Pokémon Scarlet and Violet EV training guide: How to max EVs

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet still has Effort Values, or EVs, a complex stat system that changes depending on which Pokémon you battle.

Raising EVs can be complicated, but it’s worth it, as it’ll significantly boost your Pokémon’s stats.

What are EVs?

EVs or Effort Values are stats your Pokémon gain from defeating or catching specific Pokémon. Pokémon can gain 510 EVs total, with a max of 252 per stat; 4 EVs rounds out to a one-point increase for a specific stat.

By defeating various Pokémon, your Pokémon will gain passive stats. Competitive players will min-max these to benefit Pokémon specifically by typically assigning 252 EVs to two valuable stats and the remaining four to another stat. (There are other EV spreads that are used for specific builds and Pokémon, but running 252/252/4 is the most common.)

Essentially, you can significantly boost your Pokémon’s stats by having it battle specific Pokémon until its EVs are maxed.

You can check your Pokémon’s EVs by opening their summary menu and pressing the L trigger on their stat screen. The solid colored shape will show the EVs. Stats with maxed-out EVs will sparkle.

Image: Game Freak/The Pokémon Company, Nintendo via Polygon

How do I EV train in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet?

Here’s what we do to EV train:

1. Set a powerful Pokémon that either has max EVs or stats we don’t care about in the front of the party.
2. Fill up the rest of the party with Pokémon that all need the same EV. (For example, we had Gholdengo, Kirlia, Charcadet, Tatsugiri, and Toedscool, since we were training them for Speed.)
3. Give each of the EV training Pokémon their respective stat-boosting item. (See the power item section below.)
4. Eat a sandwich that boosts the encounter rate of the target Pokémon.
5. Exclusively battle the target Pokémon that gives the desired EVs until the EVs are maxed. This takes 28 Pokémon using our provided targets and items.

Our party looked like this:

Image: Game Freak/The Pokémon Company, Nintendo via Polygon

The Pokémon we battled, along with their locations and EVs given are as follows:

We ate the sandwiches listed in the above table, but any sandwiches that boost the encounter rate for the Pokémon’s type will work.

Each of these Pokémon grant one EV per K.O. or catch, but you can boost this significantly by letting your Pokémon hold power items. With a power item, your Pokémon will instead gain nine EVs per K.O. or catch of the above Pokémon. Each Pokémon in your party will gain EVs because of the permanently-activated Exp. Share.

You do not get EVs from autobattling.

What do power items do and where can I get them?

Power items reduce the speed of the Pokémon holding it, but they increase the EV gain for a specific stat depending on the item.

You can buy power items for $10,000 each at Delibird Presents from the “General Goods” section. They correspond to the following stats:

• Power Bracer: Attack
• Power Belt: Defense
• Power Lens: Special Attack
• Power Band: Special Defense
• Power Weight: HP
• Power Anklet: Speed

How do I get rid of EVs?

The party you beat the game with likely have random EVs from just battling whatever came your way. You can wipe your Pokémon clean using some specific types of berries.

Each of these berries reduce the Pokémon’s EVs by 10 in the specified stat and make it more friendly:

• Pomeg: Lowers HP
• Kelpsy: Lowers Attack
• Qualot: Lowers Defense
• Hondew: Lowers Special Attack
• Grepa: Lowers Special Defense
• Tomato: Lowers Speed

You can find these berries as sparkling items on the ground, but the best place to get them is from the Porto Marinada auction. Randomly, one of the NPCs will sell more than 50 of these berries at once — you can snag a ton in one go to help clear out your beloved Pokémon’s stats.