Do Appraisals Really Matter in Pokémon GO?
As an avid Pokémon GO player and self-proclaimed "Poké-nerd", appraising new catches has become a key part of my daily routine. But just how useful are these cryptic evaluations from Candela, Blanche and Spark? Let‘s dive deep into the hidden stats that appraisals reveal – Individual Values (IVs) – and whether they truly influence battling success when it matters most.
Demystifying the Appraisal System
After catching a Pokémon, you can access the Appraise menu to have your Team Leader judge its potential for battle. They‘ll give a phrase indicating overall quality, call out strengths in one or more IVs, and finish with a 1-3 star rating.
This star rating offers a quick glimpse into how strong your Pokémon‘s IVs are:
- 0 stars = Very poor IVs (0-49% perfection)
- 1 star = Decent IVs (50-65% perfection)
- 2 stars = Pretty good IVs (66-80% perfection)
- 3 stars = Excellent IVs (82-100% perfection)
But what do these vague star ratings actually mean? Let‘s break it down.
IVs (Individual Values) are hidden stats ranging from 0 to 15 that influence a Pokémon‘s maximum potential at level 40. There are three IVs – Attack, Defense, and Stamina. A perfect IV Pokémon has 15 in all three stats.
Based on analysis from the Pokémon GO community, here are the ranges of IV values that correspond to each star rating:
| Stars | ATK IV | DEF IV | STA IV | IV Perfection |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0-5 | 0-5 | 0-5 | 0-49% |
| 1 | 6-10 | 6-10 | 6-10 | 51-64% |
| 2 | 11-12 | 11-12 | 11-12 | 66-80% |
| 3 | 13-15 | 13-15 | 13-15 | 82-100% |
So in simple terms:
- 0 stars means terrible IVs
- 3 stars is ideal, with perfect IVs capped at 100%
- The more stars, the better potential your Pokémon has!
But wait…how does this actually impact battling? Is a perfect 15/15/15 really that much better than a 10/10/10 Pokémon? Let‘s crunch some numbers.
Just How Rare Are Perfect IV Pokémon?
I‘ll never forget the first time I caught a 100% IV Pokémon. After appraising a random Ponyta, my jaw dropped when Candela announced "I am blown away by its stats – I‘m just as excited as when I first hatched my Charizard!"
These flawless "hundo" Pokémon are incredibly rare. Based on data aggregated from over 500 million Pokémon catches, here are the estimated encounter rates for perfect IVs:
- Wild catches: Roughly 1 in 4096 (~0.02% chance)
- Raid catches: Around 1 in 216 (~0.46% chance)
- Research encounters: Approximately 1 in 64 (~1.56% chance)
- Eggs: About 1 in 216 (~0.46% chance)
- Lucky trades: Around 1 in 64 chance (~1.56%)
So while not quite as elusive as a random wild Shundo (1 in 43 million!), they don‘t come along often. In my 800+ hours of total Pokémon GO playtime, I‘ve encounted just over 200 perfect IV Pokémon.
Out of thousands of catches, only a tiny fraction have hit the hundo jackpot. So while it‘s a thrill to appraise a perfect Pokémon, don‘t get discouraged if they are few and far between!
Do Higher IVs Really Affect Battle Performance?
Alright, onto the million Stardust question. Just how much of a difference do IVs actually make compared to an equally leveled Pokémon of the same species? Is that coveted 100% Dragonite noticeably stronger than a 40% dratini evolved up from a low IV?
Thanks to detailed game master formula breakdowns from sites like GamePress, we can quantify the exact impact of IVs on combat power.
Let‘s take a common Pokémon like Machamp as an example. Here is how its max CP and stats at Level 40 compare based on IVs:
| IV Percentile | ATK | DEF | STA | Max CP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0% (0/0/0) | 169 | 144 | 190 | 3057 |
| 50% (7/7/7) | 178 | 152 | 197 | 3225 |
| 91% (14/14/14) | 186 | 158 | 201 | 3358 |
| 100% (15/15/15) | 190 | 160 | 205 | 3430 |
As you can see, the difference between the worst 0% Machamp and a perfect one is 373 CP, along with a moderate stat boost across the board.
