How to Check IVs and Maximize Individual Values in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet

Hi there! If you‘re looking to build the ultimate competitive team, you need to understand Individual Values – or IVs for short. This in-depth guide will teach you how to view your Pokemon‘s IVs, explain what good IVs look like, and offer advanced tips for breeding and training perfect IV Pokemon. Let‘s dive in fellow trainer!

What are IVs and Why Do They Matter?

Each Pokemon has six core stats – HP, Attack, Defense, Special Attack, Special Defense, and Speed. IVs are bonus points ranging from 0 to 31 that are added to each base stat. The higher the IV, the greater potential that stat will have!

For example, two level 50 Duraludon with identical EVs can have vastly different stats:

Stat	Duraludon A (Best IV)	Duraludon B (No Good IV)
HP	165	140
Attack	140	115
Defense	131	106
Sp. Atk	134	109
Sp. Def	131	106
Speed	97	72

The difference IVs make is huge! Getting perfect 31 IVs in key stats is crucial for assembling the best team possible.

Unlocking the Judge Function

To see your Pokemon‘s IVs in Scarlet/Violet, you first need to unlock the Judge feature:

1. Defeat all 8 Gyms and the Elite Four to become Champion.
2. Visit any Pokemon Center and speak to the staff member behind the counter.
3. They will grant you judging capabilities for your Pokemon Boxes.

Tip: Make sure you talk to the Pokemon Center staff after beating the game. Otherwise the Judge function won‘t activate!

Now when you view your Pokemon‘s summary, pressing "+" twice will reveal their IV ratings!

How to View Your Pokemon‘s IVs

Here is the full process for checking your Pokemon‘s IVs with the Judge function:

1. Access your Pokemon Box from the menu or any PC.
2. Hover over a Pokemon and press "+" to bring up their summary screen.
3. Press "+" again to expand the summary.
4. The IV ratings will now be visible on the right side!

Let‘s break down what these IV stat grades mean…

IV Stat Ratings Explained

Each Individual Value can be rated from No Good (0 IV) to Best (31 IV):

• Best – IV is 31
• Fantastic – IV is 30
• Very Good – IV is 26-29
• Pretty Good – IV is 16-25
• Decent – IV is 1-15
• No Good – IV is 0

There is also a total IV percentage, rated as:

• Amazing – Total IVs are 186-151
• Great – Total IVs are 150-121
• Good – Total IVs are 120-91
• OK – Total IVs are 90-0

Ideally, you want as many Best and Fantastic IVs as possible! The more stats with 31 IV, the better that Pokemon‘s potential will be.

How IVs Directly Influence Battles

Pokemon with higher IVs in a particular stat will perform better in that area:

• HP – More health and ability to withstand attacks
• Attack – Deal increased damage with physical moves
• Defense – Mitigate physical attack damage taken
• Sp. Atk – Boost power of special moves
• Sp. Def – Better resist special attacks
• Speed – Move first; critical for dodging or landing hits

For example, a Noivern with a perfect 31 Speed IV will outpace foes and land critical Draco Meteor attacks before opponents can move. A Toxapex with a high HP IV will be extremely bulky.

Battling against the AI or real opponents requires the best IVs possible!

What is the Ideal IV Spread?

Rather than maxing out every IV, most Pokemon benefit from tailoring IVs based on their role:

Pokemon	Ideal IV Spread	Why?
Gyarados	Max Atk and Spe	Hits fast and hard with physical moves
Volcarona	Max SpA and Spe	Burn through enemies with Special Attacks
Toxapex	Max HP and Def	Withstand hits as a wall
Galvantula	Max SpA and Spe	Strike first with electric Special Attacks

For legendaries and core team members, maxing all 31 IVs can be worthwhile. But don‘t neglect pairing IVs to a Pokemon‘s strengths.

Methods for Catching or Breeding Pokemon With Good IVs

Want to catch or breed Pokemon with strong IVs for your team? Here are some tips:

• Catch Pokemon at high levels; higher level = better natural IVs
• Use mass outbreaks to increase shiny odds; Shinies have at least 3 perfect IVs
• Catch Pokemon with beneficial Natures like Adamant Garchomp or Modest Hydreigon
• Save before Legendary encounters, resetting until you get perfect IVs
• Destiny Knot passes down 5 random IVs from parents when breeding
• Bottle Caps can max out 1 IV if it‘s not Best

With smart preparation, you can assemble a formidable team of near-perfect IV Pokemon!

