Ilima

Ilima
Species	Human
Hair color	Pink
Eye color	Gray
Base	Hau'oli City, Melemele Island
Relatives	Parents
Debut	Pokémon Sun/Moon

Illima is a Pokémon trainer who appeared as an opponent in Pokémon Sun Moon, Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon. He is one of the seven trial captains of the Alola region and acts as the sole trial captain of Melemele Island. He specializes in Normal-type Pokémon and gives out the Normal Z-Crystal known as Normalium Z.

Background

Ilima was a prestigious young trainer who lived at Hau'oli City on Melemele Island. He hailed from an affluent family, with his mother being an actress. Ilima traveled the world with his mother since he was young, and he was inspired by how dedicated she was to her work. This caused Ilima to become dedicated on his path as a trainer. He was admired by the city's people and was known as the Prince of the Trainer's School. Despite being known for his princely manner, some also considered him to be a fanatic when it came to battling. Regardless, Ilima was also very diligent and took his Smeargle around town for tasks such as painting fences. He also helped an unspecified friend to develop the Ride Pager. Ilima was chosen by the island's kahuna, Hala to act as a trial captain, and so he became Melemele Island's only captain. He conducted trials at the Verdant Cavern, where Normalium Z was kept.

Sun/Moon

Ilima first appeared at the Trainer's School. He was impressed after Elio/Selene had managed to defeat the trainers at the school, and he encouraged the young trainer to progress towards his trial. They then met up again within Hau'oli City, where they were accosted by a pair of Team Skull grunts and paired off to battle them separately. Ilima proceeded to challenge Elio/Selene to a battle, in order to determine if they were ready to undertake his trial. After being defeated, Ilima gave them instructions to the Verdant Cavern and then oversaw their trial there. After Elio/Selene defeated the Totem Pokémon, Ilima allowed them to claim the Normalium Z and taught them the "elegant" pose that went with it. He also gave the player some Great Balls, for use in catching Pokémon within the cavern. Afterwards, he took them outside the cave and showed the trainer that they were now allowed to progress to Route 3. They were then interrupted by Professor Kukui's news that Lillie had gone missing, at which point Ilima attempted to search the cavern for her. Hau also completed his trial afterwards. Ilima appeared again at Iki Town to congratulate Elio/Selene after they had defeated Hala.

Later on, Elio/Selene could find Ilima in his room, where he could be challenged to another battle. Ilima approached this battle as a simulation for the sake of research, as he saw it as a way to analyze battle strategies. If Elio/Selene agreed to the battle, then the battle would be promptly held in the courtyard of the Trainer's School. After being defeated, Ilima thanked the trainer for their help and gave them an Everstone. Ilima also appeared attending the festivities during the game's ending.

Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon

In Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon, some aspects of the story were altered, and some new scenarios were added. After the first meeting at the Trainer's School, Ilima next met Elio/Selene by the shopping district's Pokémon Center. There, he explained Totem Stickers to the trainer, and it was shown that he helped to put up many of them. He also warned them about Team Skull's attempts to undermine the island challenge. Afterwards, Elio/Selene was accosted by Team Skull members again, but this time they were with Hau at the time, and Ilima only showed up after the battle. The following scenario then played out as in the original game, with Ilima battling Elio/Selene and then directing them towards Verdant Cavern. His trial then proceeded as in the original games.

Ilima later made an additional appearance as part of Mina's trial. Mina had split the petals of a Rainbow Flower up and given them to the other captains, which her challengers were then tasked to collect. Ilima was given an Orange Petal and was the first person who had to be sought out as part of the challenge. He was found at Hau'oli Cemetary, where he congratulated the trainer on their progress and talked about the inspiration he took from his mother. Ilima then challenged Elio/Selene to a rematch and gave them an Orange Petal after being defeated. Afterwards, he offered to bring Elio/Selene to the next captain. If they accepted, he would bring them to the entrance of Akala Island's Lush Jungle, where Mallow awaited. He recalled that it had been a while since he visited the island and that he had once a special dish of Mallow's that had given him a "frightful shock".

The rematch from Sun/Moon was also still present in the Ultra games. However, it was now moved so that it could only occur after completing the main story and becoming Alola's champion. There was also a new minor scenario that occurred at the police station of Hau'oli City. In this scenario, Ilima had returned from a vacation to find that a Machamp guard of his had been knocked out and that a Nugget had been stolen from its hiding place behind one of his shelves. A trio of Hypno were apprehended as suspects, and with some help with Elio/Selene, Ilima was able to deduce that they truly were the culprits. But he recognized that the Hypno needed the Nugget to act as a pendulum, so he let them keep it and gave a Big Nugget to Elio/Selene for their help.

Pokémon Roster

During the first battle with Ilima, he uses Yungoos and Smeargle. His Smeargle's moveset varies depending on the player's starter Pokémon, as it will always know a move that is super effective against the starter Pokémon that was chosen. For the second battle in Sun/Moon, his roster is the same except that his Yungoos has become a Gumshoos. He has a similar roster in Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon, with the addition of a Komala after the first battle. His Gumshoos uses Normalium Z in Sun/Moon, while his Komala uses it in Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon.

While he did not own it, Ilima also worked with and trained the Totem Pokémon of Verdant Cavern. That Totem Pokémon was a Gumshoos (in Sun/Ultra Sun) or a Raticate (in Moon/Ultra Moon). He has also alluded to having a Machamp acting as a guard, although it is unclear if he actually owns that Pokémon.

Other Appearances

Other Media

• In the Pokémon anime, Ilima made a number of appearances throughout the Sun/Moon arc. He was shown as a popular and diligent trainer who was in tune with the emotions of his Pokémon. One of his main Pokémon was an Eevee that he refused to evolve against its wishes, and he also had a Kangaskhan that he could Mega Evolve. He also had a rival in the form of a Team Skull member named Tupp and was skilled in Pokémon Ping-Pong. Ash attempted to battle him, but the battle was disrupted by Tupp. He later left for Kalos, but he returned later in the series to participate in the Manalo Conference. In that competition, he defeated Plumeria, but he ultimately lost to Guzma.
• In the Pokémon Adventures manga, Ilima appeared during the Sun/Moon arc. He was summoned by the other trial captains and worked together with them to battle Team Skull and Ultra Beasts that were threatening Alola.

Trivia

• His name is the same in both Japanese and English, and it is taken from the name of a Hawaiian flower that is the official flower of Oahu, the island on which Melemele Island is based.
• He is left-handed. Defeating him in the Trainer's School rematch will allow the player to learn the left-handed battling style from Gester at Ula'ula Island.
• His room is on the second floor of his home within the Shopping District of Hau'oli City, and it contains several bookshelves and trophies that Ilima has won.
• In addition to his aging parents, there are also two young women at Ilima's house whose relation/connection to him is never specified.
• Ilima studied abroad in Kalos at some point.
• According to Mina in Sun/Moon, Ilima took inspiration for his trial from the Vast Poni Canyon.
• Hau mentions training with Ilima on several occasions.