Pokémon Champions is now available on Nintendo Switch consoles, and this guide will help you to decide on your first lineup. To get you up to pace with the ranked scene, the game provides you with six Pokémon for absolutely free.
Let’s look at all ten starting lineups that will be available when you begin your journey to the top.
Pokémon Champions starter lineups explained
Once you finish the tutorial battle, you’ll be asked to pick your first recruit. The first pick doesn’t cost any money, and there are some meta choices to consider. However, you should also pay attention to the remaining members of the lineup since they will be fighting for you.
The starter lineups aren’t random, and the table below has all the information you’ll need for making your pick. You can only pick one, so make your choice carefully.
| Starter Choice | Remaining Pokémon |
|---|---|
| Pikachu | Kingambit, Garchomp, Azumarill, Gyarados, Gengar |
| Charizard | Azumarill, Steelix, Whimsicott, Gengar, Drampa |
| Tyranitar | Arcanine, Whimsicott, Drama, Aggron, Sylveon |
| Armarouge | Steelix, Victreebel, Hydreigon, Hawlucha, Manectric |
| Lucario | Sylveon, Manectric, Victreebel, Gyarados, Froslass |
| Palafin | Gengar, Aggron, Bidreel, Sylveon, Hydreigon |
| Gardevoir | Heracross, Drampa, Azumarill, Abomasnow, Corviknight |
| Absol | Froslass, Corviknight, Garchomp, Arcanine, Whimsicott |
| Altaria | Kingambit, Arcanine, Heracross, Hawlucha, Victreebel |
| Snorlax | Hawlucha, Whimsicott, Kingambit, Beedril, Hydreigon |
Pikachu is the best starter to pick if you’re purely judging it on squad strength. The team you get with Pikachu is clearly the best. You can immediately add Dragonite to the team (applicable for all) to make your starter squad even more powerful.
However, if you’re looking to pick the best starter, there are some clear choices ahead of Pikachu in the meta. However, you’ll want to tweak their teams with further additions to add more power.
