Summary

Swampert exists as one of the most controversial and divisive top tier Pokemon in the ADV draft community. In OU, Swampert makes a name for itself as an outstanding defensive backbone and blanket counter to most physical threats not named Snorlax, with an extremely high degree of set variety to keep opposing teams on their toes until Swampert’s set is revealed. In a draft setting however, the fact that your opponent knows the exact Pokemon you have at your disposal in advance makes Swampert’s crippling 4x grass weakness even more fatal than it already was. Dragon Dance Tyranitar with Hidden Power Grass is a fringe set in OU, but becomes very likely when you bring Swampert as your sole rock resist. It goes beyond physical threats as well -- in OU it is often possible to scout which Hidden Power coverage (usually either Grass or Ice) is being run by Electric types such as Zapdos, Raikou, and Jolteon. In draft, however, these Pokemon know in advance that Swampert exists as an electric immune threat, and will almost always bring Hidden Power Grass as a result. This is a very clear nerf to Swampert in a draft environment, however, it is definitely possible to cover up these flaws in a way that allows for Swampert to become an incredibly valuable member to a lineup.

Swampert has extremely high stats, a base HP of 100 a strong Attack stat of 110, and a very reasonable Special Attack stat of 85. It's defensive stats shine as well, with a stat of 90 on both ends. Its only flaw is its paltry 60 Speed stat. These stats are very strong (the highest of any starter pokemon ever made), and when combined with its outstanding defensive typing they allow for Swampert to maintain a defensive presence even without investing any EVs into bulk (though this is still recommended). This typing and stats are very strong against the tier's strongest threats, such as Aerodactyl, Skarmory, Metagross, Tyranitar, Raikou, Zapdos, and Snorlax. It is able to guarantee a trade with all of these Pokemon, and can beat many of these pokemon depending on various techs or specific teammate prep forcing. Swampert also has an incredible movepool, with strong STAB options such as Surf, Hydro Pump, and Earthquake, and great coverage in Ice Beam and Rock Slide. Various moves like Counter, Endeavor, Focus Punch, Curse, Refresh, Roar, and Toxic have all seen success on the pokemon. The popular MonoPert set from OU (Surf, Toxic, Refresh, Protect) is one of the only "true" stall sets that Swampert can run, and it can be very difficult for your opponent to break once you have removed their Swampert checks.

As stated earlier, Swampert has to dodge Hidden Power Grass coverage from many Pokemon that it would otherwise have an overwhelming advantage over, but you are very capable of drafting in such a way that makes it difficult for your opponent to take advantage of this. For example, Skarmory is a great partner for Swampert because Skarmory and Swampert on their own both serve as an excellent physical wall that requires a backup wall in order to be effectively threatening. Beyond this though, Swampert is weak to Grass and cannot take repeated Normal or Ground type attacks, but is immune to Electric and resists Fire -- and Skarmory is weak to Electric and Fire, but is immune to Ground and resists Normal and Grass. These two synergize in a way where they can abuse the fact that they check each other's "obvious" counterplay. Outside of Skarmory, good partners for Swampert include those that can divide Hidden Power usage, such as Forretress, Flygon, and Tyranitar. The three aforementioned partners are also immune to sand, which helps both with and against Tyranitar.

Swampert, however, has two very notable weaknesses. The first, the most glaringly obvious, is its 4x weakness to Grass. Fortunately, Giga Drain and Magical Leaf are the only Grass-type moves that are not Hidden Power and both have very poor distribution. Hidden Power Grass, unluckily, is extremely spammable into Ground and Water types in general, often leaving Swampert as collateral damage. The second, despite its large movepool, is its lack of reliable recovery. Swampert is missing out on the HP recovery tools such as Recover or Wish held by many of its other bulky Water cousins (most notably Milotic, Starmie, and Vaporeon), and is forced to run Rest or Protect in order to achieve any long term healing. This causes Swampert to be quickly be worn down or be forced to rely on Leftovers + Protect to get more than a handful of health every turn. In turn, this makes Swampert weak to Spikes as it cannot reliably heal off the damage.

In closing, Swampert is slow and has a 4x weakness -- a fatal flaw on many other Pokemon. However, Swampert has enough tricks and base stats up its sleeve to overcome this as long as he has friends that can patch up his weaknesses. In this way, Swampert teaches us a little bit about Pokemon draft theory, but I believe he also teaches us just as much about ourselves. Maybe the real Grass resists are the friends we made along the way? Much to think about. Thank you, Swampert.

Summary written by WraxiusGaming and Forte

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