Appendix:Diamond and Pearl walkthrough/Section 1

File:Twinleaf Town map.png

Twinleaf Town

In the Beginning...

When you first turn on the game, Professor Rowan introduces himself and but says to just call him the Pokémon Professor. He then asks if it is the Player's first adventure and is willing to give advice as needed such as the basic control and adventure information. Then, he talks and asks you to touch the button in the middle circle of the Poké Ball. A Munchlax then appears from the Poké Ball and the Professor goes on to speak about the human relationship alongside Pokémon as friends. He then states that his job as a Professor is to conduct research on these Pokémon.

You are then asked if you a boy or a girl, so choose wisely as you will be unable to change this once you have started your adventure. You are then able to choose a name which should be chosen wisely as well as it wills stay with you for the remainder of the game. You are than asked what your friend's name is who will be your Rival for the game.

Your adventure now begins, so it's time to jump into the world of Pokémon!

Twinleaf Town

Your rival takes you to Lake Verity

The journey begins at the player's home in Twinleaf Town. They are watching the television special report titled,"Search for the Red Gyrados!" when a news broadcast describes a team searching for a red Gyarados in a far-off lake (presumably the Lake of Rage in Johto). The broadcast states that the team has not observed the Pokémon in question.

On your way out of the house, the Player's mother will tell you that your rival Barry wishes to see you as it is an emergency. She also warns you to stay out the tall grass as Wild Pokémon may attack. Just as you enter his house, Barry bumps into you. Barry first says that he is fine and is fining you $1 million if you aren't there. After speaking, Barry runs back inside because he seemed to have forgotten something. Head inside and upstairs, where Barry will decide what he should bring. Barry then notices you and rushes out of the house. Barry will now wait for you on Sinnoh Route 201.

Lake Verity

File:Rowan Dawn Verity.png

Rowan's assistant Dawn/Lucas with Professor Rowan

Lake Verity

First Battle

After reaching route 201, Barry will now speak of the news report on TV about the Red Gyrados. He wants to go to the local lake to see if there is a similar Pokémon, so he will now follow you right behind you. The only place you can walk to is Lake Verity. Upon their arrival, they'll see Professor Rowan, and either Lucas or Dawn. The other person with Rowan is the opposite gender of your selected character. The two are discussing the return of Rowan to Sinnoh after four years. They push past you, with Lucas/Dawn apologizing. Barry remarks that the man is intimidating, and then begins to search the lake. Once the two of you enter the long grass, both are attacked by a wild Starly. You'll then open the briefcase to find three Poké Balls, containing Piplup, Chimchar and Turtwig.

Turtwig		Chimchar		Piplup
Grass		Fire		Water
	Grotle		Monferno		Prinplup
Grass		Fire	Fighting	Water
	Torterra		Infernape		Empoleon
Grass	Ground	Fire	Fighting	Water	Steel

You choose one(the Pokemon you choose will become your starter Pokemon), and Barry automatically selects the one with a type advantage over that one. The battle is with a Level 2 Starly giving 16 experience points.

Choosing the correct starter Pokémon for your playstyle can be an important choice in the game.

Turtwig, the Turtle Pokémon, is a solid choice. Turtwig evolves into Grotle, and then Torterra at level 32. Turtwig is a Grass type Pokémon, and Torterra gains a Ground type. Torterra has great Attack and Defense, but low Special Attack and Speed. It gets Razor Leaf and Crunch pretty early on, and Earthquake eventually. Torterra also gets Wood Hammer from the Move Tutor. Another good move for Torterra is Curse, which boosts its Attack and Defense, its two best stats, while decreasing its useless speed. It also gets Synthesis for healing itself. For TM moves it gets Bullet Seed, Iron Tail, Rock Tomb, Return, Giga Impact, Stone Edge, and Rock Slide. Also it gets TM Rock Polish to give it +2 Speed every time it uses it, which helps patch up its horrific speed. Swords Dance is useless with Curse in existance. It can learn Cut, Strength, Rock Smash, and Rock Climb for HM move. Torterra does have a 4x Ice weakness, so be wary of that. It any case Turtwig does good at the gyms for the most part and is a good choice for your starter.

Chimchar, the Monkey Pokemon, has high speed, low defenses, and high attacking stats. It can use physical and special moves. It evolves at level 14, into Monferno, a Fire/Fighting type, and gains a lot of power. If you make sure Chimchar evolves before the first gym, you shouldn't have trouble with the rock types. Chimchar and its evolution line focus primarily on offense and speed, boasting high Attack, Special Attack, and Speed. Its Defense and Special Defense are low, but it has the power to take out most Pokemon in the game with one hit before they even get a chance to strike, so it's not really that bad. Some good moves Chimchar gets are Flame Wheel, Close Combat, Mach Punch, and Flare Blitz. Brick Break, Stone Edge/Rock Slide, and Swords Dance are the main TM moves to consider, although it learns many, many more. It gets the HMs Cut, Strength (a good attacking option as well), Rock Smash and Rock Climb. In comparison to the other two starter Pokemon, Chimchar is probably the best.

