Fortree City serves as a pivotal point in a Pokemon Emerald playthrough. It is here that trainers encounter Winona, the sixth Gym Leader, whose Flying-type expertise often creates a significant bottleneck for unprepared teams. Unlike her team in Ruby and Sapphire, her Emerald roster introduces specific threats like Tropius and a revised movepool that punishes physical attackers and those slow to set up. Understanding the mechanics of her bird-centric team is essential for securing the Feather Badge.

Navigating the Fortree Gym

The Fortree Gym puzzle revolves around rotating gates. These gates move 90 degrees when pushed from a specific side, often blocking one path while opening another.

  1. First Section: Navigate through the first two rotating gates by pushing the horizontal one to the right, then looping around to push it back up.
  2. Second Section: This involves three gates. The key is to avoid trapping yourself in the corners. Pushing the center gate up and then circling back to push the side gates horizontally usually clears the path to the higher platform where Winona waits.

Detailed Analysis: Winona’s Initial Team

Winona leads a team of five Pokemon in Emerald, ranging from Level 29 to 33. Her strategy centers on speed and type coverage, particularly using Ground and Steel moves to counter the very types usually brought in to defeat Flying Pokemon.

1. Swablu (Level 29)

  • Type: Normal/Flying
  • Moves: Perish Song, Mirror Move, Safeguard, Aerial Ace
  • Role: Utility and Disruption. Swablu is rarely a direct damage threat but can be annoying with Perish Song, forcing you to switch out after three turns. Safeguard prevents your team from landing status conditions like paralysis, which would otherwise help against her faster members.

2. Tropius (Level 29)

  • Type: Grass/Flying
  • Moves: Sunny Day, Aerial Ace, Solar Beam, Synthesis
  • Role: Special Sweeper. Tropius replaces the Swellow found in Ruby/Sapphire. It sets up Sunny Day to fire off instant Solar Beams and boost its Synthesis healing. Its Grass typing covers the Rock and Water/Ground types (like Swampert) that players often rely on.

3. Pelipper (Level 30)

  • Type: Water/Flying
  • Moves: Water Gun, Supersonic, Protect, Aerial Ace
  • Role: Defensive Stalling. Pelipper has high Physical Defense. Supersonic causes confusion, and Protect wastes your PP or turn-based effects. Its Water typing negates the Rock weakness common to Flyers.

4. Skarmory (Level 31)

  • Type: Steel/Flying
  • Moves: Sand Attack, Fury Attack, Steel Wing, Aerial Ace
  • Role: The Physical Wall. Skarmory is notoriously difficult to take down with physical moves. It uses Sand Attack to lower your accuracy and Steel Wing to deal heavy damage to Rock or Ice types you might switch in.

5. Altaria (Level 33)

  • Type: Dragon/Flying
  • Moves: Earthquake, Dragon Breath, Dragon Dance, Aerial Ace
  • Ability: Natural Cure
  • Held Item: Oran Berry
  • Role: The Ace and Run-Ender. This Altaria is technically under-leveled (Swablu evolves at 35), but it is a powerhouse. Dragon Dance boosts its Attack and Speed simultaneously. Earthquake is a direct counter to Electric and Rock types. Dragon Breath provides a chance to paralyze your Pokemon.

Winning Strategies and Counter-Picks

Victory against Winona requires specific elemental coverage. Since she specializes in Flying types, Electric, Ice, and Rock are the obvious choices, but you must be wary of her secondary types.

The Ice Beam Solution

Ice Beam is arguably the best move for this fight. It deals 4x damage to Tropius and Altaria. You can obtain TM13 (Ice Beam) at the Abandoned Ship (using Surf and Dive) or by trading 4,000 coins at the Mauville Game Corner. Teaching this to a Water type like Tentacruel or Walrein (if you've evolved Spheal early) can end the fight in two turns.

Electric Type Management

Manectric and Magneton are excellent for Pelipper and Skarmory. However, do not keep them in against Altaria. Once Altaria uses a single Dragon Dance, its Earthquake will likely one-shot most Electric types available at this stage of the game. Use your Electric types to clear the first four Pokemon, then switch to a defensive pivot.

