Pokemon Gyms
In Pokemon GO, Pokemon Gyms are team bases where Pokemon Trainers leave their Pokemon to defend and battle opposing teams. Up to six Pokemon can be left to defend a Pokemon Gym, but only one Pokemon per Trainer can be chosen to defend a Gym.
Pokemon Gyms also have PokeStops attached to them that can be spun every five minutes. If your team is defending the Gym, you will receive a bonus when spinning the PokeStop.
The newer Pokemon EX Raid Gyms will also house Raid Bosses at specific times of the day. An egg with a timer will appear that hatches a Raid Boss once the timer reaches zero. A Gym cannot be battled once the Raid Boss has hatched. Wait for the new timer to reach zero before challenge the Gym.
Pokemon Trainers from friendly teams can feed berries to the Pokemon defending the Gym. Feeding berries will restore the health of the Pokemon, and will give your Trainer XP and Stardust. It will take many regular berries to restore a Pokemon’s health, or a single Golden Razz Berry to fully restore a Pokemon’s health.
Trainers from opposing teams can battle the Pokemon defending the Gym. The Pokemon defending the Gym will be controlled by AI, but the Pokemon challenging the Gym are controlled by their Trainer. Up to six Pokemon can be chosen for a challenger’s team. Each defending Pokemon has a 99 second time limit in battle to be defeated. Your Pokemon can be switched to other Pokemon in your team during battle, and items cannot be used once the challenge begins. If your Pokemon are unable to defeat the Gym Pokemon, Gym battles can be ended early by leaving them.
Although six Pokemon can defend a Pokemon Gym, only four will be battled back to back. The 99 second timer will reset between Pokemon, but HP and charged attack progress will carry over. After all four Pokemon have been defeated, all six Pokemon defending the Gym will have their CP reduced by 1/3rd, unless the defending Pokemon’s HP was already low before the battle began.
Tap the opposing Pokemon to use Fast Attacks and begin charging up the Charged Attack(s). Tap the Charged Attack icon when ready to perform the stronger ability. Fast attacks can’t be used for a few seconds while the Charged Attack is being performed.
Once a Pokemon has been defeated in battle, their overall CP will drop. A Pokemon will leave the Gym after a max of three battles. Remember, Pokemon have certain types that are stronger or weaker to other types in both attack and defense. Refer to the Type Chart below. Credit to Reddit user Alpha Nation.
Once all six Pokemon have fainted at a Gym, the Gym can be claimed for the winning Team. If no team claims it, another team can leave their Pokemon and claim it. The Gym Tower will change colors, teammates can leave their Pokemon to defend the Gym, and Trainers from the same team will get a bonus when spinning the PokeStop. Opposing Team Trainers can also challenge the Gym before all six Pokemon have filled up the defending spots.
A defending Pokemon can be viewed from your Pokemon Storage menu. This is also a quick way to return to the Gym without having to physically be there. After a defending Pokemon faints, they will return to their Trainer with 0 HP and some Gold Coins. One Gold Coin will be earned every 10 minutes to a max of 50 Gold Coins. Gold Coins are used to buy items from the in-game shop.
