Pokémon Sword and Shield/Route 2

Route 2

After meeting up with Hop again, Leon will come in and give you a catching tutorial. However, if you've already previously caught a Pokémon, he'll skip said tutorial and you'll simply receive 20 Pokéballs. It's a good opportunity to start filling up your team a bit more if you haven't already started as there are some great encounters to find here, so proceed down the route toward Magnolia's house while keeping an eye out for some Pokémon that may appeal to you.

Pokémon

Pokémon		Games		Levels	Rate
Grass
	Blipbug	Sw	Sh	4-6	40%
	Rookidee	Sw	Sh	4-6	25%
	Seedot	Sw	Sh	4-6	20%
	Lotad	Sw	Sh	4-6	20%
	Purrloin	Sw	Sh	4-6	10%
	Hoothoot	Sw	Sh	4-6	5%
Fishing
	Magikarp	Sw	Sh	4-6	80%
	Chewtle	Sw	Sh	4-6	15%
	Arrokuda	Sw	Sh	4-6	5%
Overworld
	Skwovet	Sw	Sh	5-7	38%
	Rookidee	Sw	Sh	5-7	30%
	Nickit	Sw	Sh	5-7	15%
	Chewtle	Sw	Sh	5-7	10%
	Yamper	Sw	Sh	5-7	5%
	Zigzagoon	Sw	Sh	5-7	2%
Surfing
	Arrokuda	Sw	Sh	38-40	70%
	Barraskewda	Sw	Sh	38-40	28%
	Gyarados	Sw	Sh	38-40	2%
Static
	Yamper	Sw	Sh	8	NA
	Chewtle	Sw	Sh	8	NA
	Corvisquire	Sw	Sh	18	NA (only found after obtaining 2 Badges)

