POKE-FOCUS #18: GARDEVOIR

Introduction

Gardevoir is nothing short of awesome. Back in Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald, she was a psychic mainstay of the team, using both Psychic and Thunderbolt to bring opponents to their knees. She also was the star of the Cool Competitions, managing some fairly difficult wins in order to get a portrait.









About the Pokemon

Gardevoir, the Embrace Pokemon. Probably such because its main instinct is to guard its Trainer from danger, "embracing" him/her in some form of a psychic shield (which apparently is a black hole). It has the ability to see the future... definitely a useful skill when scoping out dangers that will befall its Trainer. (Apparently, said black hole is a dimension-distorter, which means it likely diverts the timeline-dimension to a safer one.) It will also sacrifice itself for its trainer if necessary (as seen in Mystery Dungeon Red/Blue).

All in all, quite the Pokemon to have by your side.

Despite its female-humanoid look, Gardevoir can be both male and female (which will prove interesting if we end up with a male Gardevoir on our team), and in fact does not belong to the Humanshape egg group (but rather the Indeterminate group). Makes one wonder exactly what Gardevoir is.

Height: 5'3", Weight: 106.7 lbs. Hey, that's pretty much my height and weight. Scary right? What if I told you that was really the weight of my cat? Just got awkward? Okay let's move on.

Capture/Training

Gardevoir is one of Ralts's final evolved forms (the other being Gallade). Ralts can be found during a Swarm on Route 34 (wait, Rule 34?). They have a catch rate of 235; however, keep in mind that any at level 12 or higher know and might use Teleport. That said, putting one to sleep and using a Great Ball, at full health, will have a 92% chance of catching the Pokemon.

Ralts evolves into Kirlia at Lv. 20 and then into Gardevoir at Lv. 30. Delaying the final evolution by one level to learn Psychic two levels earlier can be done, but there is no need to delay the evolution more than that.

Statistics

68 HP, 65 Atk, 65 Def, 125 Sp. Atk, 115 Sp. Def, 80 Spd
Stat-wise, Gardevoir notably excels in Special Attack and Special Defense. Compared to the "main" Psychic-type, Alakazam, Gardevoir has slightly less Special Attack (though still really high) and significantly less Speed, but in exchange has much more Special Defense. Its physical stats are also higher, though still not recommended for taking hits (unless Will-o-Wisps are involved). Gardevoir is great for taking hits against special attack users, or just plain-out smacking enemies around. (Its average Speed, though, means you might have to be careful who you send it out against.)

Recommended Natures are those that hinder Attack (useless on Gardevoir), and help either Sp. Attack, Sp. Defense, Speed, or maybe Defense. Since Ralts come in swarms, in this case we can catch several of them pretty easily and choose one with a good nature and IV setup.

When EVs are to be re-focused, they should definitely be siphoned out of Attack. Distribution of stats otherwise will likely depend on the role Gardevoir plays on the team. It has use for pretty much any of the other stats except maybe Defense, so focus should be on removing the Attack EV's it's likely gained from fighting lots of Fighting-types. Have fun growing lots of Kelpsy berries.

Movesets

For its abilities, Gardevoir can either get Synchronize or Trace. Generally speaking, Trace is preferable, and can be fun depending on the situation. It's pretty easy to tell when a Ralts has Trace (since the battle text outright says so at the start of battle) and Ralts will come in swarms, so catching one (or six) with this ability will be easy enough.

There are a couple of ways Gardevoir can go with movesets.

Psychic is Gardevoir's primary mode of attack, and should be on any moveset.

Gardevoir has a handful of choices for a secondary attack. Shadow Ball can take down other Psychics as well as Ghosts, but runs into trouble against Dark and Steel types. In contrast, Focus Blast hits Dark and Steel types hard, but in turn does not work against Psychics and Ghosts. Thunderbolt is a good third option, useful against many Pokemon in general. For a wild-card option, Signal Beam can hit Psychic and Dark-types, but isn't as good against Ghost and Steel-types, and is, base-power-wise, the weakest of its choices. Energy Ball is another decent option.

Gardevoir seems to be the type that likes to help out its teammates, and it gets two moves that can help in that regard. Wish is the obvious one, and can be used if you want Gardevoir to soak up an attack before switching out to a teammate. On a more extreme end is Healing Wish, which will outright knock out Gardevoir, while completely healing its replacement. Both are nice little moves to complement Gardevoir's personality, while being fairly practical in battle as well. As a side note, Gardevoir's pre-evolved forms cannot learn these moves, so a Heart Scale will be needed.

