Chapter 13: Victory Road and the Indigo Conference

With eight Kanto Badges you can enter the Victory Road gate and take part in the Indigo Conference. This is the end of the Kanto story: after your first Hall of Fame entry the game moves on to Johto.

Main quest in this chapter: pass the qualifiers on Victory Road (uncover the League staff member disguised as a competitor and learn the password), win the tournament matches on the Indigo Plateau and the League HQ plaza, beat the Elite Four and the final against Blue, and enter the Hall of Fame.

You need the Earth Badge to get in (the gate guard only checks that one), and you must have sold or tossed all Escape Ropes before the receptionist lets you into the cave.

Hidden items along the way

Optional stops in this chapter’s locations. Some spots may need a return visit; check the location notes for access limitations.

Open a location for item names, directions and available screenshots.

• Victory Road — 2 spots
• Victory Road 2F — 3 spots
• Victory Road 3F — 2 spots
• Indigo Plateau — 1 spot
• Indigo Plateau (Indigo Conference stage one) — 1 spot

Browse all hidden items

Walkthrough

The Victory Road gate and the qualifiers. Walk into the middle of the hall: at the opening ceremony the MC explains the rules. A League staff member is disguised as one of the competitors, and you must find out who to learn the password. The receptionist at the cave door in the north of the hall turns you back if you still carry Escape Ropes (sell them to the clerk beside her). Beat Ninja Girl Janine on Victory Road 2F first: only then does the right Trainer on 3F, chosen by your gender, starter and Route 11 choice (see the quest’s table), reveal the password. Give the password to the staff member at the exit on 3F after beating the two guards in a Double Battle.

On Victory Road 1F, on the west side, an item ball is actually a wild Lv. 70 Electrode.

Opens up:

• Victory Road: the Indigo Conference qualifiers (find the hidden staff member)
• Victory Road 1F: the fake item ball (Lv. 70 Electrode)

Technical source (script files and flags)

guide/06 q-0155 (script files 763 scripts 3, 4, 34, 110 scripts 8, 11, 13, 14, 18-21, 109 (Janine #564)); guide/01 q-0020 (script file 109 script 9: WildBattle 101 Lv. 70 Electrode, own hide flag 1241; the 1F item ball at 21,40 has no other story flag: zone 124 listing, landmarks; the Blue and Yellow objects of the final chapter are hidden by flag 2311, the ball is not). UNVERIFIED: that every player walks over 1F during the qualifiers (the gate’s south door is 46,59 on 1F, the stairs up are at 19,4/19,5).

The main tournament. Your friends gather one by one on the slope above the Victory Road exit; talk to Blue, Green/Red, Misty, Cynthia and Steven, then to the MC at the top. Round one is a fight against Goh on the Water Field (Lv. 80). Blue then asks whether you will cheer for Misty or Steven: this choice matters for the romance route (cheering for one closes the other’s route; skipping both closes both). The tournament then moves to the League HQ plaza: a battle against Steven and a semifinal against Karen.

Opens up:

• Indigo Plateau: the Indigo Conference main tournament and the “who do you cheer for?” choice (romance)

Technical source (script files and flags)

guide/06 q-0156 (script file 923 slope MC script 7; file 900 script 1/7 L985 TrainerBattle 986 (Goh), L2778 sets 2155 (Steven closed), L3867 sets 2142 (Misty closed), ‘No’ sets both; file 899 stage two TrainerBattle 635, 636).

The final: the Elite Four and Blue. President Goodshow congratulates the last two finalists (you and Blue): the final is decided by how many of the Elite Four each of you beats, and tied scores are settled by a battle against each other. The final is held in the Elite Four’s rooms inside the League HQ building (a trip to HQ first lets you heal and change your team). Beat the Elite Four and then Blue, who is already League Champion and demands to be beaten first; each of them lets you choose Singles or Doubles. Goodshow declares you both outstanding Champions, and Lance leads you to the Hall of Fame.

Opens up:

• Cinnabar Gym: Blaine rematch (after your first Hall of Fame)

Technical source (script files and flags)

script files 899 (L4996-L5013: Goodshow, ‘the final will be decided by how many of the Elite Four each of you defeats’), 821 (Blue lines @134-@254, TrainerBattle 261 singles/doubles @1228/@1293, Blue’s concession and Goodshow @1724-@1750), 822 (first entry L20-L316, HallOfFameAnim). File 822: first entry is the game-clear flag 2404; the final entry later sets 2261. UNVERIFIED: the Elite Four rooms’ own scripts were not read in this pass.

End of the Kanto story. The Hall of Fame entry marks the game as cleared. Several repeatable extras open: the Elite Four’s and Blue’s practice battles, Sabrina’s and Blaine’s rematches, and for Pikachu starters the Pidgeot you lent in the Viridian Forest can now be collected. Giovanni’s duel in Cerulean Cave comes next, then Mt. Silver, New Bark Town and Johto (the next chapters).

