Best Pals to Catch First in Palworld

This article is part of a directory: Palworld Guide Hub - Tips, Base Building, Best Pals, & More

Table of contents

Quick Links

Best Early Game Pals in Palworld

Where To Find Pals

The early part of Palworld can feel like a slog, but there are tons of pals around the starting island that can help progress more quickly, whether it be in combat, crafting, or gathering. Once you make a few friends, you'll be on your way to getting your base fully automated in no time.

Palworld Burning Questions Guide Header Image

Palworld: Burning Questions Answered

Here are some of the most commonly asked questions about Palworld, the game where pocket monsters use guns and are fought with guns.

Given the limited resources and slow means of production in the early game, you'll want to get the best early game pals in Palworld so as not to strain yourself thin. Here's a quick guide covering which pals you should tame and keep early.

Best Early Game Pals in Palworld

Pal	Element	Role/Work Suitability
Chikipi	Neutral	Gathering, Farming
Lamball	Neutral	Handiwork, Transporting, Farming
Cattiva	Neutral	Handiwork, Mining, Gathering, Transporting
Hoocrates	Dark	Combat, Gathering
Daedream	Dark	Handiwork, Transporting, Gathering
Foxparks	Fire	Kindling
Pengullet	Ice, Water	Handiwork, Transporting, Watering, Cooling
Lifmunk	Grass	Planting, Handiwork, Lumbering, Gathering, Medicine Production
Eikthyrdeer	Neutral	Lumbering

Chikipi, Lamball, and Cattiva are the first three types of pals you find in the game. All three of them are mainly used for domestic purposes (especially Chikipi), and taming them is the key to getting your first base up and running. Use Chikipis for food, Lamballs for wool, and Cattivas for labor.

Later, you'll want to start looking for pals who can fulfill more specific work roles. Foxparks, which looks like something straight out of Pokemon, will be the first Fire-type pal you'll find, and these guys will be responsible for keeping your campfires and furnaces cooking. Meanwhile, Pengullets will help water Berry Plantations, giving you a steady source of food. Lifmunks and Eikthyrdeer, on the other hand, can man your Logging Sites, making sure you'll never run out of wood again.

Combat-wise, you'll want some Daedreams and a Hoocrates. Have the Hoocrates out as your main pal, then build a Daedream Necklace so you can have your Daedreams out without having to release them from their Pal Spheres. While your Daedreams are hovering around you, they'll hit whichever target you're attacking in tandem.

As you progress through Palworld, you can expect to see even more pals who can do all these jobs more efficiently. However, you'll also need to learn how to take care of your weird, furry friends if you want them to be as productive as possible. You can do this by rotating shifts or creating facilities like Pal Beds and Hot Springs to help keep your pals' sanity high.

Where To Find Pals

If you're wondering where to find the pals listed above, you'll be able to encounter all of them within the starter island. After going down the Plateau of Beginnings, set up a small base, then get to exploring. The whole area in the image above is packed to the brim with randomly-spawning pals, and you're bound to see each one of the recommended pals as you explore the island. Take note that Hoocrates andDaedream are nocturnal — if you want to find them, go out at night, dusk, or dawn.

Habitat tracker feature in Palworld's Paldeck

Once you've encountered a pal at least once, you'll be able to check all known habitats of a pal by checking your Paldeck, Palworld's take on another familiar Pokemon feature.

To see these possible spawn points, open up your Paldeck, then click on an encountered pal.
Then, click on the Habitat button above the pal's 3D model. This will open up a world map filled with spawn locations of the selected pal.
If the screen says the pal isn't active at this time, press the R key or click on the sun and moon icon on the bottom right.