Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon - Verdant Cavern, Captain Illima's Trial, how to defeat Totem Raticate or Totem Gumshoos for Normalium Z

Verdant Cavern, Captain Illima's Trial and Totem Raticate and Gumshoos are the next combination of obstacles in your path, making up the first trial of your Island Challenge and your first shot at a Z Crystal in Normalium Z, too.

Here on this page we'll explain all you need to know about the story and main events as they unfold here, and as with all pages of our walkthrough we'll highlight any and all trainers, items and wild Pokémon available to catch as well.

For more general guides and other walkthrough pages like this meanwhile, head back to our main Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon walkthrough and guide hub.

Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon - Verdant Cavern and Captain Illima's Trial

At the Cavern, your trial will work out almost identically to how it did in regular Sun and Moon. You'll need to flush out and defeat three Pokémon from the little caves around the cavern. Remember that you can't catch any Pokémon, Totem or otherwise, whilst the trial is active, but you can of course return to the trial site to catch some of the rare Pokémon that are here afterwards.

Each time they'll battle you (Rattata in Utlra Moon and Raticate in Ultra Sun) and between the second and third, Team Skull will show up for a battle, too.

The third one can be awkward to find because of the camera angle - to reach the top right cave hang to the far right of the room, and you'll see an arch you can crawl under to get to the other side.

When you're done, head on outside past the trial guide to face the Totem Pokémon! Be sure to heal up and save, first.

For more on Pokémon Ultra Sun and Moon, head to our main Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon walkthrough and guide hub, which includes guides to new Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon Pokémon and Pokédex changes, the Festival Plaza, a list of Global Missions and rewards, an explainer on Pokémon Bank, a dedicated page on Pokémon Competitive Training, including IV Training, EVs and hidden stats, Breeding 6IV Pokémon explained and how to farm Bottle Caps fast for Hyper Training. What's more, we have pages on the Rockruff event for getting Dusk Form Lycanroc and, last but not least, a full Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon QR codes list for adding all Pokémon to your Pokédex.

Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon - Totem Raticate, Totem Gumshoos, and Normalium Z

First, note that for this particular Totem battle you'll face a different Pokémon depending on your version of the game: Ultra Sun players will face Totem Gumshoos, and Ulta Moon will face Totem Raticate (in its Alolan form, of course).

Either way, the Totem Pokémon's aura will boost its Defense stat by 1 stage, and they're both weak (Raticate doubly so) to Fighting-type moves. You can pick up a Fighting-type Makuhita or a Crabrawler on Route 2 if you need one!

Next up: Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon - Route 3, Melemele Meadow, Seaward Cave

After defeating the Totem Pokémon and its allies, collect the Normalium Z from the podium, and you're all done! You can now catch Pokémon in Verdant Cavern (Noibat evolves into Noivern, a pretty powerful Flying/Dragon-type Pokémon, and is one of the Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon Pokédex additions, so is a good shout), and likewise you can now progress on to Route 3, too.