Pseudo-legendary Pokemon are Pokemon with a base stat total of 600 and are part of a three-stage evolution. Most of these Pokemon are Dragon-type, but there are a few exceptions. In Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, players can get the pseudo-legendary Garchomp. Some Pokemon fans may recognize Garchomp as the main Pokemon of Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl's champion: Cynthia. However, to get this Pokemon for themselves, players will need to catch Gible.
The Gible-line are Dragon/Ground-type, which makes them resistant to most Types (ex: Fire, Grass, Water), but weak to Fairy and Dragon-type. Gible is also very weak to Ice-types (4x weakness) because of its dual-typing, meaning trainers will want to protect it from Ice-type Pokemon. Catching Gible will require a few Gym Badges, so players can expect it to be available only after they've made some progress in Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl's story.
Updated February 21, 2022 by Renri Seong: Those that are looking for a powerful Dragon-type Pokemon should consider catching Gible in Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl. At a first glance, this Pokemon doesn't stand out, but those patient enough to evolve it will find the payoff worth the effort. Gible can evolve into the pseud-legendary Garchomp, who is arguably one of the strongest non-Legendary Pokemon in Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl. There are different ways to get Gible in BDSP, but players will need to make some progress in the main story first. This guide has been updated to include another method of catching Gible.
What Trainers Need To Catch Gible
Before they can catch Gible, players will need to have a few things:
- HM04 Strength
- HM03 Surf
- Mine Badge
HM03 will be rewarded to the player for helping Cynthia’s grandmother in Celeste City.
To get HM04 Strength, go through The Lost Tower found on Route 209 which is south of Solaceonon town. At the top, there will be two elders, and they will give a Cleanse Tag and HM04 Strength. However, this move cannot be used in battle until the player has the Relic Badge in their possession.
After getting the Relic Badge from Fantina in Hearthome City, the game will want trainers to go to the next gym, which is in Canalvine City. To reach Canalvine, players need to use HM03 Surf to get through Route 218. Once they arrive in Canalvine, they'll be able to take on the gym challenge and face Byron. His Pokemon's levels range from 35-39 and he excels in the Steel-type. Bring Fire or Fighting-type and avoid bringing Ice or Rock-type.
Stop by a few Pokemarts and buy Quick Balls, Dark Balls, and Ultra Balls. Finally, it's best to have a Pokemon on hand that can inflict non-damaging status ailments (paralysis, sleep).
Finding Gible In The Wayward Cave
With all of this completed, it's time to go to Wayward Cave, Gible's habitat. On Route 206, beneath the Cycling Road, there is are two entrances to Wayward Cave. Instead of going right, go left. The hidden entrance is against the rock walls beneath Cycling Road. Have a Pokemon use Strength to move the boulders and start searching for Gible.
Gible is a rare Pokemon and can be difficult to catch. In addition, it's very likely Gible will be weaker than the Pokemon in the party, so bring a Pokemon around level 19-20. Use Dark Balls or Quick Balls to make catching it easier. If these aren't in the inventory, then weaken it and inflict status ailments before tossing an Ultra Ball.
Of course, if trainers want to bypass all this hard work, they can receive a Gible in a Trade instead. Be warned that a Traded Pokemon is prone to disobey commands if the trainer doesn't have enough Gym Badges.
Finding Gible & Gabite In The Grand Underground
-1.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=1500&dpr=1.5)
For those that don't mind waiting to add Gible to the team, they can get one in the Grand Underground. Gible will spawn in the Fountainspring Cave, Riverbank Cave, and Still-Water Cavern hideaways. Unfortunately, Gible will only spawn after players have the 7 Gym Badges, meaning they'll have to defeat Candice of Snowpoint City.
Despite the Grand Underground being a step-up from the original Diamond/Pearl's Underground, it still has some limitations to prevent making the game too easy for players. The arguably more powerful and popular Pokemon such as Ralts are considered "rare encounters" in the Grand Underground. This means players will be spending time entering and exiting a specific hideaway to trigger a rare Pokemon spawn. Fortunately, Gible isn't considered a rare spawn, but it makes up for it by only becoming available much later in the game.
Those that want to bypass Gible can try their luck with catching Gabite. Unlike Gible, Gabite will appear in the same hideaways as Gible only if players have HM Waterfall. Players can get Waterfall by speaking to Jasmine after getting the 8th Gym Badge. Specifically, Jasmine is to the north of Sunyshore City on the beach. Until players have defeated Volkner, Jasmine will not hand over HM Waterfall.
With all eight Gym Badges, Gabite will start appearing in the Grand Underground.
Between catching Gible in Wayward Cave and catching it in the Grand Underground, getting it in Wayward Cave may be the better option. The only HM players will need to get to Wayward Cave Gibles is Strength, which can be used after getting the 6th Gym Badge. However, the Gible in Wayward Cave will be weaker than the ones in the Grand Underground. This means it will take longer to level it up and evolve.
More Information About Gible And Its Evolutions
Gible is a Dragon and Ground-type Pokemon with a Slow growth rate (one attack EV yield) and is best caught with an Adamant nature (as this will increase its physical attack power). It will always carry the Rough Skin ability, which harms physical attackers whenever they would attack Gible, hitting them for 1/8th of their total HP. It's also possible to find a Gible with the Sand Veil ability, which will increase its Evasion when inside a Sandstorm.
Here's a look at Gible's base stats:
- HP: 58
- Speed: 42
- Attack: 70
- Defense: 45
- Special Attack: 40
- Special Defense: 45
It's a bit slow in its own right but it will hit other Pokemon pretty hard. It's also pretty elusive, at least, it is when trying to catch it. Gible only has a 5.9 percent catch chance using a Pokeball at full health. Players will definitely need to whittle its HP down and use status effects or hope they get exceedingly lucky.
Gible is an adorable Pokemon in its own right but most players catch one because they're itching to get their hands on its third stage evolution: Garchomp. In order to obtain a Garchomp, players will first need to level Gible up until it reaches its second stage evolution in Gabite. This will happen once a Gible reaches level Level 24, and, thankfully, players won't need to worry about meeting any special conditions.
Gabite comes with the following base stats:
- HP: 68
- Speed: 82
- Attack: 90
- Defense: 65
- Special Attack: 55
- Special Defense: 45
Although Gible is a bit on the slower side, the evolution into Gabite sees an effective doubling of its speed, giving trainers a much faster Pokemon that hits even harder. Once Gabite reaches level 48 it will finally evolve into Garchomp.
Garchomp's base stats are as follows:
- HP: 108
- Speed: 102
- Attack: 130
- Defense: 95
- Special Attack: 80
- Special Defense: 85
Once players acquire Garchomp, they'll have a rough-skinned Dragon/Ground-type that has an impressive physical attack power and is capable of out-speeding many opponents.
Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl are available on Nintendo Switch.