Battle Zone

The Battle Zone (Japanese: バトルゾーン Battle Zone) is a sub-region of Sinnoh located on a separate island northeast of Sinnoh's mainland.

Three settlements are located in the Battle Zone: the Fight Area, which holds the entrance to the in  and the  in ; the Resort Area, where one can find the Ribbon Syndicate; and finally the Survival Area, home in Platinum to the Battleground and a Move Tutor's home. Six of Sinnoh's 30 routes, numbered -, are on the island, with both and  being water routes.

Despite being closer to Veilstone City, the easiest possible route to the Battle Zone is through Snowpoint City by boat. Because of this, the Battle Zone maintains an open shipping route between Snowpoint City and the Fight Area in transporting cargo and necessary supplies to and from the mainland.

The geography of the Battle Zone is based loosely on the geography of the southern part of, a n territory that was previously controlled by Japan.

Places of interest
The Battle Zone is dedicated to Pokémon battling; many of the Battle Zone's facilities such as the, , and Battleground offer Pokémon Trainers a place to demonstrate their skills, while the island's rugged geography and powerful wild Pokémon provides a physical challenge for Trainers training their Pokémon. Although the Battle Zone has no Pokémon League, the come here often to train and rehabilitate their Pokémon. During its early days, the island, which was renowned for its dense forests, treacherous cliffs, steep mountain paths, and raging sandstorms, only attracted the strongest Trainers, who were considered eccentric for gathering at such a harsh landscape. Eventually, the Trainers settled and small communities such as the Fight Area and the Survival Area developed.

There are three settlements located in the Battle Zone: the Fight Area, Survival Area, and Resort Area. Each area is tailored to fit a certain function. The Fight Area is devoted to competitive battling, hosting the, and later, the , where Trainers gather from all around to the to exhibit their skills. The Survival Area, which is based at the foot of the rugged mountain range in the north-most part of the sub-region, and is surrounded by thick jungle and steep cliffs, dedicates itself to Pokémon training and preparation; while the Resort Area is centered around s and Contests, allowing Trainers and their Pokémon a chance to respite.

To the very north of the Battle Zone, there is a mountain range, Stark Mountain, which consists of an active volcano. Due to the dry environments of Stark Mountain and the surrounding mountainous areas, the Battle Zone is subject to warmer climates. A constant sandstorm rages on due to the flow of wind down though the mountains. Some of the southern areas of the Battle Zone are very tropical and contain dense jungles.

Settlements
There are three settlements situated in the Battle Zone: the Fight Area, Survival Area, and Resort Area. For all intents and purposes, the three settlements act as towns, however, they appear to be more of a tourist destination and are not considered cities or towns.

Routes
Six of Sinnoh's 30 routes, numbered -, are on the island, with both and  being water routes. Each route that connect the areas of the Battle Zone has a uniquely, distinct terrain type which makes traversing the route a physical challenge. Protruding outcrops, windy cliff paths, rugged mountain trails, harsh deserts, rocky waters, and thick jungle-like terrains comprise the routes of the Battle Zone, which trial Trainers and creates an environment inhabited by a diversity of Pokémon.

Stark Mountain
The northmost point of the Battle Zone houses Stark Mountain, a mountain range which consists of an active volcano. Many Trainers that travel from Sinnoh's mainland consider the journey up to Stark Mountain to be the most daunting and grueling test of their skill. The volcano rains ash down upon some parts of the Battle Zone. Outside the cavern, is a rugged, seemingly indestructible rock mountain that is thickly blanketed by the volcanic ash it spews. While, inside the mountain, fissures in spilled and hardened lava form enormous caverns. Due to the dry environments of the Stark Mountain and surrounding mountainous areas, the Battle Zone is subject to warmer climates. Only the deepest part of the volcano houses the Legendary Pokémon. This is similar once again to the Sevii Islands as one may find at Mt. Ember there.

In the Pokémon Adventures manga
In the, challenged the  at the Battle Zone. Meanwhile, Looker, Frontier Brains, and Stat Trainers conducted research on Distortion World. When Buck went to Stark Mountain to save from Team Galactic, he unwittingly allowed Charon to capture the Lava Dome Pokémon.

In the Pokémon Diamond and Pearl Adventure! manga
The Battle Zone first appeared in Look for Giratina!. Following the attack on the Pokémon League Tournament, Hareta and Mitsumi headed to the Fight Area on a boat. Upon arrival in the Fight Area, Hareta was attacked by a man with a, who revealed himself to be , 's father. Hareta and Mitsumi then headed to Stark Mountain to search of Team Galactic. Eventually they ended up finding Charon, who has raided Stark Mountain, disturbing the Magma Stone and awakening Heatran, leaving Hareta to battle it.

Trivia

 * While it is heavily implied by many of the Battle Zone's inhabitants that the island is a separate region from Sinnoh, a in the Pokémon Center of Lentimas Town in  states that Stark Mountain, a part of the Battle Zone, is in the Sinnoh region.

In other languages
Duellzone Bahía Gresca Zona Lotta バトルゾーン 对战特区