LC Squirtle

[OP]

Overview
########

Squirtle's primary role on a team is to remove entry hazards with Rapid Spin, but it is outclassed in many ways by Staryu. There are reasons to use Squirtle, however, because of its access to priority moves such as Aqua Jet and Fake Out, better bulk, and the ability to Rapid Spin on Ghost-types thanks to Foresight. Unfortunately, Squirtle has poor Attack and Speed stats so it's typically delegated to being used on more defensive teams, but its lack of recovery hinders it on such team archetypes.

Rapid Spinner
########
name: Rapid Spinner
move 1: Rapid Spin
move 2: Fake Out
move 3: Waterfall
move 4: Ice Punch/Aqua Jet/Foresight
ability: Torrent
item: Eviolite / Berry Juice
evs: 84 HP / 52 Atk / 156 Def / 84 SpD / 92 Spe
nature: Impish

Moves
========

Rapid Spin is Squirtle's niche that enables it to clear away opposing entry hazards. Fake Out is important for free chip damage while Waterfall is the STAB move of choice. Ice Punch can be used to hit the majority of Grass-types in the tier, particularly Pumpkaboo, which blocks Rapid Spin. Ice Punch is very weak, however, so Squirtle can forgo it for additional priority in Aqua Jet, which lets Squirtle revenge kill and deal additional chip damage before fainting. Foresight allows Rapid Spin to hit Ghost-types.

Set Details
========

Torrent is the ability of choice, which boosts Squirtle's power when at low HP. The shown EV spread reaches even numbers, which are the optimal numbers to use with an Eviolite. The Speed EVs also allow Squirtle to outspeed many Ghost-types in the tier, especially Honedge and Pumpkaboo-XL, which would want to block Rapid Spin. Squirtle has great bulk and will often have to take a Knock Off to Rapid Spin, so Eviolite is preferred; however, Squirtle does lack recovery, so Berry Juice could potentially be useful.

Usage Tips
========

Squirtle has no recovery, so it's easily worn down. You can avoid this by only switching in when necessary. The most important times to switch Squirtle in are when you need to clear entry hazards or revenge kill with priority. Additionally, using Fake Out on a burned or poisoned target allows for more free damage.

Team Options
========

Anything that appreciates the removal of entry hazards loves having Squirtle as a teammate. Fire- and Flying-types such as Larvesta and Doduo also cover Squirtle's Grass-type weakness, while Squirtle can beat the Ground- or Rock-types that threaten them. Squirtle also works well with Toxic Spikes because you can rack up a lot of free damage after Fake Out and poison damage. If you're not using Toxic Spikes, Staryu will almost always be the better choice. Grass-types cover Squirtle's weaknesses to Grass and Electric. Cottonee is a particularly good teammate because it also dissuades sweepers that would want to set up on Squirtle.

Other Options
########

Squirtle has many physical coverage options such as Brick Break, Bite, and Zen Headbutt, but they are rather weak and Squirtle will often lose to the intended target anyway. Squirtle could use a special set with Scald, Ice Beam, and Aura Sphere, but then Squirtle's biggest niche of having priority moves is gone. Choice Scarf Squirtle with Water Spout has potential, but is outclassed by other users such as Remoraid and Frillish. You could equip Squirtle with a Life Orb to spam hard-hitting priority moves, but Seel is better in this regard. Haze would allow Squirtle to not become setup bait, but most setup sweepers will beat Squirtle anyway. Toxic can be used to hinder walls that Squirtle couldn't otherwise due to its poor offensive stats.

Checks & Counters
########

**Ghost-types**: Ghost-types such as Pumpkaboo and Frillish are good answers to Squirtle. They block Rapid Spin and can Recover off any damage Squirtle does to them.

**Electric-types**: Electric-types such as Chinchou all threaten to do huge damage to Squirtle.

**Grass-types**: Ice Punch is very weak and Grass-types can beat Squirtle even after switching in on it. Ferroseed and Foongus are the most problematic of these.

**Dry Skin, Storm Drain and Water Absorb Users**: Squirtle's non-STAB attacks will do negligible damage to Pokemon immune to Water and they will be able to whittle it down in return. Mantyke in particular doesn't care about Squirtle.

**Water-types**: Squirtle is completely walled by the opposing Water-types and almost every one can beat Squirtle, due to Squirtle's terrible offensive stats and lack of recovery.

