Byron: Canalave City's Steel Gym Leader, a family of miners

Byron was a miner before he was a Gym Leader. He runs the Gym in Canalave City, champions the Steel type and ran the mine in Oreburgh City before handing the keys over to Roark, who happens to be his son. His own father is none other than the old Underground Man of Eterna City: three generations working underground.

Contents

• Canalave City, the Mine Badge and the Steel type
• Three generations in the tunnels
• Iron Island, his mine and his training ground
• Battling him again: the Battleground and the World Tournament
• In the anime: family matters
• In the manga: he strikes first and checks later
• Byron at a glance
• Frequently Asked Questions

Canalave City, the Mine Badge and the Steel type

The Trainer who gets the better of Byron leaves with the Mine Badge. It is the sixth of the eight rewards you need to collect in Sinnoh before earning the right to challenge the Elite Four, at the regional Pokémon League.

His documented roster in the video games numbers sixteen Pokémon, the vast majority of them Steel types: Bastiodon and Bronzong lead the way, followed by Bronzor, Skarmory, Magneton and Magnezone, Metagross, Steelix, Forretress, Scizor or Excadrill. A few guests broaden the lineup, including Heatran, Empoleon, Pelipper, Aggron and Moltres.

Physically, you can't mistake him for anyone: a never-combed mop of dark pink hair, a white T-shirt under a brown cape, gray pants with yellow stripes at the knees, heavy work boots. A World Tournament regular sums him up in one line: the man never lets go of his shovel.

⚙️ The Steel type has its own section: see the Pokémon figures.

Three generations in the tunnels

The Oreburgh Mine was his business for a long time. Byron ran it before handing its management over to Roark, a successor who wasn't chosen at random, since he's his son.

The family line goes back one step further. His father is the old Underground Man of Eterna City, and the family also includes a wife whose name is never given, but whose wedding anniversary drives an episode of the anime.

In fact, the Gym Leader post came down to a refusal. Byron had offered Riley a Gym; the Trainer declined and suggested Roark for the job. In other words, the son got the post on a third party's recommendation, not by his father's choice.

Iron Island, his mine and his training ground

Byron doesn't train his Pokémon in his Gym. He takes them to Iron Island, a place he knows inside out: by his own account, he once lived there and worked as a miner, his Pokémon alongside him.

A player who returns to the island with the National Pokédex in hand can run into him there. Byron then gives them a Metal Coat, an item whose name alone tells you which specialty it belongs to.

The manga turns the island into a training ground. Byron takes Diamond there by force to toughen him up before he sets off for Lake Verity, hands the training over to the Trainer Riley, and slips him his Shieldon along the way, a Pokémon he had never managed to get anything out of himself.

Battling him again: the Battleground and the World Tournament

The Mine Badge doesn't close the case. The Battleground, located in the Survival Area, lets you go another round against the Canalave City Gym Leader.

Byron also shows up at the Pokémon World Tournament, a competition that brings together the best Trainers. Several brackets lead to him there, including the Sinnoh Leaders bracket, and the Steel version of the Type Expert Tournament.

The format dictates the size of his team there: three Pokémon in a Single Battle, four in a Double Battle or Rotation Battle, all six in a Triple Battle. From one battle to the next, the Ability and even the gender of his Pokémon can change; beating him earns one BP.

In the anime: family matters

The episode "Ancient Family Matters!" is the one that lets the secret out. Roark comes to visit Byron, and their family tie comes out at that moment. The reason for the visit is purely domestic: bringing his father back to Oreburgh City for a wedding anniversary.

The scene says a lot about the two men. They share the same passion for fossils and can argue about it for an unreasonable amount of time. We also learn that Byron ran the Oreburgh Gym before the Pokémon League contacted him to take over the one in Canalave City.

The battle comes in "Dealing With Defensive Types!", where Ash takes him on with Roark as referee. The moves the anime gives him all pull in the same direction: Iron Defense, Iron Head, Flash Cannon and Flamethrower for Bastiodon, Gyro Ball and the Heatproof Ability for Bronzor.

In the manga: he strikes first and checks later

The manga adaptation gives him a temper. He makes his entrance with a Shieldon at his side, on the phone with Roark, teasing him about the defeat Platinum has just dealt him. When that same Platinum shows up at his Gym, he sends both his Bronzong at her; she, for her part, believes he's guilty of locking up Professor Rowan and Professor Berlitz.

The mistake costs him on the spot: Platinum knocks out both Pokémon in a single hit. Spotting her badges, Byron realizes he has once again acted without thinking, remembers his son's warnings and, thoroughly embarrassed, ends up presenting her with the Mine Badge and his apologies.

Still, he hadn't been sitting idle. He had brought Roark to Canalave City to look into Team Galactic, whose research at the library intrigued him. He caught the masked Advanced level Grunt extorting money from Professor Berlitz, tried and failed to stop him, and only found the box where the Professor and Platinum's father were locked up after coming to. Incidentally, he is also the reason Eldritch the sailor met his wife.

What follows shows him in a far subtler light. He ambushes Platinum with a Bronzong's Extrasensory, solely to prove to Professor Berlitz that his daughter can defend herself, and hands her his badge in the same move. Her father ends up letting her go on her way; Byron tells him that hearing Platinum recite her letter brought back what he had felt the day Roark announced he would become a Gym Leader.

Byron at a glance

Frequently Asked Questions

• Which badge does Byron award?
  The Mine Badge, the sixth of Sinnoh's eight badges. It's part of the path that lets a Trainer challenge the Elite Four, at the regional Pokémon League.
• What is the connection between Byron and Roark?
  Roark is his son. He now runs the Oreburgh Mine, which Byron used to head, and he's the one Riley recommended as Gym Leader after turning down the post Byron offered him.
• What type does Byron use?
  The Steel type. Bastiodon, Bronzong, Bronzor, Skarmory, Magneton, Magnezone, Metagross, Steelix, Forretress, Scizor and Excadrill are among the sixteen Pokémon documented for him, alongside Heatran, Empoleon, Pelipper, Aggron and Moltres.
• Where does Byron train his Pokémon?
  On Iron Island. He says he lived and worked there as a miner with his Pokémon, and he gives a Metal Coat there to players who have obtained the National Pokédex.
• Can you battle Byron again after his Gym?
  Yes. The Battleground in the Survival Area offers a rematch, and Byron takes part in the Pokémon World Tournament, both in the Sinnoh Leaders bracket and in the Steel version of the Type Expert Tournament.

In short

Byron only ever talks about his trade. His specialty, his former job running the mine and his training ground on Iron Island all tell the same story, and his family extends the line across three generations, from Eterna City's Underground Man down to Roark. The manga adds the one flaw he has left: he attacks before checking.