Blackthorn Gym

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Blackthorn Gym
フスベジム Fusube Gym
Blackthorn Gym anime.png
Location Blackthorn City
Gym Leader Clair
Unnamed Gym Leader (anime only)
Badge Rising Badge
Dominant Type Dragon
Region Johto
Blackthorn Gym Battlefield.png
Battlefield

The Blackthorn Gym (Japanese: フスベジム Fusube Gym) is the official Gym of Blackthorn City. It is based on Dragon-type Pokémon. The Gym Leader is Clair. Trainers who defeat her receive the Rising Badge.

In the games

An Ace Trainer will prevent access to the Gym itself until the player has at least seven of the eight Johto Badges and has defeated Team Rocket at the Goldenrod Radio Tower, though there is no legitimate way to access Blackthorn with less than seven Badges.

Generation II

Blackthorn City
Pokémon Gym
Leader: Clair
The Blessed User
of Dragon Pokémon

In Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal, the Gym Leader Clair is on a platform in the middle of red-hot lava, and the player must go to the second floor, where a Strength puzzle must be completed. Once the puzzle is completed, the boulders pushed down the correct holes form bridges across the lava, allowing the player to reach Clair. Even after being defeated, Clair does not consider the player ready to challenge the Pokémon League and refuses to hand over the Rising Badge, forcing the player to go to the Dragon's Den and complete a trial before the Badge can be acquired.

A field based on the Gym also appears in Pokémon Stadium 2's Johto Gym Leader Castle.

Generation IV

Blackthorn City Pokémon Gym
Leader: Clair
The Blessed User of Dragon Pokémon

In Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, immediately after entering the Gym, the Gym guide tells the player to return their walking Pokémon back to its Poké Ball. After this, the player has to navigate on platforms floating on lava, using arrows on them to move them and the blue buttons on them to spin them. After three platforms and several Trainers, the player will reach Clair and battle her. Like in Generation II, after being defeated, Clair still deems the player unready for the Pokémon League and refuses to hand over the Badge before the player has completed the challenge at the Dragon's Den.

Appearance

Version 1F 2F
Gold Blackthorn Gym 1F GSC.png Blackthorn Gym 2F GSC.png
Silver
Crystal
HeartGold Blackthorn Gym HGSS.png
SoulSilver
 

Trainers

Core series

Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal
Trainer Pokémon
Cooltrainer Paul
Cooltrainer Paul
マサル Masaru
Reward: $1632
Dratini Dratini Lv.34
No item
Dratini Dratini Lv.34
No item
Dratini Dratini Lv.34
No item
Cooltrainer Fran
Cooltrainer Fran
トモエ Tomoe
Reward: $1776
Seadra Seadra Lv.37
No item
Cooltrainer Cody
Cooltrainer Cody
トモヒコ Tomohiko
Reward: $1728
Horsea Horsea Lv.34
No item
Seadra Seadra Lv.36
No item
Cooltrainer Mike
Cooltrainer Mike
テツロウ Tetsurō
Reward: $1776
Dragonair Dragonair Lv.37
No item
Requires Strength
Cooltrainer Lola
Cooltrainer Lola
マリコ Mariko
Reward: $1728
Dratini Dratini Lv.34
No item
Dragonair Dragonair Lv.36
No item
Trainers with a telephone symbol by their names will give their Pokégear number to the player, and may call or be called for a rematch with higher-level Pokémon.


Clair has a Full Heal and a Full Restore.



Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver
Trainer Pokémon
First platform
Ace Trainer Paulo
Ace Trainer Paulo
マサル Masaru
Reward: $2100
Dratini Dratini Lv.35
No item
Dratini Dratini Lv.35
No item
Seadra Seadra Lv.35
No item
Ace Trainer Lola
Ace Trainer Lola
マリコ Mariko
Reward: $2220
Dratini Dratini Lv.35
No item
Dragonair Dragonair Lv.37
No item
Second platform
Ace Trainer Cody
Ace Trainer Cody
トモヒコ Tomohiko
Reward: $2220
Horsea Horsea Lv.35
No item
Seadra Seadra Lv.37
No item
Ace Trainer Fran
Ace Trainer Fran
トモエ Tomoe
Reward: $2280
Seadra Seadra Lv.38
No item
Ace Trainer Mike
Ace Trainer Mike
テツロウ Tetsurō
Reward: $2280
Dragonair Dragonair Lv.38
No item
Trainers with a telephone symbol by their names will give their Pokégear number to the player, and may call or be called for a rematch with higher-level Pokémon.




Side series

Pokémon Stadium 2
Round 1
Trainer Pokémon
Cooltrainer Gloria
Cooltrainer Gloria
シオリ Shiori
Jigglypuff Jigglypuff Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png PRZCureBerry
Venonat Venonat Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png Burnt Berry
Skiploom Skiploom Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png Bitter Berry
Clefairy Clefairy Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png Ice Berry
Exeggcute Exeggcute Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png Mint Berry
Oddish Oddish Lv.50-100
Bag Berry Juice Sprite.png Berry Juice
Cooltrainer Vince
Cooltrainer Vince
ケイスケ Keisuke
Bulbasaur Bulbasaur Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png Ice Berry
Squirtle Squirtle Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png Bitter Berry
Charmander Charmander Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png PSNCureBerry
Chikorita Chikorita Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png Mint Berry
Cyndaquil Cyndaquil Lv.50-100
Bag Berry Juice Sprite.png Berry Juice
Totodile Totodile Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png PRZCureBerry




Round 2
Trainer Pokémon
Cooltrainer Gloria
Cooltrainer Gloria
シオリ Shiori
Smeargle Smeargle Lv.50-100
Bag Focus Band Sprite.png Focus Band
Tangela Tangela Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png Bitter Berry
Jynx Jynx Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png Ice Berry
Golduck Golduck Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png PRZCureBerry
Haunter Haunter Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png Mint Berry
Ninetales Ninetales Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png Burnt Berry
Cooltrainer Vince
Cooltrainer Vince
ケイスケ Keisuke
Ivysaur Ivysaur Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png Burnt Berry
Wartortle Wartortle Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png PRZCureBerry
Charmeleon Charmeleon Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png Mint Berry
Bayleef Bayleef Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png Bitter Berry
Croconaw Croconaw Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png Gold Berry
Quilava Quilava Lv.50-100
Held icon II.png PSNCureBerry




Items

Item Location Games
TM Dragon TM24 (DragonBreath) Gift from Clair after obtaining the Rising Badge, if initially missed at Dragon's Den  C 
TM Dragon TM59 (Dragon Pulse) Gift from Clair after obtaining the Rising Badge, if missed at Dragon's Den  HG  SS 

Walking Pokémon quotes

Walking Pokémon can have reactions unique to Blackthorn Gym. The reactions below require interacting with the Pokémon.

Games Pokémon Area Quote
 HG  SS 
IceIC RSE.png
Ice-type Pokémon
Anywhere "___ is very eager!"
FireIC RSE.png
Fire-type Pokémon
Anywhere "___ seems to be really enjoying the heat!"
DragonIC RSE.png
Dragon-type Pokémon
Anywhere "___ is very composed and sure of itself."
Bag Poké Ball Sprite.png
Other Pokémon
Anywhere "___'s head is bowed because of the heat."
Bag Poké Ball Sprite.png
Other Pokémon
Anywhere "___ seems to be unhappy that it’s so hot..."
Ani244OD.png
Entei
Anywhere "Entei gathered itself up and let out a huge roar!"

In the spin-off games

Pokémon Masters EX

Artwork depicting the Blackthorn Gym is seen in Clair's mindscape.