**Setup Sweepers**: Any sweeper that doesn't mind Waterfall or Ice Punch can freely set up and wreak havoc on Squirtle and its team.

**Bulky Pokemon**: Squirtle will be easily worn down and generally wont be able to do much back to generally bulky Pokemon, such as Porygon and Spritzee.

 

[zeriloa]

bite seems horrible, dont slash that lol. i feel like foresight + spin would be a slightly better niche for this, but its still bad, so whatever. mention toxic in oo because squirtle is really weak. other than that this seems good you know the most about squirtle so yea. qc 1/3

edit: i agree with levi tbh this is so bad sorry op :/

 

[Corporal Levi]

I'm sorry, but I'm questioning whether this is worth an analysis at all. Even shuppet has a more unique niche, given how it is a. a slow trick room user with access to knock off, and b. a slow trick room user with powerful priority, allowing it to significantly differentiate itself from other trick room setters with its offensive presence and utility (whether shuppet actually good is an entirely different story, of course). On the other hand, fake out and aqua jet are mediocre moves at best, especially when backed by squirtle's low attack stat, meaning they're not worth very much at all. The only actual niche squirtle has as a rapid spinner is that it is a foresight user that isn't weak to ground, but really, such a set is quite silly for quite a few reasons that I won't bother going into. (If we exclude rapid spin, even wailmer becomes something squirtle has rouble differentiating itself from.) I won't outright reject this just yet because squirtle is cute, but I would like this to be settled before we continue further.

 

[LightningLuxray]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't all LC Pokemon need an analysis? If that's the case then I see no reason to ever reject a Pokemon.

 

[Yuelia]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't all LC Pokemon need an analysis? If that's the case then I see no reason to ever reject a Pokemon.

Admittedly I don't know much about LC, but there is a thread (here) of Pokemon that won't be receiving LC analyses. While it looks horribly out-of-date, it's still stickied in this forum - chances are, the idea of "not all LC-legal pokes will be getting an analysis" still holds.

 

[LightningLuxray]

Admittedly I don't know much about LC, but there is a thread (here) of Pokemon that won't be receiving LC analyses. While it looks horribly out-of-date, it's still stickied in this forum - chances are, the idea of "not all LC-legal pokes will be getting an analysis" still holds.

Ahh, alright, thank you.

 

[OP]

I've been talking to Levi but it's frustrating because he frequently stops PMing me for long periods of time and it's already been two hours since we started discussing and we haven't reached a conclusion so I'm just going to be posting here. I have no plans of doing any other analyses and there aren't any high priority pokemon left to complete anyway. This analysis wont be hindering any others and basically every pokemon will be getting an analysis anyway, so I see no reason to reject this. Furthermore, Squirtle is not an unviable mon. It can use a great 22/16/16 bulk if invested in defenses. This means it can rapid spin against practically any pokemon. It also has priority moves that contribute to its usefulness and allow it to chip down pokemon or revenge threats. Squirtle can't be compared to simply unviable pokemon like Slakoth or Magikarp that wont be getting an analysis. There hasn't been a single reason pointed out to me that would mean Squirtle can't have an analysis and I feel this should continue.

 

[Corporal Levi]

Actually, I changed my mind; sorry about that

Overview:
Change amazing bulk to solid bulk, because 44/65/64 isn't super impressive.
Mention that a lack of recovery greatly hinders its ability to act as an effective defensive Pokemon and contributes to it being outclassed by Staryu.

Other Options:
Add Bite here and explain why it isn't worth using.

Checks and Counters:
Add a section on set-up sweepers that do not mind Waterfall or Ice Punch coming off 12 atk, such as Pawniard or Timburr, because can freely use Squirtle as set-up bait.
Add a section on bulky Pokemon in general because they can all slowly wear Squirtle out while Squirtle struggles to do anything in return.

Great work (as expected)
QC 2/3

 

[doomsday doink]

Overview:
- I know you're going to take it out during write-up, but you're lying to the people when you say Squirtle's the best and cutest as proved by this

Moves:
- Mention the benefit of Aqua Jet, as in what it's hitting that can otherwise threaten Squirtle

Set Details:
- Mention the numbers prior to Eviolite that Squirtle hits

Other Options:
- Zen Headbutt also hits Croagunk and Foongus
- lol at Squirtle being outclassed by Seel as an attacker

Checks & Counters:
- Ghost-types also block Fake Out

QC 3/3, go ahead and write this up after implementing

 

[OP]

I think this is ready for final QC.

