Level 50 Statistics (see level 5, 50, 100)
|
Min- |
Min |
Max |
Max+ |
| HP |
85
|
- |
160 |
192 |
- |
| Atk |
105
|
112 |
125 |
157 |
172 |
| Def |
55
|
67 |
75 |
107 |
117 |
| SpA |
85
|
94 |
105 |
137 |
150 |
| SpD |
50
|
63 |
70 |
102 |
112 |
| Spe |
115
|
121 |
135 |
167 |
183 |
Overview
Floatzel might seem like a colorful, cheery Pokemon, but he has little to boast about, even in the depths of NU. With a blistering base 115 Speed, he is tied for the title of fastest Water-type Pokemon in the game (second if you count Water Arceus), but said Speed is all that's competitively outstanding about him. He does have a usable Attack stat, good offensive typing, decent coverage in Dark-, Ice-, and Fighting-type moves, as well as priority in Aqua Jet, but his mediocre defenses are a letdown. He is, however, seemingly perfectly built for a Choice Band set, and can make good use of Bulk Up too, though he faces competition from Samurott in this aspect. Finally, he receives Rain Dance, with which he can abuse his ability, Swift Swim, to outspeed just about everything in the game.
As previously mentioned, Choice Band is probably the set Floatzel can best pull off. The premise behind this set is simple: Floatzel has good Speed, but only mediocre power, and his STAB has excellent neutral coverage, making a Choice item a natural pick for him. Waterfall is the chosen STAB move for its combination of power and reliability, and hits all Pokemon, bar Grass-, Dragon-, and other Water-types, for neutral damage. Crunch decimates bulky Ghost- and Psychic-types, such as Misdreavus, respectively, the latter of whom might switch in looking to sponge a Water-type attack and gain a free set-up turn. Return has great neutral coverage alongside Floatzel's Water-type STAB, whereas Ice Punch hits Grass- and Dragon-types, who resist Waterfall. However, one should note that Crunch and Return both already 2HKO Exeggutor, one of the most common Grass-types. Aqua Jet lets Floatzel revenge kill weakened boosting sweepers and bypass Sucker Punch Skuntank; alternatively, Floatzel can elect to Switcheroo his Choice item to cripple walls, most notably Tangela.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
EVs are the standard sweeper fare—Attack and Speed are maximized to let Floatzel hit as hard and as fast as possible. Jolly lets him outspeed the monkey trio, Tauros, Rapidash, and Kadabra. However, as Adamant Floatzel still outpaces the base 100 Speed tier, it is the preferred option for greater power, especially since Aqua Jet hits many of these Pokemon for huge damage. If forgoing Aqua Jet, one might also wish to consider using a Choice Scarf, along with an Adamant nature, but Floatzel is generally fast enough that this is not needed.
In terms of teammates, Grass-types have good synergy with Floatzel; good choices include Tangela and Leafeon. Floatzel also appreciates teammates that lay entry hazards in order to rack up damage on switching foes, as opponents will likely switch around to Pokemon that resist Floatzel's chosen move. Torterra can set up Stealth Rock reliably, Cacturne can lay Spikes, and Misdreavus makes a good spinblocker. Floatzel himself will also likely be switching around quite a bit, and will therefore appreciate a Rapid Spin user of your own, such as Armaldo.
Bulk Up is the better of the two boosting moves that Floatzel receives. While it increases both Floatzel's Attack and Defense, the former boost is the one that Floatzel takes advantage of more, as his great Speed and mediocre defenses lend him to a more offensive approach to Bulk Up. Waterfall has great neutral coverage, and is Floatzel's chosen STAB move for its power and perfect accuracy. Crunch and Ice Punch grant him more coverage, hitting bulky Ghost- and Psychic-types, and Grass- and Dragon-types that resist Water-type moves, respectively. As an alternative, Baton Pass lets a teammate take advantage of Floatzel's boosts if he is faced with a foe he cannot break through alone; this also prevents Floatzel from being completely useless should he be afflicted with status, especially if he is burnt.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
Jolly is the preferred nature here for more Speed, as Bulk Up raises Attack; however, Adamant can still be used for greater power. The EV spread is standard for a physical sweeper. Leftovers and a more defensive EV spread can be used for more survivability, but Life Orb and offensive investment is typically preferred to take full advantage of Floatzel's excellent Speed. If taking a bulky route, though, at least 132 Speed EVs should be maintained, so that Floatzel outspeeds maximum Speed Rotom-A. Substitute can be used over a coverage move to prevent status, as both burn and poison cut Floatzel's sweep short. However, it should be noted that Floatzel is generally outclassed in the role of as a mono-attacking Baton Passer.
