Shiny Gardevoir Guide: An Elusive Shiny That’s Worth Tracking Down

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Callum Marshall

Callum is POK Universe's Managing Editor and a long-time-fan of the Pokémon series. He's a Gen-One kid at heart with a huge bias towards the first three generations. However, after reengaging with Pokémon XY, he has caught up with the pack and has absorbed all there is to know with regards to Pokémon, including some very interesting fan-made ROM Hacks!

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As you likely already know, the world of Pokemon is incredibly detailed and expansive. Way back in the primitive days of the Game Boy Color, we would have never guessed that this game would still be as relevant as it was back then today.

Never mind the hundreds of Pokemon, the different regions, the Pokemon trading card game, the various spin-off games, and the heaps of merchandise that this franchise has produced. It was a global phenomenon and twenty-five years later, it remains a global phenomenon.

However, with the masses of content that the series has pushed out over the years, it’s rather hard to keep track of what’s going on at times. New Pokemon can pop up and slip under your radar, or alternatively, a new one might fill up some of that grey matter, pushing an old favorite to the wayside. So with that in mind, we have created guides for every single Pokemon, allowing you to stay in the know and never miss a beat within the Pokemon Universe.

In this Shiny Gardevoir guide, we take a look at Shiny Gardevoir, the beautiful, graceful psychic and fairy type which can be hard to train but is absolutely worth the effort. So without further delay, here is our Shiny Gardevoir Guide!

What is a Gardevoir?

Ok, so before we get into the specifics of a Shiny Gardevoir, let us explain what kind of Pokemon Gardevoir is. Gardivoir is a psychic/Fairy type Pokemon that was first introduced to the series back in generation III.

However, when this Pokemon was first introduced, there was no such thing as a Fairy type, so this was initially a pure psychic type Pokemon. In terms of appearance, Gardevoir takes on a human form that resembles a woman in a flowing dress. The gown itself is white, however, the inside of the gown is green as are the arms of the creature, so we can assume that Gardevoir’s natural complexion is green.

The Pokemon also has slicked back, long green hair, red eyes, and also a red clasp on the front of their gown which holds the whole ensemble together. It is also worth noting that the hair also covers the majority of Gardevoir’s face with three sharp spikes which resemble a masquerade mask.

Concerning this Pokemon’s behavior, Gardevoir is a reserved but very powerful Pokemon. Gardevoir has the capacity to open up black holes, distort itself and separate itself from the effects of gravity. Plus this Pokemon can also see into the future. It is an extremely loyal companion and will happily give its life to protect its trainer. This Pokemon is rarely found in the wild and can usually be seen in built-up, urban areas.

This Pokemon is number 282 in the Pokedex, is around 1.6 meters tall, weighs approximately 48.4 kilograms, has a slow leveling rate, and has a catch rate of 11.9%.

Here is a video of Gardevoir in action so you can see exactly what this Phychic and Fairy-type Pokemon has to offer:

What is a Shiny Pokemon?

We all know what a Pokemon is. However, unless you are tuned in to Pokemon culture or happened to get extremely lucky when playing, you may not be aware of what a shiny Pokemon is. A shiny Pokemon is a Pokemon that has the same abilities, move sets, attributes, and core design as its inspiration.

However, the key difference is that these Pokemon have an altered appearance which takes a key feature such as their eyes, wings, body, or markings, for example, then changes them slightly to give a brand new look to the monster.

These Pokemon may be little more than an aesthetic novelty but due to their rarity, they are in high demand within the Pokemon community. In a random encounter, the chances of getting a shiny are roughly 4096/1. This can be altered and lowered with certain tactics but regardless, the odds are always stacked against you, making these Pokemon hard to obtain. So if you come across one on your Pokemon adventures, be sure to catch it.

What is a Shiny Gardevoir?

Ok, so now that we all understand what a shiny Pokemon is, it’s time to take a look at a Shiny Gardevoir. This Pokemon maintains a lot of the same design characteristics as the original Pokemon. The gown of the Pokemon still remains a beautiful, decadent white color and the eyes remain their piercing red hue. However, there are some key differences here. Firstly, the Pokemon’s body and hair have been changed from lime green to a light blue color.

Then the clasp that holds the dress together has also been adapted and now is a bright orange color. Overall, this isn’t the most outlandish shiny change on the roster, but it certainly is noticeable and will appeal to some hunters out there.

It is also worth noting that Mega Gardevoir is affected by this change. With the shiny variant taking on these blue and orange changes in its design. However, most notably, the Mega evolution also sports a black skirt of sorts and black sleeves on the arms. This gives the Pokemon a dark and twisted look, almost like an evil super-villain and if you are into that sort of thing, you should add this one to your collection.

How Rare is a Shiny Gardevoir?

Up until very recently, we would have said that a Shiny Gardevoir was rather rare. This is mainly down to the fact that there was no way that you could encounter a Gardevoir in the wild up until Pokemon Sword and Shield was released.

So until very recently, players would have had to capture or breed shiny Ralts and train them to become a Gardevoir which will obviously cut the numbers down to size, especially with Ralts being a tough Pokemon to train due to its lack of attacking moves and its slow leveling rate.

However, thanks to this change, trainers can now find this Pokemon in the wild and can avoid training this Pokemon up to obtain a shiny Gardevoir.

So in summary, as this Pokemon is now available in the wild and the fact that Ralts is a rather common Pokemon, we would say that this is an uncommon shiny Pokemon but not quite as rare as some others out there.