 

[Corporal Levi]

Moves:
Emphasize that Fake Out is necessary to differentiate squirtle from Staryu.

Team Options:
Cottonee would probably be better as a teammate than as a team.

ready for GP

 

[antemortem]

Hide

add / remove / comment / Capitalize

Overview
########

Squirtle's primary role on a team is to remove entry hazards with Rapid Spin, but it is outclassed in many ways by Staryu. There are reasons to use Squirtle, however, because of its access to priority moves such as Aqua Jet and Fake Out, better bulk, and the ability to Rapid Spin on Ghost-types thanks to Foresight. The biggest part of Squirtle's niche is learning Fake Out. Unfortunately, Squirtle has poor Attack and Speed stats so it'(apostrophe)s typically delegated to being used on more defensive teams, but its lack of recovery hinders it on these such team archetypes.

Rapid Spinner
########
name: Rapid Spinner
move 1: Rapid Spin
move 2: Fake Out
move 3: Waterfall
move 4: Ice Punch / Aqua Jet / Foresight
ability: Torrent
item: Eviolite / Berry Juice
evs: 84 HP / 52 Atk / 156 Def / 84 SpD / 92 Spe
nature: Impish

Moves
========

Rapid Spin is Squirtle's main function on a team and niche that enables it to clear away opposing entry hazards. Fake Out is important for free chip damage while Waterfall is the STAB move of choice. Ice Punch can be used to hit the majority of Grass-types in the tier, particularly Pumpkaboo,(AC) who blocks Rapid Spin. Ice Punch is very weak, however, so it can be forgo'd you can forgo it for additional priority in Aqua Jet,(AC) which let'(remove)s Squirtle revenge-(remove)kill and get off deal additional chip damage before dying. Foresight is also an option in order to allows Rapid Spin to against hit Ghost-types.

Set Details
========

Raid Dish will near never be useful, so Torrent is the ability of choice, which boosts Squirtle's damage power when at low HP just before he dies. The shown EV spread reaches even numbers,(AC) which are the optimal numbers to use with an Eviolite. The Speed EVs also allow Squirtle to outspeed many Ghost-types in the tier that would be used to spinblock such as, especially Honedge and Pumpkaboo-Super who would want to block Rapid Spin. Squirtle has great bulk and oftentimes will have to take a Knock Off to Rapid Spin, so Eviolite is preferred.; however, Squirtle does lack recovery, so Berry Juice could potentially be useful.

Usage Tips
========

Squirtle has no recovery, so it's easily getting worn down can easily happen. You can avoid this by only switching in when necessary. The most important times to switch Squirtle in are when you need to clear entry hazards or revenge kill with priority. Additionally, using Fake Out on a burned or poisoned target allows for more free damage on the opponent. (repetition)

Team Options
========

Anything that appreciates the removal of entry hazards being gone loves having Squirtle as a teammate. Fire- and Flying-types such as Larvesta or and Doduo also cover Squirtle's Grass-type weakness, while Squirtle can beat the Ground- or Rock-types that threaten them. Squirtle also works well with Toxic Spikes because you can rack up a lot of free damage after Fake Out and poison damage. If you're not using Toxic Spikes, Staryu will almost always be the better choice. Grass-types cover Squirtle's only weaknesses to Grass and Electric. Cottonee is a particularly good teammate because it also dissuades sweepers that would want to set-up on Squirtle.

Other Options
########

Squirtle has many physical coverage options such as Brick Break, Bite, and or Zen Headbutt,(AC) but they are rather weak and Squirtle will oftentimes lose to the intended target anyway. Squirtle could use a special set with Scald, Ice Beam and Aura Sphere, but then Squirtle's biggest niche of having priority moves is gone. Choice Scarf Squirtle with Water Spout has potential,(AC) but is outclassed by other users such as Remoraid or and Frillish. You could equip Squirtle with a Life Orb to spam hard hitting priority moves, but Seel is better in this regard. Haze would allow Squirtle to not become set-up bait, but most set-up sweepers will beat Squirtle anyway. Toxic can be used to hinder walls that it couldn't otherwise,(RC) due to its poor attacking offensive stats.