Again, bulky Grass-types, such as Torterra, Leafeon, and Tangela, make good teammates; the former can make good use of Bulk Up boosts too. Specially defensive Camerupt synergizes well with Floatzel and your chosen Grass-type to form a solid Fire / Water / Grass core; he can also provide Stealth Rock and burn support to assist Floatzel in setting up and sweeping.
Rain Dance is arguably Floatzel's best set-up move; it summons rain, which boosts the power of Floatzel's STAB Waterfall, and raises his Speed to dizzying heights. Don't fret about this strategy possibly being too niche—this Floatzel can be used both in or out of a dedicated rain team. Aside from Waterfall, which is a natural choice as it is incredibly powerful in rain, Crunch and Ice Punch provide Floatzel with standard—and the best possible—coverage. With Crunch hitting bulky Psychic- and Ghost-types super effectively, and Ice Punch destroying Grass- and Dragon-types that resist Waterfall, the combination of Water / Dark / Ice moves hits the entire NU tier for at least neutral damage.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
Thanks to the Swift Swim boost, Floatzel in the rain outspeeds virtually every other Pokemon, whether or not they use a Choice Scarf; as such, one might wonder about the need for Speed EVs at all. However, the listed spread is the slowest Floatzel should drop to, so as to outspeed maximum Speed non-Choice Scarf Rotom-A outside of rain. Aside from this, the EV spread and choice of nature are largely self-explanatory: Attack is maximized with 252 EVs and an Adamant nature, and the rest of the EVs are put into HP for maximal bulk. Damp Rock extends the duration of rain from 5 to 8 turns, ensuring that Floatzel's sweep won't be cut short prematurely, but Life Orb is an option if you're certain to finish the sweep in five turns—Floatzel certainly appreciates the added power, and the loss in bulk isn't very significant.
As for teammates, Pokemon that can abuse the rain are natural partners: the likes of Gorebyss, Huntail, Golduck, and Armaldo are the best options. As mentioned above, Floatzel does not need to be run on a dedicated rain team; however, one should ensure that, at the very least, Floatzel's teammates are not too hampered by the rain should he faint before the rain turns are up.
Floatzel can also run a mixed set to take advantage of Rain Dance. This set acts as a fantastic wallbreaker and lure for rain teams, and is also able to act as a superb late-game cleaner. Unlike the previous set, this Floatzel should only be used on a dedicated rain team, as Floatzel himself does not carry Rain Dance, meaning he must rely on his teammates to set it up for him. Given that this set is focused on mixed attacking rather than purely physical attacking, the choice between Surf and Waterfall is not as clear-cut. Nonetheless, Waterfall should be used as most of the other common rain sweepers are special attackers, and Waterfall allows Floatzel to take out the special walls that trouble his teammates, such as Lickilicky. Crunch provides coverage on Psychic- and Ghost-types outside of the rain, although do note that Waterfall hits harder in rain. Hidden Power Grass nabs the 2HKO on bulky Water-types such as Alomomola. Lastly, Ice Beam hits Grass-types such as Tangela and Vileplume, who would otherwise wall Floatzel, along with Dragon-types such as Altaria. Not only do these Grass-types typically run physically defensive sets, Ice Beam also has a higher Base Power than Ice Punch; therefore, Ice Beam hits much harder than Ice Punch does.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
Unlike the previous Rain Dance set, this set is only for use on dedicated Rain Dance teams. As Floatzel should mostly be coming in after rain has been set up, there is no point in investing in Speed to outspeed threats outside of rain. That said, 16 Speed EVs allow him to outspeed Adamant Sawk outside of rain. The rest of the EVs are obviously pumped into Floatzel's offenses so that he can hit as hard as possible. The choice between a Rash and a Naughty nature depends on what Pokemon your team struggle with more. In addition to giving his weaker special attacks more power, a Rash nature allows Floatzel to get a guaranteed OHKO on 252/0 Tangela after it takes damage from Stealth Rock, and also gives him a chance at doing so without Stealth Rock; Naughty does not. On the other hand, Naughty gives Floatzel a much better shot at OHKOing Rotom-S without Stealth Rock, allows him to OHKO Sawk after Stealth Rock, and lets him 2HKO 252/252+ Duosion. Rash is preferred overall, however, as the Pokemon Floatzel will be attacking most with his physical moves are OHKOed easily even with Rash.
