Competitive Information for Golduck [Sword/Shield]
Water
Abilities:
While this Pokemon is active, the effects of weather conditions are disabled.
Prevents Explosion/Mind Blown/Misty Explosion/Self-Destruct/Aftermath while active.
If Rain Dance is active, this Pokemon's Speed is doubled.
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Movesets for Singles
Looking for a competitive moveset for Golduck? These builds are optimized for Sword/Shield Single Battles. The movesets and EVs are designed to maximize damage against common opponents and threats in the Sword/Shield metagame. Check out the expert movesets below to boost your battle performance and dominate your opponents!
HitmontopSnorlaxRibombeeCrustleCinderaceDuraludonIndeedee-FTalonflameBarraskewdaCoalossal
Get ready to meet Golduck, the dazzling Water-typed Pokémon! It's to see Golduck show up as a Sword/Shield opponent. Its only type-related weaknesses are Electric and Grass. Ready to elevate your game with Golduck's movesets? They're right below!
Item: Rindo Berry / Focus Sash
Ability: Cloud Nine
Nature: Timid (+Spe, -Atk)
EVs: 4 Hp / 252 SpA / 252 Spe
IVs: 0 Atk
Moveset:
- Surf / Scald
- Icy Wind / Ice Beam
- Hypnosis
- Yawn
Golduck thrives as a pretty decent Special Sweeper perfect for single battles. This strategy is built to take down the opponent's team with heavy-hitting special power. Focus Sash helps protect Golduck from being one-shotted and allowing it to atleast use a crucial move when brought out. With Cloud Nine, while Golduck is active the effects of weather conditions are disabled. With a Rindo Berry equipped to it, halves damage taken from a supereffective grass-type attack then the Rindo Berry gets consumed.
◆ Scald is a special STAB-boosted 80-base power Water-type move (30% chance to burn the target. Thaws target).
◆ Icy Wind is a special 55-base power Ice-type move (100% chance to lower the foes speed by 1 stage).
◆ Ice Beam is a special 90-base power Ice-type move (10% chance to freeze the target).
◆ Hypnosis is a status move (causes the target to fall asleep).
◆ Yawn is a status move (puts the target to sleep after 1 turn).
Link (click to copy):
https://hohoushome.com/b/maa37
Item: Life Orb / Choice Band
Ability: Swift Swim
Nature: Adamant (+Atk, -SpA)
EVs: 252 Hp / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Moveset:
- Liquidation / Aqua Tail
- Ice Punch / Double-Edge
- Shadow Claw
- Brick Break / Low Sweep
Ready for single battles? Golduck is a high-quality Physical Sweeper. The objective of this moveset is to crush rivals using brute physical power. Choice Band will increase the damage of Golduck's physical moves by 1.5x at the cost of locking you into the first move you pick. Life Orb boosts the power of Golduck's damaging moves by 1.3x but it then loses 1/10 its max HP immediately after the attack. With Swift Swim, Golduck's speed is doubled during rainy weather. Ice Punch was added to provide additional threat coverage.
◆ Aqua Tail is a physical STAB-boosted 90-base power Water-type move that deals a good amount of damage.
◆ Ice Punch is a physical 75-base power Ice-type move (10% chance to freeze the target).
◆ Double-Edge is a physical 120-base power Normal-type move (has 33% recoil).
◆ Shadow Claw is a physical 70-base power Ghost-type move (high critical hit ratio).
◆ Brick Break is a physical 75-base power Fighting-type move (destroys screens, unless the target is immune).
◆ Low Sweep is a physical 65-base power Fighting-type move (100% chance to lower the target's speed by 1 stage).
Link (click to copy):
https://hohoushome.com/b/mba37
Item: Life Orb / Choice Specs
Ability: Swift Swim
Nature: Modest (+SpA, -Atk)
EVs: 252 Hp / 4 Def / 252 SpA
IVs: 0 Atk
Moveset:
- Surf / Scald
- Ice Beam / Icy Wind
- Psychic / Psyshock
- Hyper Beam / Round
Golduck excels as a fabulous Special Sweeper during single battles. This moveset was created to overwhelm foes with powerful special attacks. Choice Specs will increase the damage of Golduck's special moves by 1.5x but will lock you into the first move you pick. Life Orb boosts the power of Golduck's damaging moves by 1.3x but it then loses 1/10 its max HP immediately after the attack. With Swift Swim, Golduck's speed is doubled during rainy weather.
