Bertha: the elder of Sinnoh's Elite Four and her Hippowdon

She calls herself an old lady, and she's a real threat. Bertha sits on Sinnoh's Elite Four, specializes in the Ground type and turns her age into a weapon in battle rather than an excuse. Her battle lines all revolve around the same image: what is solid lies beneath our feet, and it can give way at any moment.

Contents

• A seat on the Elite Four, a type announced up front
• The ground as an argument: how she talks about battle
• Hippowdon, the loner she won over
• Her philosophy: family, composure and the bond
• What she knows about Sinnoh, and gladly passes on
• Bertha at a glance
• Frequently Asked Questions

A seat on the Elite Four, a type announced up front

Bertha makes no secret of her method: she gives her name, then her specialty, the Ground type, in the same sentence. It's the line she repeats word for word in the Sinnoh games as well as in her later appearances, where she introduces herself as a member of the Elite Four of the region.

What sets her apart is her place in the quartet: she is the only woman on Sinnoh's Elite Four. Her team leans on a Pokémon that has become her emblem, Hippowdon, whose reputation has cost more than one player a few attempts.

She makes a point of saying that she isn't the last line of defense: the opponent in the next room, she warns, is in a different league and will demand unwavering focus. In the same breath, though, she adds that the challenger has what it takes to beat them all — a defeat framed as encouragement.

The ground as an argument: how she talks about battle

Her vocabulary is entirely mineral. Nothing is more solid than the ground that holds us up, she explains, and that same ground can give way from one moment to the next. From this she draws a teasing invitation to young Trainers to keep their feet firmly on the ground.

Her introduction plays on a reversal: she finds her visitor adorable, declares them formidable in the next sentence, then challenges them to show an old lady what the new generation is capable of. When she goes down, she admits she underestimated the strength of youth.

Her post-battle remarks are cut from the same cloth. She compares the jolt she took to an earthquake, then offers one last piece of advice: never let a defeat get the better of you, and stand up to it as firmly as ground that doesn't move. Her type becomes a mental discipline.

Hippowdon, the loner she won over

She tells her partner's story herself. Hippowdon was so restless that it had been left alone, without a herd, convinced that its strength meant it didn't need to belong to a group. Bertha doesn't see this as forced isolation: in her view, this Pokémon is as tough mentally as it is physically.

From the moment they met, she decided it would have to learn to work as a team to become truly powerful. Its menacing attitude and huge jaws, gaping wide to scare her, didn't make her back down: above all, she wanted to make it understand that it was no longer alone, and the friendship grew step by step.

Her method boils down to one principle: the more trust you give, the more you get back. The result is something of a household gag — those famous jaws now only open for teeth brushing. Out on walks, the same Hippowdon still enjoys flinging sand around to whip up a tornado, and she admits she can't take her eyes off it for a second.

🔥 A Ground-type colossus for your shelf: see the Pokémon figures.

Her philosophy: family, composure and the bond

Her view of training is about family in the strictest sense. Trainers and Pokémon are, by turns, each other's parents and children, teaching each other and helping each other for a lifetime; strength is born of that bond, and that bond is what gives rise to sync pairs.

She adds a caveat that is rare coming from an Elite Four member: the outcome of a battle sometimes comes down to luck. Hence her advice to stay calm and composed, so that no defeat can be blamed on a lack of attention or preparation. In her view, battle remains the best test of the bond, since a Pokémon and its Trainer understand each other without words.

In the end, the relationship flips. She says she owes the player a renewed sense of ambition, promises to think of them whenever a tough battle looms, and warns that she has no intention of being left behind. The age gap is considerable, she points out, and being treated as an equal makes her happy.

What she knows about Sinnoh, and gladly passes on

Her most concrete recommendation is a sightseeing tip: beneath the surface of Sinnoh lies a vast space, the Underground. You can dig up very rare fossils there and set up a Secret Base — plenty to keep an exploration-minded player busy.

Asked about the region's soil by a farmer, she answers like a geographer: the west, around Floaroma Town, if you want to grow something, with the snowy north and the marshy east best avoided. She also recommends a scarf, since the cold has set in across many places, with Snowpoint City at the top of the list.

She fully embraces this role. Invited to share her experience as a veteran Trainer with the new generation, she agrees, provided an old lady can still be of use. In that setting she crosses paths with other figures from the region, including Volkner, who one day mistakes Agatha for her in the middle of a power outage.

Bertha at a glance

Frequently Asked Questions

• What type does Bertha use?
  The Ground type, which she announces herself the moment she introduces herself, in the Sinnoh games as well as in her later appearances. Her whole way of talking about battle rests on this image of firm ground.
• What is Bertha's signature Pokémon?
  Hippowdon. She says she met it while it was living without a herd, convinced that its strength allowed it to stay alone, and that she won it over by placing her trust in it.
• Is Bertha the last opponent of Sinnoh's Elite Four?
  No. After her defeat, she warns that the Trainer in the next room is in a different league and will demand perfect focus, while still judging the player capable of beating them all.
• Which games does Bertha appear in?
  In Diamond, Pearl and Platinum, in their remakes, and in Pokémon Masters, where she has long dialogues, gives the player a gift and tells the story of her Hippowdon.
• What advice does Bertha give young Trainers?
  Stay calm and prepared, because an element of luck comes into every battle, and never let a defeat get the better of you. She also recommends exploring Sinnoh's Underground.

In short

Bertha holds her seat on the Elite Four with a single device, applied everywhere: everything that matters plays out at ground level. Her age becomes a taunt, her type a moral code, and defeat a chance to congratulate her opponent. Her story with Hippowdon says the rest: a Pokémon isolated by its own strength, won over by a Trainer who chose trust over authority.