Temtem starters – what are they, which to choose, and evolutions

Following on from the tradition continued through all nine generations of main series Pokémon games, there are three Temtem starters to choose from in Crema’s monster tamer. It’s the biggest decision that you make through the game, and though you can pick up all three with a bit of smarts, it still matters which you opt for first.

So, we’ve put together this Temtem starters guide, laying out the details on the three main monsters, their evolutionary paths, and some other useful tidbits for your trainer adventure. Like we said earlier, you can pick up all three by the end of your journey, but whichever one you go for will have an impact on how you play the early game, and how you go about party composition.

For more trainer advice, be sure to see if there are any available freebies with our Temtem codes, or bone up on your battle awareness with our Temtem type chart. If you’re yet to jump into this new world of creatures and critters, check out our Temtem review to see if we can convince you to Temtem up.

Which Temtem starter should I choose?

It doesn’t really matter which starter Temtem you choose, as you can easily obtain the two you don’t pick either in the wild or via the Temtem trading house. With the variety of Temtem you can catch to bolster your team, and no real type advantage across all the dojo and story battles, it’s really down to personal preference which of the three you opt for.

What are the Temtem starter evolutions?

All three of the Temtem starters have a three-tier evolutionary path, but the amount of training each starter Temtem needs is different for each.

Crystle / Sherald / Tortenite – Crystle first evolves into Sherald after 30 levels of training before transforming into the mighty Tortenite as a final evolution after training Sherald through 21 levels. Tortenite gets the addition of toxic typing to make it a crystal/toxic hybrid, as well as a special attack boost on its previous forms that makes it much more potent in battle.

Smazee / Baboong / Seismunch – Smazee’s evolutionary path turns the melee monkey into Baboong after 29 levels, and finally Seismunch after 23 levels with Baboong. The final evolution Seismunch is another dual type, combining melee and rock for some impressive physical attacks.

Houchic / Tental / Nagaise – Houchic evolves into its second stage, Tental, after 29 levels, before fully evolving into the final stage form and mental/water hybrid Nagaise after another 24 levels of training Tental. Nagaise is by far the most potent special attacker of the fully evolved starter trio, but its low HP makes it a little bit of a glass cannon in tough battles.

Temtem starter locations

If you’re looking to find the Temtem starters in the wild, we’ve put together a little table to indicate where in the wide world of the Airborne Archipelago you need to look. As you can see, each is a bit of a game of chance to find, with all three starters sharing a 5% catch probability, so you should probably take along a good status effect-inflicting monster

There you have it, all you need to know about the Temtem starters. To get your head around another bunch of starter monsters, but for the next big Pokémon adventure, be sure to check out our Pokémon Scarlet & Violet starters guide.