STATUS: DONE
http://veekun.com/dex/pokemon/azumarill
[Overview]
<p>While often overlooked at first, Azumarill has been improving with each passing generation. It gained Huge Power in ADV, and DPP gave it the all-important Aqua Jet, making Azumarill a formidable physical attacker in UU. Unfortunately, the fifth generation has not brought Azumarill anything as groundbreaking, but it has brought with it a metagame almost perfectly tailored to the Aqua Rabbit. In the OU metagame, Azumarill finds itself able to revenge kill the likes of Heatran, Excadrill, and Volcarona, something which not even Scizor and Conkeldurr can boast.</p>
<p>Azumarill is not without its downfalls, however. It has a shallow movepool, and there are some pokemon, such as Jellicent, which can completely wall any Azumarill set. The fact that Azumarill often carries a Choice Band also means that overprediction, or misprediction, can be highly costly.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Aqua Jet
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Waterfall
move 4: Ice Punch / Return
item: Choice Band
nature: Adamant
ability: Huge Power
evs: 232 HP / 252 Atk / 12 Def / 12 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With Huge Power and a Choice Band, Azumarill hits a massive 654 Attack stat. This makes the otherwise weak Aqua Jet powerful enough to decimate many top offensive threats. For example, Volcarona and Excadrill are both pretty much OHKOed by Aqua Jet,with standard offensive Excadrill taking a minimum of 99% damage. Other threats Aqua Jet covers include Landorus and Terrakion, as well as frailer Pokemon such as Zoroark and Gengar.</p>
<p>However, Azumarill's Aqua Jet on one of these aforementioned threats is about as predictable as Scizor Bullet Punching a Salamence in DPP (before it was banned, of course), so it is likely that the foe will switch out the intended Aqua Jet target. In this case, prediction can not only force out the opponent's sweeper, but also score you a possible KO. Dragon-types and most Grass-types can be handled by Ice Punch, and most other Pokemon who can switch into Aqua Jet will not take kindly to Superpower, especially Ferrothorn, who will be OHKOed unless it is running almost maximum Defense. Waterfall is Azumarill's most reliable STAB attack, and with Water having excellent neutral coverage, is a good option if you are unsure of what is switching in. The choice of Return or Ice Punch is dependant on what you want to deal more damage to; Ice Punch is the better option if you're troubled by Dragon- or Grass-types switching in a lot, but, otherwise, Return is the better coverage move due to higher Base Power on neutral targets.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The EV spread allows Azumarill to take hits better on both sides, while being able to dish out as much damage as possible. Since a lot of the time Azumarill will be using priority attacks, or hitting switch-ins, Azumarill does not need any Speed investment. As a Choice Band user, Azumarill will be switching a lot, meaning residual damage will add up very quickly. In order to counteract this, Rapid Spin support from Forretress can be valuable, as Azumarill can simultaneously use its Fire-type weakness as an opportunity to switch in and hit hard.</p>
<p>As a revenge killer, Azumarill can support most teams which have trouble with its common targets, such as Volcarona, Excadrill, and Terrakion. However, when using Azumarill, it is a good idea to have a check to its common counters, such as Jellicent and Slowbro, as well as Pokemon that can handle Dragon-types. Ferrothorn is an excellent choice, as not only can it defeat most of Azumarill's checks, but it can set up hazards, to abuse the switches Azumarill forces, and it can also lure out Fire-types, and Pokemon such as Terrakion for Azumarill to handle.<p>
[Other Options]
<p>Azumarill doesn't have much else useful to offer. Toxic is a choice to surprise Slowbro or Jellicent, who otherwise completely wall Azumarill. Double-Edge is a more powerful alternative to Return, but chips away at Azumarill's health.</p>
<p>Azumarill can also run a Life Orb set, granting it greater flexibility at the cost of HP upon each attack, allowing it to act somewhat like a wallbreaker. If this route is taken, Speed should be maximised, to allow Azumarill to outspeed more defensive Pokemon. It can also abuse the switches that it forces to run a Substitue + Focus Punch set. However, both of these sets generally are inferior to the raw power of the hit-and-run Choice Bander.<p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Jellicent is an absolute stop to Azumarill; it is immune to Return, Aqua Jet, Waterfall and Superpower, and can wall Ice Punch all day long. Unfortunatly, there is nothing Azumarill can do about this, unless it is carrying Toxic, although it would have succeeded in making the foe switch out, losing any boosts they may have attained. Gyarados is also a solid counter, due to Intimidate and resistances to Aqua Jet and Superpower. Other physically bulky Water-types, such as Suicune, can also defeat Azumarill, barring critical hit Superpowers or Returns. Skarmory can also Roost off anything Azumarill throws at it, although a Choice Band-boosted Waterfall will deal heavy damage on the switch-in, and it must be wary of possible Superpowers while Roosting from Life Orb sets. Aside from the aforementioned Water-types, however, Azumarill has very few hard counters. Most pokemon are at risk of being 2HKOed by Aqua Jet, Ice Punch, or Superpower. Dusclops also makes a good counter to Azumarill, as it is enough to shrug off any of its attacks and threaten a burn with Will-O-Wisp, which will make Azumarill almost useless. Azumarill is also vulnerable to all forms of entry hazards, and will typically be locked into an attack and forced to switch a lot. Spikes are more dangerous due to the ability to stack them but Stealth Rock is also a problem. Toxic Spikes are also an issue for Azumarill, slowly wearing away its health.
[Dream World]
<p>Azumarill gains Sap Sipper in Dream World, granting it an immunity to Grass-type attacks, and +1 Attack when it is hit by one. However, this ability is easily inferior to Huge Power, due to the fact that most Grass-types still give Azumarill issues, and Huge Power automatically provides what is equivilant to a +2 Attack boost.</p>
http://veekun.com/dex/pokemon/azumarill
[Overview]
<p>While often overlooked at first, Azumarill has been improving with each passing generation. It gained Huge Power in ADV, and DPP gave it the all-important Aqua Jet, making Azumarill a formidable physical attacker in UU. Unfortunately, the fifth generation has not brought Azumarill anything as groundbreaking, but it has brought with it a metagame almost perfectly tailored to the Aqua Rabbit. In the OU metagame, Azumarill finds itself able to revenge kill the likes of Heatran, Excadrill, and Volcarona, something which not even Scizor and Conkeldurr can boast.</p>
<p>Azumarill is not without its downfalls, however. It has a shallow movepool, and there are some pokemon, such as Jellicent, which can completely wall any Azumarill set. The fact that Azumarill often carries a Choice Band also means that overprediction, or misprediction, can be highly costly.</p>
[SET]
name: Choice Band
move 1: Aqua Jet
move 2: Superpower
move 3: Waterfall
move 4: Ice Punch / Return
item: Choice Band
nature: Adamant
ability: Huge Power
evs: 232 HP / 252 Atk / 12 Def / 12 SpD
[SET COMMENTS]
<p>With Huge Power and a Choice Band, Azumarill hits a massive 654 Attack stat. This makes the otherwise weak Aqua Jet powerful enough to decimate many top offensive threats. For example, Volcarona and Excadrill are both pretty much OHKOed by Aqua Jet,with standard offensive Excadrill taking a minimum of 99% damage. Other threats Aqua Jet covers include Landorus and Terrakion, as well as frailer Pokemon such as Zoroark and Gengar.</p>
