Bramblin, the Grass/Ghost-type Tumbleweed Pokémon from the Paldea region, makes its Pokémon GO debut during the Fall Marathon: Buddy Trek event, which runs from October 13 at 10 a.m. to October 19 at 8 p.m. local time. Its evolution, Brambleghast, is only obtainable by walking Bramblin as your Buddy.
Quick answer: Catch Bramblin by using any Incense (not Daily Adventure Incense), completing the Buddy Candy Field Research task, or reaching Rank 30 and Rank 60 on the GO Pass. Then evolve it with 50 Candy after walking 20 km with it as your Buddy.
Three ways to get Bramblin in Pokémon GO
Bramblin does not appear as a wild spawn on the overworld map. During the event window, it comes from three sources, and you can use all of them to stockpile Candy for the evolution.
Incense encounters
Burning an Incense is the sole method that can put Bramblin on your map. All Incense types qualify except Daily Adventure Incense, which is excluded from this encounter pool. Bramblin is one of five possible Incense spawns, with the other four changing halfway through the event.
| Window | Other Incense spawns alongside Bramblin |
|---|---|
| Oct 13 (10 a.m.) – Oct 16 (10 a.m.) | Galarian Ponyta, Hoppip, Electrike, Dwebble |
| Oct 16 (10 a.m.) – Oct 19 (8 p.m.) | Hisuian Growlithe, Nincada, Electrike, Helioptile |
Field Research
Spin PokéStops during the event to find the Field Research task that asks you to earn Candy while exploring with your Buddy. Completing it rewards either an Electrike or a Bramblin encounter, so you may need to complete it more than once to land on Bramblin.
GO Pass: Fall Marathon
The event’s GO Pass hands out a Bramblin encounter at Rank 30 and Rank 60. Both milestones pay out whether you are on the free track or the paid Deluxe track, so you do not need to spend money to secure these two encounters.
It is unclear whether Bramblin will stay in the Incense pool after the event ends, so catch at least one before October 19 even if you only want a single copy.
How to evolve Bramblin into Brambleghast
Brambleghast has no evolution button you can press immediately. You need two things together: enough Candy and distance walked with Bramblin set as your active Buddy.
You will know the evolution worked when the animation plays and Brambleghast appears in your collection. Brambleghast keeps its Grass/Ghost typing and can reach a maximum of 2,745 CP, a large jump from Bramblin’s 991 CP ceiling.
Shiny status and battle value
Shiny Bramblin and shiny Brambleghast are not available in Pokémon GO yet, which is standard for a debut Pokémon. If you want a shiny chase during the event hours, Electrike has a boosted shiny rate throughout, and Hisuian Growlithe gains a boosted shiny rate from Incense starting October 16.
Neither Bramblin nor Brambleghast is a strong battler. Both are glass cannons with decent Attack but weak HP and Defense, and both share five weaknesses to Fire, Ice, Flying, Ghost, and Dark. For most trainers, catching one for the Pokédex is enough, and there is no pressure to power it up for the GO Battle League.