Checks & Counters
########

**Ghost Types**: Ghost-types such as Particularly Pumpkaboo and Frillish. They block Rapid Spin and can Recover off any damage Squirtle does to them.

**Electric Types**: Notably Chinchou, Electric-types such as Chinchou they all threaten to do huge damage to Squirtle.

**Grass Types**: Ice Punch is very weak and they can all Grass-types can beat Squirtle even after switching in on it. Ferroseed and Foongus are the most problematic of them.

**Dry Skin, Storm Drain and Water Absorb Users**: Squirtle's attacks will do negligible damage to them and they will be able to whittle him down. Mantyke in particular doesn't care about Squirtle.

**Water Types**: Squirtle is completely walled by the opposing Water-types and almost every one can beat Squirtle, due to Squirtle's terrible attacking offensive stats and lack of recovery.

**Set-up Sweepers**: Any sweeper that doesn't mind Waterfall or Ice Punch can freely set up and wreck havoc afterwards.

**Bulky Pokemon**: Squirtle will be easily worn down and generally wont be able to do much back to them.

Please remember that when referring to types, the type is associated with a hyphen and the word "type" as follows: Grass-type, Grass-types, the Fire- and Grass-types, the Fire-, Ghost-, and Grass-types.

GP 1/2

 

[tehy]

Edit: renovations up in here

The subject of Squirtle being outclassed by Staryu has been raised in this thread already. Of course, many Staryu focus on Speed, while Squirtle focuses on bulk, granting it a niche, supposedly. And yet... there isn't anything stopping Staryu from focusing on bulk, necessarily. While it's not necessarily a good idea, the same could be said for using Squirtle at all, so that's a wash.

Nichebuster
########
move 1: Rapid Spin
move 2: Recover
move 3: Scald
move 4: Ice Beam
ability: Torrent
item: Eviolite
evs: 116 HP / 236 Def / 156 SpD
nature: Bold

Staryu's stats with the above spread

21 HP / 9 Atk / 16 Def / 13 SpA / 14 SpD / 15 Spe

Squirtle's stats with the listed spread

22 HP / 12 Atk / 16 Def / 9 SpA / 14 SpD / 12 Spe

So, their defenses are equal, though Squirtle has 1 more HP, a bulk increase of less than 5 percent. Staryu has 1 more SpA than Squirtle has Atk. Finally, Staryu has 3 more Speed.

Right off the bat, Staryu has surprise value. No one's expecting fully defensive Staryu, but everyone expects defensive Squirtle.

On the defensive front, things are basically equal, except that Staryu has Recover, and probably has Natural Cure as well.

On the offensive front, things get murkier. However, Staryu has a slightly stronger STAB thanks to its higher attacking stat; said STAB can also burn, increasing its damage output (and conferring excellent utility). Squirtle's Waterfall can flinch slower targets, but those are few and far between, and most of them are too bulky to care. Squirtle could get a power boost with Torrent; then again, if a situational ~30% power boost is what you desire on your bulky water Rapid Spinner, consider the much less situational Analytic, which doesn't require you to be near-dead to function. Available at your nearest Staryu! Finally, Ice Beam is far superior
to Ice Punch, being 20% stronger and benefiting from Staryu's better attacking stat as well. Staryu is also faster; i'm not an expert on LC Speed tiers, but I bet there's a few relevant threats 15 Speed lets you get the drop on. (Eviolite Pawniard?)

Now, the real offensive argument is Fake Out. Yes, Fake Out is truly a strong priority. Surely it is a revenge killing tool of great and terrible power! Surely no sweeper could hope to stand up to it! Surely no reader could possibly anticipate the following calc being the complete opposite of this buildup!


52 Atk Squirtle Fake Out vs. 0 HP / 0- Def Pichu: 5-7 (27.7 - 38.8%) -- 84.5% chance to 3HKO

Still, i bet you weren't expecting "needs rolls to 3HKO Pichu".

(Full thanks to Seanbaby for that awesome bit.)


As for the free chip damage switch-in

Er, moving on.


Overall, while Fake Out has some utility, it's really not enough to justify to use of Squirtle over Staryu, especially given the latter's access to Recover, two great abilities, and its ability to abuse Scald, a move that has been considered potentially banworthy by tier leaders and pro players alike.

