[OVERVIEW]
Fairy
========
Thanks to Huge Power and Belly Drum boosting its Attack to monstrous levels, Azumarill is the best physical sweeper available to Fairy teams. While its Speed is unspectacular, Azumarill's access to Aqua Jet lets it bypass this and take out most offensive Pokemon that don't resist Water after setting up. Azumarill also has rare access to Knock Off, allowing it to take out Psychic-types like Latios and Slowbro easily and bring much-needed utility to the team by removing Eviolite from Chansey and Porygon2. To support the team, it has quite good bulk, and its Water typing gives it rare resistances to Water, Fire, and Ice and a neutrality to Steel, which also make it quite easy for it to set up safely. However, while Aqua Jet does mitigate its poor Speed somewhat, Azumarill tends to have quite a lot of trouble with faster physical walls such as Mandibuzz and Mega Venusaur, which can outspeed and OHKO it after Belly Drum with Foul Play and Sludge Bomb, respectively. Furthermore, Azumarill lacks coverage and also doesn't have much damage output before it sets up, meaning it's predictably reliant on Belly Drum before it can be a threat. Nevertheless, with the right team support, it reliably sets up and sweeps and is a very potent threat to offense teams.
[SET]
name: Belly Drum (Fairy)
move 1: Belly Drum
move 2: Aqua Jet
move 3: Play Rough
move 4: Knock Off
item: Normalium Z
ability: Huge Power
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Belly Drum boosts Azumarill's damage output significantly, allowing it to sweep weakened teams and break almost any physical wall. Z-Belly Drum restores Azumarill's HP before halving it and cannot be prevented by Taunt, which guarantees that Azumarill will be at +6 Attack with 51% HP. Aqua Jet is used to allow Azumarill to beat faster Pokemon after Belly Drum and patch up its poor Speed. For slower targets, Play Rough is Azumarill's strongest move and allows it to OHKO almost any target that doesn't resist it after Belly Drum. Knock Off gives Azumarill utility before it sets up by removing key items such as Eviolite from Chansey and Porygon2. It also has great coverage and breaks defensive threats that resist Fairy, such as Toxapex, Celesteela, and Skarmory.
Set Details
========
Maximum Attack investment makes Azumarill as strong as possible, and maximum Speed investment makes sure Azumarill can at least Speed tie with opposing Azumarill while outspeeding defensive Mega Scizor and Skarmory. The remaining 4 Special Defense EVs are used to give Download users a useless Attack boost. Normalium Z allows Azumarill to use Z-Belly Drum for reliability. However, Sitrus Berry is an option if a teammate is using a Z-Move to still give Azumarill some healing after Belly Drum. With Sitrus Berry, Azumarill should move 4 of the Attack EVs to HP in order to have an even HP value, which makes Azumarill eat Sitrus Berry immediately after using Belly Drum.
Usage Tips
========
Azumarill should almost always wait until all of its checks have been appropriately weakened before setting up, as Belly Drum's HP penalty means it rarely has the opportunity to set up more than once. After setting up, Aqua Jet is often the move of choice to take out Pokemon that would otherwise revenge kill Azumarill. However, if Azumarill can safely use Belly Drum without taking damage, it can potentially use Z-Belly Drum to heal and set up a second time later. Because Z-Belly Drum almost guarantees activation as long as Azumarill survives to use it, having Reflect and Light Screen up to support Azumarill is essential to increasing the number of situations in which it can sweep. However, Z-Belly Drum leaves Azumarill at only half HP, so slower Pokemon can potentially KO Azumarill as it is setting up. When not sweeping, Azumarill should try to avoid taking any damage and focus on only revenge killing with Aqua Jet or removing checks' items with Knock Off. That being said, be aware that Knock Off may actually make a future sweep more difficult if the damage boost is necessary to OHKO threats, which is the case with Pokemon such as Toxapex and Skarmory. Azumarill should also avoid being hit by status, as burns cripple it completely, Toxic poison wears it down very quickly, and paralysis can be very inconvenient at the wrong time. This is especially important when using Sitrus Berry, as Azumarill cannot guarantee the activation of Belly Drum and should almost completely avoid use until it's ready to sweep.
