Welcome to Gaia! ::

Hot Gawsh Darnit! XD
Since so many of you seem to not understand what is what in the Pokemon world, I guess I'll have to explain.

=====
"Sweeper"---Probably a famous one here. A Sweeper has three catagories. Phsycial, Special, and Double. Physical Sweepers take out Pokemon using physical moves, such as Drill Peck and Brick Break. Special Sweepers hit Pokemon and knock out a lot by using special moves like Ice Beam and Flamethrower. Double Sweepers knock out foes with both types of moves. Heracross is a well-known Physical Sweeper. Alakazam seems a popular Special Sweeper.

"STAB"---It means 'Same Type Attack Bonus'. Meaning, this: Charizard used FIRE BLAST! That means it will take the attack of Fire Blast (120) then multiply that by 1.5. Giving it 180 power instead. STAB can be very useful. Opposed to Absol using FIRE BLAST. As Absol is NOT a Fire type, it will have a power of 120. Basically, you will want to teach a Pokemon a move that matches its type.

"Tank"---A tank is a Pokemon that takes a lot of work to get through. And I mean a lot. The best known tanks are Blissey, Skamory, Snorlax, and Weezing. All of which are OU, but still. Which brings me to my next point.

"OU/UU"---No, its not 'Oklahoma University' and 'Utah University'. It's 'Over-Used' and 'Under-Used'. An 'OU' Pokemon could be Blissey. An UU Pokemon could be Fearow. It's pretty much the rate at which Pokemon are found in teams.

"CB"---Choice Band, an item that increases the power of a Physcal move by 1.5. Very handy in the case of a Pokemon such as Dugtrio. A STAB with Earthquake (making it 150) then adding the Choice Band to that, giving it a final power of 225.

"HP"---Hidden Power, not to be confused with Hit Points. It looks like a weak move, but used in the right situation, it can be very powerful. Here's the table:
HP/ATK/DEF/SPD/SPC ATK/SPC DEF

HP Fighting 70
��������������
31,31,30,30,30,30
30,30,31,30,30,30

HP Flying 70
������������
31,31,31,30,30,30
30,30,30,31,30,30

HP Poison 70
��������������
31,31,30,31,30,30
30,30,31,31,30,30

HP Ground 70
������������
31,31,31,31,30,30
30,30,30,30,31,30

HP Rock 70
����������
31,31,30,30,31,30
30,30,31,30,31,30

HP Bug 70
���������
31,31,31,30,31,30
31,30,30,31,31,30

HP Ghost 70
�����������
31,31,30,31,31,30
31,30,31,31,31,30

HP Steel 70
�����������
31,31,31,31,31,30
31,30,30,30,30,31

HP Fire 70
����������
31,30,31,30,30,31
31,31,30,30,30,31

HP Water 70
�����������
31,31,31,30,30,31
31,30,30,31,30,31

HP Grass 70
��������������
30,31,31,31,30,31
31,31,30,31,30,31
31,30,31,31,30,31

HP Electric 70
��������������
31,31,31,31,30,31
31,30,30,30,31,31
30,31,30,30,31,31

HP Psychic 70
��������������
31,30,31,30,31,31
31,31,30,30,31,31
30,31,31,30,31,31

HP Ice 70
���������
31,31,31,30,31,31
31,30,30,31,31,31
30,31,30,31,31,31

HP Dragon 70
������������
31,31,30,31,31,31
31,30,31,31,31,31
30,31,31,31,31,31

HP Dark 70
����������
31,31,31,31,31,31

The numbers are DVs.

"DV"---Dynamic Values are everything that can change within a pokemon�s stats to make it different from the next. They range from the pokemon�s current Level, to the nature it has, to all the hidden stats. To get an extremely good pokemon, you have to utilize almost every single DV there is. It�s hard to do so though, since most of them depend on luck of getting the right random value. (from Serebii.net)

"EP/EV"---Effort points/Effort Values. They can be used in the same way. EP points are the points you get at each level up. However, there are some Pokemon that you battle to add EP to each stat specifically. Like Whismur, for instance, EP trains you in HP (Hit Points). For every four Whismur, that is ONE EP point in HP. So, eight Whismur, you get TWO EP points. However, if you have a Macho Brace lyin' around, you get TWO EP points for every four you faint. It's like that, get it?

