Guide to the Great Swamp of Pokémon Shining Diamond and Shining Pearl
The Great Swamp is an area similar to the Safari Zones seen in other games in the Game Freak series. It is therefore a special reserve that is full of Pokémon ready to be captured, but which has some peculiarities. In fact, access is paid in Pokédollars, the number of steps to explore the 6 areas of the swamp is limited and the rules for capturing are very different from the usual.
The rules of the Great Swamp and how Mud and Food work
The tram allows you to quickly reach the various areas of the Great Swamp of Pokémon Shining Diamond and Shining Pearl The Great Swamp is located near Patropolis and is an area divided into 6 connected zones that can be reached by by foot or by tram, thus saving time and "steps". Each entry to the Great Swamp costs 500 Pokédollars. As soon as you enter you will receive 30 Safari Balls (the only Poké Balls you can use in this area) and you will be imposed a limit of 500 steps (whether walking, running or cycling) within the area. There is no time limit, so take it easy, but once you finish the steps you will be teleported to the entrance and you will have to reach for your wallet again to get back in.Some of the Pokémon from the Great Swamp appear based on a daily rotation, so you will have to visit the area several times and on different days to capture all the creatures available (but in any case some of them are also found in the Great Dungeons).
Given the limited number of steps available it is unthinkable to explore each of the 6 areas from top to bottom at once, as well as obtaining all the items and capturing the Pokémon present in the Great Swamp. In this sense, pay attention to where you put your feet: if you get stuck in the quagmire you will have to waste a large number of steps to free yourself.
Here is a tip to catch a large number of Pokémon without wasting many steps: use the Smell move with one of your Pokémon. This way a wild Pokémon will immediately appear, without having to back and forth in the tall grass.
Another important feature of the Great Swamp is that the capture mechanics are extremely different than usual. It is not possible to fight against wild Pokémon and any monster can escape at any time. When you encounter a Pokémon in the Great Swamp, you have only four options: try to catch it with a Safari Ball, escape, throw Mud, or use Food.
Not being able to weaken a Pokémon, the chances of catching it are not very high and this is where the two aforementioned special options come into play. Using Mud makes it easier for a Pokémon to catch, but it also increases the chances that it can escape battle. Conversely, Food makes it more difficult to capture, but decreases the chances of the creature escaping.
Which of the two options is better? In reality they are equal in advantages and disadvantages. If you want a "safe catch" use the Food to keep the Pokémon from escaping, but be prepared to waste Safari Ball in quantity. If you are reckless, instead, throw the Mud: the probability that the Pokémon escapes will increase but also those of capture and consequently you will waste less Safari Ball.
Great Swamp: daily rotation of Pokémon and tools
Thanks to binoculars you can find out which is the "Pokémon of the day" of the Great Swamp Another peculiarity of the Great Swamp is that some Pokémon appear based on a daily rotation, so to catch them all you will have to visit the area on different days.Going upstairs to the main building of the Great Swamp you can use binoculars for 100 Pokédollars. This tool allows you to observe the 6 different areas of the Great Swamp and find out which is the "Pokémon of the day". Sometimes it is necessary to use the binoculars several times before spotting a daily spawn.
Below is the list of Pokémon that appear with the daily rotation of the Great Swamp:
Golduck Roselia Staravia Skorupi Drapion Croagunk Toxicroak Carnivine
Here is the list of Pokémon that appear in the Great Swamp with daily rotation after receiving the National Pokédex:
Paras Exeggcute Kangaskhan Yanma Shrooomish Gulpin
The Swamp Pokémon of the day is completely random, so there's no way to know in advance when a particular monster will appear. Some, like Roselia, also live in other Sinnoh areas of Pokémon Shining Diamond and Shining Pearl, while others are found in the Great Dungeons, such as Skorupi.
For completeness, below is the list of Pokémon "standard" that you can meet in the Great Swamp:
Tall grass
Wooper Bibarel Budew (morning and day) Starly (morning and day) Marill Quagsire Psyduck Bidoof Azurill Hothoot (night) Noctowl (night )
Fishing or Surfing
Magikarp (Old and Good Hook) Gyarados (Good and Super Hook) Barboach (Good Hook) Carvanha (Super Hook) Whiscash (Super Hook) Psyduck (Surf) Marill (Surf) Wooper (Surf) Wooper (Surf) Quagsire (Surf)
Finally, here are all the tools in the Great Swamp and where to find them:
Area 1
Potion - near the tram stop. Super Repellent - northwest of the tram stop. Rare Candy - hidden in the tall grass in the northwest corner.
Area 2
Mega Ball - east of the tram. Lastrafiele - hidden in the trees to the north, after the NPC "Umbrella".
Area 3
Honey - to the west, just above the man who explains the functioning of Food and Mud. Ultra Ball - west of the tram stop, hidden between two mud puddles.
Area 4
Superpotion - east of the Pokéball tram stop - northeast of the Pepita tram stop - hidden among the trees to the northeast
Area 5
Antidote - near the tram stop Total Cure - northwest of the antidote
Area 6
3x MT97 (Scacciabruma) - obtained from the coach near the entrance Antiparalysis - in the Northeast corner Hyperpotation - hidden just south of the antiparalysis
If you found this article useful, you may be interested in the other guides of Pokémon Shining and Shining Diamond that we have published:
How to get the Stones Evolutionary How to get all the evolutionary tools How to complete the Sinnoh Pokédex How to get the National Pokédex and what it unlocks How to get Eevee and all its evolutions How to catch a Ditto How to catch a Feebas and make it evolve into a Milotic How to catch all the Legendary Pokémon How to Catch all Pokémon in the Garden Trophy How to get it re the Legendary Plates
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