As you enter Santalune City, you'll notice a Pokemon Center. Go inside to heal
your Pokemon. Right next to the counter is a PC where you can manage your
Pokemon boxes, which hold all the Pokemon you can't fit in your immediate team.
Also, there's an attached PokeMart in the back where you can buy useful items.
Next to the Pokemon Center is a shop specializing in hats and accessories. Pretty
much everything in there is too expensive to buy at this point, so the only thing
you can do is window shop. A penny saved is a penny earned, I guess.
Walk around, talk to the people inside buildings, and you'll learn quite a bit
of useful stuff. There's a Hiker in one of the buildings who'll trade his
Farfetch'd for his Bunnelby.
In a building east of the water fountain, a little boy will give you a Great Ball.
It's like a PokeBall, but has a better chance at catching Pokemon.
North of the fountain is the Trainer's School. Inside, the instructor
will give you X Attacks and X Defenses. After that, head to the Santalune Gym
to try earning your first badge!
However, before you can enter the gym, you'll have to beat Roller Skater Rinka, who's
standing outside the doors. For beating her, she'll give you Roller Skates.
You're on Roller Skates when you using the control stick. It's quite a bit faster
than running. Now, enter the Gym!
Bug Badge
This is the first of eight gyms in eight big cities you'll be going to. Each gym
is filled with tough trainers using Pokemon of a particular type who you'll have
to beat before you get to the Gym Leader. Beat the Gym Leader and you'll
receive a badge. Only after collecting all eight badges will you be able to
complete the game.
Santalune Gym is all about Bug-type Pokemon, which Fire and Flying-type Pokemon
are strongest against. Once inside, slide down the pole and you'll end up in the
middle of a huge web. Careful though — once you get to this point, you can't leave
the gym to heal your Pokemon without getting knocked out. Walk along paths on
the web to get to trainers to fight.
You can choose to skip most of these trainers if you want to, but I recommend
battling them all for fun and experience.
At the end of the web trail is the Gym Leader, Violet. Gym Leaders are typically
much stronger than the average trainer. I recommend saving the game so you can
quickly start over in case your Pokemon get knocked out. Before she battles you,
she'll take a quick photo of you.
Leader Violet uses a lv. 10 Surskit and
a lv. 12 Vivillon. After defeating Violet,
she'll award you with your first badge, the Bug Badge. Additionally, she'll give
you TM83 Infestation, which her Vivillon used on you.
A path will open behind her.
Follow that to get out of the gym.
If you feel like it, head east to Route 22 to fight some trainers and meet some wild
Pokemon. Otherwise, skip north to Route 4.
Right before entering Route 4, Alexa, Violet's sister, will give you Exp. Share.
This is one of the best items in the game. Whenever a Pokemon of yours gains
experience in a battle, the rest of the Pokemon on your team each get half that
experience for free!
Route 22
Route 22 is filled with trainers to battle, so it's perfect for training your
Pokemon. You won't be able to pass through the gate at the end of the route that
leads to Victory Road. Patience, young grasshopper. Time to go back to Route 4!
Route 4
Once you enter Route 4, go into the maze on the left to pick up a Repel and an Antidote.
When you use Repel, you can prevent wild Pokemon from interrupting you. You'll
find a Super Potion and Great Ball in the right maze.
You'll soon get to a beautiful water fountain with a few skaters you can battle.
Past that, you'll enter the second half of the route, where you'll fight more trainers
and pick up a few more items, like a Poison Barb, a
Net Ball, and an Ether.
At the end of the route you'll bump into two of Professor Sycamore's assistants.
They'll introduce you to the new Fairy-type Pokemon and lead you into Lumiose City,
where you'll meet the Professor. As you pass through the gate, they'll give you
TM27 Return.