Why a lower Attack IV
ranks higher
A Feraligatr with 15/15/15 IVs sits at rank 3,138 in the Great League. Out of 4,096 combinations it is closer to the bottom than the top, and it reaches only 93.8% of the best stat product. A lower Attack IV ranks higher, and the reason is the CP formula.
CP weighs Attack far more heavily
Attack enters at full power; Defense and HP enter under a square root. One more point of Attack pushes CP up noticeably, while a point of Defense or HP barely moves it. Inside CP, Attack is the expensive purchase.
Under a CP cap, CP is a budget
The Great League stops at CP 1500, which makes CP a budget you spend once. Spend it on Attack and it costs a lot, leaving less room for Defense and HP inside the same 1500.
An individual with a low Attack IV spends less and can therefore be powered up further, ending with more Defense and HP. GBL rank is the product of Attack, Defense, and HP, so the low-Attack individuals come out on top.
The same Feraligatr, side by side
| IVs | Rank | Stat product | Level / CP | Atk / Def / HP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 / 11 / 13 | 1 | 100.0% | PL20.0 / 1,499 | 122.5 / 118.9 / 126 |
| 0 / 15 / 15 | 61 | 98.7% | PL19.5 / 1,483 | 120.9 / 119.7 / 125 |
| 15 / 15 / 15 | 3,138 | 93.8% | PL18.0 / 1,469 | 124.7 / 115.1 / 120 |
| 15 / 0 / 0 | 4,083 | 91.0% | PL19.5 / 1,476 | 129.8 / 110.9 / 116 |
Great League (CP 1500 cap), power-up limit PL50, ordinary individuals.
15/15/15 does carry the higher Attack at 124.7, but CP spent on Attack stalls it at PL18.0, leaving Defense 115.1 and HP 120. The 0/11/13 individual reaches PL20.0 and wins on both.
How far apart the top and bottom sit
- The top 100 individuals average an Attack IV of 1.7 (8 at most)
- The bottom 100 average 13.4 (10 at least)
- Rank 1 has an Attack IV of 0
This is not a coincidence. Under a CP cap it falls out of the maths.
The Master League reverses it
There is no CP cap in the Master League. Take the budget away and the conclusion flips.
| IVs | Master League rank | Stat product | CP |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15 / 15 / 15 | 2 | 100.0% | 3,230 |
| 0 / 15 / 15 | 769 | 93.2% | 3,009 |
Master League (no CP cap), power-up limit PL50. Rank 1 is 15/15/14.
The same 15/15/15 that sat at 3,138 in the Great League is rank 2 here. "Low Attack is better" belongs to CP-capped leagues; it is not a statement about IVs themselves.
A higher rank still does not mean stronger
Everything above is about rank, and rank leans toward bulk. Chase it and you give up Attack value — enough that a higher-ranked individual can lose the head-to-head.
- Rank 1 loses the mirror — checking it in battle
- What a breakpoint is — where a move gains one more damage
- What SCP is — Attack, Defense, and HP in one number
Values are calculated with the same formulas the app uses (RankCalc) and match what the app displays.