Dewgong Movesets & Competitive Sets

Moves Toxic allows Dewgong to weaken bulky walls such as Grumpig. Protect allows Dewgong to stall with Toxic and Perish Song and gives it passive recovery. Surf prevents Dewgong from being complete Taunt bait and hits Fire-, Ground-, and Rock-types such as Ninetales, Hippopotas, and Golem super effectively. Ice Beam is an option over Surf that hits Grass-types such as Tangela and Gourgeist-XL super effectively. Perish Song allows Dewgong to force out setup sweepers that it cannot touch with Toxic, such as Clefairy and Duosion. Encore allows Dewgong to lock the foe into an unfavorable move. Set Details This EV spread and a Calm nature maximize Dewgong's special bulk and allow it to take special hits as well as possible from Pokemon such as Simipour and Kadabra. Thick Fat allows Dewgong to blanket check Fire- and Ice-types such as Ninetales and Glaceon. Leftovers provides passive recovery, as Dewgong lacks a reliable recovery move outside of Rest. Usage Tips Dewgong should try not to switch in when Stealth Rock is up, as it loses quite a bit of health, and should avoid switching on status moves such as Toxic and Will-O-Wisp, as they easily wear it down because of its lack of reliable recovery. Dewgong should try to switch in on predicted Fire-type and Ice-type attacks, but it should be wary of coverage moves such as Ninetales's Energy Ball. Dewgong's aim is to spread status to walls such as Grumpig with Toxic. Dewgong should also force out setup sweepers such as Clefairy and Duosion with Perish Song, which should be used in conjunction with Protect. Stalling foes with Protect and Toxic damage is also recommended, as this is Dewgong's only way of doing decent damage, and it can gain Leftovers recovery as well. Team Options Dewgong only fits on defensive teams because of its passive nature and ability to tank hits. Users of Defog and Rapid Spin such as Vibrava, Vullaby, and Armaldo are recommended in order to remove entry hazards such as Stealth Rock from the field and allow Dewgong to stay as healthy as possible. They can also switch in on Grass-type attacks for Dewgong. Ground-types such as Stunfisk and Camerupt are good teammates, as they can handle Electric-type Pokemon such as Raichu for Dewgong and provide Stealth Rock support. Clerics such as Audino are able to provide Wish support and cure status such as poison and burns with Heal Bell. Grass-types such as Roselia and Tangela can take on Rock-types for Dewgong and can act as solid switch-ins for Electric-type attacks. Physically defensive Pokemon, such as Relicanth and Gourgeist-XL, are able to take physical hits for Dewgong, while Dewgong can take special hits.

Perish Song is Dewgong's only saving grace, as it lets Dewgong defeat common Pokemon that are not affected by Toxic, such as Duosion and Heal Bell Musharna. Toxic is an essential move which deals damage to the opponent every turn. Thick Fat grants Dewgong very useful type resistances to Fire and Ice, allowing it to take hits from powerful Fire-type attacks such as a Fire Blast from Choice Specs Charizard. However, Dewgong is hampered by its lack of reliable recovery, severely dampening its viability in the tier. Thankfully, Protect lets Dewgong gain extra Leftovers recovery, somewhat compensating for the lack of reliable recovery. It is also good for scouting and stalling out the opponent with Toxic. Ice Beam and Surf are obvious attacking moves that damage the opponent, with both getting a STAB boost. Ice Beam is is chosen as the main offensive move as it is able to hit most Poison-types hard, especially Grass / Poison Pokemon. Surf provides helpful coverage against Steel-types who are also immune to Toxic. Encore is a good move that can be used—it sets Dewgong apart from the rest—being able to lock the opponent into a move and provide free switch-in opportunities for teammates. Toxic Spikes support is recommended to start the stalling immediately when the opponent switches in, as opposed to having Dewgong leave itself vulnerable that turn when using Toxic. Roselia and Garbodor are great Toxic Spikes users that support Dewgong, as they both resist the Grass-type attacks that Dewgong dislikes and can also force those Grass-types out. Torterra is a great partner for Dewgong as it resists Rock-type moves, has access to Stealth Rock, can easily prevent Seismitoad or Golem from setting up Stealth Rock by using Bullet Seed, and is immune to Electric-type moves, thus having wonderful synergy with Dewgong. Meanwhile, Dewgong can easily handle the Ice-type attacks aimed at Torterra. Sawk is also a good partner for Dewgong as it can easily prevent Stealth Rock with Mold Breaker and beat Rock-type Pokemon for Dewgong. Rapid Spin support is vital for Dewgong to function. Torkoal is the best spinner to pair with Dewgong as it resists Grass-type moves, can spin away entry hazards and set up its own, and can beat Steel-types for Dewgong as well.