Technical source (script files and flags)

guide/07 q-0197 ‘The Hall of Fame: what your two entries unlock’ (first entry, flag 2404); guide/01 q-0015 (loan return needs flag 2404, script file 115 L5794); guide/05 q-0131 (script file 15 L873, L1140-L1811, flag 2404), q-0120 (file 826 script 11, flag 2404).

Quests in this chapter

Open the ones you want; tick Done to hide them. Filters at the top apply to this whole page.

Victory Road: the Indigo Conference qualifiers (find the hidden staff member)

Victory Road Main quest

The gate guard only lets you in with the Earth Badge. You must have no Escape Ropes in your Bag to enter the cave. The qualifier Trainers are Lv. 73-75.

Where: the Victory Road gate (north of the League reception gate between Route 22 and Route 26), then Victory Road 2F and 3F.

Who gets it / when: end of Kanto, the first time you enter the gate. The guard a few steps inside the gate’s south entrance (the door from the League reception gate) only lets you in with the Earth Badge (he talks about “eight Badges”, but the Earth Badge is the only one he actually checks).

How it works:

1. Opening ceremony. Walk north into the middle of the hall, where the competitors are gathered, and the MC explains the rules. A League staff member is disguised as one of the competitors. Beat that person to learn the password. You must uncover the disguised staff member to advance; knowing the number alone does not skip the trial.
2. No Escape Ropes. The receptionist standing in front of the cave door at the north end of the hall asks if you’ve got rid of your Escape Ropes. If any are still in your Bag she turns you back. Sell them to the clerk just beside her and talk to her again.
3. Beat Janine on 2F first. Ninja Girl Janine stands openly on Victory Road 2F, west side, a few steps north of the stairs up from 1F: Crobat, Venomoth, Ditto, Swalot, all Lv. 75. Beating her is what unlocks the reveal on 3F. After the battle she disappears.
4. Find the disguised Janine on 3F. Misty (south-east corner of 3F, near the stairs from 2F) passes on Green’s/Red’s hint: “Just because you’ve seen someone doesn’t mean they’re who you saw.” Once you’ve beaten Janine on 2F, talk to one particular 3F Trainer. It doesn’t matter whether you’ve battled them before. Who it is depends on your gender, your starter and your Route 11 choice (Route 11: cut the grass or save it):

You	Starter	Route 11: sided with the grass cutter	sided with the environmentalist	made no choice
Male	Charmander	Gentleman Alfred	Aroma Lady Wendy¹	Ruin Maniac Axel
Male	Pikachu	Aroma Lady Wendy	Firebreather Damon	Lady Danica
Male	Bulbasaur	Firebreather Damon	Lady Danica	Aroma Lady Wendy
Female	Charmander	Lady Danica	Aroma Lady Wendy	Firebreather Damon
Female	Pikachu	Firebreather Damon (Lady Danica if the S.S. Anne sank)	Ruin Maniac Axel	Gentleman Alfred
Female	Bulbasaur	Ruin Maniac Axel	Gentleman Alfred	Gentleman Alfred

¹ If the S.S. Anne sank (S.S. Anne: defuse the bomb), Ruin Maniac Axel also works.

Where they stand on 3F:

• Gentleman Alfred (“This old man will take on any young challenger!”): the middle of the floor, south-west of the exit guards.
• Aroma Lady Wendy: the west side.
• Ruin Maniac Axel: the south side, a few steps north of the stairs that come up from the south end of 2F.
• Lady Danica: the south side, a few steps east of Axel.
• Firebreather Damon: a few steps south-east of the exit guards.

The right Trainer greets you with a new line (Wendy: “Did you come over because you caught a whiff of my perfume?”; Damon: “Behold my Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!”) and battles you. Beat them and Janine reveals herself: your password is 570819. A wrong Trainer battles you if you haven’t beaten them yet, and otherwise just gives their usual line (Axel, for one, says he hasn’t found the staff member either). All five are Lv. 73–74 two-Pokémon teams. 5. The exit guards. With the real password, the two Trainers blocking the exit path fight you: a double battle against Ace Trainer Shane (Gastrodon, Clefairy, Hippowdon, Gallade, Lv. 75) and Guitarist Del (Tyranitar, Golem, Aerodactyl, Probopass, Lv. 75). After the win they stay put: talk to either of them again from the south and he steps aside. 6. Give the password to the staff member standing in the exit at the north end of 3F. You pass and go up to the Indigo Plateau. Reward: entry to the main tournament (next entry).

Notes: any lost battle whites you out; the qualifier state is kept, so just go back. Without beating Janine on 2F first, nobody on 3F reveals anything, and that is the usual reason players get stuck. Firebreather Damon may give you a fake password (“Specious”) instead; the exit guards just laugh at it. Use the table to find the disguised Janine.

