The best IVs for Aegislash in Pokemon Sword and Shield

Aegislash is an incredibly versatile Pokemon that can run several different movesets and IVs depending on what its trainer wants.

When in Blade Forme, Aegislash’s Attack and Special Attack are equal (base 140). This is what allows it to be so flexible; it’s really up to the trainer if they want to use powerful Special Attacks on Aegislash or have it use physical attacks. Both of these sets have their merits. The same goes for Aegislash’s defensive stats: both Defense and Special Defense are base 140 in Shield Form. This part Ghost-type , part Steel-type Pokemon can be both defensive and offensive in the game with these IVs.

Note: This article is subjective and reflects the opinion of the writer.

The best IVs for Aegislash in Pokemon Sword and Shield

The most important stat for Aegislash to have good IVs in, however, is Defense. Even though Aegislash is strong in both defensive stats, it can handle physical attackers better.

Aegislash gets access to King’s Shield, a move that protects the Pokemon from damage as well as lowering the opposing Pokemon’s attack if it uses a contact move. Since this strategy is so effective, it makes more sense for Aegislash to have high Defense. After lowering the opponent’s attack, it will also make Aegislash more capable of sustaining a hit when in Blade Forme. Its Speed (base 60) isn’t too high, so Aegislash will be getting hit often.

From here, the question is how will Aegislash be attacking? Naturally, it wants Attack IVs for a physical set and Special Attack IVs for a special set. In terms of which one is better, they’re both very good but the physical set might be a little more powerful.

The reason for this is that Aegislash gets access to some very great physical moves. In Generation VIII, it received Close Combat to take care of Normal-type Pokemon. This is on top of the powerful moves it has already learned, like Iron Head and Shadow Claw. Both of these can get boosted with a Swords Dance, which is great on Aegislash because it can stay in Shield Form while it boosts up. Aegislash also gets priority in the form of Shadow Sneak.

While the physical set may have an edge, the special attacking set is still great. Aegislash gets access to Shadow Ball, Flash Cannon, and Air Slash. Riskier players might also be interested in Steel Beam. This move was introduced in the Isle of Armor DLC, and it’s very powerful. At the cost of half the user’s HP, Steel Beam is a 140 base power move. For context, that’s slightly less powerful than Hyper Beam.

Since the stats are so good, there’s also nothing wrong with running both types of attacks. Aegislash can work perfectly well with running special attacks along with Shadow Sneak as a priority. It’s really up to the trainer.

It might be good to check Special Defense IVs as well. This isn’t for the Pokemon to wall every special attacker. It just may not be good for Aegislash to be deficient in that stat.