Analysis

Pokémon	Analysis
Seedot Type: Grass	We've finally hit our first version exclusives. If you're playing Sword version, you get Seedot! A familiar face with familiar problems. The evolution part of it isn't as much of a problem anymore, as stones can be gotten pretty early if you need them, so don't worry too much about being stuck with a Nuzleaf for long. As far as usability, Shiftry isn't that bad. It's an okay mixed attacker, more geared towards physical attack, with average speed and mediocre defenses. It's trying to be a sweeper but lacks the raw attacking power. However, with moves like Fake Out, Leaf Blade for STAB and hey, even Sunny Day if you have one with Chlorophyll and want it to be able to go first and lay down at least some damage on the enemy, it has a decent movepool for what it is, and TM's and TR's give it the coverage it lacks in its levelup learnset. It's not bad by any means, but it's not great either.
Lotad Type: Water/Grass	Another Pokémon made more reliable by the availability of stones! If you're playing Shield version, you can get yourself a Lotad! Its evolution, Ludicolo, has respectable special stats with, once again, pretty average Speed, though lower than Shiftry's, but having Swift Swim for its ability and access to Rain Dance is once again a good option if you really need that Speed. Through TM's and TR's it now has access to some more powerful Grass-type moves allowing Ludicolo to take advantage of that second typing more than it did before. Once again a decent pickup for your team, especially if you need Water or Grass coverage and if you need a special wall.
Purrloin Type: Dark	Purrloin... is bad. If you like it, apologies, but objectively, it's bad. Though its Attack and Special Attack stats are pretty average and its Speed isn't to be ignored, it really needs to take a turn to set up if it wants to do anything, and if it can't take a hit after setting up then it's really not going to be able to do anything. Plus, its access to Nasty Plot and its Special Attack stat aren't even used as Purrloin and Liepard do not learn a single special move without use of TM's and TR's, and even those don't help them much. It's almost worse than the Nickit line in this sense, but at least here you still have the option to use physical attacks. That's about all that can be said about it in a positive light, besides that its Hidden Ability Prankster can make it more useful for annoying opponents. That's about it.
Magikarp Type: Water	Is there really anything that can be said about Magikarp that hasn't been said already over the last 20 years? Well... actually yes there is! Finally Gyarados has been made justice in its levelup learnset! At level 21, 1 level after Magikarp evolves, it now learns WATERFALL, one of the best physical Water type attacks out there! Along with that, it learns Crunch soon after and Dragon Dance at an earlier level than before! Not only that, but it gets some new interesting moves through TM and TR, including things like Power Whip! It's great to see this line in such good form, and though Gyarados was already a respectable force in the competitive scene, it's finally reliable to be used in a playthrough without having to wait 10 levels after evolving. Of course, same as always, the hurdle of carrying a Magikarp on your team until it evolves is still there, but at least you have the aid of the constant EXP Share feature!
Chewtle Type: Water	Chewtle is an interesting one. It evolves into Drednaw, a Rock/Water type with a respectable Attack stat of 115 and some pretty good bulk to back it up on the physical side, along with some Speed to help it move along. On paper, it sounds good. But there's 2 characteristics about it that make it very unappealing. First, it evolves at level 22, which doesn't sound too bad, until you realize Chewtle's only Water-type move until then is Water Gun, which isn't even a physical move. If you can get past that problem, well, be ready for more, as even when it evolves, it learns moves WAAAAAAY too late. You're going to have to wait until level 39 to get its signature move, Jaw Lock, which it doesn't even get STAB on, and another 9 levels after that to get your first good Water-type physical move, being Liquidation. Until then, you'll be stuck with Rock Tomb which it learns upon evolving and Razor Shell which you can teach it via move relearner. Overall, not bad stats but just awful decisions when it comes to moves. If you need a Water-type OR a Rock-type, there are much better options.
Arrokuda Type: Water	Speaking of better options, what if I told you one of the most powerful Pokémon in this region lies right in the second route for your pleasure? Well, if you don't believe me, I present to you Arrokuda! Even unevolved, it's going to be outspeeding most of, if not EVERYTHING, in the early game. When caught in Route 2, it'll always have Aqua Jet as one of its moves, which already makes it pretty great. It evolves at level 26, which may seem a little late, but Arrokuda is not hard to train at all. Be warned, however, that it suffers from sort of the same problem as Drednaw. Evolved or not, it won't get a good physical Water-type move until much later on, at level 48 (funny enough, just like Drednaw, it's Liquidation at level 48). However, UNLIKE Drednaw, it's actually easy to train, not only because of its access to Aqua Jet, but because you can teach it Throat Chop as soon as it evolves through Move Relearner. It's basically a much better executed version of Chewtle's line, and it's very much worth picking up if you're in need of a Water type.
Yamper Type: Electric	Yamper, surprisingly, has a lot going for it. Though in its current state it won't be doing much, as it's horrendously slow and doesn't get much in terms of moves (though it learns Nuzzle at level 5 which can be useful), once it evolves it becomes a very fast physical attacker with the potential to be a mixed attacker. Its learnset isn't the best ever, though Spark at level 20 can help carry you to its higher levels, when its potential is unlocked, with Crunch at level 34, and Wild Charge and Play Rough being learnable by TR along with Psychic Fangs, and even the elemental fangs which are accessible pretty early on, Boltund can be a great powerhouse. It also has access to moves like Thunderbolt and Volt Switch if you prefer a mixed/special attacker. A great choice for those in need of an Electric-type. The only downside to be wary of is its reliance on TM's and TR's to be at its full potential.
Zigzagoon Type: Normal/Dark	After being made fun of and abused as a mere HM slave for the past 5 generations, Zigzagoon has come back with a vengeance. Our first encounter with a Galarian form comes as a Pokémon that is, as always, a pain to level up at first, due to its super low stats, but that this time, has a much bigger reward waiting for those who put up with it. Rocking its new evolution, Obstagoon, who boasts pretty decent stats all across the board, this line has finally found a use outside of the no longer existant HMs. Obstagoon's signature move, Obstruct, is nothing to look past, as it acts as a King's Shield, but for Defense instead, lowering the opponent's Defense by 2 stages when they attempt to hit Obstagoon with a contact move, which is helpful considering it's 4x weak to Fighting, a mostly contact-based type. This can be a great set up for a quick and easy knock out, especially having its Attack boosted by Guts if you happen to have that as its ability. It is, unfortunately, one of the unlucky Dark-types to not get Sucker Punch, but it makes up for it with its incredible coverage, with access to the elemental punches, Stomping Tantrum, and a plethera of Fighting-type moves to pick from. Zigzagoon has finally hit its prime.