◆ Scald is a special STAB-boosted 80-base power Water-type move (30% chance to burn the target. Thaws target).
◆ Ice Beam is a special 90-base power Ice-type move (10% chance to freeze the target).
◆ Icy Wind is a special 55-base power Ice-type move (100% chance to lower the foes speed by 1 stage).
◆ Psychic is a special 90-base power Psychic-type move (10% chance to lower the target's special defense by 1 stage).
◆ Psyshock is a special 80-base power Psychic-type move (damages target based on defense, not special defense).
◆ Hyper Beam is a special 150-base power Normal-type move (Golduck cannot move next turn).
◆ Round is a special 60-base power Normal-type move (power doubles if others used round this turn).
Link (click to copy):
https://hohoushome.com/b/mca37
Item: Life Orb
Ability: Swift Swim
Nature: Modest (+SpA, -Atk)
EVs: 231 Hp / 240 SpA / 39 SpD
Moveset:
- Scald
- Focus Blast
- Yawn
- Rain Dance
Golduck shows a marvelous Special Tank prowess in single battles. This technique aims to absorb special attacks and counter with decent force. Life Orb boosts the power of Golduck's damaging moves by 1.3x but it then loses 1/10 its max HP immediately after the attack. With Swift Swim, Golduck's speed is doubled during rainy weather.
◆ Focus Blast is a special 120-base power Fighting-type move (10% chance to lower the target's special defense by 1 stage).
◆ Yawn is a status move (puts the target to sleep after 1 turn).
◆ Rain Dance is a status move (for 5 turns, heavy rain powers water moves).
Link (click to copy):
https://hohoushome.com/b/mda37
Movesets for Doubles
Need a strong doubles moveset for Golduck? These builds are perfect for VGC (Pokémon Video Game Championship) and other competitive Sword/Shield Double Battles. The VGC is the ultimate test of strategy and skill, and these movesets and EVs are designed to excel against multiple opponents at once while providing essential support to your team. Dominate the Sword/Shield metagame with these expert-crafted setups!
HitmontopSnorlaxRibombeeCrustleCinderaceDuraludonIndeedee-FTalonflameBarraskewdaCoalossal
Item: Life Orb / Choice Band
Ability: Swift Swim
Nature: Adamant (+Atk, -SpA)
EVs: 252 Hp / 252 Atk / 4 Def
Moveset:
- Liquidation / Aqua Tail
- Ice Punch / Double-Edge
- Shadow Claw
- Brick Break / Low Sweep
For those intense double battles, Golduck is a dazzling Physical Sweeper. The main aim of this moveset is to take down the opponent's team with heavy-hitting physical power. Choice Band will increase the damage of Golduck's physical moves by 1.5x at the cost of locking you into the first move you pick. Life Orb boosts the power of Golduck's damaging moves by 1.3x but it then loses 1/10 its max HP immediately after the attack. With Swift Swim, Golduck's speed is doubled during rainy weather. Ice Punch was added to provide additional threat coverage.
◆ Aqua Tail is a physical STAB-boosted 90-base power Water-type move that deals a nice amount of damage.
◆ Ice Punch is a physical 75-base power Ice-type move (10% chance to freeze the target).
◆ Double-Edge is a physical 120-base power Normal-type move (has 33% recoil).
◆ Shadow Claw is a physical 70-base power Ghost-type move (high critical hit ratio).
◆ Brick Break is a physical 75-base power Fighting-type move (destroys screens, unless the target is immune).
◆ Low Sweep is a physical 65-base power Fighting-type move (100% chance to lower the target's speed by 1 stage).
