If you’re getting set to start Pokémon Legends Arceus then you might be interested in more details on the best start to begin the game with. There are a lot of factors to consider, so we’ll break them all down for you in more detail to give you a sense of how they’ll get on in the battles early on in the game and what they’ll look like towards the end when you’ve completed their evolution.
As ever, that cute and cuddly starter that you fell in love with will start to transition into its next form fairly early on, so it can be beneficial to have a good idea about what they’re going to look like down the road. However, if you want to keep this a surprise then stick to the first section below and don’t go on to the bit at the bottom talking through the evolution stages.
AdvertisementIt’s also worth bearing in mind that Pokémon Legends Arceus is like no other game in the series so far, so things that you will have banked on in the past like Gym Battles are no more. In their place, you’ll have frenzied noble Pokémon to find and battle in a very new way, which could influence your decision about which partner to choose at the outset.
Starter Pokémon
You should already know that you’ll have three Pokémon to choose from fairly early on in Arceus to act as your first partner, AKA your starter. These are Rowlet, a round owl-like Pokémon, Cyndaquil, which is shrew-like with a fire blast tail, and Oshawott, which is a sea otter that looks like it’s been crossed with a panda. You can see each of them in the picture above.
AdvertisementAs you can probably guess, Rowlet is a Grass/Flying type Pokémon, while Cyndaquil is Fire type and described as a Fire Mouse, and lastly Oshawott is a Water type, which is pretty standard for games in the series. If we were just calling it on the look of the starter visuals, we’d probably go with Oshawott, but they’re all pretty cool in their original form.
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Best starter for early game progression
As with all games in the series, you won’t have many Pokémon captured during the early phases of Legends Arceus, which means that your starter ‘mon could be invaluable right at the outset of the game. While there are no gyms to prepare for, there will be the frenzied nobles to deal with, which we mentioned earlier.
AdvertisementFrom everything that we’ve seen so far, the first of these will be Kleavor, the Lord of the Woods. If you’re not too sure what the deal is with this, essentially there’s a strange phenomenon sweeping through the Hisui Region that us sending noble Pokémon into a frenzy, so when you get near them they attack you with their wild rampage efforts.
You can read more about how you go about soothing their savage ways with the links at the bottom of the page, but a part of the process will require more normal battle versus Kleavor. As it turns out, the noble is incredibly weak to Water Type moves, which obviously points to Oshawott being a strong starter to go for if you’re concerned about making it past this one.
Pokémon Legends Arceus starter evolution
Here’s where things get more detailed about what the three starter Pokémon in Legends Arceus look like when they grow up a bit. The evolution points are all going to be fairly early for them, so you won’t have that much time with Rowlet, Cindaquil or Oshawott before they go through their changes. Like we said earlier, if you don’t want to find out more about this then now’s the time to back out.
Rowlet – it doesn’t take too much to guess how Rowlet evolves from its starting form as a Grass and Flying Type owl. However, if you’ve played Sword and Shield then you should be able to remember it goes from Rowlet to Datrix, which looks a lot like a slightly older owl with a middle parting quiff. It’s not the most impressive middle evolution, but its okay, and in all fairness most Pokémon look a bit weird in their awkward second state.
Its final evolution is into Decidueye, which is a sharp looking owl with big wings and a feathered hood. If you’re looking to choose the best starter from a final evolution point of view then Rowlet is the one to go for. It may not have the Water Type advantage over Kleaver, but from what we’ve seen you should at least be able to pick up a decent powered Psyduck by the time you go up against the Lord of the Woods.
Cindaquil – in terms of the evolution, Cindaquil is also fairly predictable in terms of the way it looks as it evolves. It starts out as a fire mouse with a long nose before turning into Quilva, which is a slightly bigger version with a shorter snout that looks a bit more like a stoat. It then supersizes into Typhlosion, which is bigger and badder looking in previous games in the series.
However, there are some stills doing the rounds on Twitter and Reddit that show it being a bit less ferocious in Pokémon Legends Arceus. In fact, it looks a bit like it has spent a year or two with Hisui ancestors of Cheach and Chong with eyes that appear to be ready to close. If that turns out to be the case then we’re probably going to give Cindaquil a miss.
Oshawott – here’s where things get fairly out there. Oshawott starts out as a dude of a sea otter with the prospect of evolving down a similar line. However, that couldn’t be further from the truth as its final evolution looks nothing like the starter whatsoever.
From its sea otter origins it first grows up a little to be the older otter that is Dewott, but after that something happens that mutates it into the mustachioed and pointy-nosed seal like monster that is Samurott. Its got a hard and pointy shell on its head and a tail that looks like its been lifted from Wailord. In all fairness, it still looks decent, but its a long way from its beginnings, which you might want to take into account when you’re choosing your Pokémon Legends Arceus starter.
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