Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl Best Pokemon Tier List

There are over a 150 Pokemon in Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl‘s Sinnoh Pokedex. You can catch most of them, but some Pokemon need must be battled b before they’ll join your team. This BDSP tier list will rank only the best Pokemon in the game.

Our tier list takes into account attack power and defense coverage. You will also learn which moves are the best, what are their strengths and weaknesses, how to get these Pokemon.

Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl Best Pokemon Tier List

SS-Tier Pokemon

Garchomp

• Type: Dragon, Ground
• Evolution: Gible / Gabite / Garchomp

Garchomp is the strongest attacking Pokemon and overall the best Pokemon in the game. His best moves are: Dragon Rush, Dig, and Earthquake.

Garchomp is best to use against Fire, Poison, Rock, and Electric types, but he is a bit weaker against other Dragon, Fairy, and Ice type Pokemon.

You can find Gible or Gabite for evolving at the following locations:

• Wayward Cave
• Still-Water Cavern
• Riverbank Cave
• Fountainspring Cave

S-Tier Pokemon

Dialga

• Type: Steel, Dragon
• Evolution: None

Dialga has the strongest special attacks out of all Pokemon, but his base attacks are just as good. His best special moves are Roar of Time and Iron Tail.

Dialga is totally immune to Poison damage and highly resistant to Grass damage. His biggest weaknesses are Fighting and Ground type moves.

The only way to catch Dialga is to fight him at Spear Pillar on top of Mt. Coronet. Before fighting Dialga himself, you will also need to beat Team Galactic and Cyrus.

Palkia

• Type: Water, Dragon
• Evolution: None

Palkia is very similar in power level to Dialga, with their special attack damage reaching as high as 438 points. Palkia’s best moves are: Hydro Pump, Special Rend, and Aqua Tail.

Palkia has no immunities and is highly resistant to Fire and Water damage. However, this Pokemon will sustain higher damage from other Dragon and Fairy types.

Just like Dialga, you can only catch Palkia after the fight on Spear Pillar at the top of Mt. Coronet.

Azelf

• Type: Psychic
• Evolution: None

If you enjoy playing with Psychic type Pokemon, then Azelf would be the best possible choice. His finest moves are Future Sight and Psychic.

Azelf is immune to ground damage and somewhat resistant to other Psychic and Fighting type Pokemon. But be extra careful when fighting against Bug, Ghost, and Dark types.

Azelf can be caught only after you beat Dialga and Palkia on top of Mt. Coronet. Then, travel to Lake Valor and defeat Azelf in the battle.

A-Tier Pokemon

Mamoswine

• Type: Ice, Ground
• Evolution: Swinub / Piloswine / Mamoswine

If you’re not ready to go to Mt. Coronet yet or evolve Garchomp, then the next best attacker in the game is Mamoswine. He’s got lots of cool moves with high damage, but his best are Blizzard and Earthquake.

Mamoswine is immune to Electric damage and highly resistant to Poison damage.

You can find and evolve Swinub at the following locations:

• Whiteout Cave
• Swampy Cave
• Icy Cave
• Glacial Cavern
• Bogsunk Cavern
• Route 217

Magnezone

• Type: Electric, Steel
• Evolution: Magnemite / Magneton/ Magnezone

Although Magnezone has a rather low base HP of only 70 points, his special attacks are really strong. Magnezone’s best moves are Zap Cannon, Discharge, and Flash Cannon.

This Pokemon is immune to Poison damage and extremely resistant to Flying and Steel types. However, keep him away from Ground type Pokemon.

Magnemite can be located and evolved at the following sites:

• Whiteout Cave
• Spacious Cave
• Icy Cave
• Glacial Cavern
• Fuego Ironworks

Rhyperior

• Type: Ground, Rock
• Evolution: Rhyhorn / Rhydon / Rhyperior

Rhyperior is one of the best ground attackers in Pokemon BDSP. His physical attacks are especially damaging, such as Rock Wrecker and Earthquake.

Rhyperior is immune to Electric damage and extremely resistant to Poison types. His two biggest weaknesses are Water and Grass type Pokemon.

You can find Rhyhorn or Rhydon at various locations, including:

• Route 227 or 228
• Stark Mountain
• Big Bluff Cavern
• Sunlit Cavern
• Spacious Cave
• Sandsear Cave
• Rocky Cave

B-Tier Pokemon

Magmortar

• Type: Fire
• Evolution: Magby / Magmar / Magmortar

The best Fire type Pokemon in Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl is undoubtedly Magmortar. His special fire attacks are truly fierce, such as Fire Blast, Flamethrower, Lava Plume, and Overheat.

Magmortar has no immunities, and he can seriously suffer from all other types of Pokemon, which is why he is only a B-tier choice.

You can catch Magby at the following locations:

• Volcanic Cave
• Typhlo Cavern
• Sandsear Cave

Blissey

• Type: Normal
• Evolution: Happiny / Chansey / Blissey

Blissey has the highest base HP in the game of 255 points, which can be maxed out to whopping 744 points. Blissey is also a healer, who can heal any ally in the group.

He has immunity to Ghost types, but do keep him away from all the Fighting type Pokemon.

You will be able to catch Happiny or Chansey at these locations:

• Route 209 or 210
• Trophy Garden

Related guides:

• Where to Buy Berries
• Poffin Guide
• How to Get the Super Rod

Those are the best Pokemon in Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl. Check out our other Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl guides for more tips and tricks.