Pokemon Scarlet/Violet: How to Defeat Dendra in the Academy Ace Tournament

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet offer many activities throughout its main storyline. These include discovering and defeating the recently surfaced Titan Pokemon, breaking down the enigmatic Team Star, emerging victorious against all of the Gym Leaders in the region, participating in the Pokemon League to become a Champion, and becoming the very best like no one ever was, and capturing all of the Pokemon to complete the Paldea region’s Pokedex.

Even after accomplishing these impressive achievements and witnessing the end credits, numerous opportunities remain to pursue. These include challenging the Gym Leaders, former Team Star squads, and their bosses to a rematch. One notable event to participate in is the Academy Ace Tournament.

This guide will teach you to defeat Dendra in the Academy Ace Tournament!

The Academy Ace Tournament

To commemorate the player’s achievement of becoming the Paldea Champion, Nemona and the Pokemon League arrange the Academy Ace Tournament. The Academy Ace Tournament will only begin after defeating all of the Gym Leaders in the region again.

However, Top Champion Geeta will request the player’s assistance before participating in the tournament. She needs the player to challenge all the Paldea Pokemon Gym Leaders to ensure their abilities are sufficient.

Speak to the staff member dressed in blue next to a Gengar in the Entrance Hall of the Academy in Mesagoza and register for the tournament. The tournament comprises four consecutive battles against Pokemon Trainers, which will be students or faculty members of the academy. The player must win each battle to be proclaimed the academy’s ace and the ultimate champion.

In the player’s first attempt, the player faces a pre-selected group of Trainers: Arven, Jacq, Dendra, and Top Champion Geeta.

However, in subsequent attempts, four different Trainers will be chosen randomly from a pool of Trainers. These include Arven, Jacq, Dendra, Hassel, Tyme, Miriam, Raifort, Saguaro, Salvatore, Penny, Director Clavell, and Nemona.

During the Academy Ace Tournament, players cannot alter their Pokemon party once the competition starts. However, the player’s Pokemon will be restored to full health, and their Tera Orb will be recharged after each round.

Rewards

Winning all four rounds of the Academy Ace Tournament initially offers money, EXP points and unlocks a Sporty Cap (Pokemon League). It also allows the player access to 6-Star Tera Raids (if they also finished ten 4-Star Tera Raid battles).

After that, the player will receive a random prize for the next subsequent wins of the whole tournament. The player is awarded the following: up to 10 Rare Candies, max three Nuggets, one Big Nugget, up to three PP Ups, a PP Max, three random Vitamins, three random Tera Shards, a rare Apriball (Beast Ball, Dream Ball, Fast Ball, a Friend Ball, Level Ball, Lure Ball, or Moon Ball), a random nature Mint, a Bottle Cap, a Gold Bottle Cap, or a scarce Ability Patch.

Dendra

Prepare for battle as Dendra, the Battle Studies teacher, faces the player in the Academy Ace Tournament’s third round!

Dendra will use six Fighting-type Pokemon: a Level 65 Falinks, two Level 65 Tauros’, a Level 65 Medicham, a Level 65 Hawlucha, and a Level 66 Hariyama with a Psychic Tera-Type.

Dendra’s Falinks

Since Falinks is a Fighting-type Pokemon, it is weak (super effective) to Fairy-type, Flying-type, and Psychic-type moves. It is also resistant (not very effective) to Bug-type, Dark-type, and Rock-type moves.

Dendra’s Falinks will use the following moves: 

• Close Combat is a physical Fighting-type move with 120 Power and 100 Accuracy that, along with dealing damage, also lowers the attacking Pokemon’s Defence and Special Defence stats by one stage.
  
• Smart Strike is a physical Steel-type move with 70 Power and will never miss.
  
• Zen Headbutt is a physical Psychic-type move with 80 Power and 90 Accuracy that, in addition to dealing damage, also has a 20% chance of causing the target Pokemon to flinch.
  
• First Impression is a physical Bug-type move with 90 Power and 100 Accuracy, which deals damage if used in the first turn where Falinks enters the battle. Also, this move has +2 priority, allowing it to move faster than most.

Aside from its moves, Dendra’s Falinks has the Battle Armor ability, which protects it from Critical Hits.

Dendra’s Tauros (Blaze)

One of Dendra’s Tauros is a Blaze Breed form. Hence, it is a Fighting and Fire-type Pokemon, making it weak (super effective) to Ground-type, Flying-type, Psychic-type, and Water-type moves. It is also resistant (not very effective) to Dark-type, Fire-type, Grass-type, Ice-type, Steel-type, and especially Bug-type moves.

Dendra’s Tauros Blaze Breed form will use the following moves: 

• Earthquake is a physical Ground-type move with 100 Power and 100 Accuracy that hits all Pokemon on the battlefield and deals double damage if a Pokemon uses the move Dig.
  
• Raging Bull is a physical Normal-type move with 90 Power and 100 Accuracy. It is an attack that can change between Fighting-type, Fire-type, or Water-type depending on the Pokemon using the move’s type. Also, aside from dealing with damage, this attack will destroy the protective barriers active in the battle.
  
• Zen Headbutt is a physical Psychic-type move with 80 Power and 90 Accuracy that deals damage and has a 20% chance of causing the opposing Pokemon to flinch.
  
• Close Combat is a physical Fighting-type move with 120 Power and 100 Accuracy that, aside from dealing damage, also lowers the Defense and Special Defense stat of the Pokemon using the move by one stage.

Dendra’s Tauros (Blaze) has Intimidate, which lowers the opposing Pokemon’s Attack stat by one stage whenever Tauros enters the battle.

