Key Takeaway
Increase Pokémon IVs by collecting Bottle Caps and bringing those to the NPC in Montenevera for Hyper Training.
Pokémon Individual Values—or IVs—are an important, yet not obvious, part of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Like other Pokémon games, the IVs determine how powerful and effective your Pokémon have the potential to be.
Table Of Contents
What Are Individual Values (IVs)?
Individual Values, or IVs, are hidden scores that every single Pokémon inherently has. These scores range anywhere from zero to 31, with 31 being the best. Per each Pokémon, an IV is given to each category of its stats: HP, Attack, Defense, Speed, Special Defense, and Special Attack. Unfortunately, you can’t actually see the numerical IV for each of these stats.
However, there is still a way to get a sense of the score within the game. There is a built-in IV-checker, and though you can’t see the specific IV, the game will inform you with an adjective how good the score is. You’ll see one of the following to describe each stat:
- Best: 31 IVs
- Fantastic: 30 IV
- Very Good: 26-29 IV
- Pretty Good: 16-25 IV
- Decent: 1-15 IV
- No Good: 0 IV
To have effective Pokémon for the difficult Raid Battles, you’ll want to make sure you have Pokémon with maxed IVs for either their Attack or Special Attack stats. Generally, Pokémon specialize in either one type of offense or the other, so you won’t need to have both maxed out for each Pokémon.
How to See Your Pokémon’s IV
To actually see your Pokémon’s IV score in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, you’ll first need to fully complete the Victory Road path. Once you’ve done this and become the Champion, visit any Pokémon Center, and you’ll receive the Judge Feature.
Once you have this, simply perform the following steps:
- Open your Pokémon Box
- Find the Pokémon you want to check the IVs of and press “+”
- Press “+” a second time, and you will see that Pokémon’s IVs
Why Increase Pokémon IVs
In short, the better IV a Pokémon has, the more potential it has for being great. If you face off against the exact same Pokémon at the exact same level, the Pokémon with the higher IV will likely win the battle, assuming one does not luck out with a critical hit.
As far as the game’s main storyline, you won’t need to care much about the IVs of the Pokémon. As long as you train them up to a high enough level, you’ll get through the game without an issue. However, some of the more difficult Raids will require you to use better Pokémon. Additionally, if you’re interested in battling other players, you’ll need to keep track of your Pokémons’ IVs to win.
How to Increase Pokémon IVs
There is one best way to increase a Pokémon’s IVs in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, and that is through using Bottle Caps.
Bottle Caps and Hyper Training
Hyper Training is the quickest way to directly increase a Pokémon’s IV for a specific stat. To Hyper Train, you will first need to collect Bottle Caps. However, you cannot purchase Bottle Caps until you’ve at least defeated the sixth Gym. Once you’ve done this, the easiest way to get Bottle Caps is by visiting a Delibird Presents store. At any of these Delibird Presents store locations, you can get a Bottle Cap for $20,000:
- Mesagoza: Southeast corner, right of the grand staircase
- Mesagoza: By West exit, in the Northern street corner
- Mesagoza: Also in the West, in the Southern street corner
- Cascarrafa: Far East side of town on main level
- Cascarrafa: North side of town, down one level
- Levincia: Slightly East of Northern Pokémon Center
You can also get Bottle Caps by finding them out in the wild, getting them as rewards for Raids, or as a prize at the end of the Academy Ace tournament, though these are all more tedious or unlikely to happen.
Once you have any number of Bottle Caps in your possession, take them to an NPC located in Montenevera (location marked on image above). There, you can trade the Bottle Cap for Hyper Training, which is what will increase your Pokémon’s IVs.
Gold Bottle Caps
If you want to spend the time finding Gold Bottle Caps, these can be used to increase all of a Pokémon’s IVs to the max at one time. The only ways to get the Gold Bottle Caps are by going to the Porto Auction House or by completing the Academy Ace Tournament. The Gold Bottle Caps will, very rarely, show up in either of these places.
Gold Bottle Caps can also be brought to the NPC in Montenevera for Hyper Training.