Therefore, if Squirtle is to avoid being outclassed, it must stray off the beaten path of the main set. Currently, this leaves the following:

Aqua Jet: While Fake Out + priority is a nice combination, this leaves you with basically mono-Water coverage, making you pathetically easy to wall. Plus, even with both priorities, many sweepers won't go down anyways, unless they've lost a lot of life.

Foresight: Being an unblockable spinner is a nice niche. With that said, you're still using mono-Water coverage. Why not just use Staryu, and take down spinblockers with Analytic Scalds? Thanks to Recover, you can wait to spin without risking being worn down to the point of irrelevancy.


In short: the main set's brutally outclassed by bulky Staryu. Some non-primary slashes, other options mentions, or even a different EV spread may give Squirtle enough of a niche, so those should be explored more, I suppose. Still, as it stands...is the main set really any better than Slakoth?

Edit: yeah yeah it's better in the literal sense. Since it's so outclassed though, is it worth using at all? And if it's not, what's the difference between it and slakoth? Just 2 mons you should never use.

 

[doomsday doink]

Still, as it stands...is the main set really any better than Slakoth?

yes

 

[OP]

The whole first part was already known and stated information so I'm just gonna move on to here:

Overall, while Fake Out has some utility, it's really not enough to justify to use of Squirtle over Staryu, especially given the latter's access to Recover, two great abilities, and its ability to abuse Scald, a move that has been considered potentially banworthy by tier leaders and pro players alike.

Therefore, if Squirtle is to avoid being outclassed, it must stray off the beaten path of the main set. Currently, this leaves the following:

Aqua Jet: While Fake Out + priority is a nice combination, this leaves you with basically mono-Water coverage, making you pathetically easy to wall. Plus, even with both priorities, many sweepers won't go down anyways, unless they've lost a lot of life.

Foresight: Being an unblockable spinner is a nice niche. With that said, you're still using mono-Water coverage. Why not just use Staryu, and take down spinblockers with Analytic Scalds? Thanks to Recover, you can wait to spin without risking being worn down to the point of irrelevancy.


In short: the main set's brutally outclassed by bulky Staryu. Some non-primary slashes, other options mentions, or even a different EV spread may give Squirtle enough of a niche, so those should be explored more, I suppose. Still, as it stands...is the main set really any better than Slakoth?

Right off the bat, I'm not sure what you're trying to accomplish. Every Pokemon is getting an analysis and this is already in GP. It's known and stated multiple times that Squirtle is outclassed by Staryu. It has enough of a niche to warrant a spot of specific teams and you already listed these reasons. It seems like you know why someone would use Squirtle, but you seem to think it can only use one of these things. Squirtle can be physical, have two priority moves, have foresight to spin on ghosts and be bulkier with less investment all at once if you want to. In the future, it'd be great if you didn't restate already known facts, bring up irrelevant information, or try to halt an analysis when it's basically done. Not to be rude, but it's like you wrote an essay when a paragraph was needed at most.

 

[tehy]

The whole first part was already known and stated information so I'm just gonna move on to here:

Other than not being stated or seemingly known, you have some good points.

The spread and moves i used aren't in the analysis or on the ps calc, and afaik no one uses that set. No specific mention of or allusion to such a set is made in the thread here.

So unless everyone was talking about some obscure, non-standard-ass shit AND didn't bother to mention this...yea, no.

Right off the bat, I'm not sure what you're trying to accomplish. Every Pokemon is getting an analysis and this is already in GP.

Except ones like Slakoth, etc. I'm arguing that this, being so damn outclassed, belongs in the same category. Yeah, i'm aware this isn't how the thought process is trending, but it damn well should be. What's the difference between outright shit and outclassed?

It's known and stated multiple times that Squirtle is outclassed by Staryu. It has enough of a niche to warrant a spot of specific teams and you already listed these reasons. It seems like you know why someone would use Squirtle, but you seem to think it can only use one of these things.

Actually i think only 1 of those got the primary slash. I even discussed the other things it can do, bar oo which, so sue me.

Squirtle can be physical,

So waterfall

have two priority moves,

Waterfall + fake out + aqua jet

have foresight to spin on ghosts

Waterfall + fake out + aqua jet + foresight + rapid spin... 5 moves, better luck next time bud. (Don't front like the prio counts as 'being physical' either.)

and be bulkier with less investment all at once if you want to.