Clair & Kingdra
Clair Mindscape.png

In the anime

The Blackthorn Gym battlefield in the original series
The Blackthorn Gym with its roof opened

The Blackthorn Gym first appeared at the end of Beauty is Skin Deep. In Fangs for Nothin', Ash challenged Clair to a battle for his final Johto League Badge. Although he battled hard, Ash wasn't doing very well and was constantly outmaneuvered by Clair. However, before the battle could end, an alarm went off, alerting Clair that somebody had stolen the Dragon Fang kept at the Dragon Holy Land. She told Ash that the battle would have to continue some other time, causing the match to be interrupted.

After dealing with Team Rocket and returning the Dragon Fang, Ash and Clair had a second battle in Better Eight Than Never. This time, Ash came prepared with his Snorlax and Charizard. Thanks to them, he was much more successful than during his previous attempt, and was able to earn himself a Rising Badge.

The Blackthorn Gym later made a brief cameo in An Egg Scramble! during Lyra's presentation of Johto at the Johto Festival.

In BWS02, Iris visited the Gym and had an exhibition match with Clair, using her Dragonite against Clair's Shiny Druddigon. After a hard-fought battle, Clair and Druddigon emerged victorious.

In the anime, the Blackthorn Gym has a retractable roof, which is used when both Clair and the opponent's Pokémon can use flight in one way or another. In the original series, the Gym battlefield also had a pool of water at its center, but in Pokémon the Series: Black & White, it is no longer there.

Pokémon used in the Gym

Used by first Blackthorn Gym Leader

Clair's Dragonite
Dragonite
Dragonite first appeared in Fangs For Nothin' and once belonged to the original Gym Leader of the Blackthorn Gym. She went on a rampage when Team Rocket tried to steal a sacred bowl of fire in Great Bowls of Fire!, but she calmed down later on in that episode.

Clair was revealed to had caught the Dragonite in A Pokémon of a Different Color!.

Dragonite's known moves are Hyper Beam, Outrage, and Whirlwind*.

Debut Fangs For Nothin'
Voice actors
Japanese Unshō Ishizuka
English Unshō Ishizuka

Used by Clair

Clair's Kingdra
Kingdra
Kingdra was used in both battles with Ash. In the first battle, Ash first decided to use Pikachu, but as Pikachu's attacks didn't have that much effect on Kingdra, Ash switched to Noctowl, who struggled against it and was close to being defeated when the match was interrupted due to Team Rocket stealing the Dragon Fang.

During the rematch, Kingdra put up a good fight against Ash's Snorlax, but was eventually beaten in endurance and taken down with an Ice Punch.

Kingdra's known moves are Twister, Hydro Pump, Agility, Swift, and Hyper Beam.

Debut Fangs for Nothin'
Clair's Gyarados
Gyarados
Gyarados is Clair's hidden powerhouse. It was seen guarding her Dratini. Later, during Ash's rematch with Clair, it managed to defeat Ash's Snorlax and put up a good fight against his Pikachu, but eventually lost to Pikachu's Thunderbolt.

Gyarados's known moves are Hydro Pump, Hyper Beam, Dragon Breath, and Bite.

Debut Beauty is Skin Deep
Voice actors
Japanese Unshō Ishizuka
English Unshō Ishizuka
Clair's Dragonair
Dragonair
Main article: Clair's Dragonair

Dragonair is Clair's main Pokémon. It first appeared as a Dratini, when it was shedding its skin and Clair was protecting it at that time. When Team Rocket tried to steal Dratini, Clair protected it which led it to evolve into a Dragonair. With its new powers, Dragonair easily defeated Team Rocket.

Clair also used her Dragonair in the rematch against Ash in Better Eight Than Never. With its speed and power, it defeated Pikachu easily. With a wide range of moves such as Dragon Rage, it proved to be a tough challenge for Charizard as well. Eventually, however, it was defeated by Charizard's Seismic Toss, earning Ash the Rising Badge.

