Brock is the first Gym Leader you’ll face in Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen, and for new players, he can feel like a massive wall, a boulder that’s immovable and hard to overcome.
His Rock-type Pokemon have high Defense, strong attacks early in the game, and resist most moves available in this stage of the game. Even your overleveled Charmander’s Ember barely does any damage.
Whether you’re playing on an emulator or Nintendo Switch, this gym can be unforgiving. But don’t worry. Brock is absolutely beatable, as long as you head into battle with the right strategy.
In this guide, we’ll break down Brock’s team, the best early Pokemon to use against him, and strategies that make this fight much easier.
Key Highlights:
- Use Water, Grass, or Fighting-type moves since Geodude and Onix are both weak to them.
- Bulbasaur and Squirtle are the easiest starters for the fight since they can defeat Brock quickly with Vine Whip or Water moves.
- Good early counters: Pokemon like Mankey and Butterfree can help you win even if you started with Charmander.
Brock’s Team in Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen
Brock is the first Gym Leader in the game, and he specializes in Rock types. He battles you with only two Pokemon, but both are extremely durable and can be hard to handle in this stage of the game.
Brock’s Team
| Pokemon | Level | Type |
|---|---|---|
 Geodude | 12 | Rock/Ground |
 Onix | 14 | Rock/Ground |
Both Pokemon share the same typing, which means they are strong and weak against the same types.
Brock’s Pokemon Are Weak Against:
Your rock-crushers would be Water and Grass-type moves because they are super effective against Rock types and deal 4x damage.
Why Players Struggle Against Brock
Many Trainers who face Brock for the first time struggle even though they understand type matchups. That’s because of the early routes before Pewter City not giving you many obvious counters.
Players usually enter the gym with Pokemon like Pidgey, Rattata, Caterpie, or Spearow. And if you’re like me, I always catch the rare Pikachu in Viridian Forest, who literally can do nothing against Brock.
These Pokemon rely on Normal and Flying type attacks, which Brock’s Rock type Pokemon resist. Not to mention that Geodude has high Defense, and Onix can survive longer than expected because of its high Defense stats.
Fortunately, there are many strategies and Pokemon available before Pewter City that can help you win this Gym Badge. And yes, they work on both emulators and the Nintendo Switch.
How Do the Kanto Starters Perform Against Brock?
Let’s start with the first and most important factor that will decide whether you beat Brock easily or you get crushed by him—your starter.
Bulbasaur
Bulbasaur is the easiest starter against Brock.
Grass type attacks like Vine Whip deal massive damage to both Geodude and Onix. Bulbasaur also learns Vine Whip pretty early at level 10, so you won’t have to grind a lot.
Because they take 4x damage from Grass moves, Bulbasaur can defeat Brock with very little trouble. In most cases, two Vine Whips are enough to knock out Onix.
Squirtle
Squirtle is also an excellent choice and is as good as Bulbasaur when it comes to Brock. After reaching level 7 and 13, Squirtle can perform the moves Bubble and Water Gun, respectively, which are both super effective against all of Brock’s Pokemon.
Charmander
If you chose Charmander as your starter Pokemon, then you have it the hardest against Brock. Fire-type moves do very little damage to Rock types, and Charmander’s Defense is not great.
Some players on the emulator even went as far as to choosing a starter all over again. But without the fast-forward option on the Nintendo Switch, it won’t be as easy to restart your entire journey.
Many believed that players who chose Charmander ended up hating this part of the game so much that the developers decided to give Charmander a Steel-type move to cope with his weakness against the first gym.
At level 13, Charmander learns Metal Claw, which can be super helpful against Brock. Still, Brock is a very bad matchup for Charmander in this stage of the game. But you can still win if you have the right strategy.
Keep reading:
- Pokemon FireRed Safari Zone Guide
- Where to Get Surf in Pokemon FireRed
- Pokemon FireRed Move Tutor List and Locations
Beating Brock in Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen: Early Counters
These Pokemon can be captured early on and can help tremendously against Brock. If you do this right, you can even beat Brock without bringing out your starter.
So yes, you can win even if you chose Charmander.
1. Mankey
You can find Mankey on Route 22, west of Viridian City, and it is one of the best Pokemon smart players use to beat Brock.
Mankey learns Low Kick at level 6, a Fighting-type move that deals strong damage to Rock-type Pokemon.
Low Kick also deals more damage to heavy Pokemon like Onix. This move alone is enough to crush Geodude and send Onix crashing down.
2. Butterfree
Butterfree is another useful option. While it isn’t directly strong against Brock, it’s the earliest fully evolved Pokemon you can get in the game.
You can catch a Caterpie in Viridian Forest and evolve it into Butterfree at only Level 10. Butterfree learns Confusion early, which is a strong special attack that can chip away at Brock’s Pokemon.
While it does not hit for super-effective damage, it avoids the Defense problem that physical attackers face, since Confusion is a Special move.
Conclusion
Brock is designed to teach players an important lesson early in the game: type advantages matter. Once you understand this, you’ll know that Water-, Grass-, or Fighting-type moves will quickly deal with Geodude and Onix.
With Pokemon like Bulbasaur, Squirtle, Mankey, and Butterfree, you can still win this easily even with Charmander as your starter.
If you are still struggling, spend some time leveling up your team in Viridian Forest before entering the Pewter City Gym. Reaching around level 12 or higher can make a huge difference.
If you want to beat FireRed, then Pokecoders has all the guides and resources you need to become the very best in Kanto.