Link (click to copy):
https://hohoushome.com/b/naa37
Item: Life Orb / Choice Specs
Ability: Swift Swim
Nature: Modest (+SpA, -Atk)
EVs: 252 Hp / 4 Def / 252 SpA
IVs: 0 Atk
Moveset:
- Surf / Scald
- Icy Wind / Ice Beam
- Psychic / Psyshock
- Hyper Beam / Round
Golduck stands out as a prestigious Special Sweeper in double battles. This approach seeks to overwhelm foes with formidable special power. Choice Specs will increase the damage of Golduck's special moves by 1.5x but will lock you into the first move you pick. Life Orb boosts the power of Golduck's damaging moves by 1.3x but it then loses 1/10 its max HP immediately after the attack. With Swift Swim, Golduck's speed is doubled during rainy weather.
◆ Scald is a special STAB-boosted 80-base power Water-type move (30% chance to burn the target. Thaws target).
◆ Icy Wind is a special 55-base power Ice-type move (100% chance to lower the foes speed by 1 stage).
◆ Ice Beam is a special 90-base power Ice-type move (10% chance to freeze the target).
◆ Psychic is a special 90-base power Psychic-type move (10% chance to lower the target's special defense by 1 stage).
◆ Psyshock is a special 80-base power Psychic-type move (damages target based on defense, not special defense).
◆ Hyper Beam is a special 150-base power Normal-type move (Golduck cannot move next turn).
◆ Round is a special 60-base power Normal-type move (power doubles if others used round this turn).
Link (click to copy):
https://hohoushome.com/b/nba37
Movepool
Want to know what moves Golduck can learn? Check out the full list of moves available in the Pokemon Sword/Shield generation.
Sort and organize the learnset by type, category, accuracy, and power. Moves in bold get the same-type attack bonus (STAB) when used by Golduck.
Damage Modifiers:
Combo List
These are a list of several common move combinations Golduck can perform in Sword/Shield. Not every combo going to be game-changing, but some can be pretty fun to play with. Sometimes these can be easily overlooked or forgotten, hence why we find and list them here. Discover what items, abilities, and moves this Pokemon can use in combination with each other to gain a strategic advantage in competitive battles.
Competitive SS Move and Ability Combos for Golduck
- Moves: Swagger + Psych up
- Moves: Swagger + Screech
- Moves: Rest + Sleep talk
- Moves: Rest + Snore
- Moves: Yawn + Protect
- Move: Swagger + Item: Mirror Herb
- Move: Fling + Item: King's Rock
- Move: Facade + Item: Flame Orb
- Move: Facade + Item: Toxic Orb
- Item: Blunder Policy + Move: Dynamic Punch
- Moves with Priority: Endure, Protect, Aqua Jet
- Moves that Break Screens: Brick Break
- Moves that inflict status: Yawn, Scald, Hypnosis, Toxic
Moves that boost Golduck's stats
- Amnesia
- Calm Mind
- Curse
- Hone Claws
- Power-Up Punch
- Skull Bash
Most notable and possible best moves for Golduck
- Aqua Jet
- Clear Smog
- Flip Turn
- Hydro Pump
- Hypnosis
- Ice Beam
- Icy Wind
- Light Screen
- Muddy Water
- Protect
- Psych Up
- Rest
- Scald
- Simple Beam
- Surf
- Toxic
- Yawn
Common Effort Values for Golduck in Sword and Shield
- Timid Nature ( 4/0/0/252/0/252 )
- Timid Nature ( 252/0/0/0/4/252 )
- Optimize Golduck's Defensive EV-spread for Pokemon Sword and Shield
Usage Data
Explore the latest analytical usage data for this Pokémon from various VGC and online competitions. We use this data to develop our strategies and movesets. The data is categorized by competition and skill level: top-ranking trainers, mid-level players, and entry-level players.
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Here are the best movesets for Golduck. Top rated Golduck Sword/Shield movesets. You can find Golduck builds Sword/Shield. Golduck movesets Sword/Shield are listed here. VGC Golduck Competitive Movesets can be found here. Find various EV spreads, find the best nature for Golduck in Sword/Shield along with competitive movesets. Basic info and Movesets for evolution