Stats, natures, IVs and EVs
What the six numbers on a Pokemon mean, where they come from, and which ones you can change.
In short
- Six stats: HP, Attack, Defence, Special Attack, Special Defence and Speed.
- Each comes from the species' base stat, the Pokemon's level, its IVs, its EVs and its nature.
- IVs are fixed at birth, 0 to 31 per stat. EVs are yours to spend, up to 252 per stat and 510 in total.
- A nature raises one stat by 10% and lowers another by 10%, or does nothing.
The formula
HP = floor( (2×Base + IV + floor(EV÷4)) × Level ÷ 100 ) + Level + 10
Other = floor( ( floor( (2×Base + IV + floor(EV÷4)) × Level ÷ 100 ) + 5 ) × Nature )
Shedinja always has 1 HP. Everything else follows the two lines above, and the Overview tab of your Team shows the result.
Base stats
Every species has six base stats, and they are the largest part of the answer. A Pokémon with 130 base Attack will out-hit one with 60 whatever you do with the rest. The Pokédex lists them for every species and form.
Level
Level scales everything. The same Pokemon with the same build has roughly twice the stats at level 100 as at level 50. Between two Pokemon of different levels, the level gap usually matters more than any of what follows.
IVs
Individual values, 0 to 31 in each stat, rolled when a Pokemon is caught, hatched or chosen. They never change. A 31 adds 31 points to the calculation, which is 15 or 16 stat points at level 100 and only 7 or 8 at level 50. The Overview tab shows them, so you do not have to guess from the numbers.
Breeding is how you move IVs between generations. See Breeding once it is written; the short version is that an Egg inherits from its parents.
EVs
Effort values are the part you decide. Each stat holds up to 252, the six together up to 510, and every 4 EVs are one point of stat at level 100.
A level-up adds 3 free EVs, or 4 while the Pokemon holds a Training Weight. Over 99 levels that is 297 without the item and 396 with it. Vitamins can add up to 114 more, which is how a Pokemon reaches the 510 ceiling: the item plus vitamins is the only way to the top. Spending is permanent. There is no reset yet, so the Train tab asks you to confirm.
How to train EVs walks through it.
Natures
Twenty-five natures. Twenty of them raise one stat by 10% and lower another by 10%; five are neutral. HP is never affected. A nature is rolled when the Pokemon is obtained and shown on its Overview tab. The natures page has the full table.
| You want | Pick a nature that raises | and lowers |
|---|---|---|
| A fast physical attacker | Attack or Speed | Special Attack |
| A special attacker | Special Attack or Speed | Attack |
| A wall | Defence or Special Defence | the attacking stat it does not use |
Stat stages in battle
During a battle, moves like Swords Dance and abilities like Intimidate move a stat up or down by stages, from -6 to +6. Each stage is a fraction: +1 is ×1.5, +2 is ×2, +6 is ×4; -1 is ×⅔, -6 is ×¼. Accuracy and evasion use a gentler ladder, +1 being ×4⁄3. Stages reset when the Pokemon switches out or the battle ends. They are not EVs and they do not persist.