>bulkier with less investment, wut

Considering the rest of the investment goes towards not being faster or stronger than 'yu, getting the bulk with less evs means like jack shit. At least u have 1 more hp tho? The bulk is real

In the future, it'd be great if you didn't restate already known facts, bring up irrelevant information, or try to halt an analysis when it's basically done.

In the future YOU ah fuck it, dont make outclassed ass shit in analysis.

My overall message here is

A: ice punch needs to go
B:squirtle probably still sucks too hard anyways.

If squirtle sucks too much ass after ice punch is gone, w/e, i bet it will though. At least it won't be outclassed as a mother though.

 

[doomsday doink]

Other than not being stated or seemingly known, you have some good points.

The spread and moves i used aren't in the analysis or on the ps calc, and afaik no one uses that set. No specific mention of or allusion to such a set is made in the thread here.

So unless everyone was talking about some obscure, non-standard-ass shit AND didn't bother to mention this...yea, no.



Except ones like Slakoth, etc. I'm arguing that this, being so damn outclassed, belongs in the same category. Yeah, i'm aware this isn't how the thought process is trending, but it damn well should be. What's the difference between outright shit and outclassed?


Actually i think only 1 of those got the primary slash. I even discussed the other things it can do, bar oo which, so sue me.

So waterfall

Waterfall + fake out + aqua jet

Waterfall + fake out + aqua jet + foresight + rapid spin... 5 moves, better luck next time bud. (Don't front like the prio counts as 'being physical' either.)

>bulkier with less investment, wut

Considering the rest of the investment goes towards not being faster or stronger than 'yu, getting the bulk with less evs means like jack shit. At least u have 1 more hp tho? The bulk is real



In the future YOU ah fuck it, dont make outclassed ass shit in analysis.

My overall message here is

A: ice punch needs to go
B:squirtle probably still sucks too hard anyways.

If squirtle sucks too much ass after ice punch is gone, w/e, i bet it will though. At least it won't be outclassed as a mother though.

Do you think about the stuff you say or do you simply type the first ignorant insult that comes into your mind? If you have an issue with the way that the LC C&C process, take that up with the people who run it, not a user who's simply following the guidelines and helping to write analyses. This isn't the place for an argument though, so let's not make it one; take it to PM if you feel it's necessary to continue.

 

[tehy]

Do you think about the stuff you say or do you simply type the first ignorant insult that comes into your mind?

What... insult? Where the fuck do you see an insult...? None used against any users in that post.

Or do you mean my insults against: various sets of squirtle and staryu
and Slakoth? Yeah, calling a shit set shit, what a problematic behavior. Guess I shouldn't use bad words with kids like mike n bolt watching

If you have an issue with the way that the LC C&C process, take that up with the people who run it, not a user who's simply following the guidelines and helping to write analyses.

I'd like to do that too, that said the majority of my argument is within said guidelines? I.e. make the analysis so squirtle has more of a niche

This isn't the place for an argument though, so let's not make it one; take it to PM if you feel it's necessary to continue.

PM me if you want. Just make sure to put some thought in and don't just type the first ignorant ad hominem that comes into your mind.

 

[boltsandbombers]

What... insult? Where the fuck do you see an insult...? None used against any users in that post.

Or do you mean my insults against: various sets of squirtle and staryu
and Slakoth? Yeah, calling a shit set shit, what a problematic behavior. Guess I shouldn't use bad words with kids like mike n bolt watching

PM me if you want. Just make sure to put some thought in and don't just type the first ignorant ad hominem that comes into your mind.

Please dont call me out for no apparent reason, as I'm pretty sure that I'm the only bolts you could be referring to.
I'm 16 years old for pete's sake, don't call me a kid.

 

[GatoDelFuego]

Obvious Power

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Overview
########

Squirtle's primary role on a team is to remove entry hazards with Rapid Spin, but it is outclassed in many ways by Staryu. There are reasons to use Squirtle, however, because of its access to priority moves such as Aqua Jet and Fake Out, better bulk, and the ability to Rapid Spin on Ghost-types thanks to Foresight. Unfortunately, Squirtle has poor Attack and Speed stats so it's typically delegated to being used on more defensive teams, but its lack of recovery hinders it on such team archetypes.

