Petalburg Gym & Desert

1. Entering the Route 111 Desert

After claiming the Heat Badge in Lavaridge Town and receiving the Go-Goggles from your rival, head into the raging sandstorm of Route 111. Search the scattered rocks and sand mounds throughout the desert exterior to uncover hidden supplies, and battle the wild Pokémon and trainers wandering the sands. Head to the extreme southern section below the Desert Ruins to grab the loose technical machine lying on the ground, and note the sealed entrance of the ruins that requires the Sealed Chamber quest to open.

Tip: Wild encounters range from Lv. 19 to 24 and desert trainers fight at Lv. 20 to 23, making this great for training before the next gym.

2. Ascending Mirage Tower

Step inside the shifting Mirage Tower emerging from the sands, which has a random chance to appear or disappear each time you leave and re-enter Route 111. Scale the four floors by pedaling across crumbling tiles at high speed on your Mach Bike and clearing cracked obstacles out of your way with HM06 Rock Smash.

Tip: Keep your Mach Bike at full speed so you do not drop through the cracked floor tiles while riding.

3. Choosing an Ancient Fossil

Reach the top floor (4F) of Mirage Tower to find two prehistoric relics resting side by side. Choose either the Root Fossil to resurrect a Rock/Grass-type Lileep or the Claw Fossil for a Rock/Bug-type Anorith at Rustboro City's Devon Corporation. Once you pick up your prize, the tower immediately collapses into the sand along with the remaining fossil, locking it away until the post-game at the end of the Desert Underpass behind the Fossil Maniac's house on Route 114.

Tip: You can bring your chosen fossil directly to the Devon Corporation Scientist in Rustboro City to revive your new companion.

4. Infiltrating Petalburg Gym's Lower Rooms

Travel back to Petalburg City, situated between Route 102 and Route 104, to finally challenge the local Pokémon Gym. Inside the entrance lobby, choose your starting door by picking the Speed Room on the left to fight a trainer using a Lv. 27 Swellow or the Accuracy Room on the right to battle a trainer wielding a Lv. 27 Spinda. Advance through the defeated room's doorways to access the middle tier chambers of the gym.

Tip: Gym trainers use Lv. 26 to Lv. 27 Pokémon tailored around specific battle items and combat stats.

5. Clearing the Middle and Final Chambers

Navigate through the middle tier by selecting between the Confusion Room with its Lv. 27 Kirlia, the Defense Room housing a Lv. 27 Wigglytuff, or the Recovery Room featuring a Lv. 27 Slakoth. After winning your match, move forward into the final tier to face either the Strength Room's slash attacker Vigoroth or the One-Hit KO Room's Lv. 27 Zangoose. Knock out the final trainer in your chosen route to open the path directly into the Gym Leader's sanctuary.

Tip: Pick the rooms that best match your party's strengths to minimize damage before the leader fight.

6. Defeating Norman for the Balance Badge

Enter the Leader's Room to challenge your father Norman, who commands a team of Spinda, Vigoroth, Linoone, and Slaking. Exploit the pure Fighting-type weakness shared across his Normal-type squad while watching out for Linoone's sweeping Belly Drum and Slaking's terrifying Counter and Facade. Emerge victorious to earn the Balance Badge along with TM42, then meet Wally's father as he arrives to guide you next door into Wally's home to receive HM03 Surf.

Tip: Alternate between protecting yourself with Protect or Detect during Slaking's attack turns and striking back freely on its loafing turns.

The short version

What matters

• Choosing between the Root Fossil (Lileep) and Claw Fossil (Anorith) at the top of Mirage Tower to claim a prehistoric partner.
• Defeating Gym Leader Norman to obtain the Balance Badge, TM42 Facade, and HM03 Surf from Wally's father next door.
• Scouring the deep southern desert below the Desert Ruins to find TM37 Sandstorm.

Common mistakes

• Inflicting burn or poison on Norman's Slaking; this triggers the devastating power boost of Facade against your party.
• Attempting to scale Mirage Tower without bringing both the Mach Bike for crumbling floors and HM06 Rock Smash for blocking rocks.
• Trying to grab both fossils in Mirage Tower; picking one will immediately collapse the tower and bury the other until the post-game.

What you can skip

• You do not need to battle through every side room in Petalburg Gym, as clearing a single path through each tier reaches Norman.
• Desert Ruins can be bypassed for now, as its sealed entrance cannot be opened until you tackle the Sealed Chamber quest.