would anybody like to compile a list of half the metagame with me for c&c
Overview
########
- Cute
- Iconic
- Access to rare moves such as Rapid Spin and Water Spout give it small niches
- A lot of Pokemon in LC are cute
- Awful damage output
- Slow
- Not especially bulky
- No recovery
- Weak coverage options
- Faces stiff competition from other Water types
SET NAME
########
name: Priority
move 1: Aqua Jet
move 2: Rapid Spin
move 3: Scald / Waterfall
move 4: Fake Out / Toxic
ability: Torrent
item: Eviolite / Berry Juice
evs: 164 HP / 156 Def / 52 Atk / 36 SpA / 84 SpD
nature: Relaxed
Moves
========
- Differentiates itself from Staryu through the use of priority moves
- A combination of Fake Out and Aqua Jet can take out weakened offensive Pokemon
- Rapid Spin is the main reason to use Squirtle, since removing opposing hazards is a very useful niche and without it, defensive Squirtle usually has difficulty proving its worth
- Scald deals more damage to physically defensive Pokemon and carries a useful burn chance, allowing Squirtle to withstand most physical attacks more effectively
- Toxic doesn't mesh well with Scald but can be used to cripple certain switch-ins Squirtle would otherwise not be able to damage significantly, such as Lileep
Set Details
========
- Given EVs hit eviolite numbers in conjunction with a Relaxed nature while minimizing damage taken from entry hazards, with the remaining EVs dumped into offenses so Squirtle is less helpless
- Relaxed nature reduces Squirtle's already fairly low speed and allows it to better handle physical attacks
- Eviolite is the preferred item, since without it, Squirtle finds itself unable to take powerful attacks, but Berry Juice is an option for a one-time recovery
Usage Tips
========
- A combination of Fake Out and Scald lets Squirtle beats Dwebble leads before they set up more than one layer of hazards, which Squirtle can usually spin away later
- Don't expect Fake Out + Aqua Jet to deal a whole lot to any moderately bulky Pokemon
- Getting Squirtle to less than a third of its health will activate Torrent, giving it slightly more offensive presence
Team Options
========
- Pokemon that appreciate Rapid Spin won't mind having Squirtle has a teammate
- Teammates that have good type synergy with Squirtle such as Foongus and Larvesta could make good teammates, but Squirtle will often be unable to hold its own in the core due to its tendency to be worn down
- Wish passers could somewhat benefit the Eviolite set
SET NAME
########
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Water Spout
move 2: Hydro Pump / Scald
move 3: Aura Sphere
move 4: Ice Beam / Zen Headbutt / Rapid Spin
ability: Torrent
item: Choice Scarf
evs: 4 HP / 196 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
nature: Modest / Rash
Moves
========
- Water Spout is the main reason to use Scarf Squirtle, dealing decent damage to Pokemon that don't resist it
- If Squirtle is weakened, Hydro Pump becomes the superior option, and if Squirtle is in Torrent range, actually deals more than a full health Water Spout
- Scald is weaker than Hydro Pump but has better accuracy and carries a nice burn chance for random switch-ins
- Aura Sphere hits Pawniard, and helps differentiate Squirtle from Frillish
- Ice Beam hits weakened or extremely frail grass-types for decent damage
- Zen Headbutt is an option to 2HKO Croagunk and knocked off Mienfoo
- Rapid Spin can be used if your team absolutely needs it, but is not a good move to be locked into
Set Details
========
- EVs reach 21 speed, allowing Squirtle to outpace the unboosted metagame
- Special Attack EVs maximize Squirtle's offensive presence
- Leftover EVs are dumped into HP and SpD to make Squirtle slightly bulkier
Usage Tips
========
- Water Spout and its perfect accuracy is usually worth more than trying to get Squirtle into Torrent range and using Hydro Pump or Scald
- If a priority move that significantly damages Squirtle is predicted, use another move instead
- If Rapid Spin is used, make sure you have Pokemon to deal with any sweepers that may set up on Squirtle
Team Options
========
- Squirtle is unable to break through bulky waters due to its extremely low damage output outside of its water-type STAB, so a grass-type such as Foongus or Ferroseed to beat these Pokemon is appreciated
- Squirtle also has trouble beating bulky grass-types, such as Foongus and Lileep, both of which are able to avoid the 2HKO from Ice Beam more often than not, so teammates to deal with these two, such as Honedge and Magnemite, are also helpful
- Squirtle is so weak statistically that even a full health Water Spout fails to OHKO most eviolite holders, allowing these Pokemon to weaken Squirtle and its Water Spout, so something to knock off the opposing Pokemon's eviolites, such as Mienfoo and Pawniard, is beneficial
- Bulkier Pokemon can take Squirtle's attacks even without Eviolite, allowing them to weaken Squirtle as well, so a wall-breaker such as Bunnelby or Cranidos will make a good teammate