Team Options
========
Klefki is Azumarill's best teammate, as it uses Reflect and Light Screen to improve Azumarill's survivability and help it sweep more easily. It can also set Spikes to remove Focus Sash and Sturdy from Pokemon like Galvantula and Forretress while also providing chip damage on bulkier Pokemon like Toxapex. Clefable's access to Stealth Rock to wear down threats in a similar fashion and break Skarmory's Sturdy makes it a good utility option. It can also serve as a stallbreaker to take on Pokemon like Skarmory and Ferrothorn. Tapu Koko is a great wallbreaker that takes out most physical walls that Azumarill might have trouble with including Skarmory and Mega Slowbro, and it lures in special walls that it can Volt Switch out of and into Azumarill to set up on. Tapu Koko also outspeeds and KOes most Water-types that can take an Aqua Jet like Keldeo. Providing another fantastic wallbreaker that can take out Mega Slowbro, Tapu Bulu also checks Electric-types and easily takes out most Water-immune Pokemon including Mantine and Seismitoad, both of which can check Azumarill quite easily. Magearna is a powerful pivot that can wallbreak and use Volt Switch to support Azumarill. In return, Azumarill checks most Fire-types and can beat special walls for Magearna. Togekiss can use Air Slash to check Mega Venusaur and Trick to check walls. Azumarill in return beats many of the specially bulky Pokemon that can wall Togekiss, such as Heatran and Chansey. While Tapu Fini's typing is defensively redundant, it is a great stallbreaker and can set Misty Terrain to keep Azumarill from taking status.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Fairy
--------
Choice Band can be used to give Azumarill immediate power and wallbreaking presence. However, Fairy teams often have another physical wallbreaker and prefer having the reliable sweeping of Z-Belly Drum. Superpower can be used on either a wallbreaker or a sweeper set to let Azumarill deal more damage to Steel-types such as Mega Scizor. However, with Belly Drum sets, Knock Off tends to deal more than enough damage at +6 and doesn't lower Azumarill's Attack and Defense.
Checks and Counters
===================
Fairy
--------
**Mega Venusaur**: Mega Venusaur is the most reliable Azumarill counter because it outspeeds Azumarill and a +6 Azumarill still deals almost no damage with Aqua Jet. Its Giga Drain can OHKO Azumarill after Z-Belly Drum and heal all the damage a +6 Aqua Jet could do.
**Water-immune Pokemon**: Volcanion, Seismitoad, and Mantine are all immune to Aqua Jet and can be EVed to be faster than Azumarill. The first two can OHKO Azumarill with Sludge Wave after it uses Belly Drum, while Mantine can safely Haze and remove its boosts.
**Unaware**: While relatively uncommon, both Unaware Quagsire and Clefable completely counter Azumarill, as they ignore Azumarill's Attack boosts, don't take much from Play Rough, and can stall Azumarill out with their recovery and attacks.
**Phazers**: Skarmory and Avalugg can take any one hit with the help of Sturdy and phaze Azumarill with Whirlwind and Roar, respectively. Red Card Mimikyu is a rare but dangerous threat that can not only force Azumarill out but even set up freely as it does so.
**Faster Pokemon**: Faster Pokemon that can survive a +6 Aqua Jet, such as Latios and Keldeo, are relatively good checks. Even bulkier Pokemon can check it when given the opportunity; Mandibuzz and Rotom-W, for example, can easily OHKO Azumarill with Foul Play and Volt Switch after it sets up. Powerful attackers such as Tapu Koko and Mega Medicham can prevent Azumarill from setting up altogether by threatening to OHKO it.
**Chip Damage**: While Z-Belly Drum can remove any damage taken prior to setting up, Azumarill is still very vulnerable to being worn down. Toxic poison from Chansey will take Azumarill very quickly and Will-O-Wisp from Pokemon like Mew can outright end its sweep. Residual damage from entry hazards, sandstorm and hail, Iron Barbs, Rough Skin, and Rocky Helmet can also quickly put Azumarill into range of priority moves as well.