Items

Item		Location	Type	Effect
	Poké Ball (x20)	Received from Leon after catching tutorial.	NPC item	Used to capture Pokémon.
	Potion (x2)	Next to Trainer Tips sign, on small ledge.	Item ball	Heals 20 HP.
	Poké Ball (x3)	Close to the Trainer Tips sign, on another ledge.	Item ball	Used to capture Pokémon.
	Repel	East of the patch of grass located before Magnolia's house.	Hidden	Prevents wild encounters with Pokémon lower level than the Pokémon in front of your party for 100 steps.
	Great Ball	Go outside of Magnolia's house, follow this path through the garden: Left, Down, Left, Up.	Item ball	A Poké Ball with a higher chance to catch a Pokémon.
	Fresh Water	Follow this path into Magnolia's garden: Left, Down, Right and interact with the pot.	Hidden	Restores 30 HP.
	TM57 Payback	From Magnolia's house door, go right to find a path that leads to behind her house.	Item ball	Teaches Pokémon the move Payback.

Trainers

Youngster Jake Reward: 360
Pokémon	Type	Level
Skwovet	Normal	6
Lass Lauren Reward: 504
Pokémon	Type	Level
Chewtle	Water	6
Youngster Benjamin Reward: 420
Pokémon	Type	Level
Blipbug	Bug	5
Nickit	Dark	7

Professor Magnolia

Arriving at Magnolia's house, you'll see Leon and her talk about the Dynamax phenomenon. After you go inside, Leon explains that Professor Magnolia has been researching Dynamax for years. Hop asks Magnolia to help convince Leon to endorse you two for the Gym Challenge. Leon shows worry as you have just begun your journey as trainers, but he proposes that you and Hop show him a battle that's so brilliant that he can't help but endorse you. Nothing left to do in the house, so go outside and, once you've got all the items, go out to the small battle arena, and talk to Hop whenever you're ready to battle.

Rival: Hop

If you selected Grookey
Pokémon	Type	Level	Moves
Wooloo	Normal	6	*Tackle *Growl
Rookidee	Flying	5	*Leer *Peck
Sobble	Water	8	*Pound *Growl *Water Gun

If you selected Scorbunny
Pokémon	Type	Level	Moves
Wooloo	Normal	6	*Tackle *Growl
Rookidee	Flying	5	*Leer *Peck
Grookey	Grass	8	*Pound *Growl *Branch Poke

If you selected Sobble
Pokémon	Type	Level	Moves
Wooloo	Normal	6	*Tackle *Growl
Rookidee	Flying	5	*Leer *Peck
Scorbunny	Fire	8	*Pound *Growl *Ember

After your battle, Leon gives you both a letter of Endorsement, which will allow you to compete in the Gym Challenge. Just as Leon's giving you both advice on how to become stronger, something comes falling out of the sky. It's a pair of Wishing Stars. Magnolia agrees to use these to make Dynamax Bands for you and Hop, which will allow your Pokémon to Dynamax. Meanwhile, Sonia arrives and cooks for everyone. The next morning, you get your Dynamax Band.

Going outside, Hop will teach you about how crouching is good for sneaking past or on Pokémon, while whistling is good for getting their attention. Afterwards, he runs off to Wedgehurst station.