Check this Pokemon Sword and Shield guide on best team composition for the story with each starter Pokemon. Includes a recommended team and lineup for Scorbunny, Sobble, and Grookey!!!
Table of Contents
Criteria For Selection
Ease Of Acquisition
When putting together the following teams, the priority has been given to Pokemon that are easy to catch early in the game. There are several possible team combinations, especially when given access to higher level Pokemon in the Wild Area. However, the goal for this guide is to recommend a team that can be caught easily, and will perform well in several battles!
Check Out More On The Wild Area Here!Best Team Comp - Grookey
Team Built Around Grookey
| Grookey | Evolves To Rillaboom |
|---|---|
  |  |
Grookey's final evolution, Rillaboom, is a pure grass type, meaning it has a total of 5 weaknesses: Fire, Ice, Poison, Flying, & Bug. It is important to build a team which includes Pokemon that are strong against these 5 types (Rock, Ground, or Water types).
Check Out Grass Strengths & Weaknesses Here!Recommended Team Comp
| Pokemon | How to Get Recommendation Criteria |
|---|---|
| Rillaboom | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Grookey (Level 35) - Select Grookey as your starter Pokemon - Strong attacker with high defense & health |
| Whiscash | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Barboach (Lv. 30) - Fish up a Barboach near Motostoke City - High defensive stats - Great moves (Earthquake, Rest, Snore) - Works well with Gyarados |
| Gyarados | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Magikarp (Lv. 20) - Fish up Magikarp on Route 2 - Magikarp is easy to catch & easy to level - Gyarados has strong stats & excellent moves at its disposal |
| Excadrill | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Drilbur (Lv. 31) - Catch in Galar Mine - Has a high attack stat, great for dealing damage |
| Corviknight | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Rookidee (Lv. 38) - Catch Rookidee on Route 1 - Can be caught early in the game - Flying- and Steel-type attacks are useful throughout the game |
| Grimmsnarl | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Impidimp (Lv. 42) - Catch Impidimp in Glimwood Tangle - Has high attack stats - Can learn both Dark and Fairy-type moves |
| Arcanine | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Growlithe (Using a Fire Stone) - Catch Growlithe on Route 3 Growlithe only appears on Route 3 in Pokemon Shield - Strong Fire type fills a hole in the team roster - Great moves can be learned immediately (Extreme Speed, Play Rough) |
| Ninetales | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Vulpix (Using a Fire Stone) - Catch Vulpix on Route 3 Vulpix only appears on Route 3 in Pokemon Sword - Strong Fire type that deals well with Inteleon's grass weakness - Amazing moves can be learned immediately (Flamethrower, Extrasensory) |
NOTE: Please note that there is a max of 6 Pokemon in a team. The Pokemon listed above are recommended, but not all are required.
Best Team Comp - Scorbunny
Team Built Around Scorbunny
| Scorbunny | Evolves To Cinderace |
|---|---|
 |  |
Cinderace and its evolutions are pure Fire types, so we've put together a potential team featuring Grass, Electric, and Water Types to counteract Cinderace's Water, Ground, & Rock-type weaknesses.
Check Out Fire Strengths & Weaknesses Here!Recommended Team Comp
| Pokemon | How to Get Recommendation Critera |
|---|---|
| Cinderace | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Scorbunny (Level 35) - Select Scorbunny as your starter Pokemon - Strong attack Pokemon with a high Attack & Speed stat |
| Eldegoss | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Gossifleur (Level 20) - Catch Gossifleur on Route 3 - Highly durable - Can take a Max Move hit and recover the damage with Synthesis - Able to counter Water type Pokemon which are effective against Cinderace |
| Whiscash | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Barboach (Lv. 30) - Fish up a Barboach near Motostoke City - High defensive stats - Great moves (Earthquake, Rest, Snore) - Works well with Gyarados |
| Gyarados | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Magikarp (Lv. 20) - Fish up Magikarp on Route 2 - Magikarp is easy to catch and level up - Gyarados has strong stats & excellent moves at its disposal |
| Manectric | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Electrike(Lv. 26) - Catch Electrike on Route 4 - Special Attacker with high speed - Electric-type moves are useful throughout the whole game |
| Excadrill | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Drilbur (Lv. 31) - Catch in Galar Mine - Has high attack stat, great for dealing damage |
| Corviknight | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Rookidee (Lv. 38) - Catch Rookidee on Route 1 - Can be caught early in the game - Flying- and Steel-type attacks are useful throughout the game |
| Grimmsnarl | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Impidimp (Lv. 42) - Catch Impidimp in Glimwood Tangle - Has high attack stats - Can learn both Dark & Fairy-type moves |
NOTE: Please note that there is a max of 6 Pokemon in a team. The Pokemon listed above are recommended, but not all are required.
Best Team Comp - Sobble
Team Built Around Sobble
| Sobble | Evolves To Inteleon |
|---|---|
 |  |
Sobble and its evolutions are pure Water types, meaning they are weak to Electric & Grass types. We've assembled a team with Ground and Fire types to support Inteleon and cover its weaknesses.
