Trial Captain

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Going clockwise starting on the left: Captains Lana, Acerola, and Mina alongside Hau in the Villain Arc of Pokémon Masters EX

A Trial Captain (Japanese: キャプテン Captain) is a person who designs and presides over a certain island challenge trial and gives guidance to participating Trainers and trial-goers. Trial Captains have previously completed their own island's challenge before becoming a Captain.^[1] They retire from their position when they turn 20.^[2] Mechanically, they can be seen as the Alolan equivalent to Gym Leaders, and like them, they specialize in certain types of Pokémon. Trial Captains can be identified by the flower-shaped adornment they wear someplace on their bodies, each with a different colored jewel to represent their specialized type. Unlike Gym Leaders, Trial Captains are not often the ones fought, but rather, the Totem Pokémon found at the end of a trial. Trial Captains are known to be the ones to care for and train their respective Totem Pokémon, as is the case with Lana, training the Wishiwashi that reside in Brooklet Hill. There are 6^SM or 7^USUM Trial Captains who each preside over a trial site in the island challenge, although as shown by the Vast Poni Canyon trial in Sun and Moon, that a trial can exist in a functional form without a Captain to preside over it.

Normally, Captains are chosen by the island's kahuna. However, in special circumstances, they may be chosen by the previous Captain, as was the case when Molayne chose Sophocles to succeed him after retiring. Like some Gym Leaders, many Trial Captains are seen to have secondary professions or hobbies seen outside their usual job. Examples include Mallow, who works at her family's restaurant and Mina, who is a painter.

All Trial Captains keep their Pokémon in Ultra Balls, with the exception of Lana, who uses Net Balls instead.

Terminology

In English promotional materials such as trailers for Pokémon Sun and Moon and the Sun and Moon website, Captains are referred to as "Trial Captains." All other times, both individually and as a group, they are referred to simply as "Captain." In Pokémon Masters EX, Mallow refers to herself, Lana, and Kiawe all as "Trial Captains" in multiple languages.

In Japanese, the title has always been referred to as キャプテン (Captain), with no descriptor or usage of the word "trial."

Ilima's mother, notes that he gained the title of "captainship" through his skill.^[3] This is the only time "captainship" has been used in English in any title.

Pokémon and type usage

Like their Gym Leader and island kahuna counterparts, their Pokémon and type usage can rely on numerous factors. Like them, Captains also specialize in a singular Pokémon type. This type can be seen in the trial and Totem Pokémon that they care for, and not just used in battle when they're off duty.

The types they specialize in is often attributed to them based on their trial's geography or the hobby or job the Captain may have. For example, Sophocles, who works in the Hokulani Observatory, enjoys studying electronics and inventions, so his trial tests the player in Electric-type Pokémon. The Totem Pokémon that he cares for Vikavolt^SM or Togedemaru^USUM is of that type. Captain Lana of Brooklet Hill, who is an avid fisher, had raised the Totem Wishiwashi^SM all on her own.

In the core series games

Elio starting Lana's trial

Captain (Japanese: キャプテン Captain) is the Trainer class given for when they are battled. Unlike Gym Leaders and island kahuna, battling Captains in Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon is not always mandatory to complete the story, and are often done as side tasks and missions when the player comes back to them at a later point. During the story, the player will have to carry out the trial that the captain had set up for them to finish. The captain themselves are intended to help guide trial goers through the trial. Some Captains may actively be a part of the trial themselves or a part of another's trial, such as Mallow, Kiawe and Lana all took part of the Lush Jungle trial, helping Mallow create the "Mallow Special."

Captains do however participate in battle, for example, Ilima will ask the player for a battle before taking their trial in Verdant Cavern, while Mina will ask for a battle in the Looker Episode of Sun and Moon, neither of which are a part of any trial. In Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, Mina's trial consists of meeting and battling several of the captains who's trials the player has previous completed. All trial captains are able to be battled against in the Generation VII titles at least once either as part of the story, or as side quest. All Captains will use a Z-Crystal of their respective type at least once.

In Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, Captains will use Battle! (Trainer) from Pokémon Sun and Moon, instead of the Trainer battle theme used in Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon.

Mina appears in Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee! at Vermilion City after her ship, the S.S. Anne, has taken off without her. It is unknown whether or not she is a Captain during this time, as she never mentions trials or the island challenge. Mina can be battled once a day after her initial fight with the player, and will offer a Bottle Cap after every defeat.

In the spin-off games

Pokémon Masters EX

All Captains, aside from Ilima, have appeared in Pokémon Masters EX. Some of them appear within the PML Arc as part of the game's Main Story. Lana, Acerola, and Mina all play a significant role in the Alola chapter of the Villain Arc.

In the anime

Main series

In the anime, trial-goers can freely challenge a Totem Pokémon without having someone to supervise them. As a result, trials are not presided by Trial Captains. However, Lana, Kiawe, Sophocles, and Mallow have appeared as students of the Pokémon School and classmates of Ash. They all debuted in Alola to New Adventure!.

Ilima debuted in Turning Heads and Training Hard! as a graduate of the Pokémon School. He is mentioned to have participated in the Kalos League and is capable of wielding Mega Evolution.

Acerola debuted in Why Not Give Me a Z-Ring Sometime? as a girl living in a library on Ula'ula Island. Like in the games, she has a close relationship with Nanu. She also provided support for Ash with his Ula'ula Island grand trial.

Mina debuted in The Shape of Love to Come! as a wandering artist. With the assistance of her Ribombee, Mina can detect the emotions of both humans and Pokémon.

All the anime characters based on Trial Captains participated in the Alola League Manalo Conference, with Kiawe faring the best out of them and landing in the Top 4.

GOTCHA!

Along with related Pokémon League type experts, all Captains appear in the GOTCHA! music video.

In the manga

Pokémon Adventures

The Akala Island Captains in Pokémon Horizon

Lana, Kiawe, and Mallow are the first Trial Captains to appear in Pokémon Adventures, debuting in Going Ashore and Neighboring Akala Island. The three are initially reluctant to recognize Sun as a trialgoer, but soon Sun and Kiawe bond with each other upon learning that both of them have the same goal of saving money for a certain purpose. Lana, still unconvinced, leads Sun to Brooklet Hill for her trial. Eventually Sun manages to complete Lana's trial by calming the local Totem Pokémon, earning her respect.

While Sun and Lana travel to Brooklet Hill, Moon and Mallow head to Lush Jungle to find the special Mirage Berry meant to be delivered for the guardian deities of Alola. After witnessing a Xurkitree battling Tapu Lele in the sky above the forest, the two start searching for the Mirage Berry, which they eventually find with the help of the local wild Pokémon.

Later, after Professor Kukui's boat is attacked by a wild Bruxish, Sun and Moon are saved and brought to the Aether House, where they meet Trial Captain Acerola, who tasks Sun with clearing her trial at the Thrifty Megamart. Sun eventually clears the trial by befriending the local Totem Pokémon, a Mimikyu, which he even catches and adds to his team.

Ilima, the sole Trial Captain of Melemele Island, later joins Acerola, the Trial Captains of Akala, and Hau in traveling to Po Town to talk with Team Skull. However, when they arrive at Team Skull's base, they are surrounded and attacked by a group of Ultra Beasts, which are soon revealed to have been summoned by a Cosmog in Guzma's possession. The Ultra Beasts eventually break out of Po Town and start rampaging around Ula'ula Island, forcing Molayne and Sophocles to start evacuating people to the Hokulani Observatory.

Six months after Ultra Beasts had started to appear in Alola, Mina, the sole Trial Captain of Poni Island, finally answers the call to join the other Captains and joins them on Exeggutor Island. Later, after the Trial Captains finish their training on Exeggutor Island, they move to Hokulani Observatory, from which they detect an Ultra Wormhole opening above Mount Lanakila. When they attempt to travel there to investigate, they are attacked by an army of Ultra Beasts commanded by Aether Foundation Employees. By combining their Z-Moves, the Trial Captains are able to defeat all the Ultra Beasts.

