FAQ: By How Much Does Rare Candy Lower Your Stats?:

Theres a common misconception that rare candies are always bad, and 'stuff up' your stats, and leave a permanent imprint on them. this is false.

*there are at least five things that influence your stats: Level, base stat, natures, IVs and EVs.*

Level is pretty easy to understand; the higher the better.

base stats are predetermined numbers set for each species - for example, the average base stat for a pokemon is 85. heracross has a naturally high attack stat, because its base attack stat is 125. evolved pokemon generally have better base stats than non-evolved pokemon.

a nature will either add 10% onto one stat and lower another by 10%, or else not do anything at all. keep in mind that 10% of a high stat is more than 10% of a low stat, so boost your highest stat with a nature and lower your least used/lowest stat with it for maximum effect. for a complete list on all the natures, go to this link: http://dynamic3.gamespy.com/~psypoke/lab/natures.php

keep in mind that in RBY and in GSC, natures didn't exist.

IV stands for individual value, and it behaves a lot like a gene. once you catch a pokemon, they're set in stone and you can't change it at all. you have to catch another pokemon if you aren't satisfied with it. IVs are a number that can range from 0 to 31 in the advanced generation, and from 0 to 15 in RBY and in GSC. the number can vary from pokemon to pokemon, and often whithin the pokemon's own stats. they can be bred on with some luck, and influence the power and type of your pokemon's hidden power (though it takes over half a page to even START to explain how it works). _remember, in GSC, the two special IVs were shared to allow trades between it and RBY._

EVs (effort values) are hidden numbers given out to one or more stats after a battle (a bit like experience). like their name suggests, it does require effort to max out your EVs. some pokemon, when defeated, give out more EVs than others, and some in different stats. the overall limit is 510, and the limit to one stat is 255. after gaining four EVs in one stat, the stat goes up by one. if you switch pokemon, the EVs don't get split up like experience (so everyone who took part in the battle without dying gets as much EVs as if one pokemon did it by themself), and pokemon growing from the EXP. share also gets its full (not halved) share of EVs. pokemon holding macho brace get double EVs, and pokemon with the pokérus disease (a beneficial disease that game freak _intended_ to be there) also get double EVs. pokemon with both get quadruple. since leveling up by rare candy doesn't involve defeating pokemon, only the level of a pokemon rises, and not its EVs. The same goes for leveling in the day-care. but *if you have your EVs maxed out, then there will be no difference between a trained level up and a rare candy level up.* and if you have already shark-rare-candied some pokemon up to level 100 and regret it, never fear; you can still train your EVs, then deposit your pokemon in a box and withdraw it and its stats get recalculated. and if you are worried that you have trained in the wrong stat, don't worry, because in pokemon emerald certain rare berries minus ten EVs off a stat, allowing you to put it somewhere more useful. those berries won't work on pokemon at level 100, BTW. for a list of who gives out what EVs, go to: http://www.serebii.net/pokedex-rs/ev.shtml and click on one of the links corrresponding to the stat that you want to enhance.

and what about proteins, carboses etc. ? most people think, 'it plusses a stat by one or two'. in actual fact, it just adds on 10 EVs to one of your stats. if you have already reached the overall limit, or already have 100 EVs in that stat, they won't work anymore.

(note: in GSC and RBY, the EV system is a little different. there was no overall cap, so it was simple logic to max out everything. plus, like the IVs, the two special stats shared EVs. and they were split up if more than one pokemon participated in a battle, much like regular experience)

so you see, rare candies will have no effect on your stats as long as you max out or have already maxed out your EVs.

theres a rumour that always comes up, and its false everytime: some say that if you evolve early, your pokemon gets higher stats. _BEEP_ (buzzer goes off) wrong! the game doesn't use tables, it recalculates. try it out yourself, if you are game enough to risk damaging your game with AR or gameshark.

Experiment:
first catch ONE wild pokemon (that evolves by level) and SAVE. use the gameshark/AR to have unlimited rare candies (to eliminate any differences with any EVs gained in the training process; also its a lot quicker) then give the newly caught pokemon an everstone. level it up to 98/99, then evolve it at the last minute by removing everstone and raise it to level 100, then record the stats and turn off. reload to the part where you just caught the wild pokemon. by using the same pokemon, this means that it will have the same IVs and base stats. this time evolve it ASAP, then level it to level 100 with those rare candies. record its stats and put them next to the other recordings that you have saved. *there is no difference.*

Some people have found the hidden calculations that produce the number you see on the status screen.

here is the calc for attack, defense, special attack, special defense and speed:

((((Base stat times 2 + IV + EV/4) times Level) divided by 100) + 5) times by nature = stat.

remember, you *_must_* round EV/4 down.


for HP:

(((Base stat times 2 + IV + EV/4) times Level) divided by 100) + 10 + Level

like the other stats, you *_must_* round EV/4 down.

hopefully this will reduce confusion and educate the vast multitudes of newbs out there... and also mean i don't have to answer so many repetitive questions about rare candies, protein etc. (sigh. i'm so busy today)

from, PIdgeotpro.