[overview]
**Draft Order**: Round 8
**Price Range**: 2-3 points
**Overview**: Golduck works as a paragon of offensive utility with powerful rain-boosted STAB moves, potent setup in Nasty Plot, colorful coverage options, and many support tools. However, its viability as a Swift Swim user—what it's most often drafted for—is a bit debatable. On the one hand, Golduck's Water typing and unimpressive stats leave it outpaced by nearly every other Swift Swim user when it comes to rain cleaning, as it can quickly get stretched out trying to beat the checks that others could simply muscle past. On the other hand, its surprisingly deep movepool offers it a myriad of ways to both support its allies and subvert its enemies, and its status as the "cheapest" Swift Swim user allows it to fit on any team that is not afraid of a little rain.
[strategy comments]
Common Roles
========
**Rain Cleaner**: You don't need to be part Psychic-type to realize how scary Golduck can be in rain; its STAB Hydro Pump leaves a mark even on clear days, its Nasty Plot can turn it into a powerful wallbreaker, and its imposing coverage moves like Ice Beam, Psychic, and Grass Knot drown out the noise of any weakened Water-resistant foe. Specially defensive foes might try to shrug off these attacks, but they too will be underwater once they learn Golduck also possesses a usable Attack stat, rain-boosted Liquidation, and enough physical coverage to leave any foe with mist in their eyes.
**Offensive Utility**: With dual screens, Knock Off, Encore, Flip Turn, Yawn, and many other utility options, Golduck's unnecessarily deep movepool and workable stats make it one of the best surprise utility pieces in the bargain bin!
Common Moves
========
**Primary STAB Moves**: Hydro Pump, Surf, Liquidation, Aqua Jet
**Setup Moves**: Nasty Plot, Calm Mind, Trailblaze, Rain Dance
**Utility Moves**: Knock Off, Taunt, Encore, Haze, Yawn, Hypnosis, Light Screen, Reflect, Flip Turn, Clear Smog, Brick Break, Substitute
**Coverage**: Focus Blast, Grass Knot, Ice Beam, Ice Punch, Low Kick, Power Gem, Psychic, Psyshock, Shadow Claw, Vacuum Wave, Zen Headbutt
Niche Moves
========
**Psychic Noise**: Foes trying to stall out Golduck with healing moves will be in for quite the headache once Psychic Noise is revealed!
**Future Sight**: Future Sight may not pair well with damage-boosting items, but it does pair well with Flip Turn and whatever Fighting- and Poison-baiting allies are on Golduck's team.
**Fling**: Big Nugget + Fling is a tale as old as time, but more supportive Golduck sets can opt to throw a Light Ball, Flame Orb, or Poison Barb for a bit of status-spreading action instead.
Common Items
========
**Damage-boosting Items**: Life Orb, Expert Belt, and Mystic Water allow Golduck to play to the best of both its strengths, boosting its damage output to new levels while still keeping the threat of its setup and coverage!
**Choice Specs / Choice Band**: Some may say that Choice item Golduck hits like a truck, but getting hit by a truck would probably hurt less than taking Choice Band Liquidation or Choice Specs Hydro Pump in rain.
Niche Items
========
**Resistance Berries**: Grass-types are Golduck's natural predators, but Rindo Berry is all that it needs to get a free attack or extra Nasty Plot! Wacan and Yache Berries allow it to set up against bulky Electric-types and the rare Freeze-Dry users as well, though these don't prey on it nearly as often.
**Light Clay**: Acceptable bulk, dual screens, and Flip Turn pivoting? That's Light Clay Golduck, supporting its team no matter the weather.
Tera
========
While Golduck can benefit from Terastallization, its mediocre stats and gimmicky playstyle mean you'd be hard-pressed to pick it over a more expensive secondary Tera Captain . If you were to make it a Captain, however, consider Tera Electric and Flying to grant extra coverage with Tera Blast, Tera Grass, Psychic, and Fighting to boost its best coverage, and Tera Water to ensure its rain-boosted STAB moves take no prisoners!
Draft Strategy
========
Golduck's ability to play as a cleaner and surprise utility tool allows it to fit on many a mostly-complete team. Though its powers are most potent when it's paired with rain, this poultry's actually a poor fit for dedicated rain teams; it simply can't compete with the likes of Basculegion and Kingdra offensively, meaning the games where it'll come are be few and far between.
**Alternative Rain Setters**: Since Golduck often does not fit well on dedicated rain teams, it can use alternative manual rain setters to surprise opponents. While almost any decent Pokemon with Rain Dance can get the job done in a pinch, Flying- and Electric-types like Zapdos and Dragonite are especially eager to pair with it; they can use the rain they set to spam Hurricane and Thunder, threatening Golduck's counters without stepping on its feet. Fire-weak Pokemon like Jirachi and Froslass find themselves a lot less flammable in rain, and pivots like Deoxys-D offer both rain and a safe entry. Finally, certain Prankster users like Tornadus, Grafaiai, and Klefki can make it rain with priority!
Checks and Counters
========
**Water-resistant Foes**: Golduck's flaws as a Swift Swim user quickly become apparent when it can't hit the blue button and make all its problems go away. Pokemon like Azumarill and Roaring Moon are more than happy to remind trainers of this, forcing Golduck to rely on its coverage, which usually doesn't OHKO them without setup or prior chip, letting them cripple or KO it in return.
**Losing Rain**: Once the weather clears, Golduck's easy to mob, as it loses both a massive damage and Speed boost. Bringing weather solely to smite it isn't a common strategy, but more traditional tactics like scouting with Protect, stalling the rain out with healing moves and Regenerator, and hard switching to trick it into using resisted attacks can minimize the damage it can do just as well. Slowking in particular is especially good at this; it can change the weather on a whim and switch in multiple times thanks to Regenerator and high bulk.
[credits]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/big-pharma.657717/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/abriel.473082/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/scionicle.599989/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/techno.527276/
**Draft Order**: Round 8
**Price Range**: 2-3 points
**Overview**: Golduck works as a paragon of offensive utility with powerful rain-boosted STAB moves, potent setup in Nasty Plot, colorful coverage options, and many support tools. However, its viability as a Swift Swim user—what it's most often drafted for—is a bit debatable. On the one hand, Golduck's Water typing and unimpressive stats leave it outpaced by nearly every other Swift Swim user when it comes to rain cleaning, as it can quickly get stretched out trying to beat the checks that others could simply muscle past. On the other hand, its surprisingly deep movepool offers it a myriad of ways to both support its allies and subvert its enemies, and its status as the "cheapest" Swift Swim user allows it to fit on any team that is not afraid of a little rain.
[strategy comments]
Common Roles
========
**Rain Cleaner**: You don't need to be part Psychic-type to realize how scary Golduck can be in rain; its STAB Hydro Pump leaves a mark even on clear days, its Nasty Plot can turn it into a powerful wallbreaker, and its imposing coverage moves like Ice Beam, Psychic, and Grass Knot drown out the noise of any weakened Water-resistant foe. Specially defensive foes might try to shrug off these attacks, but they too will be underwater once they learn Golduck also possesses a usable Attack stat, rain-boosted Liquidation, and enough physical coverage to leave any foe with mist in their eyes.
**Offensive Utility**: With dual screens, Knock Off, Encore, Flip Turn, Yawn, and many other utility options, Golduck's unnecessarily deep movepool and workable stats make it one of the best surprise utility pieces in the bargain bin!
Common Moves
========
**Primary STAB Moves**: Hydro Pump, Surf, Liquidation, Aqua Jet
**Setup Moves**: Nasty Plot, Calm Mind, Trailblaze, Rain Dance
**Utility Moves**: Knock Off, Taunt, Encore, Haze, Yawn, Hypnosis, Light Screen, Reflect, Flip Turn, Clear Smog, Brick Break, Substitute
**Coverage**: Focus Blast, Grass Knot, Ice Beam, Ice Punch, Low Kick, Power Gem, Psychic, Psyshock, Shadow Claw, Vacuum Wave, Zen Headbutt
Niche Moves
========
**Psychic Noise**: Foes trying to stall out Golduck with healing moves will be in for quite the headache once Psychic Noise is revealed!
**Future Sight**: Future Sight may not pair well with damage-boosting items, but it does pair well with Flip Turn and whatever Fighting- and Poison-baiting allies are on Golduck's team.
**Fling**: Big Nugget + Fling is a tale as old as time, but more supportive Golduck sets can opt to throw a Light Ball, Flame Orb, or Poison Barb for a bit of status-spreading action instead.
Common Items
========
**Damage-boosting Items**: Life Orb, Expert Belt, and Mystic Water allow Golduck to play to the best of both its strengths, boosting its damage output to new levels while still keeping the threat of its setup and coverage!
**Choice Specs / Choice Band**: Some may say that Choice item Golduck hits like a truck, but getting hit by a truck would probably hurt less than taking Choice Band Liquidation or Choice Specs Hydro Pump in rain.
Niche Items
========
**Resistance Berries**: Grass-types are Golduck's natural predators, but Rindo Berry is all that it needs to get a free attack or extra Nasty Plot! Wacan and Yache Berries allow it to set up against bulky Electric-types and the rare Freeze-Dry users as well, though these don't prey on it nearly as often.
**Light Clay**: Acceptable bulk, dual screens, and Flip Turn pivoting? That's Light Clay Golduck, supporting its team no matter the weather.
Tera
========
While Golduck can benefit from Terastallization, its mediocre stats and gimmicky playstyle mean you'd be hard-pressed to pick it over a more expensive secondary Tera Captain . If you were to make it a Captain, however, consider Tera Electric and Flying to grant extra coverage with Tera Blast, Tera Grass, Psychic, and Fighting to boost its best coverage, and Tera Water to ensure its rain-boosted STAB moves take no prisoners!
Draft Strategy
========
Golduck's ability to play as a cleaner and surprise utility tool allows it to fit on many a mostly-complete team. Though its powers are most potent when it's paired with rain, this poultry's actually a poor fit for dedicated rain teams; it simply can't compete with the likes of Basculegion and Kingdra offensively, meaning the games where it'll come are be few and far between.
**Alternative Rain Setters**: Since Golduck often does not fit well on dedicated rain teams, it can use alternative manual rain setters to surprise opponents. While almost any decent Pokemon with Rain Dance can get the job done in a pinch, Flying- and Electric-types like Zapdos and Dragonite are especially eager to pair with it; they can use the rain they set to spam Hurricane and Thunder, threatening Golduck's counters without stepping on its feet. Fire-weak Pokemon like Jirachi and Froslass find themselves a lot less flammable in rain, and pivots like Deoxys-D offer both rain and a safe entry. Finally, certain Prankster users like Tornadus, Grafaiai, and Klefki can make it rain with priority!
Checks and Counters
========
**Water-resistant Foes**: Golduck's flaws as a Swift Swim user quickly become apparent when it can't hit the blue button and make all its problems go away. Pokemon like Azumarill and Roaring Moon are more than happy to remind trainers of this, forcing Golduck to rely on its coverage, which usually doesn't OHKO them without setup or prior chip, letting them cripple or KO it in return.
**Losing Rain**: Once the weather clears, Golduck's easy to mob, as it loses both a massive damage and Speed boost. Bringing weather solely to smite it isn't a common strategy, but more traditional tactics like scouting with Protect, stalling the rain out with healing moves and Regenerator, and hard switching to trick it into using resisted attacks can minimize the damage it can do just as well. Slowking in particular is especially good at this; it can change the weather on a whim and switch in multiple times thanks to Regenerator and high bulk.
[credits]
Written by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/big-pharma.657717/
Quality checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/abriel.473082/
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/scionicle.599989/
Grammar checked by:
https://www.smogon.com/forums/members/techno.527276/
Last edited by a moderator:
