Competitive Information for Poliwrath [Sword/Shield]
Water / Fighting
Abilities:
Note: Pokemon with the Water Absorb ability are immune to Water attacks.
Movesets for Singles
What is a good competitive moveset for Poliwrath? These builds have been optimized for Pokemon competing in Sword/Shield Single Battles. The movesets and EVs have been specifically calibrated to deal the most amount of damage to the largest group of potentially common opponents and typing threats for the Sword/Shield generation metagame.
PelipperIndeedee-FHattereneTogedemaruKartanaMeowsticZapdosPolitoedDracovishDrifblim
Poliwrath is a stupendous Water and Fighting-typed Pokemon. It's pretty usual to see Poliwrath show up as a Sword/Shield opponent. Poliwrath is weak to Electric, Fairy, Flying, Grass, and Psychic-typed attacks.
Item: Sitrus Berry
Ability: Swift Swim
Nature: Adamant (+Atk, -SpA)
EVs: 252 Hp / 116 Atk / 4 Def / 4 SpD / 132 Spe
Moveset:
- Liquidation
- Drain Punch
- Belly Drum
- Protect
Physical Tank Poliwrath (Popular/Trending)
Poliwrath is pretty popular Physical Tank for single battles. It tries to take a substantial amount of physical hits while dealing some decent damage. The Sitrus Berry will restore 1/4th of Poliwrath's max HP when it reaches below half health and gets consumed. With Swift Swim, Poliwrath's speed is doubled during rainy weather.
◆ Drain Punch is a physical STAB-boosted 75-base power Fighting-type move (Poliwrath recovers 50% of the damage dealt).
◆ Belly Drum is a status move (Poliwrath loses 50% max hp; This also maximizes Poliwrath's attack stat).
◆ Protect is a status move (prevents moves from affecting your Poliwrath this turn).
Link (click to copy):
https://hohoushome.com/b/is10a3e
Item: Eject Pack / Choice Band
Ability: Swift Swim
Nature: Adamant (+Atk, -SpA)
EVs: 252 Hp / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Moveset:
- Close Combat / Brick Break
- Liquidation / Waterfall
- Darkest Lariat / Double-Edge
- Earthquake / High Horsepower
Physical Sweeper Poliwrath (Swift Swim)
Poliwrath is an interesting Physical Sweeper for single battles. The purpose of this moveset is to take down the opponent's team with brute physical power. Choice Band will increase the damage of Poliwrath's physical moves by 1.5x at the cost of locking you into the first move you pick. With Swift Swim, Poliwrath's speed is doubled during rainy weather. Darkest Lariat was added to provide additional threat coverage. With a Eject Pack equipped to it, if Poliwrath's stat stages are lowered, it switches to a chosen ally then the Eject Pack gets consumed.
◆ Brick Break is a physical STAB-boosted 75-base power Fighting-type move (destroys screens, unless the target is immune).
◆ Liquidation is a physical STAB-boosted 85-base power Water-type move (20% chance to lower the target's defense by 1 stage).
◆ Waterfall is a physical STAB-boosted 80-base power Water-type move (20% chance to make the target flinch).
◆ Darkest Lariat is a physical 85-base power Dark-type move (ignores the target's stat stage changes).
◆ Double-Edge is a physical 120-base power Normal-type move (has 33% recoil).
◆ Earthquake is a physical 100-base power Ground-type move (hits adjacent pokemon).
◆ High Horsepower is a physical 95-base power Ground-type move that deals a large amount of damage.
Link (click to copy):
https://hohoushome.com/b/is11a3e
Item: Leftovers
Ability: Water Absorb
Nature: Careful (+SpD, -SpA)
EVs: 252 Hp / 4 Atk / 252 SpD
Moveset:
- Bulk Up
- Sleep Talk
- Rest
- Waterfall
Poliwrath Special Wall (This Is A Brain On Drugs)
Poliwrath is a notable Special Wall for single battles. It was designed to take a substantial amount of hits from special attacks while dealing some decent damage. Leftovers are always a great recovery option to ensure Poliwrath last longer regaining it's health points every turn. With Water Absorb, Poliwrath heals 1/4 of its max hp when hit by water moves; water immunity.
◆ Sleep Talk is a status move (Poliwrath must be asleep. Uses another known move).
◆ Rest is a status move (Poliwrath sleeps 2 turns and restores hp and status).