Calm Mind is a great move, boosting Gardevoir's already-high Special Attack and Defense to new heights. Stall up against a special attacker and crank up those stats, then start sweeping. Extra EVs in Speed are recommended.

For disrupting opponents, Gardevoir can use Thunder Wave to paralyze enemies, reducing the impact of Gardevoir's average speed. Alternately, with the help of a Shuppet/Duskull family member, Will-o-Wisp can be bred onto it, which can screw over physical attackers attempting to prey on its weak Defense. If TMs or breeding is not desired, there's always Hypnosis for the ever-fun Sleep status.

If Gardevoir is to be supporting its teammates, Reflect and Light Screen are good moves to be had. Reflect in particular helps Gardevoir itself, but having both is an option. Since these are "team" moves, they go well with Wish. In this case, there is less need of a secondary attack, since it's easier to switch out to someone who can properly take down an enemy if Psychic won't work. Also, Special Attack EVs are not as necessary here. Watch out for Brick Breakers!

Finally, some oddball moves. We're not really competitive-battling here, so Double Team is always an option. However, that's pretty much the only level-up move worth using other than those already mentioned. If Gardevoir's team has several slower Pokemon, Trick Room is an option. Magic Coat could potentially be used, too, if you want to Move Tutor it. As for Egg Moves, there's the disruptors Mean Look and Confuse Ray, as well as the sacrifice moves Destiny Bond, Memento, and Grudge.

So, the primary moveset choices are:

Moveset 1: Wish/Status Support

- Thunder Wave/Will-o-Wisp (disruptor)
- Wish/Healing Wish ( healing support)
- Psychic (primary attack)
- Shadow Ball/Focus Blast/Thunderbolt/Signal Beam (secondary attack)

Disrupts enemies, supports teammates, and launches attacks, all in one Pokemon. Great deal, ne? Gardevoir's Special Attack and Defense should be pretty well-balanced for this set; Speed is not as necessary and can be refocused. More HP EVs would be nice, though. Defense EVs can help if Thunder Wave is chosen over Will-o-Wisp.

Moveset 2: Calm Mind

- Calm Mind
- Psychic
- (secondary attack)
- Will-o-Wisp/Wish (self-defense/healing)

Calm Mind up a couple of times, then start blasting away. Send it out against a special attacker for the most opportunity to Calm Mind itself. Will-o-Wisp can provide a barrier against physical attacks, while Wish can heal the damage Gardevoir took while building up Calm Minds. Good if Gardevoir has an innately higher Speed, since it'll start looking like a sweeper after those Calm Minds are used. EVs should be focused more on Speed and Special Attack here.

Moveset 3: Screen Support

- Reflect/Light Screen/Will-o-Wisp (defensive support)
- (second defensive support)
- (healing support)
- Psychic

A team supporter. Speed EVs are helpful for setting up the first screen to soak up the first attack. Other than that, this particular moveset does not require as much Special Attack, so go ahead and refocus those EVs to HP, Defense, and Special Defense.

Overall

- Psychic
- (healing support) OR (self-defense/healing)
- (disruptor) OR (defensive support) OR Calm Mind
- (secondary attack) OR (secondary defensive support)

A general blueprint for Gardevoir's movesets. Example: Psychic, Wish, Reflect, Shadow Ball.

Effective Movesets:

1. Calm Mind + Wish support
- Calm Mind
- Psychic
- Wish
- Thunderbolt/Shadow Ball/Focus Blast/Signal Beam/Energy Ball

2. Paralyzer
- Psychic
- Thunder Wave
- Wish
- Energy Ball/Shadow Ball/Focus Blast/Signal Beam/Thunderbolt

3. Will-o-Wisp
- Psychic
- Will-o-Wisp
- Wish
- Focus Blast/Thunderbolt/Shadow Ball/Signal Beam/Energy Ball

4. Sacrificial Dual-Screen
- Psychic
- Reflect
- Light Screen
- Healing Wish
Item: Light Clay

5. Multi-Status
- Psychic
- Hypnosis
- Will-o-Wisp
- Shadow Ball/Thunderbolt/Signal Beam/Energy Ball/Focus Blast

6. Trick Room Support
- Psychic
- Trick Room
- Wish
- Shadow Ball/Thunderbolt/Focus Blast/Energy Ball/Signal Beam
Item: Macho Brace
Note: Use with Speed-hindering nature.