Beginner‘s Introduction to Checking IVs

If IV breeding seems intimidating, start simple by checking your current team‘s IVs! Here‘s a quick recap:

• IVs are bonus stats that increase a Pokemon‘s potential
• You need to unlock the Judge feature to view IVs
• Check Pokemon IVs by pressing "+" twice on their summary
• 31 is Best, 0 is No Good – aim for lots of 31s!
• Higher IVs boost performance in that particular stat
• Catch high levels and Shinies for better natural IVs

Use the Judge to pick your strongest Pokemon as you progress. Eventually you can dive into advanced IV breeding for a super team!

Real-World Examples of Pokemon With Great IVs

Let‘s look at a few battle-ready Pokemon with exceptional IVs:

My Shiny Haxorus with Perfect Attack IV

I was lucky enough to hatch a shiny Haxorus with a Fantastic Attack IV of 30. Combined with my EV training, this allows my shiny dragon to devastate opponents with a massive 170 Attack stat. It can one-shot frail targets with Outrage and dent even the bulkiest walls. With that colossal power, my black Haxorus muscles past any opponent in its way!

Competitive Cloyster With Max Defense and Special Defense IVs

This sturdy Cloyster has Best IVs in HP, Defense, and Special Defense – an ideal spread for a defensive wall. With 150 base Defense and a Bold nature, it has insane physical bulk and can repeatedly Iron Defense or Shell Smash to become nearly unbreakable. Those maxed defensive IVs allow it to counter physical sweepers. And with Smart Strike, it still hits hard!

Analyzing real Pokemon this way shows how IVs directly influence match performance and viability.

Advanced IV Breeding and Training Techniques

Once you have the basics of checking IVs down, here are some expert techniques for breeding and training outstanding IV Pokemon:

Destiny Knot Breeding – Pass down 5 IVs from parents to offspring by giving one parent a Destiny Knot. Combine with an Everstone to pass Nature too.

Bottle Cap Hyper Training – Max out one IV to Best using a valuable Bottle Cap item. Allowed in ranked play.

Soft Resetting – Save before Legendary encounters and soft reset until you get a flawless IV spread. Tedious but worth it!

Shiny Charm – Breed two Pokemon from different language games to drastically increase your shiny odds. Shinies have way better IVs!

With the right techniques, creating competitive ready IV Pokemon is very achievable.

IV and Stat Calculations Explained

If you want to dig into the math behind IVs, here are the key formulas:

• *HP IV Contribution = (IV + 2) Level / 100 + 10**
• Other Stat IV Contribution = ((IV + 2) Level / 100 + 5) Nature Modifier
• *Overall IV% = SUM(IVs) / 186 100%**

So a level 100 Pikachu with perfect IVs would have:

• HP: 289 [(31 + 2) * 100 / 100 + 10]
• Other Stats: 236 [(31 + 2) 100 / 100 + 5] 1.0 nature modifier

And 186 total IV points, giving it a 100% Amazing overall IV percentage. Understanding the calculations helps optimize your team!

The History of IVs in Pokemon Games

IVs have been a key part of Pokemon stats since the first games:

• Introduced in Gen 1 on GameBoy to add variation
• Initially invisible – had to calculate them manually
• Gen 3 shows IV judges in-game for first time
• Gen 6 introduces Destiny Knot for controlled IV inheritance
• Hyper Training via Bottle Cap added in Gen 7
• Judge feature now unlocks post-game in most versions

The Judge function and Destiny Knot in recent games have made perfect IVs more achievable than ever!

Is IV Hacking Legal for Ranked Play?

While tools exist to artificially generate Pokemon with perfect IVs, these Pokemon are illegal for ranked online battles and official tournaments.

Pokemon must be caught or bred in the game normally for competitive use. So no shortcuts when building your IV optimized team! Work hard to catch, breed, and hyper train them yourself.

Closing Thoughts on IV Breeding and Training

Thanks for sticking through this epic guide on IVs fellow trainer! While long, I tried to make it as friendly and conversational as possible.

IVs may seem complicated initially, but take the time to learn them and you‘ll have a key advantage in assembling the ultimate team. Start by unlocking the Judge and checking your current Pokemon. Analyze their strengths and weaknesses.

From there, catch, breed, and hyper train Pokemon with IV spreads that complement their strengths. A little effort will go a long way toward IV and battle mastery!

Now pick your starter and set off on your Paldea journey. Your perfect IV Pokemon await! This guide only covered the basics – let me know if you want more advanced tips in the future. For now, go catch ‘em all!