Fairy
========
Thanks to Huge Power and Belly Drum boosting its Attack to monstrous levels, Azumarill is the best physical sweeper available to Fairy teams. While its Speed is unspectacular, Azumarill's access to Aqua Jet lets it bypass this and take out most offensive Pokemon that don't resist Water after setting up. Azumarill also has rare access to Knock Off, allowing it to take out Psychic-types like Latios and Slowbro easily and bring much-needed utility to the team by removing Eviolite from Chansey and Porygon2. To support the team, it has quite good bulk, and its Water typing gives it rare resistances to Water, Fire, and Ice and a neutrality to Steel, which also make it quite easy for it to set up safely. However, while Aqua Jet does mitigate its poor Speed somewhat, Azumarill tends to have quite a lot of trouble with faster physical walls such as Mandibuzz and Mega Venusaur, which can outspeed and OHKO it after Belly Drum with Foul Play and Sludge Bomb, respectively. Furthermore, Azumarill lacks coverage and also doesn't have much damage output before it sets up, meaning it's predictably reliant on Belly Drum before it can be a threat. Nevertheless, with the right team support, it reliably sets up and sweeps and is a very potent threat to offense teams.
[SET]
name: Belly Drum (Fairy)
move 1: Belly Drum
move 2: Aqua Jet
move 3: Play Rough
move 4: Knock Off
item: Normalium Z
ability: Huge Power
nature: Adamant
evs: 252 Atk / 4 SpD / 252 Spe
[SET COMMENTS]
Moves
========
Belly Drum boosts Azumarill's damage output significantly, allowing it to sweep weakened teams and break almost any physical wall. Z-Belly Drum restores Azumarill's HP before halving it and cannot be prevented by Taunt, which guarantees that Azumarill will be at +6 Attack with 51% HP. Aqua Jet is used to allow Azumarill to beat faster Pokemon after Belly Drum and patch up its poor Speed. For slower targets, Play Rough is Azumarill's strongest move and allows it to OHKO almost any target that doesn't resist it after Belly Drum. Knock Off gives Azumarill utility before it sets up by removing key items such as Eviolite from Chansey and Porygon2. It also has great coverage and breaks defensive threats that resist Fairy, such as Toxapex, Celesteela, and Skarmory.
Set Details
========
Maximum Attack investment makes Azumarill as strong as possible, and maximum Speed investment makes sure Azumarill can at least Speed tie with opposing Azumarill while outspeeding defensive Mega Scizor and Skarmory. The remaining 4 Special Defense EVs are used to give Download users a useless Attack boost. Normalium Z allows Azumarill to use Z-Belly Drum for reliability. However, Sitrus Berry is an option if a teammate is using a Z-Move to still give Azumarill some healing after Belly Drum. With Sitrus Berry, Azumarill should move 4 of the Attack EVs to HP in order to have an even HP value, which makes Azumarill eat Sitrus Berry immediately after using Belly Drum.
Usage Tips
========
Azumarill should almost always wait until all of its checks have been appropriately weakened before setting up, as Belly Drum's HP penalty means it rarely has the opportunity to set up more than once. After setting up, Aqua Jet is often the move of choice to take out Pokemon that would otherwise revenge kill Azumarill. However, if Azumarill can safely use Belly Drum without taking damage, it can potentially use Z-Belly Drum to heal and set up a second time later. Because Z-Belly Drum almost guarantees activation as long as Azumarill survives to use it, having Reflect and Light Screen up to support Azumarill is essential to increasing the number of situations in which it can sweep. However, Z-Belly Drum leaves Azumarill at only half HP, so slower Pokemon can potentially KO Azumarill as it is setting up. When not sweeping, Azumarill should try to avoid taking any damage and focus on only revenge killing with Aqua Jet or removing checks' items with Knock Off. That being said, be aware that Knock Off may actually make a future sweep more difficult if the damage boost is necessary to OHKO threats, which is the case with Pokemon such as Toxapex and Skarmory. Azumarill should also avoid being hit by status, as burns cripple it completely, Toxic poison wears it down very quickly, and paralysis can be very inconvenient at the wrong time. This is especially important when using Sitrus Berry, as Azumarill cannot guarantee the activation of Belly Drum and should almost completely avoid use until it's ready to sweep.
