Appendix:Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl walkthrough/Section 1: Difference between revisions

Turtwig, the Turtle Pokémon, is a solid choice. Turtwig evolves into {{p|Grotle}} at Level 18, and then Torterra at level 32. Turtwig is a {{type|Grass}} Pokémon, and {{p|Torterra}} is a Grass/{{t|Ground}}-type Pokémon. Torterra has great Attack and Defense, but low Special Attack and Speed. It gets powerful moves like {{m|Razor Leaf}} and {{m|Crunch}} pretty early on, and later {{m|Earthquake}} . Torterra also gets {{m|Wood Hammer}}. Another good move for Torterra is {{m|Curse}}, which boosts its Attack and Defense, its two best stats, while decreasing its Speed, which is already very low. It also gets {{m|Synthesis}} for healing itself. For TM moves it gets {{m|Bullet Seed}}, {{m|Giga Impact}}, and a wide range of other moves, including several setup moves. Torterra does have a major weakness to {{type|Ice}} attacks, so be wary of that. In any case, Turtwig does quite well at the Gyms and is a very good choice.

Chimchar, the Chimp Pokémon, has high speed and attacking stats, but at the cost of having quite low defenses (these are usual for {{type|Fire}} Pokémon). It can use both physical and special moves well. It evolves at Level 14 into {{p|Monferno}}, a Fire/{{t|Fighting}}-type Pokémon, and gains a ton of power, and eventually learning one of the second strongest Fighting-type moves, {{m|Close Combat}} when it evolves into {{p|Infernape}}. If you make sure Chimchar evolves before or in the first Gym, you shouldn't have trouble with the Rock-type Pokémon. Its defenses are low, but it often has the power to take out most Pokémon in the game with one or two hits before they even get a chance to strike, so it's not really that bad unless there is a type disadvantage. Chimchar's line can learn a variety of great moves, both with level up and TMs. It can learn {{m|Flamethrower}} at Level 47 if unevolved, but Monferno and Infernape can still learn it via TM35, which can be obtained before the sixth Gym. {{m|Brick Break}}, {{m|Focus Blast}}, and {{m|Fire Blast}} are some TM moves to consider, although it learns many, many more, like {{m|Rock Slide}}, {{m|Stone Edge}}, Earthquake and {{m|Dig}}. In comparison to the other two first partner Pokémon, Chimchar is probably the best if you're looking for an easier ride through the game.

Piplup, the Penguin Pokémon, has high defenses and Special Attack. Its Attack and Speed aren't that great, unfortunately. It evolves into {{p|Prinplup}} at Level 16. When it evolves further into {{p|Empoleon}} at Level 36, it gains the Steel type, making it a unique {{t|Water}}/{{t|Steel}}-type Pokémon. The addition of the Steel type will give it a wide variety of resistances, making it take very little damage from quite a few attacks- only {{type|Electric}}, Fighting-type, and Ground-type attacks are a major threat; nearly everything else is resisted. Unfortunately, this good typing comes at a cost: a movepool that isn't the best. With Empoleon's sub-par Attack stat, it is better off using Special attacks such as {{m|BubbleBeam}}, which Prinplup learns at Level 24. If you are fine using TMs and HMs on Empoleon, {{TM|95|Surf}} and {{TM|91|Flash Cannon}} are both very powerful attacks for Empoleon to learn. Also, Empoleon does eventually get the second strongest Water-type attack {{m|Hydro Pump}} at Level 59, though it has low PP and accuracy. In comparison to the other two first partners, Piplup is probably the hardest to use. It will struggle with its movepool until you get TMs, but will then become much more useful. Teach it Flash Cannon as soon as you acquire that TM, and it will be very powerful. Other TM options that could pay off include {{m|Ice Beam}}, {{m|Scald}}, and maybe {{m|Grass Knot}}. It also gets Swords Dance from the Move Reminder to compensate for its Attack stat, opening up more Physical options for it. Don't think that Piplup is a bad choice— it's a great Pokémon and the extra effort of training one is well worth it.