◆ Waterfall is a physical STAB-boosted 80-base power Water-type move (20% chance to make the target flinch).
Link (click to copy):
https://hohoushome.com/b/is12a3e
Movesets for Doubles
What is a good doubles moveset for Poliwrath? These builds have been optimized for Sword/Shield Double Battles. They have movesets and EVs specifically calibrated to generally work best versus multiple Pokemon at once as well as helping to support other team members and allys in the Sword/Shield generation metagame.
PelipperIndeedee-FHattereneTogedemaruKartanaMeowsticZapdosPolitoedDracovishDrifblim
Item: Eject Pack / Choice Band
Ability: Swift Swim
Nature: Adamant (+Atk, -SpA)
EVs: 252 Hp / 252 Atk / 4 SpD
Moveset:
- Close Combat / Brick Break
- Earthquake / High Horsepower
- Rock Slide
- Liquidation / Waterfall
Doubles Physical Sweeper Poliwrath (Swift Swim)
Poliwrath is pretty popular Physical Sweeper for double battles. It's primary goal is to take down the opponent's team with brute physical power. Choice Band will increase the damage of Poliwrath's physical moves by 1.5x at the cost of locking you into the first move you pick. With Swift Swim, Poliwrath's speed is doubled during rainy weather. With a Eject Pack equipped to it, if Poliwrath's stat stages are lowered, it switches to a chosen ally then the Eject Pack gets consumed.
◆ Brick Break is a physical STAB-boosted 75-base power Fighting-type move (destroys screens, unless the target is immune).
◆ Earthquake is a physical 100-base power Ground-type move (hits adjacent pokemon).
◆ High Horsepower is a physical 95-base power Ground-type move that deals a great amount of damage.
◆ Rock Slide is a physical 75-base power Rock-type move (30% chance to make the foes flinch).
◆ Liquidation is a physical STAB-boosted 85-base power Water-type move (20% chance to lower the target's defense by 1 stage).
◆ Waterfall is a physical STAB-boosted 80-base power Water-type move (20% chance to make the target flinch).
Link (click to copy):
https://hohoushome.com/b/id10a3e
Movepool
Wondering what moves can Poliwrath learn? Here is the list of moves this Pokemon can learn in this selected generation.
Sort and organize the learnset by move type, category, accuracy, and power. Bolded moves will gain the same-type attack bonus (STAB) if this Pokemon uses them.
Damage Modifiers:
Combo List
These are a list of several common move combinations Poliwrath 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 Poliwrath
- Moves: Belly drum + Rest
- Moves: Endure + Reversal
- Moves: Endure + Endeavor
- Moves: Rest + Sleep talk
- Moves: Rest + Snore
- Moves: Substitute + Drain punch
- Moves: Substitute + Reversal
- Move: Swagger + Item: Mirror Herb
- Move: Fling + Item: King's Rock
- Move: Facade + Item: Flame Orb
- Move: Facade + Item: Toxic Orb
- Move: Endeavor + Item: Focus Sash
- OHKO Combo - Moves: Mind Reader + Fissure
- Item: Blunder Policy + Move: Dynamic Punch
- Moves with Priority: Detect, Endure, Protect, Helping Hand, Vacuum Wave
- Moves that Break Screens: Brick Break
- Moves that inflict status: Toxic, Hypnosis, Scald
Moves that boost Poliwrath's stats
- Amnesia
- Belly Drum
- Bulk Up
- Curse
- Defense Curl
- Power-Up Punch
- Skull Bash
- Work Up
Most notable and possible best moves for Poliwrath
- Belly Drum
- Drain Punch
- Earthquake
- Hydro Pump
- Ice Beam
- Liquidation
- Protect
- Rest
- Scald
- Toxic
Common Effort Values for Poliwrath in Sword and Shield
- Adamant Nature ( 252/116/4/0/4/132 )
- Adamant Nature ( 0/252/0/0/4/252 )
- Optimize Poliwrath's EV spread for Pokemon Sword and Shield
Related Videos
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Here are the best movesets for Poliwrath. Top rated Poliwrath Sword/Shield movesets. You can find Poliwrath builds Sword/Shield. Poliwrath movesets Sword/Shield are listed here. VGC Poliwrath Competitive Movesets can be found here. Find various EV spreads, find the best nature for Poliwrath in Sword/Shield along with competitive movesets. Basic info and Movesets for evolution