Nessa

Nessa
Species	Human
Affiliation	Pokémon League (Galar)
Hair color	Black
Eye color	Blue
Base	Hulbury
Voiced by	Tiana Camacho (2021)
Debut	Pokémon Sword/Shield

Nessa is the second of the eight gym leaders of the Galar region's major league who appears as an opponent in Pokémon Sword and Shield. She specializes in Water-type Pokémon.

Background

Nessa's father was a fisherman, and her mother worked in the marketplace. She grew to become a skilled trainer of Water-type Pokémon and also liked fishing. Nessa befriended Sonia during their gym challenge, and the two remained close friends long afterwards. Nessa went on to become the gym leader of Hulbury while also working as a model. She was said to be remarkably different in each role. She kept herself more composed as a model, while she was more open to venting her frustrations when acting as a gym leader. Nessa was said to be a stoic gym leader and valued refined minds. To that end, her gym challenge consisted of a puzzle in which challengers had to turn pipes off and on in the right order to reach the exit. The gym leaders had battled each other to decide their placement. Nessa ended up placed as the second gym leader of the major division. The only leader of the major league to place lower than her was Milo. She declared him to be her rival, but he claimed that his only rival was himself.

Within Sword and Shield, Nessa was first seen with the other gym leaders at the gym challenge's opening ceremony at Motostoke Stadium. She then returned to Hulbury and spent some time fishing by the lighthouse until she was happened upon by Victor/Gloria. Nessa had heard a lot of talk going around about the trainer, and she gave them her League Card, so that they would know about her in turn. Nessa then returned to her gym and waited for the Victor/Gloria to complete her challenge. Once the challenge was completed, the trainer battled and defeated Nessa at Hulbury Stadium. She was frustrated by her loss, but she admitted to her defeat and told the trainer that they had an incredible spirit that might be strong enough to challenge the champion. She gave the trainer a Water Badge and pointed them towards the next gym. Nessa was also defeated by Hop, Bede and Marnie. After Victor/Gloria and Hop completed the first three gyms, Nessa joined Milo and Kabu in seeing them off from Motostoke.

Later in the game, Nessa participated in the Finals of the Championship Cup, along with most of the other gym leaders. Nessa was pitted against Victor/Gloria in the first round. She could tell that the trainer had grown much stronger and that Leon had an eye for talent, but Nessa believed that she could defeat both Victor/Gloria and Leon. She was ultimately defeated again in the ensuing battle, and she admitted that she wished that she had listened to what Sonia had told her about the trainer. Nessa returned to her gym; according to her rare League card, she accepted her defeat with a smile in the eyes of her fans as a model, while showing her anger around the gym. Soon afterwards, a new incident arose in which Dynamax Pokémon were suddenly appearing within their stadiums. Victor/Gloria, Hop and Piers arrived to help Nessa to deal with her variation of the problem, which was a Dynamaxed Gyarados. Together, they defeated it and restored it to normal. Nessa proceeded to tend to the Gyarados at the stadium. She told Victor/Gloria that they could call upon her help at any time and gave them her rare League Card.

Victor/Gloria could also hold tournaments at Wyndon Stadium in which Nessa could appear as a competitor (either by invitation or at random), and she could also appear as a potential double battle partner during the Galarian Star Tournament. She could also sometimes be seen visiting the Isle of Armor.

Pokémon Roster

Nessa is shown to use the following Pokémon, with her roster changing for tournament battles:

• Goldeen (gym battle)/Seaking (championship cup)
• Arrokuda (gym battle)/Barraskewda (championship cup)
• Drednaw (Gignatamax in rematches)
• Goliospod (tournament only)
• Pelipper (tournament only)
• Quagsire (tournament rematches)
• Toxapex (tournament rematches)

At the Galarian Star Tournament, she uses only Goliospod, Toxapex and Drednaw.

In all battles against her, Drednaw is the last Pokémon she uses and is the Pokémon that she Dynamaxes. Drednaw Dynamaxes normally in the initial gym battle and uses its Gigantamax form instead during all rematches. Drednaw is also the only Pokémon that she uses for the team battle against Dynamax Gyarados.

In Other Pokémon Games

In Pokémon Masters EX, Nessa and her Drednaw appeared as a playable sync pair that could be recruited at random through the game's Sync Pair Scout feature after being added in May 2021. There was also a Holiday 2021 variant that was paired with Eiscue which was made available during limited time periods, starting in December 2021. Nessa appeared during the "Howling Shield of Eternity" Story Event, in which she helped Leon and other trainers deal with an outbreak of forcibly Dynamaxed Pokémon. Her holiday variant was also featured in the "Winter Wishes" Story Event, in which she helped to distribute gifts for the holiday season. Sonia expressed her concerns that they were drifting apart, so Nessa decided that they would have Lumiose Galette together like old times and celebrate her becoming a professor. She later distributed presents for all the Galar trainers and started reminiscing about Leon's Gym Challenger days.

Other Appearances

Other Media

• In the Pokémon Adventures manga, Nessa appeared during the Sword/Shield arc. Henry and Casey were both shown defeating her for the gym challenge. She also helped the others in investigating Chairman Rose and took part in the battle against Eternatus.
• In Pokémon: Twilight Wings, Nessa made a cameo appearance during a montage shown at the end of the first episode and was featured in the fourth episode. In that episode, Nessa suffered another defeat at Milo's hands, and Rose implied that she would be more prosperous as a trainer if she stopped modeling on the side. She contemplated his suggestion while taking part in a photo shoot, where she encountered and rode a wild Milotic. Sonia then convinced her that she could be like a Milotic: powerful and beautiful at the same time. So Nessa continued to both battle and model, with renewed confidence. Nessa made another quick appearance during the final episode, as part of a montage of video testimonies about Leon that included most of the Gym Leaders, and she also appeared in the bonus episode, where she was invited to the Galarian Star Tournament while resting from a photo shoot and was seen at its opening ceremony.

Trivia

• Her English name seems to be derived from "Loch Ness", the name of a popular Scottish lake that is associated with legends of an aquatic monster living in its depths. Her Japanese name is Rurina, in reference to the Japanese name for a flower known as the cupid's dart.
• Milo and Nessa's rivalry may be based on the real-life rivalry between the places their respective homes are based on, Yorkshire and Lancashire.
• Nessa's League Number is 049, which can be read in Japanese as a phrase meaning "to swim".
• Nessa often gives Sonia fresh seafood from Hulbury.
• Her Pokémon are kept in Dive Balls.