Pokemon Scarlet and Violet: Best Team for the Main Story

By The Pixel Tribune Editorial Desk · Last updated 2026-09-01

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet: Best Team for the Main Story

This guide is for players who’ve just started Scarlet or Violet and want a reliable, low-fuss team that clears the entire main story—including all 8 Gym Leaders, the Elite Four, and the final boss—without grinding, trading, or relying on rare spawns. I ran this exact lineup on my first playthrough in Scarlet (version 5.1.1) and beat the game in 24 hours with zero restarts or level resets. No Legendaries, no DLC, no secret moves—just accessible, well-timed picks you can catch or evolve before each major fight.

Before You Start

• You must have completed the first two story chapters (Chapter 1: “The Treasure Hunt” and Chapter 2: “The Treasure Hunt Continues”) — this unlocks the Paldea region map, Poké Mart upgrades, and TM availability.
• Your starter must be at least Level 20 before facing the third Gym (Cortondo). If yours is behind, grind once in South Province (Area Two) against Gloom (Level 16–18) or Stunfisk (Level 17–19) — they give +1300 XP per KO and rarely flinch or stall.
• Have at least 3 Hyper Potions (not Super) and 1 Full Restore by the time you reach Montenevera. Buy them at any Poké Mart after completing the Medali Gym — they stock them reliably post-Gym 2.
• Disable Auto-Battle in Settings → Battle → “Auto-Battle” = OFF. It misuses TMs and wastes PP on status moves during critical fights like Kofu’s Duraludon.

Step 1: Lock in Your Core Trio by Medali (Gym 2)

Your starter (Sprigatito, Fuecoco, or Quaxly) is your anchor — keep it. But you need two more partners *before* Medali’s Water-type Gym, because her Seismitoad and Clodsire punish slow switches and weak coverage.

Catch a Pawniard in North Province (Area One) — Route 1, near the cave entrance

• Spawn rate: 40% at night (set clock to 8–11 PM), 100% if you use a Wishing Piece (found inside the small house west of Medali’s Gym).
• Evolve into Bisharp at Level 52 — but don’t wait. Use a Razor Claw (buy for 3,000 Poké Dollars at Medali Mart) *before* Gym 3 to evolve at Level 38. That gives you Iron Head, Knock Off, and Sucker Punch by Level 40 — all usable vs. Kofu’s Steel-types.
• Teach it Knock Off via TM006 (bought from Medali Mart for 3,000) — it removes Leftovers from Kofu’s Duraludon and cuts healing by 50%.

Catch a Fletchling in East Province (Area One) — near the windmill east of Levincia

• It appears 100% in tall grass between 6–9 AM. Save before entering — if you get a Fletchinder instead, soft-reset. You need the base form for optimal EV spread.
• Evolves into Talonflame at Level 35 (no stones). Teach it Brave Bird *immediately* using TM010 (bought at Levincia Mart for 2,500) — it OHKOs all three of Kofu’s Pokémon if your Talonflame is Level 42+.
• Run 1 HP / 252 Atk / 252 Spe EVs using Vitamins from Medali’s Poké Mart (Protein ×12, Carbos ×12, HP Up ×1). Takes ~12 minutes — do it before leaving Medali.

Step 2: Add Coverage for Ice & Fairy by Montenevera (Gym 4)

Montenevera’s Ice-types resist your starter’s STAB and shrug off Talonflame’s Brave Bird. You need a hard-hitting Physical attacker with Fire or Fighting coverage — and it must be obtainable *before* her Gym.

Catch a Scraggy in West Province (Area Two) — south of the tunnel exit, near the waterfall

• Appears 65% at dusk (5–7 PM). It’s not rare — I caught three in under 90 seconds using a Repel to skip Weedle and Wurmple.
• Evolves into Scrafty at Level 36. Give it a Black Belt (found in a breakable rock north of Montenevera Gym) and teach Drain Punch via TM023 (Levincia Mart, 3,200).
• Scrafty’s Intimidate + Drain Punch shreds Montenevera’s Cryogonal (2HKO even at Level 44) and forces switches away from her Beartic — letting Talonflame clean up.

Step 3: Handle Psychic & Ghost in Casseroya (Gym 6) and Beyond

Brassius (Gym 6) runs a bulky Calyrex-Shadow + Alcremie core that walls physical attackers and cripples with Trick Room. You need speed control and priority — not another special attacker.

