Pokémon that are more powerful than their evolution? I mean, that sounds impossible, right? Isn’t the point of evolution to make a Pokémon more powerful, giving it more stats, new types and moves, and all that jazz? Well, yes, on paper. But Pokémon isn’t that simple.
For example, in Generation 5, a new hold item changed the competitive landscape for good. This item is called Eviolite, and it boosts a Pokémon's defence and special defence by 50% as long as that Pokémon hasn’t fully evolved. While Pokémon do get a good chunk of stats from evolving, that's rarely even close to 50%!
It’s hard to put into words how powerful this item is, but it's safe to say it breathed new life into Pokémon that often didn’t really see the light of day. So let’s go over a few Pokémon that got to shine, some with the Eviolite, and some on their own merit!
10 Pikachu
Famous For a Reason
I had to give Pikachu a bit of a shout-out here, and not because of Ash’s freakishly powerful Pikachu in the Anime. No. While Pikachu doesn’t see much play in the main games, or even competitively, that doesn’t mean it can’t be powerful under the right conditions.
Pikachu has its own special held item, the Light Ball, which doubles its offensive stats. While most people would prefer Raichu, Pikachu has a decent Speed stat, letting it outspeed many opponents. Plus, with its unique move Volt Tackle, it can KO many Pokémon with a single hit.
You’ll just have to hope you don’t get hit, because Pikachu's defences are paper thin!
9 Scyther
Scythes for Slicing!
Scyther is a really interesting case. Right now, Scyther has 2 evolutions: Scizor and Kleavor. Generally, when a Pokémon evolves, it gains a healthy chunk of base stats, but Scyther is completely different.
Scyther already has a great Base Stat Total of 500, so instead of getting even more stats, it changes its type, going from Bug/Flying to Bug/Steel or Bug/Rock. And while these evolutions are great, Scyther doesn’t actually need them to be strong.
Scyther doesn’t even need Eviolite because of its massive Attack and Speed. In this case, we can use a Choice Scarf or a Choice Band to capitalise on those base stats, or give it a Sash and aim for a sweep with Swords Dance. Scyther has plenty of options and shows just how versatile it really is.
8 Misdreavus
The Unstoppable Spectre
Misdreavus received its evolution in Generation 4, evolving into Mismagius. This gave it a nice buff, with a good chunk of extra Special Attack and Speed, so it can deal some real damage.
The thing is, regular Misdreavus doesn’t actually have bad stats. In fact, its defences are pretty solid. Now equip this little ghost with an Eviolite, and now you have something interesting. While you won’t be throwing out any Shadow Balls with this, you can instead use moves like Perish Song and Pain Split to stall your opponents out.
Or use their might against them with moves like Foul Play, and burn them down with Will-O-Wisp. You’ll have them running away in fear in no time!
7 Electabuzz
Time to Get the Motor Running
Electivire is another one of these strange cases where a Pokemon loses stats upon evolving. While it gains a higher Base Stat Total, mainly from its extra Attack, it actually loses Speed. The great thing about Electabuzz is that it already has a really fantastic BST of 490!
Yep, you know what that means! It’s a brilliant candidate for the Eviolite. So here, instead of using physical attacks, it’s best to use some of Electabuzz’s more interesting support moves. With only one weakness, you can tank a lot of hits with Follow Me while baiting the opponent with Taunt.
Then, when another Pokemon comes in, you can use Volt Switch to pivot while dealing a good chunk of damage with Electabuzz’s already great special attack stat.
6 Rhydon
The True First Pokemon
I don’t think I was the only one who was a little bit underwhelmed when Rhyperior was released in the fourth Generation. This isn’t to say it’s a bad Pokemon; its design is just a little bit weird, especially compared to Rhydon, which is just so iconic.
The thing is, Rhyperior gets Solid Rock, which helps it avoid being one-shot by special Water and Grass moves. So, to counter that, it makes sense to run an Eviolite to massively boost Rhydon’s survivability.
Then we can make use of Rhydon’s amazing attack stat to throw out powerful Stone Edges and Earthquakes. And if you were worried about Rhydon not making much of an impact, it also gets access to Stealth Rock for guaranteed chip damage when your opponents switch too often!
5 Duosion
Mean Green Psychic Machine
Duosion often gets massively overlooked. You know it’s just one of the middle-stage Pokémon that isn’t very unique, just looking like a transition stage to get to the next point. And Reuniclus, naturally, is much more visually interesting.
