This was John’s first stop in the Galar region, where the international airport was located. Wyndon stood as both the most prosperous and northernmost city in Galar.
Coming to Galar, John had a clear objective: mastering Dynamax.
Here, it’s worth noting the difference between the Pokemon world from the games and the world John now inhabited.
In this world, Dynamax originated from the legendary Pokemon Eternatus, which absorbed energy from the Galar region to sustain its life, creating the "Darkest Day" phenomenon throughout the region. This phenomenon caused Pokemon to grow to enormous sizes.
In the games, Dynamaxing could only be used in specific locations within the Galar region. But in John’s world, the rules were different.
If each country or region had a history spanning more than 3,000 years, then the "Darkest Day" phenomenon would be recorded in their history, even if not by that name. The phenomenon remained the same: crimson light soaring through the sky enveloping the earth, followed by a beam of energy shooting up from the ground, heralding the appearance of gigantic Pokemon.
Dynamax wasn’t exclusive to Galar, it was global! The last time the Darkest Day occurred, the battlefield between Eternatus, Zacian, and Zamazenta had indeed been in the western part of the world.
Therefore, in John’s world, Dynamaxing could be performed anywhere. The closer to the west, the more frequent and potent the Dynamax energy became.
Dynamax power was ranked from levels 1-10, with levels increasing as Pokemon absorbed more Dynamax energy. A Pokemon’s ability to absorb this energy correlated directly with its inherent strength.
The higher the Dynamax level, the larger the Pokemon grew when Dynamaxed, with correspondingly greater physical power.
Draconia was considered far from the western regions, so Dynamax occurrences were rare there. Even when Pokemon did Dynamax in Draconia, they typically only reached levels 2-4.
Consequently, few trainers in Draconia utilized Dynamax power. During the recent Gym Leader Ranking Tournament, John had only witnessed it twice in other trainers’ battles.
However, since Dynamaxing was a global ability that could be used anywhere, it represented—like Z-Moves and Mega Evolution, a means to enhance immediate combat power. John knew he needed to master it.
When facing the Elite Four, this would provide critical additional strength.
Drawing from his experiences in the Kalos and Alola regions, John knew exactly what he needed to obtain this power.
For Dynamaxing, only two things were required:
First, a Dynamax Band, similar to the Mega Ring and Z-Ring, which served as the exclusive tool for Dynamaxing.
Second, Dynamax energy. This was relatively simple to obtain. Wild Dens scattered throughout Galar contained concentrated Dynamax energy. Finding and battling at these Dens would allow John’s Pokemon to absorb this power.
This was essentially how Dynamaxing worked in specific places. The air in Galar was saturated with Dynamax energy.
The process was much simpler than finding Mega Stones for Mega Evolution or Z-Crystals for Z-Moves.
However, Gigantamax was more complicated.
Gigantamax was a special form of Dynamaxing that only certain Pokemon could achieve. When a Pokemon Gigantamaxed, it didn’t merely grow larger, it adopted an entirely new appearance and gained access to exclusive G-Max moves.
This represented another inequality in the Pokemon world: some Pokemon could Mega Evolve, some had exclusive Z-Moves, and some could Gigantamax. A few privileged species, like Charizard, Venusaur, and Blastoise, possessed two of these three abilities simultaneously. Many Pokemon, however, had access to none.
In John’s current lineup, only two Pokemon could potentially Gigantamax: Venusaur and Gengar (once his Haunter evolved).
To enable a Pokemon to Gigantamax, the safest method was to feed it Max Soup. Obtaining this required traveling to the Isle of Armor and completing certain tasks, something John decided to leave for later.
For now, he’d focus on the essentials: obtaining a Dynamax Band.
The Dynamax Band was jointly developed by Professor Magnolia and Rose, the president of Macro Cosmos. Professor Magnolia provided the concept, while Macro Cosmos handled production. Oleana, Rose’s assistant, assisted in the manufacturing process.
If John wanted to acquire a Dynamax Band, he needed to approach one of four people: Professor Magnolia, Rose, Oleana, or Sonia (Professor Magnolia’s granddaughter and assistant).
Rose and Oleana were effectively the "villains" of the region, similar to the situation in Alola.
John found it ironic that while "Team Something" organizations were often portrayed as troublemakers, the real villains in both Alola and Galar were the official regional leaders. The Aether Foundation in Alola had been no different.
Given the choice, John would prefer to obtain a Dynamax Band through direct confrontation, perhaps by defeating a trainer who already possessed one. However, having just arrived in Wyndon, he lacked both information and opportunity.
That left Professor Magnolia and Sonia as his best options. John recalled that Sonia’s laboratory was located in Wedgehurst.
Wyndon was at the northernmost point of Galar, while Wedgehurst lay near the southernmost tip. Reaching Wedgehurst meant traversing the entire Galar region.
"I’ll postpone challenging the gyms until after I’ve obtained a Dynamax Band," John decided.
If he followed the traditional gym challenge route, he’d need to defeat every gym along the way to reach Sonia’s laboratory. Too slow.
Instead, John would head directly to Wedgehurst. He could always return to heal his Pokemon at Pokemon Centers in cities along the way, then fly back to challenge the gyms later. It was just a matter of time management.
With his plan set, John headed south from Wyndon toward Route 10, a snow-covered field.
Halfway there, he paused. "Wait a minute..."
John suddenly remembered that traveling through Galar didn’t necessarily require going through cities one by one. The region boasted an exceptionally convenient subway system.
He turned back toward Wyndon, located the station, and prepared to board a train directly to Wedgehurst.