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Water Veil
- Prevents burn.
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Oblivious
- Grants immunity to infatuation and Captivate.
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Pressure
- Enemy attacks lose one extra PP. Increases wild encounter rate.
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Level 50 Statistics (see level 5, 50, 100)
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Min- |
Min |
Max |
Max+ |
| HP |
170
|
- |
245 |
277 |
- |
| Atk |
90
|
99 |
110 |
142 |
156 |
| Def |
45
|
58 |
65 |
97 |
106 |
| SpA |
90
|
99 |
110 |
142 |
156 |
| SpD |
45
|
58 |
65 |
97 |
106 |
| Spe |
60
|
72 |
80 |
112 |
123 |
Overview
Wailord isn't as big of a threat as it looks, but it is certainly a force to be reckoned with. Its stat distribution is good, with decent bulk and reasonable offense, but poor Speed. The only niche it has is its access to Water Spout, and it is an excellent one: a full-HP rain-boosted Water Spout can OHKO or 2HKO pretty much every Pokemon in the metagame. Wailord's support options are lacking, but its powerful Water Spout helps to make up for that. All in all, Wailord has its pros and cons, and can be useful on a rain or Trick Room team.
While Wailord possesses decent offenses and defenses, it lacks Speed. With Trick Room set up by a teammate, though, Wailord will be able to outspeed almost all Pokemon in non-Trick Room teams and do massive damage with Water Spout. Water Spout is a powerful STAB move that should only be used when Wailord is at or close to full HP. Surf and Hydro Pump are less powerful STAB attacks that can do good damage when Wailord's HP is too low for Water Spout to be effective. Surf hits all Pokemon on the field, including its teammates, which can work well if Wailord has a teammate with Dry Skin or Water Absorb. Hydro Pump is more powerful but less accurate, and hits only one Pokemon on the field. Protect should be used on the first turn to conserve HP, while a teammate sets up Trick Room. This ensures that Wailord will outpace almost all Pokemon during the next four turns, allowing it to freely spam its powerful moves. Ice Beam 2HKOes most common Dragon-types, such as Latios and Dragonite, that might try to come in on a resisted Water-type move.
Team Options & Additional Comments >>>
Wacan Berry reduces the amount of damage Wailord takes from Electric-type moves, allowing it to take a Thunderbolt from Zapdos or Thundurus, and hit back with a super effective Ice Beam. Sitrus Berry is another option as it gives Wailord some extra health to boost the power of Water Spout. The EV spread used is fairly simple; it maximizes Wailord's Special Attack and Special Defense, allowing Wailord to take special Grass- and Electric-type attacks more easily, as well as hit opposing Pokemon hard. A Quiet nature and 0 Speed IVs make Wailord as slow as possible, meaning that it will be blindingly fast when Trick Room is up. An alternative EV spread of 252 HP / 252 SpA / 4 SpD can be used to increase Wailord's overall bulk. As for teammates, Politoed is an amazing choice, as it can summon permanent rain to boost Water Spout. In addition, teammates that can set up Trick Room, such as Bronzong, Musharna, and Cresselia are a must, as this set is only meant to be used under Trick Room conditions. Musharna is an amazing partner due to its immunity to Surf through Telepathy. Lightningrod Rhyperior is also a great teammate, as it can absorb all Electric-type attacks aimed at Wailord.
Other Options
Wailord has a few other sets that it can pull off effectively. If you're looking for a fast Pokemon to spam Water Spout on a rain team, Choice Scarf Wailord is a viable option. Wailord doesn't have the best defenses, but it can take hits reasonably well thanks to its enormous base 170 HP, making a more defensive set viable. If you plan on using Wailord on a hail team, Blizzard should be used over Ice Beam. Life Orb and Water Gem are also two other items to consider. Life Orb gives Wailord a much appreciated power boost, but Water Spout will decrease in power thanks to recoil damage; alternatively, Water Gem- and rain-boosted Water Spout OHKOes almost all Pokemon in the metagame. Wailord also has a decent base 90 Attack stat, allowing it to utilize a Choice Band set with Waterfall, Double-Edge, Earthquake, and Selfdestruct. Hidden Power Grass and Hidden Power Electric can be used over Protect to hit opposing Water-types. Additionally, Wailord can set up Rain Dance on its own, so it is a viable option over Protect. Selfdestruct can be used as a reasonably powerful last-ditch attack, but it's generally not powerful enough to be really useful.
Checks and Counters
Sun teams make Water Spout pitifully weak, and the common Chlorophyll users are able to do huge damage to Wailord with their STAB Grass-type attacks. However, in Trick Room, Wailord can outspeed and OHKO most Chlorophyll users with Ice Beam. Priority moves can be problematic for Wailord, as they can do significant damage to it before it attacks, reducing Water Spout's Base Power. Water Absorb Jellicent is the best counter to Wailord as it regains health when hit by Water-type moves and resists Ice Beam. Dry Skin Toxicroak can also take anything Wailord has to offer and retaliate with priority Fake Out and Sucker Punch, or restore its own HP with Drain Punch. Taunt users such as Tornadus can stop Wailord's teammates from setting up Trick Room. Ferrothorn is another notable counter as it resists both of Wailord's moves and can sap large amounts of health from Wailord with Leech Seed, or do huge damage with Power Whip. Almost all bulky Water-types, Lanturn and Milotic to name a few, can wall Wailord.