Rain Dance can be used over Hidden Power Grass, but this makes the set far too similar to the above one, and you should stick with taking advantage of Floatzel's ability to smash common threats to rain. Aqua Jet is also an option to dodge priority from the likes of Zangoose and Swellow, and is a nice utility move outside of rain as well. Expert Belt or Leftovers can be run over Life Orb to avoid that nasty recoil, but Floatzel needs the power granted by Life Orb to KO many Pokemon, and so you should always stick with it. Lastly, the Defense-lowering equivalents of Naughty and Rash—Lonely and Mild—can be used, but given that Swift Swim Floatzel outspeeds everything in NU when rain is up, the only attacks he has to fear are priority attacks. There is effectively no special priority in NU, and so Floatzel prefers to run either Naughty or Rash to take less damage from attacks such as Swellow's Quick Attack and Golem's Sucker Punch
As previously stated, this set only works on dedicated rain teams. As such, Floatzel should be paired with both Rain Dance users and other rain sweepers. Good Pokemon to get Rain Dance up include Rotom-S, who can take advantage of rain with his powerful Thunder, and Volbeat, whose Prankster ability grants priority on Rain Dance. Gorebyss is easily the best partner for this Floatzel set, as Floatzel either weakens or kills most of her main counters, including Lickilicky, Rotom-S, and Regice; clearing the path for Gorebyss to sweep the opponent's weakened team. Other Pokemon who benefit from Rain Dance, such as Seismitoad, should also be used in conjunction with Floatzel. Floatzel really appreciates hazard support, so Pokemon who are able to provide both Stealth Rock and Rain Dance support, such as Regirock, make valued teammates. Finally, Garbodor is also a nice choice, thanks to his ability to set up both Spikes and Toxic Spikes to help Floatzel and his teammates out.
Other Options
Among Floatzel's most tempting coverage options that are not listed above include Brick Break and Low Kick, but all relevant Steel-types are hit hard by Waterfall, especially if in rain. He receives Pursuit and Payback, but Crunch is more useful considering Floatzel's excellent Speed stat. Toxic is quite a novel choice, but it could be useful as bulky Water-types are common switch-ins to Floatzel. However, unlike Sawk, Floatzel will lose quite a bit of coverage if forgoing one of his coverage moves. Taunt is viable too as Floatzel is one of the fastest users of it, but Samurott is bulkier and therefore makes for a better stallbreaker. Aside from Bulk Up and Substitute, Floatzel can also Baton Pass Agility and Aqua Ring, but there are better passers of the former, namely Ninjask, and the latter is largely not useful outside of Baton Pass chains, which have their own issues. Floatzel's Dream World ability, Water Veil, is perhaps best abused with a combination of Flame Orb + Switcheroo, but doing so requires Floatzel to forgo both a moveslot and an item for only situational benefits, and at any rate, bulky Water-types are more hampered by Toxic. Note also that Water Veil is illegal with DPP-exclusive moves, most notably Ice Punch, Low Kick, and Sleep Talk.
Checks and Counters
Playing against Choice Band Floatzel takes some prediction as he packs quite a bit of power; however, both Choice Band and Bulk Up Floatzel can usually be revenge killed with little trouble. Zebstrika outspeeds Floatzel, and most Choice Scarf users, especially ones not weak to Water-type moves, do well in this role. All variants of Floatzel without Aqua Jet or Bulk Up boosts—Rain Dance Floatzel in particular—must also watch out for Skuntank, whose Sucker Punch bypasses Floatzel's enormous Speed stat. Bulky Water- and Grass-types fare well in terms of walling him; for instance, Alomomola has stellar Defense to take hits, and Tangela walls all but mixed Ice Beam variants and Bulk Up ones with too many boosts. Status in general cripples Floatzel: burn cuts his damage output in half, Toxic greatly shortens his lifespan, and paralysis takes away his best asset: his Speed.