This set is based around utilizing Dewgong's ability, Hydration. After Rain Dance is set up, Rest becomes a means of recovery that is both instantaneous and reliable. STAB Surf in the rain will hit any Pokemon that does not resist it for significant damage. Ice Beam is Dewgong's secondary STAB move, which, when paired with Surf, provides excellent all-around coverage. Toxic is a useful option to consider, depending on the rest of your team; it can cripple bulky walls such as Milotic and Chansey, forcing them to either switch out or die, which can be an effective way to rack up damage if entry hazards are present. 96 Speed EVs guarantee that Dewgong will outspeed notable threats such as max Speed Aggron and Rock Polish Torterra before the boost. 252 HP EVs give Dewgong as much bulk as possible, while the remaining EVs are dumped into Special Attack to give Dewgong some much needed offensive firepower. Unfortunately, since there aren't any Pokemon in the UU metagame that can set up permanent rain, Dewgong is left to perform that task for itself. Damp Rock should always be Dewgong's primary item choice, as it grants three very much appreciated additional turns of rain. However, if you have other Pokemon to set up rain on the team, then Leftovers is a good alternative. Since Dewgong is doubling as a tank and Rain Dance supporting Pokemon, the best teammates are those that can really put the rain to use. Thanks to Dewgong's bulk, it can take a hit or two, set up rain, and let teammates such as Kabutops and Ludicolo wreak havoc. Other teammates to consider are those with weaknesses to Fire-type attacks that appreciate the rain to reduce that damage, such as Venusaur and Leafeon. Because of Dewgong's Ice typing, it picks up weaknesses to Rock- and Fighting-type attacks that teammates will have to address. Donphan makes a great partner because it can take Rock- and Electric-type attacks with ease, and it has massive physical bulk to take a few hits from powerful Fighting-type Pokemon if absolutely necessary. For what it's worth, Donphan can also set up Stealth Rock for Dewgong's team. Uxie also makes a good partner because it can set up Stealth Rock, like Donphan, and because it threatens Fighting-type Pokemon with STAB Psychic and can cripple other things with Thunder Wave.

Dewgong has an advantage as a special attacker in NU in that it is both very bulky and fast enough to outrun every major defensive Pokemon without any Speed investment. Ice Beam is an incredible STAB move in the tier, blasting apart the Grass-types that would normally give Dewgong trouble and being generally super hard to switch into safely. Surf pairs exceptionally well with Ice Beam and takes out the Rock-, Steel-, and Fire-types that may be able to stomach an Ice Beam. Hidden Power Electric completes the coverage against opposing Water-types, though Hidden Power Grass may be chosen for a better hit on Whiscash and Relicanth. The last slot on this set is almost completely filler, and it depends entirely on what you'd like Dewgong to do for the team when blasting the foe isn't the best option. Encore prevents the opponent from setting up against Dewgong and can lock a defensive Pokemon into a non-damaging move. Toxic can wear down the defensive Pokemon that can comfortably wall Dewgong's attacks, particularly Kecleon and Lickitung. Perish Song ensures that Dewgong can't get run over by a late-game sweeper like Calm Mind Chimecho, and it forces switches against other bulky setup Pokemon like Wailord. Dewgong naturally outpaces every other major defensive Pokemon in the tier, meaning it can devote EVs that would normally be spent on Speed to HP to increase its overall bulk. However, running Speed is still an option, and max Speed ensures that Dewgong can outspeed certain attackers, most notably Flareon, as well as unboosted Pupitar, Tangela, and Huntail. However, even with max Speed Dewgong fails to outrun its most dangerous threats, namely Hitmonchan, Plusle, and Haunter, so in the end investing in bulk will probably be the most helpful. Icy Wind can be used on this set pretty effectively to allow another slower teammate to come in against a switch-in to Dewgong and outspeed it. This is particularly effective for counteracting the opponent's Hitmonchan and Plusle. This set is much harder for something like Hitmonchan to switch into, and Spikes makes this set even more effective, meaning Roselia is a fantastic teammate, particularly as it can provide a secondary check to Grass- and Electric-types. An offensive Pokemon that can switch into Hitmonchan is still recommended, particularly Chimecho and Haunter, as they can keep up offensive momentum. Special walls like Kecleon and Lickitung are of particular concern when using this set, making strong physical attackers like Hitmonchan, Piloswine, and Flareon good teammates. Finally, a teammate that can switch into Plusle and Haunter is needed for this set to work effectively, making dedicated special walls like Kecleon good team choices as well.

This set is one of the best checks to special attackers in the tier, despite its weaknesses to Grass- and Electric-type attacks. With max Special Defense investment, Dewgong is only 4HKOed by Huntail's Hidden Power Electric, giving it an obvious niche in the tier as a check to offensive Water-types. Ice Beam is chosen as the main STAB move, as it prevents Grass-types from switching in easily and gives Dewgong a tool to check Sunny Day Tangela and Bellossom, and STAB Ice Beam is kind of hard to switch into in general. Surf is a good choice for the second slot as a secondary STAB move that has fantastic coverage with Ice Beam, allowing Dewgong to effectively threaten Fire- and Steel-types. Alternatively, Toxic or Perish Song can be chosen instead, the former giving Dewgong a tool to wear down Pokemon that would otherwise be able to wall it endlessly like Kecleon and Lickitung, and the latter making Dewgong one of the best checks to Calm Mind Chimecho in the tier. The last two slots are dedicated to RestTalk, which is the best method for keeping Dewgong around for the whole match and lets it absorb status like Toxic as well. Toxic and Protect can be run together in the last two slots over RestTalk to increase Dewgong's flexibility and allow it to scout for the opponent's movesets. However, the longevity provided by RestTalk is usually far more preferable. Encore can be used in the second moveslot to disrupt an opponent's defensive Pokemon or lock an offensive Pokemon into an ineffective move. More Speed can be run, but Dewgong is already the fastest defensive Pokemon in the tier. Generally, just dropping a couple more EVs in Speed will ensure that the offensive Pokemon using minimum Speed Dewgong as their target won't be able to outspeed it. Most Rock- and Ground-types can't switch into Dewgong safely, but Dewgong still needs a teammate that can switch into Rock-type attacks. Piloswine, Whiscash, and Mawile are all good options to take on the few Rock-type attacks that Dewgong can't ward off on its own. Hitmonchan is a major threat to Dewgong, especially considering it has a high base Special Defense stat, meaning Chimecho, Haunter, and Flying-types are good teammates to help combat it. Physically defensive Chimecho also has an easy enough time with most of the Rock-types that threaten Dewgong. Plusle and strong Grass-type attackers like Sunny Day Bellossom can still run straight through Dewgong despite its massive Special Defense, making a Pokemon like Roselia or Kecleon still a good teammate to have around, but be careful of stacking too many Pokemon on your team susceptible to Hitmonchan and other physical threats like Vigoroth. For this reason, Swalot makes a very effective physically defensive Pokemon to pair with Dewgong, as it can also take on the few special attackers that give Dewgong trouble.

With solid special bulk, an excellent STAB combination, and good utility moves, Dewgong is an excellent tank in NU. Its dual STAB combination of Surf and Ice Beam keeps a large chunk of the metagame at bay, dealing at least neutral damage to all Pokemon that aren't Water-types while threatening passive Water-types with an Ice Beam freeze. It also hits a wide variety of common threats super effectively, including Xatu, Magmar, Rapidash, Pupitar, Dugtrio, and Gloom. Dewgong is one of the most solid answers to Xatu, the top threat of NU, as it is only 5HKOed by Psychic and threatens a 2HKO against Xatu with Ice Beam, which most specially bulky Pokemon cannot hope to achieve. The combination of Rest and Sleep Talk gives it longevity, the ability to absorb status, and a chance to damage any check that might try to take advantage of its sleep turns to switch in. Dewgong can also run Hidden Power Electric or Hidden Power Grass to deter Water-types. The former deals a heavy blow to Mantine, while the latter chips the threatening Chinchou. However, while they are useful against Kingler and its low Special Defense, they are typically inferior to the standard attacks, as bulkier Water-types like Dewgong and Azumarill just shrug them off regardless, and losing a STAB move makes Dewgong a liability against either Fire- or Grass-types. Dewgong and Gloom synergize with each other very well; while Gloom can deal with threatening Pokemon Dewgong can't handle such as Primeape, Hitmonlee, and Chinchou, Dewgong is able to threaten Xatu and opposing Fire-types that can 2HKO or OHKO Gloom. Its ability to switch into Xatu makes Dewgong a good supporting Pokemon for Fighting-types like Primeape, a very dangerous sweeper that typically wants to avoid Xatu. Dewgong requires support in the form of an offensive presence towards the Pokemon that tend to take advantage of it. Xatu's STAB Psychic functions as a deterrent for Water-types like the threatening Kingler that can endure Dewgong's STAB moves and set up with Substitute and Swords Dance. Dewgong's moveset and defensive traits won't quite cut it on their own to stop the metagame's physical Normal-types from running over a team. Stantler and Fearow have a high damage output and outspeed Dewgong, while Lickitung, Dunsparce, and Wigglytuff can withstand a few attacks and slowly set up with Swords Dance or Curse. It's only natural that Normal-resistant Pokemon can come to its aid. Sudowoodo can take a few hits from Stantler and non-Belly Drum Lickitung and threaten to remove them with Self-Destruct. Shuckle is another valid option due to its phenomenal defenses and typing, which let it sit in on anything that Normal-types may throw at it and stall them out. One of Dewgong's key flaws is its weakness to Rock-type attacks, so it can be effective to pair Dewgong with another Water-type, such as Kingler or Octillery.

GSC NU's fast-paced metagame can sometimes leave Dewgong with RestTalk lagging behind: Curse Normal-types can set up in its face, Kingler easily takes advantage of it, and even Fire-types can set up Sunny Day in its face to take reduced damage from an already fairly weak Surf. Nevertheless, Dewgong can make use of its bulk and unique movepool to punish some of its more audacious foes. Many of the Pokemon that can take advantage of Dewgong, such as Primeape, Kingler, Sneasel, and Sunny Day Magmar, despise getting poisoned. Ice Beam as the chosen STAB move allows Dewgong to threaten Xatu and Gloom while using Toxic to put pressure on most everything else. Protect lengthens Dewgong's lifespan and has good synergy with Toxic while also granting the player a chance to scout moves. Certain variants of Toxic Dewgong may include Surf as a means to threaten Magnemite and RestTalk Sudowoodo, which can otherwise take advantage of Dewgong. Encore is used to punish setup Pokemon and other foes that think they can take advantage of Dewgong, such as Kingler, Wigglytuff, and Sunny Day Fire-types. Dewgong can even switch into Surf from Chinchou and prevent it from using Thunder on the next turn thanks to its higher Speed stat. Rest can work even without Sleep Talk, as Dewgong can withstand a few hits from foes such as Xatu and Octillery. This makes Dewgong a bit less susceptible to status, but sleep makes it easier to take advantage of, so Protect is preferred in most circumstances. Of all the support Pokemon that Dewgong likes to pair with, Gloom is definitely one of the better options. Gloom is immune to Toxic and resists all STAB moves from two of the biggest threats to Dewgong, Primeape and Chinchou. Gloom and Dewgong form a very solid defensive core to counterbalance the common Xatu + Fire- and Fighting-type offensive archetypes, and an even greater synergy forms when Ninetales is added to the mix. Ninetales is a specially bulky Pokemon that can help defend against Xatu if Dewgong is low on health, hinders Sunny Day teams by virtue of its typing, and has Roar to shut down any Baton Pass users that may switch into Gloom, such as Flareon and Ledian. Since Dewgong's lack of Surf can make it weak to opposing Rock-types and incapable of threatening Magnemite, the only Steel-type in the tier with access to a powerful Thunder, Pupitar can be effective to initially check these threats. Weezing is another solid teammate that can take on Primeape and has Haze to prevent setup sweepers from breaking through the defensive core. It has solid offensive coverage in Fire Blast and Thunder and can take potential threats down with Explosion. Other Pokemon that like Dewgong's support are Hitmonlee and Xatu. Dewgong can handle Xatu for Hitmonlee, which can remove Spikes with Rapid Spin and also take on Chinchou for it. Xatu benefits from Dewgong defending against faster Pokemon like Dugtrio and Rapidash, while it can use its STAB Psychic to threaten Fighting-types like Hitmonlee and Primeape, dangerous threats such as Kingler, and Weezing, which might use Explosion to remove Dewgong. Pineco grants offensive utility with Spikes to a team that might rely too heavily on stalling out the opponent. Reflect also allows Pineco to support its team against the aforementioned Fighting-types, and Rapid Spin can keep Dewgong from being worn down by Spikes.