Rock Type Risks

Graveler or Solrock can deal heavy damage with Rock Slide or Rollout, but they are vulnerable to Tropius’s Solar Beam and Altaria’s Earthquake. If using a Rock type, ensure it has high enough HP to survive one unboosted Earthquake.

The Altaria Problem: How to Handle the Setup

The AI in Emerald is programmed to use Dragon Dance if it doesn't see an immediate kill. If you allow Altaria to stack two or more Dragon Dances, the battle is effectively over.

  • The Status Route: Use Thunder Wave (if Safeguard isn't up) to cut its speed, but remember Altaria has Natural Cure, meaning it will heal the paralysis if switched out.
  • Intimidate Shuffling: If you have a Gyarados and a Mightyena, you can switch between them to repeatedly lower Altaria’s Attack stat. This mitigates the danger of Earthquake.
  • The Choice Band Strategy: If you picked up the Choice Band earlier, a strong physical attacker with a Rock move can sometimes OHKO Altaria before it moves, provided you have a slight level advantage.

Match Call Rematches: The Long Game

In Pokemon Emerald, Gym Leaders can be rebattled via the Match Call feature on the Pokenav. Winona’s team grows significantly more dangerous in these encounters, eventually reaching Level 50+ and introducing Dragonite.

First Rematch Team

  • Dratini (Lv. 40): Thunder Wave, Thunderbolt, Ice Beam.
  • Tropius (Lv. 38): Sunny Day, Solar Beam, Earthquake.
  • Pelipper (Lv. 41): Surf, Protect, Aerial Ace.
  • Skarmory (Lv. 43): Spikes, Steel Wing, Whirlwind.
  • Altaria (Lv. 45): Dragon Dance, Earthquake, Aerial Ace, Rest (Held: Chesto Berry).

Second Rematch Team

  • Hoothoot (Lv. 43): Hypnosis, Reflect, Dream Eater.
  • Dragonair (Lv. 45): Evolves from Dratini, same general coverage.
  • Tropius (Lv. 43)
  • Pelipper (Lv. 46)
  • Skarmory (Lv. 48)
  • Altaria (Lv. 50)

Final (Fourth) Rematch Team

In her final form, Winona’s team is a masterclass in Flying-type synergy.

  • Noctowl (Lv. 53): Uses Hypnosis and Psychic to mess with Fighting types.
  • Tropius (Lv. 54): Now a bulky Sunny Day user.
  • Dragonite (Lv. 55): Replaces Dragonair. Access to massive Attack stats and diverse coverage.
  • Pelipper (Lv. 56): Stronger Surf and Hydro Pump.
  • Skarmory (Lv. 58): Often leads with Spikes to punish switching.
  • Altaria (Lv. 60): The ultimate threat with fully optimized EVs and Dragon Dance.

Rewards and Post-Battle

Defeating Winona earns you the Feather Badge. This badge ensures all Pokemon up to Level 70 obey you and, more importantly, allows the use of HM02 (Fly) outside of battle. This drastically reduces travel time across the Hoenn region.

She also gifts you TM40 (Aerial Ace). Aerial Ace is a 60-power Physical Flying move that never misses, regardless of accuracy or evasion changes. This is incredibly useful for the upcoming seventh gym and the various Double Team users encountered in the late game. It is best taught to a high-attack Pokemon like Sceptile, Ninjask, or Salamence later on.

Summary of Key Facts for Emerald Players

  • Altaria's Earthquake: Do not bring Magneton or Manectric into Altaria without a plan.
  • Ice is King: The 4x weakness on her most dangerous Pokemon (Altaria and Tropius) makes Ice Beam the most efficient way to win.
  • Swablu's Perish Song: Keep track of the turn count; don't let your best Pokemon faint simply because you forgot to switch.
  • Steel Resilience: Skarmory will resist almost every physical hit. Save your Special Attackers (Fire or Electric) specifically for this encounter.

Winona remains one of the most respected Gym Leaders in the Hoenn region due to her balanced team and the sheer power of her Altaria. Approaching this fight with a mix of fast Electric types and a bulky Ice-move user is the most reliable path to victory in Pokemon Emerald.