"IV"---Individual Values have the most influence on any stat of any pokemon. It's what makes every single pokemon unique and have different stats. Say we have the mega-defensive bug type, Shuckle, and it's EV trained in both defense and special defense and it's at level 100, and a neutral nature. If we look at the base stats for this pokemon's defense and special defense, they both say 230, so you'd figure there wouldn't be much of a difference, right? Well, in reality, there can be a pretty wide difference. At level 100, this Shuckle has a defense stat that is 466, and a Special Defense stat equaling 542. Quite a wide difference there, about 80 points separated. A person using this Shuckle had better watch out for attack based moves if they are relying on defense.

As for technical information pertaining to Individual Values, the equation for it will �usually- give a number between 0 and 31. Keep in mind that the equation's we have to the IV's are not the same as in the game, but they are extremely close. With these equations, it's best to calculate it closest to level 50 as possible for accurate results. If you're looking to calculate a pokemon's IVs that you have trained, then hopefully you know the Effort Points it gained. If you don't then the math will be completely inaccurate if you just stick the stats in the equation. If you don't already know, Hidden Power is calculated completely on IV's.

Now that I've showed how much they can affect stats, let's grab the equation for determining a pokemon's Individual Value. Keep in mind that this is NOT for Hit Points. That has its own equation.

IV = ((Math.Ceiling(Stat / Personality Value) - 5) * 100 / Level Value ) - 2 * Base Stat � Effort Points / 4

�And you probably don't know what Math.Ceiling means either. It's basically a term used when you want something rounded up, like to the Ceiling. If it was rounding down, like to a floor, it would be Math.Floor. Simple right? There's also a flaw in this equation, as it counts all of the Effort points, not the ones that have been added to the stat which is what we want outta there, so this equation is a little more accurate.

IV = ((Math.Ceiling(Stat / Personality Value) - 5) * 100 / Level Value) - 2 * Base Stat � Math.Floor(Effort Points / 4)

As for the HP Individual Value equation, here it is without edit:

Hit Point IV = (( Stat - Level - 10 ) * 100/Level ) - 2 * BaseStat - EV/4

Of course, we face the same problem as the other equation, so here's the edited version:

Hit Point IV = ((Stat � Level Value - 10) * 100 / Level Value ) - 2 * BaseStat � Math.Floor(EV / 4)

As you can see there's a lot of things you need in order to do these equations to get the Individual Value that this returns to you. The most important thing you need is the stat, apparently. The second thing you need is the Personality Value, which is basically what effect the personality has towards your stats. Now because we know that Natures can give a +10% increase towards a stat, or a -10% decrease towards a stat, we need to convert that to an actual number so that it can work in the equation.

If the Nature gives a +10% increase to a stat, then the Personality Value = 1.1
If the Nature doesn't have an effect towards the stat, then the Personality Value = 1
If the Nature gives a -10% decrease to a stat, then the Personality Value = 0.9

I'll explain Personality Values more in the DV guide. Another thing you need for the equation is the Base Stats of the pokemon, which you can find in the Pokedex right above the Max Stats at the bottom. The last thing you need are the Effort Points gained from battle, which are explained in another guide. Effort Points are equal to zero if you never battled with it yet, or used rare candies to level up, or even used the daycare to level up. Anyway, suppose I went through Colosseum twice and caught two Forretress. Let's find all we can about the information we need about them so we can determine the IVs.