Rapid Spinner
########
name: Rapid Spinner
move 1: Rapid Spin
move 2: Fake Out
move 3: Waterfall
move 4: Ice Punch/Aqua Jet/Foresight
ability: Torrent
item: Eviolite / Berry Juice
evs: 84 HP / 52 Atk / 156 Def / 84 SpD / 92 Spe
nature: Impish

Moves
========

Rapid Spin is Squirtle's niche that enables it to clear away opposing entry hazards. Fake Out is important for free chip damage while Waterfall is the STAB move of choice. Ice Punch can be used to hit the majority of Grass-types in the tier, particularly Pumpkaboo, who which blocks Rapid Spin. Ice Punch is very weak, however, so you Squirtle can forgo it for additional priority in Aqua Jet, which lets Squirtle revenge kill and deal additional chip damage before fainting dying. Foresight allows Rapid Spin to hit Ghost-types.

Set Details
========

Torrent is the ability of choice, which boosts Squirtle's power when at low HP. The shown EV spread reaches even numbers, which are the optimal numbers to use with an Eviolite. The Speed EVs also allow Squirtle to outspeed many Ghost-types in the tier, especially Honedge and Pumpkaboo-XL, (AC) Super who which would want to block Rapid Spin. Squirtle has great bulk and will oftentimes will have to take a Knock Off to Rapid Spin, so Eviolite is preferred; however, Squirtle does lack recovery, so Berry Juice could potentially be useful.

Usage Tips
========

Squirtle has no recovery, so it's easily worn down. You can avoid this by only switching in when necessary. The most important times to switch Squirtle in are when you need to clear entry hazards or revenge kill with priority. Additionally, using Fake Out on a burned or poisoned target allows for more free damage.

Team Options
========

Anything that appreciates the removal of entry hazards loves having Squirtle as a teammate. Fire- and Flying-types such as Larvesta and Doduo also cover Squirtle's Grass-type weakness, while Squirtle can beat the Ground- or Rock-types that threaten them. Squirtle also works well with Toxic Spikes because you can rack up a lot of free damage after Fake Out and poison damage. If you're not using Toxic Spikes, Staryu will almost always be the better choice. Grass-types cover Squirtle's weaknesses to Grass and Electric. Cottonee is a particularly good teammate because it also dissuades sweepers that would want to set up on Squirtle.

Other Options
########

Squirtle has many physical coverage options such as Brick Break, Bite, and Zen Headbutt, but they are rather weak and Squirtle will oftentimes lose to the intended target anyway. Squirtle could use a special set with Scald, Ice Beam, (AC) and Aura Sphere, but then Squirtle's biggest niche of having priority moves is gone. Choice Scarf Squirtle with Water Spout has potential, but is outclassed by other users such as Remoraid and Frillish. You could equip Squirtle with a Life Orb to spam hard-hitting priority moves, but Seel is better in this regard. Haze would allow Squirtle to not become setup bait, but most setup sweepers will beat Squirtle anyway. Toxic can be used to hinder walls that it Squirtle couldn't otherwise due to its poor offensive stats.

Checks & Counters
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**Ghost-types**: Ghost-types such as Pumpkaboo and Frillish are good answers to Squirtle. They block Rapid Spin and can Recover off any damage Squirtle does to them.

**Electric-types**: Electric-types such as Chinchou all threaten to do huge damage to Squirtle.

**Grass-types**: Ice Punch is very weak and Grass-types can beat Squirtle even after switching in on it. Ferroseed and Foongus are the most problematic of these.

**Dry Skin, Storm Drain and Water Absorb Users**: Squirtle's non-STAB attacks will do negligible damage to them Pokemon immune to Water and they will be able to whittle him it down in return. Mantyke in particular doesn't care about Squirtle.

**Water-types**: Squirtle is completely walled by the opposing Water-types and almost every one can beat Squirtle, (RC) due to Squirtle's terrible offensive stats and lack of recovery.

**Setup Sweepers**: Any sweeper that doesn't mind Waterfall or Ice Punch can freely set up and wreak havoc on Squirtle and its team afterwards.

**Bulky Pokemon**: Squirtle will be easily worn down and generally wont be able to do much back to generally bulky Pokemon, such as X and Y them.

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[Goddess Briyella]

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