Where To Get TM37 Sandstorm in Pokémon Crystal

TM37 Sandstorm
#	Location	Repeatable?
1	Kanto’s Route 27, east of Tohjo Falls. An old lady in a small house rewards you with TM37 when you show her a happy Pokémon.	No
2	Celadon City Dept. Store, 3F. Sold by the NPC behind the counter for 2000 PokéDollars.	Yes

There are two ways to get TM37 Sandstorm in Pokémon Crystal:

Method #1: You’ll get one copy from an old lady living in a house in the middle of Route 27 as a reward for showing her a Pokémon with high Friendship. The woman’s house is on the east side of Tohjo Falls, so you’ll need both Surf and Waterfall to reach her location.

Method #2: You can also buy TM37 from the TM Shop on the 3rd floor of Celadon City’s Dept. Store. It costs 2000 PokéDollars, and you can get multiple copies.

Prerequisites

The earliest point when you can get TM37 Sandstorm is on the Kanto side of Route 27, which can only be reached by crossing Tohjo Falls from Johto.

A Pokémon that knows Surf allows you to reach Tohjo Falls from early on in the game, but the cave blocks your progress until you’ve collected all of the Johto Gym Badges. You’ll be blocked by waterfall obstacles in your way.

So here’s what you need to do in order to get your first copy of TM37:

Get HM07 Waterfall from the ground floor of the Ice Path, accessible from Mahogany Town’s eastern exit.
Defeat Gym Leader Clair in Blackthorn Gym so your Pokémon can use Waterfall outside of battle.

With this, you’ll be able to cross into Kanto and pick up TM37 on your way to the Elite IV.

Getting TM37 Sandstorm

Method #1: From a Woman on Route 27

Step 1: Use Surf to cross over the water east of New Bark Town.

Crossing into Kanto from New Bark Town.

Step 2: Enter the cave to the northeast (Tohjo Falls).

Approaching the western entrance of Tohjo Falls.

Step 3: Use Surf and Waterfall to cross Tohjo Falls.

Start by using Surf to approach the waterfall, then use Waterfall to climb it.

Tohjo Falls, lower west side.

Then follow the water eastward and turn south at the next waterfall.

Tohjo Falls, upper east side.

Keep going south and you’ll see the exit to the right.

Tohjo Falls, lower east side.

Step 4: Immediately after exiting Tohjo Falls, enter the house to the left.

Entering the house on Route 27.

Step 5: Put a Pokémon with high Friendship in the first slot of your party.

Friendship is a measure of your Pokémon’s closeness with you. Here’s a quick list of different ways to increase a Pokémon’s friendship level:

Levelling up
Using healing items in battle
Winning battles
Walking (there’s a chance of raising your party’s friendship every 512 steps)
Using items that permanently raise stats (Calcium, Zinc, Protein, HP Up, etc)
Visiting the Haircut Brothers in Goldenrod City’s Underground

Tip: Whatever Pokémon has led your party for the longest time should have pretty high Friendship by this point in the game. For most people, that will be their starter Pokémon.

Step 6: Talk to the old lady inside the house and you’ll get TM37 as a reward for raising such a happy Pokémon.

Receiving TM37 outside of Tohjo Falls.

Method #2: Buy TM37 from Celadon Dept. Store, 3F

Step 1: Find the Department Store on the west side of Celadon City.

To locate it, simply walk in a straight line towards the left of the Pokémon Center and look for a building with a signpost that reads “Mart”.

Celadon City main street, connecting Pokémon Center (right) and Dept. Store (left).

Step 2: Use the elevator to reach the third floor (3F) of the Dept. Store.

You’ll find the elevator up and to the left of the main entrance.

Celadon Dept. Store, 1F, left side.

Choosing 3F from the Celadon Dept. Store elevator menu.

Step 3: Talk to the NPC behind the counter on 3F and choose Buy from the pop-up menu.

Celadon Dept. Store, 3F.

Step 4: Choose TM37 from the store’s catalog and buy it for 2000 PokéDollars.

TM37 in the TM Shop menu.

TM37 Sandstorm Details + Uses

Sandstorm Move Details
Type	Rock
Category	Status
Effect	Summons a sandstorm for five turns, damaging Pokémon for ⅛ of their HP each turn. Rock, Steel, and Ground-type are immune.
Accuracy	100%
PP	10 (max. 16)

Sandstorm is a unique move that changes the weather conditions in the field for the next five turns by summoning a sandstorm.

The sandstorm will hit all Pokémon on the field, shaving off ⅛ of their health every turn. Only Rock, Steel, and Ground-type Pokémon are immune.

You’ll also notice that the following moves work 50% worse than usual during a sandstorm:

Synthesis (Grass-type)
Morning Sun (Normal-type)
Moonlight (Normal-type)

Although almost any Rock, Steel, or Ground-type Pokémon can get some use out of Sandstorm, it’s ideal for tanky Pokémon with lots of Defense and HP.

Here are some Pokémon that can endure the opponent’s onslaught while Sandstorm slowly lowers their HP:

Pokémon	Type	Location
Steelix	Steel/Ground	Evolve Onix by trading while holding Metal Coat.
Tyranitar	Rock/Dark	Evolve Pupitar.
Rhydon	Ground/Rock	Victory Road (Morning, Day).
Donphan	Ground	Route 45 (Morning, Day).

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Nelson Chitty

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Nelson Chitty is a Venezuelan expat living in Argentina. He’s a writer and translator passionate about history and foreign cultures. His ideal weekend is spent between leisurely playing games of Civilization VI and looking for the next seinen anime to marathon.

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