Dendra’s Tauros (Aqua)

Dendra’s other Tauros is an Aqua Breed form. Hence, it is a Fighting and Water-type Pokemon, which means it is weak (super effective) to Electric-type, Fairy-type, Flying-type, Grass-type, and Psychic-type moves and resistant (not very effective) to the Bug-type, Dark-type, Fire-type, Ice-type, Rock-type, Steel-type, and Water-type moves.

• Raging Bull is a physical Normal-type move with 90 Power and 100 Accuracy. Depending on the Pokemon using the move’s type, it can change its type between Fighting, Fire, or Water. Also, in addition to dealing with damage, this attack will break the protective barriers active in the battle. Dendra’s Tauros Aqua Breed will use the following moves:
  
• Close Combat is a physical Fighting-type move with 120 Power and 100 Accuracy. Alongside dealing damage, it also lowers the user’s Defense and Special Defense stat by one stage.
  
• Rock Slide is a physical Rock-type move with 75 Power and 90 Accuracy. Alongside dealing damage, it also has a 30% chance of causing the opposing Pokemon to flinch.
  
• Aqua Jet is a physical Water-type move with 40 Power and 100 Accuracy that moves quickly.

Dendra’s Tauros (Aqua) has the Intimidate Ability that lowers the opposing Pokemon’s Attack stat by one stage.

Dendra’s Medicham

Medicham is a Fighting and Psychic-type Pokemon, which is weak (super effective) to Fairy-type, Flying-type, and Ghost-type moves. It is also resistant (not very effective) to Fighting-type and Rock-type moves.

Dendra’s Medicham will use the following moves:

• Axe Kick is a physical Fighting-type move with 120 Power and 90 Accuracy. Alongside dealing damage, it can confuse the opposing Pokemon if the move lands. If the move misses, the Pokemon who uses it will take damage equal to half of its maximum HP.
  
• Zen Headbutt is a physical Psychic-type move with 80 Power and 90 Accuracy. Alongside dealing damage, it has a 20% chance of causing the opposing Pokemon to flinch.
  
• Ice Punch is a physical Ice-type move with 75 Power and 100 Accuracy. Alongside dealing damage, it has a 10% chance to inflict Freeze on the opposing Pokemon.
  
• Thunder Punch is a physical Electric-type move with 75 Power and 100 Accuracy. Alongside dealing damage, it has a 10% chance of inflicting Paralyze on the opposing Pokemon.

Dendra’s Hawlucha

Hawlucha is a Fighting and Flying-type Pokemon, meaning it is weak (super effective) to Electric-type, Fairy-type, Flying-type, Ice-type, and Psychic-type moves, resistant (not very effective) to Dark-type, Fighting-type, Grass-type, and especially Bug-type moves, and immunity (no effect) to Ground-type moves.

Dendra’s Hawlucha will use the following moves: 

• Flying Press is a physical Fighting-type move with 100 Power and 95 Accuracy and is an attack considered both a Flying-type and a Fighting-type move.
  
• Rock Tomb is a physical Rock-type move with 60 Power and 95 Accuracy. Alongside dealing damage, it lowers the Speed stat of the opposing Pokemon by one stage.
  
• X-Scissor is a physical Bug-type move with 80 Power and 100 Accuracy.
  
• Iron Head is a physical Steel-type move with 80 Power and 100 Accuracy. Alongside dealing damage, it has a 30% chance of causing the target Pokemon to flinch.

Aside from its moves, Dendra’s Hawlucha has the Ability called Limber, which prevents the Pokemon with the Ability from being paralyzed.

Dendra’s Hariyama

Hariyama is a Fighting-type Pokemon with a Fighting Tera-Type. As Dendra will Terastallize her Hariyama, it is weak (super effective) to Fairy-type, Flying-type, and Psychic-type moves and resistant (not very effective) to Bug-type, Dark-type, and Rock-type moves.

Dendra’s Hariyama will use the following moves: 

• Close Combat is a physical Fighting-type move with 120 Power and 100 Accuracy. Alongside dealing damage, it lowers the user’s Defense and Special Defense stat by one stage.
  
• Earthquake is a physical Ground-type move with 100 Power and 100 Accuracy that hits all of the Pokemon on the battlefield and deals double damage if a Pokemon uses the move Dig.
  
• Stone Edge is a physical Rock-type move with 100 Power and 80 Accuracy and has a 1-stage increased Critical Hit ratio.
  
• Heavy Slam is a physical Steel-type move with 100 Accuracy that has a power based on the opposing Pokemon’s weight. So, the lighter the opposing Pokemon is, the greater the Power will be. The lowest its Power can go is 20, which is if the opposing Pokemon is 50% of the Pokemon using the move’s weight, and the highest its Power can go is 120, which is if the opposing Pokemon’s weight is less than 20% of the Pokemon using the move.

Again, as Dendra will Terastallize Hariyama, its Fighting-type move, Close Combat, will be boosted.

Tips

As Dendra’s Pokemon are Level 65 and 66, it is recommended that the player use Pokemon that are Level 67 and higher with Flying-type moves as they will deal super effective damage to all of Dendra’s Pokemon.

Additionally, Fairy-type and Psychic-type moves would also help as Fairy-type moves will deal super-effective damage to all of Dendra’s Pokemon except the Blaze Breed Tauros, and Psychic-type moves will deal super-effective damage to all of Dendra’s Pokemon except the Medicham.

The player’s Pokemon will be healed, and the player’s Tera Orb will be recharged after defeating Dendra in the third round. Then, the player should be prepared to face Top Champion Geeta in the fourth round!