Debut Beauty is Skin Deep
Voice actors
Japanese Megumi Hayashibara
English Megumi Hayashibara
Clair's Druddigon
Druddigon Shiny
This Shiny Druddigon first appeared in A Pokémon of a Different Color! as a wild Pokémon living in a cave in the Decolore Islands. It was attacked by Team Rocket, but blasted them off and went into a rampage. Clair was able to calm it and it decided to join her party.

Druddigon reappeared in BWS02, battling against Iris's Dragonite in an exhibition match and winning.

Druddigon's known moves are Slash, Dragon Rage, Outrage, Dragon Tail, and Flamethrower.

Debut A Pokémon of a Different Color!
Voice actors
Japanese Tsuguo Mogami
English Marc Thompson

In the manga

Blackthorn Gym in Pokémon Adventures

Pokémon Adventures

Gold, Silver & Crystal arc

The Blackthorn Gym appeared in Debonaire Dragonair, where Clair was seen battling her apprentice Ryu at the Gym, easily defeating his Seadra with her Dragonair before heading to the Dragon's Den.

Pokémon Pocket Monsters

Blackthorn Gym battlefield in Pokémon Pocket Monsters
Blackthorn Gym in Pokémon Pocket Monsters

The Blackthorn Gym appeared in The Ultimate Battle…?!. Green entered the Gym to impress Clair, but he and his Charizard were badly beaten by her. As Red and his Pokémon went inside, they had to get past a river full of lava in order to get to Clair. Even though the group was burned in the process, Clair cooled them off with a water bucket and challenged Red to a battle using Dragonair. Despite Dragonair being a tough opponent, Red was able to defeat it with Clefairy and Tyrogue, although their Double Team clones caused some trouble in the end.

Trivia

  • In the games, the Cianwood Gym, the Blackthorn Gym, and the Celadon Gym are the only Gyms that require the use of an HM, as part of a Gym puzzle, in order to progress. Cianwood and Blackthorn's Gyms require Strength in Generation II, while Celadon's requires Cut in all generations except Generation II.
  • This is the only Gym in any Pokémon game where the player doesn't obtain the Gym's Badge after defeating the Gym Leader.
  • This is one of the few places in Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver where the player is required to keep their Pokémon inside of its Poké Ball.
    • However, if the lead Pokémon in the party is fainted, the next unfainted Pokémon will be outside of its ball in the Gym.
  • In Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, the dark colored-lava on the floor of the Gym resembles a dragon, with its tail at the Gym entrance and mouth at the back of the Gym.
  • Blackthorn Gym is the only Gym in the Stadium series to have more than one Gym Trainer of the same Trainer class.
  • In Pokémon Gold and Silver, if the player obtains a Dragon Fang through trading before obtaining one from Dragon's Den and shows it to Clair, she will accuse the player of trying to cheat and not give them the Badge.
  • In Pokémon Crystal, if the player whites out due to poison damage while still inside the Dragon Shrine in Dragon's Den after receiving the Rising Badge, they can return to the Blackthorn Gym to receive the reward TM from Clair. However, if the player then returns to Dragon's Den and stands on the tile directly in front of the Dragon Shrine's door, Clair will appear again and give the player another TM24.
By ChickasaurusGL
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Gym Leaders of the Johto region
Violet Gym Zephyr Badge
Falkner OD.png
Falkner
Azalea Gym Hive Badge
Bugsy OD.png
Bugsy
Goldenrod Gym Plain Badge
Whitney OD.png
Whitney
Ecruteak Gym Fog Badge
Morty OD.png
Morty
Cianwood Gym Storm Badge
Chuck OD.png
Chuck
Olivine Gym Mineral Badge
Jasmine OD.png
Jasmine
Mahogany Gym Glacier Badge
Pryce OD.png
Pryce
Blackthorn Gym Rising Badge
Clair OD.png
Clair


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