Gyms, badges and level caps

TalonMC runs six gyms with badge progression and level caps. How to prepare, and why type coverage matters more than one strong Pokemon.

Gyms are the progression spine. They gate content, they set your level cap, and they are the reason a balanced team beats one overlevelled carry.

Six gyms

TalonMC runs six gyms, each with a themed team and a badge reward. Clearing a gym raises your level cap and opens the next tier of content.

Level caps

Your Pokemon cannot exceed the cap tied to your badge count. This is deliberate: it stops you grinding past the challenge, and it means every gym is a real fight rather than a formality. A Pokemon that has stopped gaining levels has hit the cap.

Preparing for a gym run

1. Build six with coverage, not one carry. Read the type chart and bring at least two Pokemon that resist the leader's type.
2. Bring healing items. You generally cannot step out mid-battle to heal.
3. Use status moves. Sleep and paralysis swing a close gym fight harder than raw damage.
4. Mind the cap. Being under-levelled is recoverable; there is no shortcut around the cap.

After the badges

Gyms are the beginning, not the end. Dungeons, PokeHunts, bingo and ranked battling are where a finished team actually gets used.