Mustard: eighteen years Champion of Galar, then dojo master

Eighteen years at the top of the Galar League: no one has done better since. Mustard reigned over the region at a time when Dynamax had not yet entered competition, then his drive faded after he lost his partner Pokémon. Today he lives on an island he bought and named himself, the Isle of Armor, where he runs the Master Dojo and only trains the Trainers he deems worthy.

Contents

• An Eighteen-Year Reign, a Record No One Has Come Close To
• A Rigged Match Refused, Then an Island Bought
• The Master Dojo: The Master Does the Choosing
• Battling Him: Two Towers, a Daily Rematch
• In the Anime and on Cards
• Mustard at a Glance
• Frequently Asked Questions

An Eighteen-Year Reign, a Record No One Has Come Close To

Before the dojo, there was the title. Mustard was the Galar League Champion, and he held that position for eighteen consecutive years — the longest reign on record since the League was founded, and a record that still stands today.

That reign belongs to another era of Galarian battling. It predates Dynamax's arrival in official competition, which places Mustard before the phenomenon that now shapes battles in the region, the one explored in detail in our feature on Dynamax and Gigantamax.

The end of his reign doesn't come from a stronger opponent. Mustard loses his partner Pokémon and, with it, his motivation: the defeats pile up. His standing with the public, however, doesn't budge — the region still regards him as a legendary Trainer.

A Rigged Match Refused, Then an Island Bought

His exit comes down to a refusal. He's offered a fixed match, he turns it down, and he promptly leaves the League's active, public life behind — a departure of his own choosing, at the very moment his losing streak could have served as an excuse.

Then comes a trip around the world that changes him profoundly. The strict man he once was comes back with an entirely different personality, and that's the version the Trainers who come to see him today meet.

On his return, he buys an island, names it the Isle of Armor and settles there. He lives there with his wife Honey and their son Hyde: before it's a battle school, the place is first and foremost his family home.

The Master Dojo: The Master Does the Choosing

On his island, Mustard runs the Master Dojo, which isn't the only establishment of its kind in the series — Koichi runs his own in Saffron City over in Kanto. The difference lies in recruitment, since Mustard only trains the Trainers he considers worthy.

His reputation as a battler shows in what he teaches, and it draws a crowd. Trainers from all over the region make the journey to the Isle of Armor hoping he'll take them under his wing: such was the case for Klara and Avery.

On top of his talent as a battler, he has a rare eye for other people's potential. He was the first to notice Leon, before becoming his mentor and trainer; the student eventually took the title the master had held for eighteen years, and Leon is now the Galar League Champion.

🥋 Masters and their students fit on a single shelf: check out the Pokémon figures.

Battling Him: Two Towers, a Daily Rematch

The Dojo's training revolves around Kubfu. If the player shows up without it, Mustard's lines change and hammer home that its presence is essential to the training.

Two paths then open up, and you have to choose: the Tower of Waters or the Tower of Darkness. That's where you'll battle the master and his students, even if you went through the training without the expected partner.

That choice affects the team he fields against you. Mustard brings exactly the same team to the final battle of The Isle of Armor expansion and to his daily rematch, but its lineup depends on which tower you climbed — two versions of the same master in Pokémon Sword and Shield, depending on the path taken.

In the Anime and on Cards

The anime shows him in Pokémon: Twilight Wings, the short series devoted to Galar. Leon comes to visit him at the Master Dojo, on the island, and the master battles his former student.

The visit had a second purpose. Leon hands him an invitation to the Galarian Star Tournament, and Mustard is seen again at the end of the episode on the field of the stadium in Wyndon, alongside the region's Gym Leaders, for the opening ceremony.

The trading card game welcomed him in 2021. His first card appeared in the Sword & Shield—Battle Styles expansion, released in France on March 19, and he has appeared on other cards since.

Mustard at a Glance

Frequently Asked Questions

• How long was Mustard the Champion of Galar?
  Eighteen years. That's the longest reign on record since the Galar League was founded, and the record still hasn't been broken.
• Why did Mustard leave the Pokémon League?
  Because he was offered a rigged match and refused. His motivation had already collapsed before that, after the loss of his partner Pokémon, and he was racking up defeats without losing any of his popularity.
• Where can you find Mustard in the games?
  On the Isle of Armor, the island he bought after his trip around the world, where he lives with his wife Honey and his son Hyde. He runs the Master Dojo there.
• What is the connection between Mustard and Leon?
  Mustard was the first to spot his potential, then became his mentor and trainer. Leon later went on to become Galar League Champion in turn.
• Does Mustard appear in the anime?
  Yes, in Pokémon: Twilight Wings, the short series devoted to Galar. Leon visits him at the Dojo, battles him and brings him an invitation to the Galarian Star Tournament, whose opening ceremony is then shown at Wyndon Stadium.

In short

Mustard holds a strange place among the Champions: his eighteen-year record has never been broken, and yet the games only show him after his fall, on an island he paid for out of his own pocket. The Master Dojo is the second career of a man who chose to walk away rather than play a fixed match. He no longer defends his title; he trains those who will hold it.