Is Eviolite Pumpkaboo better than Gourgeist?

Question

Back at it again but this time for Pokémon Sword! I caught a Pumpkaboo, but I don’t have NSO to trade. I can get the Eviolite, but that asks a huge question. Is Pumpkaboo with Eviolite bulkier than Gourgeist? Yes, Pumpkaboo is weaker on the offensive side, but hey, it might be bulkier.

Comments

Eviolite Pumpkaboo is better in LC than Gourgeist. It's also good in custom formats where the only Pokemon you can use is Pumpkaboo. Otherwise, there's really no reason to use it if Gourgeist is available.

---

I edited the tags but I feel that it needs something more? Feel free to edit @OP or anyone if they feel as such.

---

What do you want to do with this Pumpkaboo? Do you want to battle other people, the Battle Tower, in-game trainers, or something else?

Answer 1

Eviolite Pumkaboo can have higher stats, but Gourgeist is still better. Though Eviolite Pumkaboo-Super has a maximum defense base and special defense base of 393 and 343 compared to Gourgeist's slightly lower 377 and 273 respectively with 252 EVs, 31 IVs and a positive nature, Gourgeist still has a higher HP total. Not only that, it can also hold an item, which can help more as Pumkaboo is always forced to hold Eviolite.

When talking about bulkiness, here are calcs:

252+ Atk Abomasnow Ice Shard vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Eviolite Pumpkaboo-Super: 68-84 (21.1 - 26%) -- 1.5% chance to 4HKO
252+ Atk Abomasnow Ice Shard vs. 252 HP / 252+ Def Gourgeist-Super: 72-86 (19.2 - 22.9%) -- possible 5HKO

0- SpA Abomasnow Blizzard vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Eviolite Pumpkaboo-Super: 138-164 (42.8 - 50.9%) -- 3.1% chance to 2HKO
0- SpA Abomasnow Blizzard vs. 252 HP / 252+ SpD Gourgeist-Super: 174-206 (46.5 - 55%) -- 67.6% chance to 2HKO

There isn't a large difference between the damage, but Gourgeist ends up more physically bulky due to almost same defense but a higher HP. Pumkaboo has a bit of a more SpD, but ultimately, Gourgeist is better as it has the freedom to hold an item, unlike Pumkaboo which is forced to have Eviolite.

As you haven't clearly specified the formats you're playing with, I'm just gonna generally put it as Gourgeist is just better every tier both are allowed, but for example if you're playing LC then Gourgeist is banned for which you can choose Pumpkaboo. Gourgeist also has more offense stats, so it can also be a wallbreaker with Choice Band set (though you have asked to compare their bulk not offenses).

Answer 2

Assuming this is an average sized Pumpkaboo, this would be its base defenses with Eviolite:

Def - 105
SpDef - 82.5

And now average size Gourgeist:

Def - 122
SpDef - 75

While Gourgeist has slightly lower SpDef, it has 16 more base HP, and it's Defense is a good 17 points higher even with Eviolite. Since this question only seems to be asking whether it is bulkier or not despite its title ("Is Pumpkaboo with Eviolite bulkier than Gourgeist? Yes, Pumpkaboo is weaker on the offensive side, but hey, it might be bulkier."), the answer is no, Gourgeist is still slightly bulkier than Eviolite Pumpkaboo (except maybe Specially).

Honestly, if you want to know which is better in general, just go with Gourgeist. It is better overall. If you can't get Gourgeist, get a different Pokemon as Pumpkaboo is pretty bad, unless you really like it and want to use it for whatever purpose.

Comments

Eviolite raises defense stats after considering level, EVs, IVs, and nature. It doesn't directly raise the base defense stats.

---

unfortunately that info was not given. this covers what the person was asking with the limited info available. please enlighten me on what you thing is so wrong with this :)

---

I think you misunderstand what sumwun is saying. They're not saying you should magically know OP's Gourgeist set -- they're saying that Eviolite applies a boost to the individual Pokemon's complete defensive stats (which considers level, EVs, etc), not its base stats. So when the answer says Gourgeist has "17 points higher" in terms of Defence base stats, it's misrepresenting how the mechanics work.
This does change the answer in edge cases, e.g. a level 5 Eviolite Pumpkaboo has higher defensive stats than level 5 Gourgeist (holding EVs, etc constant). But obviously that's not important in most situations.

---

That is reasonable. I am aware of how Eviolite works, this answer just has to simplify it. It is confusing in some situations but unless the OP gives more information this is one of the only viable ways to answer it.

---

In cases like this, I think it's better to say something like "assuming your Pokemon is super sized with 252 Def/4SpD EVs and impish nature..." and then calculate and compare stats based on that assumption. This way your answer is simplified but not wrong.