Forretress 1
Level 43, Mild Nature
Hit Points: 121
Attack: 94
Defense: 114
Sp. Attack: 72
Sp. Defense: 57
Speed: 41
No EV's gained

Forretress 2
Level 43, Relaxed Nature
Hit Points: 130
Attack: 88
Defense: 143
Sp. Attack: 60
Sp. Defense: 62
Speed: 45
No EV's gained

Forretress's Base stats 'Base Stats
Hit Points: 75
Attack: 90
Defense: 140
Sp. Attack: 60
Sp. Defense: 60
Speed:40

Seems like a lot of information, doesn't it? Well I can't argue with you there, but that's everything we need to do the equations out now. Let's use this information to find the IV of Attack of Forretress 1 first:

IV = ((Math.Ceiling(Stat / Personality Value) - 5) * 100 / Level Value) - 2 * Base Stat � Math.Floor(Effort Points / 4)
IV = ((Math.Ceiling(94 / 1) � 5) * 100/43) � 2 * 90 � Math.Floor(0/4)
IV = ((89) * 100 / 43) � 180
IV = (8900 / 43) � 180
IV = ~207 � 180
IV = ~27

27, eh? That's actually almost close to the best it can be. Let's see how Forretress 2 does for the same test:

IV = ((Math.Ceiling(Stat / Personality Value) - 5) * 100 / Level Value) - 2 * Base Stat � Math.Floor(Effort Points / 4)
IV = ((Math.Ceiling(88 / 1) � 5) * 100 / 43) � 2 * 90 � Math.Floor(0 / 4)
IV = ((83) * 100 / 43) � 180
IV = (8300 / 43) � 180
IV = ~193 � 180
IV = ~13

Wondering what the ~ is meaning? It's algebra for "about". As I stated before, these formulas will not be as accurate as the real things, but they are pretty darn close. At level 5 these equations won't be very accurate at all, so it's best to level up to at least 25 I recommend. Anyway, you get the idea for the main 5 stats, so let's just do the Hit Points one now cause I'm lazy. razz

Forretress 1:
Hit Point IV = ((Stat � Level Value - 10) * 100 / Level Value ) - 2 * BaseStat � Math.Floor(EV / 4)
Hit Point IV = ((121 � 43 � 10) * 100 / 43) � 2 * 75 � Math.Floor(0 / 4)
Hit Point IV = ((78 ) * 100 / 43) � 150
Hit Point IV = (7800 / 43) � 150
Hit Point IV = ~181 � 150
Hit Point IV = ~31

Wait, wait! It's 31, so that mean's it's perfect, right? Well in this case� no. It's not. If you look at Forretress 2's HP, it's 130, which is 9 points higher than this Forretress. It's a perfect example of when these equations can be inaccurate. The best thing you could do at this point is level it up further to get a bigger difference in the stats.

So how can I influence IV's? Well since IVs are given to a pokemon upon meeting, the best thing you can do is just receive a pokemon with high IV's. This means doing one of two things, or both. Catching pokemon a large amount of the same species of pokemon is an okay way, but you'll need a large stock of pokeballs and catching pokemon from the wild usually results with average/lower than average IVs. The second way to obtain IVs is breeding. Pokemon that are bred usually result with normal/higher than normal IVs. This is not true for every single pokemon however, as you can still get low IVs with breeded pokemon and uber IVs with wild pokemon. There really isn't much you can do to get good IVs except for persistent effort to get good IVs, just make sure you have the patience for it. (Written by Dragonair from Serebii.net)
=====
So far, that's all I've seen people question. I'll add more as I see fit.

So.. a sweeper has to have good Atk and/or SpAtk points too, right?

Whooo i get it! xD

Uh.. should it be an HM instead of a HP? because Hp is health Points Right? and HM is Hidden Move, or was it Hidden Machine? Oh well. xp xp

Hidden power refers to a move you t**t [jk] xp Not a hidden machine, ironically, its a TM

Sweepers also need a decent speed stat to be useful, if they can't attack first, they won't last long enough in battle to actually do any sweeping (most sweeper-class pokémon have low defences)