<p>However, Azumarill's Aqua Jet on one of these aforementioned threats is about as predictable as Scizor Bullet Punching a Salamence in DPP (before it was banned, of course), so it is likely that the foe will switch out the intended Aqua Jet target. In this case, prediction can not only force out the opponent's sweeper, but also score you a possible KO. Dragon-types and most Grass-types can be handled by Ice Punch, and most other Pokemon who can switch into Aqua Jet will not take kindly to Superpower, especially Ferrothorn, who will be OHKOed unless it is running almost maximum Defense. Waterfall is Azumarill's most reliable STAB attack, and with Water having excellent neutral coverage, is a good option if you are unsure of what is switching in. The choice of Return or Ice Punch is dependant on what you want to deal more damage to; Ice Punch is the better option if you're troubled by Dragon- or Grass-types switching in a lot, but, otherwise, Return is the better coverage move due to higher Base Power on neutral targets.</p>
[ADDITIONAL COMMENTS]
<p>The EV spread allows Azumarill to take hits better on both sides, while being able to dish out as much damage as possible. Since a lot of the time Azumarill will be using priority attacks, or hitting switch-ins, Azumarill does not need any Speed investment. As a Choice Band user, Azumarill will be switching a lot, meaning residual damage will add up very quickly. In order to counteract this, Rapid Spin support from Forretress can be valuable, as Azumarill can simultaneously use its Fire-type weakness as an opportunity to switch in and hit hard.</p>
<p>As a revenge killer, Azumarill can support most teams which have trouble with its common targets, such as Volcarona, Excadrill, and Terrakion. However, when using Azumarill, it is a good idea to have a check to its common counters, such as Jellicent and Slowbro, as well as Pokemon that can handle Dragon-types. Ferrothorn is an excellent choice, as not only can it defeat most of Azumarill's checks, but it can set up hazards, to abuse the switches Azumarill forces, and it can also lure out Fire-types, and Pokemon such as Terrakion for Azumarill to handle.<p>
[Other Options]
<p>Azumarill doesn't have much else useful to offer. Toxic is a choice to surprise Slowbro or Jellicent, who otherwise completely wall Azumarill. Double-Edge is a more powerful alternative to Return, but chips away at Azumarill's health.</p>
<p>Azumarill can also run a Life Orb set, granting it greater flexibility at the cost of HP upon each attack, allowing it to act somewhat like a wallbreaker. If this route is taken, Speed should be maximised, to allow Azumarill to outspeed more defensive Pokemon. It can also abuse the switches that it forces to run a Substitue + Focus Punch set. However, both of these sets generally are inferior to the raw power of the hit-and-run Choice Bander.<p>
[Checks and Counters]
<p>Jellicent is an absolute stop to Azumarill; it is immune to Return, Aqua Jet, Waterfall and Superpower, and can wall Ice Punch all day long. Unfortunatly, there is nothing Azumarill can do about this, unless it is carrying Toxic, although it would have succeeded in making the foe switch out, losing any boosts they may have attained. Gyarados is also a solid counter, due to Intimidate and resistances to Aqua Jet and Superpower. Other physically bulky Water-types, such as Suicune, can also defeat Azumarill, barring critical hit Superpowers or Returns. Skarmory can also Roost off anything Azumarill throws at it, although a Choice Band-boosted Waterfall will deal heavy damage on the switch-in, and it must be wary of possible Superpowers while Roosting from Life Orb sets. Aside from the aforementioned Water-types, however, Azumarill has very few hard counters. Most pokemon are at risk of being 2HKOed by Aqua Jet, Ice Punch, or Superpower. Dusclops also makes a good counter to Azumarill, as it is enough to shrug off any of its attacks and threaten a burn with Will-O-Wisp, which will make Azumarill almost useless. Azumarill is also vulnerable to all forms of entry hazards, and will typically be locked into an attack and forced to switch a lot. Spikes are more dangerous due to the ability to stack them but Stealth Rock is also a problem. Toxic Spikes are also an issue for Azumarill, slowly wearing away its health.
[Dream World]
<p>Azumarill gains Sap Sipper in Dream World, granting it an immunity to Grass-type attacks, and +1 Attack when it is hit by one. However, this ability is easily inferior to Huge Power, due to the fact that most Grass-types still give Azumarill issues, and Huge Power automatically provides what is equivilant to a +2 Attack boost.</p>
