Our Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough starts properly now! With Pokemon now on the Nintendo Switch, the game's become a lot more 3D than it was before - but don't worry, all the basic principles are still exactly the same. Catch Pokemon, make them tough, use them to club other Pokemon into unconsciousness. And now it all happens in Galar, a Pokefied version of England - but with less vomit on the city streets, so we don't recognise it as such. Either way, here's the complete Pokemon Sword & Shield walkthrough.
Postwick
Once you get through the opening cutscenes, select your appearance, name, and all that jazz, you'll start the game on the sofa of your house in Postwick. Hop runs in, tells you to grab your stuff, then he'll wait for you to head outside.
Head into your room at the other side of the house and pick up your rucksack and hat, have a quick word with Mom, then leave through the front door. Take note of the erratic Wooloo by the fence — you'll be back here shortly — and follow Hop down the path towards his house. Head inside, speak to his Mom, then leave again and go down Route 1 towards Wedgehurst. You can't go in the tall grass yet because you don't have any Pokemon, so head to the town where you'll greet Leon.
Choosing a starter
After the cutscene, you'll be back up at Hop's house, where you can pick from Grookey, the Grass-type; Scorbunny, the Fire-type; or Sobble, the Water-type. Whichever you pick, Hop will pick the one weak to yours, while Leon will take the strong one on top of the Charizard he already has. Greedy.
Afterwards, face off in your first battle against Hop, and you should be able to take him down without any problems because he uses his low level Wooloo first. Defeating that will level your starter up to six, so you're then stronger than his level five choice.
Slumbering Weald
Head back up towards your house and the Wooloo will have finally broken through that pesky gate, standing in the way of Wooloo's hopes and dreams. Pick the option to save Wooloo and head into the forest, battling a few wild Pokemon along the way. Take this time to level up your starter a couple, before heading to the end of the path.
Surprise! Depending on whether you have Sword or Shield, you'll find Zacian or Zamazenta here, but what has it done with the poor Wooloo?! You'll be thrown into a battle against the legendary best, but you can't deal any damage to it. Try a few times and you'll be knocked unconscious, when Leon will find and rescue you, along with finding Wooloo safe and sound. What a great guy, eh?
Route 1
Pokemon: Route 1 - Tall Grass
| Pokemon | Rarity |
|---|---|
| Nickit | Rare |
| Rookidee | Common |
| Skwovet | Frequent |
| Wooloo | Average |
Pokemon: Route 1 - Random Encounters
| Pokemon | Rarity |
|---|---|
| Blipbug | Common |
| Caterpie | Average |
| Grubbin | Average |
| Hoothoot | Rare |
| Skwovet | Frequent |
Items: Route 1
| Item | Visible | Hidden |
|---|---|---|
| Potion | Y | Row 0 - Cell 2 |
| Paralyze Heal x2 | Y | Row 1 - Cell 2 |
Head back up to your house and talk to Mom again to get some Poke Balls and dollar dollar bills y'all, then head down to Route 1 where you'll be forced into the tall grass. Catch some Pokemon here to flesh out your party and level up your 'mons, then proceed into Wedgehurst.
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Postwick and Route 1
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Wedgehurst and Route 2
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Wild Area and Motostoke
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Route 3, Galar Mine, and Route 4
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Turffield, Turffield Gym, and Route 5
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Hulbury and Hulbury Gym
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Galar Mine No.2 and Motostoke Gym
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Hammerlocke and Route 6
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Stow-on-Side and Stow-on-Side Gym
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Glimwood Tangle
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Ballonlea and Ballonlea Gym
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Route 7 and Route 8
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Circhester and Circhester Gym
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Route 9
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Spikemuth Gym
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Hammerlocke Gym
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Route 10 and Wyndon
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Wyndon Gym and Rose Tower
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Wyndon Gym Finals and Slumbering Weald
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Energy Plant and Champion Battle
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Zacian and Zamazenta
Pokemon Sword and Shield walkthrough: Post-game activities