Piplup, the Penguin Pokemon, has high defenses and special attack. Its attack is pretty meh and its speed is also pretty meh. When it becomes Empoleon, it gains the Steel type. 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. Pretty much, only Electric-, Fighting-, and Ground-type attacks are what you need to worry about — nearly everything else is resisted. Unfortunately, this good typing comes at a high cost: a bad movepool. Basically its best level up moves are Metal Claw, Aqua Jet, Bubblebeam, Peck, and Drill Peck and with Empoleon's sub-par Attack stat, it is better off using Special-based attacks. If you are fine using TMs and HMs on Empoleon, Surf (HM03) and Flash Cannon (TM90) are both very powerful attacks for Empoleon to learn. Also Empoleon does eventually get Hydro Pump at level 59, but surf is preferred for general utility. In comparison to the other two starters, Piplup is probably the hardest to use. It will struggle with sub-par moves until you get the HM for Surf (right before the 5th Badge), but will then become much more useful, and very powerful after getting Flash Cannon. All of the starters are solid choice and it is down to your preference and playstyle. In any case, time to move on.

Suddenly, Lucas/Dawn returns and remarks that Rowan would be very angry if he/she forgot the briefcase. You are then both asked if you have used a Pokémon from the briefcase. After replying, Lucas/Dawn takes the briefcase and hurries off.

Twinleaf Town

Getting the Running Shoes

On the way back to Twinleaf Town, you'll meet Lucas/Dawn, along with Professor Rowan, who then takes a look at the Pokémon belonging to both you and Barry, then returns back to the lab with his assistant. The assistant then mentions that you should stop by the Professor's lab and then hurries off.

After that, you'll automatically return to your house in Twinleaf Town. The Player explains the situation that occurred at the lake. Mom gives you a pair of Running Shoes and asks her child to visit Professor Rowan in Sandgem Town.

Items
Item Location Games

Route 201

File:Route201.png

Route 201

Once you are on Route 201, turn right head East, through the tall grass. Two Pokémon, Bidoof and Starly, can be found here but they cannot be caught yet. After going through the patch of tall grass head North and through another patch until you reach a woman. She works for the Poké Mart and will give you a free potion. Continue going East until you reach Sandgem Town.

Available Pokémon

Pokémon Games Location Levels Rate Starly D P Pt Grass 2-3 50% Bidoof D P Pt Grass 2-4 50% Special Pokémon Doduo D P Pt Swarm 2-4 40% Nidoran♀ D P Pt Poké Radar 3 20% Nidoran♀ D P Pt Poké Radar 2 2% Nidoran♂ D P Pt Poké Radar 2 2% Nidoran♂ D P Pt Poké Radar 3 20% Growlithe D P Pt Dual-slot FireRed 2 8% A colored background means that the Pokémon can be found in this location in the specified game. A white background with a colored letter means that the Pokémon cannot be found here.

Sandgem Town

The professor gives the player the Pokémon

File:Sandgem Town map.png

Sandgem Town

Upon reaching Sandgem Town, the Professor's assistant will stop you and have them go with them. You are then shown the Pokémon lab, the largest building in town. As you are about to enter, Barry zooms out and says that the man isn't as intimidating as he first seemed, then departs for Jubilife City. After entering the lab, Professor Rowan examines the Pokémon you chose at the lake and lets you keep the starter Pokémon as a gift. You will then be given the option to nickaname it. The Professor formally introduces himself, and will entrust you with a Pokédex to record the data on all of the Pokémon that are found throughout the Sinnoh region. Lucas/Dawn also says that he/she is on a Pokédex quest and mention the first Pokémon that they used which is the last one not chosen by you or your rival.

Upon departing the lab, Lucas/Dawn will give you a tour and show you the Pokémon Center and Poké Mart. The assistant then insists that you tell your mom that you are leaving on a journey. After you leave Sandgem Town, Lucas/Dawn will be on Route 202, but first you'll need to complete your mission to Twinleaf Town.

Items
Item Location Games

Twinleaf Town

Once you get past Route 201, head to your house and after getting some rest, your mother is happy to hear the news and will give you the Journal to keep a record of your day-to-day activities. Your mother makes sure to make a point of coming back to visit as she loves you. Barry's mother then stops by and admits that Barry left so fast that he forgot the Parcel, but your mother suggests that you can delivery this to Barry personally. Barry's mom mentions that Barry should be in Jubilife City right now. Afterwards leave Twinleaf and return to Sandgem Town. Head south to Route 219 to pick up a Antidote, though you cannot explore the rest of this route until you can use Surf. Afterwards head north of Sandgem Town to reach Route 202.

Items
Item Location Games

Diamond and Pearl walkthrough

Route 202, Jubilife City, Route 203, Oreburgh Gate, Oreburgh City Part 2 →

This article is part of Project Walkthroughs, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive step-by-step guides on each Pokémon game.