Wulfric

"Tough as an iceberg, hot as a furnace."
Wulfric
Species	Human
Affiliation	Pokémon League (Kalos)
Hair color	White
Eye color	Gray
Base	Snowbelle Gym
Relatives	Wife, Children
Voiced by	Jamieson Price (2019)
Debut	Pokémon X/Y

Wulfric is a Gym Leader from Kalos who acts as an opponent in Pokémon X and Y. He is the eighth and final Gym Leader of the game, and he specializes in Ice-type Pokémon.

Background

Wulfric was a lively trainer of Ice-type Pokémon who acted as the Gym Leader of Snowbelle City's Pokémon Gym and held the Iceberg Badge. He had a hearty demeanor and tended talk about the nature of strength. He felt that being rigid could make one tough but also fragile at the same time, and so it was better to be flexible. But he admitted that he was too stubborn to be like that, which was probably why he preferred Ice types. He was also open to the fact that, depending on the Pokémon used by challengers, his Ice-type Pokémon could be either "your most challenging opponent yet or a total pushover". In addition to running the gym, Wulfric was also aware of the hidden location of the Pokémon Village. He kept it a secret and visited it occasionally to check up on the Pokémon.

In X/Y, Wulfric was initially not at his gym when Calem/Serena arrived in town. They managed to find him at the Pokémon Village. He explained the village to the young trainer and saw that their Pokémon thought highly of them. Wulfric then returned to his gym and recommended that the young trainer spend some time with the Pokémon there before returning to Snowbelle. Eventually, Calem/Serena came to the gym and defeated Wulfric in battle. He gave them the Iceberg Badge and TM 13: Ice Beam. He then went outside his gym to see the trainer off as they set off for the Pokémon League. Afterwards, Wulfric could also appear at the Battle Chateau as an opponent with the rank of Marquis, after the player had reached the same rank of Marquis/Marchioness.

Pokémon Roster

• Abomasnow
• Cryogonal
• Avalugg

At the Battle Chateau, he would use only Cryogonal and Avalugg for battles prior to the player's completion of the Elite Four. Afterwards, he would use Abomasnow instead of Cryogonal.

In Other Pokémon Games

In Pokémon Masters EX, Wulfric and his Avalugg appeared together as a playable sync pair that could be recruited at random through the Sync Pair Scout feature. He appeared as an opponent in Chapter 22 of the Main Story's PML Arc, where he and Wikstrom teamed up with Paulo for a battle in the Pokémon Masters League tournament. They ultimately lost to Scottie/Bettie's team. Wulfric also acted as an opponent who Bryce had to defeat in a one-on-one battle for his Seel to evolve within his Sync Pair Story.

Other Appearances

Other Media

• In the Pokémon anime, Wulfric appeared in several episodes of the X/Y-based series. In his first appearance, Ash challenged him to a gym battle and lost, with Wulfric believing that it was due to Ash not having enough trust in his bond with his Greninja. In the following episode, they had a rematch which Ash was able to win with the help of his Greninja and its Ash-Greninja form. Wuflric also Mega Evolved his Abomasnow for that second battle. Wulfric then made a few other appearances in later episodes, including playing a role in helping to destroy the Giant Rock at the end of the arc.
• In the Pokémon Adventures manga, he was featured in the X/Y arc. He and the other Gym Leaders of Kalos worked together in an effort against Team Flare throughout the arc.

Trivia

• His Japanese name is Urup. This is derived from the Japanese name for a plant known as Lagotus Glauca and may also be referencing a Japanese word for 'wolf', in addition to him sharing his name with a volcanic island. His English name of Wulfric also clearly appears to be referencing the word 'wolf' and may also be a reference to Wulfenia, a plant genus from the same family as the Lagotis. The name may also be intended to be evocative of words like "frigid" and "arctic".
• He has a wife and children who are not mentioned in the original games themselves. They are seen in his concept arc, and he mentions them in Pokémon Masters.
• According to the Gym Freaks program, he is a fan of the Brycen-Man films and was seen crying while watching one in theater.
• The Gym Freaks program also claims that the locket around his neck contains a picture of his favorite Pokémon. According to Wulfric's concept arc, it actually contains a picture of his family.
• Wulfric is known for having the highest-level Pokémon of any Gym Leader prior to the player becoming champion.