Black 2 & White 2 evolution methods — Eevee, friendship, stones and trades

Apply Generation V rules first

The Black 2 / White 2 regional Pokédex mixes old and new families, so a current-generation evolution chart can give the wrong answer. Eevee has seven evolutions here; Sylveon does not exist yet. Magneton and Nosepass need Chargestone Cave rather than a Thunder Stone. Leafeon uses the Moss Rock, and Glaceon uses the Ice Rock room. Later regional forms and later evolutions such as Kingambit are outside these games.

For an ordinary level evolution, reaching the required level starts the process after a level-up in battle or with a Rare Candy. If you canceled an evolution, meet its conditions again at the next level. An Everstone prevents level-up and trade evolution, and Day Care level gains do not evolve a deposited Pokémon. Start troubleshooting by checking the held item, location, time and actual move list before spending another hour training.

Eevee: choose one of seven branches

Wild Eevee appears in Castelia park at 5% in ordinary and dark grass. A single Eevee can only follow one branch, so collecting all seven evolved forms requires multiple Eevee through catching, breeding or trading. The postgame gift Eevee with Anticipation is a separate option. Do not accidentally evolve your only breeding candidate before you have a plan for more Eggs.

VaporeonWater StoneJolteonThunder StoneFlareonFire StoneEspeonFriendship + dayUmbreonFriendship + nightLeafeonPinwheel Moss RockGlaceonTwist Mountain Ice Rock

Friendship branches require a level-up after the friendship condition is met. Standing in daylight or holding an item by itself will not trigger an evolution.

Friendship: Riolu and other common sticking points

Riolu evolves into Lucario when it levels up with high friendship during daytime. Its friendship threshold is 220 in Generation V. A high-level Riolu caught or traded recently can still have insufficient friendship; level is not a reliable measurement of that hidden value. Keep it in the active party, avoid repeated fainting and bitter herbal medicine, and use friendship-building activities such as walking and massage. Give it a Soothe Bell when available to improve gains.

Several regional families use high friendship without a day / night condition: Azurill → Marill, Woobat → Swoobat, Swadloon → Leavanny, Golbat → Crobat, Buneary → Lopunny, Cleffa → Clefairy and Igglybuff → Jigglypuff. Budew → Roselia additionally requires daytime. None of these has a universal fixed evolution level.

Train one friendship Pokémon at a time with a small, repeatable routine. If it still fails to evolve, change the condition you can identify—daytime for Riolu, for example—rather than spending a stone or arranging a trade it does not require.

RioluFriendship + daytimeWoobatHigh friendshipSwadloonHigh friendshipGolbatHigh friendship

Stones: use them on the right stage

An evolution stone is used from the bag; it is not the same as an item held during a level-up or trade. Evolution consumes the stone. Many stone-evolved species have different level-up learnsets from the earlier stage, so check wanted moves before using a limited early stone. The Move Reminder can help with that species’ reminder moves, but it is not a promise that every move from an earlier stage will be recoverable.

There is no Ice Stone in Generation V. When a stone appears to do nothing, verify that you selected the correct species and evolutionary stage rather than trying to raise friendship to compensate.

Trade evolutions: prepare the item and the return exchange

Boldore → Gigalith and Gurdurr → Conkeldurr need a trade without a special held item. Onix → Steelix needs Metal Coat, Electabuzz → Electivire needs Electirizer and Magmar → Magmortar needs Magmarizer. Give the item to the Pokémon before initiating the exchange. The evolution occurs on the recipient’s game, so arrange the return trade in advance if you want the evolved Pokémon back.

Karrablast and Shelmet are a paired exception: trade them specifically for one another to obtain Escavalier and Accelgor. Sending either one for an unrelated species will not evolve it. Neither should hold an Everstone. Write down which original Pokémon each player wants returned before doing multiple exchanges; the evolved forms can make a quick back-and-forth confusing.

BoldoreTrade without an itemGurdurrTrade without an itemElectabuzzTrade with ElectirizerKarrablastTrade for Shelmet

For Pokédex records, a direct evolved catch or gift may avoid the evolution requirement. The Route 7 NPC’s Emolga-for-Gigalith trade is one concrete example. Use a source listing the exact encounter method before assuming every trade evolution has an equivalent shortcut.

Location, held-item, move and party conditions

When a Pokémon has passed an expected level without evolving, check for a condition outside its level number. Magneton and Nosepass need a level-up inside Chargestone Cave. Sneasel holds Razor Claw and levels up at night; Gligar holds Razor Fang and levels up at night. The item names are similar but their roles are not interchangeable.

Piloswine, Tangela and Yanma need to know AncientPower when they level up to become Mamoswine, Tangrowth and Yanmega. Lickitung needs Rollout for Lickilicky. Merely having learned the move in the past is insufficient if it was later forgotten. Use the Move Reminder, inspect the summary screen, then gain another level. Mantyke needs Remoraid elsewhere in the party when leveling up into Mantine.

Female Combee evolves into Vespiquen starting at level 21; a male Combee never becomes Vespiquen. Catching or breeding a female is the relevant fix. Its gender cannot be changed by more training.

Carry a Rare Candy to the required location only after you have confirmed the held item, known move or party partner. That avoids spending it on a level-up that could never have met the full conditions.

Long level grinds and an efficient order

Some Generation V species have deliberately late evolution levels: Rufflet and Vullaby evolve at 54, Larvesta at 59, and Zweilous at 64. A story team does not need all of these final forms to win the first League. Decide whether your current goal is battle preparation or the caught record before committing to a long grind.

The stationary level-25 Braviary in White 2 and Mandibuzz in Black 2, and the level-35 Relic Castle Volcarona, show why direct captures can be useful. They register the evolved species early, but you still need the earlier stage for a full regional collection. For Larvesta, breed a Volcarona once the postgame Day Care opens. Check the earlier stages you already own before spending time hatching duplicates.

A practical order is to finish ordinary level evolutions during normal travel, carry one friendship candidate as you walk, save stones for confirmed move plans, then batch local trades with the required items. Finish location evolutions together when visiting Chargestone Cave or the postgame evolution rocks. Consult the collection guide for encounter and version planning.

When an evolution still fails

Work through one condition at a time. First: verify the current species and stage; a Thunder Stone targets Eelektrik, not Tynamo. Second: remove an Everstone and check whether the item should be used from the bag or held. Third: check the clock and exact location. Fourth: inspect the move list, gender and required party partner. Fifth: gain a new level outside Day Care, or arrange the correct trade counterpart.

If a Pokémon already reached level 100, Generation V does not provide the later-generation Rare Candy workaround for level-up evolutions. Avoid taking a condition-based evolution to the cap while its required move, friendship, time or location is missing. A failed condition at level 99 is still fixable at the next level; waiting until the cap removes that opportunity.

Finally check the edition of your reference. A newer-game chart can be perfectly correct for that game and still be wrong for B2W2. Return to the Generation V illustrated Pokédex to confirm the species and types, then use the linked Generation V sources below for a disputed trigger.