Of all of the original games' iconic elements, the most well-known is the final battle against Champion Cynthia, and thankfully the remakes, Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, handle the battle against her very well. The long-awaited remakes to the classic Nintendo DS games were recently released for Nintendo Switch with a focus on staying as faithful as possible to the originals. Still, as with all remakes, some elements have been updated or outright changed to keep up with the changing gaming landscape.
Some of the games’ changes have been met with general approval, such as Pokémon following their Trainers on the overworld and character customization. But other changes have led to unintended glitches in Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, which have received a far more mixed response. While some players look to the bright side and feel the glitches will make speed runs more fun to watch and perform, others are concerned that the glitches exist at all.
One such glitch allows players to skip most battles and still complete the game, including skipping the final battle with Pokémon BDSP’s Champion Cynthia. Thankfully, these glitches are difficult to come across without actively trying to achieve them, so most players will get to challenge Cynthia as the game developers intended. Under normal circumstances, Cynthia has a powerful team of six Pokémon like any other Pokémon series Champion. But even on initial playthroughs, her team sports specific Natures and held items that make each team member the strongest it can be. This is elevated during subsequent challenges, keeping the battle against Cynthia difficult like most players remember from the original Pokémon Diamond and Pearl.
Cynthia's Competitive Level Team In Pokémon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl
During players’ first battle against Champion Cynthia in Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, her team will consist of six Pokémon ranging in level between 60 and 66. Instead of using neutral Natures, all of her Pokémon have a Nature that boosts a helpful stat and lowers a less important stat like players themselves would try to breed for their Pokémon. Each of Cynthia’s Pokémon has a moveset that works alongside their Nature, too. For example, Lucario can be used as a physical or special attacker, or sometimes even a mixed attacker. But Cynthia uses it as a special attacker, with a Timid Nature to lower its physical Attack in exchange for more Speed, and its three attacking moves all use its Special Attack to calculate damage. It even knows the set-up move Nasty Plot to further increase its Special Attack, and holds the Wise Glasses item to increase its damage even more.
All of the Elite Four in Pokémon BDSP have their teams decked out with competitive-level items from Life Orbs to Leftovers, and Cynthia is no exception. Fairy-types are actually somewhat rare in the Sinnoh region, so the Champion opts for a Yache Berry on her ace Garchomp to help it tank a super effective Ice-type attack, possibly while setting up Swords Dance for a sweep. Cynthia has even more impressive combos up her sleeve with Flame Orb on her Milotic, which activates its Marvel Scale Ability to increase its already impressive Defense.
Things only get tougher when the player tries to rematch Cynthia in Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl. Her teammates’ levels increase all the way up to 88, matching the series’ highest, Red’s Pikachu in HeartGold and SoulSilver, and she even rotates out a few members. With a Serene Grace Togekiss and powerhouse Porygon-Z, Cynthia’s team becomes incredibly balanced and practically ready to tackle competitive single battles. Defeating her comes down to players strategizing with their own balanced and well-thought-out teams.