- Priority users will be able to weaken Water Spout before it is used, so this should be taken into account
- Vulpix is able to take one full-health Water Spout and either deal heavy damage with Energy Ball or switch out to a teammate that isn't weak to water-type moves, meaning something to remove Vulpix from the battlefield would be a good idea
- If Zen Headbutt isn't chosen, Croagunk completely walls Squirtle, so a switch-in to Croagunk, such as Drilbur, should be run
- Hazard setters such as Dwebble and Ferroseed will greatly aid in Squirtle's attempt to sweep
- A slow U-Turn or Volt Switch user could help get Squirtle in safely, since Squirtle will usually not want to switch in on attacks for fear of weakening its Water Spout
- A teammate carrying Defog or Rapid Spin could help ensure Squirtle enters the battlefield in a healthy state
- If Rapid Spin is carried on Squirtle, Pokemon that especially dislike hazards could use Squirtle as a teammate
- However, Pokemon to deal with any sweepers that may set up on Squirtle's Rapid Spin will be necessary
Other Options
########
- Scald is usually replaceable with Surf if so desired
- Resttalk could be used for recovery and removing status but Squirtle will have to be able to take two or three attacks in a row before recovering again, which its limited bulk will usually render it unable to do
- An all-out offensive priority set could be used, but base 48 attack is fairly underwhelming
- Foresight could be used in tandem with Rapid Spin to get through Spinblockers, but it would probably be better in such a case to just use a Defogger or a Rapid Spinner with offensive presence, and Squirtle gets 2HKO'd by a number of offensive Pokemon anyway
- Dark Pulse fails to 2HKO Eviolite Misdreavus
- Squirtle lacks the coverage moves to utilize a physical set effectively
- Yawn is an alternate status option but doesn't synergize well with Scald and is easily played around through Resttalk users or sleep absorbers
- Since Squirtle is almost always considered set-up bait, Haze could help to alleviate this issue, although Squirtle will often struggle to take a boosted attack
Checks & Counters
########
**Dark-types:**
**Dragon-types:**
**Electric-types:**
**Fairy-types:**
**Fighting-types:**
**Flying-types:**
**Ghost-types:**
**Grass-types:**
**Ice-types:**
**Normal-types:**
**Poison-types:**
**Psychic-types:**
**Rock-types:**
**Steel-types:**
**Water-types:**
**Priority:**
**Recovery:**
**Set-up Sweepers:**
**Wall-breakers:**
**Tanks:**
*Walls:**
**Supports:**
Overview
########
- Cute
- Iconic
- Access to rare moves such as Rapid Spin and Water Spout give it small niches
- A lot of Pokemon in LC are cute
- Awful damage output
- Slow
- Not especially bulky
- No recovery
- Weak coverage options
- Faces stiff competition from other Water types
SET NAME
########
name: Priority
move 1: Aqua Jet
move 2: Rapid Spin
move 3: Scald / Waterfall
move 4: Fake Out / Toxic
ability: Torrent
item: Eviolite / Berry Juice
evs: 164 HP / 156 Def / 52 Atk / 36 SpA / 84 SpD
nature: Relaxed
Moves
========
- Differentiates itself from Staryu through the use of priority moves
- A combination of Fake Out and Aqua Jet can take out weakened offensive Pokemon
- Rapid Spin is the main reason to use Squirtle, since removing opposing hazards is a very useful niche and without it, defensive Squirtle usually has difficulty proving its worth
- Scald deals more damage to physically defensive Pokemon and carries a useful burn chance, allowing Squirtle to withstand most physical attacks more effectively
- Toxic doesn't mesh well with Scald but can be used to cripple certain switch-ins Squirtle would otherwise not be able to damage significantly, such as Lileep
Set Details
========
- Given EVs hit eviolite numbers in conjunction with a Relaxed nature while minimizing damage taken from entry hazards, with the remaining EVs dumped into offenses so Squirtle is less helpless
- Relaxed nature reduces Squirtle's already fairly low speed and allows it to better handle physical attacks
- Eviolite is the preferred item, since without it, Squirtle finds itself unable to take powerful attacks, but Berry Juice is an option for a one-time recovery
Usage Tips
========
- A combination of Fake Out and Scald lets Squirtle beats Dwebble leads before they set up more than one layer of hazards, which Squirtle can usually spin away later
- Don't expect Fake Out + Aqua Jet to deal a whole lot to any moderately bulky Pokemon
- Getting Squirtle to less than a third of its health will activate Torrent, giving it slightly more offensive presence
Team Options
========
- Pokemon that appreciate Rapid Spin won't mind having Squirtle has a teammate
- Teammates that have good type synergy with Squirtle such as Foongus and Larvesta could make good teammates, but Squirtle will often be unable to hold its own in the core due to its tendency to be worn down
- Wish passers could somewhat benefit the Eviolite set
SET NAME
########
name: Choice Scarf
