Challengers compete at the roof of the Battle Tower to win as many battles as they can to increase their ranking. There are two formats: Single Battle and Double Battle, each with separate rankings independent of each other. Since the Battle Tower is built over a power spot, challengers may Dynamax their Pokémon in all battles. The challenge is designed to emulate a Ranked Battle system in which victories increase a Trainer's rank, but losses may potentially decrease it. Unlike battle facilities from previous generations, challengers do not start over after losing one battle. Instead, their ranking may fall after accumulating too many losses.
Restrictions
To participate, the player may register a Battle Team with six Pokémon of different species, and no two Pokémon can have the same held item. All battles are held under Flat Rules - any Pokémon above Lv. 50 will be set to Lv. 50. There are no special Pokémon banned from the Battle Tower, meaning Legendary Pokémon like Zacian and Mythical Pokémon like Zeraora are also eligible to participate.
Ranks and Tiers
There are eleven ranks and five tiers for challengers to advance in for either Single or Double Battles. As the player advances in rank, the opponents battled will become progressively more difficult. Unlike the online Battle Stadium ladder, once the player has obtained a rank and/or tier in the Battle Tower, it can never decrease.
The following lists the ranks that players can advance to and the tiers of each rank, with the number of wins required to advance. The listed rewards are given once the player rises to that rank and can only be obtained twice: once while playing Single Battles and once while playing Double Battles.
Reaching MAX rank requires a total of 33 wins, by which point the player will have received 187 BP (including the 2 BP reward for each individual battle won), 32 Rare Candies, seven Bottle Caps, a Gold Bottle Cap, two Ability Capsules, and eight random Mints.
Rewards
Every win at the Battle Tower awards the challenger 2 BP. In addition to the rewards for ranking up, challengers also receive the following after achieving a certain number of victories for each format.
Defeating Leon for the first time (reaching Rank 4) unlocks the IV Judge function in the player's PC and Pokémon Box Link.
- Main article: List of Battle Tower Trainers in Pokémon Sword and Shield
- Main article: List of Battle Tower Pokémon in Pokémon Sword and Shield
Leon
Leon will battle the player on the last battle before he or she advances to the next tier. Although his team is randomly selected from the following rosters, he will always use his Charizard and Gigantamax it at the first opportunity. After the player reaches Master Ball Tier, Leon will reappear after every tenth victory (including against himself), using a team from his Master Ball Tier roster.
Beginner Tier
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Reward: 2 BP
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Poké Ball Tier
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Reward: 2 BP
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Great Ball Tier
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Reward: 2 BP
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Ultra Ball Tier
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Reward: 2 BP
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Master Ball Tier
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Reward: 2 BP
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Rental teams
Players may use rental teams either downloaded online or from the receptionist on the right-hand side. All rental Pokémon from the receptionist have the maximum Dynamax Level of 10, neutral Natures, a Trainer ID number of 000000, and the Original Trainer Mr. Al Rent.
Basic Team
"This team is good for Single Battles! It’s a nice, simple team that’s built around three Pokémon close to the heart of anyone in Galar. Take a good hard look at what types of Pokémon your opponent is sending out, then choose one of these great allies to send out yourself!"
Skill Team
"This team is good for Single Battles! The Pokémon on this team know tons of moves that can help them boost their stats in battle. Send out Duraludon first and have it use Reflect or Light Screen to get a defensive advantage, then swap in others as fit for the situation!"
Tough Team
"This team is good for Single Battles! This almighty team is ready for any opponents. Of course they can unleash heavy hit after heavy hit, but if you also use their status moves wisely, then you might even be able to pull out a win against opponents that might usually put you in a real sticky situation!"
Rain Team
"This rain-ready team is good for Double Battles! Falling rain can boost the power of their moves or trigger certain Abilities, so start by sending out Pelipper first to get the rain going and get this team rolling!"
Slow Team
"This team is good for Double Battles! They might look real slow to start with, but all you need is a good Trick Room, and suddenly your slow bulky team will be a fast bulky team! Lucario will be great support if you know how to use it, so hurry straight into a Trick Room!"
