Which Pokemon are most efficient at soloing Pokemon League rematches in Black 2 and White 2?

Question

The fastest way to get the Challenge Medals in BW2 is to grind one or two Pokemon of a type and use them for the Elite 4 rematches. If one wanted to get all nineteen of these medals, which Pokemon would be the best to do so? Please list one to two per type, and mention in your answer:

• Varied movepools that can hit as many of the League's Pokemon as possible
• Non-dependency on Move Tutors
• A beneficial defensive typing
• Experience group (how long would it take to get this Pokemon to an effective level?)
• Stat distribution as a whole
• Dual types are heavily favoured because they allow for two Challenge Medals to be obtained at once

For example, a recommendation of Excadrill would note that it's one of the strongest Steel types in the game, allowing for easier completion of an otherwise difficult typing. This joined with a high Attack stat, STAB Earthquake, and dual typing makes it a premier choice for a challenge such as this.

Thanks in advance.

Comments

Would I need one for each type, or would a dual type count as 2?

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If, theoretically, Chandelure was the most efficient Fire type but not the most efficient Ghost type, make a note of that and include a better Ghost type as well. If it *was* best for both types, it would count for both.

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By Challenge Medals are you referring to something with the Medal Box?

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Correct. More specifically, these: https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Medal_(Black_2_and_White_2)#Challenge_Medals

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**Hydreigon** for the *dark* type.

Even though you said to stay away from move tutors, most dark types won’t get coverage, but Hydreigon gets *Zen Headbutt* from the Lentimas Town move tutor. Even though it takes awhile to level it up, just give it a Lucky Egg and battle audinos and it’ll be fine.
I’d argue that if you leveled one up, I’d probably be best for Dragon as well.

I recommend a move set of:

Hydreigon Lvl.80+
Item: Choice Band/Wide Lens
Adamant Nature
 - Outrage
 - Crunch
 - Zen Headbutt
 - Thunderwave/Earthquake

(Only use Thunderwave if you go with Wide Lens)

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Why use physical over special Hydreigon?

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Converting to a comment because this isn't a complete answer. Thanks for the advice though.

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Physical over special purely for Zen Headbutt. Hydreigon doesn’t get Psychic, so it needs a way to deal with Marshal.

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https://buriedrelic.neocities.org/pages/utility_pokemon#Generation_5 has a unique answer in Gallade, which seems to offer a few advantages. Namely, its varied movepool and flinch immunity make it viable into the entire League. It is, however, only accessible after the rather long Curtis/Yancy quest. Is the time sink worth it?

It's probable that Lucario is better as a Fighting type because it also has a flinch immunity and a good movepool, as well as being available earlier. My main concern with Lucario is that it overlaps with Excadrill, who is almost undoubtedly the best Steel type available for the job. And where does this leave the Psychic type if Gallade is unused?

(This is more a rambling of thoughts than it is coherent answer. Any insight into the Gallade-Lucario-Excadrill dilemma is much appreciated.)

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More musings! All this is theoretical and I haven't actually tested any of these.

- Zangoose goes insane with Swords Dance, Return, Close Combat, and Shadow Claw. It has a couple problems (Marshall, Metagross), but this is a clear frontrunner for Normal. Doesn't need any Move Tutor moves and is remarkably self-sufficient.
- Hydreigon takes a ton of time to level up and needs a bunch of TMs, but it's probably one of the best Dragon types. The only competitor is Haxorus, which can Dragon Dance past threats and isn't weak to all the Fighting coverage in the League. Haxorus' problem is that it doesn't get you the Dark Medal.
- Ghost doesn't have a great time. Golurk and Chandelure are the only two that can exert enough power, but both are slow and weak to multiple League members. The defensive ones like Cofagrigus and Jellicent are just too passive though. Maybe Golurk to take care of Ground so Steel can be used on Lucario/Cobalion instead of Excadrill?
- Shell Smash Crustle and Carracosta are kind of funny for Rock, but probably less optimal than Swords Dance Terrakion. Unless Bug is completely starved for options other than Crustle I guess.

Answer 1

Here are what I believe to be the best of each type

Normal: Braviary is chosen because of Marshals Fighting types.

Braviary Lvl. 80+
Item: Choice Band/Muscle Band/Leftovers
Jolly Nautre
Ability: Doesn’t matter, Defiant if possible
- Brave Bird/Fly
- Return
- Superpower
- Shadow Claw

Braviary is unfortunately a White 2 Exlcusive however, so as a substitute here is an Unfezant set.