move 1: Water Spout
move 2: Hydro Pump / Scald
move 3: Aura Sphere
move 4: Ice Beam / Zen Headbutt / Rapid Spin
ability: Torrent
item: Choice Scarf
evs: 4 HP / 196 SpA / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
nature: Modest / Rash
Moves
========
- Water Spout is the main reason to use Scarf Squirtle, dealing decent damage to Pokemon that don't resist it
- If Squirtle is weakened, Hydro Pump becomes the superior option, and if Squirtle is in Torrent range, actually deals more than a full health Water Spout
- Scald is weaker than Hydro Pump but has better accuracy and carries a nice burn chance for random switch-ins
- Aura Sphere hits Pawniard, and helps differentiate Squirtle from Frillish
- Ice Beam hits weakened or extremely frail grass-types for decent damage
- Zen Headbutt is an option to 2HKO Croagunk and knocked off Mienfoo
- Rapid Spin can be used if your team absolutely needs it, but is not a good move to be locked into
Set Details
========
- EVs reach 21 speed, allowing Squirtle to outpace the unboosted metagame
- Special Attack EVs maximize Squirtle's offensive presence
- Leftover EVs are dumped into HP and SpD to make Squirtle slightly bulkier
Usage Tips
========
- Water Spout and its perfect accuracy is usually worth more than trying to get Squirtle into Torrent range and using Hydro Pump or Scald
- If a priority move that significantly damages Squirtle is predicted, use another move instead
- If Rapid Spin is used, make sure you have Pokemon to deal with any sweepers that may set up on Squirtle
Team Options
========
- Squirtle is unable to break through bulky waters due to its extremely low damage output outside of its water-type STAB, so a grass-type such as Foongus or Ferroseed to beat these Pokemon is appreciated
- Squirtle also has trouble beating bulky grass-types, such as Foongus and Lileep, both of which are able to avoid the 2HKO from Ice Beam more often than not, so teammates to deal with these two, such as Honedge and Magnemite, are also helpful
- Squirtle is so weak statistically that even a full health Water Spout fails to OHKO most eviolite holders, allowing these Pokemon to weaken Squirtle and its Water Spout, so something to knock off the opposing Pokemon's eviolites, such as Mienfoo and Pawniard, is beneficial
- Bulkier Pokemon can take Squirtle's attacks even without Eviolite, allowing them to weaken Squirtle as well, so a wall-breaker such as Bunnelby or Cranidos will make a good teammate
- Priority users will be able to weaken Water Spout before it is used, so this should be taken into account
- Vulpix is able to take one full-health Water Spout and either deal heavy damage with Energy Ball or switch out to a teammate that isn't weak to water-type moves, meaning something to remove Vulpix from the battlefield would be a good idea
- If Zen Headbutt isn't chosen, Croagunk completely walls Squirtle, so a switch-in to Croagunk, such as Drilbur, should be run
- Hazard setters such as Dwebble and Ferroseed will greatly aid in Squirtle's attempt to sweep
- A slow U-Turn or Volt Switch user could help get Squirtle in safely, since Squirtle will usually not want to switch in on attacks for fear of weakening its Water Spout
- A teammate carrying Defog or Rapid Spin could help ensure Squirtle enters the battlefield in a healthy state
- If Rapid Spin is carried on Squirtle, Pokemon that especially dislike hazards could use Squirtle as a teammate
- However, Pokemon to deal with any sweepers that may set up on Squirtle's Rapid Spin will be necessary
Other Options
########
- Scald is usually replaceable with Surf if so desired
- Resttalk could be used for recovery and removing status but Squirtle will have to be able to take two or three attacks in a row before recovering again, which its limited bulk will usually render it unable to do
- An all-out offensive priority set could be used, but base 48 attack is fairly underwhelming
- Foresight could be used in tandem with Rapid Spin to get through Spinblockers, but it would probably be better in such a case to just use a Defogger or a Rapid Spinner with offensive presence, and Squirtle gets 2HKO'd by a number of offensive Pokemon anyway
- Dark Pulse fails to 2HKO Eviolite Misdreavus
- Squirtle lacks the coverage moves to utilize a physical set effectively
- Yawn is an alternate status option but doesn't synergize well with Scald and is easily played around through Resttalk users or sleep absorbers
- Since Squirtle is almost always considered set-up bait, Haze could help to alleviate this issue, although Squirtle will often struggle to take a boosted attack
Checks & Counters
########
**Dark-types:**
**Dragon-types:**
**Electric-types:**
**Fairy-types:**
**Fighting-types:**
**Flying-types:**
**Ghost-types:**
**Grass-types:**
**Ice-types:**
**Normal-types:**
**Poison-types:**
**Psychic-types:**
**Rock-types:**
**Steel-types:**
**Water-types:**
**Priority:**
**Recovery:**
**Set-up Sweepers:**
**Wall-breakers:**
**Tanks:**
*Walls:**
**Supports:**
Last edited:
