Spheal Movesets & Competitive Sets

Spheal performs much like Walrein does in the upper tiers, using Substitute and Protect to stall out many threats. With hail falling, Spheal's Ice Body will activate, which when used in tangent with Leftovers, heals most of the health lost from Substitute. Aqua Ring allows it to heal all the health loss over two turns, making this set work even more effectively. Super Fang is a great move in the last slot, as it takes out half of the opponent's health, making it much easier for hail to knock the opponent out. Blizzard and Surf are both reliable STAB options. Blizzard has better coverage and is also more powerful, while Surf has more PP and can be used to hit Rock-type Pokemon hard, who would otherwise pose a threat to Spheal. Finally, Toxic is also a viable option, allowing it to slowly whittle away at the opponent's health. Toxic Spikes support is greatly appreciated if Spheal lacks Toxic as it makes stalling opposing Pokemon much easier. Tentacool is a great teammate, being able to set up Toxic Spikes, as well as Rapid Spin, alleviating Spheal of its Stealth Rock fears. Tentacool also has access to Blizzard, which is a benefit since it is being used on a hail team. Ice Beam and Frost Breath are options over Blizzard, but the extra power that Blizzard has can be helpful in certain cases. The choice of nature is mainly up to preference. If Spheal is meant to tank better from the physical side, a Bold nature should be used, while a Calm nature is the preferred option if Spheal is meant to take special attacks. Spheal can run maximum Speed in order to tie with Croagunk and Timid Clamperl, but the loss in bulk greatly hurts its ability to stall. Encore is also an option to give Spheal an easier time setting up. Snover is a necessary teammate as its able to set up permanent hail, which is critical to Spheal's success. Litwick pairs up well with Spheal, being resistant to Grass-type attacks, immune to Fighting-type attacks, and able to knock out Pokemon who can defeat Spheal such as Magic Guard Solosis. Note that both Pokemon are weak to Rock-type attacks.

The purpose of this set is to stall your opponent out by alternating between Substitute and Protect; with hail falling, Spheal's Ice Body will activate, which combines with Leftovers to recover the HP required for Substitute in the 2 turns granted by said moves. Super Fang should be used in the third moveslot so opposing Ice-types don't beat this set. In addition, Super Fang is a reliable method of dealing damage, as it halves the remaining health of any non-Ghost-type Pokemon. However, Blizzard is a great STAB for Spheal, as it will deal a good amount of damage even with minimal investment. The fourth move is a matter of personal preference. Aqua Ring is the more desirable move, as after one turn of setup, it will allow Spheal to recover more health than it would lose from using Substitute (over two turns). This is vital for Spheal's longevity, as it can now stall out teams for an indefinite amount of time. However, if there is no room on the team for a Toxic Spikes user, such as Tentacool or Pineco, then Toxic can be used to compensate. The EVs give Spheal 23 HP, so Spheal will only lose 1 HP per turn if not using Aqua Ring. The remaining EVs are used to maximize Spheal's defenses, and the rest go into Special Attack. This set desperately needs hail support in order for it to function properly. Thankfully, Snover can set up infinite hail with its Snow Warning ability. This set also enjoys having opposing Hippopotas removed so that hail may prevail. Fortunately, Snover handles Hippopotas with ease. Bronzor and Mantyke also beat Hippopotas with no problems whatsoever. Additionally, Toxic Spikes are vital to the set's success, making your opponent's health rapidly drain away as they struggle to damage Spheal. Leech Seed support is also helpful to Spheal; this way, Spheal can regenerate more health than it loses from Substitute, though it should be noted that Leech Seed is removed when the opponent switches out. Shroomish can provide Leech Seed support, and can use Spore to incapacitate an opponent as well.