Set Description Dewgong is one of the scariest Growth recipients in the tier, since it is extremely bulky and fast enough to outspeed threats to it such as Weezing and Chinchou. It is able to 2HKO or 3HKO every Pokemon in the tier at +1 Special Attack, with the exception of other Dewgong, which still cannot deal significant damage back unless they run Toxic. Ice Beam threatens to OHKO common Pokemon such as Xatu, Fearow, and Gloom after a boost. Ice Beam also makes sure Dewgong cannot be answered by Grass-types like Stun Spore Gloom and Tangela. Surf, meanwhile, is important so that Dewgong is not answered by Fire-types like Ninetales and Magmar, as if it chose to run a set with Ice Beam, Hidden Power Grass, and RestTalk, Dewgong would fail to do meaningful damage to them, and the Growth pass attempt would be wasted. Hidden Power Grass hits opposing Water-types like Octillery and other Dewgong; while it has worse DV requirements than Hidden Power Electric, Hidden Power Electric cannot hit Chinchou super effectively. After a boost, Dewgong is favored to 2HKO Chinchou and is guaranteed to 3HKO Octillery with Hidden Power Grass, and although it only has a miniscule chance to 3HKO other Dewgong, RestTalk Dewgong cannot do meaningful damage back and will fall to an eventual high roll or critical hit. However, Toxic + Encore sets can shut down even a boosted Dewgong fairly easily. Flareon can also potentially pull off using Growth twice before executing a Baton Pass to Dewgong, in which case all Pokemon that only get 3HKOed by a +1 Dewgong will now be 2HKOed. Protect is crucial for blocking a use of Explosion by Weezing or Pineco that attempt to take down Dewgong before it can do any more damage. Protect also allows Dewgong to freely gain additional Leftovers recovery and is a large part of making Dewgong so frustrating to take down, with it seemingly staying alive for so long and causing so much havoc despite taking several hard hits. Team Options Aside from the mandatory Growth + Baton Pass Flareon, Weezing makes for a strong partner, as Primeape and Hitmonlee aren't 2HKOed by a +1 Dewgong and outspeed it to 2HKO back with Cross Chop and High Jump Kick, respectively. Primeape even has an increased chance to land an OHKO on Dewgong due to Cross Chop’s boosted critical hit rate. Weezing hard counters the Fighting-types and uses them to fire off attacks, and it can make for a short-term Fearow switch-in or a lure for potential threats to Growth pass like Dugtrio, Ninetales, and Wigglytuff, being able to eliminate them with Explosion. Xatu also helps out with the Fighting-types and complements Dewgong nicely, as it is the main recipient of Growth when encountering a team with a Fighting-type thanks to its Speed and STAB Psychic, while Dewgong is the main choice of Growth recipient into most other teams, especially ones with Fearow. Lead dual screens Dragonair makes starting off the game with a Flareon setup and using Baton Pass to pass Growth to to Dewgong safely much easier, allowing Dewgong to act as a wallbreaker early-game. Curse Wigglytuff and Stantler are effective choices on a Growth pass team to take advantage of the huge holes broken in the opposing team by a boosted Dewgong before it goes down, often being able to overwhelm the opponent and clean up the rest of the game. They are also able to switch into Chinchou and, to a lesser extent, Magnemite, which would otherwise be problematic for Growth pass teams because they usually forgo an Electric-resistant Pokemon.