Check Out Water Strengths & Weaknesses Here!Recommended Team Comp
| Pokemon | How to Get Recommendation Criteria |
|---|---|
| Inteleon | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Sobble (Level 35) - Select Sobble as your starting Pokemon - Strong attacker Pokemon with a high Speed and Sp. Atk |
| Whiscash | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Barboach (Lv. 30) - Fish up a Barboach near Motostoke City - High defensive stats - Great moves (Earthquake, Rest, Snore) - Works well with Gyarados |
| Eldegoss | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Gossifleur (Level 20) - Catch Gossifleur on Route 3 - Highly durable - Can take a Max Move hit and recover the damage with Synthesis |
| Arcanine | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Growlithe (Using a Fire Stone) - Catch Growlithe on Route 3 Growlithe only appears on Route 3 in Pokemon Shield - Strong Fire type that covers Inteleon's Grass weakness - Great moves can be learned immediately (Extreme Speed, Play Rough) |
| Ninetales | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Vulpix (Using a Fire Stone) - Catch Vulpix on Route 3 Vulpix only appears on Route 3 in Pokemon Sword - Strong Fire type that covers Inteleon's Grass weakness - Amazing moves can be learned immediately (Flamethrower, Extrasensory) |
| Excadrill | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Drilbur (Lv. 31) - Catch in Galar Mine - Has a high attack stat, great for dealing damage - Immune to Electric moves, which Inteleon is weak to |
| Grimmsnarl | [How to Get] - Final evolution of Impidimp (Lv. 42) - Catch Impidimp in Glimwood Tangle - Has high attack stats - Can learn both Dark & Fairy-type moves |
Is Pokemon Breeding Necessary for Story?
IVs And Nature Not Mandatory For Clearing Story
If your main goal is simply to complete the story of Pokemon Sword and Shield, you do not really need to pay attention to your Pokemon's nature or IVs yet. On the other hand, you should look for Pokemon nature that boosts its damage output as below.
List Of Pokemon Natures
Legend: ↑ = +10%、↓ = -10%!!!
| Nature | Atk | Def | Sp. Atk | Sp. Def | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lonely | ↑ | ↓ | - | - | - |
| Adamant | ↑ | - | ↓ | - | - |
| Naive | ↑ | - | - | ↓ | - |
| Brave | ↑ | - | - | - | ↓ |
| Bold | ↓ | ↑ | - | - | - |
| Impish | - | ↑ | ↓ | - | - |
| Lax | - | ↑ | - | ↓ | - |
| Relaxed | - | ↑ | - | - | ↓ |
| Modest | ↓ | - | ↑ | - | - |
| Mild | - | ↓ | ↑ | - | - |
| Rash | - | - | ↑ | ↓ | - |
| Quiet | - | - | ↑ | - | ↓ |
| Calm | ↓ | - | - | ↑ | - |
| Gentle | - | ↓ | - | ↑ | - |
| Careful | - | - | ↓ | ↑ | - |
| Sassy | - | - | - | ↑ | ↓ |
| Timid | ↓ | - | - | - | ↑ |
| Hasty | - | ↓ | - | - | ↑ |
| Jolly | - | - | ↓ | - | ↑ |
| Naive | - | - | - | ↓ | ↑ |
| Bashful | - | - | - | - | - |
| Docile | - | - | - | - | - |
| Serious | - | - | - | - | - |
| Quirky | - | - | - | - | - |
| Hardy | - | - | - | - | - |
Pass Down Natures With An Everstone
Nature can be passed down with 100% certainty by making the parent with your desired nature hold an Everstone! The Everstone is found very early on in Turffield, so make sure to pick it up!
Check Out Our Perfect Breeding Guide For More Info!Tips To Improve Your Team Comp
Go To The Move Reminder ASAP
The Move Reminder is located in Pokemon Centers. He can teach your Pokemon moves they might not be able to learn by leveling up. Whenever you get a new Pokemon (especially one evolved with an evolutionary stone), stop by the Move Reminder to make it remember a strong move!
Find Out How To Get Strong Moves Early On With the Move Reminder!Check Stats Ranking Of Your Pokemon Roster
Some Pokemon has higher stats than others. Check your Pokemon's stats ranking to determine if an upgrade is required.
Check out Base Stat Ranking In Galar Guide here!Breed Pokemon For Better Growth
Have a favorite Pokemon on your team? Why not breed it to get a even more powerful version of it? Getting better stats will prepare your Pokemon for Rank Battles further down the line.
| Related Articles | |
|---|---|
| Perfect Breeding Guide | Best Pokemon Tier List for Ranked Battle |
Pokemon Sword and Shield - Related Articles
Go Back To The Top PageMust Reads For Beginners
| Popular Beginner Tips | |
|---|---|
| Recommended Starters | Story Walkthrough List | Best Team For Story |
Breeding
| Popular Breeding Articles | |
|---|---|
| Step By Step Guide On How To Breed | |
| All Egg Group List | Useful Items For Breeding |
Post Game Content
| Must Read | |
|---|---|
| What To Do After Beating The Game | |
| Ranked Battle Tier List | Ranked Battle Builds List |
| Battle Tower Guide | Ranked Battle Guide |
Database
| Popular Databases | |
|---|---|
| Galar Pokedex | Base Stats Ranking | Clothes & Hairstyles List |