Team Options
========
Klefki is Azumarill's best teammate, as it uses Reflect and Light Screen to improve Azumarill's survivability and help it sweep more easily. It can also set Spikes to remove Focus Sash and Sturdy from Pokemon like Galvantula and Forretress while also providing chip damage on bulkier Pokemon like Toxapex. Clefable's access to Stealth Rock to wear down threats in a similar fashion and break Skarmory's Sturdy makes it a good utility option. It can also serve as a stallbreaker to take on Pokemon like Skarmory and Ferrothorn. Tapu Koko is a great wallbreaker that takes out most physical walls that Azumarill might have trouble with including Skarmory and Mega Slowbro, and it lures in special walls that it can Volt Switch out of and into Azumarill to set up on. Tapu Koko also outspeeds and KOes most Water-types that can take an Aqua Jet like Keldeo. Providing another fantastic wallbreaker that can take out Mega Slowbro, Tapu Bulu also checks Electric-types and easily takes out most Water-immune Pokemon including Mantine and Seismitoad, both of which can check Azumarill quite easily. Magearna is a powerful pivot that can wallbreak and use Volt Switch to support Azumarill. In return, Azumarill checks most Fire-types and can beat special walls for Magearna. Togekiss can use Air Slash to check Mega Venusaur and Trick to check walls. Azumarill in return beats many of the specially bulky Pokemon that can wall Togekiss, such as Heatran and Chansey. While Tapu Fini's typing is defensively redundant, it is a great stallbreaker and can set Misty Terrain to keep Azumarill from taking status.
[STRATEGY COMMENTS]
Other Options
=============
Fairy
--------
Choice Band can be used to give Azumarill immediate power and wallbreaking presence. However, Fairy teams often have another physical wallbreaker and prefer having the reliable sweeping of Z-Belly Drum. Superpower can be used on either a wallbreaker or a sweeper set to let Azumarill deal more damage to Steel-types such as Mega Scizor. However, with Belly Drum sets, Knock Off tends to deal more than enough damage at +6 and doesn't lower Azumarill's Attack and Defense.
Checks and Counters
===================
Fairy
--------
**Mega Venusaur**: Mega Venusaur is the most reliable Azumarill counter because it outspeeds Azumarill and a +6 Azumarill still deals almost no damage with Aqua Jet. Its Giga Drain can OHKO Azumarill after Z-Belly Drum and heal all the damage a +6 Aqua Jet could do.
**Water-immune Pokemon**: Volcanion, Seismitoad, and Mantine are all immune to Aqua Jet and can be EVed to be faster than Azumarill. The first two can OHKO Azumarill with Sludge Wave after it uses Belly Drum, while Mantine can safely Haze and remove its boosts.
**Unaware**: While relatively uncommon, both Unaware Quagsire and Clefable completely counter Azumarill, as they ignore Azumarill's Attack boosts, don't take much from Play Rough, and can stall Azumarill out with their recovery and attacks.
**Phazers**: Skarmory and Avalugg can take any one hit with the help of Sturdy and phaze Azumarill with Whirlwind and Roar, respectively. Red Card Mimikyu is a rare but dangerous threat that can not only force Azumarill out but even set up freely as it does so.
**Faster Pokemon**: Faster Pokemon that can survive a +6 Aqua Jet, such as Latios and Keldeo, are relatively good checks. Even bulkier Pokemon can check it when given the opportunity; Mandibuzz and Rotom-W, for example, can easily OHKO Azumarill with Foul Play and Volt Switch after it sets up. Powerful attackers such as Tapu Koko and Mega Medicham can prevent Azumarill from setting up altogether by threatening to OHKO it.
**Chip Damage**: While Z-Belly Drum can remove any damage taken prior to setting up, Azumarill is still very vulnerable to being worn down. Toxic poison from Chansey will take Azumarill very quickly and Will-O-Wisp from Pokemon like Mew can outright end its sweep. Residual damage from entry hazards, sandstorm and hail, Iron Barbs, Rough Skin, and Rocky Helmet can also quickly put Azumarill into range of priority moves as well.
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