win.gg
Win.gg Pokemon Here’s how to get all 3 starters from Pokemon Sword and Shield

Here's how to get all 3 starters from Pokemon Sword and Shield

Steven Rondina
Steven Rondina Published 06/06/2022

There are a few different ways to get all the starters of Pokemon Sword and Shield, but it’s not particularly obvious how to do so.

Starters are always cherished in Pokemon, but they’re actually underwhelming in a lot of cases. That’s not the case in generation eight, however. Rillaboom and Cinderace are both among the most powerful Pokemon in all of Sword and Shield from both a casual and competitive perspective while Intelleon is completely viable in the single-player experience.

The trouble is that Sword and Shield go back to the series’ roots by only letting players have one starter under normal circumstances. There are some ways around this, however. Here’s how to get all three starters from Pokemon Sword and Shield.

How to get all the starters in Pokemon Sword and Shield

The fastest and easiest way for players to get all three starters in Pokemon Sword and Shield is to get them as a mystery gift in Pokemon HOME. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4B7WQ02y5m8

Players who create a Pokemon HOME account on mobile devices automatically receive Sobble, Grookey, and Scorbunny as mystery gifts. All three of these starters can then be transferred to Pokemon Sword and Shield. The only caveat is that players need to use the same Nintendo account on both their mobile device and their Nintendo Switch. Here’s the step-by-step process:

  1. Download Pokemon HOME on a mobile device and on Nintendo Switch
  2. Sign in to the mobile version using the same Nintendo account as the Nintendo Switch
  3. On the mobile version, go to the main screen and hit the button to open the menus
  4. Go to “Mystery Gift” and select “Gift Box”
  5. Open the gifts
  6. Open the Nintendo Switch version of Pokemon HOME
  7. Select Pokemon Sword or Shield
  8. Drag and drop Grookey, Sobble, and Scorbunny into the Pokemon Sword or Shield boxes

This might look like a hassle, but it’s not actually difficult. Pokemon HOME is a valuable tool for anyone that plays multiple Pokemon games. Though it’s a subscription service, players can receive gifts and transfer Pokemon between games without a subscription. Players can even use it to transfer Pokemon from Pokemon GO to Sword, Shield, Brilliant Diamond, Shining Pearl, or Legends: Arceus.

Past that, players can look to several less-reliable means. First and foremost is just trading with another player. Grookeys and Scorbunnies are relatively easy to find by simply surprise trading on the Y-Comm, since they are a staple Pokemon in competitive play that players breed for regularly. There are also message boards like PokemonTrades on Reddit where players can easily find someone to help.

The last method is holding out for an event. There are sometimes Max Raid events related to the starters and one may come in the future. Maybe.

Steven Rondina Steven Rondina
About Steven Rondina

Steven Rondina is a true lifelong gamer. His earliest memories are of playing video games, and he has continued playing them throughout his life with no plans to stop any time soon. Steven’s favorite franchises in gaming include Pokemon, Dark Souls, and Counter-Strike. He has previously published with Bleacher Report and other gaming outlets.

View full profile
Read Also
Opinion: Sadly, Pokémon Remakes Are Allegedly a Thing of the Past Now Pokemon
Opinion: Sadly, Pokémon Remakes Are Allegedly a Thing of the Past Now Zachary Roberts Pokémon fans were probably delighted when FireRed and LeafGreen were ported to the Nintendo Switch console. They were undoubtedly excited to find out that, according to a leak, Emerald, Sapphire, and Ruby will follow suit. FireRed and LeafGreen sold like hotcakes, and it is highly likely that there will be rejoicing once the other leaked port is confirmed by The Pokémon Company. But sadly, based on more leaked intel, these ...
Polymarket Joins Kalshi in Offering Trades on Pokémon Cards — Use Promo Code WINGGPREMAR Pokemon
Polymarket Joins Kalshi in Offering Trades on Pokémon Cards — Use Promo Code WINGGPREMAR Zachary Roberts Prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket offer the ability to trade on a wide variety of things, now including Pokémon card values. Previously, neither market offered any such thing. Then, in late July, Kalshi added tons of different markets surrounding the collectible cards. Now, Polymarket has echoed them and added plenty of its own. Essentially, traders can make predictions on whether or not sealed cards and boxes will gain or ...
New Leak Suggests More Classic Pokémon Games Are Coming To Switch Pokemon
New Leak Suggests More Classic Pokémon Games Are Coming To Switch Zachary Roberts Earlier this year, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the franchise, Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen were ported to the Nintendo Switch and Switch 2. Now, a new leak suggests that Nintendo and company are going to repeat that with other classic titles. Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen were dropped on both the Switch and Switch 2 in February. They were a huge success, selling incredibly well. Within six weeks, they'd already ...
Garena Announces Palworld Online, a Mobile MMO Spin-Off News
Garena Announces Palworld Online, a Mobile MMO Spin-Off Hannan Mundia After the success of Palworld, Garena has announced that the game is coming in the form of a mobile MMO spin-off. Palworld divided many fans when it first came out. The resemblance to Pokémon was uncanny, though the entire premise was much more mature and violent than its inspiration. Still, the full release has been a massive success, breaking records and creating Palworld’s trading card game line as well. Hoping ...
These Are All the Horse Pokémon Through Generation 9 Pokemon
These Are All the Horse Pokémon Through Generation 9 Zachary Roberts Pokémon have long been designed after real-life things, primarily animals. There have been horse Pokémon, dog Pokémon, and more throughout nine generations (and spinoffs). Horses in particular are quite popular with players, and the animal's real-life grace and power transfers expertly over to the game. It helps that some of the horse Pokémon in these games are among the best and most memorable Pokémon you can get. They can be ...
You Can Now Trade on Pokémon Card Prices With Kalshi Pokemon
You Can Now Trade on Pokémon Card Prices With Kalshi Zachary Roberts Kalshi now offers traders the chance to trade on Pokémon card prices. The popular prediction market has plenty of available options, ranging from general news to elections. Traders can make predictions on weather, video games, and plenty more. Now, the value of Pokémon cards — one of the hobby's most hotly debated topics — has joined the platform, with users able to trade prediction contracts on future prices Kalshi has ...
Pokémon Winds and Waves leaks: Everything we know about Gen 10 Pokemon
Pokémon Winds and Waves leaks: Everything we know about Gen 10 Zachary Roberts Pokémon Winds and Waves has been given one trailer and no official release date. Clearly, The Pokémon Company and Game Freak have kept things close to the chest. That said, there are still leaks coming out all the time that reveal plenty about what Generation 10 will entail. Here's what we know so far. Thanks to Centro Leaks, we have a lot of (tentative) information about the upcoming mainline Pokémon ...