Since being conceived, the Pokémon franchise has included Pokémon displaced by time, trapped in a fossil form, only to be revived by a lab brimming with modern technology. Fossils have returned for Pokémon Sword and Shield with some cooky new scientific tricks up their metaphorical sleeves. This time around fossils and the corresponding Pokémon are a bit different. Rather than including one to two fossils that can each be revived into a single evolvable Pokémon, Sword and Shield has introduced combinable fossils.
For this to work, you need to find one of four fossilized parts: Bird, Dino, Drake, and Fish. After obtaining one of the parts, you must find a second, different part from the quartet. Select pairs are combinable by a scientist named Cara Liss, who can be found on Route 6.
She’ll take the two fossil parts and transform them into a fully-fledged Pokémon.
Fossil Combinations
Here’s a list of all the possible fossil combinations in Pokémon Sword and Shield:
- Fossilized Bird + Fossilized Dino = Arctozolt (electric/ice)
- Fossilized Fish + Fossilized Drake = Dracovish (water/dragon)
- Fossilized Bird + Fossilized Drake = Dracozolt (electric/dragon)
- Fossilized Fish + Fossilized Dino = Arctovish (water/ice)
Finding Fossils
Like many aspects of Pokémon, fossil appearance rates vary between versions. All four fossils are available in both versions, but Pokémon Sword players will have an easier time uncovering Fossilized Bird and Dino, while Pokémon Shield players will have an easier time finding Fossilized Drake and Fish.
You will primarily find fossils using the two digging brothers located in the Wild Area’s Bridge Field zone, right next to the Pokemon Nursery. Both brothers have the ability to dig, but the brother on the left finds rarer items, while the brother on the right finds a larger number of items. The left brother also seems to dig up fossils that are easier to find in the opposing game with greater ease.
When you’re starting out on your fossil journey, note, two of your games’ respective “easier to find” fossilized items will be available right below Cara Liss on Route 6, marked by a “ground twinkle.” Another two can be obtained by conversing with a large NPC located in the in the Stow-in-Side Pokémon Center.
Happy fossil hunting, Poké-archaeologists!
Pokémon Sword and Shield are now available in stores.