Unfezant Lvl. 90+
Item: Choice Band/Muscle Band
Adamant Nature
Ability: Super Luck
- Fly
- Return
- U-Turn
- Roost/Steel Wing

Flying: Archeops is good, but don’t let it go under half its HP.

Archeops Lvl. 80+
Item: Choice Band
Adamant Nature
Ability: Defeatist
- Rock Slide
- Fly
- Crunch
- U-Turn

Bug: Crustle has good typing for the E4.

Crustle Lvl. 80+
Item: Choice Band
Adamant Nature
Ability: Shell Armor
- X-Scissor
- Shadow Claw
- Earthquake
- Aerial Ace

Rock: Archeops again.

Grass: Whimsicott has good move type diversity and speed.

Whimsicott Lvl. 80+
Item: Choice Specs/Leftovers
Modest Nature
Ability: Prankster/Infiltrator
- Giga Drain
- Psychic/Hurricane
- Shadow Ball
- Stun Spore/U-Turn/Leech Seed

Dark: Hydreigon, I left a set in the comments

Dragon: Hydreigon again.

Ghost: A tough region for the Ghost type, I think Chandelures, 140 Special Attack can get through.

Chandelure Lvl. 80
Item: Leftovers
Modest/Bold Nature
Ability: Flame Body
- Flamethrower/Heat Wave
- Shadow Ball
- Psychic
- Will O Wisp

Just power your way through Grimsley with Flamethrower.

Fire: Darmanitan is very powerful.

Darmanitan Lvl. 80+
Item: Life Orb/Choice Band
Adamant Nature
Ability: Sheer Force
- Fire Punch
- Hammer Arm
- Zen Headbutt
- Earthquake/U-Turn

Ground: Excadrill has a nice dual typing that helps it resist dragon, psychic, dark and ghost! Just make sure to brute force your way through Marshal though with Earthquake.

Excadrill Lvl. 80+
Item: Choice Band
Adamant Nature
Ability: Sand Force
- Earthquake
- Brick Break
- Rock Slide
- Shadow Claw

Steel: Excadrill again, though Lucario could probably solo well too.

Lucario Lvl. 80+
Item: Choice Specs
Modest Nature
Ability: Inner Focus
- Aura Sphere
- Shadow Ball
- Psychic
- Dragon Pulse

Fighting: Lucario again.

Psychic: Metagross. I probably don’t need to explain why.

Metagross Lvl. 80+
Item: Choice Band
Adamant Nature
Ability: Clear Body
- Meteor Mash
- Zen Headbutt
- Brick Break
- Earthquake

Water: Samurott due to its good type diversity, and high offensive stats.

Samurott Lvl. 80+
Item: Choice Specs.
Modest Nature
Ability: Torrent
- Scald
- Ice Beam
- Air Slash
- Hidden Power Fighting/X-Scissor

Ice: Lapras has good typing and move diversity that makes it a good candidate for the best Ice type for the Unova E4

Lapras Lvl. 80+
Item: Choice Specs/Leftovers
Modest Nature
Ability: Shell Armor
- Ice Beam
- Psychic
- Signal Beam
- Thunderbolt

Electric: Not the best choices, but I think Galvantula can preform well.

Galvantula Lvl. 80+
Item: Choice Specs.
Modest Nature
Ability: Compound Eyes
- Thunder
- Bug Buzz
- Energy Ball
- Discharge

Posion: There are no really good poison attackers before Gen 5, but Crobats solid.

Crobat Lvl. 80+
Item: Choice Specs
Modest Nature
Ability: Inner Focus
- Air Slash
- Sludge Bomb
- Shadow Ball
- Heat Wave

Alright, that’s all of them, please tell me if you think these did well, or if there are any issues, moveset wise, or if there’s a better Pokémon.

Comments

Thanks for the answer, but I would need a substantial bit more information justifying these choices. For example, why would I want to use Lapras over one of the Kyurem forms? Why is Unfezant a better Normal type than Sawsbuck or Skill Link Cinccino?

Partially my bad -- I'll edit the question's wording to make it a little clearer that I would consider in-depth explanations necessary.

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I did consider skill link cinccino, but I went for Braviary due to being part flying, as Marshal could get annoying with a pure Normal type. As for Kyurem? That’s my bad, I tried to restrain from legendaries, plus Lapras gets Signal Beam and Psychic for the E4, in addition to not being weak to Iris.