Best Starter Pokémon in Pokémon Legends: Arceus

The starter Pokémon, in addition to being the first choice you make in any Pokémon game, is also one of the most important decisions. Your starter sets the tone for your entire adventure, giving you certain advantages and disadvantages at the beginning and more than likely remaining by your side for the entire game. While the best way to pick a starter is to simply go with whatever appeals to you personally, it’s understandable to want to make the optimal choice. So, who’s the best starter Pokémon in Pokémon Legends: Arceus?

At the start of your adventure, you’ll be given a choice between three starter Pokémon, gathered from across the Pokémon generations. Those three Pokémon are Cyndaquil, a pure Fire type, Oshawott, a pure Water type, and Rowlett, a Grass/Flying type. From a technical perspective, the choice you make depends heavily on whether you prioritize short-term ease or long-term growth.

Best Starter Pokémon in Pokémon Legends: Arceus 

From a short-term perspective, Rowlett’s the best choice. As the only starter with dual typing, and the particularly versatile Flying type at that, it has a greater number of resistances and can learn a wider variety of moves in both its first and second evolutionary states. Of course, you’ll get more complex Pokémon later, so that novelty won’t last especially long.

If you’re playing the mid-range game, Cyndaquil’s your pick. Cyndaquil has the highest base attack and speed among the starters, which makes it a great early-game nuker for building up strength quickly (and weakening Pokémon for the PokéDex). Additionally, as is often the case in Pokémon games, Fire types tend to be a bit difficult to come by in the early stages, so a guaranteed one to start will give you some particular typing advantages you might not have otherwise.

If you don’t mind thinking in the long-term, Oshawott’s the one you want. Oshawott is a difficult Pokémon to start with, as its comparatively low base defense and speed makes it harder for it to stay in a fight by itself. It does, however, have good attack stats, and if you can keep it going throughout the game, it’ll become much more viable when it evolves fully into Hisuian Samurott, a Water/Dark type with a wide-reaching moveset. It’s a tough pick, but it’s totally worth it in the end.