One of the most important decisions that you make at the beginning of a Pokemon journey is who your starter will be. Anyone who has played one of these games in the past knows you have your choice of a Grass-, Fire-, or Water-type ‘mon. But it’s also very important to weigh that choice against a number of other factors. Here’s everything you need to know about which starter you should choose in Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl.
Which Starter You Should Choose in Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl
The Pokemon from the Sinnoh region are very much known quantities at this point. There’s not anything new in Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl that might change your choice if you liked the starter you had in the original games. But it’s still worth taking a look at which choice is the best if you didn’t concern yourself with that back in the day.
Turtwig
The first starter in Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shing Pearl is everyone’s favorite little grass turtle, Turtwig. It starts out as an unassuming Grass-type and after evolving into Grotle then Torterra, it becomes the only Pokemon to have the double typing of Grass and Ground. There’s not even a Ground-type that has Grass as its secondary type. This combination is truly unique.
This special combination of types helps carry Turtwig through most of the game. You’re not going to run into any major issues until you reach the seventh gym. As the name Snowpoint City implies, the gym there is focused on Ice-type Pokemon. Ice attacks absolutely destroy Torterra. But by that time, you should have a good Fire-, Steel- or Fighting-type that can make short work of Candice’s team.
Just keep in mind that Torterra’s unique typing isn’t always a good thing. Besides its extreme weakness to Ice-type attacks, the Ground typing also makes this ‘mon receive normal damage from Water attacks rather than resisting them as most Grass-types do.
Still, Turtwig is a solid option for main story content. Anything from your first gym battle to the final match against Cynthia should be fairly straightforward with Torterra in your party. Just don’t plan on using it for any competitive matches once you wrap up the main content.