importantly, inform you of Pokémon "swarms". Without that info, it's hard to catch Pokémon like Dunsparce in the nearby Dark Cave.
Run an errand and get TM 50
A little later in the game, a guard in the guard house that separates Goldenrod City and Route #35 will send you to deliver a message to the guy in front of the lake, so remember where he is! Finishing this errand is the only way to get TM 50, Nightmare.
Trainers and items
Route #30 Trainers | Route #31 Trainers |
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Pokémon Found
#60 Poliwag | #10 Caterpie |
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![]() Poliwag will be one of the first pure Water types you can catch with a good early move set and a great Speed stat. With moves like Hypnosis at level 7 and then Water Gun at level 13 it can be effective for you early on in the caves against Rock types and also helping to put other Pokémon to sleep for easier catching! Has several evolutions and now Gen 2 introduces a new Pokémon Politoed. Still, if you want a Fighting-type move for final evolution Poliwrath which learns (Submission), you will need to evolve it at least before level 35. Poliwag is very helpful in the fact that it can learn HMs: Surf, Whirlpool, Waterfall and evolutions Poliwhirl, Poliwrath, Politoed can learn Strength. |
![]() The speedy evolution is nice, and Butterfree is useful for a while after it learns Confusion at level 10. It learns a few of the Powder moves then gets first Flying type move Gust at level 28 Early on it's still good since it has a mix of status moves and Confusion as a good damage dealing move, but after you find more Pokémon that can use status inducing moves it becomes obsolete. Can also learn HM Flash |
#13 Weedle | #167 Spinarak |
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#41 Zubat | #165 Ledyba |
![]() Starts with Leech Life and learns Supersonic at level 6 then new Dark type move Bite at level 12 and then Confuse Ray at level 19. The first Physical Attack it learns is Bite which means catching one lower than level 12 will be a slow level up. Crobat, who evolves from a very "tamed" Golbat, doesn't have any new moves, but it can learn Fly and is much quicker than Golbat. Crobat is actually the fastest Pokémon that can learn Mean Look, so if you're having trouble trying to catch an annoying Pokémon that likes to run, Crobat is your best choice. |
![]() Bug and Flying type Ledyba and its evolved form Ledian are primarily defensive Pokémon, learning moves like Reflect, Safeguard, and Light Screen. They do learn a few early attacks like Comet Punch, but their Attack is too low to put them to good use. Its best stat is Special Defense. |
#69 Bellsprout | #92 Gastly |
![]() But if you didn't pick a Chikorita as a starter, you may find Bellsprout to be temporarily useful. They start with Vine Whip, which is great against Rock and Ground-type Pokémon in the upcoming Union Cave. However it only has 10 uses forcing a return trip to the Pokémon centre to recover. Vine Whip is also good at landing hits on Ghost type Gastly. Bellsprout and its evolved forms can learn HMs: Cut and Flash which will soon be found. |
![]() You'll have to stay up late to catch one since they only come out at night. Actually reducing Gastly's HP may be difficult early on due to moves like Tackle and Scratch being completely ineffective so bring Pokémon with other type attacks such as Grass, Water, Flying or Fire types Attacks along. You will have to trade Haunter to another Pokémon game (and trade it back) if you want to evolve it to Gengar. |