How to Catch a Shiny Gardevoir

So you now have an idea of what this Pokemon is and how rare a shiny version of this Pokemon is. However, you may be wondering what the best way to go about obtaining a shiny Gardevoir is. Well, we hope to help you out and make the process as stress-free as possible.

The good news is that there are lots of Pokemon adventures where you can catch a Ralts and train them up into Gardevoir. The most recent being Pokemon Brilliant Diamond, Pokemon Shining Pearl, and Pokemon Legends Arceus on Nintendo Switch. So with that in mind, Here are some of the best methods that you can use to get a Shiny Gardevoir:

Masuda Method

If the player acquires two Pokemon that are from two different real-world regions. Such as Europe and North America for example. The chances of hatching a shiny version of this Pokemon drop to 600/1. So breeding using this method can be an excellent way of obtaining a Shiny Gardevoir

Dexnav hunting

Another option is Dexnav hunting which was a feature exclusive to Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby. This allowed players to chain encounters and gradually bring the odds of capturing a shiny down to very respectable odds. The only caveat is that all Pokemon have to be encountered through the Dexnav and you have to K.O every Pokemon you face. So find an area where you can encounter Ralts through this method and then get chaining battles.

Catch/Battle Combos

These are features that belong to Let’s Go Pikachu/Eevee and Pokemon Sword/Shield, respectively. This allowed players to drop their odds through either catching or battling the same Pokemon in Succession. It’s a little less easy to manage than the Dexnav but if you do things right, you can hit as shiny rate as low as 1/270. As Gardevoir can be encountered randomly in Pokemon Sword and Shield, this is easily the best method to catch this Pokemon.

Shiny Charm

Then lastly, you can make use of the shiny charm, a held item that cuts the odds of receiving a shiny Pokemon encounter by 66%. Dropping the shiny rate to about 1/2732. This item can be stacked with other components in this list to brings odds down even further.

Does This Pokemon Evolve?

This depends on your interpretation of evolution. If you mean in the traditional sense then no, this Pokemon does not evolve. However, it is the product of a three-stage evolution and evolves from a Ralts, into a Kirlia and then into a Gardevoir.

To evolve Ralts, you simply have to train this Pokemon up to level twenty. Then to evolve Kirlia into a Gardevoir, you simply need to train this Pokemon until it reaches level thirty. There is also the option to give Kirlia a dawn stone which allows this Pokemon to evolve into the Male final form, Gallade.

However, if you are a more modern Pokemon fan, you may be shaking your head disapprovingly mouthing that this Pokemon does indeed evolve, and in a sense you are right.

This Pokemon does Mega evolve into a mega evolution of Gardevoir. So long as the trainer has access to Gardevoirite, the Pokemon can temporarily evolve into a larger, more powerful version of itself, Mega Gardevoir, and deal some real damage to its opponents.

Should You Evolve Shiny Kirlia into a Shiny Gallade or Shiny Gardivoir?

This question can be addressed from two points of view. From an aesthetic standpoint and from a competitive battling standpoint. In terms of aesthetics, Gallade doesn’t differ too much from Gardevoir’s shiny model. It has blue and orange accents as opposed to the usual green and red accents.

The only real difference is that Gallade usually has a blue streak running through the middle of its head. However, the shiny model erases this and changes it to white. So really, the Gallade model takes more away from the original than adds to it and for that reason, we think the Shiny Gardevoir edges it.

Then concerning the competitive battling side of things, Gardevoir isn’t all that appealing. It’s a strong Psychic-type with a high special attack stat. However, it has terrible defensive capabilities, can be easily handled with a pure steel type Pokemon such as Steelix or Forretress. Players will have some luck utilizing STAB moves such as Physhock but overall, the Pokemon is a little bit of a letdown.

You can also try to utilize moves like Calm Mind or Dazzling Gleam if you want to make the most of Mega Gardevoir’s new Fairy dual typing. However, when matched against Megas like Mega Gengar with access to moves like Shadow Ball and big speed stats, it doesn’t stand a chance. 

The same cannot be said about Gallade which is one of the most popular competitive fighting types around. It’s a phenomenal wallbreaker Pokemon and has a decent special defense stat so it can hold its own against a lot of other Pokemon on the roster.

The best way to utilise this Pokemon is by chaining swords dance and then going down on your opponent. There are certain battle categories where Gardevoir may have more success but overall, we would give this one to Gallade. So to summarize, aesthetically it’s Gardevoir but competitively, it’s Gallade.

Does Shiny Gardevoir Appear In The Anime?

No, Shiny Gardivoir does not appear in the anime series. However, this Pokemon did appear on screen in the Pokemon Movie, Volcanion, and the Mechanical Marvel. This Pokemon belongs to Kimia and wears a gardevoirite necklace that is identical to that of its owner. This is one of the rare occasions that we see a shiny outside of a gaming environment. The main exceptions being shiny Psyduck, Shuckle, Gyarados, Magneton, and a few others.

A Gard of Honour

As you can see from the information above, Shiny Gardevoir is a Pokemon that you should absolutely add to your party. This Pokemon is competitively capable, has an excellent shiny design, has the capacity to evolve into a mega evolution with the help of Gardevoirite, and even shows up in a full feature-length Pokemon movie. Shiny Gardevoir is a must-have, so get out there and get shiny hunting.

Final Thoughts

So that is our essential handbook giving you all the information you could possibly need about the Pokemon, Shiny Gardevoir. What did you make of this guide? Was this helpful and informative for you? What other shiny Pokemon would you like to see us cover next? Let us know in the comments section below and as always, thank you for reading.

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