As Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl players work to complete their National Pokédex, there are quite a few Pokémon that can only be obtained through evolution, making their Pokédex entries more of a challenge to complete. Most of the time, the final evolved form of a species cannot be caught in the wild, requiring trainers to catch an unevolved form and train it until its evolution requirements are met to add its data to the Pokédex. However, while most Pokémon simply evolve through leveling, certain species have special evolution requirements that can make them much harder to evolve than others.
Pokémon evolution is as complex as it is mysterious, and there are plenty of bizarre and unexpected special evolution conditions to be found throughout the Pokémon franchise. Some Pokémon in Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl require a certain item to evolve, like Evolution Stones, while other Pokémon can only evolve when traded between players, and some Pokémon even have to be holding an item when traded to reach their next evolutionary form. Another common special evolution method requires players to raise their friendship with a Pokémon, which can be done by training, battling, and feeding them Poffins. Others have evolutionary forms linked to their gender, making it tougher to catch the right Pokémon to complete the Pokédex through training and leveling.
Some of the more complicated special evolutions, however, make players think completely outside of the box, such as Inkay’s evolution into Malamar requiring players to turn their Nintendo 3DS upside down in Gen 6. As trainers work to complete all 493 entries in Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl’s National Pokédex, there are a handful of evolutions that are not only hard to figure out but require time, effort, and patience to complete. With unique and often obscure evolution conditions that can challenge even the best trainers, these Pokémon are the most difficult to evolve in Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl.
Pokémon BDSP Evolutions - Feebas Evolves Into Milotic In Two Ways
In order to evolve their Feebas into a Milotic in Pokémon BDSP, trainers must raise its Beauty stat by feeding it Dry Poffins. This method of evolution was introduced to the franchise in Diamond and Pearl with the debut of Super Contests and has been unique to Feebas ever since, making it one of the most obscure methods of evolution in the game. Not only does this unusual method of evolution require players to cook up plenty of Dry Poffins, but catching a Feebas in the first place is no small feat.
Since its introduction in Gen 3, Feebas has been notoriously difficult to catch in the wild, and in order to catch one in Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, players must make their way to a specific lake within Mt. Coronet and fish with the Super Rod. However, Feebas has a 50% chance of appearing in only four tiles of the lake, which are completely randomized between each game, making it an extremely rare find that requires a lot of patience. Fortunately, if players aren’t a fan of Poffin-making, Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl also allows players to evolve their Feebas by trading it while it’s holding a Prism Scale, which can be found in the Grand Underground. Prism Scales are a rare treasure, so either method of evolution will test the player’s patience as they work toward Milotic’s entry in the Pokédex.
Pokémon BDSP's Burmy Evolutions, Wormadam & Mothim, Are Rare
Wormadam and Mothim are two different evolutions of the same Pokémon, Burmy, which players will need plenty of patience to catch. Burmy is a Bug-Type Pokémon that can only be found on Honey Trees in Pokémon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, which require players to slather honey on a Honey Tree’s bark and wait for six hours of real-time in order to encounter a Pokémon. There are several rare Pokémon that players can catch this way, and Burmy is among the rarest of them, making it a difficult find for players hoping to evolve a Wormadam or Mothim.
However, not only do players have to wait for a Burmy to appear in BDSP, but they also need to find a Burmy of the correct gender in order to evolve it into Wormadam or Mothim. A female Burmy will evolve into Wormadam at level 20, whereas a male Burmy will evolve into Mothim. Adding both to the Pokédex requires catching two Burmys, which means players will be making plenty of trips to Sinnoh’s Honey Trees to complete both entries.
Most Difficult Pokémon BDSP Evolutions - Mantyke to Mantine
While most Pokémon evolutions are connected to the bond between a Pokémon and its trainer, Mantine’s method of evolution in Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl focuses on partnership between Pokémon instead as the baby Pokémon Mantyke will only evolve if there’s a Remoraid in the party. Like the real life remora fish, Remoraid will attach themselves to Mantine to pick up scraps of food from them as part of their symbiotic relationship. By leveling up their Mantyke with a Remoraid present in the party, trainers can evolve it into a Mantine to complete its Pokédex entry.
While Remoraid isn’t incredibly uncommon, it does require players to fish with the Good Rod in order to catch it. This method of evolution is exclusive to Mantine, and many players may not guess that their Mantyke needs a companion in the party to evolve, making it one of Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl’s more difficult evolutions. Mantine’s evolution doesn’t have any effect on the Remoraid, however, so players will simply have to level it to evolve it into an Octillery.
Pokémon BDSP's Leafeon & Glaceon Evolutions Are Hard To Get
Like most of the Eeveelutions in Pokémon, evolving Leafeon and Glaceon poses a challenge to trainers in Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl. Eevee is a rare catch, only appearing in the Trophy Garden after players defeat the Pokémon League and unlock the National Pokédex, and each of its six evolutions that appear in BDSP have their own methods of evolution. While most of the Eeveelutions evolve with Evolution Stones or high enough friendship, Leafeon and Glaceon have more cryptic evolution requirements and must be leveled near specific rocks in the Sinnoh region in order to evolve.
In order to evolve Eevee into Leafeon, players must find the Moss Rock located in Eterna Forest and level their Eevee in an adjacent space, either through battling or by feeding it a Rare Candy. Glaceon, on the other hand, will evolve from Eevee when leveled near the Ice Rock found on Route 217 near Snowpoint City. While these rocks are hard enough to find on their own, players may never suspect that they can be used to evolve Eevee through this method, making the Gen 4 Eeveelutions some of the most difficult evolutions required to complete the Pokédex in Pokémon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl.
