Swampert is a great addition to any team due to its excellent resistances and lone weakness to Grass-type attacks. Its Rock resistance and Electric immunity make it an excellent Pokemon to switch into the likes of Tyranitar, Jolteon, etc. This essential Rock resistance gives Swampert the amazing luxury of switching in and out fairly easily. Sandstorm immunity also gives it yet another advantage over opposing leads and walls.
Additionally, Swampert has amazing bulk, with which it can take multiple hits and fight back with a great movepool. Survivability is a great asset when you think about who you want setting up rocks, more specifically when they have an annoying spinner. Currently, the leads in the metagame that you normally see are Heatran, Metagross, Tyranitar, etc., all of which you can easily dismantle and thus set up Stealth Rock. Through and through, Swampert can fit into any team, whether to setup Stealth Rock or sweep the opposing competition with ease.
Swampert’s Stats
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Support Pert
Swampert @ Leftovers
Relaxed Nature
EVs: 252 HP / 252 Def / 4 Spe
Ability: Torrent
- Earthquake
- Ice Beam
- Stealth Rock
- Hydro Pump / Surf / Roar
Swampert is blessed with great all-around stats and this set attempts to take advantage of nearly all of them. Swampert is one of the best Pokemon to set up Stealth Rock because of its ability to absorb attacks and deliver them back if needed. Earthquake gives Swampert its most powerful attack, coming from its superior attacking stat. Ice Beam, in conjunction with Earthquake, forms an exceptional attacking duo, with Bronzong and Shedinja being the only Pokemon able to resist the combo. The final slot is up to the user. Hydro Pump has the power to 2HKO Skarmory, which Surf fails to do. With Surf, Swampert gains another solid STABed attack and only the rare Shedinja can resist Water/Ground/Ice. Roar is useful to shuffling through your opponent’s team and preventing dangerous Pokemon from setting up, notably Gyarados and Salamence.
Curse Pert
Swampert @ Leftovers
Careful Nature
EVs: 252 HP / 64 Def / 192 SpD
Ability: Torrent
- Waterfall
- Curse
- Rest
- Sleep Talk
With Swampert’s defensive prowess, the Curse set takes full advantage of Swampert’s ability. This set functions like the infamous Curselax set, except Swampert has only one weakness that is fairly rare. Grass-type attacks are easy to cover, making it ideal for this role. After a single Curse, your opponent is probably praying that they have something with a Grass-type attack, otherwise your opponent is in a world of trouble. Waterfall is the preferred attack because, unlike Earthquake, Waterfall only has one single immunity in OU. If you feel Earthquake is worth not being able to attack during Rest, then Earthquake will fit nicely over Sleep Talk. The EVs are geared towards taking special attacks, as Curse will boost Swampert’s Defense.
Choice Band
Swampert @ Choice Band
Adamant Nature
EVs: 252 HP / 248 Atk / 8 Spe
Ability: Torrent
- Earthquake
- Waterfall
- Stone Edge
- Ice Punch
The Choice Bander takes advantage of Swampert’s largest, and at times forgotten, stat: its base 110 Attack. Swampert also has solid defenses and a powerful STAB combination, definitely making the Band set a viable and underrated option. Earthquake and Waterfall are the heart of the set, with Waterfall being a very good option as physical Water attacks hit many physical walls for super effective damage (Hippowdon and Gliscor notable). Stone Edge gives Swampert an option against fliers and it also will OHKO Zapdos and LO Gyarados if Stealth Rock has been laid on the field. Ice Punch gives Swampert an option against Celebi, doing 41% minimum, and hits Tangrowth hard as well. The EVs are fairly straightforward; maxing out HP gives Swampert some survivability. The Speed EVs allow Swampert to outspeed minimum Speed Tyranitar and other base 60 Pokemon, and the remaining EVs are placed into Attack to make Swampert as strong as possible.
Other Options
As with most Water Pokemon, Hydro Pump is an option on any set that is running Surf if you opt for power over consistency. Hidden Power Electric is useful on the Support set against the powerful Gyarados, as Swampert has limited ways of dealing with Gyarados. The problem is that even with Gyarados’s massive weakness to Electric-type attacks, it will still take two attacks to bring it down. Mirror Coat is an interesting option, as Swampert is usually the target of many special attacks and Swampert even has enough Special Defense to survive Hidden Power Grass from many Pokemon. Arm Hammer and Focus Punch give Swampert a powerful Fighting-type attack, but there is little that Swampert would need it for other than making Blissey and Snorlax greatly afraid of Swampert and both should already be wary of Swampert. If you can find room for Toxic, then it could cripple a Pokemon that is reliant on staying healthy like Vaporeon or Zapdos.
Counters
Celebi and its Grass-type friends lead the list of counters against Swampert as their STABed Grass attacks make Swampert tuck tail and run. Much like all of the Grass Pokemon, Water Pokemon in general counter Swampert pretty well with their STABed Surfs, as Swampert is usually geared to take physical attacks, especially the ones that usually carry a move to heal themselves (Starmie, Vaporeon, Suicune, Slowbro, etc.). Zapdos, with its Ground immunity, is also another solid counter if it is running Hidden Power Grass over Hidden Power Ice, even though Zapdos does need to be careful around the CB set.