7. Sacrificial Dual Screen: Memento Ver.
- Psychic
- Reflect
- Light Screen
- Memento


Breeding

Best egg moves: Will-o-Wisp, Memento, Encore

Notes:
- Encore and Will-o-Wisp are incompatible.
- A Shuppet can pass on Will-o-Wisp as well as a free Shadow Ball.

Postscript: Fun Abilities to Trace

- Adaptability: Unlikely to run into a Pokemon team with this ability, but if you do... extra-powerful Psychic attacks, anyone?
- Aftermath: Trace this from a Skuntank, and watch as some of its health gets sapped away after it Night Slashes you. Hopefully you got to land a Thunderbolt on it beforehand.
- Chlorophyll/Swift Swim: If the opponent is slower than you in normal weather, this will make it so they're still slower than you in their preferred weather.
- Cute Charm: I think Gardevoir's cute enough to pull this off... Could potentially be used to disrupt Pokemon of the opposite gender, especially because Gardevoir itself has no contact moves.
- Filter: Could be interesting if facing a Mr. Mime with Shadow Ball or something.

- Flash Fire: Would be more useful if Gardevoir had usable fire attacks. Still, free switch-in against Fire-types!
- Forewarn/Frisk: Because secret intelligence runs both ways.
- Honey Gather/Pickup: Uhh... hope you get a free item?
- Ice Body: Could be an interesting switch-in during hail. Like Snow Cloak, it will make you immune to Hail damage.
- Intimidate: A pretty obvious one. Gardevoir isn't going to be using physical attacks anyway, and it can keep the Intimidator from hurting it too badly with the switch-in.
- Levitate: Use against a Flygon or Claydol (draw out a Ground-type move first) and you can get a free switch-in, plus a free immunity against one of their STAB types. (In Claydol's case, their other STAB-type is fairly screwed, too. Make sure you have Shadow Ball, though.)
- Magnet Pull: If you have Focus Blast, trap a Magnezone or a Probopass and blast away.
- Motor Drive: Free switch-in against Electivire AND free speed boost? Good stuff.
- Multitype: Uhh... have it hold a weird Plate and matching secondary attack?
- Natural Cure: Not sure if this would work, since Trace resets upon switching, but this may equal to one free status cure.
- No Guard: Could be fun for 100%-accurate Focus Blasts.
- Own Tempo: Yes, some of the Pokemon with this ability can confuse you...
- Pressure: Turnabout is fair play.
- Rain Dish: Potentially interesting switch-in during rain.
- Sand Veil/Snow Cloak: Switch in while the corresponding weather condition is active, and the opponent might miss their switch-in strike. As a bonus, these two abilities also confer immunity to the damage associated.
- Serene Grace: Lesse... that's now a 20% chance of lowering Special Defense? Hmm.
- Simple: Calm Mind just got twice as effective. Yikes.
- Soundproof: Could screw over an Exploud.
- Speed Boost: Well, Gardevoir sure doesn't have to worry about Speed now.
- Swarm: Hey, if you're using Signal Beam...
- Thick Fat: Switch in against Dewgong or Walrein and they lose one of their STAB moves.
- Trace: ...
- Truant: Yeah, you probably shouldn't use Gardevoir against Slaking.
- Wonder Guard: Would be more effective if it weren't for both of Shedinja's types being super-effective against Gardevoir. Still, if you can survive a hit and Will-o-Wisp or Shadow Ball it out of commission, you could have some fun.

Future Sight

Gardevoir gets a couple of fun new moves to play with. Top of the list is Psycho Shock, a move that is powered by your Special Attack but hits the opponent's Defense. This means specially-defensive Pokemon *coughBlisseycough* cannot wall you. Assist Power can also be fun, gaining power with each stat boost you get. On a Calm Mind set, this move can easily become massively powerful.

However, what really looks to be Gardevoir's future is the realm of Double and Triple battles. Its Dream World ability, Telepathy, prevents all damage from your teammates' attacks; go ahead and Earthquake and Explode all you want! Add to this moves like Healing Beam, which allow Gardevoir to directly heal teammates, and Gardevoir looks to be a great partner for Multi-Battles.