Technical source (script files and flags)

script file 763 (scripts 3, 4, 34; L2977, L3207, L6234 Escape Rope check; obj 28 is the Mart), file 110 (scripts 8, 11, 13, 14, 18–21; L4251–L4668 and L8952–L10163 starter/gender branches; flags 1287–1289, 1610, 1895, 1093; L10157 sets 1496 = real password; L5224 passes the qualifier; e.g. Wendy L4390 checks Janine’s flag 1924, then the right branch goes straight to L9177, the reveal battle, without needing her first-battle flag 1927), file 109 / VR 2F events (Janine #564 at ≈9,24, object hidden by her trainer flag 1924), file 197 (Route 11 sets 1610 / 1895). Fake password: Damon’s ordinary branch @9293–9332 (TrainerBattle 561, “Specious” @9325, sets 1921); the exit dialogue always uses 570819 (@1014/@5049/@5143) and checks no flag itself: the exit guards (scripts 19, 20) block the way and only battle you with flag 1496 (L4720, TrainerBattle 579 506, sets 1939); after that, talking to them from y = 24 moves one aside (L4690 → L9705, L4863 → L9719). Gate: zone 299 is the League reception gate (exits to Route 22, Route 26 and Route 28). Positions: gate guard ≈17,38, hall ≈25,20, receptionist ≈24,11, clerk ≈23,12; 3F: Damon ≈42,27, exit guards ≈38–39,23, exit staff ≈38,14, Misty ≈54,42, Alfred ≈29,32, Wendy ≈11,36, Axel ≈22,39, Danica ≈29,38.

Victory Road 1F: the fake item ball (Lv. 70 Electrode)

Victory Road Side quest

Where: an item ball on the west side of Victory Road 1F, level with the spot where Blue stands (about 20 steps west of him).

How it works: checking it starts a wild battle against an Electrode, Lv. 70. Winning, catching or fleeing removes it. Losing means a white-out and it stays (fleeing and losing tested in an emulator).

Technical source (script files and flags)

script file 109 (script 9, flag 1241; ball at 21,40; CheckBattleWon counts a flee as a win). Emulator: emu_harness.py guide0107 --case electrode.

Indigo Plateau: the Indigo Conference main tournament and the “who do you cheer for?” choice (romance)

Indigo Plateau Main quest

Do first: Victory Road: the Indigo Conference qualifiers (find the hidden staff member).

Where: the Indigo Plateau, after the qualifiers.

How it works:

1. Your friends arrive one by one on the slope above the Victory Road exit. Talk to Blue, Green/Red and Misty, Cynthia and Steven as they come up, then talk to the MC at the top of the slope (just above Blue). He starts the tournament once all 16 finalists are there.
2. Round one: you face Goh on the Water Field (One-Ball Man Goh: Dragonite, Lucario, Charizard, Sceptile, Infernape, Pikachu, all Lv. 80). A loss whites you out.
3. Blue then asks whether you’re coming to cheer for Misty or Steven. This choice matters for the romance route (central romance entry):

Choice	Effect
Cheer for Misty	you watch Misty’s match. Steven’s route closes.
Cheer for Steven	you watch Steven’s match. Misty’s route closes.
No, get ready for my match	both Misty’s and Steven’s routes close.

Misty is a partner for male players, Steven for female players, so a male player who wants Misty should cheer for Misty and a female player who wants Steven should cheer for Steven. The Island Forest wish can reopen a closed route later. 4. Stage two moves up to the League HQ plaza: you face Steven (Skarmory, Aggron, Claydol, Armaldo, Cradily, Metagross, Lv. 82–83), then the semifinal against Karen (Skuntank, Weavile, Absol, Houndoom, Honchkrow, Zoroark, Lv. 84–85). Nurses on the plaza heal you between rounds. Reward: the story continues. There is no item for the choice.

Technical source (script files and flags)

script file 923 (slope MC script 7 at ≈912,227, waits on flags 1505/1515/1422/1421, then warps you to the plaza), file 900 (script 1/7 L1606–L1734 and L8497–L8569; L2778 sets 2155 (Steven closed), L3867 sets 2142 (Misty closed), “No” sets both at L1678/L1682; round one is script 1 L985 TrainerBattle 986 (Goh, Lv. 80); the Lv. 76–77 copy at L7876 TrainerBattle 562 only runs if you talk to the MC inside the plaza, which you can’t), file 899 (stage two TrainerBattle 635, 636), file 815 (plaza hub); romance flags checked in files 758 (Misty) and 923 (Steven).

Cinnabar Gym: Blaine rematch (after your first Hall of Fame)

Cinnabar Island Side quest

Opens after your first Hall of Fame entry.

After your first Hall of Fame entry, talk to Blaine in the Gym for a rematch: choose a single or a double battle (a double needs two Pokémon). Repeatable. On Thursdays after your final Hall of Fame entry (the one after you beat Giovanni at League HQ), he’s outside instead, a few steps east of the Pokémon Center door, offering a souvenir photo.

Technical source (script files and flags)

script files 15 (L873, L1140–L1811, L808; flag 2404; the Thursday swap needs flag 2261, script 10 → L808), 812 (script 22, L4708, gated by flag 2261 at L2920). Photo spot ≈1035,505.