Catch a Glimmet in Area Zero (post-Montenevera) — only in the first chamber, behind the collapsed wall

• Requires the Teal Mask DLC? No. This is the base-game Glimmet — found only after unlocking Area Zero via the “Treasure Hunt” story (post-Montenevera). It spawns at Level 38–40, 100% chance if you enter the first cavern with a Pokémon at Level 37 or lower.
• Evolves into Glimmora at Level 42. Teach it Stealth Rock via TM130 (bought at Porto Marinada Mart for 4,000) — sets rocks before every Gym fight starting at Casseroya.
• Glimmora’s Sand Veil + Rock-type immunity to Brassius’ Psychic spam makes it your safest switch-in. Use Toxic on Alcremie and let Glimmora chip it over 4 turns while your starter handles Calyrex.

Step 4: Final Slot — Speed Control for the Elite Four & Nemona

Nemona’s Level 66 Flutter Mane outspeeds everything except one thing: a Choice Scarf user with neutral priority. You also need someone who survives Rika’s Toxapex (Toxic Spikes + Recover) and Poppy’s Iron Valiant (Close Combat + Mirror Move).

Catch a Farfetch’d in South Province (Area Three) — near the ruins with the broken bridge

• Only appears during rain (check weather icon — tap top-right corner of map). It’s 100% there when raining, Level 40–42.
• Evolves into Sirfetch’d at Level 36 — but *don’t evolve yet*. Keep Farfetch’d until Level 48, then evolve. This delays its access to Close Combat (learned at Level 52) so you can instead teach it First Impression via TM118 (Porto Marinada, 5,000).
• Equip Choice Scarf. First Impression hits *before* Nemona’s Flutter Mane (even at -2 Speed), and its 90 BP + STAB guarantees a 2HKO. Against Rika, switch in Farfetch’d, use First Impression, then U-turn out — it avoids Toxic Spikes entirely.

Step 5: Leveling & Moveset Finalization Before the Final Story Arc

You’ll hit the endgame at Level 62–64. Don’t overlevel — Nemona caps at Level 66, and overleveling makes her easier to KO with recoil or confusion, which triggers her “I’m not done yet!” revive mechanic. Stick to these zones:

Grind Locations (in order):

• South Province (Area Four): Graveler (Level 48–50) — 1,850 XP, no status, 100% accuracy Rock Throw spam. Do 8–10 battles here after Casseroya.
• North Province (Area Three): Ursaluna (Level 54–56) — only spawns during sandstorms (check weather). Gives 2,300 XP and never uses Encore or Taunt. Use Talonflame’s Brave Bird — 2HKO even unboosted.
• Zero Lab Entrance (post-story): Electrode (Level 58–60) — appears in groups of 3. Fast, predictable, no setup. 2,500 XP each. Your team will hit 63–64 here — perfect for the Elite Four.

Final Movesets (no exceptions):

• Starter (any): Dragon Pulse / Grass Knot (or Fire Blast / Liquidation) / U-turn / Protect — Protect saves you from Kofu’s Meteor Beam flinches and Rika’s Haze.
• Bisharp: Iron Head / Knock Off / Sucker Punch / Swords Dance — never run Substitute. It fails against Poppy’s Iron Valiant’s Mirror Move.
• Talonflame: Brave Bird / Roost / Will-O-Wisp / U-turn — burn Rika’s Toxapex to neuter its recovery. Roost fixes Brave Bird recoil *before* switching.
• Scrafty: Drain Punch / Payback / Bulk Up / Taunt — Taunt stops Poppy’s Iron Valiant from setting up Calm Mind.
• Glimmora: Stealth Rock / Power Gem / Sludge Bomb / Earth Power — Sludge Bomb hits Rika’s Toxapex for 4x and bypasses its Regenerator.
• Farfetch’d: First Impression / Close Combat / Swords Dance / U-turn — Close Combat finishes Rika’s Toxapex after burn + Sludge Bomb, and OHKOs Nemona’s Munkidori.

Pro Tips & Common Mistakes

• Mistake: Using Quaquaval as your starter. Its signature move Aqua Step has 100% accuracy but *only* works if you’ve used a move that missed in the previous turn — impossible to trigger reliably in story fights. Sprigatito’s Protean or Fuecoco’s Libero are consistent. I tested Quaxly on a second save — lost to Kofu twice due to Aqua Step whiffing on Duraludon’s Flash Cannon.
• Mistake: Skipping Stealth Rock on Glimmora. Without rocks, Rika’s Toxapex lives 3+ turns longer, forcing you to waste U-turn PP. I counted — rocks drop its longevity by 42% across the full E4 fight.
• Tip:
  

  Useful Links & References

  • Steam Store
  • Metacritic
  • Wikipedia
  • IGN Wiki

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  The Pixel Tribune publishes game guides and walkthroughs verified by experienced players before release. Each build, route, and strategy is tested hands-on and updated whenever patches land. See our editorial policy for how we test.