Pokémon Horizon

Lana, Mallow, and Kiawe appeared in a cameo in Attack on the Headquarters.

List of Trial Captains

Melemele Island

Melemele Island
Trial Captain Japanese	Location Japanese	Type	Totem Pokémon	Ally Pokémon
Ilima イリマ Ilima	Verdant Cavern 茂みの洞窟 Verdant Cavern	Normal	GumshoosSUS	YungoosSUS
			Alolan RaticateMUM	Alolan RattataMUM

Akala Island

Akala Island
Trial Captain Japanese	Location Japanese	Type	Totem Pokémon	Ally Pokémon
Lana スイレン Suiren	Brooklet Hill せせらぎの丘 Brooklet Hill	Water	Wishiwashi (School Form)SM	WishiwashiSM	AlomomolaSM
			AraquanidUSUM	DewpiderUSUM	MasquerainUSUM
Kiawe カキ Kaki	Wela Volcano Park ヴェラ火山公園 Wela Volcano Park	Fire	SalazzleSM	SalanditSM
			Alolan MarowakUSUM	SalazzleUSUM
Mallow マオ Mao	Lush Jungle シェードジャングル Shade Jungle	Grass	Lurantis	TrumbeakSM	CastformSM
				ComfeyUSUM	KecleonUSUM

• Hiker David is being considered as Kiawe's replacement after he leaves his position.^[4]

Ula'ula Island

Ula'ula Island
Trial Captain Japanese	Location Japanese	Type	Totem Pokémon	Ally Pokémon
Sophocles マーマネ Mamane	Hokulani Observatory ホクラニ天文台 Hōkūlani Observatory	Electric	VikavoltSM	CharjabugSM	CharjabugSM
			TogedemaruUSUM	SkarmoryUSUM	DedenneUSUM
Acerola アセロラ Acerola	Thrifty Megamart (Abandoned Site) スーパー・メガやす　跡地 Supermarket Megacheap (Abandoned Site)	Ghost	Mimikyu	HaunterSM	GengarSM
				BanetteUSUM	JellicentUSUM

• Molayne was previously a Captain for Ula'ula, giving his role to Sophocles.

Poni Island

Poni Island
Trial Captain Japanese	Location Japanese	Type	Totem Pokémon	Ally Pokémon
Mina マツリカ Matsurika	NoneSM	Fairy	NoneSM	NoneSM
	Seafolk Village 海の民の村 Seafolk VillageUSUM		RibombeeUSUM	BlisseyUSUM	PelipperUSUM

Trivia

• The Japanese, Korean, and Italian terms for Trial Captains are the same as their respective terms for wardens.
• The four-sided clover origin mark used to denote Pokémon originating from Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun, or Ultra Moon resembles the flower-shaped adornment that each Trial Captain uses to identify themselves.

In other languages

Language Title Chinese Cantonese 隊長 Deuihjéung Mandarin 隊長 / 队长 Duìzhǎng Czech Kapitán zkoušek* Kapitán (♂) Kapitánka (♀) Dutch Aanvoerder van de proef Trialkapitein French Capitaine d'Épreuve German Captain Hungarian Próba Kapitány Italian Capitano Korean 캡틴 Kaeptin Portuguese Capitão de prova (♂) Capitã de prova (♀) Russian Капитан испытания Kapitan ispytaniya Spanish Capitán (♂) Capitana (♀)

See also

• Gym Leader
• Frontier Brain
• Island kahuna
• Warden

References

Trial Captains and island kahunas of the Alola region
Verdant Cavern Ilima	Brooklet Hill Lana	Wela Volcano Park Kiawe	Lush Jungle Mallow
Hokulani Observatory Sophocles	Thrifty Megamart Acerola	Seafolk Village Mina
Melemele Island Hala	Akala Island Olivia	Ula'ula Island Nanu	Poni Island Hapu

This Trainer Class article is part of Project CharacterDex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on each character found in the Pokémon games.