Pokémon Sun and Moon - Trial of Captain Ilima, Verdant Cavern

Now, at last, with Route 2 and the Berry Fields cleared, it's time for your first Trial of your Island Challenge, the Trial of Captain Ilima at Verdant Cavern.

Trials are effectively Sun and Moon's replacements for Gym Battles and so, if you've had any experience of those in the past, you'll know it's best to heal up at the nearby Pokémon Center on Route 2 and save before you start.

That being said, thereb's nothing enormously challenging about these if you've battled all the trainers and a few wild Pokémon on your way here, so it shouldn't give you too much trouble before you head off to Route 3 down the line.

Verdant Cavern and Illima's Trial

The Trial starts when ou talk to the Captain and confirm you're ready - you can't quit once you start, either, so here's your last reminder to save first.

Also, while we're on the topic of reminders: No Pokémon can be caught during Trials so don't worry about getting anything down to low HP. Simply knock Pokémon out for XP, and keep moving! Most of the time, you'll be able to come back later to catch any Pokémon you encountered during the Trial.

This time, your job is to defeat the three Pokémon in their dens, which are dotted about the cavern, but actually only accessible in a pretty linear order, so there's no fear to be had of getting lost. The first two are Yungoos, with the third an evolved Gumshoos. Progress through until you've collected all of the items, and reach a pedestal deep within the cave.

Before you can actually do that though, Team Skull turn up! Defeat them, then, before you take on the Yungoos, and then talk to the guide by the back exit to head out to the pedstal.

There, you can take the Z-Crystal from the pedestal, and the Totem Pokémon will appear!

Need more tips? Use our Pokémon Sun and Moon Walkthrough and guide for the main story, our competitive training guide for info on IVs, EV training, Hyper Training and bottle cap farming, and breeding explained, our choice of the best Pokémon Sun and Moon starter from Rowlet, Litten and Popplio, as well as an in-progress list of where to find Zygarde Cells and Cores and our guide to the Battle Tree and both Battling and Trading in the Festival Plaza. We also have a list of QR codes list, Z Crystal locations, Mega Stone locations, Eevium Z Eevee User locations for Extreme Evoboost, evolutions for Alolan Forms and other new Sun and Moon Pokémon and fast way to increase a Pokémon's Happiness, plus how to transfer across Ash-Greninja from the Sun and Moon Demo, where to catch the Tapu Guardians, how to catch the Ultra Beasts, and how to download the Munchlax Mystery Gift.

Once you complete the trial, you can keep the Z-Crystal, whilst Kukui rocks up to quickly show you how to use it - he is a move specialist, after all. Z Moves can be used once per battle, but by any Pokémon that's holding the appropriate Z Crystal, much the same as last generation's Mega-Evolution.

As it turns out, Kukui's also lost his assistant Lillie again - this time she's disappeared somewhere off Route 3, so it's time to go help find her!