Gardevoir is not only one of the best Fairy types in Sword and Shield, but one of the most popular Psychic types of all time. There's a reason there's so much fan-art out there for it after all! Lots of trainers want to have one for their own and use it successfully in battle.
So what is the best way to make Gardevoir take down all the Pokemon that oppose it? Choosing the right nature for the 282nd Pokemon is a great place to start. Still, there are even more ways trainers can make all of their opponents fear Gardevoir when it hits the battlefield.
10 Make It Have A Timid Nature
Gardevoir may have an impressive Special Attack stats but its speed leaves a lot to be desired. Giving it a Timid nature can help with this. It may decrease its Attack stat at the expense of improving speed, but since Gardevoir should never be using physical attacks in the first place, it's no big sacrifice. Use that edge in speed to take down opponents!
9 Make Sure It Has The Best Ability
While it can be tempting to use Telepathy due to its potential in team battles, Trace is by far Gardevoir's best ability. Being able to copy the opponent can allow them to gain some of the same advantages they hope to employ. Imagine a Gardevoir outspeeding someone with Swift Swim after they set rainy weather onto the field. This is just one of the many possibilities Trace offers as an ability.
8 Have It Hold The Right Item
Every good trainer knows having their Pokemon hold the right item can be the difference between victory and defeat. In Gardevoir's case, there are two major options. Some trainers choose to use Choice Scarf for it to help make up for the embrace Pokemon's slower speed stats.
Those looking to maximize power should choose to use Choice Specs instead. Gardevoir already has a high Special Attack, but increasing it even more so with the use of items can make it truly frightening to come up against.
7 Don't Go Big, Go Home
It can be tempting to go full Steven Universe and turn Gardevoir into a giant woman but we would advise against this. Dynamaxing can certainly increase its power, but there are usually so many better options that players could choose from. Gardevour is better suited for cleaning up once another Dynamazed Pokemon has beaten up a lot of the opposing team and should be used this way.
6 Use Gardevoir In 1v1 Matches
Gardevoir is far stronger in 1v1 situations than it is in 2v2 battles traditionally seen in VGC formats. With enough speed, it can manage to take out many potential threats it might face due to its high Special Attack stat without having 2v2 shenanigans get in the way. This can also help Gardevoir avoid some of the Pokemon it's weak against easier as well as many of its counters are more popular in team matches.
5 Bring It To An Older Format
Those that love Pokemon X & Y will want to log onto Smogon or pull out those old cartridges to train up Gardevoir. It was a massively popular Pokemon and dominated in VGC during 2014. Sejun Park was even able to use one to win the Pokemon World Championships that year. No need to use a Celebi to time travel to go back a bit in time!
4 Give Gardevoir The Best Moves
The best way to make Gardevoir look like a serious powerhouse is to bring it into battle with the best moves. With Gardevoir's focus being on special attacks, Psychic and Moonblast are excellent choices for dealing damage. Mystical Fire and Energy Ball can also deal a lot of damage while providing more type coverage.
This changes when using Gardevoir in Pokemon Go. A combination of Confusion and Psychic allows Gardevoir to deal the most damage per second in battle. Dazzling Gleam can be substituted for those wanting a slightly more defensive set without sacrificing too much speed.
3 Pair It With Good Teammates
A Pokemon can't dominate in battle without good teammates to cover its weaknesses and make its strengths truly shine. Gastrodon and Steelix can synergize well with Gardevoir as they help cover its weaknesses. It in turn can protect them from Pokemon like Keldeo and Appletun that they tend to struggle with.
According to Pikalytics, some of the most popular teammates used in 2v2 matches include Kyogre, Kingdra, Lapras, and Rillaboom.
2 Know Gardevoir's Counters
Being a Psychic and Fairy type Pokemon, Gardevoir is weak against Poison, Ghost, and Steel type moves. With this knowledge, make sure not to send Gardevoir out into situations where it has no hope of winning. As an example, sending it out against a Gengar, a Poison and Ghost type, would be particularly devastating. Paying attention to Gardevoir's counters will make it look even stronger when it comes out to battle.
1 EV Train It Properly
It may seem intimidating on the surface but it's actually pretty easy to EV train Pokemon. This can be an excellent way to make sure Gardevoir is hitting as hard as possible. Considering it isn't too fast, making sure a lot of points are invested in Speed is incredibly important. The other focus should be on Special Attack to make sure each attack it lands deals devastating damage.