In practice, this means the 100% IV Machamp will have about 10% higher damage output on average, while also surviving around 10% longer.
These differences are even more pronounced on tankier Pokémon like Blissey or Chansey where IVs influence bulk more than glass cannons like Gengar.
So in summary – yes, higher IVs definitively confer a moderate battle performance edge! But it‘s not an insurmountable difference for skilled players with proper counters.
IVs vs CP – What Should You Prioritize?
When it comes to investing hard-earned Stardust and Candy on powering up Pokémon, you want to balance IVs and CP.
IVs influence maximum potential. A perfect Metagross will hit a higher max CP than a poor one. You want those perfect IV legendaries!
But CP represents current strength. A 2500 CP Gyarados will outperform a 1200 CP Gyarados in battle presently, regardless of IVs.
My general advice:
-
Legendaries & Rare Pokémon: Prioritize high IVs – these are long term investments you intend to max out.
-
Common Pokémon: Favor high CP specimens – you likely won‘t invest scarce resources powering them up.
-
If undecided: Consult your trusty appraisal for the tiebreaker!
There‘s no single right answer. Finding the balance depends on your priorities – and that‘s what makes appraising your Pokémon valuable for informed decision making!
Appraising for Great League and Ultra League
When it comes to PVP formats with CP caps like 1500 for Great League and 2500 for Ultra League, ideal IV combinations can differ significantly from Raids and Gyms.
Because the goal is to get as close to 1500 or 2500 CP as possible while still being maxed out at those levels, low Attack IV with high Defense and Stamina is preferable.
Different Pokémon species also want different spreads – PvPoke.com has detailed rankings of the IVs and movesets to aim for. Some examples:
- Altaria: 0/15/15 IVs
- Medicham: 1/15/15
- Azumarill: 0/15/15
- Bastiodon: 1/15/14
It takes some extra research, but appraising and keeping the right high-ranking PVP IV Pokémon will give you the edge over the competition.
To Evolve First, or Power Up First – That is the Question
A common point of confusion is whether to evolve Pokémon before or after powering them up. The good news is it makes no difference – IVs stay constant during evolution, and CP changes proportionally.
However, moves are randomly rerolled after evolution so keep that in mind if trying to get a specific moveset.
My advice is to evolve first, then power up to see if you get the ideal moveset before investing in powering it up.
One caveat is for legendary Pokémon you intend to trade away – since trading rerolls IVs, I suggest powering up first to increase the IV floor before sending them off to a new home.
Higher friendship level trades also yield minimum IV floors, increasing chances of a lucky friend trade resulting in high IVs.
Purified Pokémon Get An Appraisal Boost
An underrated benefit of purifying Shadow Pokémon is it guarantees a boost to all three IV stats – each will go up by 2 points.
So for example, purifying a 0/0/0 Shadow Charmander will transform it into a 2/2/2 Charmander with a minimum 2 star appraisal.
This means any 0* Shadow has the potential to gain perfect 15/15/15 IVs through purification! However, Shadows deal 20% more damage…so for rare Shadows it can be a tough call on whether to purify for the IV boost or keep it Shadow.
If you don‘t care about the purification bonus damage, purifying bad Shadows is an easy way to guarantee some solid appraisal stars.
IV and Appraisal Tip Summary
After all this, let‘s recap some key takeaways:
- Shinies have a minimum 2 star appraisal, don‘t transfer them!
- Legendaries and eggs hatch with at least 66% IVs or 2 stars.
- Weather boosted spawns have IV floors of 4/4/4 or 1 star minimum.
- Raid bosses have a 10/10/10 IV floor with high hundo rates.
- Use IV calculators like CalcyIV and PokeGenie to precisely check IV percentages.
- Match movesets – IVs aren‘t everything, learn which moves compliment each species.
- Trades and purification can improve poor IVs. Be strategic!
- Don‘t obsess over hundos – high level and proper counters are still key.
While appraisals and IVs don‘t determine battle outcomes alone, they offer useful insights into strengthening your Pokémon that skilled trainers can leverage.
So keep catching, raiding, and appraising…and may the hundos be with you! What are your best appraisal stories? I‘d love to hear them in the comments.