How to find Mudkip, Marshtomp, Swampert in Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl

Brent Koepp
Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl Mudkip and Swampert evolution line artwork

The popular Hoenn starter can be found in a secret location in the Sinnoh remakes. Here is where to find Mudkip, Marshtomp, Swampert in Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl.

Although BDSP is a largely faithful adaptation of the classic 2006 RPGs, Studio ILCA has brought a wealth of new features to Sinnoh such as an extended Pokedex. Players can get popular ‘mon from previous Generations such as Hoenn favorites Torchic and Blaziken.

Trainers can also catch fellow Gen III starter Mudkip and its evolutions Marshtomp and Swampert. However, it is one of the hardest characters to locate in Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl.

Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl Mudkip spawn encounter screenshot
The Hoenn starter can be found in BDSP.

Where to find Mudkip in Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl

In order to get Mudkip to spawn, players have to first beat the Elite 4 and the Sinnoh Champion in the main story campaign.

After that, you will also need to complete a few tasks before the starter will start spawning:

  1. You need to complete your Sinnoh Dex by seeing all 150 Pokemon. After this, speak to Professor Rowan in Sandgem Town to unlock the National Pokedex.
  2. Now that you have the National Dex, Mudkip will start appearing. To find it, travel to Eterna City and use your Explorer Kit to access the Grand Underground.
  3. It can be found wandering around the Fountainspring Cave Hideaway. The room looks like a blue square on your map.
  4. The quickest way to catch the ‘mon is to enter the Hideaway, and exit if you don’t see the Pokemon. Simply re-enter the room over and over until the Water-type shows up.

How to get Marshtomp in Pokemon BDSP

Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl Marshtomp evolution sequence screenshot
The Gen III Water-type can be evolved in the Sinnoh remakes.

Now that you’ve caught Mudkip from the Grand Underground, you need to gain experience points to trigger its evolution into Marshtomp.

  1. Mudkip will evolve into Marshtomp once it reaches level 16. A good way to get XP is to battle wild Pokemon with it in your Party.
  2. If you have a Rare Candy, you can also use that to boost its level. The consumable automatically increases the character’s level by one.

Evolving Swampert in Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl

Since players can only catch starter in the post-game with the National Pokedex, Mudkip will actually spawn at levels 58 – 63.

Because of this, Trainers will be able to evolve Marshtomp into Swampert with a single Rare Candy. So getting its final form is incredibly easy in BDSP.

Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl Swampert evolution screenshot
Swampert can be evolved from a Marshtomp.

That’s all there is to it! Mudkip is actually one of the rarest Pokemon in the Sinnoh remakes and has a low spawn rate. So it may take you a while to get the ‘mon to show up.

Now that you have the beloved Hoenn starter, check out some of our other Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl guides and walkthroughs:

How to get Jirachi | How to get Mew | Version exclusives | All Legendary Pokemon | How to get the Poketch | Best starter to pick | All Styles | How to beat all Gym Leaders | How to walk with your Pokemon