But one funny thing is that Duosion and Reuniclus have the exact same Special Attack stat. Yep, in terms of their offensive potential, they’re equal! Now, with the defensive boost Eviolite gives alongside Magic Guard, you can massively skyrocket Duosion's offensive and defensive capabilities with Calm Mind.
Pair this with stalling moves like Recover and Acid Armour to cover its normal defence, and you can ramp up to deal serious damage with Stored Power, which uses all your stat boosts for insane damage!
4 Chansey
Bulk For Days!
Chansey and Blissey are known for having the biggest HP pools in the games, and for giving out a ton of EXP, of course! But what advantage does Blissey actually have over Chansey?
Well, when it evolves, Blissey gets a good amount of Special Attack. But the thing is, you’re never going to use these Pokémon as attackers! They’re always going to be for healing and stalling. So, instead, Chansey benefits so much more from an Eviolite, making it less likely to faint from a powerful physical attack.
Then you can use Chansey to set up Stealth Rock and Thunder Wave, or even chip the opponents down with Seismic Toss. With Soft-Boiled for healing, if your opponents don’t have many physical attackers, Chansey can be a real pain to take down!
3 Aron
F.E.A.R
A good while back, when we were kids in school, I heard a strange strategy called F.E.A.R floating around. And yes, I was royally schooled when a friend used it against me. This little Acronym stands for Focus Sash, Endeavor, Quick Attack, Rattata, and if your opponent doesn’t know how it works, it can take out the most powerful Pokémon around.
Of course, this only works once, right? Well, how about if there was a better version? Meet our Level 1 Aron. Here, you won’t need Focus Sash because Aron has Sturdy as its ability, and instead of Quick Attack, you’ll use Sandstorm for chip damage.
When Aron is reduced to 1 HP, use Endeavor to match your HP with the opponent's. Then the Shell Bell Aron is holding activates, restoring it to full health, while Sandstorm takes out the opponent. You’re free to keep abusing this loop until your opponent runs out of Pokémon … or until they figure out the strategy.
This is a bit of a meme, to be honest, and any decent trainer will immediately know how to counter it, but it shows how weak Pokémon can actually be strong under the right conditions!
2 Dusclops
You’d Better Sleep With One Eye Open
Dusclops is pretty similar to Chansey in that it evolves, but the evolution doesn’t do much! Upon evolution, Dusknoir gets a decent buff to its Attack and Speed stats, but like with Blissey, you wouldn’t really run this Pokémon as a physical attacker. There are just better options available.
So, since Dusclops already has great base defensive stats, an Eviolite makes so much more sense, turning it into an absolute wall! Ghost is a great defensive type, so Dusclops can make great use of stalling tactics with Toxic/Will-O-Wisp and Pain Split.
Dusclops also works well as a Trick Room setter, thanks to its low speed, letting other slow Pokémon on your team shine. And if you need damage, Night Shade is a great way to guarantee it, no matter your opponent's stats! While Dusknoir is cool, Dusclops does everything so much better.
1 Porygon2
I, For One, Welcome Our New Robot Overlords
Porygon has a great story. It starts in Generation 1 as an extremely hard-to-obtain Pokémon, evolves in Generation 2, and becomes corrupted in its final stage in Generation 4. The whole evolution line is great.
That's why I love Porygon2 so much. So with Porygon-Z, it’s obviously used as a special-attacking sweeper. With a base Special Attack of 135, what else would it be used for? But the thing is, to gain this power, it loses a lot of its bulk, about 20 points from Defence and Special Defence.
And of course, you know what it’s time for! Eviolite! A lot of the previous Pokemon on this list struggle with their stats. They might have great defences but low HP or vice versa, which makes them struggle against certain matchups. With Eviolite, Porygon2 has ridiculously high defences and a ton of HP! Best of both worlds!
First off, we get Recover to help sustain. Then we add Thunder Wave to slow and stall. Then add a strong coverage move like Ice Beam to take advantage of Porygon2’s great special attack. Finally, you have a 4th slot for whatever you want: Protect, Foul Play, Trick Room, whatever you want!
It’s funny, because Porygon2 is a Pokémon you would never expect to be such a tank, and honestly, that’s why it’s so iconic.
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