One of the funnest things about the Pokémon series is the commitment to cumulative knowledge. In many cases, if you “know what works” in one game, it’ll translate to another. As with previous generations, this is the case with Pokémon Sword and Shield and the many beautiful evolutions of Eevee.
A trick to Sword and Shield is that while all the traditional means of turning Eevee into the desired evolution still seem to work, you also don’t have to wait until you have the proper resources to obtain a special Eevee evolution. Many are available in a specific part of the Wild Area if you visit at a certain time and under certain conditions.
First order of business is to get an Eevee; they spawn on Route 4, but in my experience, finding them can still be a slow business. One way to speed it up is to breed them, which can be done with regular Eevees but also special evolution Eevees you find in the Wild Area. For example, a Glaceon and Flareon will produce the egg for a regular Eevee.
The evolution stones you need for many of the Eevee evolutions are located in the same place where special Eevee evolutions spawn, scattered around a protruding ring of rocks in the field behind Lake of Outrage. Depending on the weather and time of day, you’ll find an Eevee evolution nearby. If you know your Eevee evolutions well, it’s easy to anticipate which will be available during what type of weather pattern is current at the spawn location. But here’s a quick guide if you’re unsure.
Flareon
This Eevee evolution can be found at Lake of Outrage during Sunny conditions. You can also use a Fire Stone.
Jolteon
This Eevee evolution can be found at Lake of Outrage during Thunderstorm conditions. You can also use a Thunder Stone.
Vaporeon
This Eevee evolution can be found at Lake of Outrage during Rainy conditions. You can also use a Water Stone.
Sylveon
This Eevee evolution can be found at Lake of Outrage during partially Sunny daytime conditions. However, you can also evolve them by working up your relationship to Best Friend level (get the ribbon in Hammerlocke and activate it), teaching them a Fairy-type attack, and then letting them level up. If your Eevee does not have a Fairy-type attack, check at a Pokemon Center to see if one can be remembered, as TMs will not work.
Glaceon
This Eevee evolution can be found at Lake of Outrage during Snowstorm conditions. You can also use an Ice Stone.
Umbreon
This Eevee evolution can be found at Lake of Outrage at midnight (adjust your Switch’s clock if you can’t stay up that long). However, you can also evolve them by working up your relationship to Best Friend level (get the ribbon in Hammerlocke and activate it), teaching them a Dark-type attack, and then letting them level up.
Holly Green is the assistant editor of Paste Games and a reporter and semiprofessional photographer. She is also the author of Fry Scores: An Unofficial Guide To Video Game Grub. You can find her work at Gamasutra, Polygon, Unwinnable, and other videogame news publications.